Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1859-01-09
HE MEMPHIS DAILY APPEAL

might ne reared 10 efu Aa mdANnI mNEeNf
through creation was free and lofty. There
was a vast difference in the appearance Of
Mr.. Webster and himself, and the feeling
produced on the beholder was equally NAKED
At The first sight Of General Jackson the
spectator was charmed and carried away
with rapture he never could sufficiently ad-
mire the holiness Of his crest and the grace Of
his carriage; he reioiccd that nature had
been 90 prodigal Of her gifts 10 one Of his own
species-the feeling was one Of g~ladness and
enthusiasm. Not 90, however, with Mr.. Web
ster he, too, was a man Of regal port and g-
eantic proportions, but he resembled some ire
mendous structure Of architectural skill, whose
proportions are so Just that you do not estimate
the size and magnihcence Of the work until you
gaze long and W~ondenngiy al the details Of the
building. The idea Of its grandeur then first
dawns upon you, and perhaps impresses you
more profoundly than n seized with the first
view. After your attention was once firmly
fixed on Mr.. Webster, Il seemed the longer you
gazed the deeper and more entranced your adj
miFation. You could not withdraw your atten-
ton from that well-knit frame, out-spread
brow, deep-sct eyes-and lofty, settled repose on
bis countenanco that IL the true emblem Of in
tellectual power. To contrast the two in one
sentence, ! nav say that one was the smbOdi-
meuf Of acfioa. hc ether Of h0ughf.
The firm and ardent patriotism Of General
Jackson was another striking attribute Of his
character, the legitimate result Of his warm
feelings directed in early life 10 the safety and
protection Of the interests o. his nstive land.
There have been many persons who have felt
an equal attachment 10 their country, and worn
out their lives In It's service. They acted from
duty and the dictates Of their Judgment but no
public man in our day has exhibited such deep
emotion'and limitless devotion 10 public interests
as he did. As have intimated before, he so
mingled ID his own welfare and that Of his
country as almost to lose the idea Of indiyidu-
atty. He often felt, like Louis Le Grand, that
he was the State. Up to the moment Of his
death, his spirit went out in constant travail for
its interests. He could TAX or think Of little
else, and when worn down with disease and
age, his voice husky with cough, and his long,
bony fingers bloOdless and transparent, his mind
rose superior 10 disease, aud suIl dvTelt with the
deepest solicitude on the future Of this great
Republic.
Il was not any particular State or section Of
our Confedcracy 70 which he was 90 deeply at
tached. No doubt he felt peculiarly anxious
for Tennessee, but It was a. part Of the Union
he spoke Of her fate. His memorable toast,
The Federal Union-it must be preserved
only gave utterance 10 the predominant feeling
Of bis heart. HIS public abors were mainly
rendered In the service Of the General Govern
ment, and he died in the fun conviction that no
madness or folly could rend asunder the bonds
that bind US together a. a br0thsThoOd0 Of Sfafes-
This feeling, indeed, was emineHtly character
istic II most all the great statesmen Of the past
generations they co nmeneed life before or during
the war Of the Revolution. They heard with rapt
ture in their early years, Of the glOries and suffer
inrs ofthat struggle for Independence. The bat
| tle-felds were still white with the bones Of those
who had fallen. The troops Of every state had
fought side BY side with each other, and the
common glory was obtained under the stars and
| stripes Of the Confederacy. No wonder, there
4 a. HN-H - - III 49, 81 a NswFHaA
allegiance-that they could never know but one
country, one flag. "The Union, one and indi-
| visible,n was their motto through life, and the
only bow Of hope that spanned the horizon Of
the future.
In regard to his qualification as a statesman,
there is even vet a wide difference Of opinion
entertained by the people Of these United
| States. The ashes have not sufficiently gather
/ ed over the fires through which We passed for
any calm judgment Of mankind yet to be ex-
pressed. Postenty must perform that work.
| Nv own views on the subject have been often
expressed, and they are still the convictions Of
my judgment, but il is not my intention 10 press
them upon you for approval. There are, how
ever, some developments Of character during his
Presidential career, so strongly ilustratiVe Of
his traits Of mind, that 1t would be injustice to
omit them in general portraiturs. Whenh he en-
tered upon the duties Of his great Office, he
found our foreign department embarrassed by
tedious negotiations with many Of the powers Of
| Europe they were for the settlement OF claims
due TO our citizeas for spoliations committed
| during the wars growing out Of the French
Revolution. The adjustment Of these claims
had been delayed from time 20 time until relief
seemed hopsless and even when their Justice
and amount were fully ascertained, payment
was still deferred. II became absolutely
necessary, then, for us either 10 show we were
in earnest, or absndon the negotiations. This
was a crisis well suited 10 the decision Of the
President; he never h~esitated for a moment az
10 the course 10 BE- pursued. Singing out
France, as the most powerful and the most
derelict Of those kingly debtors, he cut through
all the forms Of diplomacy, announced 70 Louis
PHILIPPE that the debt must be paid, called the
attention Of Congress 10 the impending diff
| Guilty, and stood prepared to rouse the people q
the Union to the conflict, If his warning was
disregarded. The result proved the value Of
his soldier diplomacy, and showed o. estimate
in which he was held By foreign powers.
France paid the money, and this exhibition
soon led to the adjustments Of other reclamations
that would have been lost but for his timely eX-
| hibitiOn Of courage and eamestness.
The veto Of the charter Of the Bank If the
/ United States, and the removal Of the public
deposits 10 Slate Institutions, was another sig
nal instance Of high moral courage. Whether
! Il was right or not is not now the question: but
AN AaA"NfA IL ~ AE AAEAHH AAA ~ AANHAA
scattered doubts to the winds, took the whole
responsibility on his own shoulders, and stood
almost alone in the breach. His friends were
| thunderstruck. and many Of them doubling
whether 10 take the leap he had thus made.
Just as Achilles, after the death Of patrochus,
whilst still unaTmed, merely BY the terror Of his
shout, drove back the triumphant Troilns and
rallied the routed Greeks, % he, almost alone
on the platform, checked the embattled hosts
| Of his foes, aud gave new courage 10 the scr
ried ranks Of his friends.
II is easy to find a man who Is brave In battle.
Thousands will rush mp to the lannon's mouth /;
but il is the last and highest test Of fortitude 10
stand for the right when the multitude seem
about to desert YOU. Then, and then only. is
the nerve Of the true man fully tested. He
passes through fires that separate the dross
from the gold, and comes out Of the furnace
with the impress Of immortality stamped on
his brow.
The conduct Of the President in the eele-
brsted imbrogliO with South Carolina deyel-
/ oped a high degree Of deliberate judgment and
steady fmness, evinced, too, under he most
delicate and painful circumstances. lie was a
native Of that State, and be felt that sh' was
oppressed by the unequal working Of he tariff.
He knew that many Of bis early friends were
enlisted in her support, and that al the South
eTn States warmly sympathised with her op-
preston. Yetiwhen the day Of trial came, and
she would not agree to obey the laws Of the
Union, no claims Of friendship or support could
withhold him from the Performance Of his
duty. Kindly but firmly he gathered the reins
Of power in his hands, and was ready, when
admonition failed, to have used the strongest
means in his power 70 compel obedience. For
~tunately for Us all it never became necessary
10 use force. A new adjustment Of the tariff,
50 often recommended BY the President, YVES
adopted BY Congress, and the storm passed
away But his high moral attitude on this
occasion can never Be forgotten. Rising supe
nor to all the claims Of nativity, friendship and
sectional feeling, be stood forth as the repre-
sentative Of the whole people, the very incar-
nation Of Law and Order.
The memorable proclamation issued BY him
during the contest with South Carolina. forms
a curious episode in his history. and involves
the question Of his fealty to the principles Of
his party. This State paper, whether consid-
cred il references TO its ability, the position Of
its author, or its effect on the people, has no
parallel in our annals. As the leader Of the
Democratic party, he had originally attracted
to his support all the leading statesmen Of the
school Of strict constTucti0nis,s who formed
what was then known as the Republican party.
He had been borne into power partly on their
strength, and 50 long as the war was carried on
against Mr.. Adams and Mr.. Clay, they up
held him with all their power. Even the per-
sonal difficulty between him and Messrs. Cal
houn, Berrien, Branch and Ingham, did not
ALLEVIATE fromhim this powerful phslanx. They
looked on with silent ~foreb0ding during the
contest with South Carolina, but did not leave
their standards When the proclamation came,
however, the whole scene was changed; il fell
like a boomshell at their feet; il was written
with admirable ability, sndits lucid order, clear
distinction; and logical deductions, would alone
have made il dangerous to the doctrine Of ultra
State Rights. But, supported as it was with
the name and popularity Of General Jackson,
il seemed as fifth Resolutions Of "9S, p with all
the interpretations placed on them BY the Faith
ers, would be swept down at one fell blow.
The reaction was tremendous. The leaders Of
this school rallied throughout the entire South.
and the shrewest i~utellects exhausted their
powers Of argument and logic to repair the
breach that had almost cut through the walls Of
their temple. Their efforts were for the time
unavailing. The President rode sheer over
their bulwarks, and stood triumphant, without
their aid, and despite their opposition but they
saved their consistency, forged new defenses
for their faith, and were thus enabled 10 rally
in force when this storm had passed away. III
do not refer 10 this great schism either 10 attack
or defend the propositions maintained in the
proclamation whatever may be the truth or
fallaey Of the reasoning employed, its vast
force and power is undeniable, and the resist
less strength and energy momentarily exerted
through II hv the nonularifv Of ifE aufhrr were I