Jeffersonian Republican. [volume] (Stroudsburg, Pa.) 1840-1853, 1844-07-18
From the n. Y Tribune
The SlandererS of Henry Clay.

and In 1923 and 832 ANDREW JACKSON, who
had killed, with great coolness aud lsrocny, az
ter his opponents fire had been drawn, Mr..
Dickerson in duel growing oul of quarrel at
a horse-raco, and who had been engaged in a
savage pislol-fght with CuI Benton without
even the decoIum Of a duel Mr.. Clay has
twice been engaged in dueI., .,--lhe last twenty
t years ago, and each with men who had heaped
upon him The most urprovoked and CALLING in
suits and iudigniies We think he was rery
wrong IN this Iusl the mau Is wrong who
on the impulse of The moment, knocks down
any one VINO has spit in his ace-he himself
thinks and has said SO II 6 declared in an
Address 10 his Cons ituenIs, in 1928, IL refer
eHce 10 The Gard he had issued dgn0unclng the
unknown author of he Bargain SANDER,
6 | felt that ] could no longer remain silent
crisis appeared TO me TO have arisen in my
public life. | issued my card. | ought not TO
have Put in it The last paragraph because al
though i, dnes moi necessarily imply The resort
10 personal combat II admits Of ha, c0nsiruc-
ion : nor will conceal that such a possible
issue was within my contemplation. | owe il
10 The community 10 say, that Whatever hereto
fore may have done, or, by inevitable circum-
stances, might be forced to do. no man in i,
holds in deeper abhurrence than do, the per-
nicious praclice Condemned as il musl be by
the judgment and philosophy, 10 say nothing OF
the religion, of every thinking man, il is an af-
fair Of feeling about which we caanot, although
we should, reason. It's true corrective will be
found when all shall une as all ought to unite,
in It's unqualified prescription"
Acting on this principle, Mr.. Clay in 1888
supported and voted for the law severely pun
ishing duels in the District OF Columbia Ga
tha, occasion he said,
"No man would be happier than he 10 see
the whole barbarous system forever eradicaled.
II was well known, that in certain quarters OF
the country, public opinion was averse from
dueling, and no man could Ay IN the face of
that public opinion, without having his repu,a-
tlon sacrificed but there were Other portions
again which exacled obedience 10 the fatal GUS
tom. The man with high sense of honor,
and nice sensibility, when the question is
whether he shall fight or have the finger of
scorn pointed al him, is unable to resist, and
few, very few, are found wiling TO adopt such
an alternative. When public opinion shall be
renovated, and chastened by reason, religion
and humanity, the practice of dueng will at
once be discounlenanced II is The Office OF
Legislation to do all II can to bring about tha, !
healihiul state Of ihe public mind. and although I
it may not altogether effect so desirable re- I
suit, yet he had no doubt II would do much to-
wards it, and with ihese views lie would give /
his vote for the BILL"
And now lock at the terms in which The AL !
bany Argus habi,usIly speaks of Henry Clay. !
The following resolution of Rensseaervlle |,
meeting, which we clip from lis columns, is a
faithful reflection Of the habiIual exhibition OF
It's Editorial articles:
g ResoI0ed, That with feelings Of pride and
pleasure, we conlras, The private, exalted, NOR
al and religious character Of JAMES K Polk
with that OF HENRY CLAY--a man who from
his youth has been addicted 10 nearly the " hole .
catalogue OF vices--a profane swearer, gam
bier and dueist-a man who now, at the ad
vanced age of nearly 20 years, is sill held by
lhs civil authorities Of his country under bonds
for the maintenance OF The peace"
Such are the charges against Henry Clay
and they are UNANIMOUSLY false. Mr.. Clay is not
mole profane swearer, than James X. Polk
though he doubtless, like most men not profess
sors Of religion. has al some lime or other used
harsh words which were great deal batter
lnsaid. We know lha, WASHINGTON did So
quite as much as MIR. Clay ever did vel Wash
dgon was not prolane swearer. How many
men among us, if they were dogged through all
heir lives by evesdroppers and spies, could
not be accused OF some such error as this p
We ask every man TO make the case his own,
and judge how he would like to have his low
sst whisper of indignation al some airocious
'illany (iike Folks when he turned the fairly
,hosen Wing Members from Mississippi ont OF
heir seals by his casting yoie,) lrumpeIed to
ha world as an evidence that he was habu-
II swearer There is baseness in Catching
'p such murmur of Indignation and trumpet
ng il through The Union which an honorable
nan must loalhe and abhor, and which the AL
'any Argus, in its better days, would have
corned 10 descend 10.
Then as 10 the charge of gambling--ii is
lie, shameful lie The negro on whom Gen.
McCalia relied 10 subslaniae it has pumply /!
him. Il seems he said he had {
'een buying pack of cards for Massa Clay"
'ut there are several Massa Clays' about Lex
nglon, and this could not have been Henry
-st,,, h. 4.