Worcester daily spy. [volume] (Worcester [Mass.]) 1850-1888, 1854-04-10
Gk aaiIg SPY,


II by a logical argument, he probably little
thought that similar charge Of stealing thun-
der would ever be brought against him, and
chat too by one of his dearest and most init
mate friends, when he should have gone down
70 the grave. But so it is. Mr. Ed'0ard Er-
.vetf claims to be the author Of the celebrated
Hulsemann letter, which the critics and states
man. of both hemispheres have decided to be
one of the grandest state papers which ever
emanated from the comprehensive mind of
Webster. and he has recently been engaged in
prosecuting measures to establish his claim, if
that can be relied upon as true, which has re-
Gently come to light concerning the matter.
A Boston correspondent of the Now York
Ereniac Post, in a letter speaking of Mr.. Ev-
erett's recent visit to Boston, makes the first
nublic announcement of Mr.. Everett's inten-
tons in the following, which we quote below.
"Soon after he arrived, he addressed let
ter to Fletcher Webster, in which he stated
what he said Mr.. Webster was probably aware
of, that he was the author of the Hulsemann
letter, and that the original draft, in his hand
writing, would be found among the papers of
his father, who, in consequence of his labor
ing under one Of his periodical colds at the
time, had requested him Mr.. Everett) to pre-
mare the answer to Mr.. HulsemanR. Mr..
Everett went on to say, that he had not kept
all his letters to Mr.. Webster, and he regret
ted that this draft was among the missing ones;
and, as he was anxious to retain the evidence
of his being its author, he requested Mr.. Web
ster to send to him.
Mr.. Webster did not hesitate, believe, to
do so; at least Mr.. Everett received it on the
following daY. In the course of a few DAYS,
and before Mr.. Everetts return, he sent Mr..
Webster printed copy Of his draft on one
side of large sheet, faced on the other with
draft as amended by Mr.. W., so as to show
precisely what portion Of the document be-
longed to each respectively, and with letter
stating that he intended to have a thousand
copies struck off for circulation among his
friends, in order that there might be no diff
Guilty at any future day in establishing his
claim to its authorship. have not seen
copy of this, but if | can get one, will send
it to you"
The Boston Advertiser in commenting up
on the above, after pronouncing some of the
details to be fictitious says:
E" 1t has been long known to some of the
friends of both these gentlemen, that Mr.. Ev-
erett, at Mr.. Webster's request, while he was
quite i'll, wrote the daft of letter, which
Mr.. Webster adopted with additions, as his re-
ply to Mr.. Hulsemann; and that Mr.. Webster,
some time before his DEATH declared his inten-
ton of announcing this fact, but was induced
by certain considerations, to postponed it, leay-
ing the papers however in q state for future
publication.
The facts in regard to the authorship of the
letter are historical details, proper to be pub
hshed at proper time, and which neither par
ty could have any disposition to conceal"
What the " certain considerations were,
the AdUertiser does not say, but at the close of
its article upon the subject, it adds:
"We do not make this statement on any spe-
cifc authority, nor should we presume to give
authenticity to facts conidentially known pro-
badly to few individuals only, but for the pur-
pose of disconnecting them from statements
which have no foundation in truth
As an off set to the above, the correspondent
of the Post, in second letter, under date Of
April 6th writes as follows:
Since wrote you yesterday, have learned
the interesting deaouement of Mr.. Everett S
and Mr.. Fletcher Webster's correspondence.
As told you, the other executors, and such
Of the old friends of Daniel Webster as were
informed Of Mr.. Everett's application, were
very much excited; but when they learned that
he had ordered a thousand printed copies of
the draft for general circulation, they were
alarmed, and, after putting their heads togeth-
er for a while, resolved that it must be stopped.
They went to Mr.. Everett, and between argu-
ments and threats, made him tear up the draft
letter and abandoned his pretentions forever.
hfn md of fhair ir1cic nm
on this course was, that the whole world had
been taught to believe that Webster wrote that
letter, and what was worse, Webster himself
in one of his letters, in 1852, had boosted of
having written it at Franklin, New Hamp-
shire, and referred to it, in reply to Horace
Mann's attacks upon his incorporate habits
and decreptiude, as evidence that she was as
good 'as new
After thus running himself for the Presi-
dency, and being run by all his friends, includ-
ing Mr.. Everett, on the strength ofthis letter,
they insisted, that it would never do whether
they looked to the good name of the dead or
of the living to come out with the admission
that both Webster and Everett knew that they
were humbugging the public all the time.
Everett had not looked at it in this light ex-
actly, and was entirely unprepared for the OPP
position he encountered. Of course, there
the draft and threw it into the fire. presume
all his printed copies experienced similar
fate.
When / heard of Everett's prctensions to
the authorship of the Hulsemann letter, was
a little curious to see what he had said Of it in
his memoir OF Webster. On turning to the
volume find only this paragraph:
The correspondence with the Austrian Charge
d'AHaires is the worthy complement, after an
interval Of quarter Of century, to the pro-
found discussion of International politics con-
tanned in the speech of january, 1924, on the
revolution of Greece, and that Of 1926, on The
Congress Of Panama.
This is the only allusion to the subject il
Everetts edition of Webster's works, TIT
letter itself is copied without note or comment
This extraordinary silence about documen
which gave Webster more foreign, and abou
as much domestic reputation, as any one thin
he ever did, may now be construed to impl,
a purpose ON the part of Mr.. Everett; ever
during Mr.. Websters life, to be ready to re
claim his epis.oiary offspring whenever the oc
casion should be prcpitiols.
The Country GEETLEMAs.--This is one Of
the most excellent weekly agricultural and
miscellaneous publications that comes into our
Office 1t is published at Albany, by Luther
Tucker, Esq, long known as the conductor Of
the Albany Cultivator. The Country Gentle
man now contains all the Agricultural and
Horticultural matter that appears in the Gull
tivator. together with literary and miscellane-
Gus articles. and news items, such as are a.
II ..