Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1866-03-13
ANECDOTES OF HENRY CLAY.
His Boyhood and His Senatorial Caree

The North Americcm Hsyiesc, for January
has an article on the. boyhood Of Henry Clay
and gives the following account of him as he
attended school and appeared as cle:k II
Richmond:
We catch our first glimpse Of the boy wher
he sat in the little log school-house, without
windows or floor, one Of humming score q
shoeless boys, where u gnod natured, irritable,
drinking school master taught him bread,
write aud cipher as far as Practice This was
the only school ne ever attended, and that was
all he learned at it, His widowed mother,
with her seven young children, her little farm.
and two or three slaves, could do no more for
him.
Next, we see him tall, awkward, slender
stripline of thirteen, still barefoot, clad in
homespun butternut of his mothers making,
tilling Ler fields, and going to mill with his
BAG of corn strapped ulon the family pony.
At fourteen, in the year. 1871, place was
found for him in Richmond drug store, where
he served as an errand boy and youngest clerk
for one year.
Then occurred the event which decided his
career. His mother having married again, her
husband had influence enough to procure tor
the lad the place of copying clerk In the office
O. the CO lrt of Chancery. The young gentle
men then employed in the office OF that Court
long remembered the entrance among them OF
their new conrad he was fifteen at tEe time,
but very tall for his age, very slender, very
awkward, and far from handsome. His good
mother had him arrayed in tull suit OF pep
pcr-an1- salt "igeiny' an old Virginia fabric
Of silk and cotton His shirt and shirt collar
we're stiAv stalchei, and his coat, tail stood out
boldly behind him. The dandy law clerks Of
metropolitan Richmond exchanged glances as
his eawky figure entered, and he took his place
at desk to begin his work. There was some
thing in his manner which prevented their
indulgence in the jests that usually greet the
arrival of corntry youth among city blades;
and they afterward congratulated one another
that they had waited little before beginning
to tease him, for they soon found that he had
brought with him from the country an exceed
ingly sharp tongue. PIP
OF his first service little is known, except
the immense fact that he was most dlhgent
reader.
AS he grew older, the raw, awkward STRIPPING
became young man, whose every moTement
had winning or commanding grace Hand,
some, he never was, but his ruddy face and
abundant light hair, the grandeur OF his tore
head and the speaking intelligence OF his coun-
tenance, more than atoncd for the irregularIty
of his features. His face, too, was com
promise. With all its vivacity OF expression,
there was always something that spoke OF the
Baptist preachers son-just as Andrew Jack
sons face had the set expression of Pr2sby-
terian elder
But Of all the bodily gifts bestowed by nature
mon this favored child, the most unique and adj
mirable was his voice. Whoever heard one more
melodious? There was depth Of tone III 1t; a
volume. a compass, a rich and tender harmony
which invested all he said with magesty. We
heard it last when he was an old man, past
seventy; and all he said was few words OF ac-
knoEledgement to grOupc OF ladies IN the
largest hall in Philadelphia. He spoke only IN
ordinary tone of conversation, but his voice NIL
cd the room as the organ fills a great cathedral,
and the ladies stood spell bound as the swelling
cadences rolled about the vast Apartment We
have heard much of Whitefeld piercing voice
and Patrick Henry silvely tones, but we can.
not believe that either of those natural orators
possessed an organ superior to Clay's majestlc
bass. No one who ever heard him speak will
find it difficult to believe what tradition reports;
that he was the peerless star of tie Rlchmond
Debating Society in 1895
The following "reminiscences of Mr.. Clay are
from the pen Of the Hon. Thomas Ewing, who
wrote them as a contribution to Sanitary
Fair:
Mr.. Clay, with all his terrible power fde;;
nunciation was in ordinary debate pleasant and
playful. When dealing with an ordinary adyer-
sary, he often reminded me of the lines IN Mil
tons description of Eden before the fall:
'Sportive the lion ramped, and in his paw
DaI died the kid
On one occasion-the year do not remem
Der, but it was the first time the Wings carried
an election in the city of New York; found
him early in his seat with a newspaper in his
hand. AS soon as the journal was read, herOse,
quite out of order, announced to the President
(NIr. Van BUREN, the Wing victory, spoke of
their noble efforts in the cause of their country
and of their brilliant success. Your own Tel
low citizens, Mr.. President-the proud cspital
of your noble State-has n ade its voice heard
in our halls in defence of the Constitution OF
our country Ah! sIEr. President, does not ttis
acorm your patriotic hea1tY :,
The impudence and absurdity of this appeal
was too much for the dignity OF the presiding
officer. Mr. Van Buran' face drew itself into
| know not how many indescribable lines, an
which the comical predominated, and he slld
down in his seat until nothing Of him was yisi-
bic but the smooth top Of his head. lie soon
called some one to the chair, came down, took
a pinch of snuff with MIR. Clay, and after a
wholesome laugh between them the morning
business went on.
His classical illusions eng glish ca$sics) were
few, but sufficiently happy His attempt to
cite poetry generally failed. On one occasion
he attempted the hackneyed quotation from
HamIet-
Let the CALLED jade vince, our withers are
unwrung. @a
He emistoook the last syllable and with great
distinctncss and fine emphasis, made it, ''ur-
s,rung., Watkins Leigh sat on his right; | on
his lett; both at the same instant, in Suppressed
voice, pronounced The word ''unwrung, The
double prompting confused him; he drew bl1n=
Se}fup and with a strong emphasis made the
word ':unhuug" He stood with a very pleas
amt and urembarrassed conntenance, until the
laugh, which had become general, sabsldId, and
ihnr !uith nnntln shal:a cE thn, hnad and .