Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1847-05-27

respectable man said, or written, that o
his own knowledge, lie knows Gen. Tay
Tor to be whigl
Office holdcr-Not that | know of.
is John--Ilaye any of his family authoriz
= ed any one to say he is whig'
. Office holdcr-Not that have heard.
e John-To which party do his relations
belong, SO far as you have learned?
i Office holdcr--It is SAID that his son.in
law, and his brother are democrats.
JOhn-Did the General support Jack.
S son for the Presidency?
Office hOlder-I understand he did
John-Which Of the wing principles
has Gen. Taylor expressed himself favora.
BILE to, in any letter, speech, or conversa-
ton of his that you have ever read?
Office hOlder-Well, can't say | have
ever seen any expression Of political prin-
ciples from him.
JOhn-Well, is that being a whig?
Office holder, (droly,)-It was, you
know, in 1910, "no principles for the pub
lie eye," was our motto.
John-Yes, but | got enough in 1910,
and | thought you had too! Is not the
general large stakeholder, and south
ern cotton planter; and do you expect he
will 60 for repeal of the odious British
tariff Of 1916, and for the Wilmot proyiso,
to which we are pledged?
Office hOld,T-There's no use of talking
tariff, John, when the farmers are getting
the present prices for their grain and as
to slavery, can't say great deal about
it, after all. You know Mr. Clay was a
Shareholder, but he never stuck at that.
JOhn-No! you didn't, but great
many did; and Mr. Clay was beaten.
Office holdcr-Not on that ground, for
Mr. Polk, who succeeded, was as much of
a pro-sIavey man as Mr. Clay.
John-Just so, Mr. Folks party did not
pretend to be otherwise. They expressly
refused their sympathy to the anli-slavery
cause; were honest, though blinded, they
succeeded; while too many of the wing
party protested one thing and practsed
another; made promises to the ear, and
broke them to the hope; preached virtue
and praclised vice; in word, were every.
thing for office, and nothing tor principle.
Does Taylor hold this most vilainous war
TO be unjustl
Office holdcr-1 'spose so.
John-Well, 'sposc he don't; for be.
lieve the general to be man Of truth
His correspondence with the war depart
ment, and his proclamation to the Mexi-
cans, upon invading that country which
his military prowess has crimsoned, made
desolate, and filled with wailing, all show
that he justified the war in its fullest ex-
tent. Indeed, if he did not, should
think him the verlest murderer in exis-
ence. For while | hold to the business
of defensive war, deny that in an unjust
war, any man so believing, from the gen.
eral down to the lowest private, can VOL
unfairly become human butcher and
plead in defence the orders of his super
ors in command. If that doctrine is true,
then for six thousand Mexicans killed, but
one man sresponsible--I mean the Pres
dent ] don't believe in that, and there
fore | am glad TO exculpste Gen. Taylor
by supposng, as certainly do, tina, he
juslifies the war on our part. But if he
does this he is no wing
Office holdcr-John, my dear fellow,
you are over nice in these things, and you
surprise me. You Presbyterans are
fighting sect, at least you have not enter
ed any special protest against war in the
general, while here are our Quaker
friends, whose testimony against all resort
to arms is as old as their sect, all going
for the general with perfect rush. Look
at James, and Samuel, and Stacy, and
RAJ phi, and William, all of the purest
George Fox blood, and see how they
scramble 10 be foremost in shouting for the
general!
John-Aye, aye! what you say of these
individuals is true; they have offices to
hold on 10, like yourself, and probably not
much principle to let 90 from; but when
the West Jersey Quakers vote for slave
holder, general, and the destroyer of
men in war believed to be unjust, hope
they will erect monument at each of
their meetlng-houses to the memory of An
drew Jackson, and inscrbe upon the ped.
estal retracion of the loud censures they
repeatedly pronounced upon him. Iii JUS
tice to the living requires the course you
advocate, justice to the dead will every
where commend my suggestion
Office holder--Well, for my part think
it is capital thing TO punish the Iocos, by
electng Taylor, man made by the very
war they created
John-Good thing ell! to fake poison
yourself. if you can only thus get your en-
emles to drink it! But are you sure you
can elect him? Whose votes will he get
besides the whig7
Office hOlder-Iie'Il get all the native
vote, all the anti-rent vote, The Tyler vote,
and the custom-house vote-prelty much
all the ofice-holders in the country are
going for him; and saw only yesterday
loco paper in this State, edited by