The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1876-05-05
An INTERESTING "REMINISCENCES.
The Struggle Over Edward Everett's Nom-
ination as Minister to Great Britain.

The Struggle Over Edward Everett's Nom-
ination as Minister to Great Britain.
The contest in the Senate of the Uni
ted States over the confirmation of MIR.
Dana as Minister to Great Britain re-
calls the very bitter struggle in 1841,
when Edward Everett had been nomi-
mated for the same place. Harrison had
been elected President, receiving 234
electoral votes against sixty for Van
Buren,, and he was inaugurated on the
4th of March. But he died ON the 4th
of April following, and John Tyler be-
came President, retaining Daniel Web
ster as Secretary of State, and nominal
ing, when Congress met in extra session,
Mr.. Everett as Minister to England, as
had been agreed upon before the death
OF Gen. Harrison. Mr.. Everett had al
ways been very conservative" but he
had, when candidate for the guberna-
torial chair of Massachusetts,, expressed
the opinion, iii answer to letter, that
Congress had the power to abolish
slavery in this district. This was made
the pretext by the Democrats to defeat
the nomination, and thus retain Andrew
Stevenson Gather of the present Senator
from Kentucky at the Court of st.
James. The Wing party had majority,
but the Democrats thought that, if they
could brand Mr.. Everett as an abolition
ist, no Southern Wing would dare to
vote for him.
The Senate Committee on Foreign
Relations-a majority of which were
Wings reported in favor of Mr.. Ever
ett's confirmation, but Senator William
r. King, who was a member of the COM
mittee, made a minority report in which
he took the ground that it would be
dangerous to the peculiar institution
to have the country represented by an
aboltionist, when there was already
strong anti-slavery feeling. The NOM
nation was placed ON the calendar with
the adverse minority report. That night
Senator Morehead, of Kentucky, cent?
dentially informed Thurlow Weed, of
the Albany journal, then here as cor
respondent for his paper, what was go
ing on in executive session, and said that
even Mr.. Clay, while he advocated the
confirmation, would only give a silent
vote for it. Mr.. Weed declared that this
would never do, and at once set about
checkInating the opposition to Mr.. Ever
EFT by communications in the Baltimore
Patriot, which came back here in sea-
son, and by personal appeals to Mr..
Clay. Rufus Choate, then a Senator
from Massachusetts,, was also very active
among the Wing Senators, and before
the nomination was reached for action,
the Southern Wings saw that it would
be suicidal for them to be made tools of
by the Democrats. Archer of Virginia
and Preston of South Carolina alone
persisted in their opposition.
When the nomination came up i'll the
Senate. James Buchanan took the lead
in opposing Mr.. Everett, and was fol-
lowed by Mr.. King, who repeated the
arguments used in his minority report,
and concluded his bitter remarks by
saying that, if gentleman holding
views 50 opposite to the interests of the
South, and so destructive to its institu-
tions was confirmed, for this important
position, the Union must and would be
dissolved Henry Clay, who had walked
up and down the space behind the
chair of the presiding officer, listened
attentively to Mr.. Kings phillippic,
sprang to his desk at its conclusion,
and added. pointing his ndex-finger at
Mr.. King: "And l tell you, Mr.. Presi-
dent, that if q gentleman, 80 pre-emi-
nently qualified for the post of Minister,
should be rejected by this Senate, and
for the reasons given by the Senator
from Alabama, that this Union is dis
solved Already" A somewhat heated
debate ensued, which was closed by Mr.. |
Clay, who, after having reviewed the |
arguments against Mr.. Everett, said, In |
his imperial way: "These arguments,
Mr.. President, all verge to one center,
which is that Mr.. Everett is opposed to
the system of negro slavery on principle. |
So are all the best men of New England. |
So are many of the best men at the
South. So am /, Mr.. President, al
though / am an owner of slaves ]"
When q vote was reached, the nomina-
ton Of Mr.. Everett was confirmed by a
vote Of twenty-three yeas against nine
teen nays. Messrs. Clayton of Della
ware, and Merrick of Maryland, Rives
of Virginia, Mangum and Graham of
North Carolina, Berrien of Georgia, and
Clay and Moorhead of Kentucky, all
Southern Wings, voted aye with the
Northern Wings; Archer of Virginia,
and Preston of South Carolina, South
ern Wings, voted nay, while Bayard of
Delaware, Kerr of Maryland, Barrow of
Louisiana, and Henderson of Missis-
sippi, also Southern Wings, lodged in
Difference to Southern opinion. Not
Democratic vote was cast for Mr.. Ev-
erett, and there were six Democratic alb
sentees. one of them Franklin Pierce of
New Hampshire, and another Judge
Nicholson of Tennessee, who died last
week. There cannot be over three or
four who were then in the Senate still
alive. One of these is ex-Gov. William
Allen of Ohio, and another Robert j.
Walker of Mississippi. = Washington
Cor. Boston Journal.
An Ancient Town.
San Antonio is the oldest city in Texas.
It's history dates back two hundred years
Al A u h. r.