Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1878-11-07
DANIEL WEBSTER.
How He Once Nearly Carried the
State of Virginia for the
WHO'S

state Oh virginia. IOr the
Wings.
From the Richmond Sun.
In your paper OF the 9Th YOU alluded
to Mr.. Webster's great speech on the 9TH
of October, 1910, under an October sun,
as he expressed it, and | beg leave to
furnish you with an anecdOte OF that in
teresting occasion, which, in my opinion,
reflects credit upon the the feelings and
opinions OF Mr.. Webster, and so upon
his memory. / was the President OF the
'Tippecanoe and Tyler Too Club, and
being happily also upon very cordial
terms with Mr.. Webster, who was Il
man of large heart as well rs head, in
preparing for the convention which was
to assemble | performed my duty and
gratified my feelings by inviting Mr.
Webster to come and address il. The
Fredericksburg train at that time arrived
at the Broad street depot about l. % clock
in the day. On that day it WAS 4 long
wav behind time. | remained there
waiting for Mr. Webster, Is did the i'm
mcnse crowd, which filled the street,
until after two o'clock, when | stepped
across to my home on Marshall street 10
get a little refreshmcnt. Before | re-
turned the ears arrived. Mr.. Webster
remanedin the car until came. When
we met he told me he had not gone out,
because he was total stranger, and he
did not think il proper, moreover, To
present himself until | came. The club
had expressly required me 10 carry HIM
to public house as the guest OF the
club, and not to my own house. When
| brought him out Ofthc car to carry him
to the Powhatan House, then the best
hotel in the city, hercfuScd to he put IN
a hack, but took my arm and walked
down through the shouting throng to
the hotel. Trembling with excitement,
he said tome: Lyons, YOU have brought
me here, and you know the danger OF
bringing BLACK Dan to the south OF the
Potomac" replied, IN take all the
consequences on my part il Black Dan
will only do his part When We ar
rived at the hotel, as We went up stairs,
he said: II had no idea OF this. | sup
posed that nobody but Mr.. Clay could
bring out such a crowd here. | anSw-
cred Il always told you that our people
were Just and patriotic as we'll rs hoSPlt-
able, and would receive YOU aS cordially
as they would Mr.. Clay We went into
the parlor of tho hotel and the crowd
which filled the streets was still shouting
and calling for Mr.. Webster. He asked
me what he should do-if he should
make Il speech. told him not to makca
speech our people never heard political
speeches on Sunday; but he must go out
and see the people and let them see him,
and speak the next day. Well, he said,
Come along" and we went out on the
piazza in front OF the hotel, and after
making bow he said: 81 cannot speak
to YOU this evening; NirGinianS are not
i'm the habit OF listening tu political
speeches on Sunday; but | have come
down here to see YOU and talk 10 you,
and hereafter | will talk to you when
ever and wherever YOU please" 1t was
my duty as President OF the club To de
liver Mr.. Webster at the Capitol to the
Committee of Arrangements, OF which
my friend the late William II. Mactar-
land was the Chairman. Accordingly
on Monday, at the proper hour, | drove
down to the Powhattan House, To take
Mr.. Webster over. When | Knocked
at his chamber door, the reply was,
Come in and entered; ] found Mr..
Webster in his shirt-slccvcs, preparing
to put on his cravat. After the usual
salutatiOnS, Mr.. Webster shook out his
cravat. a threc-corncrcd white one. and
then playiulIv said: "Wcll Lyons, now
you've got me down here, tell me what
| am to talk abOut?' In the same style
! replied: 1T is rather ludiCrOuS, Mr.
Webster, to ask me, or anybody else, to
tell YOU what YOU are To talk about; but
as you have opened the door, | will en-
ter. | want YOU to tell these people
what are your opinions upon he trou-
blcsomc question Of abolition" As he
folded his cravat upon his knee he re-
piled: Il have no new opinion upon
that subject; my opinions are the same
now as they have been for thirty years
and may be found in my public speech
cs." ] said That is all true, but,
although you have thousands, probably
ten thousand OF the elite young men
and middle-agcd men Of Virginia, in
this crowd, there are, OF course, a vast
number who never have read, nor ever
will read your speeches; and | want
them to be able To 90 home and say to
their friends and neighborS, that they
heard Mr.. Webster, with their own ears,
assert and defend the constitutional
rights of the South" Well" said he,
"they shall do it. will speak to them
SO that they shall hear with their own
ears and tell their countrymen that |
do maintain and defend the constitution
al rights of the South, as OF all other
parts of the country" He tied on his
cravat and ! carried him over to the
south perth of the Capitol and present
cd him to the committee, and he made
there his famous speech without note
OF any kind to that sea OF upturncd
faces, as he styled them, which so de-
lighted an d electrified them that when
he had concluded the passage to which
| have alluded, with one voice they
cried out, Again, again, and he re-
peated it. How unfortunate Tor the
peace Of the country and constitutional
liberty that the words of this great man
were not needed That speech, be-
lieve. mainly contributed to run up the
Wing vote in Virginia, for the first time
in her history, to within thirteen hun