The Sierra citizen., 1854-06-10
The Oratory OF Henry Clay.

PuTSAM's Magazine for May, has an
elaborate article on the oratory of Henry
Clay, from which we extract the following
passages. Now that the Man of Ashland
has been withdrawn from the arena OF
public life, and the echoes of his voice
died away in the pational halls, the rancor
of political contests and the rivalry OF
ambition have been forgotten, aud only
the statesman, orator and friend are re-
membered But to the picture sketched
by mastery hand.
Ibis usual delivery was quite deliberate;
every word golden and clean-cut His
hands played all ways naturally; there was
no gesture which looked as if he had
thought of it over night. His figure in
cined pliantly and with a dignifed and
courty emphasis, though in the moments
of vast passion it would bend almost
double, and for an instant play up and
down like the walking-beam of a North
River steamboat. His eye usually smiled
with an expression Of inviting good-humor:
alternating, however, with all expression
at times, like "a jet of fame. He frequently
took snuff, and would walk some distance,
while speaking, to take pinch from some
friendly senator's box. Sometimes he held
in his hand great red handkerchief "a
product offs some Kentucky loom, we should
think,) and, often forgetting to put it in
his pocket, in his rising raptures, that red
bandanna would flourish about with a
sort of jubilant triumph of motion, breath
ing, by the spirit Of its movement, as
much confidence into his followers as the
white plume Of Henry of Navarro inspired
in his soldiers; and suggesting, by the
success which always followed the aroused
ardors, of which its waving was the
evidence, no violent imagination of the
very "crimson wing Of conquest" ITSELF
And as he warmed, his words came faster
and faster, yet still articulated; his awk-
ward arms began to sweep gracefully in
wider and wider sweeps; the prophetic ex-
preston of his feelings, darted across his
features in the advance of his words; single
words would be blazed out, yet still the
general level of the utterance was low and
sweet; his uncomely face beamed with ami
nation. and his homely mouth seemed te
shrink and curve in his passion, almost tc
a Grecian chiselling."
Speaking of his personal appearance
while on the rostrum, the writer says -
"When his soul was all aglow with burn
ing sentiments. when his bodily sensibili
ties were all up, and reacting on all biz
faculties, the rapid throb of his pulse beat
ing reveille to all his powers-then
indeed. for one moment, you might fancy
that Cicero's splendid dream was realized
that in the senate-house, Rosc.us wa
lndeef. in actiol,t a. the all-perfect comb
nation of the statesman and the actor
was standing right before you. In those
moments, the genius Of Clay-Harry Clay
as those who loved him fondly called him
welded an imperatorial supremacy ovel
the subdued spirit Of others; then, like
Andrew jackson, his sole rival in the
single point ofpowerful character, he cou'c
say, with defiant from "By the Et,rn
1t shall be so 2" and no man dared gainsa,
him. He had. too, a faculty of crowding
as by some hydrostatic pressure Of ora
tory. an amazing weight of expression OIL
to the backbone of a single word. Some
times mounting from his easy level, on on;
word alone, he would go through whole
pautomime Of action; his form rises, hi.