The Right of Instruction [pp. 530-535]

SOUTHERN LITERARY MESSENGER.
eldest son Mohammed, the claims of Emhammed the
son of the deceased Prince to the succession, had been
set aside by Yusuf, in favor of Ali his second son, who
had been raised to the dignity of Bey. Emhammed
had now attained manhood, and though closely watched
by his uncle and grandfather had succeeded in forming
a small party among the people, who looked to him for
deliverance from the tyranny and oppression under
which they groaned. In this he had been assisted and
encouraged by the British Consul, who hating Ali on
account of his connection withAhe D'Ghies family, and
his well known partiality to France, adopted this means
to satisfy his vengeance. Warrington has indeed been
supposed to have carried his views still farther, and to
have fomented disturbances in Tripoli, in order to obtain possession of the country for Great Britain. The
sequel will show how far such suppositions were warranted.
As soon as the insurrection in the Messeab broke out,
the neighboring Arab tribes came in crowds to join the
rebels, and Emhammed, having succeeded in making his
escape from the city, was proclaimed by them Pasha of
Tripoli. The Bey Ali immediately assembled his adherents, and on the 27th of July 1832, a battle was
fought on the sea shore between them and the insurgents. Emhammed's party was successful; the Bey's
troops were driven back into the city, and the insurgents, receiving daily accessions to their forces, were
soon able to close effectually all the communications of
the place on the land side; a battery was also established by them at the entrance of the harbor on its
eastern shore, in order to prevent the entrance of vessels. In a few days the city was completely invested
by the besiegers, who began to bombard it; and the
supply of provisions from the country being thus cut
off, the inhabitants were threatened with the horrors of
famine. The Consuls were however informed by Emhammed, that they might be furnished with necessaries
for their families, by means of boats sent under the flag
of a Christian nation to his batteries.
In the meantime, the British Consul had struck his
flag, and the besiegers were in hopes that an attack
would be made on the place by the squadron. These
expectations were however disappointed by the sudden
departure of the ships, in consequence it was supposed
of an order from Malta, to which island Colonel Warrington shortly after sailed with his family in an Austrian brig.
Things continued in this state of uncertainty until
the 12th of August, when the Consuls were informed
by Yusuf, at a public audience, in the presence of his
Divan and the principal persons of the place, that he
had abdicated the throne in favor of his son Ali, whom
he requested them to consider as Pasha of Tripoli.
Letters were at the same time delivered to the Consuls
addressed to the heads of their respective Governments,
formally communicating the same intelligence, and
soliciting from each the speedy recognition of the new
sovereign. The means by which the old man was thus
induced to transfer his powers to his son are not known;
there is reason to believe however that he was impelled to it by the threats of Ali, and the promises and representations of the French Consul, both of whom had
cause to apprehend that an admission of Emhammed's
claims to the succession might otherwise be extorted
I]
from him by Warrington on his return from Malta.
Ali immediately assumed the authority and title of
Pasha, appointing as Prime Minister his brother-inlaw Mohammed d'Ghies, (the younger, the old minister of that name died in 1831) who has been already
mentioned in connection with the affair of Major Laing's
papers.
STANZAS.
BY W. GILMORE SIMMS.
Oh, lovely were once her eyes, but grief
Their light hath now o'ercloudedAnd her lips were sweet, like the budding leaf,
Though now their bloom be shroudedFor in her heart, a malady
Like the canker-worm in the rose,
Preys ever there, unceasingly,
And gives her no repose.
It is sad to think, in a few short hours,
We shall look on her no longer,
For the glance gives sign of the failing powers,
And the pang grows hourly stronger;
We shall lose the balm of her budding breath,
We shall hear her voice ino more;
We shall see those sweet eyes sealed in death,
That we once could so adore.
Yet shall I not weep, though losing all
For many long days I so have loved;
The tear that from mine eyes would fall,
My thought has well reproved:
For hers has been a doomed life,
And those who love her well, should pray,
That she may quickly lose the strife,
That has eaten her heart away.
THE RIGHT OF INSTRUCTION.
BY JUDGE JOSEPH HOPKINSON.
Dear Sir-I am well aware that my letter on the
Right of Instruction, published in your June number,
will encounter, in Virginia and elsewhere, names of
high and deserved authority, and talents of great power,
if it shall be thought worthy of any attention. I must
therefore beg you to allow me to explain my views of
this interesting subject a little more fully than was necessary or proper in a letter to a friend. The additions,
however, will be briefly made. I am particularly desirous to sustain myself by the countenance of our distinguished patriots and jurists, especially those who,
having assisted in framing the government, may be presumed to understand its mechanism at least as well as
the politicians of a later date; who are, as I have suggested, the authors of the doctrine of instructions. It
was unknown to those who made the constitutionas well as to those writers and speakers who afterwards
attacked and defended it.
It is a matter of familiar history that from the cornmmencement of this government, there has been a party,
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