The daily gazette., 1882-07-13
GARRULOUS MR.. WEED
REVIEW OF HIS GOSSIP ABOUT
DANIEL WEBSTER.
HOW HE Is PROBABLY MISTAKEN.
A "Gazette" Correspondent Reviews His
Recent Webstelian Utterances, and
Pricks the Bubble of His Imagination.
rMritten for the Gazette. ]

lWritten Tor the Gazette.
The Detroit Post and Tribune, in a
late number, published an interview with
Thuriow Weed of New York, in which Mr.
Weed is reported as giving an account of
how Daniel Webster "twice missed beeom-
ing President" AS this interview has been
extensively copied by newspapers through
out the country, deem it proper to. point
out some mistakes in Mr.. Weeds account !;
| mistakes incident TO any one conyersant
with Mr.. Webstcr's history, or the history
of his times, and which, il uncorrected
would mislead young readers, and greatly
niisreprcsent one of the three greatest Of |
| American statesmen.
Mr.. Weeds account in substance is, that
| Mr.. Webster could have been nominated
| for the Vice Presidency either under Harri-
son in 1910, or Taylor in 1878, and then by
| their respective untmely deaths he would
have succeeded to the Presidency, and he
| (Mr. Weed) then proceeds to give his in
diyidual efforts by a detail of conversations
between himself and Mr.. Webster, in which
| he endeavored to secure Mr. Webster's con
| sent to the use of his name for such noIni-
nation before the Wing National Conven-
| tions of those years, which conversations, he
| says, occurred upon visits to Mr. Webster,
| specially made by him (Weed) to accom-
plish such such purpose, and that Webster
subsequently confessed to him that his re-
fusal of the Vice Presidency under
| Harrison was mistake. Mr.. Weed,
/ as the editor of the leading
| Wing paper in New York, was undoubtedly
large factor in Wing politics and he un-
doubtedly had conversations with Mr.. Web
ster, many and oft, as to the nominations OF
| President and Vice President of that party,
| and as to Mr.. Webster's chances for such
| nominations. But there are some facts con
nected with Harrison's and Tyler's nomina-
tions of 1910 (lS39 really) which convince
me that Mr.. Weed has got "little mixed'
in his reeolIections, and that what he says
occurred between himself and Webster in
1910, occurred in 1S4S in other words, at
time preceding Taylor's, and not Harrison's,
nomination.
Mr.. Weed says
/ had always been among his most profound
admirers and wanted to see him President in
| 1910, but 1t became obvious to me during the
winter that he couldn't get the nomination
that Harrison was leading. i went down to
| Washington early in the spring and called him
Into the cloak room. i think l shall be the
Whig candidate he said. expressed my
doubt Of 1t. Who will be, then?' he asked.
1t looks to me like Harrison, answered He
almost sneered at the idea.
"Why, you don't act asIf you believed ityour-
SELF he said for you have chosen a Scott del
egation from your own State That was to
| prevent the appointment of n Clay delegation
| ] said, and Clay cannot be elected If nomi-
mated But MIR. Webster l went on i have
i not come to Washington to getyou to withdraw
your name, but TO ask you 70 accept the noml-
| nation for Vice President in case Harrison
shall be selected for the first place. No. he
| wouldn't listen to such proposal, and he re-
, fused with quite as much spirit as the occasion
called for SO came home aud Harrison was
nominated and John Tyler was made his vice,
and by the death of Harrison, Tyler became
Z President month after the election. Webster
saw the fatal mistake he had made, and the
next time l saw him--he was then Tyler's
Secretary of State-he confessed it to me.
Well, curiousy enough, that wasn't the last
| pf
thing happened right over again. In 1874 Clay
; had been defeated and taken out of the way,
aud now Wooster thought he could walk over
the course. During the spring before the nomi-
nation went over to Matshheld. We'll, what
do you think of it this time?" asked MIR. Web
ster with a smile of security.
i think this time, said that General Taylor
| will be the man.
He was astounded. II didn't look Sc at all to
him. He thought it very wild guess. DO
you seriously think he asked, that such a man
can he nominated9 l assured him that l
thought 1t very probable. He remembered his
former mistake and smiled, and said at last that
he would consult his two best friends, George
Ashum of Massachusetts. and Senator Wilson
, of New Hampshire, and do MS they said.
| They were summoned and came. / met them
at Mr.. Webster's and presented my figures.
They were nonplussed at first, but came finally
to my conclusion that Taylor's nomination was
probable and they Joined me in advising Mr..
, Webster to be content with second place II the
first should prove beyond his reach. He re-
uctantly agreed to II, and was authorized ,fi ed
: this point his son Fletcher came home from
town, and he ridlculcd the scheme so energeti-
cally and 80 bitterly that his father returned to
his original position, and refused to have any
| thing to do with my proposal Well, the Vice
Presidency went begging. The name of Fill
more was suddenly sprung ON the convention
and he was put on the ticket. Taylor md he
were elected. Taylor died in four months, and
Fillmore became President and Webster went
} down TO Washington and served him as Secre-
tary of State lie had served the accidental
Tyler! think the pair of curious mishaps did
IA good deal to sour him, and perhaps helped
to make him reckless in his personal habits
1t is apparent that the ''winter' to which
Mr. Weed refers is the winter of lS39-40-the
winter preceding the election of 1910 ; and
that his visit to Washington to see Webster,
"early in the spring." was the spring of
1910.
This view is corroborated also by the re-
, ported remark of Webster, as to the then
chosen Scott delegates from Weeds own
State, as it is not at all probable that dele
, gates to a convention would be chosen from
nine months to a year in advance If, then,
Mr.. Weeds visit was made in the early
spring of 1910, what will he say when he is
, reminded his recollection refreshed, as the
! lawyers say, that the Wing National Con-
vention had met in Harrisburg, Pa, in the
. preceding December, December 4th, 1889,
and on the 5th day of that month had nomi-
mated William ii. Harrison for President,
and John Tyler, of Virginia, for Vice Presi-
dent! How can he reconcile his effort to
get Mr.. Webster's consent to take the second
place on ticket which was already full and
which had been filled three months before /!
1t may still be claimed however that Mr.
' Weeds visit to Webster was in the Spring
of 1899. If so, 1t could not have been to
Washington. Inasmueh as Curtis in his
life of Webster says-(Vol. 2, PIP. 4-5)
! | ssMr. Webster was in Boston Immediately
! after the adjournment of Congress, which
!. took place on the Sd OF March, 1889, and
that he embarked on the 18th of the fol
lowing May for England, and remained
!, abroad until December. 1t is possible that
/ Mr.. Weed may have visited Washington
a during the first five days of March, but is it
probable And is it probable that he weuld
: have made visit then to induce Mr.. Web
= = ster to permit his name to go before con-
vention, for the second place upon ticket,
which convention had not been called, and
which in fact did not meet for nine months
thereafter Another fact, before Mr.. Web
ster went out of the country in May 1889, he
decided not to have his name brought before
the next National Wing Convention, as a
}, candidate for the Presidency. (Curtis3 life
Z Vol. 9, p. A. Would he have done this
y and permitted his name to go before 1t for
: the Vice Presideneya Or would he, as Mr.,
:, Weed says he did, ever have confessed that
IL his refusal of the Vice Presidency was "a
fatal mistaken
Mr.. Webster was too great q man ever tC