Worcester daily spy. [volume] (Worcester [Mass.]) 1850-1888, 1854-04-14
GBe 4aiIgg spg.
FRIDAY, APRIL IA, 1854.
The Protest of the Clergy, and thc Ser
Witty Of Mr.. Evcrett.

FRADA1s AFKIL IA, 1854.
The Protest of the Clergy, and thc Ser
Witty of Mr.. Everett.
The Boston Courier appears to be the only
wing newspaper in New England, mean
enough and servile enough to defend the
course of Mr. Everett, upon the recent
memorable occasion, when in the United
States Senate, he made those pitiful apol-
ogies to Douglas and his fellow slave
holders, for his daring presumption in pre-
senting the petition Of three thousand New
England clergymen, against the passage of the
Nebraska bill. Not content with INDUCING
in the most fulsome eulogies of Mr.. Everetts
humiliating exposure of the weakness of his
back bone, the Courier, on Thursday, contains
most unworthy and unwarrantable personal
attack upon Rev. Mr.. Dexter of Boston, who
was delegated by the clergymen who had the
remonstrance in charge, to carry it to Wash
ington.
The occasion of this attack upon Mr. Dex-
ter, and through him, upon the clergy ofNew
England, is, that Mr.. Dexter, in the discharge
of his duty, has seen fit, in the columns the
Congregatioaalist Newspaper, to make plain
statement of facts in relation to his visit to
Washington, and thus to give connected
form to matters ofhistory, 'all of which he saw,
and part of which he was" matters of history,
which record the downfall of Edward Everett,
who "sunk like Lucifer. never to rise again.
and which reflect the highest honor upon
other men of whom less was demanded, but
more received. Mr.. Dexter concludes his ar
ticle, giving all account of his stewardship as
follows, and we bespeak for it the careful at
tention of our readers, that they may the bet
ter judge of the understandable coarseness of
the Courier's vituperations:
1t does not become me to add anything BY
way of remark to this plain statement of facts.
The clergy of New England have the ability
to judge for themselves of the treatment which
their protest received, and of the light thrown
by that treatment upon the character of those
who assail it. They will Justly honor the
manly and noble, thrice repeated defence and
advocacy Of the Senator from Texas, whose
earnest commentator was all the more CRATE
full because it was both unanticipated and UNI
sought. They will do justice to the truthful
and valuable eloquence of Mr.. Seward. They
'0iH appreciate the position Of Mr.. Ecerett.-
They will not forget the scurriIities of Mr..
Douglas and his compeers in the day when he
or they will be fawning at the feet of the North
for the Presidential vote.
l ought, perhaps = in simple justice
to Senator whose heart was burning
with indignation, which his lips were re-
strained from uttering to add that, but
forf y II.
this memorial upon the technical Free Soil
party, and the acquisitions of courtesy toward
his colleague from this city, into whose charge
the memorial had been especially confded, the
Hon. CHARLES SUMNER would have planted
himself upon the platform of the protest, and
defended it, Uerbatim ct hterGtins, as the truest
possible expression both ofthe facts in the case,
and Of the sober judgment of the good men of
the North. l have good reason to know that
the ''grace of silence" was attained by him,
in this instance, only as the result of the
sternest and most conscientious self-control.
The Courier designates the writer of the
above as " the sAa5lo0-pated agent, ,chose van-
ity oouIa hare been tremendously tickled to hare
heard Mr.. Sumner defend IT," and then it goes
on to falsify the part Mr.. Everett had in that
affair, by the declaration that the reports ofhs
speech "show him to have been very atten-
tive, and to have made by far the most able
and eloquent defence of the clergymen of New
England, signers of the memorial, made on
the occasion"
Now we submit that all this would be sim
ply ridiculous but for its utter mendacity.-
Mr.. Dexter was upon the spot-he knows
WI In off 49,
reproach. The editor of the Courier was not
there, and he must rely upon the statements
of others = upon the reporters of the public
press-upon the authorized reports of the de-
bates, made by the reporters of the Senate,
and upon the testimony of spectators, who
were witnesses of the occurrences of that
memorable day; and he may search in vain
among these sources of information, for line
or declaration to prove that Mr.. Everett did
not act the part of a poltroon and coward
belongs has given its unanimous verdict
against him, and the heartiest denunciations
which his course has provoked, have come
from those presses who had, up to that time,
regarded him with favor and esteem.
1t is vain for the Courier to attempt to
resuscitate a politician who has fallen into
such bad state of decay as has Mr.. Everett
But one sentiment prevails in the commu-
nifty, upon the course he has taken, and that
is Of pity, in some cases mingled with scorn.
He specifically dead, beyond the hope of a
resurrection, and the Courier, in attempting
to revive him, by pouring out its Billingsgats
upon one of the ablest and worthiest of the
three thousand New England clergymen, who,
out of mistaken kindness, asked him to
perform duty, which he was Inadequate to
perform, by reason of a constitutional weak
ness in his backbone, only reminds people
of the story, in Esop, of the viper biting the
file.
LOCAL ITEMS.