True American. [volume] (Steubenville [Ohio]) 1855-1861, 1858-04-14
coh Rantnn IN his Dsath Psd

Col, Benton on his Death Bed
The Washington correspondent Of the
New York Tribune furnishes an inter-
ssling account ofthe closing hours Oflhe
life Of Col. Benton. The intelligence
that he must soon be gathered to the ia
therse the Republic will be received by
The American people with profound sor.
row. The writer says:
Col. Benton Is dying. His disease.
cancer of the bowels, has made such
progress that he cannot survive much
longer, He suffers extreme pain, and is
exhausted to- almost the last degree Of
physical pfosration. But his mind ls as
clear andsas powerful as ever, and The
high, resOlute, Roman spirit Of the old
statesman struggles with indQmi'able
energy and iortilnde against sickness and
weakness, and the awful presence of the
king Of Lerrors. He dies in harness, work.
ing 10 the last for his country and man'
kind. An old and intimate friend, from
Missouri, called upon him this morn
ing. Benton was in bed, scarcely able
10 move hand or foot, and not able to
speak much above a whisper, But he
was hard at work, closing up his Abridge'
ment Of the Debates Of Congress, which
he has brought down to 1850, 10 the
passage of The Compromise measures
He was debating the closing chapter ol
the work. His daughter, Mrs. Jones,
sitting beside the bed, received it, sentence
by sentence, whispered in her ear, and
repeated it aloud to her husband, who
wrote it down. II was then read over to
Col. Benton, and received his corrections,
made with as much anxious particularly
as if it were the maiden work Of q young
author. r'.aH n'e.a sa5. ,.
Resting a few minutes from his task,
Col. Benton entered into conversation
with his Missouri friend. He told hin
that in reviewing the events of 1850. he
was glad to find that the anlmOsity ofthe
past had died ouI in his heart, and he was
not only ready bu. eager to do justice to
his former rivals and opponents. He
spoke with much feeling Of Mr.. Clay, to
whose merits and services he had awar-
ded Ibe highest praise in what be was
writing about the Compromise period OF
1850. He dwelt particularly on the
service, the great service, Mr.. O.. had
rendered to the Republic at that time by
battling and putting down the traitorous
Secessionists OF the South, who were
seeking to destroy the Union, and plunge
the country into civil war for their own
selfish and ambitious purposes. .o
The inspiration Of this theme fired the
Ianguid blood and terminated for a mo.
ment The failing fame of the dying pa.
triot. In energetic whispers, he told his
visitors that the same men who had
sought to destroy the Republic in 1850.
were at the bottom of this accursed Lee
compton business, Among the greatest
of his consultations in dying was the con-
sciousness the House of Representa-
tives had baflled these reasonable sche-
mers, and put the heels of the people on
the neck of the traitors. Few events in
our history had given him so much sat
isfaclion as the defeat of Lecompton. He
warmly praised the intrepid and incor
ruptible Douglas Democrats who had
resisted the power and the wiles of cor
rup, aud deluded Administration.
In taking leave of bis friend, Col. Ben
ton said that, altho there was much in his
life that he regretted, he could honestly
feel proud on lis death bed of his devo-
ton to his country, in whose service he
had meyer been faithless or neligent,
1t will be seen by telegraphic dis
patch elsewhere, that Col. Benton died
in Washington Saturday morning. .