The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1890-08-25
CALHOUN. WEES rEa. CLAY.
The Blind Cheplain's "Reminiscences
of the Old Senate.
FroM 4 Christian Airocate.

IRON IaS ChftSf1nn duuocnte-
At the right side of the Presidents chair
on the democratic side, sat one of the three
men first sought by the eye Of the visitor
He looked and dressed like southern plan
ter, AID at the first glance there was little
to distinguish him except the marked re-
spect raid him on all hands. He was some
what above the medium hight, neither
broad-shoulde-ed nor stout; erect, grave,
and somewhat Constrained IN air and
manner. The head, not large, was covered
with short. iron-gray hair, standing like
the quilts of a pOrcupine; the brow, not
unusually high nor broad, was deeply fur
rowed; the complexion had the sallow tinge
Of the south 1t was the steady burning
light Of the eye, whether lie were talking
or listening, that first awakened
your interest. When he rose to speak,
which was not Ofte1, a silence that could be
felt rested o. the chamber; all reading,
writ g, chatting was suspended as the
somewhat sharp AID grating tones OF his
voice greeted the ear. He rarely spoke
over an hour, but at the close you
were exhausted as well as he. Stand
ing in the marrow alley between his
own and his neighbours desk, a hand
clutching each, a stream Of words rushed
from his liDs at the rate of 80 to tie minute.
his only action was 10 use one or the other
hand to mop bis brow with a bandana.
There was little variation in the pitch of his
voice, no beauty of diction, no grace of
utterance. There were no figures of speech,
no efforts at Oratory. 1t was clear, CON-
pact, vivid statement of the case; the argu-
ment was close, logical clinching; there was
scarcely a redundant word 1t was like the
demonstration of a problem III Euclid, until
he claimed the functions OF seer, AM from
the hight Of vaticination foretod what he
\ 70
point the speech must have been dry but
for the intensity, not demonstrative, AMI
therefore all the more powerful; it was CEN
tered, almost calm, but when be
reached his hight of vision
and clothed himself in prophetic
robes, he was rapt, and so were his hearers;
men almost forgot to breathe, all sat rigid,
motionless; their eyes caught the light If
his, and whether they agresd or disagreed
with him for the moment he transfused
his consciousness tn ough theirs, and they
were his captives. A logical understand
ing depth of conviction, absolute sincerity,
intensity Of nature which would have held
him composed, nay, made hun eXultant
amid the agonles of the stake and the lighted
fagot, were the secret of the power in the
public speech and private influence of John
Caldwell Calhoun. He had in him part of
the stuff that made John Knox and John
Calvin what they were
The second man your eye would seek sat
in front OF the chair to the left of the main
aisle. In nearly all respects he was the op-
posite of Mr.. Calhoun. His frame was mas
sive, shoulders broad, chest deep, head,
hrow-indeed, everything about his build
and manner was majestic. The eyes were
large, deep set, overhung by penthouse
brows. His voice had tones as deep and
rich as ever came out of human chest
His manner at the beginning of speech
was deliberate, almost hesitatlng at times
as if for the right word. The mighty intel
lect moved slowly at first, and the opening
might have seemed dull but for the organ
like tones, the majesty of the presence
which awed yet fascinated you. Your
critical sense was satisfied by the choice of
the words and the guarded statement of the
case. As he went on, the stately argument
and manner had now and then strenuous
quality, a fash as of sheet lightaing AS
his Roadway increased the somewhat
heavy features lighted up, the
deep eyes shone, the pose and movement
were more IMPRESSIVE, the sustained swell
as the organ-like music in his tones, fl
accompaniment to his large and lucid para
graphs, subdued and yet uphfte4 you !;
when he marshaled his arguments
for the close to make the Senate,
the country, sharer in his views and its
bearing on the questions in hand, his port
seemed moro than human; he was the i'm
PRESERVATION of grandeur. A lofty yet
| simple manner in delivery, crystalline
style, mighty arguments driven home with
the force of thunderbolts, and all without
appearance of effort, combined with mis-
other attributes to make hun one of the
orators Of all time. However insignificant
you felt in the presence of such power you
| rstoiced to be allied to it by the ties of kth
| and kin, aud felt yoursel more a man for
| having heard one of the speeches of Daniel
Webster.
Henry Clay, the other member of the
| senatorial triumvirate, es they were
| named sat atthe extreme left of the chair
| and needed all the space afforded bv the
transverse aisle to give him room and verge
| when he spoke. He was tall and rather
| loosely jointed, yet carried himself with such
ease, grace and dignity That you forgot the
shortooming of his build His hair had
been sandy, complexion light; his eyes were
| blue, the features Of his face uncommonly
| plain. the mouth enormously large, but the
! expression had Snch courage, kindli-
ness, opel-hearted sympathy with all sorts
and conditions of men, that the moment he
grasped your hand, and opened his lips, the
beaming eye, the unaffected cordially, the
matchless harmony and power of his voice
wrought upon you as spell, and you were
ready to declare him the handsomest and
| PAAA-~OAASSN y
might hope to see. He fascinated alike
men, women and children, high and low,
white and black. The wing masses wor-
SHIPPED him, and democrats loved while
they opposed him. John Randolph of
Roanoke, who, in the frenzy of a
partisan debate, had sccffed aud flouted
Mr.. Clay, and ia his blind fury heaped the
foulest charges upon him, when he was
dying had himself carried into the Senate
chamber that he might once more see and
hear the nagnanimous man toward whom
he had been so unjust; and when Mr.. Clay
rose to speak Randolph said. in his piping
voice; Raise me up; let me see as well a.
hear the man among men," Words fail in
the attempt to convey the impression made
by Mr.. Clay; whether bespoke in the Senate
or on the stump, whether you heard and
| saw him in the tournament of great debate
or only shook hands with him, he affected
you as no one else ever did or will
An old ministerial friend of mine, who
was much in W ashington in those days, and
was one of the great KentuCkia IS most
| fervent admirers, but whose modesty hal
kept him from seeking his acquaintance,
saw on Pennsylvania avenue one day Mr..
Clay appro iching, aud no one else near.
| Pin eEir1ty IN heart thayy mat no