Phenix gazette. [volume] (Alexandria [D.C.]) 1825-1833, 1828-01-04

friends, 10 vote for him or support him, Il h,
would raake Mr. Clay Secretary Of State: or to
Gen. Jackson or his friends, 10 vote for him o,
suppor, him, if he could obtain the office of Sc
cretary of State under him; nor do | believe
that Mr. Clay would have taken oeice Under
him if he had bren elected.
Icaunot believe the statement made 70 Gen
Jackson, nor do believe thai; Mr.. Clay made.
or authorized any Of his friends TO make, cyer.
lures To him, directly or indirectly, because |
know that MIR. Clay intended to vote agaius,
him. know Mr.. Clay had determined to vote
for MIR. Adams as early as October 1924, il ,ae
election should devClve upon the House Of Re-
representatives. IN Congress, with his own name
excluded from the list. In this cannot be mis-
taken, because he told me so expressly He
may have forgotten what he said to me, but The
substance of the conversation is fresh in me.
mory with myself, aud will endea,or to de-
tail such portions of it. as will evince his pre-,
possessions in favor Of Mr.. Adams, well as
his fixed intention 10 vote for him.
Mr. Adams, we all know, was elected the
9Th Of February, 1925. The prevailing opiuion,
you will recolleLt, as early as January, 1924, il
not earlier, was that none Of ihe candidates
would ohiIn majority Of the waoie number
Of elcctora! votes, (26l and il was expected as
a matter OF course, ihat the eventual election
would dcvolve upon the House 81 Representa-,
,ives. The friends Of Mr. Clay believed that
he would go before the House as one oFthe
three highest on the list OF candidates; bu; this
was not certain, aud on the contrary II was rea.
sonable to suppose that he might fail In look
ing forward to failure on his part, aniio the
possible events and consequences which might
follow, I was frequently brought to consider
7 i s..ss. -, L.,
preferred as Chief Magistrate of the nation.
II is enough TO say, without dwelling upon mai
tiers concerning myself, that concluded as ear.
ly as February 1924, to vote Tor Mr.. Adamsas
a second choice iu the event Of MIR. Clay's ex-
ciuson from the House, sub ject at al times 10
a change Of opinion for such reasons as oagh;
10 influence The Judgment of public agent,
DESTROYS OF discharsrng his public trusts faith
fully and honestly; and Intending at he proper
season 10 consult fully and freely with the rest
OF my colleagues; holding myself a, liberty all
along TO consider the claims Of MIR. Crawford
If his health should be restored, which, how,
ever, thought improbable, il not impossible,
1t is 20 happened that The Hon Robcr, Trim.
BILE, then Judge of The Federal Court for thc
District Of Kentucky, and now one OF the Jus
tices of the Supreme Cuurt Of the United
States, came to the City of Washington, in The
month of February 1924, ard well remember
that I con.ersed with him freely upon the sub
iect of the election. informed him of my
preference for Mr. Adams as a second choice
and explained TO him the principles and views
of policy which would govern me in making
the selection. gave him my opinion Of MIR
Adams as 4 statesman, and probably went
far as TO mention some Of my obiec lions to Ge-
neral Jackson. The recolIections of Judge
n 4scaffssa lime SHAH 5e enclosed f'
NV preference to Mr.. Adams was s,renp,b.
ened by the occurrences Of the session ending
IN May 1924. TWAS manifest to me from what
l saw and heard, that the bitterness of opposi.
ton to measures in favor Of agriculture, inter.
nal improvements, and domestic manufactures
had increased, and was increasing in the South,
and was satisfied that the American system OF
policy, including our Western interests in il.
could not be sustained in Congress, without
The co operation OF members in favor of the
system from the Eastern States, as we'll as
from The Middle and the Western States
concluded, and rightly 100 think, as time will
show, that the best, if not the only way 70 en-,
sure the success Of the American System. and
sustain our Western interests in it, would be 10
elect MIR. Adams, II MIR. Clay should be defeat.
ed.
III 'nis atate OF Mind ] met MIR. Clay AZ
frankfort. in Kentucky, about the LIST October
1924. 1t was my impression at the time, from
the news OF the day, and other sources of inlor-
nation, that Mr.. Crawford would get some
sixty or seventy electoral votes. and that Mr..
Clay would be left out of the House. We con.
ve:sed Tor some time about the election; and in
the course Of conversation, after speaking free
ly 10 him about his own chances and ,-osprcts,
asked him which Of the other Candidates he
would vote for in the cveni of failure on his
paris He said, that the event supposed would
place him in a delicate altitude before The
House and nation; that choice among his
competitors under any aspect Of it, would be
painful and embarrassing: That from recen, in
formation, the restoration Of MIR. Crawford's
health was entirely hopeless, and that he could
not consistently with his principles vote for
Gen. J. under any possible circumstances.
gave il as my opinion, that Gen. Jackson was
not qualified to Gil the station, and disc harge its
multifarous and complicated duties, foreign
and domestic: TO this he agreed, and added,
that the impartial world would probably con-
slider sylr Adams btftrr nu.lif,.b than ei,hrr