The New York herald., 1862-01-08
An Imuor,ant Literary Work.

We understand that o work, called "The Life
and Times Of James Buchanan" and written ty
the ex-Prcsident himself, is now printing, and
will soon be published at Philadelphia AS MIR.
buchanan is as little noted for breviiy as for wit,
the book will probably be long winded and
comprise several volumes 1t is said TO be very
we'll written, very severe and sarcastic, and it
pitches into Buchanans own Cabinet in tho
toughest possible style. Its object is TO provo
that Mr.. Buchanan is and always has been
true Union man.
The venerable politician and hunbugged cx-
President could not wait it seems, until the
grass grew over his grave to have his Life writ
ten and his virtues and failings displayed.
Perhaps lie undertook the task himself because
he dstrusts and wishes TO forestall tie calm
Judgment of the country and the world. lie
might have spared himself the labor and the
pens and ink, however, for the popular estima-
ton of Elr. Buchanan is too well settled and too
nearly right 10 be disturbed or altered by this
antehumous attempt at selfjusiifcation. just
as there are sins Of omission and sins OF COM
mission, 80 there is treason in refraining from
suppressing, as well as a treason in abetting
and assisting rebellion. Try as he wills
Mr. Buchanan cannot defend himself from
the charge OF reasonable omissions OF
duty There may be no evidence to
show that he was a traitor in act and deed; but
Union man as he processes to be, there is ample
evidence that he was traitor in not acting,
when, by little courage and decision, he could
have saved the Union, and that without civil
war
1t is beyond all question that the two admi-
nistrations which preceded the present fostcred
and strengthened the rebellion, which had been
concocted years ago, and gave it form and
power. JEFF. Davis, now the chief the rebels
was the master spirit of poor Pierce's Cabinet
He was the bully of the whole concern, and
ruled the roast as he pleased. Gushing and tho
rest submitted to him almost without mur-
mur, and if Marcy now and then showed q little
spunk he was soundly slapped upon his patched
| breeches, and soon subsidized Poor Pierce him.
self was mere nincompoop, whose only am
| bition was to look nice and wear pretty pumps,
| and whose only talent was knack of getting
off neat after dinner speech. Without the
| slightest mind of his own, he futtered like q
| feather in every breeze, and was pulled this
way and that like fancy dancing jack. Among
such incapables jeff. Davis was easily chief
and managed everything quite his own way
! So, if the idea of a Southern confcderacy was
planted by Paul Calhoun, it was certainly
| watered by Apollos Pierce, and the admins
tration of James Buchanan gave the treason
| able increase
| For poor, sbftless, feeble Pierce was not
half 80 bad as the imbecile and blunderng
| Buchanan. In Pierco's Cabinet JEFF. Davis
ruled; but in Duchanan's Cabinet Floyd, Cobb
! and Thompson played out boldly tie gamo Of
| rebellion and armed treason at the expense Of
! the country. To these rogues and traitors
Buchanan always gave way, and Toucey and
the other professedly loyal members Of the
Cabinet were as weak and as thoroughly
had been possessed of q particle Of sagacity,
| common sense or power the schemes Of Eloyds
| Cobb and Thompson would have been detected
and defeated. Or, even if Buchanan had been
| honestly humbugged up to the time OF the
secession of South Carolina, he could then
| have nipped rebellion in the bud and settled
| the whole matter in FIVE weeks, il he had been
| endowed with bit of pluck, capacity or
! courage. Had the HERALp's advice, to call out
| seyenty-fve thousand mon and kick out tho
entire Cabinet, been followed in December
| 1860. we should never have heard of treason in
| this country again.
But, through the feebleness Of poor Pierce,
and the cowardly imbecility of blundering
Buchanan the country has been brought to its
| present crisis. For either Of them 10 attempt
| to prove himself patriot now is to outrage all
history and all reason. In not doing right,
these men were guilty of doing wrong; for their
| criminal weakness was the strength Of the
| rebellion.