The daily union. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1845-1857, 1846-08-15
For the Union
THE VICE PRESIDENT.

For the Union
THE VICE PRESIDENT
Your coumn ms have recently contained extracts
from various democratic presses in appreciation Of
the Wee President for his casting vote upon the
new tariff. There is less injustice IN the political
world than is often alleged, when a prominent
statesman, for conscientious and party act, Is
hercely sssaed by the clamOrOus; because the inter
ested, the Of the people, the cool and righful
judges Of the matter come unasked to his vlndlca-
uon Allow me, In the number Of these latter, 10
add my belief in the just and triumphant award
they will give 10 the recent vote Of Mr.. Dallas.
The Vice President delivered TO the Senate a clear
and resoute exposition Of his reasons for that vote
and in telling that body Of his "pedge voluntarily
given to the Baltimore convention" to stand by, II
elected, all their declared political principles he was
| true TO hts pledge and true to his party. la this
reason alone, he will find hs justification with that
party slWSys save by some almost miracle Of poIi-
| cal result, the majority Of his country His brief
but admirable address is yet being read over the
land; will be remembered and preserved with the
tariff bill, and speaks for itself better than special
praise from the friendliest commentator. | have
long marked the public course OF Mr., Dallas and
stopping not to dwell upon his private worth and ac-
compllshments, will briefly advert to few Of the inch
dents in his political career. In his early youth he
accompanied, as one Of their secretaries, Messrs.
Gallatn Bayard, and Clay, in their mission to
Ouc1l anu IN the COulphnlOnHnp OF lnOsc
and statesman, he received his first and fit teach
ings for public life This duty over, he returned TO
Philadelphia; and eft the onset Of life distinguish
ed name by undetermined and most distinguished
father, II was his lot, as young lawyer, to work
hard and struggle by himself for Early sin
gled out 10y his brhTight Of democratic principles,
and by his skill and cool courage as public speak.
or, he often invoked by his party, and never de.
Clned to be their advocate or to give his name 10
their service. These are not the usual auxares to
professional success, especially in city where fed
eralism, national republcanlsm, and whgIsm have
generally been paramount, and always exclusive for
their own. But he triumphed over these hindrances
| His diligence and energy kept him apace with his
compecrs; and he gained IN years past and has con-
tnued there, the front rank Of the Philadelphia bar
| Standing by his party "for veal or wo," his party
always stood by him. In 1928, after federal rule
of nine successive years. he was elected the demo
cratic mayor of his native city. But the "old Hero,
in his election the same year, wrought this change
1t swept even the Quaker city, and this same solo
| Hero among the earliest of his appointments
made Mr.. Dallas district attorney for eastern Penn
syyania Then passed with him season of pro
fessional prosperity, and also amnesty with III,
national republicans of the day; success, spobess
purity, and always winning manners, having Icon
quered for him sort of political peace" He was
elected, in 1882, TO the Senate of the United States,
and though still young man, was conspicuous and
| honored among his seniors. Obeying the instruc.
tons of the Legislature of his State, he was, o
its senaiors the advocate of "an adequate protection
TO the home labor Of the country" These were
then his words-and an advocate for the recharer
of the United States Bank. For this peans
| were sung to him by the party, forever
| ready, at a pdnic'S parning, to denOunce him.
| He returned from the Senate to Philadelphia, and
| on the day of his arrival, having addressed large
and enthusiastic meeting convened to sustain the
Imam of iron will'' in his veto of the bank, found
himself as cordially ever in the hearts of his par
| II, .anlE ,t,rkn 1ln
instructions and who came TO them at all seasons.
Next happened to him, as chance to recollect, the
question Of the validity of the charter of the Penn
sylvana State Bank of the United States. Mr. Dal-
| las who had SUCCESSFULLY been district attorney OF
the United States and the attorney general Of Penn
sylvania, was applied to by committee from Brad.
ford county, in the same State, for his views, a
| urist and public man, in relation 10 this bank
the ''Bank of Nicholas Bddle" He wrote them,
in reply, his arguments and opinion that the legs-
lature had right to abrogate its charter but that
the convention for the alteration of the State consti-
tuition, then about TO assemble, had perfect right TO
institute tribunal to ascertain whether the charter
of this bank had been obtained by fraudulent or i'm
proper conrivances. For this "oplnon" upon a
public topic, the doors and crevces of his happy
home then, as recently, the avenues of anony-
| nous and most virulent abuse. This, in former
! times, WING tolerance and fairness! Burning
| in efhgy" was refreshment not then prepared; the
| fruit has since sprung up and matured He then
survived the black mist that lowered about
| him; and when, soon after, Mr.. Van Buren, APP
pointed him minister to Russia and politi-
| cal distinction once more arched for him sort of
''bow of peace" with his old adversary, the whig
| party, spanning over public dinners to him by men
| of either party, and general demonstrations OF
| respect upon his departure He returned from Rus
STA after an absence of two three years, and al
ways a working man, was trying causes in the
Philadelphia courts within the week CT his arrival.
| Next for the period in his political life when the
names of "Polk and Dallas"-as unlocked for by the
one by the other-were placed not by the State of
Pennsylvania alone, but by the democratic party of
all the States in the Union, upon the ticket. Here
again, for Mr. Dallas was struggle followed by tri-
| umphs; triumph, converted now by wbigism's hor-
ror at the Vice Presidents recent act into "a cruel
| take in," fragrant deception to Pennsy vania'-
It's lament and panic lying in wait for the impor-
tant and successful measures its adversarIes We
shall soon see-we are seeing aready--how far the
dissatisfaction of stedast democrats blended with
these "groans.n Democrats of that State oft pros
perlng in mejorities, abide their whenever
| asceralned, and rarely in words, and never in
"buck shot," against them. "Cay, FreIinghuysen,
and the tariff" POLK, Dallas, and the tariff ~
Even These latter gentlemen and their party
have just given tariff to the country which the old
tariff party, with or without the oft-quoted "Kane
letter" might have expected. Pennsylvania ode
celved!n in the face of MIR. Folks public declarations
five months before his election that he was Gin favor
OF tailH Tor reVenuei SUCH one as viii yield n
sufficient amount TO the treasury to defay the cx-
penses Of the government economically admins
tered; and who further said in the same "lelter {"
that IN his judgment, il "the duty of govern
ment to extend as far as it may be practicable to do
so by its revenue laws, and all other means with
in its power, fair and just protection to all the
great interests Of the whole Union, embracing
agriculture, manufactures, the mechanic arts, com
merce, and navigation" Mr.. Polk concludes this
same letter by saying, 81 heartily approve the res
outons upon this subject passed by the democratic
national convention lately assembled at Baltimore y
This, too, with Mr. Dallas's simultaneous public
pledge that he would, if elected, abide by those
same "resontions" The wing and old tariff party
of Pennsylvania, that al the last national election so
closely watched all her counties, forgetting not 10
make even little "Lehgh do better" were asleep.
blinded or looking ahead for panic" when they