Weekly national intelligencer. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1841-1869, 1857-06-27

influence of any Foreign Power much less under that of
France The allegation is Wild inconsistent in it.
SELF 50 destitute Of the least seblance Of probability
and atogsthsr N the least shadow of proof
that eotg bsf tAe baet aysy Of heart eouid sngeder
snd Psblish shsmsEsss f6ui and nanous alsehood
and yet sir said Mr.. CAxfBkIf it has been echoed
ths floor, sounded in your in the frantic strains of
raving maniac, and in the discussion Of subject no
ways calculated 10 excite such extraordinary passions
Hence it may b epfossd Y precsspfea sessHs to
seize on that occasion in order % gpe pe to oss vud
tire pesspns asaast e Gramesf and the Republicans Of
this nation which seen satirely to occupy and engross
the mnds Of eertainpsous In nnosicing what said
~ ths - fpn New York. I beg 70 Be nnderztood
e i s; sst . -: e - s;5 Be eonsid
lesxd = u .s by those behind the screen
to convey these gfouaess sanders to the publicthe
common trumpeter who gives importance to what he
makes public, except what is derived merely from the
place he occupies the duties assigned him to perform
After this interchange of compliments between
these young prominent members it was no surprise
to any body that challenge on the part of Mr..
GARDENER followed; that it was promptly accepted
by his opponent in the debate; and that duel was
forthwith fought at Bladensburg between tsese
gentlemen, the event of which was that Mr.. GAR
DENIER was severely wounded, and narrowly escaped
| with his life.
This incident put stop, for the time, to these
| unseemly ordinations and the retorts and other
consequences which would certainly have attended
their repetition.
| The Second Session of the Tenth Congress COM
menced on the 7th of November, 1908, and ter
minated with the existence of that Congress the
/ Sd of March, 1909 This session was, from its be-
ginning to nearly its close, occupied with debates
the merits of the Embargo system, to which the
numerous propositions to enforce it, to repeal it,
! to relax it, to modify it, gave RISE The EN-
barge was not repealed, nor modified, but it was
enforced by stringent enactments to the utmost
/ tension of the powers of Congress. So strenuous
was the conflict of debate in the House of Rep
resentatves the day of the passage of the latest
and strongest of the enforcement acts that it lasted
until five o'clock of the morning of the next day,
(the 7th of january Well must the scene of that
morning be remembered by every one of the sur
viyors of those who witnessed it. Snow had fallen
during the night to more than foot in depth. In
those days there were very few carriages in WASH
ington, and such Ys there were had early in the
night sought shelter from the storm. The venera-
bic men, of whom there were at that day greater
proportion in Congress than at present, staggered
down the steps of the Capitol-many having more
than mile of snow to thread to reach their lodg-
ings suffering under every circumstance of ex.
haustion and fatigue, which were indeed SO general
that no attempt was made by Congress to meet at
all on the following day.
YET, Notwithstanding the stubbornness of deter
mination thus manifested to sustain and enforce
to the utmost the Embargo policy, few weeks only
had intervened when, 10 without any previous
warning or premontory symptom, THE EMBARGO
WAS REPEALED!
In Mr.. fuckers Life of Jefferson so succinct
and candid an account is given of tae circum-
, stances under which this sudden and unex oected
retreat made from the restrictive policy that the
writer adopts it for the information of his readers
rather than himself attempt to unfold them:
In the meanwhile the Embargo was pressing
with increased severity every class of the COM
munity, whether producers or consumers and
this pressure, joined to the political opposition in
the Federal party, drove the people of New Eng
land, where that party was most numerous, and
i where the embargo was most felt to point of
disaection which had never before been witnessed
4 in the United States. Many, therefore, enter
tanned strong hopes that some course would be
taken, during the present session, by which the
! industry and enterprise of the country would be
again put into activity, its vessels be once more
suffered to venture on the ocean, and perhaps be
permitted to arm in their own defence, if not to
make reprisals Indeed there was no one who did
not admit that war would be preferable to the con-
tinuance of the embargo beyond time not very
distant, and every day was adding to the number
of those who believed that time already arrived
9 Among the many objections to it there was one
! which operated strongly its friends, and that
/ was the frequency with which it was violated
I There were also many cases in which the law was
/ clandestinely eyaded. The majority of Congress
who were willing to try it longer rather than
sort to War passed law during the session which
! armed the Executive with new powers for enforc
{ ing it and these powers, SO much at variance
u with the spirit of our institutions and the general
enity of the laws, afforded further materials for
exciting popular odium against the Administra-.
ton, which was then charged with being as ambi-
tous of arbitrary power at home as it was submis-
sive to the will Of Napoleon abroad.
"The Administration and the majority who sup
ported it were before Congress rose, turned from
their purpose of try ing the embargo few months
longer, from fear of the growing disafection of
the New England States, which they had reason
{ to believe was producing consequences not only
subversive of the authority of the laws, but dan
gerous to the continuance of the Union 1t has
appeared by subsequent disclosures that, In the