Iowa capitol reporter. [volume] (Iowa City, Iowa) 1841-1855, 1848-10-11
.. IOWA CITY, WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER H. 1913
Letter from John M. BOTS.
Published by order of the Clay Committee.

LETTER. from InhsD M Date
49, mi ~. s. - "a
Published by order Of the Clay Committed "a
RICHMOND, September 6, l84S.
Wy Dear Sir: received your letter
yesterday, by which l was delighted to
hear Of the faced purpose-not an Albany
fash-in-the-pan--ofthe determined friends
Of the wing cause, and Of whig principles,
to nominate Henry Clay; for, as matters
now stand, admitting Gen. Taylor to be a
whig candidate, (Which | utterly deny, J
the party is doomed to certain, inevitable
and disgraceful defeat and every man not
wiliully blind must see it. 1t was an in
excusable blunder to suppose that from
million and a quarter to million and a
half of free, independent whigvoters could
be wheedled into line at the word of COM
mand from some fifty or sixty Washington
politicians most ofwhom had scarcely shed
their pm feathers in politics for candidate
who never filled a civil station, and who
had not for forty years, and perhaps in his
life, given vote for man or measure;
without experience or knowledge of the
practical operations Of any one of the do
nestle questions about whichhe had differ
ed; Of no acquaintance with our foreign
relations; who had said 10 the people,
"You must take me On your own respon-
sibility will not be the candidate of
la party" nor "will | be the exponent of
your party principles, nor s'look to the
doctrines Of your party as the rule of my
action;' and while be protested to shrink
from no possibility, steadily refused to
give his opinion on any one question ex-
cept the practical use of the Veto power;
and declared his determination not to be
governed by the action of the convention,
but would be candidate no matter who
might be nominated: and i'll my judgment
his name never should have been consider
ed in that convention after he made that
declaration.
But this last objection, it was said, had
been removed by the pledges made for
him by Judge Saunders in behalf of the
Louisiana delegation, which he subse-
quently adopted by card written by his
authority and published by Bailie Peyton,
Bullet, &c.-and this declaration was
held up by the Taylor men and whig pres
ses Of the country as sufficientto reconcile
all wings to his election. That Peyton
Card and his cordial acceptance of the
nomination had placed him upon the wing
platform; and just at the moment that ma
ny Of us had brought our minds to the con-
clusion to vote for him, however reluctant
! w, he writes another letter, in which he
says he would have accepted the nominal
ton from the Baltimore convention on the
same terms on which he accepted the
Philadelphia nomination! What becomes
then, of the Saunders pledge? What be-
comes of the Peyton Card! And if it be
true that there were no terms expressed
or implied in the Philapelphia nomination
that would be inconsistent with an accept
ance of the democratic nomination at Bal
,imore, in what an attitude does it place
the wing party, selecting as their candidate
one who could with equal propriety have
become the candidate Of their opponents:
And ifnot true, in what a position does it
place General Taylor.
But Wnat GeSlfe 10 learn IS THIS! u
Gen. Taylor is not bound ly tie action OF
the Philadelphia convention, who ls??-
And if he may disregard lis rcco,nenda-
tons who may not? And if he is bound
by their action, what right has he to lend
/ the influence Of his name to the defeat OF
Mr.. Fillmore who was associated with
him, by the same body of men. by accept
ing nomination with Gen. Butler, loco
foco, whose election he thereby assists in
promoting. In short his whole course Of
conduct is insulting to the wing party, and
especially t, all those who participated in
the proceedings at Philadelphia, and if
thew had any whig spirit left in them.
Ii il is ascertained that the purpose of