The Madisonian. [volume] (Washington City [i.e. Washington, D.C.]) 1837-1845, 1842-05-12
THOMAS HART BENTON.

der consideration we will briefly expose some
of the prominent motives which have actuated
the Missouri Senator. 1t is generally known
in Mis- souri,, at least, that Mr.. Benton will be in
minority when the next Legislature meets, and
that he has ruled with fear, not love, and many
who have supported him despised him at the
same time. Seeing that the Administration
divided the Democratic party in Missouri, nay,
stakes the lions SHARE" we confess we have
marvelled for several months that some new
humbug had not been started by the Senator
under review.
AT length, finding that the principles and prac-
tees of the President were so purely Repub
can that even his mind, so prolific in the arts of
discrimination and misrepresentation, could find
no honorable means to injure him in the estlma
ton of his constituents, he resorted TO the base
expedient of publishing confidential letters to
the Executive Letters, too, which the Presi-
dent never read But luckily the Madsonian
circuates pretty extensively in the very hot
bed of Bentonism, and Benton himself will
stand disgraced and repudiated by the very
friends and supporters that made him what he
u.s. He knew this fate awaited him, without he
could extricate himself by some trick. That he
might the more effectually accomplish his de-
sign, he joined with Mangum and Clay to per-
secute the Madlsonian With them he joined
to rob it of its implied contract to execute the
Executive printing, and exhibited the WILL if he
did not in reality contribute, to plumber and rob
fellow citizen and his ia nily Of the pecuniary
means they possessed. But failing to check the
career of the paper by such unworthy means,
and exasperated at the execution it continues TO
deal among his long cherished friends, he re-
solved to aim an inquisitorial blow at the person
of the editor. To effect this, he was to get a
resolution adopted that would cause us to be
taken before committee sitting in one Of the
lower rooms of the Capitol Here he was
either to provoke us to assault him, or other
wise prove contumacious, so that he might have
us thrown into prison, and thereby put stop to
our pen! The resolution is still pending, and
we most earnestly desire that he may succeed.
Another reason why our triumphant exposure
OF Mr. Bentoa's nelarious arts in the publica-
ton of the letters surreptitiously copied, has
rritated and stung him past all endurance, is that
he combined with Clay and others to reject the
nomination of DR.. Reed, as Surveyor General,
moderate Democrat The letters written by
the Dr.'s enemies at ST. Louis, which were
made the pretence for his rejection, the DIR. was
not permitted to see, and was unable to retute
the charges made against him. Mr.. Benton
never cares about the sacrifice of Individuals
his party is every thing. For this reason, we
knOlp that at this moment nothing could annoy
him more than appointments by the President
from the Democratic ranks in Missouri We
will give his democratic constituents full infor-
nation on this subject at the proper time. But
DR.. Reed was re-nommdted by the President,
and the nomination was confirmed. And this
confused and COMPOUNDED Mr.. Benton beyond
precedent. His recent folly and prohigacy at
test it.
We will now recur to the debates in the Sc
nate. On Tuesday, Mr.. Benton rose in a tow
ering passion-a Robespierean fury-and ragged
like chafed bull. His face was red and pale
by turns. He was SO much confused and con-
founded that he contradicted his own admission
of the day BEFORE "Mathe had aOritten the let
ter to Mr., Fan Buren, recommending Mr..
Watson on the ground Of PARTY SERVICES"
Nay he contradicted himself in every para
graph. He distinctly charged the Postmaster
General with The authorship of the article scor-
ing him to the quick for the degrading act of
publishing confidential letters. He said the
Postmaster General mast have written it, be-
cause no one else could have access to MIR. BIS
letters on file--that extracts had been given
from these letters-therefore it must have been
the Postmaster General. In the very next SEN
tence, he declares he neuer aorote the letters!
A mere child would blush to be guilty of such
absurdty.
Again, in the next breath he acknowledges
that he wrote such letters. He continues:
"He wished to ascertain how it was that the ed-
tor of the Madsonian had obtained possession Of pa
pers which had been withheld from him. There
were two ways in which the editor could have OBJ
tanned copies Of them one Was, from the Committee
on the Post Office and Post Roads--the other, from
the Post Office Department. The article in the Mad
isonian to which he had REFERRED must have been
written by person who had access to the Post Office
Department, negatively and afhrmatlvely"
Now if these letters not in existence,
why was it necessary for the Z" writer to have
access" &c.
Next comes the famous epistle to Mr.. Van
Buren, He proceeds:
"That newspaper said that he (Mr Benton) would
not deny that he addressed President Van Buren, in
Mr. Watson's behalf and urged his appointment
acc. unit Of his "party services" Now, these words
"party services" purpor to be literal copy of his
letter 10 President Van Buren, on the subject. This.
was not true for he had written such letter;
and he would here say that he was perfectly willing
that every letter which he had written when ms
friends were in power, and which were In any De-
partment office of the Government, should be
made public"