saved the country; and whatever may be the opinion of that
country, or the decrees of its courts in relation to the means he
has used, he can never regret that he employed them."[Footnote:
Reid and Baton's "Life of Andrew Jackson," 408, 423.] The court,
not particularly impressed with these arguments, ordered the
proceedings to go forward and required the General to answer
certain interrogatories respecting his course of conduct, by a
day appointed. He appeared on that day and declined to answer
them, with this concluding shot:

"Your honour will not understand me as intending any disrespect
to the court; but as no opportunity has been afforded me of
explaining the reasons and motives by which I was influenced, so
it is expected that censure will constitute no part of that
sentence, which you imagine it your duty to pronounce."[Footnote:
_Ibid_., 387.]

The sentence was a fine of $1,000, which was at once paid.

The sympathy of the country was with "the hero of New Orleans" in
this affair, whose gallant defense of that city had cast a gleam
of glory upon the close of a long and apparently fruitless war.
Some of her people subscribed the money to reimburse to him the
amount of the penalty, but he declined to accept it. Nearly
thirty years afterwards Congress made an appropriation for the
purpose, and he received the full amount with interest (in all
$2,700) from the treasury, as a legislative compensation for a
judicial wrong. It would seem, however, that Judge Hall acted
within the limits of his authority. When he signed the writ of
_habeas corpus_ the State was at peace, and it was generally