Litchfield enquirer., 1837-05-11
WERsTER AND CLAY.
BY A. 4: LOCKE.

RCD1tV ,,,,once If Mr. Clay, Mr. Calhoun, and ot the .S..Lar SS e,,1;neot statesmen and parliamentary leaders ofthe day, must claim for MT. WcD- uter one distinguished excellence, whlch Taises his fame above comparison with any of them I mean the union of philosophy win eloouence. Tn listening to the efforts ,of other orators, have felt all the sympathy and emotion of which the mind IS capable, all which the rapid, the argumentatiVe' ana the persuasive, can produce on the nearer all which solidity, pathos, or splendor, wheth- ar derived from original or assisted powers can convey, of pleasure, wonder, or cohvlc .tion. to the heart or understanding; but that profound delight which fills, invigoratcS' ana Tefreshes the soul from the fountains ot eter- nal truth and deep-seated philosophy tna' sober, serious rapture which the CONSCIOUS I. ness of intellectual expansion, and the leelihe of permanent acquisition in science ProouCe' are the witnesses in my bosom to t"e S"o- stantial superiority of Webster'
 With an imagination chastehe1 anu leiI" ed a memory furnished with the pest sI lected materials from every source ol 1"oWi- edge, ancient and modern, prlVate "Lu pup I;ct domestic and foreign, local and general and judgment fully equal to the appllca- tion and control of this various accumula- lion, Mr. Webster stepped into public lite, fully accomplished, completely armed, and without a superior in whatever constitutes, adorns, and consummates the statesman and the senator. He had with him, too, or with in his reach, an exhaustless store ot imagery and diction. The whole classic world was in obedience to him. he had visited all its recesses, its groves, its fountains, and Its divinities. It is thus that his speeches and compositions, though for the most part tenn norary and local in their leading subjects, have inseparablv connected themselves with the permanent literature of the age. While his mind acquired depth and breadth from his early acquaintance with metaphysics, his taste preserved him from its subtlety.- The learning of antiquity is so wrought into the staple of his understanding, as to become his own both for use and ornament, without the pomp or impertinence of fquotation. It Is on this account that he is distingulshable from all those speakers and writers whose heads are full of other mems thoughts, as we'll by his abstinence as by his abundance.
 His style is unaffected, pure, majestic, and copious; neither rendered obscure by the density of his matter, nor f1orid by the luxu- riance of his imagination. He Is no copylst indeed an original thinker never studiousty copies the manner of any one. The thoughts
 
 dent to be kept within any prescribed course like the silent sources of cataract, they fint a channel wherever the soil yields them { passage, or hurry along the proclivities which nature has prepared for them.
 In the qualifications which have touched upon, MT. Webster is plainly superior 10 MT Clay, whose abilities are peculiarly, had almost said exclusively, parliamentary IL is not difficult to apprehend the distinction between the species of eloquenoe in which they respectively excel, however ardOOss II may be to express it in words. When two persons have risen so near the summit of an art, they must possess many things in con- mon. In all essential qualities each must necessarily abound. The manner and pro- portions in which these qualities are mixed. afford, by their results, the practical ground of distinction. To be full of their subject to see it in all it's bearings; to feel all its strength, and all its weakness to illumine what is dark to raise what is low; to am- plify, to condense, to inflame, to mitigate, to control the sources of persuasion, and to command the avenues to conviction, is the prerogative of each of these distinguished persons. A certain vehemence belongs to both. That of Mir. Webster is irresistible by its bulk that of Mir. Clay by its velocity The eloquence of either may be compared to that of river; but the one is overpower- ing by the weight of it's waters the other by the impetus of it's stream. On the one ma jestically rides the merchandise of the world, -'opinaO fuzniae GGnges;" ;" the other from its crystal sources rushes precipitately down the mountains sides, carrying fertility to the plains. giving strength and freshness to the colors of nature, and enriching our domestic sOl. All that is great is collected in Mir. Webster all that is strong is generated in Mr. Clay. Tothe minds of both every thing is present that the occasion demands; but that compass of thought and knowledge which comprehends it's most distant results, and raising it above party views, exhibits all its grand relations to human nature and society, is in an eminent degree, the advan- sage and felicity of Webster.
 Do not think that wish to detract one jot or one title from Mir. Clay. would not if could. Long shall I remember the lofty exclamation, the commanding tones, the mel low rotundity, the perspicuity of detail, the plenitude of information, the expansion, ease and grace, which marked the last speech he delivered in the halls of fcongress. Long shall recal those sounds and expressions which dispelled all impatience and fatigue, and made party animOsity forget itself in still ad. miration. Like the awe-struck pagan pas sing over the ruins of Delphi, fancy will bring back to my ear the voice of the oracle and the sound ofthe invisible Tyre.
 ". Y. Ners
 Ne,o .Socisty.-A" Wear-your-old-clothe Society" has just been formed at Poughkeep. sic. It IS becoming very popular, and its members increase daily. If the present times continue, people will be obliged tc ged. for who can pay the bills of our tailoTs now?