Nashville daily patriot. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1855-1857, 1856-07-07
Hon, y, A. Smith.

We observe in the Union of the 18th inst
q letter from Hon. S. A. Smith, of Tennessee,
to Hon. II. NJ. Shaw, in which this gentleman
assumes that he has found certain "facts,'
which we incline to the opinion should be
characterized by different name Mr. Smith
processes to have made his investigation after
much labor, and has devoted much time to
the subject, and of course he can, If he chooses,
give the public the benefit of the details, the
names of the appOintees, both under Mr. Fill
more and under Mr.. Pierce, and enable the
public to Judge of the correctness of his con-
illusions, instead of asking the country to take
his opinions in the place of .tacts Mr.. Smith
says, in concluding bis array of assumed facts,
as follows, to wit:
10Th. The difference, therefore, in this re-
spect, between the two Presidents, in this
that while General Pierce may have appointed
some Freesoilsrs to Office without knowl-
edge of the fact that they were such at the
time, Mr.. Fillmore's sppointees in the North
ern States were oil Free-soilers, and known
to be such at the time of their appointment"
We deny totally and unhesitatingIy, that
any such difference" as Mr.. Smith has stated,
can result from an examination such as Mr..
Smith says he has made, and we demand proof
of the correctness of his conclusions. Give
the public the nGmeS-the detdiLs-the dis
e0Ueries assumed to have resulted from this in
vestigaton. 1t is very possible Mr.. Smith
may himself have been deceived by the repre-
sensations made to him OF the political char
acter of the appOntees, under both Fillmore
and Pierce, but it is not true, and we chal-
enge proof of the assertion, made by him, that
"Mr Fimore's appointees in the Northern
States were all Free-soers and known to be
such at the time of their appointment" On
the other hand it is not true, that Gen Pierce
has confined his appointments since 1852 10
those "who denied to Congress the power to
egislate upon slavery in the Territories"
Such statement is more than ridiculous in
the face of the removal of Bronson from the
New York custom house, and the appointment
of such rabd Free-sOilers as Redfeid Cochran,
Fowler, and hundreds of Others, TO high posi-
tons in New York city! Mr. Smith holds the
affirmative 10 making his statements, and it is
alike his business and his duty to maintain his
statements, when peremtorily denied as we
pereIntorily and deliberately deny them We
do not assume that Mr.. Smith knowingly mis-
represents the truth of the matters, which he
La6Ori0uSLy vestIgated (as he states and which
he has published, but he has not found TO be
facts what he processes to consider as "tacts"
and publishes tor 'facts.' We challenge the
proof Gre as the names
Why, it is notorious, that Mr.. Fillmore had
eCer had the most violent opposition, and still
has it, from the Free-sO party of the North,
because he refused to appoint that class OF poll
ticans to office. If be had appointed Seward
ties to office at the North, does any man be-
lieve, for one moment, that Seward and his
Free soil associates would now oppose him 80
furiously2 Would the Free-soil Wings at the
North support Fremont, a South Carolina
born, and California raised Democrat, in pre-
ference to man who, like Fillmore, has
Wing antecedents, il the latter would cater to
their fanstcism2 The idea is simply absurd.
AS To the appointments made by Pierce, at
the North, We may be permitted to say, that
the UhOLe press of the Hard Democracy, at the
North, have lied continuously for two years
past if Pierce has not uniformly selected
Free-soilers in that region for public office
If the statements made by Mr.. Smith are
true, then have the Dickusons, the Brousons,
the Beardsleys, and the whole phalanx of
Hard Shell Democrats at the North, uttered
more calumnies upon Frank Pierce than they
could atone for in whole lifetime of repen-
lance No, no, Mr.. Smith, though you may
be yourself imposed upon rs TO the political
complexion OF Pierce's appointments at the
North, there are so many damniug proofs of
bis treachery TO sound principles, and sound
men, on record, in the files of the Northern
Hard Shell Democratic press, your opinions
can gain no credence. "Faets"-if you should
venture to present what you call 'facts"-in
detail, the public would examine; but it's too
late to attempt to ealvanize the defunct repu-
tation of Frank Pierce into life as that OF
National Democrat, by mere opiaiOR-give Us
the faets-give us the ndmes-give us some
thing tanglble--let US look at the men to
whose appointments you refer - Washington
Organ