Daily Richmond Whig. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1828-1831, 1829-01-21
Esa rnr R,oasraSn wa,G.
TO DRAPER.

'arer, mt discovering that your courtesy had attract
I'd as much company TO your door imagined Won
be regarded as an intruder. Presenting that YOU
are now at esure shall endeavor to repay some part
Of the obligations which owe you.
No apology due to me for the length of time
winch elapsed between the publication of my stric-
lures on tho circular Of your friend and the compost
ton of your nctcc Of them. can readily imarinc
the wear and tear of brains which required and sin
cercy compassionate the labor which il cost you Far
better would have been, il YOU had reflected on the
bearing winch Your apology is calculated to have
upon yourself. Such production as yours might have
passed without much severity of criticsm have been
considered mt least paronable, If had been struck
guarded inomcnt-at a season when the cancrnCss of
displaying your literary qualifications adtriumph-
Cd over your discretion and the iroty efcrvacencc of
vanity given unnatural elevation Your Spirits
But what must I've thought of your taste and yuur
Judgment, when il th6 YOU imporuned s pub
catiOn nearly three months after was written
You calculate too largely the charity of mankind
it you imagine that with the evidence before them
they Will not pronounce, that the sodium in lonrl,,
lJaccns has found your breast tn ample and con-
genial dcpostary.
have too mach respect for the purity end dignity
OF my character TO follow the filthy example
Which you have set Nothing is easier than 10
retaiatc abuse III hind. Eut il is poor and pitiful
game To handy scurrilous cpithcts, to wage war
OF personal pronunciation. anu invective, would am
sure, be not less offensive the moral sense and So
Der Judgment of the community than abhorrent to nv
own sense OF propriey. | leave YOU then undispu-
ted master Of this noble field, in which YOU luve
"heshed your maiden sword with SO much honor
II you proud OF the aurels which iiuti,,r upon
your brow, shall not attempt To rob you of single
lcaf-to arrest the current OF your low or mar the
conplaCcncy of your pride.
You seem to have read Juflius till your head has
been turned, and fear your of moral 1blipa.
ton not a little impaired "Decip;t exemplar Wits
'mtable." While YOU have discovered total inca
pachy TO arrive al the tuintcst irritation ofthc polish
ed dlcIon. epgrammatic point. pungcnt wit and ner
v"uS force ct TINS elegant writer, YOU have no, failed
10 reveal nature which his cold aud heartcs ma
l@nity mas 6"en bat too successfully grated. Time
ana P"stoFy nave passed upon the character OF this
great unknown end while they have not failed TO
accord ample merit to his pen, they have doomed TO
inqailhed reprobGtlon the unchGriiablenes of his
spirit the hardness and ferocitv OF his heart IF you
continue to read his work. YOU VIII discover that mere
j. sr"at room to lFlprovc imitation OF ms styln
while At would be doing even linn great Injustice tn
compare any thing which he ever wrote with the sne
cinen which You have afforded If refinement OF man
ner and benign!ty oftecing. lunus too was ALWAYS
dgnlied IN his most rcmorselcsS moments. You
nave adopted the style of tsi-h.arl;pt, and fallen "a
scoding iikea sculion, very drab"
Youinsinuate that have tIidcayored to conceal NV
self, because IN obedience TO very proper and lono
established usage. have written under fictitious sin
natures This is too pucrile and ridiculous to de-
serve serious comment you 1t seems have had no
difficulty IN finding out and am very sure that
am not unknown to your friend. But If you have
real antlpathy to MASKS, Why have you appeared in
domino: Haveyou complained Sir William because
ala not set the example OF violating custom wfcl,
YOU feared might conceal from the public eve the true
name OF the literary phenomenon that has burst upon
The view
With regard TO ray friend" term which Won use
80 often and SO snceFingy shall say but little He
IS at u times able to vmdicate himself have Lrv
over, think, some reason 10 complain of partiaity-
After making me the ostensi5le hero of your piece I
have been maze to share the fate of those Of many
oocr '9T'fers of T0na1ce and turned out but secon-
Diary Parsonage after all. fcur should he forced m
rake IN mass of the most revolving suspicious IN
ind ont the motives OF your acrimonious attack upon
man who ought 10 have been one of the Inst oh
lects oil your venom To say nothing more YOU are
both young men. members of the same profession
and fellow practitioners in part in the same Courts
lie Is dlstingushed--you are but little bnovn-his
hands are full OF hrets-yours are empty leave it
10 - o world and your Own conscience TO decide
whether these things have had any agency in expend
ing much gall.
Since you have bestowed so much attention on nv
friend (or never mentioned him. will make free to
tell YOU that 1t would rebound far more to your honor
ani yv profit TO emulate rather than TO vility the
qualities of his heau Cd h=.s Thouph shall for
bear to state wnat know him TO be capable of doing
| Will tell yon what am he will never do re
VIII never tawn upon the objects of his scorn nor
affect friendship which is foreign 10 his bcort 10
would be one OF the last in the world to conceal
his detestatlon of another under deceitt ourni,ur
OF smiles, much more TO aim u dagger az the heart
beneath the folds of a cordial embrace
But you remark, eff have said any thing in rcla-
ton to your friend, that may give pain it was provo
ked by your attack on Mr.. Taliaferro." Whence did
you derive your system of ethics, From the Bible
from Paley, or from JuDus: / know not which TO
admire most, the soundness of the UNDERSTANDING or
the purity Of the heart that is governed by such
Prncipe-a principle which visits upon the innocent
the offences Of the guilty. and confounds all distinc
ton OF right and wrong, Of common sense and COM
mon justice.
My apprehension is really so dull chat notwithsand
ing all the aid which it has derived from your ssue
ness, am still unable to perceive the illusions which
you think you have discovered in the obnoxious cir
GUAR ave heard the first paragraph likewise
quoted rs the offending portion. Under this latitude
nous method Of construction it would have been OK
ceedmgy difficult to write any thing 70 the purpose
without infringing on your friend. He is placed by il
IN the awkward situation OF the thief, who whether
he hears honesty applauded, or rogucry condemned.
stu imaglncs hmselfto be the theme ofTeproacb "a
gmity conscience needs 40 accuscr.' What a pity it
Is that your friend did not borrow your shrewdness
when he went last to Northumberland, when culled
on there publicly 70 point out what you think so OBJ
yous (unlcss l am greatly nsiuforncd) he complete
ly failed ~ I-'~