OF

Articles exhibited by the House of Represen tatives of the United States, in the name of themselves and of all the people of the United States, against SAMUEL CHASE, one of the Associate Juftices of the Supreme Court of the United States, in maintenance and support of their impeachment against him, for high crimes and misdemeanors.

THAT,

ARTICLE I.

HAT, unmindful of the folemn duties of his office, and contrary to the facred ob ligation by which he stood bound to dif charge them, "faithfully and impartially, and without refpect to perfons," the faid Samuel Chafe, on the trial of John Fries, charged with high treafon, before the circuit court of the United States, held, for the diftrict of Pennsylvania, in the city of Philadelphia, during the months of April and May, one thousand eight hundred, whereat the faid Samuel Chafe prefided, did, in his judicial capacity, conduct himfelf in a manner highly arbitrary, oppreffive and unjust, viz:

1. In delivering an opinion, in writing, on the queftion of the law, on the con ftruction of which the defence of the ac cufed materially depended, tending to prejudice the minds of the jury against the cafe of the faid John Fries, the prifoner, before counfel had been heard in his defence;

2. In restricting the counfel for the faid Fries from recurring to fuch English autho. rities as they believed oppofite, or from citing certain ftatutes of the United States, which they deemed illuftrative of the pofi, tions, upon which they intended to rest the defence of their client;

3. In debarring the prifoner from his conftitutional privilege of addreffing the jury (through his counfel) on the law, as well as on the fact, which was to determine his guilt, or innocence, and at the fame time endeavoring to wreft from the jury their indifputable right to hear argue ment, and determine upon the queftion of law, as well as the question of fact, involv ed in the verdict which they were requir ed to give ;

In confequence of which irregular con

duct of the faid Samuel Chafe, as danger. ous to our liberties, as it is novel to our laws and ufages, the faid John Fries was deprived of the right, fecured to him by the 8th article amendatory of the conftitu. tion, and was condemned to death without having been heard, by counfel, in his defence to the difgrace of the character of the American bench, in manifeft violation of low and juftice, and in open contempt of the rights of juries, on which ultimate, ly reft the liberty and fafety of the American people.

ARTICLE II.

of

THAT, prompted by a fimilar fpirit perfecution, and injuftice, at a circuit court of the United States, held at Richmond, in the month of May, one thousand eight hundred, for the diftrict of Virginia, whereat the faid Samuel Chafe prefided, and before which a certain James Thompfon Calender was arraigned for a libel on John Adams, then prefident of the United States, the faid Samuel Chafe, with intent to opprefs, nd procure the conviction of the faid Callender, did over-rule the ob jections of John Baffet, one of the jury, who wished to be excuted from ferving on the faid trial because he had made up his mind as to the publication from which the words, charged to be libellous, in the indictment, were extracted; and the faid Bafflet was accordingly fworn, and did ferve on the jury, by whofe verdict the prifoner was fubfequently convicted.

ARTICLE III.

THAT, with intent to opprefs and pro cure the conviction of the prifoner, the evidence of John Taylor, a material wit. nefs on behalf of the aforefaid Callender, was not permitted by the faid Samuel Chafe to be given in, on pretence that the faid witnefs could not prove the truth of the whole of one of the charges contained in the indictment, although the faid charge embraced more than one fact.

ARTICLE IV.

THAT the conduct of the faid Samuel Chafe was marked, during the whole

courfe of the faid trial, by manifeft in. justice, partiality and intemperance, viz.

1. In compelling the prifoner's counfel to reduce to writing, and fubmit to the inspection of the court, for their admiffion or rejection, all queftions which the faid counfel meant to propound to the a. bove named John Taylor, the witnefs.

2. In refufing to poftpone the trial, although an affidavit was regularly filed, ftating the abfence of material witnesses on behalf of the accufed; and although it was manifeft, that, with the utmost dili. gence, the attendance of fuch witneffes could not have been procured, at that

term.

3. In the ufe of unufual, rude, and con temptuous expreffions towards the prifoner's counfel; and in falfely infinuating that they wished to excite the public fears and indignation and to produce that infubordination to law, to which the conduct of the judge did, at the fame time, manifeftly tend

4. In repeated and vexatious interruptions of the faid counfel, on the part of the faid judge, which, at length, induced them to abandon their cause and their client, who was thereupon convicted and condemned to fine and imprisonment:

5. In an indecent folicitude, manifefted by the fad Samuel Chafe, for the convic tion of the accufed, unbecoming even a public profecutor, but highly difgraceful to the character of a judge as it was fub, verfive of justice.

ARTICLE V.

And whereas it is provided by the aft of Congrefs paffed on the twenty-fourth day of September, one thoufand feven hundred and eighty-nine, intitu. led "An act to establish the judicial courts of the United States, "that for any crime, or offence against the United States, the offender may be arrested, imprifoned, or bailed, agreeably to the ufual mode of procefs in the ftate where fuch offender may be found; and whereas it is provided

by the laws of Virginia, that, upon prefentment by any grand jury of an offence not capital, the court fhall order the clerk to iffue a fummons against the perfon, or perfons offending, to appear and anfwer fuch prefentment at the next court; yet the faid Samuel Chafe did at the court a. forefaid, award a capias against the body of the faid James Thompfon Callender, indicted for an offence not capital, whereupon the faid Callender was arrested and committed to clofe cuftody, contrary to law in that cafe made and provided.

ARTICLE VI.

And whereas it is provided by the 24th fection of the aforefaid act, intituled, An act to establish the judicial courts of the United States" that the laws of the feveral ftates, except where the conftitution, treaties, or ftatutes of the United States fhall otherwife require or provide fhall be regarded as the rules of decifion in trials at common law, in the courts of the United States, in cafes where they apply; and whereas by the laws of Virginia it is provided, that in cafes not capital, the offender fhall not be held to anfwer any prefentment of a grand jury until the court next fucceeding that during which fuch prefentment fhall be made, yet the faid Samuel Chafe, with intent to opprefs and procure the conviction of the faid James Thompson Callender, did, at the court aforefaid, rule and adjudge the faid Callender to trial during the term at which he, the faid Callender, was prefented and indicted, contrary to law in that cafe made and provided.

ARTICLE VII.

That at the circuit court of the United States, for the diftrict of Delaware, held at New-Caftle, in the month of June, one thoufand eight hundred, whereat the faid Samuel Chafe prefided, the faid Samuel Chafe, difregarding the duties of his of fice, did defcend from the dignity of a judge, and ftoop to the level of an informer, by refufing to discharge the grand jury, although entreated by feveral of the faid jury fo to do; and after the faid grand

jury had regularly declared, through their foreman, that they had found no bills of indictment, nor had any prefentments to make, by obferving to the faid grand jury, that he the faid Samuel Chafe, understood, that a highly feditious temper had manifefted itself in the ftate of Delaware among a certain clafs of people, particularly in New-caftle county, and more especially in the town of Wilmington, where lived a moft feditious printer, unreftrained by any principle of virtue, and regardless of social order, that the name of this prinaer was"-but checking himself, as if fenfible of the indecorum which he was commit. ting, added" that it might be affuming too much to mention the name of this perfon, but it becomes your duty, gentlemen, to enquire diligently into this matter," or words to that effect; and that with intention to procure the profecution of the prin ter in queftion, the faid Samuel Chafe did, moreover, authoritatively enjoin on the district attorney of the United States the neceflity of procuring a file of the papers to which he alluded, (and which were un. derstood to be thofe published under the title of Mirror of the Times and Gene ral Advertiser,") and by a ftrict examination of them to find fome paffage which might furnish the ground work of a profecution against the printer of the faid pa per; thereby degrading his high judicial functions, and tending to impair the public confidence in, and respect for, the tribunals of juftice, fo effential to the general welfare,

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ARTICLE VIII.

And whereas a mutual respect and confidence between the government of the United States and thofe of the individual states, and between the people and those governments, refpectively, are highly con ducive to that publie harmouy, without which there can be no public happiness, yet the faid Samuel Chafe, difregarding the duties and dignity of his judicial character; did at a circuit court, for the dif trict of Maryland, held at Baltimore in the month of May, one thousand eight hundred and three, pervert his official right and duty to addrefs the grand jury,

then and there affembled, on the "matters coming within the province of the faid jury, for the purpose of delivering to the faid grand jury an intemperate and inflamatory political harangue, with intent to excite the fears and refentment of the faid grand jury, and of the good people of Maryland against their ftate, government and conftitution, a conduct highly cenfurable in any, but peculiarly indecent and unbe coming in a judge of the fupreme court of the United States, and moreover that the faid Samuel Chafe, then and there, under pretence of exercising his judicial right to addrefs the faid grand jury, as aforefaid, did, in a manner highly unwarrantable, endeavor to excite the odium of the faid grand jury, and of the good people of Ma. ryland against the government of the United States, by delivering opinions, which, even if the jndicial authority were competent to their expreffion, on a fuitable occafion in a proper manner, were at that time and as delivered by him, highly in.

decent, extra-judicial and tending to prof titate the high judicial character with which he was invested to the low purpose of an electioneering partizan,

And the houfe of reprefentatives, by proteftation, faving to themfelves the li berty of exhibiting at any time hereafter, any further articles or other accufation, or impeachment againft the faid Samuel Chafe, and alfo of replying to his anfwers which he fhall make unto the faid articles, or any of them, and of offering proof to all and every of the aforefaid articles, and to all and every other articles, impeach ment or accufation, which fhall be exhibited by them, as the cafe fhall require, do demand that the faid Samuel Chafe may be put to answer the faid crimes and mifdemeanors, and that such proceedings, examinations, trials and judgments may be thereupon had and given, as are agree able to law and justice,