The daily national Whig. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1847-1849, 1849-02-23

Every one knows that General Taylor disrust'
his own abilities; and he viii have to depend, o
course upon the counsel of others, and on none sc
much that of Mr. Clayton. He is the Atlas Of thu
administration The burden principally reposes upor
his shoulders. The whole country has now Its ey'
upon him. The Wings certainly look TO him. upor
his discretion his sagaciIy, his rmpess, his eeva
ton above all low and selfish interests depends
the character Of the mex, administration. Va,i
Union, tDem,) Feb q.
Every wise man distrusts his own abili-
ties, but that is no evidence of his want o.
abilities. None but the fool is .froward
This attempt Of the Union to underrate
President TAYLOR is not worthy Of that
paper. We thought that the failure Of the
attempt to underrate Gen. Jackson and Mr..
Polk BY their opponents, would have been
lesson to the Union not to indulge in such
tactics, but it seems, human nature IS ever
the same under the same circumstances. =
True wisdom dictates the proprlety OF ele-
waiting ones opponent, but evil-eyed envy
suggests the policy Of depreciating him.
We regret exceedingly to see our octogena-
rian contemporary fall prey to the sugges-
tons Of the evil-eyed monster, not for the
sake Of the party deprecated, but for his own
sake. But It is not our business to prescribe
what weapons he shall use against the new
administration. If he will persist in using
the sword Of depreciation, he must not be
surprised to find il turned against him with
fatal effect.
But the assertion, that President TAYLOR
cannot rely upon his own counsels, has no
judgment Of his own, must rely upon this or
that man, must depend on the counsels Of
others, has no foundation in truth. The
very reverse is the fact No man, in any
age, has displayed SO much self-dependence,
SO much unerring wisdom, so much sound
judgment as ZACHARY TAYLOR. He has
been the Atlas Of his past life, and will be
the Atlas Of his coming life, if he is spared
to the country. His administration will be
ZACHARY TAYLoR's administration. In say
in this, we do not mean to detract an iota
from the fair fame of Mr.. CLAYTON, from
the powerful support which he will yield to
the Presidents administration Of public af-
fairs, from his "sagacity, his frmness, his
elevation above all low and selfish interests. .
1t is precisely because Of his possession Of
these high and noble qualities Of mind and
heart, that he has been chosenb by the President
to take charge of the Department Of Foreign
Affairs. And Mr.. CLAYTON will discharge
his duties fearlessly, firmly, sagaciously,
and above all low and selfish interests He
will be an Atlas, indeed, but il will be in the
department over which he is about to pre-
side.
And here, we may as well give it as our
opinion in advance, that the Union win find
itself in maze Of astonishment, when it
shall come to hear the names Of the gentle
men whom the President will call to the
other departmental Offices, and we should not
be surprised to see it turning round to de-
preciate Mr.. CLAYTON, in order to place
the burden Of the Presidency on the should
ers oil each one Of the other Secretaries. The
Presidents cabinet will be a constellation Of
mighty minds, but President TAYLOR will
be the head Of his own administration, as
the Union will speedily find out.
Thus Il appears that Mr.. Clayton Is 10 be the Sec
rotary of State under the next administration. We
do not envy him his honor, whilst we do not mean
to depreciate 1t. Neither the President himself
will repose upon bed of roses - Hash. Union,
(Dem.,) Feb. %.
Without pretending to say upon what sort
Of bed Mr.. Clayton expects to repose in
his administration Of the Department Of For
eign Affairs, we know that President Tay-
lor has no expectation Of lying upon bed
Of roses. He has been too long used to a
bed Of thorns to look for any change in this
particular,
CONGRESS-.
SENATE.