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Cassius M Clay

Cassius M Clay image
Parent Issue
Day
22
Month
September
Year
1845
Copyright
Public Domain
OCR Text

we prently in ire presen ted Mr. Clay in our article respecting him tvo weeks sinne. The spocifications are, first, that we said that Mr. C's condoct whb "strangely contradiclory," oneday ready to face the wond, answering in llie motst insvlling language he covld devise, nuri two orihieedays afier yielding to the mob! We)l, waa not his conduct contrad:ctory? Did he not send arma to his office to defend it, and then end and take therrï away? We attribnted it lo his sicknees. tíe acted wiscly in not resisting. One company of men asked Mr. C. in reppectful langusg, if we remember righlly, o discontinue his pa - per. Me answers by calJing them "a conclave of cmrardly assasstns" with other offènsive npnellations, ond notiñes them that he shall defend his rigljts. Now we do not know what Caesius could have said to thern more insultinor or irrilRting to their feelings: perhaps our correspondent does. This is a muiter of opinión. Some dayB aftpr, another lafger asBembly, constituied on the same basis tcith the first - viz: for the expres pnrpose of destroying property and taking life, if reeisted- met to umko a similar demand, and Cnssius caüs them "a far different body," ''a constitutional assemblage'" - admita that it is "just and proper that he should answer at their bar," and then does answer by offerinjj1 to cuitail the free disenpsion of SIvery in hie paper, and to ditcontinufi tho nti-slavery articles till he should get well: Was not Ihis, so fnr as it went, yieldmg to the viob? We also stated, from the Louisvil'c Journal, that he ofïored to ditermtinve the paper: but this proves to beau error, and we corrected il lost week. But our correspondent osks,vas not thie meeting a "cqfidtitUlio.no] assemblage1'? We answer no. It was au unprinciplcd nni' unlawful mob, or, in the language of Mr. Clay, "a conclave of cowardly assaesins" The a ssembling of the individuals who composed the meeting, in itself, was constilutional: the assembling for the purpose of destroying the property of a fellow citken, and ehooting him through the heart, if necet-farj', we shoüld scarcely Cali "a constitutional a6semblnge." But ihis again b a mere matter of opinión. If our corres pondent will still pereist ihat thie great gang of cut throals, who eolemnly resolved that the pnper should be stopped, cost whose blood it might - who met for this express purpose, n Tl tl rorrion t nnir tl til n if fi il rliici rrn nfn avaahí V li v .■, tiltil illliu II lt4l u ' . -' I 1_ 1 i I1JVV . V O II ■ Dn - if he thnk6 svch an assemblage tionaf, we shall not contend witb him. I But the Fccontl spccification against us we l Ve in the language of our correspondent: t "How must Clay fcel towsrds the Signal if ! i Klinuld eee that article, when in deep oíb - ( esf, ond find that his own profeesed , n in the cause had so misrepre6enied him. must say I could but l-t the tears run in t mpaihy witli Clny nnder the oircnmstances ( wliicli he waa plnced, 1 efore I read your . ticle.) Then I must eay thut I was purised that you could 60 overlook his virtues, ] id slop to finri fauit with him. He may ive and has errors, but consider his age, J ation iu life, kc, and vou will find bui few ' ■ho have perilled their life as he has. He is sing and has done greai good to the cause of berty." jov v:e are not aware that we have done Ir. Clay any injustice. We have praised im asan eloquent writer, and copied a dozen r twenty columns of his productions: we onceded his sincerity at the time he emanciated bis slaes, although the Democratie re?s abounded with tbe blackest insinuations grainst him; we congratulated him when he snounced duelling; we never called in ue8lion his courage, or his generosity as a ían ; and we have recognized him as a laborig abol íionist, who was doing much good 3 the cause, and who had commenced an en:rprise, which, if accomplished, would carry is name to posterity, wilh honor. But we í ive never joined in the unqualifíed and nne other papers, because, in our opinión, :. ïey are disproportionate to his merits as thns tj ir developed; nnd becaiise we wiah to fortn a ïdgmont of every person os ke really is, nnd 'ish to express it, f at all, according to tbe irae standard. Henee we do not indulge in l' igh ilown panegyrics of any men. Such a d ourse oavore to much of fal6ebood, of tl ion and manworsbip, and is eontrary to our ti i&tc, and to our conscience. But we yield to 0 man in reverence for o al tod moral worth, p herever found, and for tbat Kind of heroism t, rhich, from rigbt motives, eieadily pursues . gbt objects, by right means, through all oposing obstacles. So far as Mr. Clay has xhibited these traite, he has our approvaland P ommendation, and he will have them in P1 ire. ai The course our correspondent has taken in ankly expressing his diesnnt to what he unorslood to be the tenor of our remarl8, is p :tly right. It is impossible there should be ei perfect coincidence of opinión and feeling d all point8 between the editor and all his u ;aders. It is not to be expected. In every i se the reader muet tolei-nte the free expresVI on of opinión by the Etlitor, and the Editor iust give the snbscriber a chance lo be heard, 1 prtper occasions, in expressing his dissent. ' uch expreesions of opinión, on the {rt of w ibscribers, on mallers of interest, embodied p; appropropriate liingiiage, tend to awaken e terest and excite inquiry. We mean that rt ir anieles shall be truthful, and frec from jr ejudice and all offensive and irritnting laniage, at the samo time we reserve the priv!ge of stating matters of f act, of every kind, p id our commentB thereon, in the ploinest ixon Engli8h. ' ___ tilIL" a seems that Gen. Gaines had not ei ïly no nuthority from the President to make se rcquisition on the Governor of Louismna nt r Sroops, but the President is required n _,. isc of necessity, to spply dlreclly 1o the mi tia bffieerr. The National inlelüyencer lotes the Jaw thue: "WliPiiever the United Sfatfts shnll be inp. dcd, or be in imminent danger of inviiion, im any foreign nution or Indinn fribe, it th all be lawful for the President to cnll forth n ch nuniber of the mililia ot the State or ' ate6 most convenient fo the place of danger ei scène of action na he may judge necessary at repel euch invasión, and to i6ue hin order r tijii jurpoae to such qjficer or officrs of '. mililia as ke shall Ihink proper. " tnj

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Subjects
Signal of Liberty
Old News