Washington telegraph., 1852-12-29
From, the National Intelligencer.]
Senator Clemens ON MIR. Webster.


Senator Clemens ON Mr.. Webster.
Our tables are crowded with newspaper
and pamphlet copies of Orations and Dis
courses delivered in all parts of the country
upon the occasion Of the decease Of Mr..
WEBSTER, for no portion of which, no more
than for the many columns of similar dis
courses pronounced in honor of Mr.. CLAY,
can we possibly find room at large in our
columns. AL. that we can attempt to i'm
part to our readers Of them are occasional
selections from such as appear worthy of
particular note. Of these we have seen
none more so than the Eulogy upon Mr.
WEBSTER, pronounced, at the request of the
Town Council of Huntsville, in the State of
Alabama, by the Hon. Mr.. Clemens, Sen
ator from that State, the interest of which is
heightened in consideration Of the relations
which had heretofore existed between them
as members of the same body. The extracts
which we subjoin embrace the opening and
the conclusion of that Eulogy, the beauty of
both Of which, we think, will strike every
reader:
"Whatever is mortal of Daniel Webster
LIDS pCI iSuCO, anu tlC CCdIS vi J NIlOiC DtO-
pie are raining on the pathway which leads
to his final resting-place. The hand of the
great Destroyer has stricken down the Pa
triot, the Orator, and the Statesman whose
eloquence for nearly forty years has stirred
the heart of the Nation, and whose wise and
prudent counsels have assisted to guide and
direct it through every period of trial and
danger. Well may we mourn-not for him,
but for the republic He could afford to die
He had attained the threescore years and
ten allotted to man. He had been again
and again called to the highest stations
Long since genius and patriotism had crown
ed his lofty brow for Immortality. The
measure of his fame was full, and, like the
sun Of the tropics, which sinks beneath the
horizon with every gorgeous ray undimmed
and shining to the last, he passed away in
the full blaze of all those honors which life
Of devotion to his country had so nobly earn.
ed Not for him, then, let the eye grow
moist, but for those who are left to struggle
on unaided by the wisdom OIL which we have
been accustomed to lean for support
Biography and history are usually Pc
garded as separate and distinct. Each has
its accustomed paths; each it's prescribed and
acknowledged rules; but in this case they
are so blended into one that it is almost i'm
possible to separate them A biography of
Daniel Webster is necessarily history OF
the times in which he lived. He has been
so intimately connected with every great
measure, and has left the impress of his
genius SO indelibly stamped On every thing
he touched, that it is difficult to separate the
man from the eucaat. In the brief sketch
Of his life which [ propose to give, | shall
confine myself as much as possible to the
individual, without attempting recital of
historical events familiar to ALL
"That he had no faults [ will not assert;
but that he had fewer than any public man
[ have known, except Mr. Calhoun, [ do
sincerely believe. His heart was too kind
and his nature was too great for the weeds
of vice to flourish ON such a soil. If they
ever took root, they withered almost as socn
as they sprang into existence The very
manner of his death will witness for him that
within that bosom goodness sat upon the
same throne with greatness. Calm, collect
ed, and resigned. he called his family and his
friends about him, and, uttering a word of
kindness to each, he bade them an affection
ate goodbye. Then, requesting his son to
read Gray's Elegy, almost before the last
words of that beautiful poem fell on his ear
his eyes were closed in everlasting sleep
Thus peacefully passed away the last of
the American triumvirate. He had lived to
witness and participate in the funeral cere-
monies of his great rivals. They had died
at the Capitol in the midst of the Nations
Representatives. The sages Of the Republic,
her battle-scarred veterans, her historians,
and her bards surrounded the cofins in which
they lay, and gave a lustre to the solemn
pageantry of the hour. His spirit took its
flight from the walls of his own quiet home,
and no pompous national funeral gilded the
passage of his body to the grave. But the
hearts of the wise and good will be shrouded
with as deep gloom, and more reverential
awe will settle upon the people as they read
the sad announcement that he, the mightiest
and the last, is gone.
"Amid the general gloom which follows
the departure Of such man, all private
grief becomes contemplate. The great
heart of the nation has been touched and
private sorrow sinks into insignifcance. 1t
is permitted, however. to those who have
seen him and known him, who have enjoyed
his hospitality and experienced his kindness,
to bear witness to his worth, and to testify
to those with whom we may be associated
that whatever Of greatness now remains up
on earth is to him as the twinkling star to
the MONDAY sun.
BE this my plea when I suspend
This all unworthy wreath, on such statesman's
BIER"
| RAIL RoAD.-The State Gazette says
that the preliminary survey for the road
e Galroston to Red River has been