The southern press. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1850-1852, 1851-04-15
WASHINGTON CITY.
TUESDAY. APRIL IL. lssl.


no W&h IN Wa Uooted S5stes ever acquired Z
hgAes authority over opinion than Mr.. CAL
upuS-Ao4 even Mr.. HYPERION. No mans
optnions have been 20 frequently enacted into
NV, and stiti remain on the statute book. Mr..
GA1Rovs acted soustimes with one party and
samstimes with another, but always ~ leader.
When The war Of 1914 was declared. Dir. CAL
HeuS made the report 70 the House. When the
late Bank Of the United States was chartered.
tbs act was framed in accordance with the prin-
esples he successfully advanced in opposition to
tho pssvious project When the csnsurs Of the
Heaate VA pronounced on General JACKSON for
nemesine the deposits, the resolution was in Mr..
CAxHeUs's words. When the sub-treasury was
proposed it. principal feature, the specie clause,
w ths work OF Mr. CALHOUN. He gave order,
efficiency and economy 10 the Department Of
Wan when he presided over it. When Score
tary of State. he conducted the annexation OF
Texas, and Indicated the basis Of settling the
Oregon question, which had to be adopted
Whenever Mr. CaLHous's opinions were in
accordance with the policy Of others, they were
quoted, and extollod 10 extravagance. But
when they were adverse, no man encountered 80
much invective. Scribblers of every degree, but
particularly those whose pretensions to thought,
reason. knowledge, politics or philosophy, were
30 Enthusiastically minute as to be beyond the
power Of decimal expression, have attempted to
acquire notice by the. noise and luminosity Of
their attacks on him-besides some whose only
claims to notice were founded on former pro-
fessions of his neutrality-suspicious. which
constituted their only claims to be read.
When Mr.. CALHOUN offered the resolution
that every State on its admission into the Union,
had q right to choose it's institutions, no favor
was accorded to it by his opponents. The Will
mot Proyiso was then the favorite. When it
was Afterwards found that, owing to that move
ment Of the North, the people of the South had
been deferred from colonizing California, and
that it was in the possession of Northern men,
20 that the Wilmot Proviso was secured, then
al were for Mr.. CALHouS's doctrine--it was the
true doctrine, the only doctrine. The right Of
forming their own institutions was SO sacred
and potential, that it extended to every sort of
inhabitants or occupants Of a territory, and au-
thorized them to take as much Of it as they
pleased. Mr. CALHOUN, it appears at length,
did not understand his own resolution He de-
clared that the admission of California as was
proposed and was finally done,to be worse than
the Wilmot Proviso-more fraudulent and
more insulting-for it insulted the understand
Ing A. we'll as the feelings of the South. But
the holy allies of aggression and submission
stoutly insisted they were going to transfer the
territory to the North on Mr.. CALHouN's princis
pies, and that he did not understand them--or
had deserted them.
But the most singular use of Mr.. CALHouN's
opinions, or rrther of his name, that we have
yet seen, has been by General HAMILTON in his
recent letter TO the people of Button, South
Carolina, explaining why he did not deliver a
eulogy there on Mr.. CALHOUN. General HAM
uroS says Mr. CALHOUN did not contemplate
the separate accession of South Carolina. Well,
that is no doubt very true. Nobody whilst Mr.
CALHOUN lived did. for it was not until long af-
tor his death that the events occurred of the re-
treat of the other Southern States from the po-
sition they had assumed. Mr.. CALHOUN contem-
plated no such thing as that. He would have
scorned to speculate on such hypothesis. He
therefore expressed no opinion on such con.
tingency. And General HAMILTON actually un-
dertakes to find an argument for favorite no.
ton of his own, in the fact that Mr.. CALHOUN
erpressed no opinion about it,
HMr. CALHOUN had lived, he would doubtless
have formed and expressed an opinion on the
present emergency But to invoke his authority
on one side or the other in South Carolina,
on the ground that he never expressed an opin-
ion on tie subject, is an entirely new exploit in
the art Of persuasion.
We should not have referred to this subject
at al, but for the general notice taken of General
HAniLroN's letter in the Northern and submis-
sion papers. Nearly all of them voluntarily fall
into the conclusion which the adroit language
Of General HAMILTON was designed to indi-
cate-that because Mr. CALHOUN had said no.
thing about contingency not expected to hap.
pen, therefore he would have done nothing
We have abstained from expressing any opin-
ion on the course for South Carolina to pursue.
She has been deserted, thus far, by all those
States, except Mississippi, which entered into
the common pledges of mutual aid and concert
II would be indicate in other States to advise
hss, much less for individuals. The question is
different one now with her, from what il was
10 the other Southern States that have submitted
They would not have acted alone, If they had
acted at all, for they knew that South Carolina
was ready to cooperate. They had to decide
the question Of resistance with cooperation
She has to decide for or against resistance, with
out cooperation. They had TO determine
whether they would redeem the pledge made in
common with others. South Carolina has no
pledge 10 others TO redeem-except so far as
Mississippi may act, and there is no difference of