Richmond daily Whig. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1842-1861, 1843-08-28
DAILY WHIG.
20 Soe6 rstpsgc
Col. Acknowledgment of Mr.. Van Buren,
MONDAY MORNING, AUGUST -, isI7

when the spell, of invincibilitv, has once been bro.
ken. can never be restored. The very terror OF
his name is, of itself, sufficient. in the majority OF
instances, 10 secure the victory. But when that
name is once stripped of its terrorS; when men
discover that it is not necessarily the watchword
Of success, and that he, who bears it, is, after all.
but Il man;-the very fear it once excited operates
10 the prejudice of him To whom it belongs. When
Patroclus appeared clothed i'm the armor oi Achilles.
the a%hrighted TroianS fled before the terror of his
supposed name but they regained their courage
when they found he was no more than an ordinary
mortal.
The above remarks, we conceive. apply with
peculiar force To Mr. Van Buren,. Passing thro'
a long life of intrigue with success. outstripping
the swift, and prostrating the valiant. in his ca
rCer, for a long time successful without having
rendered TO his country one service which she
could take pride in remembering, his opponents
became fora time p~aralyzcd by his success. They
believed that there was a fatality attendant upon
his eXertionS, which il was in VAIN To resist. Tn
der this state of feeling, when he was brought for
ward rs the nominee of General jackson. the
election went almost 10y default. 1t was not that
he was popuIar-it WAS not that he possessed any
of those great and commanding qualities, which
secured the esteem. at the same time that they
blightcd the hopes of rival candidates;-it was not
that he had ever given evidence ofrxaltcd patriot
ism, or brilliant capacity. He had never 'sct a
squadron in the field, like JackSon-he had never
shaken the Senate, with the thunders of his elo-
qucncc. like Clav-hc had never conducted a long
and intricate diplomatic correspondence to n ter
mlnation, rejecting honor upon himself. and glory
upon his country, like Adams. He wanted the
energy of the first, the itrvid cloquence of the
second, the deep learning and various research of
the last; and the weight of character, for which
all three are alike distinguished. BY none OF
these weapons could he hope To succeed in the con-
test: but he possessed a cunning, which, for a time,
was Il substitute for every deficiency. BY means
of this cunning, backed by the favor of General
Jackson. he managed 10 secure his election. But
he soon found he was in 4 false position. He had
aspired TO drive the Chariot of the Sun, and after
having shown his incapacity a. a driver. he was
hurlod headlong from his seat by the Indignation of
an aroused people. His history is a warning to all
mankind To- restrain their desires within the bounds
ofmoderation. and mo-. to aspire To that which must.
in the end. prove the instrument OF their destruc-
ton. A. long as lac occupied an inferior station.
he was respectable when he assumed the high.
est, he became an object of contempt.
1t Is this iaded hack, this worn out and broken
down politician, that a certain party would again
impose upon the American people and that. too.
win the charge, still ringing in their ears. that
they (the people, had been bribed to vote against
him. The nation having once rejected him, with
an unanIInity without example in the history of
great political conflicts. are to be bullied into his
support, by a charge OF bribery and corruption.-
When we have made up our minds to believe that
the people are a. vile "a this minion of Jackson
would have US think-when we become satisfied
that self respect i no longer To- be estimated among
the virtues of ireemen;-when. in fine. undoubted
p,oof shall have been exhibited, To show that the
Inhabitants Of this favored country are as degen-
rate as were the Romans when the Imperial crown
was openly exposed to sale then, and not till
then, shall We begin TO entertain approximations
that the author Of this wholesale Slander can So.
cure the vote Of any considerable portion Of those
whom he has slandered.
This seems to be Inc opinion Of a large number
Of those who style themselves (pdr e1ccHeace)
Democrats. \ portion of them has ALREADY pla.
ced Mr.. Calhoun Oh their ticket. with the inien.
ton mo doubt to run him at all hazards, conven-
ton or no convention. Others have east their
eyes upon Gov. Casa. but the largest. and by far
the most formidable detection has taken place in
favor Of Col. Johnson. He has claims which none
Of the others can prefer. lie has fought and blcd
III tie cause Of his country; hc can stump about
the country, and show his mull0ied I'VE spell the
word a. the gallant Col. pronolnccs ~ members
to the admiration OF the Democracy. Who has
killed an Indian like hci Who has solved 50 sue
c~cssfully the great political problem Of practical
ammgarnationl Who is so out and ont an equal
rights man, not even hcsituting upon the (.lightD
difference Of color which nature has established
between the two races to be- found IN dis country
Who can caIolo the women and kiss the children
like hcl Who can stir mp the "Hmra boys and
direct their energies toa single object like the Co.
loncl None Of them; no not one. He can give
them two years the start, and beat them after all.
The Missourians seem to be- perfectly aware Of his
availability, as well as Of Vans want Of that es.
scntial qualification. Witness the following cx-
tract from their Democratic State Address:
"Thc overwhelming defeat Of the Democratic party in
1870, and recent occurrences in different parts Of the TN.
ion nam as not to risk the triumph of Democratic pnu.
ciplcs upon the nomination Of any one of doubtful pgpuiayf.
~. We~houhd not suffer ourselves to be mIslcd by decep.
hue GppbGr1Hcss In 1889 the Democrats tiumphcd in "a
large majority Of the States; yet in 1910 they maintained
their usccndoncy ~ only seven. When the elections turned
exclusively nprDcpies, as IN 1889, and 1912. the Dcmocra.
tic party was victorious; but when the preludices Of thou.
sands who were az heart Democrats were enlisted IN n d..
rect sirnRgie for and against Mr.. Van Bgrea, ne pere
orer0hcimed nth dsfeaL. II is not necessary NJ This time
70 advert 10 the causes which led to the overthrow Of Mr..
Van Buren, IN 1870; but merely 10 call on Missournns to
examine we'll the events Of the past six years, and the pres.
e9' condition o. the Democratic party, before they decide for