Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1859-03-03
Retirement of Joshua r. Giddings
from Congress-Reminiscences
of this Veterans Representative
Career. ... e1.. ...
Correspondence of The N. Y. Daily Tribune

Correspondence OF The N. Y Daily Tribune.
WASHINGTON, Feb. 81, 1859.
Great changes will take place in the next
House of Representatives. Some members
of the present Congress will retire wholly
from pubic life at the close OF this session.
Others may reappear upon the scene. A
few who led in the memorable conflicts OF
the last session have been called TO other
theatres of action, while two or three have
gone to their final repose. OF these few
have been long in Congress, and here and
there one has played a conspicuous part in
affairs. We may instance Giddings, Ste
phens, Quitman, Campbell, Orr, Clingman,
Harris, and Letcher. r.......
At the head OF the list stands the vener-
able member from OHIO. Mr.. GiddiDgs is
q historic character. He has sat twenty
years in the House; he is the connecting
link between the large body of able and
faithful representatives, who now bear up
the Republican standard, and the small
band who aroused and maintained the same
principles when he entered the hall.
The leading members at that time were
Clifford and Evans of Maine, Adams, Cnsh-
ing and Lawrence Of Massachusetts, f'ru-
man Smith of Connecticut, Barnard, Fill
more, Granger and GrinneIl OF New York
Sergeant of Pennsy Bolts, Drom-
goole, Goggin, Hopkins Hunter, and Wise
of Virginia, Stfny of North Carolina, Pick.
ems, Rhett, and Waddy Thompson o. South
Carolina, King of Georgia, Bell, and A. "
Brown OF Tennessee, Lewis of Alabama
A. G. Brown, and Thompson of Mis- sissippi,
and Tom. Corwin of Ohio. OF these ouly
Mr. Hopkins is In the present House, and
he has been member but portion of the
intervening time. Messrs. Hunter, Bell,
and A. G.. Brown are in the Senate. Mr.
Clifford is on the Supreme Bench; Messrs.
A. V. Brown, and Jacob Thompson are in
the Cabinet. or the then members of the
Senate, Mr. Crittenden only is now in that
body. Mr.. Buchanan was ;hen also Sem
ator.
Thus our friend has outlived nearly a
whole generation of public men. 1t would
be lesson for those who nov s.fret their
brief hour" in the marble pile on the hill
ynnder to run their eyes over the journals
of the two Houses and scan the lists of
members for the last twenty years, and see
how large proportion have utterly perish
ed from human recollection. leaving not the
slightest trace of their greatness or their
littleness behind.
One of Dir. Giddings's first acts in Con-
gress was to vote, with ali the Wings, for
Robert NJ. I. Hunter for Speaker Bolts,
Goggin and Wise voted with Giddings for
Hunter! Goggin nov runs for Governor
of Virginia. Hunter and Wise oppose him.
and 20 would GiddingS il he could. Bolts
supports him. And yet Giddings and Bolts
dwell in the same political hemis phere,
while Hunter and Giddings are wide as the
po'es asunder. The complications which
the negro has Infused into American poll
tics are more mazv ;han the ildest meas
ures of Strauss. .
Mr.. Giddings entered Congress in the
midst of the contest about the Right OF
Petition. He followed the lead of Adams
in his championship of this right. He
shared with him in the perils of the fight,
and The glories OF the triumph. He bore a
distinguished part in the subsequent con-
fiicts over the Annexation of Texas, the
Oregon Joint Occupation, and the Wilmot
Proviso. ... ...
The country recollects the agitation
which sprung from the enfranchisempnt of
the negroes of the brig Creole, BY the
British authorities in Bermuda, when driven
into one of its ports bv stress of weather,
while voyaging from Virginia to New Or
leans, with cargo Of slaves. In Murcb,
1912. Mr.. Gidtings offered, in the House,
nine resolutions touching this case, and
affirniug that all attempts to regoin pos
session of, or to re-ensave these negroes,
were unauthorized by the Constitution and
laws of the United States, and incompat-
BILE with our national honor. On reading
the resolutions, wild storm broke out,
raging nearly all day, in the midst of which
he withdrew The obnoxious paper. Mr..
Bolts drafted, and endeavored to offer res
olu,ion with wordy preamble) declaring
that "this House hold the conduct OF The
a member [Giddings] unwarranted and uu-
warrantable, and deserving the severe
" condemnation of the people of this coun-
" try, and of this body in particula- " The
State of Virginia having been passed in the
call for resolutions, Mr.. Bolts could not
offer it, aad he handed it TO John B. Weller
of Ohio for that purpose. The tempest,
which had lulled on the Withdrawal of the
paper, now burst forth afresh on This reso
luton of censure. 1t raved with ungov-
eruable fury for two days. Though the
previous question was pending, the Speaker
Mr.. White of Kentucky, liberal minded
man, ruled that G ddings could be heard in
his defense, as a matter of "privilege y
The House, insane with passion, overrulet
the Speaker. GIddines stood dumb before
his accusers. After q struggle, the resolu
ton wss adopted-l25 Yeas to 60 Nays
Among the Nays are the names of Johr
Quincy A.lams, Caleb Cushing, William
Pitt Fessendea, Millard Fillmore, Francis
Granger, Robert e. Winthrop. and JOIN
McKeon, all homer TO him! Giddings re
signed his seat, returned TO Ohio, and wa
sent back by splendid majority.
In the seventeen years that have pa.se,
since this event transpircd, the people o
the North have taught the House Of Repre-
sen,atves some salutary lessons concernin!
the discussion OF Slavery within lis wali-
MI L--aItuur bolts is older and wise
now than he was then. And 1ir. Gliding
hns sa, in the Hall till. 80 far from resoiu
> lions and debate on the Slavery question
being ruled out OF order. i; has become al
: most disorderly and impossible for member
q, In L. or net nnnn nIrflinn alsaI IL, L.,