, 1859-05-20
HOn. 4, II. StCphens, Of Ge0rgia.


NetS York Tribune writes as follows in re.
lation to Hon. A. H. Stephens, the dis
tinguished Representative from Georgia
IF you had entered the House this af.
ternoon, you would have seen large
group OF intensely interested members, near
the centre of the hall, surrounding strange
figure, seemingly half man, half boy, and
all mummy his sparse ilaxen hair combed
close down upon long, narrow head, his
salow, beardless skin resembling shrivelled
parchment, his gaunt, sickly body swaying
to and fro with excitement, his arms sweep
ing around in short angles, his alto voice,
sweet and shrill like woman's pitched to
its highest key, aud piercing the remotesl
corner of the crowded galleries This is
Mr.. Alexander IL. Stephens, closing the
debate on the bill for the admission ol
Oregon.
"Ths whilom Wing and now strict-con-
structing Democrat, when sitting at dis
tance looks like a boy Of eighteen, who
has been struggling all his life with relent
less chills and fever. As he gets up to ad
dress the chair you are surprised at the at
titude of the specter before you, rising
nearly six feetffoR the floor. Fhe- toner
Of his voice riyet your attention. 1t is mol
a mans voice, nor a boys, nor exnctly q
woman's. You never heard such voice
before. In declamatory passages, when
swelled to its full capacity, it soRnds like
recitation in music, or the wall OF the wind
in a grove of piues, or, as the long drawn
sentences monotonously rise and fall, like
the hortatory strains of revival preach.
ing painting the glories of Heaven, and
warning from the wrath to come. The
gestures, angular; sharp and impetuous,
saw the air, dart forward like q raper,
and strike out right and left like broad.
sword. In impassioned periods, the bony,
cleuched fists smites blow after blow on
the desk aud the long, skinny finger, fol-
lowing the deep'set, mournful, and now
glowing eye, to some distant object, serves
as an exclamation point at the close Of q
puugent retort, an emphatic assertion, or q
nervous sentence.
. 1--WE have seen members of the diplo.
matte corps, who did not understand q
word of English, sit spell-bound half an
hour while Stephens was speaking their
gaze rivited by the leOk, tone aud manner
Of the strange being below. His admirers
call him close reasoner-the ablest in
the House. ~
he studies the subject matter, knows its
facts, and so can oft prove bis statements
by an apt citation, or confuse an opponent
by his superior acquaintance with the con.
temporaneous data or the historical prec :.
dents pertaining to the question.
Mr.. Stephens has been often compared
to John Randolph. Except in soue pecu
liariiies of look and voice, he is quite un.
ike the unique orator Of Roanoke. lie
never plays u part, nor effects siugularity
Randolph always did, even at the solemn
hour, when, in the chamber Of death, bt
traced the word Hemorse }" on the card
OF the physician, DR.. Parish. Randolph
had an exuberant, wayward fancy, u
which he gave rein in his forensic displays
Stephens rarely uses metaphor, either tC
illustrate or adorn Randolph reyeled il
quotations from poets aud dramatistS, an
cient aud modern. Stephens never citei
anything more classic than Coke and Han
sard. Randolph was highly dramatic ii
diction and delivery aud, at times, hii
eloduence flowed in q stream beautiful anC
picturesque as his own Roanoke. Stephens
is always terse aud pointed, and usually
dry and didactic. His vaiedietory to-day
was more ornate than any speech We eveI
heard him deliver before. As be put oil
bis heavy oyercoat at the close, all knew
shat 10 was not the aiectation Of Ran
dolph, mounting a jockey cap at the con
c!usion of his speeches, but was dictated
by a prudent regard for a constitution
long shaken by strange maladies.
"Mr. Stephens viii leave Congress a
the close OF the present term. Less eccen
ric, but scarcely less valuable TO the
Southern Democracy, are two other mem
bers of the present House, who retire a
the same time, Col Orr, Of South Carolina
and Mr. Letcher, Of Virginia"