Burlington free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1827-1865, 1847-03-19
Major General Benton.

Mr.. IIANSEGAH, Senator from Indiana, in a
debate in the Senate the day before the final adj
jonrnment of Congress, gave it as his opinion
that Gen. jackson told the truth when he said
the bursting Of the gur on board the Princeton
knocked Benion's brains out! We are inclined
to concur in this opinion. The Major General
has evnced an excellent memory since the ca
lamitous accident alluded to, and has brought
the facts which it enables him to command TO
tell with great force against the 5i.4o crusa-
ders, and the Texas Don Quixottes. But his
brains, we are sorry to believe, are clean gone
forever. There is nothing LEFT of him bufa most
tenacious memory, and a sense of his own per-
sonal consequence, a ranuy that exceeds
any thing we ever heard or read Of in the whole
history of human weaknesses and infrmities
His appreciation of himself Is exaggerated to
the EXTREMIST point fthe ludcrous and absurd.
Let our readers read the correspondence below
between Mr.. Benton and the President touch
ing the command of the Army, and reprcss their
establishment if they can ! We never heard Of
so great man as this same newborn Major
General takes himself to be Ajax had not a
1.-THE of his vanity, nor Coriolanus mocty of
his superciliousness. He is the very peacock
of his race 1t is manifest that, with his MEM
DRY stored with precedents in Roman history, he
regards himself as specially commissioned to
take care " nc guild detrimemi respuJlica cape
ret." lie demands power and authority never
conferred on mortal man in the life Of This repub-
| liz Io in ND,
disiaeresied spirit, that he may be clothed
with absolute, unlimited and despotic authority
touching our difficulties with Mexico And lie
asks it with all the apparent simplicity Of a
blbc The plans of TAYLOR and SCOTT, he
modcstly says, do not meet his appreciation, and
THEREFORE he cant go to the wars " unless
they are recalled The sun of heaven never
shone on such piece Of sheer, unmitigated,
inconceivable vanity. History affords no para-
lei for vt, and the imagination of Shakespeare
furnishes but an approximation to its intensity
AS the nearest approach TO a description of it
that we remember to have -een. we copy the
following from the great Dramatiss delinea-
ton of the character of Ajax after he was chal-
enged by Hector. 1t may be found in the play
of"Troilus and Cressida' Act III. scene g. a.
and
Enter THERsrrEs.
Tier. A wonder!
Achil WHAT
Their. Ajax goesup and down the field, asking for
himself
Tier. He must fight singy tomorrow with Hector;
and is so prophciicaly proud ofan heroca cudgelng
fchil. How can that bel
Ther Why, he stalks up and down like pcacock, a
stride and stand Eliminates like hostess that hath
no arithmetic but her brain to set down her reckoning,
bites his lip with polite regard as who should say
there were wit in this head an twoud out and "a
there is but i, lies coldly in him fire in flint
which will not shcw without knocking. The mans
undone for ever; for if Hector break his neck 1.-THE
combat, he'll break it himself in vain glory. He knows
not me: said, Good -morron Ajor; and he replies
Thanks, Agamemnon. What think you Of this man
that takes me for the general! He IS grown very
land fish, languagcess monster plague of opin-
ion man may it on both sides, like n leather
jerkin.
Achil Thou must be my ambassador to him, Their
sites
Their WHO, n why, he'll answer nobody; he pro-
fcsses not answering speaking is for beggars he wears
his tongue in his arms. will put on his presence lei
Patrocus make demands to me, you shall see the pa
Achl TO him. Patroclus: Tell him-I humbly
desire the valiant A jax, to invite the most valorou:
Hector 10 unarned to tent ana TO procure
safe conduct for his person, of the magnanimous and
most ilustrious, six times honoured capita
general of the Grecinn army, Agamenrnon Do this
Pair. Jove bless great AJAX.
Tier. lperSondfing Ajdrl lfumph,
Pqtr. come from the worthy Achilles
Tier Ha
Patr, Who Most humbly desires you to invite Hec
tor TO his tent -
Tier Humph!
Far. And to procure safe conduct from Agamcm
non.
Iher Agamemnonl
PGtr. Ay,my lord
Iher Iia
Pair What say you tot
Tier. God be wi you, with all my heart.
Pair. four answer, sir.
Their II Tomorrow be fair day. by eleven o'clock
it will go one way or other howsocver he sha Il pa,
for me ere he has me-
IGfr our answer, sir.
Tier Fare You WELL with oil my heart
AchH Why, but he is not in this tune, is he !
Iher. No, but he's out o'tuue thus What mus,
will be in him when Hector has knocked out his brain
know not but, am sure, none. unless the fiddle
Apollo get his sinews 10 make ca,ings on
AchH Come, thou shalt bear letter to him s,rniaht
Tier. Let nue. bear another to his horse for that
the more capable creature
Now then for our modern Ajlx and Agamem
non Polk
, Letter from Mr., Benton to the President
" WASHINGTON, MARCH q, 1917.