Newspapers / The Tarborough Southerner (Tarboro, … / Feb. 15, 1828, edition 1 / Page 2
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Mr. Clay. In our last paper we pre sented to our readers what we conceived 'to be the grounds of defence, on which Mr. Clay rests his hope to cast off the imntit.it inns on his nolitical character and conduct, to which the last Presiden tial election gave birth. Mr. Clay's defence apparently rests on the follow ing points: 1st, that he believed Gen. Jackson to be "incompetent 2d, that he had made up his mind to support Mr Adams for months previous to voting; 3d, that he never authorised any propo sitions to be made to either of the candi dates; and 4th, that from the differences existing between himself and Gen. Jack son, no person could reasonably have supposed that he would vole lor mm The first and last of these points are mere matters of opinion, and Mr. Clay s Opinion is certainly entitled to as much weight as that of any other individual, and no more rrantinsr that the other two are fully established, slill they de not materially affect the testimony of the individuals named below, which must be invalidated, or they must be shown to be ur worthy of belief, before the negative testimony of Mr. Clay's friends can possibly establish his inno cence. In his pamphlet, Mr. Clay says: for Gen. Jackson in Adams, agreeable to the constituents. Fifteen or twenty uays, however, previous to the election, three days before the date of Mr. Kremer's letter to the editor of the Columbian Ob server, and seven days before the date of Mr. Clay's letter .to Judge Brooke, the following paragraph appeared in the npnrjrptown Metronolitan. an Jldams o ' . . . . paper, printed in the immediate vicini ty of Congress: "Last evening the report was, that Mr. Clay had gone over to Mr. Adams, and taken with him all his influence; and so general has the rumor become, and so ge nerally believed, that it is under stood in this district that Mr. Ad ams is to be the man. While we rejoice at his prospects of eleva tion, We arc pained to learn, that rumor attributes his success to bargain and sale, and that Mr. Clay is to receive the appointment of Secretary of State, by which, in a coming election, he will add to the western interest, the six New- England States, and probably New-York." These prophetic rumors were immc preference to Mr.? confidential friend of Mr. Clay, terest wished us to vote one Wa he wishes of theiri dated two or three weeks before and Mr. Clay for his inter ..loptinn nf PmsiHent bv the Mashed us to vote another, 'iv Lllly lllUll -m. j m ... Allft House, stating that Mr. iuams win unu mu imuesi ui iir. Clav would be President, and Mr. Clay were preferred to the will and the Secretary of State; that it was a bitter pill, but that Mr. Clay's friends were reconciled to it by the circumstance that Mr. Clay would be Secretary of State; and would, in all probability, succeed Mr. Adams as President. Mr. Rnurne then remarked, that he knew that Mr. Adams was the last choice of the writer of this letter: and that nothing could have induced him to vote for Mr. Ad ams but his warm attachment to Mr. Clay." Mr. John C. Wright, also one of the Ohio delegation who voted for Mr. Ad ams, said in a letter to Ed. King, of Ohio, last winter: "It has probably been deter mined that Old Hickory shall not be withdrawn." "We, of Ohio, I believe had better stand aloof, and let them poll. We have little in terest in the game. With Adams we never can be affiliated- we are antipodes to him. Our Kentucky friends seem to be willing to have us with them, if we will fight their battles, and secure them all the sweetmeats, under the pretence of diately followed by Mr. Kremer's let "It forms no part of my purpose ter, stating that Mr. Clay was to receive to Comment 011 the Statements tne appointment of Secretary of State which have hnnn nnhlisdmd nf lor his vote for Mr. Adams; and Mr. Messrs. Buchanan, Eaton, Isaacs, : ,C,a;'st lcUer ? J"d-C Bwoke avowing . ' 7 7 ilMPfm i not inn In vntn tr IV I r Al 1 m M If II il I uviv-t llliliULIUII IU T U llj IJ1 I'll. ilU-l U " VtlHllVUll-'l UI1VIU1 IIIU li' ana lUarKley, all Ot them the ams-simultaneouslv Messrs .Johnson Jl;nnnin, ItnnfnnL shaits. In truth the folks can t keep up without Ohio, and they do not leel disposed to give Ohio he cannot so easily dispose of the un- vote for Ir- Adams. It was also im- guarded declarations of some of his mediately announced, that Mr. Adams friends as well as those of Mr. Adams, noujd be elected on the first ballot, and which so strontrlv corroborate thp stntr- lnc individuals were designated who in- o j 1 l SI n- . n t i .i J - . v..JU.., Mu" jiu xvuuiutny in uiu inenos oi uen. jacKson on tne Spott and r.nnh. inpthPr lv;h nil Mr Occasion of the late election." Clay's friends, who like him had 4re Mr. Clay passes the testimony of gained most mysteriously silent," now these gentlemen nft' hv wholes!, hnt Publicly proclaimed that thev would ments of their opponents. At the close t(;nded to vote for him they did so of the session previous to the election, Mr. Clay's friends in Congress issued a Circular, under his immediate inspec tion, which contained the following sin gular declaration: If, contrary to all probability, Mr. Adams was elected on the first bal lot, and Mr. Clay immediately thereaf ter received the appointment of Secreta ry of State. Then it was that the charge oi corruption fastened to the transaction, and the repeated attempts of Mr. Clay- to cast off this stigma on his character a -II ill i i fc ' v-aot "it iwia 311 u tj , , and conduct still prove unavailing, for to the House, his friends having the testimony of his opponents is much done their duty, will be able by strengthened by some of the nnguarded concentration to control the CVCllt statements of his friends, which directly thev will hold in thoir hnnrls tl.P ,n,,,tate aSa,nsl him a few of these are y - - balance they will determine be tween the opposing and conflict ing interests." The election was held in the electo ral colleges Gen. Jackson received 99 votes, Mr. Adams 84, Mr. Crawford 41, and Mr. Clay but 37; consequently, Mr. Clay was "not returned to the House,'7 and the representatives of the people were called upon to decide the contest between the three first named individu als, voting by States. In the electoral colleges Gen. Jackson had received a majority in eleven Slates, Mr. Adams seven, and Mr. Crawford three the three States that gave a majority of votes in the electoral colleges for Mr. Clay, had also given decided indications that Gen. Jackson was their second choice, (the Presidential votes in Ohio, the on ly one considered doubtful, stood for Mr. Clay 19,265, for Gen. Jackson 18,4S9, for Mr. Adams 12,2S0,) the votes of these three States added to those that Gen. Jackson received, would have given him a constitutional mai'oritv ei ther in the electoral colleges, or in voting oy stales, liut "conflicting interests" interposed, and the candidate of the peo- pie was ueieuuju unaer wnose "CO?l tol," and for whose benefit, may per haps be gathered from what follows: in his pamphlet, Mr. Clay says that he "remained most mysteriously silent, for the space of six or seven weeks after the meeting of the Congress which was to decide the election; in the interim, however, Mr. Frank Johnson, one of the Kentucky delegation, declared that "Kentucky will come out strong: for Jackson;' Mr. Scott of Missouri, and air. oook ot llhnois. individuals holdin the votes of these two States, had also expressed their determination !o vote subjoined. Immediately after the elec tion, Mr. Trimble, one of the Kentucky delegation, then and now the devoted friend of Mr. Clay, addressed a printed Circular to his constituents, in which he fcaid: "In taking him (Mr. Adams) Kentucky has secured the friend ship and good will of the Eastern States. Her friendship with Ohio and tiie other Western States is unimpaired. No jealousies have heen created, nor heart-burnings or ill-will. Had she gone for Jackson, she would have failed, and lost her only chance of ob taining equal weight and influence in the Cabinet and Presidential Councils." Mr. A. Hourne, of Ohio, son-in-law of Gen. McArthur, one of the Ohio de legation who voted for Mr. Adams, is said to have stated as follows in a large company at Cincinnati: "At this period, Mr. Bourne, who had hitherto been silent, rose from the sofa; and, after joining our circle, observed that it was unnecessary to discuss the cir cumstantial evidence on this sub ject, for that he knew the fact that there was a previous understand ing between the friends of Mr. Clay and Mr. Adams, that in the event of the election of the lnttnr Mr. Clay should be Secretary of iaiu. iie proceeded to say that he had received a letter from a menu arm relative ot Jus in Con gress, who was also any thing." But there is one individual whom Mr Clay has not deigned to notice that is, the lion. T. P. Moore, one of the Kcn- 1 I 1-1 . A' . . I .1 iuckv uciejrauon: mis genueman was the warm personal and political friend oi ilr. Clay in the Presidential canvas, and continued so until he avowed his determination to vote for Mr. Adams. interest of the people; and t Clay was accordingly made gep'' retary of fetate. These are the declarations of ,v friends of Mr. Clay and Mr. Ada "on the occasion of the late election" and these declarations partially confirm it is not asserted that there were a propositions made by the parties, can any person uuuui, ii mese lacts an statements remain unexplained, but that self -aggrandizement was the princimi iiiuiivu which uiuuttu mr. vjay to trol the election, and defeat the will rr State, and of the Union we would w reirret record tne veruict. that cpIc.l considerations prompted Mr. Clay ta act so diametrically opposite to the dutv of a re-presentive, as avowed by himself in congress, ai a ume wnen nis banner the Republican snone conspicuous in ranks then he said: "I care not how I ascertain the will of my constituents, nor what are the evidences of it: it is suffi cient for me that I know it, While I have a seat on this floor, I shall always hold myself bound by the will of my constituents, whether express or implied." In the last Presidential election Mr. Clay evidently considered himself pla ced in the double attitude of a represcn. tati ve of Kentucky and an elector for the people of the Union; for in an address to his constituents he said: 4I found my. self transformed from a candidate befors the people, to an elector for the people'' in both of these characters, whether as an elector for his own State, or for the people at large. Mr. Clay violated his duty as expressed by himself ho must appeal to Congress, confront the vimcsscs mat nave appeared against Tf .mi.- rm,. ..i,i .c:m i, !......, i ,r" muKc mem retract wnat thev have the motives which prompted Mr. CJayl'T or 'niPch their credibility, or hn . 1 . J innlitip.il rpniiff5lirn will ha fm-ovni. kl-w anu ins menus to control the election, Mr. Moore was that person and what is his testimony in a public speech to his constituents last summer he said: "What argument could be pre sented mc, authorizing a deviation from your known will? There was but one it tras the will of Jlr. Ulay. 1 Iiacl supported Mr. Clay for President; but I could not prefer his will to the will of the people; and I was astonished, after his open denunciation of Mr. Adams, and after the course that his friends, with his own encour agement and approbation, had pursued towards that gentleman, to learn that a sudden reconcilia tion had taken place, and that it) political reputation will be forever blast ed. This must be done during the pre sent session of Congress, or it will t too late a majority of the people of his own State, and a majority of the peopls oi tne Union have already decided a gainst him; and he deceives himself, or is deceived by his friends, if he expects mai ineir uecisicn will be reversed Dv . A f .1 V me negative testimony oi mose impli cated with himself. No unless the above plan is adopted, their decision will be ratified at the next Presidential dection, and it will seal his political fate forever. The first opportunity afforded them, the constituents of ilessrs. John son, Trimble, Scott, Cook, and McAr thur, passed sentence of condemnation against them, by dismissing from their service men who permitted personal predilections to sway them in the per- tormanceol a public dutyin their fate was Mr. Clay's intention to voteir C,a-V ma' lcad Ilis ovvn unless his f a tor him as President! 1 was more astonished to find that he was carrying with him the votes of -Louisiana, Missouri, Illinois, Ken tucky and Ohio, although the peo ple in all those States notoriously preferred Gen. Jackson to Mr. Adams!" "I had not then, and I have not now, a single doubt, that the votes of all the States which I have named, were given in onno- sition to the will of the people of j tuu ouuus at mat time, and with a perfect understanding on the part of those who gave them, (with few exceptions,) that Air. Adams, so elected by western rotes, would mace Mr. J VVJ XIII. Adams once elected, the power and patronage of the General Government would mould public opinion in accordance with thmr a warm or i wishes. The people for their in- innocence is made more apparent before tne next Presidential election. Mr. Clay's Appeal. was said the other day in Congress, in the debate on Mr. Chilton's reso lutions on retrenchment, that a large number of INIr. Clay's pam phlets, and the V irrnnia Adams Address had been circulated by the Administration and were pro bably paid for out of the contin gent fund. Whether this is true or not, we do not know we do know, however, that a number cf copies of Mr.. Clay's appeal have been sent into tin rlistrir.t. by into Uiail. bv 11 mnmlinr PrmorPSSf Clay Secretary of friendly to the Administration, and we hazard little in expressing me oenei, that they cost im nothing ! On the subject of the appeal it self, it is unnecessary to say much Mr. Clay has too much good sense
The Tarborough Southerner (Tarboro, N.C.)
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Feb. 15, 1828, edition 1
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