Daily Davenport gazette. [volume] (Davenport, Iowa) 1854-1855, 1855-09-28
Tho LifA AZ Casa

Mr.. WIN. L. G. Smith of Buffalo has writ.
Ten The Life and Times of Gen. Lewis
Iass' which we hear that Derby will soon
publish. The admirers Of the venerable
subject will doubtless find their fayori,c
presented in the best possible light: and Il
there be any effective varnish for such life
that will make 1t seem noble and heroic
We 20 not doubt that Mr.. Smith will dis.
cover and apply it.
we should be unjust to our own convc-
tons however, il we did not add that, while
The times Of Gen. Cass have been most
eventiul and interesting, we regard his life
as among the least profitable and least in
structve Of any ever lived by man. We
speak, OF course, OF his public life, and nuke
no reference to any other. For, in the first
place, Lewis has been an inveterate Office.
seeker and placeman; and this is career
against which our youth should be warned,
and made to realize its essential meanness.
Very rarely candidate before the People,
land Of late only to be defeated,) Gen. Cass
has wormed his way up from place to place
with persevering assiduity. Then, as
whole, his life has been lucky, and he has
grown exorbitantly rich from the proceeds
OF office and by land speculation, without
useful labor, privation, or serious effort on
his part. Thirdly, he has been life-l long
trimmer, always fawning on power and
spurning the feeble, from the day he strut
ted behind his Black Cockade under old
John Adams down to his latest foray on
Abolitionsts and other "fanatcs." When
Jefferson and Madison ruled, he was fam
ing Democrat; when J. Q. Adams was
chosen President by the help Of Mr.. Clay,
he wrote the latter to express his disgust
and adherence Of the Bargain calumny-
and held on to his fat office; when Gen.
Jackson triu nphed over Adams and Clay
BY the help Of this same Bargain Islander,
Lewis's porringer was right side upas usual,
and he took his full share of the "Spoils''
resulting from the advent of Jacksonism.
When Gen. Harrison was chosen President
over the Jackson crowd, Cass, then Minister
to France, wrote home flaming letter in
vindication of the military fame of.Oid Tip;'
80 he held on to that post until he saw fit to |
give it up and come home TO get place in |
the Senate. Gen. Taylor, when he came
in, was advsed-the Sen tie being adverse
that it would be polite in him to let Gen.
Cass's son continue Charge d'Afaircs at
Rome-and he did. SO long as power was
10 inure or to be increased OF his side BY
eXaltng the doctrine Of Instructions, Gen. |
Cass was champion Of the doctrine; but
50 soon as the people Of his State, on a fair,
direct issue, instructed him to vote to re.
store the Missouri Restriction, he fatty re-
used, giving a. an excuse that the purity
now in power in Michigan was not that
which elected him. In short, we know no
,ther SO complete embodiment Of the twad.
Ter and the fogy as Gen. Lewis Cass; and
we have been trying for an hour to recollect
,ne instance in which he ever braved Pub.
ic opinion for the truths sake, or missed an
opportunity to obtain or retain office. unless
% improve his chance for better one. This
s our notion Of Gen. Cas-; those who want |
o see the best that can be said on the 9TH
r. side. will doubtless find il in Mr.. Smiths
.ife.-N Y. Tribune.