The enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1804-1815, 1812-02-18

on ION the contrary, with true magnanirnjty.
ne considers, the greater the danger the grc:,-.
ctr the glor;'; aud AS difficulties tnickcn upon
him. he but redoubles his efforts 10 save
this sinking nation. 1t is indeed very EVIL
dent that his speeches are both longer and
more frequent now, than when he had three
fourths OF the house of Representatives at his
back. Like his useful namesake OF the
| Kitchen, he goes the better for being well
weighted, ami the more they try to pull him
down, the better he RoASTs, and the quick
er he TURNS. -.
There have been few occasions on which
Mr. X. has made more brilliant display
OF his oratorical powers then in opposing,
the late report on our foreign relations; that
silly explosion which Mr.. r. SO aptiy Com
pared to bomb. He seems to think that
the Porter OF New-York is too windy and
Strong for so delicate a stomach as his &
we all know THAT fermented liquors arc
apt to produce indigestion.
The admirable speeche', alluded tc, seem
to have been by many both in and and out
OF Congress, very much misunderstood, and
by others who knew him better, studiously
misrepresented. 1t is therefore nv wish to
say something in reply to the shallow and
malignant criticisms which have heard
uttered against these noble specimens of
| oratory and think that ] cannot better
employ my pen nor you your columns, than
IN thus correcting injustice, and at once ad-
vancing the cause OF eloquence, virtue, and
patriotism,
| 1t is pretended by some cavilers, that his
speeches are generally weak in argument,
| and always deficient in method. l incline
to think that these critical gentlemen ne
yer would have tumbled OIL this objection,
| If 1t had not been suggested by Mr. K. him
| self, who with characteristic modesty, fire.
quently takes occasion TO speak of his desul-
| tory manner, of the unpropitions influence
of disease, and the like. But this humility
has avery different effect OH me from what
was intended. Instead of dimming the
blaze OF his talents, it makes them burn the
brighter. The fact is that look upon Mr.
r. as the greatest reasoning orator now
| living, and consider his speeches to be dis
tinguished for nothing so much as for being
arSumentative. Indeed, the reason why this
is not universally admitted is because his
ratiocination has something peculiar in it,
and seems not exactly suited to popular de-
n,onstrations. The conclusion is, rather too
far removed from the premises for such "a
secondary purpose. But tho the interme ,
date links may escape the dull faculties of
ordinary hearers, they are readily enough
| perceived by those whose imaginations, like
| Mr.. RS, have been instructed by Shakes
peare and Milton.
! Some of the warmcst admirers of our mo-
dern Chatham have regretted, that he should
In the indulgence of that intuitive faculty
which sees every thing at a glance, so often
overlook the intervening positions by which
| your slow plodding minds must advance, if
at all. But MIR. K. saves them the trouble of
getting on Of themselves. He suddenly trans
ports them to a distance in tornado of e.
loquence and tho they neither know whe-
Their they have travelled North, South, East
or West the ground they have passed O.
yer, nor how far they have been whiried !;
yet 1t is quite enough that they know where
they are, and this lie will be sure to tell
them. To expect he is to stop to make
his arguments plain to the meanest capaci-
ty, is like supposing well mounted hunts
man, ia full chace, is to stop and take down
every set of draw-bars-he comes to, instead
OF boldly bounding over them. Some SIM
1 pie people have imagined that you must
build up an argument, as you would house,
lay a foundation and work upwards, course
by course, and 'Obrick by brick :" but Mr..
K. has very happily ridiculed this formal
! stie OF reasoning in his able structures On the
book imputed to Mr.. Madison.-By single
stroke OF mastery criticism he would have
overturned that piece of sophistry, if he had
not made small mistake in quoting it.
1t is an argument of Mr.. II. that as he
owes his brilliant imagination to Shakes
Peare and Milton his habit of close reason
ing to Locke /; his piety and devotion to
iiiotson and his angry zeal against the
enemies or his country to Chatham, there
lore we ought not to complain of the orders
III councll.-Io some men the connection
between the premises and the conclusion
mere may not be very obvious But why
should he take the trouble to mention that
these great geniusses were Englishmen--
that we owe them everlasting gratitude for
fashionlng him such as he is-and that ha-
J wing received suCh an inestimable benefit from
the British nation, we ought not lightly TO
resent her injustice no more than if one
VINO had instructed us in a trade or profess
sion, should cut down one of our trees, or whip
one OF our negroes, we should send him
lchaltenge TO be sure the claims on our
gratitude would be stronger, if this same
shakespeare, and the other instructors of our
distinguished patriot were the Identical men
who now give us cause Of complaint But
without doubt they have descendants, and
we caunot make war upon part of the ma
ton to the exclusion of the rest. Nay it is
highly probable that some of the numerous
Posterlty OF these worthless arc now in Ca
NADIA or Nova Scotia, and may, by the dire
tul chance OF war, be among the first victims
to our bloodthirsty rage. Let it not be said
that Mr.. X. is not the American nation
we are all in common with him under the
greatest obligations to English litcralure.-
| L no few OF US have read the sublime au-
thors he mentions, we have all read the
history of Tom Thumb, of Blue Beard, and
Jack the Giant killer. Nor should those