New-York daily tribune., 1858-11-11
FROM FASHINGTON.
THE ADMINISTRATION IN DEFEAT.
Frvm Our ou Z CorrrsroueeL,.

from oil parts Of tie country makes the public opn.
Jon Of tbi- city tolrraby fair reflex Of that f the
ust'op, 20 far, at least ~ the dominant party i.
concerned. Though the sentiment Of IN. country
on th- tide Of Rrpubcau-m may no, be- fully rep
resented at ~asbir gton, the sentim. Mt of the Dem.
"crs'ic party may certainly he very we'll gathered
here. Judged from this point ef view bud mess
ur-d By TIE political opln'o1 of the Capital. the
failure Of Mr. Bucbanan's Administration may be
set dow l. Is complete and uhmisiakable. The al
n,'-t universal frelng in Washington is that the
Acmnstraiion is essentially broken down and that
the vote Of Illinois was the coup de grace. Within
itw di ys The NUMBER Of Douglas Democrats here.
sbouts has surprisingly muliiph,d Even the faces
Oi The flee holders turn, deyoutly toward the
Using sun.
Tie President and the Cabinet are oyerw helmed
with confusion at the disastrous issue uf their Kan
ses IoEc!. They ", re totally unprepared for such
a manifestation Of public sentiment Mr. Bu
cbsuan though fncc aud watering on any subject
uiGer c"risdera,ion IS singularly infexible when
bis post. is taken. His natural sbstinacy is now
augmented by the usual obstin.V Of OLD age. for
Mr. Dncbnrnn is very I'D maI-oder By several
years than he commonly has credit for. After he
hpd d. cd.d TO sustain the Lecompton fraud. in
cen pliance with the dcnishds Of the Southern ul.
trssis b. would listen TO 10 circumstances. And,
lid,ed, icw remohstrances reached him. The
President Of the United States, whoever he may
BE- is, like all rulers, republican as well as royal.
subject 10 The misfortune Of hearing from those i'm
nt diately around him. not truth but fattrry. To
say 10 bIni. not whut will enlghten. instruct or
warn, but hat will please, is the aim of those
wbo have his ear, aud who depend on him.
do almost all who approach him faniliarly for place
ard power and profit. In the case of Mr.. Bu.
chspau, his cthciul difficulties in this respect are
aulmented by personal difficulties. lie is impe-
rCus in disposition md manner, and has the bearing
If all Old. World pOtrntste rather than of u New
Void magistrate. Southern Democrat of my
acquaintance, no had occasion to call upon Sir.
Ducbanap few times last " inter, and who, as a
successful applicant for office, had particular
Ia be- diSaficcted, told that he never left
the hi'c House without teeling~of rage at the
Iresidcut's imperial airs. My friend had resided
in Eur pe in an offcisl position, which brought him
into contact with Court circles, and he fond of
reu.arking that Mr. Buchanan had the haute0r Of u
European arstocraf, without the courtesy.
Few men among those who approach the Presi-
dent wonld have nerve enough TO speak in terms of
admontion, or even of advice, to person of Mr..
Huchanans ugc and dcmcanor. And when one or
two like Forney and Robert j. Walker were
Courageous and frank enough to dot, their uncour-
ticr.like opposition to the Presidents notions was
easily explained away by ascriblng to them sinister
motives. The criticism Of two or three suspected
iiords was ovcrpowcrcd BY the clnmorous hatter-
lea Of a multitude of devoted sycophants.
Mir. BuchnIsn was an old nan when he went
sb osd As Minister to England. He went imbued
with th. idess and 20 years uu"avcring
service on the side OF Slavery. He left the country
a, period hen Pro-Slavery fansricIsm was most
rampant. The An-Slayery party was apparently
subdued aud crushed out. Both the great parties
had combined against it. and all the influential
classes of the country the lending politicians cdi-
turs. clerpymer business men, had lent their aid
and sanction to "a final settlement Of the Slnvery
questou."
But while Mr.. Buchanan was abroad, revou
tiOB toOk place natural reaction In favor OF
freedom began. and was accelerated by the repeal
Of the Missouri Compromise, the Outragcs IN
Kansas the assault on Sumner, the Unparalleled
Giro ulhtion of Uncle Toms Cabin, and the incon-
Ce able folly and virUlrnce of the Southern papers
generally. MIR. Buchanan returned unconscious
of change which Was felt more or less by almost
every man who had remained in the country, except
the blindest and stupidrst old fogies. He was
nominated and elected. AZ candidate and as
President he was too busy ard too closely sur.
rounded by selfish influences to study tho signs of
the iimes, ind note the immense alteration which
had taken place since he went abroad. Ills elrc-
ion was secured by last desperate rally OF the Pro.
Slavery party while the Anti-Slavery party Abored
under the disadvantages of a hasty and i'm.
perfect organization. Dir. Buchanan entered
npon his Administration, and attempted to apply
the ideas Of 1850 TO which he clnng with the
tenacfy of old age, 10 the people Of lc57 There
never was greater mistake. That period OF seven
wears was ore Of the most moInentous IN our MS
tory, involving change OF popular sentiment IN
the Free States almost remarkable as the
changes that took place in France In the seven
Years between l7e5 and l792, or IN Europe IN our
our own day between lS4l and lsts Mr.. Bnchan-
an came back from England like the Bourbons,
having learned nothing and forgotten nothing. he
surrounded himself with Cabinet, the majority OF
| whom were Shareholders knowing nothing of the
| North while the three members from the Free
| States Messrs. Csss. Black and Toucey-secm to
have been selected special representatives OF OBJ
| sOlete ideas.
| When the LcccmptOn fraud was broached, Mr.
! Buchanan, instead OF repudisting It, as he might
have done safely far even az the South was con-
| cerred-when Southern men like Wise, Walker,
| Bell and Crittenden denounced il in concert with
most inhuentisl chiefs Of his party ut the
North-Mr. Buchanan. still guided BY the exploded
traditions Of 1870, threw himself into the bands Of
the ultra shareholders. under the impression that
the agitation at the North was a transient Hurry,
which would speedily subslde, and that politics
/ would then resume their old course. His eyes
! have been somewhat opened BY the recent elec-
tons and We might look for sudden change OF
of tactics. but for the apprehension among the
Southern sspirants TO the Presidency that Douglas
would BE- likely TO profit BY such change
| co..s,pouee-ce Q, The y. Y. Tribune.
WASHINGTON, Nov. 5, l55a.
Strong hopes are n,erolned aud freelf eJ~
| in Administration circles that Dour- ~ ~. G.