Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, Va. [W. Va.]) 1852-1859, 1852-09-07

deaienlng niagara; and the clash of bayonets and
the shreks and shouts of the combatantS stll mado
night hideous. Scott was the very spirit OF ten
battle storm. His tall form was seen, crimShe
with blood, in every desperate eddy of the tight
and his clarion voice was heard above the wiz,
est din of the conflict. He throtled victory, ana
conquered against fate. And when, covered with
wounds, supposed to be mortal, he fell, his last
words orders to charge, and his last effort
murmured shout of victory. For this, ask your
votes. Let the people give but one suffrage tor
each red drop that then gushed from his gored
bosom-poured out for them and their's-and the
debt of gratitude will, at least in part paid, pos
| tery will do the rest.
| have no time to follow Scott up to the period
| of the Mexican war; Forty years OF service in
camp and council have passed oyer him; but the
vow of the youthful enthusiast isSl the rule ofthe
hoary patrot-he is still and ever all his countrs
Glorious deeds had been done on the Rio GrandeI
and i'll Northern Mexicoi but the nation had ad-
vanced not step towards the achievement of n
peuce. Gen. Scott proposed a renewal of the ad-
venturous march of Cortez; but the scene had
changed, and where the Spanish vessels hadmoved
peaceaby, the castle of San Juan now frowned de-
iance and instead friendly Tlascaansa and feeble
Aztecs, the American General must encounter nn
armed and powerful empire, country impregnable
by nature, skilfully fortified, and ably and obsti
nately defended. The difficulties seemed insuper-
able, and his project was denounced as romantic
madness. Napoleon once disclosed military plan
to one of his staff, ait is impossible" said his
friend "I see no means of its achievement.
Napoleon led him TO window, and pointing to
| the glowing, midday sky, asked-"do you see that
star!' "No," was the reply. al do" said the
emperor and it was his only answer Gen. Scott
thus the star, hidden from feebler visions,
which was to light and guide him on his path OF
glory. The Administration long withheld their
sanction; but they had no other hope; Scott alone
could them; and at length they growlingly
acccdcd For that plan, SO full OF genius and
wisdom, now the glory of our history and the won
! stC gNta thnr frnlI
Scott, do | ask your gratitude and support.
| l will not characterize that campalgn-l cannot;
but you have 1.-THE world has it by heart. Never
was the president and comprehensive weight OF
human genius more wonderfully displayed than by
Scott in its preparation and execution Every diff
| fculty was foresecn every contingency provided
| for This plan was worked out like problem III
| Euclid. But we cannot follow him in his eagle
flight from the surf of the Gulf, to the bowed tow
ers of Vera Cruz and the startled cliffs of Cerro
Gordo, from miracle to miracle, from victory to
victory, over conquered impossibities and crushed
thousands, TO the captured capital. But you Will
remember the universal anxiety felt here at home,
when he descended into the valley of Mexico;
when, his communications destroyed, his army dis
appeared among enemies n-fold its superior in all
save courage and conduct. Weeks and weeks
elapsed, and not word was heard OF them. The
suspense grew ngonzing. Wcwatched-as friends
watch the dark waves i'll which daring diver has
plunged. but from which he does not emerge
White lips whispered, she lost! Has he perish
|
erwise, with force inadequate, against foe so
| formilabe!" AT length, when overweight terror
became despair, the tdngs burst upon us-a torrent
| of glory. Contreras, Churubusco, Molno del Key
were won, and how fluttered our flags, how blaZed
our bon fires, and how nprose our shouts, again and
| again, when we learned that our noble army BIZ
cked in the plaza of the capital; and beneath
the stars and stripes as they waved above the IN
umphs of Coltez, stood Winfield Scott the laurel
led couauerer of Mexico. | stand beneath that
banner nova brighter glory has ever since
cleaned from its stars; and pointing to those fields
of fame, ask, in the name and by the authority OF
those achievements, unequalled IN grandeur and
glory, ask your votes for Gen. Scott. - A b
II is impossible to briefly sketch that campaign.
Its battles are 50 many and glorious that they min
gle their light, the stars which form the galaxy,
melt together and cast stream of glory across the
heavens. But this is Churubusco's day; and the
| nation, in all time,
.win stand iptoc, when the day is named.'
Instead of one battle, its achievements comprise
five distinct battles and five illusrious victories
Time itself looks back upon no such one day. Our
| army was but $500 strong, and was engaged hot
ly, on foot and horseback, in the open field and
before the strongest Notifications, with $4,000 men
well dciplned, armed and commanded. II made
5000 prisoners, and killed and wounded 1000 OF
| the enemy. Any one OF those live Tictories-brli-
| liantS gorousy strung together, and radiently
bound upon the fair brow of our ccuntry-and one
| would have struck the world with wonder; togetl-
| er they stagger credulty, and raise monument OF
| American herosm that will stand till our noun
| tains melt into the plain. We meet to celebrate
that victory of victories, and cannot forget the
patriot hero to whom we owe lt-who never doubt
| cd and never crrcd-who never stumbled and new
er fainted-'the noble naturc,'-Q quote the poet
| literally,)
..Whom passion could not shake; whose sold virtues
The shot oi accident, nor dart of chance,
Could neither Craze nor Fierce"
Had the life of Scott known but that one day of
glory, for that alone would ask, and you could
not, IN justice and gratitude, deny your surages.
| And how Were those services, countless and IN
cstmable, rewarded Who does not blush over
| that page OF our history! The Netern victor was
stripped of the command of that army he had led i'll
| trumph-was accused and treated as malefactor,
and was dragged 10 shameful trial for the high Of
| fence-it was his only one-of having covered his
country with glory. And what did the hero-at
\ the head OF victorious and devoted army-unoer
| this unprecedented outrage and wrong! Lion like
| TO the foe, lie meek and lowly to the laws and
authorities of his country. The magnanlmity OF
Agesilaus, of Hannibal and of BeliSarius, III bowling
to harsh authority, and resgning career OF glo"
ry, has been applauded to the echo; but even more
illustrious was the noble submission of our own
great hearted patriot, for his was deeper and
| darker wrong. His example of Difference to the
law is more glorious and OF more substantial value
than even his victores-and it is for you to reward
it. The cruelty uf that deliberate wrong t" proud
and lofty innocence it is yours to redress; the re-
proach of that base ingratitude TO national 0ene-
factor, it is yours to wipe away. And therefore,
| do ask your votes for Winfield Scott. ..f..
| Pending that persecution, Scott was visited by
temptation, which who but Scott would have reSs-
ted! The people of Mexico, appreciatlng the viz
| tues even of foe, offered him million and quar-
ter of dollars i'll cash and the chief magisttacy OF
| the country. They asked no wrong to his own
government. Com. Porter had established pre-
cedcnt ofacceptance. Scott was persecuted-his
life. long devotion rewarded with disgrace this
would redress him. Like Arisdes, his probity in
| Office had kept him poor-ths would enrich him.
His foes had stripped him of hsstation-this would
confer loftier onc-a place among princes. OF
course he accepted an offer SO brilliant. Why
ted! Not moment. My life'-such was his
sublime answer-'belongs to my country. would
rather be her humblest servtor than the monarch Of
earth's richest empire. Discarded, will still cling