New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1851-12-26
WASHINGTON.
Illness OF Nr. Clsy-The Late Fire az the Capf-
tel-The Compromise. ke.
CONTEMPORARIES OF The n 7. TTbana
WAsHIsGr TON, Wednesday, Dec. "a, 1881


The final and inevitable fate of all men rs
fast encompassing Mr. CLAY. memorable Death
moves apace toward his distinguished victim.
The hon is at last driven to his lair and he hope
lessly aw ats the shaft which IS 20 terminate his
career. There j. hardly the shadow Of hope
left. But II death in any case Is to be avoided
rather than sought It can scarcely be 80 In this,
for Mr. CLAY goes down to his grave full of
years aud full of honOrs and will be long held IN
affectlonate remembrance, and will long be
the object Of manly admiration among mil
lions of his cOuntrymen He has not been
cut of IN the midst Of important duties, or in
spring hopes for the future. He has enjoyed
the full day OF lIfe-ths morning. the high noon,
and the long and mellow afternoon. even into
the twilight What more could be asked FIX
acting as we are prone to be in respect to the
duration of our own lie and the life of those we
love- let Us rejoice and be thankful that Mr.. CLAY
has been spared to his country SO long, and bid
him an affectonate but cheerful farewell. Fer
we should not look upon death as the greatest OF
evils, or indeed as any evil We have more light
than those of old. Yet the great heather and
sublimest of philosophers, Socrates, drank the
poison in the full meridian and glow OF his facul-
ties, and laid down life Inexpresslbly dear to
all around him, with the utmost cheertulness,
saving, that as he did know death to be an evil,
he embraced it with Joy, inasmuch as u enabled
him to know at once the consequences Of the
great change which awaits all men Indeed, so
careless was he OF life, that he would offer bat
Of us who live since Jesus can afford to be quite
as Indifferent as Socrates was in regard to the
period of our final exit from this world. But
alas the men of public life hardly recognize
future. Present cares, present hopes, present
objects of ambition, fill all minds. and drive out
everything like true philosophy or true rcli-
gion from the soul Place, position, power, en-
gross all their thoughts, and heaven is besought,
earth exhausted and he'll shaken to compass
these aims, and vet all is but ashes in the grasp.
Mr. CLAY dies as Mr.. CALHOUN died, OF an at
lection of the luRgs Washington atmosphere Is
unquestionably bad for the breathing apparatus.
There is something about it perpetually irrtatlng
to the mucous membrane.
You get by telegraph to-day the particulars of
the destructive fire at the Capitol. The loss of
the Congressional Library is vast and irrepara-
BILE. There was an exquisite marble bust Of
General TAYLOR, lately added, which has per
ished along with the rest Valuable portraits of
all the Presidents colossal bust OF IA FAY
ErTE, KINGS bust OF J. z. ADAMS, bust OF WASH
INGToN, and numerous other works OF art, are
all DESTROYED. A few articles were snatched
from the flames, but excepting the original Dec
laraton of independence, all was of no account
comparatively speaking. The great mass of the
various highly valuable and deeply interesting
collection has utterly persisted. 1t is sad, sad
loss The negligence OF the watch is unspeaka-
bly, inexcusable But who expects the people
about the Capitol TODD anything but plumber the
Government We shall have an investigation
and report, but this will be but cold comfort.
The Senate does not sit again till Friday, anti
n, will prob.bIy then adjourn over an monday.
The reconsideration OF the Compromise bills
in the Senate, and the attendant out-of-door dis.
cussion, are developing some curious phases OF
this subject. will only say now that 1t Is gem
orally considered that more intensely stupid
f1ur pas was never made than the vote OF the
handful Of Wings, in caucus, who undertook to
lay down the Compromise measures as The plat
form of the Wing party 1t would be by no
means surprising If FoorEs Compromise resolu-
lions were now laid upon the table and killed in
the Senate All sides are anxious to get rid of
the whole subject There Is nothing involved
in It but the personal triumphs and personal de-
leats Of Individuals And 1t IS, therefore, quar-
rel that neither party can afford to carry on.
S. P.