Port Tobacco times, and Charles County advertiser. (Port Tobacco, Md.) 1845-1898, 1853-11-24

Ouence and The nome oI genius. Ill udtnlhS
Mr.. Pinkney and Mr.. Wehs,er together,
and weaving alike brilliant and imperlsh-
able garland for each, it must not be sup
posed that | mean to intimate that they
were wholly alike in the quality and char
ac,er Of their minds. They resembled each
other in that feature which made them so
unlike any of their illnsuIous compeers.-
They were alike in the wnnderGul combi-
nation Of depth and hriIlancy but in mos.
other respects they differed from each other
as widely as they did from the more dis
lnguished Of their competitors. Clay was
far-rea ching, endowed with extraordinary
sagaci,y, full Of sterling common sense
bold as lion, the most perfect master Of
the power TO move and mould the masses,
emphs,ically and par excellence the orator
of the people. lie was the first statesman
Of the orld; almost in'uiive in judgment,
he was equal to any emergency, and could
steer the noble ship Of Stale through the
mos. difficult and appalling crises. His
courage always rose with the occasion. and
his admirable decision Of character gave a
sorI of charm to the policy he pursued, and
was The chief element of his success. His
tall and majestic figure beautifully harmo-
nized with his irankness of disposition ;
while his voice, which was the very melody
of eloquence, capable Of the most marvel
Ious modulalion, pre-emlnenily fitted HIM
for leader in the iervor and excilemen! OF
debate. The great pscilicator Of the country,
he more than once caltDed the spirit Of the
storm as il rose IN its fury and threatened
10 pour desolalion in its whirlwind path ;
so tha, without the charge of eXtravagance,
we may apply 10 him those beautiful words
Of the poet
A" Tumida Gquora placat
Collcctasque fugat nubes, solemque reduclt."
He led on in the Missouri compromise, and
Pinkney followed; he led on The last bu.
no. less glorious compromise, and Webster
followed. The glory of the invention and
guiding policy was III either case Clay's;
the noblest defence was Pinkney's aud
Webster's The chvairous and heroic
Clay will be remembered as long as the
Union lasts, and the marvel of his elo-
quence. identified with the floating stars,
vii. recall the splendors Of the elder Pii,.
sni make immortal the principles OF fIee-
dom it so brilliantly illustrated. His name
is still the watchword which is recognised
by every sentinel on guard as The counter
sign, and his memory is still, as II ever will
be, a tower Of strength.
The genius of Calhoun, which delighted
10 revel in The midst Of lis own splendid
theories, remark ably rich and fruitful, uni
ted to his singularly y strong and vigorous
intellect, will command the admiration ol
the world so long as originality and force
are properly appreciated. But Clay, with
all his incompatible excellence as a p"pu-
lar orator and statesman, was defective IN
profound logical power; and Calhoun, with
all his unqueslioned intellectually, was de-
fectve in judgment and splendor of elo-
quence. Their emInence was restricted TO
the two great departments Of oralory and
craftsmanship.
Mr.. Pinkney and Alr. Webster were left
to illustrate that rare combination which
secured for them like pre-eminence as law
yers, orators and statesmen. For close.
severe, connected logical reasoning they
were unsur passed. Perfect masters Of the
science Of The law, nimIlable cxpounders
of the Constitution, they were as profound
as brilliant, as deep as eloquent. They
were tried in the severest school, and IN
the presence of the most critical and COM
pe,enl judges and the very first court ol
the nation, in the very zenith OF Its fame.
was not ashamed to Sill al the feel of either
and learn the true principles Of constItu-
,iona Interpretation. They were indeed
amici Gcuri. Blu. still they were very un.
like each other, notwithstanding this won
derful resemblance. Plnkney was rapid ;
he poured forth torrents of forensic elo-
quence and vehement augmentation in q
swollen stream that seemed TO be absolutely
exhauslless. Engaged in the most diversi-
fled and extensive practice, he never failed
10 nfuse the magic of his eloquence and
transparency of his reasoning into his num-
berIess arguments. Mr.. Webster could be
eloquent, a. times most eloquent, and on
such occasions the effect was irresistible.
He was calm, collected, deliberate in the
main; and yet his giant soul was some
times reused and his lion spirit stirred, and
then there was the lightning flash in his ey e
and the lhunderlone in his tongue. AT
such times there was an awful and terrible
subIimty in his thoughts and a bold mas
sive structure in his Style .ha. were admi-
rally adapted to the occasion; he bore
down like a reused lion upon his an,ago-
mist, and desperate and well timed were the
blows of his stalwarl arm. He was master
Of every passion, and his counlenance
gIowed with the most varying expression
! was privileged TO witness one Of those
mobiles, bursts of oratorial power in the
celebrated Grard will case. Never shall
forge, the wilhering scorn, the bi,ing sar.
casm, the deep affecting palhos, the fearful
sublimi.y lha. alternately thrilled and de-
lighted the wIsp1 assembly