The Hillsborough recorder. [volume] (Hillsborough, N.C.) 1820-1879, 1838-04-13


least. the authority Of lie Senator himself
for saying that il belonged 10 me before
The present occasion. and il il. Of course.
incumbent on him % show ILat | have
since forfeited IL lie will end tie task
. HereUlesn one. Ii would be BY FAR
more easy 70 show the opposite. that in
stead Of fOrleiling, have strengthened
my tile 10 The character: instead Of aban-
doning any principles, have firmly ad-
hered 20 them, and lha.. too, under the
most appalling difficulties. IL / were TO
select an instance in The whole course Of
my life. on which above all Others. to
rest my elaim 10 ihe character which the
Senator attributed 10 me, il would be this
very one, which he has selected 10 prove
that have forfeited il. acted with the
full knowledge Of the difficulties had 10
encounter. aud the responsibility must
incur. Isaw great and powerful parry.
probably the most powerful in The eOun-
try, eagerly seiEing on the Catastrophe
which had beiallen The currency, aud The
consequent embsTrsssmenis thai followed.
TO displace those in power, against whom
| they had been long conlending. saw
that. 10 stand between them and their OBJ
jeci. ! mast necessarily incur their deep
and lasting displeasure. also saw thai,
10 maintain the administration in the po-
sition they had taken, 10 separate The GO
yernmenI from The banks, | would draw
down on me. with the exception of some
Of the Southern banks, the whole weight
OF that extensive, concentrated. and pow
erful inlerest-lhe most powerful by Ear
Of any IN the whole community; and thus
lwoald mite against me a combination
Of political and mOneyed influence almost
irresistible. Nor was this all | could
not but see that, however pure and dlsIn-
leresled my motives, aud however con-
sisieni my course with oil had ever said
or done, 1 would be exposed to The very
charges aud aspersiOns which | am now
repelling. The ease with which they
could be made aud The temptation TO make
them, | saw were too great 10 be resisted
by the party morality Of the day, As
groundlrss ~ ave demonstrated them 10
be. b. her" was another Consequence
thai could mt huI fOrcsee. far mere pain
lul tn me than Ill others. | ba, too clear-
ly saw ihE. in So sudden and complex
luncture. called IN as was to decade on
nv coursn instantly, as II were, an the
field oi battle. without consultation, or
explaining ms reasons | would esisange
for time many If nv pnlipesl friends,
who had passed through With me so many
trials and d'tilculueS, and for whom feel
brolher's love. But saw before me The
path ~ duty, and though rugged. and
hedged on all sides with ihess and many
other difficulties, did mol hesitate a mo
men, 10 take il. Alter had made up my
mind as 10 nv course. in a conversation
with friekd about the responsibility l
would assume. he remarked tina, my own
state nigh, desert me. | replied tina, /,
was not impossible; but The result has
proved that underestimate the inielli-
gence aud PATRIOTISM Of my virluous and
nnble state. | ask her pardon For the dis.
trust implied IN my answer; blu, | ask
with assurance it will be granted. on
the grounds shall put it--that in being
prepared 10 sacrifice her confidence, as
dear To me as light and life, rather than
dispbey, on This great question. the dc
,sics II my judgment aud conscience
proved myself worthy Of being her repre-
/ sentative. s.~.. -
:, But. ii the Senator, in attributing to me
stern fidelity, cant, not devotion TO prin.
! ciple, hui tpparly, aud especially the par.
" Of which he is so prominent a mem
Der, NV answer is. tha, never belonged
10 his party, nor owed ii any fidelity; and
Of course, could forfeit, in reference to il,
no character for fidelity. Ii is true. we
acted in concert against what we believe
10 be the usurpaIions Of the executive;
and il is true, that. during the time saw
much TO esteem il those with whom
acted, and contracted friendly relations
with many which | shah not be the first
10 forget. II is also true that common
party designation was applied to the OPP
position in the aggregate, not, however,
with nv appreciation; but IL is no less
true that il was universally known that it
consisted oflwo distinct parties. dissimi-
lar in principle aud policy except in re-
lalion TO the object for which they have
united: the National Republican party, and
the portion Of the State rights par,y which
had separated from the administration. on
The ground that il had departed from the
true principles Of the original party.
Tha, | belonged exclusively to that de-
iached portion, and 10 neither the oppo-
si,ion nor administration party. ] prove
by my explici. declaration. contained in
4 one Of the extracts. read from my speech
on the currency in 1894. That the par
~ generally, aud the state which ! repre-
sen, in part, stood aloof from both Of the
parties, may be established from the fact
that they refused TO mingle in The party