The Cass County Republican. [volume] (Dowagiac, Mich.) 18??-1880, 1860-12-20
John C. Calh0un's Vision.---A Chapter
for DisuniOnists..-.A Most Singular
Dream.

Dream.
The following most remarkable and
singular story was furnished for the
Philadelphia Quaker City, in the win
ter of 1s49-5O, by its Washington COR
respondent, and was, at the time, quite
generally copied into the leading pa
pers of the day. A renewal of the ex-
citing issues of that time renders the
supernatural lesson particularly appro-
pirate for to-day. Read it, all you who
would sever with unhallowed hands
the sacred bonds that unite in peace
and prosperity all the God-given bles-
sings that have descended to us from
former generations. Read it, all you
who would raise an unhallowed hand
to pluck single star from our national
escutcheon, or erase a single stripe
from the banner of the free. Read it,
all ye who deliberately and unblushing-
ly lay plans for the dismemberment Of
all that the true American holds dear,
and the true patriot cherishes as his
blood-bought birthright, and remember,
that though that hand may not be
palsied in this life, yet the mark of the
traitor shall rest upon it in the world to
come:
MR.. CALHoUN's DREAM
Mr.. Editor:-The other morning, at
the breakfast table, our friend Hon. j.
G. Calhoun, seemed very much trou-
bled and out Of spirits. You know he
is altogether venerable man, with a
hard, stern, Scotch Irish face, softened
in its expression around the mouth by
sort of sad smile, which wins the eye
of all who converse with him. His
hair is snowy white. He is thin, tall
and angular. He reminds you of Old
Hickory. That he is honest, no one
doubts; he has sacrificed to his fatalism
his brightest hopes of political advance
ment-has offered up on the shrine of
that necessity which he worships, all
that can excite ambition-even the
Presidency of the United States.
But to my story: The other morning
at the breakfast table, where /, an un-
observed spectator, happened SO be
present, Calhoun was observed to gaze
at his right hand, and brush it with his
left in a hurried manner. He did this
so often that it excited attention. At
length one of the persons composing
the breakfast party, (Toombs, a member
of Congress from the State of Georgia,)
took it upon himself to ask the occasion
of Mr.. Calhoun's disquietude.
"Does your hand pain you?" he
asked.
To this Mr.. Calhoun replied in rath-
er a flurried manner:
"Pshaw! 1t is nothing. Only a
dream which / had last night, and that
makes me see perpetually black spot
like an ink blotch-upon the back
of my right hand, optical delusion, 1
suppose"
Of course these words excited the
curiosity of the company, but no one
begged the details of this singular
dream until Toombs asked quietly:
"What was your dream like ?. l am
not very superstitious about dreams,
but sometimes they have good deal
of truth in them"
"But this was such a peculiarly alb
surd dream," said Mr.. Calhoun, again
brushing the back of his right hand,
s'however, if it does not too much in
trude upon the time of our friends,
will relate it to you"
Of course the company were profuse
in their impressions of anxiety to know
all about the dream. In his singularly
sweet voice Mr.. Calhoun related it:
CAT late hour last night, as was
sitting in my room engaged in writing,
l was astonished by the entrance of a
visitor, who, without word, took a
seat opposite me at my table. This
surprised me, as had given particular
orders to servant that / should on
70 occasion be disturbed. The man.
ner in which the intruder entered, so
perfectly self-possessed, taking his seat
opposite me, without word, as though
my room and all within it belonged to
him, excited within me as much sur
prise as Indignation. As / raised my
head to look into his features, over the
top Of my shaded lamp, I discovered
that he was wrapped in a thin cloak,
which effectually concealed his fea-
tnres from my view. As / raised my
head he spoke:
"What are you doing, Senator from
South Carolina %
did not think of the impertinance at
first, but answered him voluntarily:
81 am writing plan for the dissolu-
tion of the American Unionr' (You
know, gentlemen, / am expected to
produce plan of dissolution in the
event of certain contingencies.)
To this the intruder replied in the
coolest manner possible:
"Senator from South Carolina will
you allow me to look at your hand
your right hand p go
"He rose; the cloak fell, and | be-
held his face. Gentlemen, the sight OF
that face struck me like thunder clap.
1t was the face of dead man, whom
extraordinary events had called back
to life. The features were those OF
General George Washington? yes,
gentlemen, the intruder was none 9th.
er than George Washington. He was
dressed in Revolutionary costume such
as you see preserved in the Patent Of
6cen eita
| Here Mr.. Calhoun nausod apnarent.