The Newberry herald. [volume] (Newberry, S.C.) 1865-1884, 1874-02-18

! From the ":Recollections of an
O!I Slager," in Harpcr's Maga,
zihc for Jnly. We take the follow
! ing hand sketches OF some ora
tors Of the past
Marshall, Of Kentucky, one of
the most brilliant orators Of his
time, and :; man of large schoiary
! attainment$. who had rs much of
that mystical quaity.calIed genius
as any Of his contemporaries in
Congress. was full of affectation
in this regard. He spoke readily
without preparation; his ideas fol-
lowing each other consecutivcly
and with uncommon force; but
he never trusted to the inspiration
Of the moment when there WAS
opportunity for studying up the
subject and arranging hi thoughts
| in advance. He had q habit of
| absenting himself from the capitol
for days at J. time, every hour Of
which he devoted to reading and
study, his,acquaintances3 generally
supposlng him to be engaged in a
debauch. After getting thorough
ly crammed and armed at every
point, be would come into the
house looking exhausted and hag-
gard, giving color to the. notion
chat be: had been on a frolic,
and, watching his opportunity,
4 would pour forth the fruits of his
studyin astrain ofoff- f-hauc, striking
eloquence that hardly ever failed
to astonish his hearers. And the
remark was often heard esFhat'a a
| brilliant man! What could he
not accomplish if he was industri-
Gus and regular in his habits!'
Mr. Preston, for some time Mr..
Calhoun's colleague in the Senate,
was an accomplished gentleman
and a very popular orator. He
never spoke without commanding
the attention Of his hearers. and
few men in Congress had . higher
reputation for brilliant extempo-
| raneous eloquence. But he never
spoke without the, most ample
and careful preparation. Soon af-
| ter he retired from Congress be
was chosen president Of college
in South Carolina. In his address
to the students be said be knew
Of no such thing as genius or nat
ural inspiration. W h.atever Of
reputation he had acquired was
BY dint Of constant, untiring labor.
he had trusted to study and hard
work solely. He never spoke in
Congress or to a popular assem-
blage without arranging what he
had to say, and even premeditating
his sentences and the precise col.
location Of his words. And he
assured his hearers that the only
road to public distinction lay
through the field Of study and re-
search.
Mr.. Webster was so thorough
ly instructed upon all subjects
which came under discussion in
Congress that he was equal to al
most any occasion, and rarely need
ed any special preparation. And
yet he was not above the weak
ness Of conceaIing his studies, and
the sources whence he drew his
inspiration. No man better under
stood the weight and value OF Ian
yuage than Mr.. Webster and what
he said was always marked by
precision and perspicuity; but
when coping with q formidable
antagonist he omitted no means
that promised TO aid him in the
| contest. lie was accustomed to
speak of the master production Of
bis life, his celebrated reply to
Hayne, as a sort Of casual effort.
made on the spur Of the moment,
without much previous considera
ton.
Probably the two men in public
life who could most safely trust
to their own resources and ac-
quircments, under all circumstan-
ces, were Mr.. Adams and Mr.. Cal
houn. The cndowmeuts Of Mr.
Calhoun were Of q higher order,
and his creative powrr was supe.
rlor to that Of Mr. Adams; but
the sold man eloquent" Us he was
| called, lad a memory 50 tenacious,
and his knowledge was so cxtcn-
sive and exact, that he never seem
ed to need any special preparation.
He was the most laborious and
methodicai man in Congress, and
probably in the country. he kept
a voluminous diary, in which er-
cry event, incident or circumstance
CT the day was carefully noted
down; and this, with his habits
Of industry, made him a very
| doctor in all matters OF controver,
sy and argument. It was q knowl.
edge ot his complete equipment
and his power as an antagonist
thatprompted the reply Of Mr.
Clay, when asked when he pur
posed to renew the discussion
1 with Mr. AGan,c on +I,a ,-oyaG