Daily Nashville patriot. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1860-1862, 1860-07-26
Pen Portrait of the President.


James Buchanan, dressed in full evening
costume, and doing the courtesies of a re.
ception, presents a very striking and digni-
fed appearance. He is about six feet one
or two inches in height. with abundant hair
ola glistening and semi-transparent silver
color; small, bluisa-gray eyes; irregular
features. and q complexion suggesting by
its unnatural freshness the hectic of consti
tutional complaint. TIE head of this yenera-
BILE man is cooked to the left at an angle of
certain degrees; the left eye is contracted
and drawn downward; the left corner of the
mouth shares similar ia te; an imme use white
neckcloth half conceals various old cicatricps,
Or flesh wounds. under the left ear; and the
whole body of the man lurcbes slightly to
the left as he walks. Nature thus seeming to
shadow forth bis constitutional hatred of the
right. Mr.. B. has shrill, almost f. male
voice and wholly beardless cheek; and he il
not by any means. in any aspect, the sort of
man likely TO cut. or attempt TO cut his
throat for any Chloe or Phills in Pennsylva.
MIA. Nevertheless. and in spite of all these
drawbacks, the portly figure and courtier-
like address of Mr.. Buchanan form very
riking features at n reception. Like Dean
Swift and Alexander Pope. he rather courts
the reputation OF gallantry; and his half faith
erly ,halflOver-like attentions to such ladiesas
are presented. rarely fail to f1atter the vanity
and elicit the gratitude of the fiuttering and
| glittsring victims. A courier and a man of
| the world, our President must have been in
| his element when representing the United
| States in England. He is of the old Federal
| School, looking ever toward Europe as the
| only fountain of any desirable applause; and
| more anxious to be regarded as a conserva
| tive. or Aristocratic American by the titled
residents of Piccadilly than to hold in the
| hearts of the American people that place of
devoted confidence and affection which An
| drew Jackson occupied. At the
| official dinners in the White House, and few
| others are given, Mr.. Buchanan shines to
| great advantage. He is attentive, courteous
| atfable-dividing his civilities equally be-
| tween all his guests. A large experience of
public men and measures in many lands sup
| plies him with an inexhau tible repertory of
| personal anecdote; he amuses without ever
| boring or seeming too loquacious and there
| is an odd vein of bitter humor running
| through all his views. such as we can imag-
inc (after reading Lord Orrerys letters to his
| son Hamilton Boyle) must have prevailed
| the conversation of Dean Swift. So cold by
| nature, that not even the warmth of blood
| can relax his party politeness, the old Public
| Functionary addresses his niece and herpss
as Miss Harriet" and insists on beng called
| "Mr. Buchanan" in return He tolerates no
| intimate associate or walking companion;
| and his present private secretary, Mr.. Nc.
Leod, formerly schoolmaster in Washing
1 ton. stands in as much awe of the wrathy old
man as though be was one of the footm en-
instead of confidential clerk. To give j. B.
his due, we must acknowledge that he is in
dustrious and Misunderstanding to a miracle.
His suspicious nature will not confide the
opening of his letters to any other hand /;
and at present when stacks of ANONYMOUS
letters are reaching him from all parts OF
| the country, denouncing his Postmasters and
Custom House officials as secretly working
| for the National Democratic candidates
| while pretending to Notwithstanding and
Lane, the mere daily duty of opening and
reading the mail is in itself heavy tax. The
Cabinet officers are his servants, ]. B insists
| and not his advisers. OF Gov. Floyd alone
does he seem to stand in any dread; Col Holt
has had two Or three fights with him on ques-
| tons of honesty Cobb was deluded for the
| first three years by hopes of the succession
| but In the naturally mean and seryile ma
lures of such men as Toucy and Black, Mr..
| Buchanan finds and has ever found his readi-
est instruments. AS for Thompson, he specu-
| lates in Indian lands, and neither knows
| enough or cares enough to give him much
| trouble. The President does not believe him
sufficiently smart to be entrusted with the
! execution Of any serious villainy nor is it
| likely that Thompson would obey him
| should any such jobs be offered as seem the
| peculiar peiquisite of Acknowledgement
| Black. But it is due the President to say
that he himself has never been suspected OF
pocketing any of the vast amounts which he
| has assisted others to obtain in payment for
| their aid to his Lecomp'on and other such
| schemes. He gratifes bis malice while their
AVERAGE is gratiied: the hatreds which be rolls
under his tongue as so many sweet morsels
supply to him that reward and pleasure
which his subordinates receive from heavy
percentages on swindling contracts, and
heavy fees for their lobby influence in regard
| to particular bills. Bright and early each
morning Mr.. Buchanan Is up and at work,
| retiring each night to bed by about half af-
| ter O'Clock. Breafasiing at a. m, our Be-
| lovtd aud Illustrious enters his Office by g.
said office being large second-Aoor room, to
| the lett of the Presidential mansion as you
enter. There is large waiting room outside
| of this, but few are the men who wait there
now. This waiting-room has worn and not
| particularly clean Carpet; old m ahogany
| furniture, with old-fashiuned horse-hair co,
erings: dusty walls and u few dusty busts Of
former Presidents; few dusty prints of the
.Siguers, and very dilapidat,d copy of the
| Declaration in soiled sandal wood frame.
| The Presidents room or Office, in which he
receives his Cabinet. has a carpet 10 CORES
pond with the outside. For the rest there is
a large table placed close up between the
| two windows; there are book cases well
| filed with calf bound books, round two
| of the walls; there is an immense bell
| rope dangling down over the Presidents
head; there o few -bottomed arm chairs;
Q wicker scrap-basket besides Mr.. Buchanan's