Spirit of Jefferson. [volume] (Charles Town, Va. [W. Va.]) 1844-1948, 1850-03-26
TIE MIND OF oUR COUNTRY.

- On Tuesday, we INDUCED in some remarks un
| 1let tLia head : we now pursue the same subject
and draw into the circle Benton, Cass and Man
gum. .,,.t,
| many long and ardnnus discussions, welding a
;rost powerful force in presenting rsheStiohs ug
! figed from great research and labor his slyle
| ID npirI;r clasie nor beautiful, but always full
/ ai,d cn,aprehensive; aud when he has chosen to
WELD tie sword OF invectye, his successes has been
sssmcst perfect. His anatllemss are THOSE Of a
| caarser nature shan ought 10 be indulged IN by
tf,e really elevated aud virtuous; his sarcasm
and rid;u uIe have been directed With more effect
against The mind and requirements OF his edver-
ss{y IlISn in pointing eul detects IN aEgsEient
G.,ia do Sfrsyirs tter Positions shows ciear.
rs in all snch clI0rls his personal ,tnalLce5. and
st:{netftnIs = his dcscentis too low TO entlte hI
TO- ;ha na4nc of well meaning scaveDger. In
liiei Oreun,l dispute with Greenhow, he assaiIed
iIi5jopponant desperately and brutaiiy. lie never
l,s,ks 10 the future, but upon all occasions, di-
resis his reflections 10 the past. Ills Chief claim
To merit pnd fame, rests upon MS masculine as
IA stIt utc4i tie Bank OF the United States, in
wIs:ch he led up the finishing charge into the
bre4st-wcrks of the moneycd monster, that had
bc:.n previously weakened hy jackson. Benton
nexsr takes the hitia;ory step i'll any CON
trHsersy tnvolving principle; he lets others do
the;hu&iI:"ss of breaking The ice, and he then
CONES up with flourish ot trumPets, TO Claim
!,i5:share Of The glory. Ills mind moves slowly,
aud; ufer preparation, he fires "A most dangerous
Ira,dcaIIy gun When Calhoun had broken the
poht.lur diicCtion upon the Oregon dispute, Ben
tnl game up with his research, and reinforced
lhL intrepid Carulinian with fresh materials, Ike
B,Jtsher nj the battle OF Waterloo. lie has ac-
uuj,aL all his fame BY laborng for facts and sta.
tistits, in ~ hch he excels any single member OF
the Sruala He 10 treacherous and full OF envy
his malice turns his great store Of knowledge
to most unworthy purposes, and at THIS present
.norucnt lie occupies a position 10" foolish ana
silk for cI:c that, in countless instances, has laid
dow,l and ,xpounded propositions OF the most Hb-
strIfrc character, with q Orce and c!earncss, ne
yer ID be surpassed. In running his pencil over
the canvass which hung up the picture OF our
cuu,.tfv u,.der the various financial eXPedents
tLat lad bGen resorled 10, from our commence
meti as Il nation, he placed the worthy iuten.
liux; of making the government hard mOneyed
one: in Il I.;rm too positive to admit OF doubt
He rrheurerd with the precision o one that had
lived through all the changes, every refusal to
deOaJt from the constitutional standard Of our
lathErs, and demanded persistence In their 1u'
dicrns cna&tments, with SO much composure
and seIf-rei,ance, that dispute was not only out
of tic quest tun but his opponents had neither the
eFrct;tcry t. assai him, the folly 10 resist his
Conclusions But recently lie has permitted his
hatred for Calhoun tu lead him, with his lamp ot
erudIun in his hand, directly into Iabarynlh6 oi
error and luHy, from which the trump OF Gabriel
will be necessary to rec lain him. His prusttu.
:Iiou Z. go Un.voTthy and contemplate IA passion,
las lclt hiny with his former companion of GOr-
r0,ecri iUflncrfce, Mr. Van BuEen. aturned down
and ElJitcd leaf in the book OF history, 10 Which
as a nation the great and good Of our country
have. coutribntcd. MIR. Benton never had any OF
iho.e !clcate qualities Uflhe heart or the head
ihrt Gud endear many to him-he never had
ANY iafluencc beyond that created by his acquire
incn,s, his :lilapidation, therefore, creates no
sympathy nos regret. ;,
In referring to Lewis Cass, we fear we shall
bu. use rilc and Oft repeated expressions; but
,Se re. now lending our pen TO The purpose o!
gratifying our readers with sketches unlnttuenccd
Dy anit party alliances or preferences. We speak
if mCn OF all parties with freedom; we write of
The rand and ma ial of body OF men, not in
,,erior TO any on the globe, and Of them and their
places I'VE may speak without fear and far above
fhe tiily bands o. partiality or of preference
We wt!tc what we regard us truih-that simple
and priceless jewel, which the most determined
And rcsulute partizan is forced to respect and
value Cass speaks with direct and positive
aim-iCis reasoning is clear, but not precise
Ills copusiti0ns never rise to the grand and sub
iimc-Gis conceptions are siow-hIs Judgments,
howeyfir cleai aud his resolution aud detcrmlna-
lion arc equal to any necessity. His position,
when Minister 10 Paris, was by a II regarded us
ihc IrfaSt manly and enviable-hs assault upon
the c(l;ifts of France and England to Appropriate
TO themselves advantages derogatory to our ma
kunal egrity, were iaultess in manner and ga
oacity.5; lie blew to atoms GulZot, the most
Iearnel and pt,Iislied statesman in France, and
furnished materials for his adversarcs, that were
| hsed with success in nearly every arrondisSemcnt
| i, Frati,e nd carrieddown the Quintuple Treaty
With such an absolute destruction, that no simple
ton has ever been found stupid enough to attempt
| its revival. Cass is, however, the student as
| well aslthe actor lie is fully alive 10 every in
terest f,l our country-he has thought OF our sys'
| ten at Z distance, and, when brought up TO the
slupcnGeus proportion of the most remarkable and
Vet the snost simple and natural government upon
! the ea.@,, he las very appropriately " and wisely
| LSTectedfhis Efforts 10 increase our Importance IN
Ihs eyesot other nations being well aware oil our
s,,TncIio5i,v as people and OF our capacity as a
| cbnrede+ated Republic. He has truthiulness and
| Sincerity in every sentiment lie utters-hIs re-
| Elections are those Of the honest soldier and Inc
! observing sialesman--hs considerations are
psacticabIe-his mind knows of nothing in con
| nsxiun Sxith any subject except the simple ant
| naked truth fitSt, and, afterwards, its influence
when pitt into actinn His disquisitions smet
strongly Of the lamp, although his appearance
AID manncr leave tue impression that labor was
| never pleasant 20 him. Few men have hlled 81
MANY positions of honor and dignity and retired
| frtim them with so much grace and eioquencc
ana but few, if any, put on the gown OF place ant
Office with so much of composure aud case:
| !Mane9im rises next upon the horIzon-hIs ap
uearauceHs gallant, yet gentle; full OF tlre, ye
hntna ne And kind. Ills reflections are usuall!
the most natural and superficial; his eompos!
tidns ars!wanriag in originality. yet always dl
yulging tse goodness of heart which their autho
poasesseF He is intrepid and direct in his dc
matio4s-his arguments are usually well.time'
and modetate, aud present generally, arespee
! for;his constituency that is too commendaeie U
escsne observation. His integrity and honorable
besrinp kaye .nerer been impeached, and his can
dor is ID natural as the sumbers of weariet
man. HIS. thoughts dropfrom his mind hurriedly
and wiliaut aa efTort lie is full Of good humor
thai plays upon his dignity with as much inno no
SosaIo offiis mother. whilst lifting its hearenl!
co,inleuaice 10 receive cluster OF catesses iron
III sn,bdF Of its existence. As a statesman, hi
.ani is amongst the conservative and moderate
.I,bbnob HE nafBral FIRE ofhis nature sometime
leads him of into paths that the bold and teaEles
onI can trend With safety and eomp9ssn.e nns,v ~ y