The Whig standard. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1843-1844, 1844-10-09
TO THE PUBLIC.

| to any one who might wish to see them. Find
ing that the charge Of /" Bargain and Corruption"
which was made at the time, and refu,ed, was re-
| vived, and was now seriously urged against Mr..
Clay; that it was alleged TO be susceptible Of
proof under his own hand and that these letters
were referred to as containing the proof, caused
| notice to be inserted in the Wing, that copies
| OF the letters were in my hands, and that they
were open to the inspection OF any gentleman of
either party. thought it impossible that any
| man could read the letters without seeing and
| admitting that they cont lin no evidence prejudi-
| cial to Mr.. Clay-no evidence of any improperly,
| in thought, word, or deed--no evidence of any
selfish or personal feeling-no evidence of aught
but patriotism and that his bitterest foes would
be compelled to acknowledge this, upon perusal
of them. Many of the friends of Mr.. Clay have
called upon me, and read these famous letters
Not one OF his enemies has asked to see them,
| and have shown them to but one, who did not
| ask to see them: they have either been unwil-
ling to have any communication with ME on the
subject, or, perhaps, they wish to remain in igno-
| rance.
| If am rightly informed, no application has
| ever been made, directly to Mr.. Clay, by Mr..
Blair, or by Mr.. Linn Boyd, or by any other of
that party, to consent 10 the publication of these
letters. Mr.. Clay would doubtless have consent
ed, If hs'consent had been asked by any of the
leaders of the party hostile to him. They have
| imputed whatever sentiments it suited their pur-
pose to impue to Mr. Clay, under the impression
that he could not refute the imputatons they
made, without violating the sanctity of private
correspondence, under the seal of which the let
| tiers were written. Overcome by the earnest
entreates of his friends in Virginia, Mr. Clay has
| reluctantly consented to the publication (if they
think it proper) of these letters, private and con-
hdential they are and even playful and sportive
in their character. That he is right in doing this
cannot be doubted, since the seal of private cor
respondence has in fact been broken the letters
have been seen by hundreds--by all, indeed, who
wished to see them; and the only question is,
whether Mr.. Clay ought to suffer all the evils of
mlsc0nstructlon, which longer suppression of
them might apparently warrant, and which pub
LEGATION of them will refute. But the publication
Is now made by me--not without Mr.. Clay being
apprlsed OF the purpose, nor without his acquies-
cence-but, still, take the responsibility of the
publication. Knowing, as he must have known,
that the publication could only be beneficial to
MN, ne has yet patiently endured all the calum-
MES which have been founded on the letters. /
now publish them, in order to put down, effectua-
y and for ever, vile charge, which has been re.
vlved after having been completely refuted and
which has been revived here in Virginia, in the
nope that the letters, after SO long delay, would
not be published.
One word as to the authenticity of the copies
which are now published. In 1927, Mr. Clay
sent copies, certified by Mr.. Blair, to the late
Col. John Harvie, of Frankfort, Kentucky, and
he put them in the hands Of Col. Richard H.
Taylor, also OF Frankfort, for public inspection.
They were examined by hundreds of persons of
both parties, and were perfectly accessible to any
person who wished to see them, It'll confidently
believed, that no one who has examined them,
ever ventured to assert that they contained any
thing preJudIcial to Mr.. Clay. There is, in truth,
nothing in them, which is not substantially stated
IN Mr.. Clay's letter to his constituents, of the
26th March, 1925, which was printed in Nes's
Register at the time, and which is re-published
in Mallory's life of Clay, volume /, p. 1856. The
copies now sent for publication are copies of the
copies certified by Mr.. Blair, now in Col. Taylor's
hands. II is not doubted that the copies are cor
rect. But Mr.. Blair is challenged to produce the
originals, and, after showing them to any person
acquainted with Mr.. Clay's hand writing flor ex-
ample. the Hon. Willis Green, or Mr.. Gales, or
Mr.. Fendall) to publish them
1t may be proper to say, that the expression in
the first letter." Next, a friend of Mr. Adams
comes, acth tears in his syss"-is an allusion TO
physical infrmity, TO which Mr.. Adams is, or
was then, subject his tears flow involuntarily
Such an allusion could only be made in the most
confidential letter.
1t may be proper TO remark further, that the
extract which Mr.. Kendall is said to have pub.
lished, as have recently seen it republished, is
to be found, in fact, in the first letter of Mr. Clay,
but it is garbled (whether by design or accident,
let others judge) as to give sense the reverse
OF that which the writer intended. The genuine
letter reads:
Three of the four States favorable 10 Mr. |
Crawford, are believed to prefer Mr.. Adams to
the General (Jackson) Virginia is one Of them
Il am inclined to think that nearly three fourths
OF our delegation have yielded to the influence of
these views, and will vote for Mr.. Adams NV
friends entertain the belief, that their kind wishes
towards me, will, in the end, be more likely to be
accomplished by so bestowing their votes I
hare, howeper, most earnestly entreated Them 10
throw me out Of heir consideration, in bringing
their judgments 10 a final conclusion. and to look |
and be guided solely by the public good. If /
know myself, that alone has determined me. Yonr
representative is inclined to concur with us in
these sentiments and views, and if they should
meet your appreciation, as | know he has great
for volIr oniniona I ,vould bo oIad IL von