The Madisonian. [volume] (Washington City [i.e. Washington, D.C.]) 1837-1845, 1839-02-21
owned %, 900 sheep, to be opposed to the ia
riff. Truly most sheepish reason.

Sir, il that disastrous measure is ever aoa;,
to agitate this country. desire some other de-
pendence than that which shall be placed i
any one man, and especially on man who
when the country was on the eve of a civil
war, was heard or thought Of by no one. II
that, or any other great crisis other spirits are
looked TO, to direct the storm. have no fear.
on that subject. Ii will not be revived. If il
is, thank God, the whole South will be ami
mated as one man, with the same self-deyo
ting spirit as was heretofore one Of the
smallest of them, In the terrible conhic
through which she passed. When denounced
by her enemies, abandoned by friends, and
deserted in the hour Of peril by those who
should have sustained, she trod, undismayed
her war path" alone.
There is another subject too delicate to be
lightly touched, and too important not to be
alluded to. We are asked to rely upon this
same individual for the protection Of another
and our greatest interest-whilst will not
deny that he has lately acted well on that
subject, and would not insinuate that he has
the slightest faint of abolitionism upon. him /;
still DO want confidence in his disposition or
his ability to meet a great crisis, to throw
himself in the way of bursting torrent
God has given the qualities necessary to this
to few men, and he is not one Of them. Pos
sessed, although he unquestionably is, of
many high endowments, cannot however
close my eyes TO the fact, that his zeal in
favor OF the South has been in exact proper
uon as his star has waned in the North and,
although Mr.. Van Buren, has unquestonably
acted well Of late upon this subject, cannot
forget that he voted for the instructions under
which Rufus King introduced the Missouri
question INTO Congress-nor have forgotten
mat have seen letter from him, about that
Tune, to political friend, in which in reference
TO those instructions he says don't be alarmed,
i will benefit our party;' l speak from me-
mory, but believe those are the very words.
Here again is another most sheepish reason !:
he would not do it from any generous and
enlarged enthusiasm for human liberty, but
because It would benefit the party. Yes, sir,
to benefit political party, our whole politi-
cal fabric was made, from capitol to basement
stone, to reel and totter, and patriots and phi
lanthropists looked on with trembling horror,
expecting to see topple in ruins the proudest
and the last temple reared by human wisdom
to human liberty. But there were those who
looked on unterrifed and unconcerned, spur
ring over sinister intrigues and petty strata
gems.' 1t would benefit the party. Were
there none Of those honorable fears, " fears
of the brave that the brightest hope Of man
might be extinguished forever-no one noble
throb of filial devotion, no trembling concern
for the dangers of the republican,, no, if
the country should survive the shock it would
benefit the party. He felt unconcerned for
all these, and played on his miserable game
of party politics, unmoved amidst the throes
and beatings Of a convulsed and endangered
But, sir, If it is unpleasant to look on this
side of the picture, there is another of very
different character. There has always been
in our happy country, talents and virtues
which have risen to the level Of the great oc-
casion that demanded them. 1t was SO then.
There were men who, cleansing themselves
from every selfish feeling, without which no
man ever performed a glorious action, with
singleness and purity of heart, devoted them
selves to restoring peace and quiet to the
country and saving its glorious institutions,
and they did SO. The petty intriguers, who
had commenced the agitation, skunk away in
dismay, as certain unclean birds on the rising
of the sun. But is it not, sir, rather too much
that the man who was amongst the first to
originate that dangerous agitatien, should now
be proclaimed as the only Amounted saviour OF
Southern institutions, and he slave holder
himself, who quoted it, denounced as DANCE
rous agitator!
do not believe that the eyes of our rulers
are ever raised above the petty considera-
ton of party tactics to the great and general
interests of the country. A more striking
instance of this has not occurred than in
note to the report Of the committee OF ways
and means. 1t is charged as an unnecessary
extravaganza, the additional appropriation for
the Cherokee Indians, of two millions; and
il is said that this increase was recommended
by committee of the Senate, Of which Judge
White was chairman. Now, sir. without any
intentional disrespect to the honorable chair
man, pronounce that there isnot one word OF
truth in the whole statement. 1t IS not true.
II did not originate in the Senate, and it never
was referred to committee, of which Judge
White was chairman; but to the committee,
Of which Mr.. Wright was chairman, an autho-
rty greater, no doubt, with the gentleman, but
with lew others than that of'the just Aristides.'
1t is not true that there was any additional aP-
preparation proposed. The proposition, orlsl-
nally, was made in this House, and that was
not for an additional appropriation, but to
allow the President to divert two millions OF
the five which were appropriated for the sup
preston Of Indian hostties, to the removal,
peacefully, of the Cherokecs, II the President
should deem it expedient. This is the amend
ment. .Proyided, that if the President shall as
certain that all dissatisfaction of further oppo-
sition on the part Of any portion Of the Che
rokee Indians to the treaty Of 1885 can be
allayed or avoided, by allowing an additional
compensation for lands coded TO the United
States by said treaty, and that thereby the
Government may be saved the expense OF
keeping up the large military force within the
Cherokee country, now contemplated, he is