The Madisonian. [volume] (Washington City [D.C.]) 1837-1845, 1841-10-30
From the Boston Daily Adpertissr.
WHERE ARE THE WINGS mo. g.

have now to consider the breaking up fthe HaI-
rison Cabinet and the relations between the present
Cabinet and the Wing party.
The subject is Of especial interest Tor II the resig
nation of the members of the first Cabinet was strictly
necessary, and if that necessity was imposed upon
them by Mr.. Tyler these circumstances might inter
pose very serious difficulties in the way OF reconcla-
lion and harmonious action. But do not SO view
the case | am willing TO concede that the retiring
Secretaries had right to retire if they saw fit but
cannot go farther In the language Of Nj. Webster,
in his letter of Sept. 13h 81 have seen Sufficient
for the dissolution of the late Cabinet by the
voluntary act of its members"
Let look at the circumstances which, in the opin
ion of these Secretaries compelled them to retire.
Briefly they are these. The President allowed them
to form BILL in the expectation that he would sign It,
He conferred with them repeatedly; il adjusted to
suit him; and he nevertheless vetoed the bill, and
gave them 10 apology for no explanation OF, this
change Of opinion and conduct. This is their story
and assume it to be true. Of the lesser matters OF
Mr.. Ewing's letter. such the communication by the
President of Cabinet secrets to New York paper
&c., pass them by, expressing only my regret that
Mr.. Ewing should have thought the necessity for his
retiring extended to the publication of charges of this
character 1t would to be certain that nothii
less than dire necessity could have induced HIM to
descend far 10 search of means to make his cause
good one particularly he could fring such ac-
| cusation on suspicion only.
| But to 90 to the substance of the case. / cannot
but think that the retiring Secretaries and particularly
Mr. Ewing, not only left the Pre- sden, SIDE, but took
sides with his enemies. And this can hardly be usti-
fed, unless the Presidents course was wholly unust
fable. On this point there passage in Mr.. Bells
statement which has not think, met with the notice
it deserves. He says: when all the material points
appeared to be disposed of and the members of the
Cabinet present had expressed their decided approba
ton of the plan the President had suggested he said
that, after oil, he Mould not sanction Bank in the
form just agreed upon, If he supposed hat It Mould be
made tho groundwork basis Of Bank loiAt all the
pooers of the late Bank Of the United States. He
local dis
count" This was said, after all. 1t was intended TO
be- and it was, fair notice to the parties to whom it
was spoken. Now it is well known that the moment
that bill was published, the remark was universal that
the prevention of local discounts by combining dis
counts to bills of exchange; was merely nominal
because the bank could get over this barrier simply
! by doing just what many OF our own banks were
charged with doing-hat is, requiring customer who
brought note for discount to bring in its stead bill
drawn at dstance and II the foreign ac-
ceptor man of straw, the domestic names must
strengthen the bill Our banks did this, or were said
do for the sake of the exchange and the Nation
al Bank might do just easily, whenever inclined
disregard the limitation of their charter. In word,
it universally agreed that the difference ON this
point between the old bank and the proposed insttu
lion merely nominal. 1t Is unfortunate that,
when Mr. Ewing wrote his published letter, he entire
y forgot this remark of the President. 1t is exceed
ngly unfortunate that it should have escaped his re-
collection totally, that he not only omitted all men
ton of it, but actually urges the deepest stab OF all,
that the President threw into "your Veto message
nerrogatory equivalent to assertion, thai it was
such bill you had already declared could not re-
ceve your sanction" If it had been proper for the
President to have replied TO MI. Ewing, part of his
might have ben that the commercial interest
of the country had told him, with one voice, that it
was in substance and in effect just such bill
That the President had not seen this sooner, may
be regretted but the haste the agitation of the time,
the attack upon him by Mr.. Bolts and others of
the Whgs-an attack which it is hoped may be as
entirely without imitation as it was without Prece-
dent,-all these things should be considered. Nor
should it be forgotten that before the second bill had
made much progress, in Congress- it was perfectly
we'll known that the President wished it to lie over to
the next session; that he earnestly desired brief de-
lay. This delay the Wings of Congress would not
grant. Now it may be asked whether this Cabinet,
after they knew his anxious wishes for delay, sided
and acted with him this point, not If they did,
one would think they had to find at least as
much fault with the w hg members of Congress
with the President. If they did not il probably
because they made matter of conscience and prn-
aipe that the bill should pass that time. But the
President may be supposed TO have some conscience
.sfsction with him, cannot but think he had quite
as much right TO be dissatisfied with them. His wish
Il for delay was not idle one an unreasonable
i one; cool observers at distance wished just the
If thing. remember, Mr. Editor, in your paper
j. of Sept lst you sad The country has been enough
excited on this subject for the present. and will tend
to the general harmony and to the prevalence Of bet
. ter feeling to suffer it to repose whe 1t was just
thing the Senators of Massachusetts in bis letter
IS since published. The conclusion of the whole matter
Is then is, IN my opinion, that no rational man whom
the heat and smoke of this conflict have not reached
can suppose himself to in the circumstances
of the any necessity which lay upon the retiring
Secretaries to withdraw from their posts and bring al
il once upon the Wing party the certainty of trouble
and conflict and the imminent danger of defeat And
if there was no such necessity, there be none for
continuing the hosities for which this step was the
III signal if not the cause. Let it all belong to the past
the work of the present must be cenciation if there
10 is to be any hope for the future
But it is impossible to dwell upon these events,
without adverting to Mr.. Websters conduct and po
e stion. He staid, when his colleagues went he
Is said when his colleagues and their friends wished
~ him to 60 with them For this offence he has been
. vislted-not with open attack. There is something
y about the man. and more l think about his position
u which has prevented much of this. But whispered
;, and insinuated and yelled accusations were for
III time creeping all around To no reader of what
Il ment Mr.. Webster, in that act, did his duty. He
@ acted like man; Wing; Statesman. He would
e not have acted like if he had in boyish peu
# ence cast off his great duties and gone into corner
to sulk and Pout OF still worse, to scold He would
: not have acted life Wing, If, because of personal
offence, he had sacrificed the interests of the whole
= party and perilled their supremacy He would not
have acted like statesman, if he had forgotten at
once the many difficulties which it required all his
strength to cope with the many dangers, perplex-
ties, and uncertainties, lnextrcably interviewer with
our chief foreign relations. Mr. Webster judged bet
ter than do this; he too wise and too just do
this; he was true to himself; and in being,
true to the Wing party and in 50 being, was true to
the country.
7 have lately seen in a New York paper a rumor
that Mr.. Webster is about to resign fear "the
wish is father to the thought" Oh rather hope it is
SO, and that the thought has other father. The
great interests of this great nation are, after all,
something than bubble for the breath of party
to blow to and fro, or il may be, break hope Mr.
: | Webster will remain until successor shall be found
of more commanding genius, more familiar with our
foreign interests and relations, wiser in his judgment
upon the difficult questions which these relations
present. and receiving fully that kind of respect
and confidence from foreign statesmen which is alike
honorable to give and to receive When such sue
r cessor is found it will be time for Mr.. Webster to
retire; but not till then.
A BOSTON WING.