The Whig standard. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1843-1844, 1844-07-25
From the Wetumpka (Ala.) Wing.
SUPREME COURT OF THE u. STATES.
The PEOPLE OF THE UNITED STATES,
perSuS
JAMES porU ala I IrTJ n JEMMy

The PEOPLE OF THE UNITED STATES,
JAMES r. Polk, ALA LITTLE JENNY.
| [Coninued.l 5
The Hon. Bailie Peyton will take the stand.
| @. Are you acquainted with the accused
A. am; have lived his neghbor for many
years.
| Q. Do you know any thing of his personal
courage!
| A. was in Washington City when the affair
took place between himself and Mr.. Wise, as de-
scrlbed by the witness last examined and it was
notorious that he was personally insulted almost
| every day OF the session without resehting it.
| @. What said the brave and gallant sons of
| Tennessee to this!
A. They turned from him in contempt, and
| when he next canvassed his district for Congress,
he found it necessary to hush that matter up, and
for that purpose he read at a large gathering of
the people at Shelbyvle letter purporting to
have been written by Gen. Jackson, declaring that
he was no coward, but behaved bravely and pru-
| IDENTIFY in the affair with Wise.
q. Did this satisfy the people
A. 1t did for time, but it coming to the ears
of the old General, he came out in the Nashville
Union, and declared "by the Eternal - he never
wrote any such letter to Col. Polk or any one
else.
@. This then subjected him to the charge of
falsehood
A. 1t did, and one which he has never been able
to relieve himself from.
q. Do you know of any other instance in
which ne could be reasonably charged with false
hood
A. do. In 1886, he unequivocay pledged
himself to the support of the Hon. H. L. White
for the Presidency; yet, without cause or reason,
he abruptly broke that pledge, and prosecuted
that good old man to his grave
q. You say you have lived some years neigh
Dor to Col. Polk; can you tell us how he came by
his title of Colonel2
A. can; it was an honorary title conferred
on him as nominal aid to one of our Governors.
@. Do you know of his ever having military
command of any body of men, or of his having
ever fought any battles
A. He has never had command Of any body of
men, and have never heard of his fighting but
one battle, and that was with his brother at Co.
umbia, who gave him most unfraternal fog
giDg with "YoUNG HICKORY from which he
takes his present title.
@. Is it generally understood that he thus de-
rived his title of Young Hickory Z"
A. ] think it is not. 1t is supposed by many
that he is really sprout or sucker that has
sprung up by the decayed body of the old tree.
@. What has been the general character and
conduct of the accused in the official stations that
he has heretofore occupied
A. As Speaker Of the House of Representatives,
which Office was given him to mortify John Bell,
whom General jackson hated, he was notorious
for packing committees, and SO unscrupuously
partial and servile we're his decisions to party ia
vortes, that the honest men of his own party lost
confidence in him, and on an important occasion
the House suspended the rule, and took the APP
pointing of committee into its own hands. At
the close of the session the customary unanimous
vote of thanks to the Speaker was withheld from
him, and after considerable debate, in which Gen.
CRABB, then member from Alabama, gave
him several severe pokes, it was passed by strict
party vote.
@. What was his conduct as Governor of Ten
nessee?
A. 1t was SO undignifed and unbeconing his
high station, that the people of that State repu-
dated him and his acts, nor has he ever since
held office at their hands, although he has labor
ed long and diligently for it. On one occasion
his conduct was made the subject Of presentment
by the grand jury of Sewer county, who directly
charged him with malpractice in office and cul-
pable neglect of public duty.
@. What was the general opinion of the con-
duct of Mr.. Wise when he insullingy told Colo
mel Polk in the Capitol that he was the con-
temptible tool of petty tyrant'"
A. There were many who thought him inso-
lently bold +; but doubt if there was member
of the House who did not believe every word of
it to be strictly true.
G. Mr.. Peyton, it is made a part of the defence
of the accused that he is descendant of one of
the patriots of the revolution, and great efforts
have been made to bias the minds of the jury in
his favor on that account. Will you state to the
Court and jury what you know of his ancestry
and their revolutionary services? | would not
have introduced testimony on this point had it
not been put in issue by the defendant himself,
as hold that man should be responsible only
for his own acts.
A. | have an accurate historical knowledge of
the whole Polk family The ancestors Of the
accused, except Ezekiel Polk, were all WINGS
and PATRIOTS in the revolution, and all their
descendants are WINGS and PATRIOTS now.
Ezekiel Polk, the grandfather of James K. Polk,
the accused, was TORY, but took no active
part in the war, his personal courage was said
to be. of the same stamp of that of his grandson
but he oitered around with British emssasies, or
staid at home under protection from Lord Corn
wallis.
q. Are you sure that such was the fact !?
A. If the annals of the past be correct, and the