The daily national Whig. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1847-1849, 1847-12-13
MONDAY AFTERNOON, deer 10, Is47.
For President
GENERAL ZACHARY TAYLOR.
For President

T. -
sdent's Message and the Reports of the
Heads Of Departments were worthy of the
Executive and his Cabinet! We are now
enabled to repeat this declaration, after a
more careful examination Of these remarka-
BILE documents, and in this opinion we find
we are sustained by the almost unanimous
voice Of the press of all parties,
As models of composition, none but the
recipients Of public patronage have any
where had the hardihood to utter one word
in commentator of them. They are con-
.demned on all sides as worse than puerile
productions in style. Bad as always have
been the state papers of these gentle
men, those now under consideration have
fallen infinitely below their past efforts in
language and construction. Perhaps the
badness Of phrase in which they are. couched
is fortunate thing for the country, for il
exposes to the eye Of the most careless rea-
der the utter poverty of the substance of
which they are composed.
Passing, for the present, the Message, to
which we have already devoted considera-
BILE space, Mr.. Walkers Report is the first
in order Of the Departmental papers. The
subjects are badly grouped. They are hud-
died together without reference to their ma
ture. And in their treatment the author has
not displayed ordinary acumen. He writes
as though he was a counsel in bad cause.
He forgets his relation to Congress, and in
secure in his positions, he regards that body
as his opponent. The whole report is a piece
Of special pleading and very poor exempli-
fcation of the science. He boggles at his
own ideas, for the simple reason, that they
are not clear to his own perez ption, and he
leaves his readers in the same painful predi-
cament. To establish theory seems to be
his only object, and facts. are distorted and
twisted to suit bis purposes with an alarm
ing freedom Unconvinced himself, it is
evident he fails to convince others. There
IS total want of sincerity about his argu-
ments. The veil that separates them from
the authors motives is so thin that the latter
alone are seen through, and he is continual
ly speaking at variance with himself.
The statement of the revenue and expen-
ditures, and the public debt, is mystifed. 1t
is not straightforward mode Of stating
subject The continual effort is to induce
the belief that the war costs little or nothing.
There is no meeting the question plumply.
he deals in suggestions and draws from them
uncertain differences: If, so and SO, why
then, 50 and so. This style of treating so
mathematical question is unworthy Of
statesman, but Mr.. Walker, we learn, does
not aspire to SO high character, and we
therefore shall not do him injustice by re-
curing at his hands statesman's manage
ment Of subject.
And in his recommendations to Congress
to provide for the payment of the interest
and principal of the war debit there is no
firmness, no adherence to principle. He
proposes mode, it is true, but it is with
doubt and fearing. He does not insist upon
1t, as the first and best means of raising re-
venue, which should be exhausted before
other means are resorted to. He avoids COM
hitting himself irremediably to his scheme of
taxation. Having no confidence in it him
self, how can he suppose that Congress will
conhde in it I The mere partisan stands out
too plainly in the recommendation to tax tea
and coffee, not to be seen
In the treatment of the Mexican Reye-
nue. question, Mr.. Walker is equally unhap-
Ply. He mistrusts his own Judgment, il is
PLAIN. He fears, too, the popular feeling
lest 1t may declare against his policy, and
hence uncertainty, trembling and hesta-
ton IN all his positions. We do not find the
bold statesman, confident in the Justice of
his cause, standing up for the pacifcation of
Mexico by absolute civil occupation Of the
territory, and by extending our tariff laws
over It to swell our revenue Nothing of
this, though it is discoverable from his Ian
guage here and there, and forms the basis
Of his arguments and thoughts. Speaking
through the press for the last six months, he
led the country to believe that the whole ex-
penses Of the war would nearly be defrayed
out OF the military contribution chest----now
he doubts the results of levying contribu-
tons, and asks Congress for loan ndepen-
dent of that source Of revenue!
The tariff Of 1916, and the Constitutional