The Lansing state Republican. [volume] (Lansing, Mich.) 1855-1874, 1865-07-26

with their negroes. His style is brilliant,
ornate, pointed and very eccentric"
Anxious to do away the favorable impress
sion that had been made, Mr. Wise called
upon the House to " listen TO voice from
the tomb" He called for the reading Of
the Farewell Address OF Washington; and
when the Clerk came to the famous passage
in which the Father Of his Country calls
upon the people TO "frown Indignantly up
on the first dawning Of every attempt to
ALLEVIATE any portion OF the country from
the rest" Wise screamed out in the style
OF tragedy hero, " Read that again - 1t
IS an established principle Of human nature
that the mind, when strongly excited in any
direction, is much more easily susceptible
Of excitement in any other direction, than
when in its usual stale Of calmness and
quietude. The feeble attempt OF Wise TO
initiate the sublime appeal OF Mr.. Adams
to the patriots OF the preceding generation
was so palpable a TAI are that the whole
audience burst into merciless laughter; and
the ludicrOus effect was still further increas-
ed when Mr.. Adams called on the Clerk TO
read the repeated clause again, and point
el out It's true application by saying: That
should have been thought OF when the Gag
Rule was adopted Wise continued for
| two hours, with great personal bitterness
against Mr.. Adams aud with strong invec-
tiyes against the AbOlitiOnists generally,
reading column amer column from their
publications, and comparing their designs
and principles with those Of the JacObins
Of France. The next morning the House
was filed with cOncOurse eager To hear
| Mr. Adams in his grand reply: but Wise.
who was entitled 20 the floor, continued a
rambling speech for two hours, filed with
I denunciatiOns Of Adams. Of the Abolition
ists and Of the British Government aud ma
lion; and whenever he said anything ma
! lignant concerning the latter. he turned to-
warks Lord MOrpeth, a distinguished Brit
ish nObleman, who occupied the char OF
one Of the members, and pointed signiii-
cantly at him, a. though he took delight in
, insulting an eminent foreigner who could
not possibly reply.
Mr.. Adams, who was characterized by
Wise as the "acutest, astutest and archest
enemy Of Southern Slavery" from his long
experience, extensive knowledge Of politi-
cal affairs, and readiness IN the use Of keen
AMI biting sarcasm, was always a formid-
able antagonist in the House; AMI on this
occasion he came prepared both 10 ylndi-
caJe niuiseii, anu az uOlug tnis. 20 admins
ter terrible castigatiOn To his principal
adversary. Some time previous, a quarrel
had arisen between two members of the
House, Cilley, of Maine, and Graves, of
Kentucky, and duel ensued Wise was
second to Graves, who was the challenger
The parties fought with rifles at the dis
lance Of ten PAGES. After the second fire,
Wise said to Graves, "shOOt tOrey and you
will bring down the damned Yankee. 8"
Graves did so, and at the third fire Cilley
was killed. The affair excited great indig-
nation at the North, where it was said that
Ciiley had been deliberately murdered 10y
prccOucerted plan Of the Shareholders in
which Wise was thought to have been prn-
cipal actor. A proposition for the House
to try and convict and expel from the House
both Graves and Wise, the first as principal
and the second as accessory to the murder,
had been debated in the House. and had
been opposed by Adams, on the ground that
the criminals ought to be handed over TO
the proper legal tribunals for punishment.
Mr. Adams now objected TO the resolutions
of censure against himself that they ac-
eused him OF two crimes for which the
House had no power to try him uborna-
ton of perjury and high treason: and for
these oiienses the laws prescribed the pun
ishment and the mode of trial before the
legal tribunals. He said he would refer to
a case in the past proceedings Of the
House, in which two members were charg-
ed with the crime of murder in cold blood
and it was proposed TO try them for this
crime, and expel them from the House as a
punishment. ''There came then" said
Adams, Unto the House, a man with his
face and hands dripping with the blood of
a murdered brother member and stains
and blOtches Ofthat murdered victim are stih
to he seen upon his face. 1t was then pro
posed 10 pass over this man, the real au-
thor of that murder, and the principal ac-
tor in it, and punish merely the man who
pulled the trigger, and sent the ball through
the heart Of his victim, though he was but
tool IN the hands of his actual murderer.
The committee appointed to examine into
the case reported TO that effect. But Cd
posed 1t; and While insisted on the GRIM
inality Of that blOOdstained real murderer
/ contended that this House had no juris-
diction; and urged that they both should
be handed over to the proper tribunals. to
be dealt with rs the laws provide for that
crime. For that same principle in my own
case do 1 now contend.
The buzzing of the vast assmblage. which |
had prevailed while Wise was speaking.
was hushed into a death like silence while /
Adams proceeded in his reply: and when |
in Illustration of his argument, he referred |
TO the participation of Wise in 4 crime Of
recent occurrence, for which he was Justly I
held in adherence by large part of the |
audience, every eye was turned upon the /
criminal, who sat staring. fas-
cinated by the look Of his calm accuser.
He vrithed and gasped few moments I'M
der the awful infiction, than sprang up
and stretching out his culver
Ing hands, as if he sought to clutch the
throat Of his enemy, burst out in 4 voice
scream and 4 hOarse whisper.
aud imploringly protested his innocence.
He invoked the justice Of the law. He had
trial by the legal tribunals.
He was not the murderer, but most un-
willing witness. He went to the ground
'nly TO shield the life Of q dear friend. He
vent on in this way. until, in an ebullition
ii fury, lie denounced Mr.. Adams as an