The republic. [volume], July 19, 1849, Image 2

About The republic. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1849-1853

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miscellaneous.
JOHN KNOX'S HOl'HK.
We hud occasion a few days since lo refer to
lite intention of the authorities of Edinburgh to pui|
down the house of John Knox. The subject excues
much interest in Great Britain, us the following
article from the London AVtcs of the &)(h ult.
will show:
"
There is an old house in the Canongate of Edinburgh,
not unpicturesque in itself, and regarded with
resf>ect by all as an historical monument, with enthusiastic
veneration by the sturdy Presbyterians
of Scotland. It is the house of John Knox. It
was tenanted in days of old by " the reformer of
11 kingdom," as Milton called him, by him over
whose closing grave the regent Morton declared, in
half soliloquy, 11 there lies he who never feared the
face of man." Within that house the dauntless
chumninn nf rafnrmnlmn mm I with 11 nrill 1VPTInfr fierVf
when the assassin's bullet whistled unexpectedly
through the window over his head. From its door
he stepped to preach the 4,Evangele," as coml>osedly
as any minister now commits himself to
an admiring flock, though, for aught he knew, a
score of hireling arquebusses might be levelled at
him before he brought his discourse to a close.
It has been too much the fashion to talk of John
Knox us a ruthless, iron man. He wus no whining
sentimentalist, it is true; the blandishments of
a fair young Queen could not turn him from the
path of duty; but M'Crie has disproved the mendacious
stories ubout his wanton rudeness to Mary.
The simple dtory of Knox's life show* that though
he might not prate about his feelings, the circle of
his friends and relations felt the glow of human affection
that burned voiceless within him, for without
such consciousness none can love a man as
Knox was loved by many. But as the teacher of
a nation upon which knowledge had dawned before
wraith and art had softened men's temjiers, or the
intermission of feudal broils favored the cultivation
of the domestic virtues, a hard task was imposed
upon him. Every where he found himself called
upon to act the stern disciplinarian. He had to assail
the defendants of superstition; he hud to lay
the strong hand of restraint upon those who would
cast off not only erroneous belief, but the restraints
of morality with it; he had to beard a selfish and
avaricious nobility, bent on enriching themselves
with the spoils of the church. His life was one of
incessant warfare against the aberrations of all
around him?of friends as well as of foes. To have
relaxed for one moment his strong bridle hand
would have been to let loose the national passions?
the perftrvidum internum Scoiorum?to a headlong
rush over a precipice. His pure and well-balanced
mind taught him what was right, and his heroic
disposition enabled him to assert it?often alone
and discountenanced. To his Titan energies is
Scotland, under Providence, indebted for the en
dowment and organization of its parochial schools;
for what Wordsworth has called the "strong-handed
purity" of its religious discipline; in short, for
that national character which even these who cannot
love are compelled to respect.
The instinct of a nation's gratitude has taught
this to Scotchmen, and therefore is John Knox's
house in the Canongate a sacred shrine in their
eyes. It is one of the first " sights" in Edinburgh
to which the citizen leads the stranger; and deep
and intense is the feeling of honorable, complacent
pride expressed in the distinct and audible whisper
with which he says, "That is John Knox's
house."
Vet this Penults of Scotland it is proposed to destroy.
While Englishmen are exerting themselves
to insure the perennial maintenance of the house in
which Shakspeare is supposed to have been born?
while even the house in which Cowley died is
cared for, and indicated by a modest tablet?there
are Scotchmen who would pull down the house
consecrated by having been the dwelling-place of
the moral and intellectual father of them all.
And who are the Vandals who contemplate this
desecration ? No neo-Romarusts, rendering their
new faith ridiculous by the extravagance of their
proselyte zeal; no Puseyite prelatists, avenging the
interrupted apostolic succession ; no bigoted believers
in the immaculate purity of Queen Mary. A
correspondent informs us that the destroyers are
the managing committee of the Free Kirit?the men
who would have the world believe that they alone
hold fast by and appreciate Knox and his doctrines
These men, we are told, have got the venerable
fabric into their possession, and are going to pull
it down to make room for their new schools, al^
though a worse site for the purpose, in respect of
neijenoornoou, cannot wen oe imagmeu
Now the leaders of the Free Kirk cannot plead
in rAttnuation or their Vandalism a puritanical hatred
of relic*. No men have been more assiduous
in the distribution of relics?some of them of a
rather spurious character. They have published
fac-nmiles of the Solemn League-and Covenant?;hat
may pass. They have reprinted memoirs and autobiographies
of Presbyterian saints?some of them
valuable and interesting, some of them ineflabl'
trash. And, finally, they have connived at the fabrication
and sale of silver brooches?of the sire of
moderate saucers?inscribed with their own names
and martyrdoms. We can scarcely bring ourselves
to believe that men so far gone in relic worship
would destroy a fabric which is to all (rue Scotchmen
as the apple of their eye. in order that their
sectarian schools may be plaoH, in an unfitting locality,
it is true, but where all men may see them.
This would be not a little phansaical.
If the charge he true, we must say that the way
tn which they are aetting about the job betray* a
sneaking consciousness of its true character. Like
the Q.uaker who gave the dog which he could not
strike a bod name, they are seeking to create an
impression that the house is in such a stale of decay
us to be dangerous to the public. They are invoking
the intervention of the Edinburgh sedile,
the Dean of Guild. They would have people be- !
Iieve that not they, but the law, has done it. This ,
is making a cat s paw of the worthy civic digni- i
tary we have nameo, for, were the house ten times j
more ruinous than it is, it would be easy to main- j
tain it by interior building or otherwmp
We are confident that the mere giving of publicity
to this unpatriotic design will be sufficient to excite |
a burst of indignation that will teach the Vandals,
whoever they may be, they are about to "bring down
art old house about their ears" in more senses than
one Nay, the storm is already rising Several I
gentlemen in Edinburgh have commenced an opposition
in the Dean of Guild Court, and retained an
able lawyer to plead the cauae of John Knox>
houae. The moat eminent Scotch arum* in London
are actively bestirring themselves in the cauae.
We have known the mood of our northern brethren
vehemently moved aljout matter* of leaa conaeouence.
Above all, ahould the statement lie correct
tnat the Free-Kirk managers are at the bottom of
the business, it is incumbent on the members of
the Free Kirk to protest against an insult to the
national sentiment which, offered by their leaders,
will be imputed to them all.
From the London Tinut
BKITINH M?HT-HOt NES.
In England the earliest Irgh'a and beacona along
the coast were erected by individuals, to whom
royal patents were granted, authorising them to col* I
lect certain tolls from the passing vessels to de'ra)
the coat of building and maintenance. The right ot
constructing those sea-signa/s. however, rested
solely with the crown ; and in fan tne far larger
number were used only in times of warlike expedition,
and for certain special purpoaea. The earliest
light-house which still remains in existence was
m w . e. l l* !. i CfUl A (T _?
that or I?we*lOII, DUlli in IWO aiivuici hi riurntiarton
Point, on the east coaat, wn* erected in 1665;
and the light on the Solly ialee datea ita ealabltahrnent
from 1680 Beaidea theae there were two
light-tower* erected during thia period at Dungeneaa
and Orfordneaa, under patent* granted by
James I. to Sir R. Howard and Sir W. Erakine.
Theae establishment* remained private property,
paying only a amaJI auit-rent to the crown, until
very rerenily, when tne Trinity hoard, under the
act of 1836, purchased them both at a high price
from their owner*, Mr. Coke and Lord Brmybroke
In 1609 the final eaiabliahment of the Trinity
hoard took place Under thia board, which waa
denominated "The Brotherhood of the Trinityhouae,"
almost all the authority over English commerce
and navigation was to |>hmi
The datea of the several patents granted to the
Trinity l?egin with 1680, when CkarWa II authorized
the erection of the Scilly light Two other patents
were issued by that monarch, for the light
lieacons of Spurm and Tynemouth Castle Anne
granted one patent to the Trinily-hooae for Milfordhaven
; George I granted 4 ; George II 7 ; George
III., 15, George [V., 7; and William IV , 5
The first Eddystone light-house was comme,
in 1656 by Mr Winstanley. The light was first
exhibited in 1798, and burnt steadily for five y.Mrv,
when the whole edifice waa swept away by a furious
gale in November, 1703, while Mr. Winstanley
waa himaelf within it. This first light-house wa?
formed of courses of atone
A tradesman on Ludgate-hill, Mr. Rudyerd, ther
undertook the construction of a tower wholly ol
wood The wooden tower bore the brunt of the
weather from 1708 until 1755, when it unfortunately
t
V * ^ ?
caught fire, and, after burning for several daya, was
totally consumed. Two years later Mr. Smeutoii
was engaged in founding the present edifice. On
the 16th October, 1759, the lights were first exhibited,
and have never since ceased to shine from
sunset to sunrise.
As the light-house, stations multiplied, it became
necessary to contrive some distinguishing mark by
which the pilot might determine tne one he sought.
Various forms and changes of the light were, therefore,
introduced, accomplishing nine varieties, namely,
the fixed white, revolving white, revolving red
and white, revolving red and two whiles, revolving
white and two reds, Hashing, intermittent, double
fixed white, double revolving white. As the red
rays penetrate little more than half as fur us the
white, no light must consist of red alone, especially
as even white will look red through a dry haze.
The other colors are less penetrating still, and therefore
wholly unfit.
Through the jierseverance of Mr. Hume, a parliamentary
committee was appointed in 1834 to investigate
the condition and administration of British
light-houses. As usual, great mismanagement was
proved to exist, combined with an uncertainty and
inconsistency in the charges and tolls levied upon
shipping, which must have occasioned considerable
injury to our commerce.
S'lme curiousanomalies were also exposed in me
levying of tolls on vessels for the supposed advantage
of the lights. Thus throughout England a
duty of Jd. to ljd. per ton was levied on every vessel
passing a light-house, the rate varying with
every light, which had its distinct rules and system
of collection. In Scotland, on the other hand, a
ship that passed one light paid a certain rate per
ton for the whole number, and no more, if it went
the entire circuit of the coast. In the voyage from !
Leith to London, therefore, a vessel of 142 tons !
would pay ^1 9s. 7?d. for the Scottish lights,
though it passed only one of them ; and would nave
??4 17s 3a. charged for the nineteen English lighthouses
passed between Berwick and London. A
Yarmouth vessel also, bound for the Thames, but
driven by stress of weather to the Frith of Forth,
would pay for the whole series of Scotch lights,
though it hod used none, having only been driven
into their waters. In Ireland the charge was made
at certain rates on the tonnage of every ship entering
an Irish port, whether it had passed a light-house
or not.
In consequence of the report of the committee
of 1634, the act 6 & 7 Will. 1 v. was passed. Under
this siatute, all the private rights in light-houses
were extinguished and bought up by the Trinityhouse,
at a cost of no less than ^1,182,546?such
was the presumed value of these indispensable
monopolies.
In SenllnnH I he curliest lip-ht-house wan that of
Cam brae, on little Cambrae Island, built in 1756,
and rebuilt in 1793 The Leith light was established
in 1780; and that on Cape Wrath, completed
in 179G, is visible for twenty-six miles?being the
widest range of any British light. The Bell Rock,
finished in 1811, at a cost of <161,331, and the
Skerryvore light-house, in Argyleshire, completed
as lately as 1844, for which the estimated cost was
?31,500, are the works of most interest in an engineering
point of view. Enormous difficulties
were overcome in the construction of these edifices,
and both remain triumphs of British skill and science.
The height of the Bell Rock tower is 100
feet ; that of the Skerryvore, 138 feet 5 inches. In
the lantern of the former, there were 24 parabolic
reflectors, each 18 inches across the tips, and containing
.?21 worth of silver on its polished surface.
Ireland first possessed a light-house in 1768, at
Poalbeg, at the entrance of the Dublin river. The
Balbriggen light was erected in the following year;
that on Clare Island in 1807, and is visible for 15
miles. Cape Clear and Arran lights were built in
1817. The Scellig Rock light-house was the most
expensive of the Irish beacons, costing ^?41,651.
The Isle of Man has seven lights, that of the Calf
being the chief. Two beacons, one in Denbyhaven,
built 1659, and unother in Castletown harbor, built
in 1765, are intended to aid the herring fishery, and
are lighted only during that season.
At present the British system of light-houses remains
under the control of three boards, viz;
1. The Trinity-house Brotherhood, consisting of
31 members, 11 of whom are honorary, and the
rest more or less connected with commerce or shipping.
Established about 1553.
2. The Commissioners of Northern Lights, holdin?
jurisdiction over the Scotch and Isle of Man
light-houses, consisting of 25 members, being sheriffs
and county magistrates. Established 1786
3. The Dublin Harbor Corporation, otherwise
called the Ballast Board, to whom was committed,
in 1810. the custody of the Irish lights, consists of
20 members, chosen for life among the chief mer- |
chants and hankers, together with the mayor and I
th?> ?heriffs of Dublin for the lime being. One day
in each week the board sits for light-house purposes.
A number of small lights remain under the control
of local authorities and harbor trustees, &c.
The system of lights administered by the three
boards above mentioned, comprised, in the year
1844?Trinity house, 65 fixed and 23 floating lights; |
Northern Light Commissioners, 32 fixed, 2 float-'
ing; Dublin Board, 27 fixed, 4 floating; local and j
harbour lights made up a grand total of 312 Britiah i
light-houses. The cost of maintaining the public !
lights was, on the average, about .?500 per annum
for the fixed, and ?1,200 for the floating lighta
The gross sum collected by the three boards for 150
lights, (local and harbor being exclusive,) was j
?340,475 Of this ?131,036 was expended in maintenance,
and ?15,814 in charges of collection, leaving
a surplus of ?196,631 on the year's receipts.
STATISTICS OF Ht'XUARY.
Hungary is divided into five circles or provinces,
containing 57 counties. Its principal rivers are the
Danube, the Drave, jhe Marrsch, the March, the
White Doresch, the Izarnos, theTheina, theWaag, i
and the Ternes.
It contains 56 large towns, 751 market towns,
11,707 villages, 1.307.172 houses, 2,885,500 fami-j
lies, 5.917,202 males, 6,179,000 females. Total
population, 12,096,202 Of these, 5,500,000 are
Koman Catholic*, ana about ij.insi.utkJof the creek
Church, about 1.000,000 Lutheran*, 2,000,000 Calvinists,
250,000 Jew* ; and it* regular army lieforr
the war, 56,000 men. There are about 15,000,000
of Mrable land, American measure, 1,330.000 in !
vineyarda, 4,800,000 in gardens, 4.850,000 in pa*ture*.
about 15,000,000 acre* of woodland : 4,500,-1
000 head of horned cattle, 650,000 horses, and
8,000.000 sheep.
Buda, the capital, stands on the right bank of the
Danube, and has 25,000 inhabitant*. It was once j
the residence of the kings of Hungary, when it wi* j
taken by the Turks. For 160 years it was contested
between them and the Christian*, and it wa*
finally surrendered to the latter in 1686. In 1810.
600 house* were destroyed by fire, but they have
been refdaced with improved buildings Immediately
opposite Buda, on the east side of the Danube.
is Pesth, or Presburg, which is the largest
city in Hungary. It is well built, containing many
elegant public building*, and mansions of the Hungarian
nobility. Its University is one of the mist
richly endowed on the continent of Europe, and
this city of Pesth contains about 60,000 inhabitant*
: it is about 190 mile* eaat-southeaat of Vienna
Throughout Hungary the Sclavonian population
are the most numerous. The Magyars, or Majjars
?the original Hungarians?though generally illiterate,
are a spirited and intelligent race, fond of active
employment and a military life In 1837 there
were in Hungary not leaa than 259,618 privileged
noblemen. The number since that time ha* considerably
increased ; but they are, by the recent
laws of the Republic, placea on an equality with
other citizens No slaves of any kind are held.
The London Daily News ha* the following re;
mark* upon the gasconading of the French, and
I their fabulous exploit* against double walla and
" inner bastions." The traveller who ha* walked
1 round the walla of Rome will acknowledge the truth
of this description :
The Gi.oav or Ocwhot.?The policy and the exploit*
of field-marshal Oudinot?he can look to no
less a grade?are only to be equalled by hia bulletin*.
Nothing *ince Orvante* ha* been *o ludicrous,
nothing since Attila *o barbarous. To any
one who ha* seen or taken a ride round the old
wall* of Rome, the affectation of digging trencher,
sinking parallel*, and making regular approaches to
them, must forcibly recall the campaign* of Corfmral
Trim and my uncle Toby in Flanders. In mom
place* these wall* are ill-formed to resist the old
classic battering-rams, but the idea of not only
bunging cannon to bear on the masonry of Aurelian,
but of undermining them by the art of Vauban
are acts of nhaurdiiy and big pretence, to be smoth
errd by universal laughter, but for the indignatuw
they excite From tihe Porta Pia, all round to tht
river. near the church of St. Psul.full two-third* 01
the city's circumference, there i* no part of the wal
that would stand five minutes' cannonade, nor thai
would keep out a band of smuggler*. There u
i neither bastion nor out-work, fosse, nor glan*
Nor could any conceivable amount of force tha
i Rome might muster ever man this extent of totter
r irig wall. The affectation, therefore, of laying aiegi
to Rome is one of the monstrosities of the Frencf
' invasion
T HE RE r U B LIC.
WASHINGTON:
THURSDAY MORNING, JULY 19, 1849.
THE UNION.
Mr. Clay. Mr. Webster, Mr. Brutun.
It may well be imagined by even the
adepts in sounding the abyss of political
abasement, that the Union has reached
the bottom. In its invention of base motives
for wise acts ; in its labored libels
upon the great and good ; in its ministry
to the worst passions of the worst people ;
in its venal justification of an infraction of
the law in supplying the King of Prussia
with a navy out of the resources of our
ship-yards ; in the ribald jests with which
it met a national recognition of a national
calamity; in its breathless alacrity in
arraying itself under foreign cabinets
against its own Government; in its constant
efforts to inflame sectional irritation
into civil strife, it has evinced an
ambition for bad notoriety which nothing
short of a monopoly of the vices proscribed
by human and Divine law can appease.
Partisan readers are but too prone
to find, in the excitements of a political
crisis, an apology for lapsing into barbarous
modes of conflict. But the Union
has not this excuse for its justification.
It has said and done what it pleased, with
scarcely a contradiction to rouse its malignant
temper. It is its nature to do as
it has done. It cannot help itself. Its
elements are carelessness of truth, incredulousness
of honorable impulses, obsequiousness
to aristocratic pretension, impiousness
in sentiment, and faithlessness to
principles and men, as treachery promises
thrift. To such a compound of disloyal
attributes, no motive of misrepresentation
or assault is required beyond the justification
of a loss of the spoils. The spoils?
the honors or emoluments of office?are its
idolatry, and the loss of these inflames in
it a more violent than sectarian hatred, as
it is the expression of the only religion it
has got.
The manifestation of these ignoble idiosyncracies
is the daily labor of the Union.
We will notice a late exercise of some of
the lowest of them.
It seems that when General Taylor
came to Washington city to assume the
duties of the Presidency, he did so with
a mind divested of every feeling of jealousy
or repugnance towards any of the
distinguished gentlemen whose names
were presented to the Philadelphia National
Whig Convention for a nomination.
If there had been efforts made to the prejudice
of any individual of the party, or the
friends of any of its great leaders, they
were made in vain. From his exalted
' position he regarded all as members of the
'
same political family, entitled alike to the
confidence of the Government and the
honors of official station. \No one can
charge him with distributing the offices
within his gift with a narrow and selfish
preference of his "peculiar friends." All
have shared alike. It is even urged as a
complaint against him that he has followed
out a catholic and disinterested policy, to
the neglect of some who had claims upon
his gratitude. In thi* fair and equitable
spirit the friends of Mr. Webster and of
Mr. Clay were considered with the rest;
and a kinsman of one, and the son of the
other, were assigned to responsible and
honorable trusts./Nay, more; it seems
that, in making appointments, the President
has, when the public service required
it, made selections from the opposition
party, and Colonel Fremont has been
charged with running the boundary line
between Mexico and the United States
territories.
To any liberal and candid mind these
appointments would indicate, on the part
of the President, an exemption from paltry
I jealousies, and a sincere ambition to promote
the public welfare. Every man,
; woman, and child capable of appreciating
greatness in human intellect, or the respect
| due to public services, recognises in iMr.
Webster and Mr. Clat statesmen whom
it befit* a Whig President to hold in near
and confidential esteem. We are sure
that the appointment of persona connected
with these renowned citizens will be every
where hailed as a proper recognition of
i their merit. As indicative of harmony
and good understanding between the Cabinet
and the party generally, it has filled
t 1A7 k /*? i k i>oii/*koit4 tk/i Inti / I ?a itU * oaf
urc uiiuut;M';ui uir iaiiu WIIII JWJ
and confidence. The appointees themselves
are fit and capable men; so regarded
by the public. And who more qualified
; than Col. Fr mont for the post assigned
him? Who so well acquainted by a knowledge
of the country, and the people of the
country, in which his services are needed,
and at the same time so favorably known
I to the country from the intelligence and
' enterprise which these services required?
The emotions which such appointments
are calculated to produce in honorable
. minds, are strangers to the Onion and ite
, com|>eers. Whilst others are glad, thai
J. | journal is mousing and growling amongst
I the baser passions for disreputable motive*
\ for what it has not the magnanimity to approve.
In an article under the caption ol
. "A small Cabinet buying up big men,"
F it assumes that these appointments were
( made to coerce Mr. Wkbiter, Mr. Clat,
THE REPUBLIC.
and Mr. Benton to the fortunes of the
Administration; and admits that it would
desert its principles for such a favor by
insinuating that they are capable of doing
so. It has no ambition above a supper.
When an American citizen, holding in
his bosoin the heart of one, contemplates
the meeting of these distinguished men
once more in the United States Senate, his
mind is wrapt in admiration of the times
when the esquires of that body were worthy
the steel of a templar, and every
knight was terrible " like an army with
Konn.... >> Tl *U
wouiicia. lucic wcic plains 111 uiuac
days, and these were greatest where all
were great. There is not one of them who
has not surrounded himself with traditions
which it would be a sacrifice to barter for
all the offices in the gift of Government.
As an evidence of respectful remembrance,
they might acknowledge the appointment
of those near them in blood and affection,
with kind and generous feeling; but, as a
bribe for a support they would not otherwise
give, who does not feel that they
would, sooner than sell their renown,
strike the hostages dead, though bone of
their bone, and throw them down in defiance
at the foot of the Administration!
Let it not be supposed that the Union is
making these indirect admissions, for the
purpose of wounding distinguished Whigs.
In the case of Mr. Benton such excuse
cannot be pleaded. Its beseeching and
deprecating tone, in imploring Mr. Benton
not to be led astray by such a bribe?
its warning, lest any support given by him
to the Administration be ascribed to " the
: *1
acciiiing uuiigauuiia uiiuer wiiiuii liiej'
have placed him?betray a real anxi?ty, and
so a mind incapable of comprehending a
motive of action above the " lucre of gain."
It interprets every action by this talisman.
Its horizon is bounded by the circumference
of a dollar. . Its patriotism knows no
other reward ; its imagination acknowledges
no other good gift. It watches the
panorama of politics with hands in its
pockets, and would admire the " wars ol
the giants" only for the buttons it may
pick from the dead.
GENERAL. CASS AND HARBOR AND
RIVER IMPROVEMENTS.
This distinguished gentleman has addressed
a long letter to Mr. Ritchie, the
main object of which is to vindicate his
A 1 I ~ it. T A 1 T
consistency m regaru iu uie internal improvement
question and the Wilmot Proviso.
The only remaining object of the
letter is the record of his views on the
subject of the Tariff. This is dismissed
very briefly and explicitly. Mr. Cass
avers that the Baltimore resolutions contain
his "sentiments" on that topic. "I
voted," he "ays, "for the Tariff1 of 1846;
and though there were some things I should
have been glad to see otherwise, (and
where are there not in such complicated
questions?) yet I gave it my hearty support."
Our present purpose is not with
the views of General Cass on the Tariff,
nor on the Wilmot Proviso, but on the Internal
Improvement question. To this
point a large portion of the letter is directed.
We all remember that "circumstances"
"put it out of the power of General Cass to
be present" at the Convention on Internal
Improvements which met at Chicago in
July, 1847. We all remember, too, that
when the General visited Cleveland in the
spring of 1848, Judge Wood, who had
been selected to tender him the hospitalities
of the city, was very anxious to give
him an opportunity to set himself right
with the Northwestern people on this question
of the improvement of the Western
rivers and harbors. The Judge told the
General that the people were before him,
were ready to hear him on this subject, and
would listen with the greatest pleasure.
The reply of General Cass is freshly remembered:
"Sir, the noise and confusion
which pervade this assembly will prevent
my being heard on the important topics tc
which you have called my attention." In
i thp nuipt rptirpmpnt nf Dptrnit. Gpnpral
Cass has sought an occasion for doing thai
which the "noise and confusion'1 prevented
him from doing at Cleveland. H?
has explained, very fully, the "circumstances"
which prevented him from attending
the Convention at Chicago.
In the first place (ieneral Cabs protestt
by implication that his letter to the gentleman
who invited him to attend the Chica
go Convention had nothing whatever tc
do with his opinions on the subject of Internal
Improvements. "I was asked,'
he say*, "to attend that convention; anc
that wa* all I was asked. I answered l
should not attend; and that was all I an
swered.11 From this we are to infer that,
if a gentleman should ask the (reneVal tr
dine with him, and the (?eneral should re
ply "I shall not dine with you," and no
thing eLe, the conclusion would be verj
i unwarrantable that he intended to treat
! the gentleman and his invitation witfr
i marked contempt. Such manners the (Jen
;! eral could not have learned from his frienc
. | Louis Philippe. He would hardly hav?
I ventured to treat the ex King ascavalierl}
as he treated his republican neighbor a
f; Chicago.
' But Ceneral Cah* proceeds: "I did no
( go to the Chicago Convention, because
! did not think any good would result fron
! its labors " That was an opinion, we take
I it, not a "circumstance."
Again: "1 did not believe, nor do 1 now
> believe, that such bodies in periods of political
excitement?perhaps, indeed, at any
i period?either by the concentration of pubi
lie opinion or by the diffusion of information,
can lead to any useful plan of action." |
i That was a matter of belief, not a circumstance.
The amount of it is. that the !
General does not think much of conventions,
except, perhaps, those which meet
at Baltimore to select a candidate for the
Presidency, and then only when they happen
to hit on the right man.
Again : " Invited, as the members of
that convention were, from every portion
of the Union, the sphere of operations was
far too extensive for wise and cautious
deliberation and decision. There were
too many interests involved." This is no
"circumstance." It is intended for reasoning,
and very funny reasoning it seems to
us. Colonel Benton will yet have to
perform the operation of " cutting for the
simples" on a certain gentleman of our
acquaintance, if he discourses much in
this fashion. We have only to carry out
the argument of the General to its legitimate
and inevitable conclusions, to demon
strate tne impossibility ol maintaining our
republican Government over a territory
like that of the United States. What
would the General have desired ? Would
the convention have pleased him better
if its members had not been called from all
quarters of the country? Would he have
gone to Chicago, if the convention had been
local and sectional instead of being national?
But what does he mean by the notion of
there being " too^ many" interests involved
? Were there any more interests
involved than are contemplated by all the
legislation of the Congress of the United
States ?
Once more : " If general propositions
only are to be laid down in such a convention,
the object is not worth the effort;
for, in the divided state of the public
mind upon the question, whatever platform
might be adopted, the opinion of parties,
and generally of individuals, would
remain the same." It is a little strange
that a gentleman who embraced, with extreme
heartiness and cordiality, the very
ceneral nronnsitinns nf thp Raltimnrp flnn
vention of 1848, should entertain a sovereign
contempt for all such matters. General
Cass seems to be coming over to the
Whig ground on the subject of platforms;
but it will be seen that he has not reached
the first "circumstance" that prevented
him from going to Chicago. The above
sentence involves a deduction from premises?it
does not state a circumstance.
' It demonstrates, in a way not very logical,
the absurdity of platforms?and Baltimore
platforms are not excepted. We hope that
the friends of the General will not again
object the want of a platform to the
Philadelphia Whig Convention of 1848.
The General proceeds:
" If a general plan of operations is to be proposed
and pressed opon Congress, the objections are palpable
and grave. The members are under little responsibility
; and as each section of the country
will have its own objects to attain, these must be
attained by concessions to the objects of othera, and
the result will furnish evidence of a mutual spirit of
i accommodation, rather than a cautious regard for
the general interest. Such an assemblage is a very
different thing from the attempt to concentrate
opinion and action in favor of any improvement
affecting a particular portion of the Union, where
there is a community of information und interest,
and where there is no weighing of one project
against another, nor any sacrifices to insure the desired
result.
" And I am fully confirmed in my previous anticipations
concerning the Chicago Convention. I
imagine the first man is yet to be found who will
venture to say that any advantage has resulted from
its labors.
" But I had yet another reason for declining to
attend that convention. 1 did not like its origin.
The earliest notice of it which I saw was connected
with the names of some well-known Whigs, prominent
politicians of the city of New York; and 1
believed, and I have yet no reason to doubt, that
one great object was to injure the Democratic party
by taking advantage of the excitement which prevailed
in certain portions of the country in consequence
of the failure of two successive internal
improvement bills. And I have since understood,
though I cannot vouch for the fact, that such was
1 the actual intention, and that the proceedings of the
I convention would have assumed a party character,
and bean directed to this object, had not the design
' been frustrated by the firmness of the Democratic
! members.
" Now, Mr. Greeley will understand why I did
I not attend this convention.
Not only will Mr. Greeley understand
why General Cass did not attend the convention
; the public will understand it.
He does not like national conventions, in
general. He disliked the Chicago Convention,
particularly. He was afraid that
> it would have a bad political effect on the
Locofoco party : because that party was
understood to be hostile to the measures
> and policy which that convention was
called to advance. He was atraid to com'
mit himself on the subject, until he could
I learn the true color and cut of the last Lot
cofoco fashion. On the 3d day of March,
1847, Congress had passed a river and
, harbor bill, which Piesident Polk re)
tained, entertaining insuperable objections
to its becoming a law ; but the short remaining
period of the session was not sufr
hcient to enable him to prepare and comt
municate his objections to the House of
i Representatives. General Cas , there
fore, was in the dark with regard to his
I own views on the internal improvement
s question, and was groping to and fro like
a blind man. He did not know exactly
t what might turn up to be orthodox ; and
the safest way was neither to go to the
t convention nor to write any thing that
I tvniilH look like an encourniremenf r?f (he
i [ object* for which it wu celled.
But Mr. Cass did not like the "origin"
of the convention. It had been connected
with some Whig names, and he thought
it better that the Western people and property
should be left to sutler, for the want
of an effort in behalf of their rivers and harbors,
than that he should himself be mixed
up with any Whigs in the matter. Mr.
Benton entertained no such scruples. Mr.
Silas Wright and Mr. Van Buren, then
guuu memut'r.s 01 me ijocoioco pariy, entertained
no such scruples. They did not
have the fear of the President before their
eyes, and were not under the painful necessity
of waiting to take the measure of
his opinions and inclinations before exposing
their own.
The world, however, is to be congratulated.
It has been informed, by the General's
letter to Mr. Ritchie, that there
were no 44 circumstances" in the world
which prevented him from going to Chicago,
but merely certain 44 opinions" and
44 reasons" which rendered the convention
a distasteful object to him. He confesses
that the 44 circumstances" were all sham.
The world has got at the truth in this matter.
Then again the General told us, in
his letter to the Baltimore Convention,
and repeated it at Cleveland, that that
letter was the 44 close of his political professions."
The world, however, is not to
kn /'lit nflT f kn ?*ki/?k if
WV vui uu i' win nit giauutauuu wtuuii it
has hitherto derived from this source. We
have two columns and a half of political
professions, in the latter to Mr. Ritchie
which we have above quoted, with the
"noble sentiment" at the end of them,
parodying Joe Surface?" the man who is
not prepared to take a decided part, agreeably
to his convictions, in times like these,
is not prepared to discharge one of the
first duties which belong to his position."
What a noble sentiment for the author
of the letter to the Chicago Convention
and of the speech at Cleveland ! " Circumstances
!" " Noise and confusion !"
political platforms.
The cry for an "administration platform"
is still kept up by the Opposition;
and yet it is one of the favorite mottoes
of their party, that "the world is governed
too much." They would have the thirtynine
articles of a political creed distinctly
stated, at the same time that they would
have the interference of Government reduced
to the narrowest possible lin.its.
It is difficult to reconcile the principles
which would enforce both these objects.
The policy of a Republican administration,
"as we understand it," should be to
adhere scrupulously to the principle which
lies at the foundation of Republicanism,
that "the will of the people, legitimately
expressed, shall give law." So far as it
may be necessary in the exercise of its
functions for an administration to anticipate
that will, let it do so. So far as the
public morals may be beneficially affected,
and the public interests served, by the
enunciation of any determinate policy
upon measures that have arisen, or are
about to arise, let an administration deliver
itself promptly and decisively.
All this President Taylor's administration
has done and is doing, seasonably
and appropriately He has rebuked that
acquisitive and unscrupulous war spirit
which threatened to demoralize us politically
and socially, and to introduce a system
of national brigandism, which, commencing
in public affairs, would soon have
made its operation felt in all the relations
of life and human intercourse. He has
spoken the right word at the right time,
when a violation of the laws, that might
have led to a most pernicious precedent,
had been perpetrated under the sanction
of the preceding administration. As regards
his executive relations towards the
question of slavery and its extension, he
has proclaimed sentiments which assure
us of his fealty at once to the Constitution
and to the great central principle of Republicanism?obedience
of government to
the public will legitimately avowed. He
has expressed himself cordially in favor of
nitKlir imnrMt/oiriAiilu nnr) I K /> n*\rv1
J/U?/I?v IHI|M wtr im iur- nilW llir <1J ' J i V fl l H ?I I
of the resources of government to works
of public utility. He has, in fact, given
to the country the most ample assurance,
by word and deed, that he will administer
affairs in a righteous, liberal, and thoroughly
Republican fashion. What more
of a platform is wanted?
Those who ask for more remind us of
the importunities of an individual who undertook
to elicit from Wordsworth, the
poet, the measure and plan of his religious
platform. "Are you a Christian, Mr.
Wordsworth?" asked the interrogator; to
which the poet replied?"When I am a,
good man, then I am a Christian." And
so we may say to those who are calling
for a platform of political prinriple? and
profession*-?'"when the Administration |
consults the wants, and obeys the will of
the people?when it vindicates and enforces
the laws?when it applies the abstract
principles of righteousness, justice,
constitutional adherence and peace to ail
its dealings at home and abroad?thm it
gives us its platform?then it proclaims
its political creed?then it points unequivocally
and distinctly to the cherished
nnlirv (n vi/hirh it tuill o/lkni-o A M J l
^ ? "Miicir. nilll DC'
yond thi? we want no platform, except
what the popular will and the shifting exi|
gencies of the time may present. Beyond
this, all assertions of policy would be not
only useless, but impertinent.
When the Administration shall be found
deviating from this path of rectitude and
honor that lies in sunlight before it and all
men?when it shall be found violating the
laws for the sake of truckling to foreign
powers, or sacrificing, for the sake of expediency,
of temporary success, or of sinister
party ends, one tithe of this moral
! power?abandoning one article of this
I uinrtnlA Kill Liiilh/iionl ikart mill ? ko
uui nuuaicui lanii? men win n uv
time enough to call upon it for a platform;
for at present it is not a platform, but a
rock, patent to all the world, on which its
principles, and the policy they must shape,
are established.
INFORMATION STJI.L. WANTED.
We very courteously, as we thought,
asked the "sole organ," a few days ago,
for information in regard to the whereabout
of those indignant rebukes which it
administered to Mr. Polk for removing so
many hundred office-holders in the early
part of his Administration; to which civil
request it has not yet deigned a reply. If
not considered an impertinent inquiry, we
would repeat it. Will the "Union" oblige
us with the information?
Query f As the Union is so fond of
asking questions, perhaps it will answer a
few.
What does Mr Medill, the Commissioner
of Indian Affairs under the last Administration,
think of the transfers of agencies
to Santa Fe and the Salt Lake, which
the Union now anects to think illegal ?
Was he in favor of such transfers? Did he
recommend them? Or what is his opinion
of the lawfulness and necessity of their being
made? Will the Union answer?
The Union boasted yesterday of its familiarity
with the haunts and habits of an
animal which may not be named to ears
polite. Judging from the aroma of its columns,
one would suppose it carried one of
those interesting brutes in its bosom as a
pet.
OFFICIAL.
President of the United States of America.
TO ALL WHOM IT MAY CONCERN:
Satisfactory evidence having been exhibited to
me that Guillermo Robinet has been appointed
Vice Consul of the Republic of Peiu for the port
of San Francisco, California, 1 do hereby recognise
him as such, and declare him free to exercise
and enjoy such functions, powers, and privileges
as are allowed to the Vice Consuls of the
most favored nations of the United States.
In testimony whereof, I have cause these letters
to be made patent, and the seal of the United
States to bs hereunto affixed.
Given under my hand at the city of Washington
the 17th day of July, A. D. 1849, and of the
i (l. ?.] independence of the United States of America
a>? seventy-fourth.
By the President: Z. TAYLOR.
John M. Clayton,
Secretary of State.
The following decision affecting the rights of
belligerents was made in New York, on the 13th
inst., under the following circumstances :
A requisition was made by the consul of Bremen,
under the Hansealic treaty, to Judge Belts, for aid
of United Stales process, to arrest and detain H.
Bartolo, S. Borg, F Peterson, and four others, as
deserters from the Bremen ship Dorothea, in this
port. The men were brought into court by the
marshal, and the U. S. district attorney moved they
be committed. Counsel for the prisoners proposed
! to prove that two of the men were Danes, and that
[ one other was discharged by the master ; and contended
that the Danes were not bound serve on
board the vessel?Denmark and the German confederation
being at war.
Judge Belts decided that, under the treaty stipulation,
no question was open to consideration before
him, other than whether these men are the
individuals named in the ship's roll, and whether
they are citizens of the United States The tribunals
of this country have no cognizance of the contract,
to determine whether it lie valid by the local
law where the ship belongs, or by the law of nations.
The object of the convention is to have
matters affecting the liabilities or rights of the
seamen, in respect to the shipping contract, adjusted
and determined by the courts of the country where
the ship belongs. No proof being given that the
captain had discharged any one of the crew in this
port, it is ordered that the men lie committed, pursuant
to the provisions of the treaty and acts of
Congress in that behalf.
We have seen a paragraph in the Boston 7V?nscripl
relating to the state of affairs in France,
which seems to have escaped the attention of the
nublic cenersllv. Manv iianuirn it ai?i*<l
to think the aaaociation referred to will be of
uffinent influence to change the whole ayatem of
the government. A formidable party haa apnirtg
up between the Executive and the Mountain, to
which the name of Circle CotuHhUumcrl haa been applied.
Thia cvrcle includea Gen. Lamorir.iere aa preaident,and
MM. Bedeau, Q. de Beaumont,and Paillet,
rice preaidenia. They have iaaued a circular, fram
which it ia manifeat that they are not by any menna
diajHiaed to follow the government in ila reactionary
progreaa. In thia circular they any : "Sncialiam ia
an Utopia; but aocial evila are not chimerical. The
greateat crime, pterhapa, of Socialiam, ia in proponing
for evila too real, remediea that are impracticable,
and then, by ita impotence, to make thoae evila
aeem incurable, which it ia incumbent upon aociety
to aaauage, if not to cure."
The corollary they deduce, that immenae smcial
wrong exiata in France, cannot be denied, and auch
men aa Lamorictere and hia aaaociaten cannot but
l?e of influence. j
PATAI. KKNt niKTRE.
A private letter from Padueah, Ky., received in
thia city yeaterday, atatea that Judge Campbell and
Mr. Bernard Auatin, of that place, had a rencontre
on the 9th inet., in which the latter waa killed. No
particulars are given.
We notice among the patent* laaued last week ia
one to Buel and Brown, of Cowville V^rir i
for an improvement in amut machine*. Without
deatring to *tir up litigation, we would augment to J
the inventor* that it will be well worth while for 1
them to inquire if the editor* of the Union are not f
invading ihrir patent At all event* they are med- I
dling with the prinrip/a of thair machtna 1