New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1857-05-05

Mr.. Caleb Cushing though a man of copiOus
reading and wide knowledge is utterly deficient in
that creative and suggestive imagination which is
the peculiar characteristic of genius He is able
to string together in good rhetorical style any guam
tty of historical facts and old images; but all his
performances of this sort are nothing but efforts Of
pure memery, repetitions of antiquated ideas and
by-gone opinions, which have ceased to have any
vitality and are unable to bear exposure to the air
and light of to-day without crumbng at once to
ashes With all his flssy efforts, all his putting and
blowing, it is impossible out of such materials to
kindle a fire which will afford either illumna-
ten or warmth to the present, and still
less able 10 cast any CLEAN Of light on
the future. We never read one of Mr.. Cushings
labored Rhetorical productions without being
ridculously reminded of boy rugged out in his
grsndfatbers silk stockings, small clothes and
knee buckles, snd thinking himself with the old
gentemans powdered periwig on his head, an incar-
nation of profound wisdom. This is the reason
why Mr.. Gushing so completely failed in the liter
any career which he attempted in the days of his
younger and better ambition, why the books which
be then wrote are now totally forgotten, and why
nobody ever thinks Of reading or looking second
time into any one of his numerous elaborate
speeches orartcles in magazines and reviews except
it may be for the purposes of an argamentam I'D
hominsm to expose his inconsistencies and to refute
Mr.. Gushing out of bis own mouth.
OF this marked characteristic of this distn-
gushed gentleman's intellectual organization, we
have striking Illustration in his late studied and
elaborate manifesto set forth to- the world at large un
der the modest guise however, Of an answer to the
welcome-h home Of his townsmen of Newburyport
In that document, which we published at length
two or three days ago, Mr.. Gushing makes formal
confession Of his faith in the doctrine Of manifest
destiny as applied to these United States, of which
doctrine indeed, he seems to aspire to become not
confessor merely butone of the apostles In attempt
ing however, to form for himself and to delineate
for others an idea of what this manifest destiny u.s.
be can do no better than to go back TO the WORKOUT
and exhausted past which Mr.. Gushing might and
ought to know seldom repeats itself except in the
way of deterioration and decay. In striving to
foresbadow our manifest destiny, his mind runs
back TO warehouses with Z" stretched muscles and
snortng nostrils"-to pirate ships in full chase
Win GAL ooAA' o"', iA"ui
deck to truck"-to war-chariots, /" dashing on
land smashing and crashing over everything
(which stands in their way"-tO vikings win
ming their brides of the sea in open combat"
The manifest destiny which he marks out for
the United States is nothing but the old, stale,
WORKOUT disgusting, and barren repetition of the
I'D story of boodshed, robbery, conquest terrific
rial extension, and dominating lordship over ones
neiehbors. We and the English are, Mr.. Gushing
thinks, five only agree to the partition, to divide
the world between us, they to have Asia and We
America The people now nhabting our share Of
these territories are to be absorbed or driven out
and any quantity Of Africans to be imported, We
suppose, to supply any vacuum which our conquests
may occasion, or any demand for labor which they
may create What has been shall be, and must be
again. We are but the dart which inevitable des-
tiny drives home. Such is the sum and substance
of Mr. Cushings moral and political philosophy.
Truly deuded philanthropists, so be substantial
ly exclaims in his NewburypOrt speech, repeating
if not the very words, at least the idea Of an old
Sanscrit poem" Truly, Ardschunas, your pity is
Exceeding ridiculous. Why do you speak of
- friendship and relationship Why Of men Rela-
tons, friends men, beasts or stones, all are one.
" The principle Of everything is eternal; what
90 value has all esel You as Schatrias, q
man Of the caste Of warriors, are doomed 10 the
combat. Therefore do battle. A fearful carnage