r xi. r. SLOAN, Editor.
VOLUME 20,
A Tribuit to tilt 31Iuritriouri tar
ma. DALLAS' 11171.0Giltria
ON 'tut Lire •ND CUA CtEN OF
LAMES KNOX POLK,
LATE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES.
Debt eted at the Cl/Inaba Museum, lu Philadelphia, July 10, 1810
FELLOW•CITIZEIMit itt but a short time since, itn
modiately after the adMinistration of ilia Oath of Office
to Gen. Taylor by the Chit f Justice of the United Stoles,
in the presence of somo forty or fifty thousand atttntiee
spectators, a citizen was soon to advance upon the plat
form towards the froshly inaugurated President—to shake
him'with coriality by tho hand, and to manifest entire
franknessof spirit, as ho wished him AMCCCSS and pros
perity in discharging the million; duties of the high
post ho had than assumed. That citizen was JAMES K.
Poeg. Ho had himself justfinished his allotted public
task—and thus, with manly grace and unaffacted gong
erosity, closed his connexion With the American Chief
Magistracy, by cheering the earliest advent of his succes
sor. Such scenes can be witnessed in no country but
our own; and are beautiful results of a well-poised system
of social and political institutions; but as they have sel
dom, if ever before; been' witnessed even hero, the
one to which I have referred, must be considered as
strikingly illustrative of individual dignity, of mind, of
calm and candid tempo , Indistubed, unonvying pa
triotism, and of pur nd practical I virtiie.—At that mo
ment the mess t e er of death had, with his cold finger,
touched the u conscious statesman:—his physical exis
tence was insensibly but fatally sapped, by the wasting
labors imposed upon him, amid the Whirling succession
of great Measures of domestic and fureigu policy;—and
as ho turned his back upon the station, yet radiating with
his own wonderful success, ho seemed to glide through
extended avenues of approving and applauding country
men, just Cast enough to secttro at his home, an unosten
tatious and tranquil grave. It is .around that grave, fel
low citizend, that I you stand with me for a while,
suffering me to rocall him wpoiu it conceals, and to de
vellope, summarily but truthfully, the causes which link
that sled of earth with 'the freedom, prosperity, glory.
'and gratittide of America.
The permanent 'fame of eminent men, rests undoubt
edly in charge of limo unimpassioned tribunal of poster
ity. In a gevernmeht like ours, espeeially—where op
posite opinions and antagonistic measures are ever in
ardent
,conflict—cotemporary impartially, though not ,
wholly impossible, cannot reasonably tits expected. The
tomb itself is no certain, sanctuary against tho rage of
prejudice which has been soothed, averted, or extin
guished by lapse of time. I foal s affinonished then to
+veto of incautiously exciting the hot breath of vituper
lion to seethe over the very turfy - oil would consecrate
and cherish. And vet so short, so ropid, so. sigoalized
by/ extrao. - 11mary civil achievemoms, so elovoteJ to the
atesinwient of vast and salutary purposes try noble moans,
so II conispicnosly characte r rized by intellectual and moral
i
e ergy, so eventful in national blessings and renown,
a d 10 blameless and unspotted in all the retatiens and'
intercourse of private life, was the career of this p striot,
that not to portray it faithfully, oven with the warm col
oring of personal or political friondship,,,avould ho unjust
to the occasion, unjust to the living who aro here. end
unjust to the now forever gone. Five .years ago, it may
have been esteemed almost natural anti fair to enquire
..lefio is James K. Polk?" but now, where is that cor
ner of tho earth so obscure as •to need the quest'on an
swered? Where is the imperial sneer that did not )ield
to amazement, as he cresols handled the immense exe
cutive power of his free country? Where tire tho suf
fering masses, insensible to the rescue of a distant peo
ple from starvation? Whore are the sager of Political
Economy to whom, in adjusting the equilibrium of in
destine/ pursuits, ho ha 3 taught no lesson? Where aro
the enthusiasts for burn in liberty, to whom his voice has
not become familia-1 Where are the veterans of milita
ry science. who still doubt the efficacy of American can
non, whose thunders ho opened? And last and' feast,
though still not little, where aro the flatbeds:lds, or the
Borings, or the St?iglitz, or the (lopes, or the flottiii
gime, thegolden necre i linaucers of fluance, who do not
appreciate the master of that wand of annexation or ex
tension, which secured the boundless and exhaustless
treasure of California? I allude now dine briefly to the
traits of a national policy which he controlled and guided
only to venture the assertion, that the mail you mourn
may, as the representative chief of your republic, confront
tutor° ages, unaLashed by the' imposing presence of any
f_predecessor.
If unimportant to the character or merits of the do
coosed, they may tieverthe.less he accepted as somewhat
interesting facts, that ho was descended from an Irish
attic'. of sturdy and determined republicans, whose ftt
tlemont on the eastern shores of Maryland, preceded the
Scar 1700, and a branch of whom came first into Penn-
•vlvaaia in 1772, and thonce wont into tho Wastorn dis
tricts of North Carolina: that ho was bort, ou tho 2il of
November, /795, the son elan upright, intelligent and
enterprising farmer; and that ho was the grandson of
•-• Ezekiel, and the grand-nephew of Thomas Polk, two
brothers whoveret among the first signers of timt first
Declaration of American independonce, whose bold and
impressive avowal, on tho 21111) of May, 1775, has recent
ly received such interesting and irresistiblo authentica
tion lly tho researches of Mr. Bancroft.
Thero would, indeed, seem to have clustered in Meek
lenbo.rg county, immediately prior to tho revolutionary
War, a family group of those liberty-loving Polka, and
their near connexions : Under the inspiring auspices,
and orders of one of thi;in, the Convention assembled at
tho town of Charlotte;Lit 'was presided over by another,
(named Alexander;) had anof/ter as recording secretary,
(also of that oettne): 7 4 fourth peened the colobrated
manifesto 1 have mentioned, (called Brevartl)tand a
fifth recruited a company of rebels, of whom Ile retained
the active command during the whole struggle. I.wish
it ROM quite relevant and appropriate for me to gilt . ° you
. a full description of this remarkable and moat honokble
.• • movement, in A yal and secluded region. whore the
population was scattered and tranquil, and whom nothing
actuated but the loftiest principles of human rights and
. freedom. The series of twenty resolutions adopted and
proclaimed, were furiously detiounced by tho represtm ?.
h i tivespf.royaltys Goveinor 'Martin, in a comnuuricaL
I Von to the .British Secretary of State, of the 30th of
( June, 177.5 is "surpassing all the horrid and treasonable
publications Oral the inflanrlngtory spirits of' this continent
hare yet produced; "=nor can we be surprised at his ox
celieuey's vehemence of expression, when we remember.
With what mingled contempt and apprehension our peo
ple were, at that day, habitually regarded, by the agents
of power; and that among these resehitions were tto
foll Owing brief, trenchantand irrevocable ones:-
1.
Reso , eed. That all commissions eiril and eutitori, heretoi, e
- granted by the rear., to he exer . .6ril in (nese colonies. are n //
" 4400 d; auu the cunstitutton of odors particular colony whet
suptuted.
0. That the pr.grinrlal Congress of each province; - under di
ifircen oo or the emit Confineutat Cattberess, to invested with all
€4 , 1 tamarind 'reenact patters witlilu their respective provinces;
hod that no "titer legislative and mailed, powers &ester
re exirt at Chit time, in any of these colonies. ' • '
Id . 14,1 oirrd. That u bate% er person shall heireee‘ receive a
ea "unmet. from the frown, or attempt to exercise any inch corn
hutstort heretofore reetired,aiet be deemed an enemy to his eonntil.
, 2ii. liesolred, Thu Oleta/ Thomas Polk. and Dr , Joseph Ken
., dr, purchase WO pounds of powder, 600 pounds of hal t and MO
Iron , . fqr the use °rattle military of Oita county. • ,
Theo incidents, on which 1 reluCtantly refrain trod
teierging, iy,.v e thought to indicate a deep-seated and
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inveterate enthusiasm for civil liberty. Although the
late Prcsidentwas not born until some twenty years after
their oecurrence, we can readily suppose that during his
boyhood, they would be the topics of domestic tradition,
of ancestral pride, and of frequent meditation. His fa
ther manifested the same current of political sentiment
as his grandfather, and became early, warmly, and stea
dily the admirer and supporter of Mr. Jefferson. How
fur such circumstances contributed to mould that firm,
fearless, and inflexible Democratic spirit., which perva
ded Mr. Polk's whole character and conduct. from. first
to last, every experienced and reflecting observer of
practical influences and examples can readily imagine.
When but eleven years of age, in 1806, his homestead
wee transferred to the banks of the Cumberland river, in
Tennessee, a newly opened and thinly_settled field for
agricultural induetry. His youthful education was, in
consequence. necessarily simple and contracted. Under
a parental fear that his constitution had been too serious
ly Impaired by disease fur the sedentary studios towards
which his inclination led him, ho was at first, dedicated
to mercantile pursuits; 'but, yearning for mental exercise
and acquirement, the counting room, in less than a
month, became distastful, and he ultimately succeeded
in persuading his parents to piano him, after a prepara
tory Schooling in Murfreesburg, and at the age of twen
ty, in the University of North Carolina. He loft that
1 seat of science and learning in 1818, with physical
strength much diminished by the assiduity and intensity
of his collegiate course; but with intellectual strength
and repute augmented to a i degree. implied by his having,
at every periodical trial of•bis class, received Its highest
distinctions.
Mr. Polk had new, by extraordinary perseverance,
and with acknowledged success, qualified himself to take
whatever direction, in the bustling sind varying realities
of life, any epecial or predominant taste might incline him
to. Which path to chose? His temperament was con
fident and elastic; confident of progress, and elastic from
dejection. He had felt a peculiar aptitude for the exact
and irrefragablo processes of mathematical investigation,
while at the same time, he delighted in
,classical re
searches, and acquisitions., A - lively susceptibility to the
interest of publib events, to the acts, words and thoughts
of leading men, to the advance of principles and Inca
surce,'wa's almost his necessary inheritance. Ho was
prompt in apprehension; generaliXed with clearness; and
never weared in the labors of analysis and detail. With
out imaginative power,be wasgifted with an uncommonly
astute sagacity, which instantly appreciated the force or
value of facts, and penetrated directly into their causes.
In speaking or in writing, though never pithy or senten
tious, his style, while it rigorously rejected everything
merely ornamental, was perspicuous, mire and persua
sive. These were trails of fitness for' the profession of
the law, and doubtless Impelled him 10 adopt it, In his
twenty•fuurth year, Mr• Felix Grundy, an advocate of
extensive practice and reputation, with whom he harmn
nized in political sentiments, and whose
. friendship his
parents had long enjoyed, welcomed him cordially to his
office; and after the custemary •probation, procured his
admission to practice at the Bar.
Mr. Polk's legal career was ono of unsullied honor, of
admitted lability, and of decided success. It bore hint
rapidly to reputation, and indepandonce-...:and as it oblig
ed. him to embrace, within the rage of has exertion, a
large portion of Tennessee, his opportunities to become
known and appreciated in that Stele wore constant and
extensive. Ills personal qualities conciliated' Universal
confidence and esteem:--few teen have ever, attained
with equal speed, a popularity among their countrymen
as sincere and solid ns that ho had achieved, for himself
as by himself, in ISO. Tho simplicity and frankness
of his demeanor:--the fidelity and ardor with which he
adi)prod to his elients:—the animation of his eloquence,
and the exactness as well as fulness of his infiirmation,
before courts and juries;—the undeviating rectitude of
hiscorultiet:—the open, undisguised, resolute, and ready
avowal of his fundamentel laudl comprehensive Demo
cratic doctrines:—all adorned by a calm and christened
respect for religious observances and moral duties:—
marked him out—not alon eto the Gamaliel of tho Her
mitage, at whose feet he sat with reverence and eine
trout—but to all who saw his progress, ai ono destined,
by a rare combination of qualities, to rise from spheres
of local and state importance, into those of national use
fulness end ernine nee.
Nor was this expectation slow in being realized. Per
suaded by his fellow-citizens of his immediate neighbor
hood to enter the*General Assembly of the Mete, thd
ability with which ho acted in that body during two of
its sossions, made his transfer to the hells of legislation
at Washington. au object nt once of general desire, and
of easy execution: He was accordingly elected a mem
ber of the Rouse of Representatives of tho United States.
and took his seat at the first session of the 19th Congress •
on the 59; December, 1825.
Let ma here, fellow-citizens, arrest the narrative fora
moment. in order to depict the precise attitude in which
Mr. Polk stood, when he thus crossed the threshold Of
local, and entered the vast area ,of national, existence:—
when his bark, as it wore, left the placid and familiar in•
let. for the uncertain, unbounded. and-tbrnpestuous sea.
Although perhaps the 'youngeel of 218 representatires,
there was not upon the floor of chit,. great Chamber, one
whose polities were more determinate and avowed. He
had inhaled at every hour of his life, opinions andaenti
ments respecting the rights of humanity i and tho only le
gitimate foundations of civil power, which his judgment
had approved, and which now constituted as essential a
portion of his Moral, as his arteries did of his physical,
structure. lie was impulsively, instinctively, and irre
versibly, a Democrat:—a democrat in fundamental theo
ry, in uncompromising practice, in word. thought, and
motion. It was impossible for him to be anything else.
It was his nature.
In comformity with this cardinal trait, Mr. Polk roger. ,
'dod the Constitution of the 'United Statqs with attach
-silent and veneration, it is true, but with perfectly con
sistent and unceasingly watchful jealousy, * as Lipase
clauses of it, - which, by implication, were liable to Rpor
vested into Banc*, for encroachment or abuses. He
could admit of no construction of that instrument which
extinguished the federative, end substituted the commit
dated,formation of government. He exacted, from its
°postilion, a strict adherence to self-imposed limits, a
scrupulous economy, equal and impartial - shelter. On
this basis he was, in the universally understood technical
phrase of the times, a party man; zealous' in the ranks of
Party; conscientiously indentifying with constitutional
pairietism, the aims, organization, and usages of his
parii. He looked Co 'party as a bulwark for the main
tenance of the rights of the States expressly reserved in
the Constitution: he looked toil ap a well cemented dyke
against extravagance of expend iture and oppressiveness
of. taxation: he looked to it; ios it word, as the Palladhim,
prqotically guarding the Constitution itself from enfeeb
linii+xcesses, and the Union from the dangers ofsection
al excitements suddenly predominating.
His position may become more clearly apprehended, if
I add to these broad outlines a more nice and distinctive
stroke of the pencil. He counted among his constituents,
the man whom, of all others. he most honored, admired,
and loved; who was then the bright particulai star of
almost uni versal idolatry—who. in the F e h n i ar y prece d.
ing,although returned by the electors as havingxoceived
for tho Office of President. fifteen more votes than Mr.
John Quincy Mims, add fifty eight more .than
Crawford, yet foiled to bo the choice of the Rouse of Re
SATURDAY MORNING, JULY 28, 1849.
Prosontatiyes; and for whose_ elevation, at the earliest
future opportunity, an immense and indignant Democra
cy was already in aroused exertion. Mr. 'Polk's rela
tions to General Jackson were those of disciple, friend,
conipanimi, and partizan; in each 'alike cherished and
enthusiastic—relations that could not fail to impart both
stimulus and interest to his public action.
When he reached the Capitol, both houses were illus
trated by the presence of citizens who had achieved dis
.
ttugutehed "reputations. He was in the midst ofsuch as.
sociates asiEtlward 'Livingston, John Forsyth, Daniel
Webster, Louis McLane, James Buchanan, George-Mc- '
'Duffle, Samuel D. Ingham. William C. Riven, Edward
r
Everett, and James Hamilton—while ho had but to pass
through the; Rotundo, into the Senate Chamber, in order
to mingle with those equally conspicuous, as Van Buren,
Woedbury, Tazewell, Macon, White. Benton, Harrison,
Randolph, perrien, and Ilayne. Young as he was,
however. mid unobtrusive as u debater, Mr. Volk prompt•
ly participat din the loading discussions. His very that
speech falai d to the , relinquishment of tho titles of Inib
lie lands in Tennessee—a topic wholly devoid of attrac
tion:—and, yet, it manifested ao happy a faculty in lucid
ly arranging and explaining dry and complicated facts,
that his cherecter as an exact and laborious man of busi
ness.; was at !once recognized and established. His see
and !effort n'tts , a vigorous and expanded argument to
maintain the; preposition, that "after nearly forty years
espeienee of the practical operations of the Constitution,
it was sound policy, and important to the staddity, dare
tion,und harmony of the Union, to amend that instru
ment, by gi v ing the power to elect the President of the U.
S. directly to the great body of the American people."—
And his thir d' address, on the celebrated Puuama Mission,
displayed the earnestness and fidelity with which he in
culcated and adhered to the republican doctrines enun. -
elated by Madison, Gallatin, 'Livingston, Giles, and
ethers. on the occasion of Jay's treaty in 1796. as well as
the antraTion and pungency with whichhawas prepared
to seamy an administration, to whom his repugnance was
open:mid Undisguised. I have recurred to these displays,
not in'order to comtnunicate an inflated impression of
their rubstantivo'iMportance and worth; but because they
were Mr. Poles earliest Congressional speeches—made
at his first session of attendance,—arid because I think a
careful consideration of the purport and tone of each, en
ables you to discern the high reach of hie aims, and the
11
triple basis on which he was disposed to construct hie
public character, namely, representative industry. con
stitutional pal iotism, and party, acting ab well with con
sistency as o f the offensive,
When he d . clined, further legislative service, in 1839, 1
ho had been 4gaged in it for fourteen continuous years,
IF-elected at every biennial period, and was yet in the
prime of manhood. lie had on every great topic of
speculative orpractical concern which arose during shut
time, taken his part, often the leading one, with frank
ness, firmnesS, and ability. He did so in opposition to
appropriations' of the national treasure on projects of In
ternal ImproveMent: he did so in sustaining schemes for
retrencliment he did so in resisting the imposition of I
higlt duties onl mporta, as a means of protecting domes
tic manufactures: ho did so against the Ban kof the Uni e
led States: ha i did o in resisting the distribution or sur
plus funds, le proceedeof the sales of the public lauds
among the res active states: he did so in advocating the
exteneian of th Judiciary: ho did so in vigilantly guar- '
thug General Jackson whenever assailed, and especially
in defending the military executions by Courts Martial
ut Mobile in 104, and in vindicating the famous veto of
the Maysville Itoad Bill: and, in - fine, ho did so on a
countless number and variety of other occasions. spring
ing incidentally and almost daily from Propositions of poi
icf, and developing or testing his qualities as a republi
can sketesman. For four ,years preceding his retirement
from Congiees.he occupied the arduous, responsible, and
absorbing station of Spoukor of the Donee of Represea
tatives. His trials in that capacity were multiplied and
embittered, far beyond the common measure, by the
fiercest conflicti of political Animosity. Yet he closed
his labors, at the adjournment of each session, honored
and consoled by the approving thanks of those over whose
deliberations he bad presided. And I cannot but regard
the following paragraphs of his address, on finally taking,
his leave,us exhibiting a just conciousness of great du
ties performed in a faithful and exemplary manner:
!glut five members (said Mr, Polk,) who were here with me
fourteen years ago. continue to he mans ere of ibis body. My ser
vice has been constant sad arduous. I can perhaps say txliatbut
few others. if any; Can say, Mal I have not failed to attend the
daily sittings Millis house a single day since I have been a mem
ber of it, saverm one occasion, when presented fora shun titne
by' 'Pl i n i rtitl 'l i t o l° tTiC ' e ' of Speaker, to whirl) it has fw fee teen the
pleasure of this liOuse to elevate in:, has been at all times Ono of
labor and responsibility. It has been made my duty to decide
more questions or parliamentary law and order, many of them of
a complex and difficult character. arising often In the midst of
high excitement. in the course of our proceedings. than ha ve , been
decided. it is believed, by nll my predecessors, from tie founds-
Mon of the government. This (louse has unihrinly sustained ins;
without distinction of the political parties of which it is com
posed...
Once more resuming and energetically prosecuting
his professional practice. Mr. Polk was nevertheless nut
permitted, by his fellow citizens of Tennessee,. to give to
it an exclusive, devotion. He had become essentially and
unalterably a public man. The claims upon his time,
upon his popular , talents, upon his experience and skill in
guiding political movements, were numerous and dis
tracting, in proportion to thareptitation' and success which
had steadily attended him. Second only in the commu
nity of his residence. to the chief who now, after filling
equally as sage atid as soldier, the monitor° of American
,glory, demanded repose-4e soon found it impossible,
had such been hie inclination, at the vigorous age' ot forty
tow, to shroud himself in domestic enjoymeni: and pri
vate pursuits. Nearly balanced as the two parties have
long been in Tennessee, the Democracy eagerly rallied
upon bim as a candidate for the office of Governor, and,
in Aligned 1839, elected him by a majority of about two
thousand votes: But at the recurrence of the elections
in 1841 and 1843,1althinigh still clung to as the champion
of his party. his cempetitor, Mr. James C. Jones, on both
occasions prevailed. '
It is enough fellow citizens,. to have glanced thus
briefly at the incidents of this comparative seclusion.—
I must hasten tolollow the quick light of lime, in order
to bring the lamented patriot one? Tore from the reces
ses of his happy, home into the blaze of his fame.
Tho nomination of Mr. Polk for 'the Chief Irlagistra
cy. in May 1844, was, at the moment unforseen, but far
from being,unexcaptable. There had suddenly arisen a
ireation, or point of policy, which quickened the pulses,
end divideb the sentiments of Democratic citizens.—
That question, whist) magnitude and urgency were con
ceded. seemed for the time to domineer over all other
considerations. 4111) republican convention which as;
eenibled at Baltimore, swayed by a resistless and patriot- 1
is desire for the annexation of Texas, withheld tlicit
choice from one Whom it would otherwise have fallen,,l
end conferred it on one to whom it was wholly in:teepee- .
ted. The sterling merit and substantial services of the'
candidate wore. however. speedily called to mind:—the
hesitation. inspired for 'an instant. by an abrupt piqceed
ing. was dispelledo.....khe rinki of his party became stir-
red aud,satisfied—and Mr.-Pollw•after an unusually ani
mated canvass bettireewhimself and Mr. Clay..wss elec.
tad. , ,
. .
Thq,powere confided by the constitution of the Ilnir
ted States .to the Incumbent of the Pr esidential office,
are large and influential . The manner
,in which they
are exercised, never has failed, and never can fail, great-
Ip affect, for good or forevil e the contentment.,and
interests of the people, or the reputation and resources
of the nation. He tee the immensity of the trust; and
10 - ONWAUD..AU
hence the vast reward of gratitude_ and renown be
stowed on him who, at the end of his term of service,
is discovered to have so used his public functions as to
leave his country tranquil, prosperous; honored and
strong. This is,- in fact, the only Standard which the
ardor of our political controversies suffer to remain un
questionable. Governed by this standard, _fidiew.cili•
sent, and casting a rapid thought upon the condition of
America, tell inn whether the sepulehre"of the late Pres
ident should not be hallowed by your reverence and af
fection?
The glory of every administration concentrates upon
its chief. He it is, and he only, that the elective fran
chise has lifted from the common level to be the Execu
tive;—to carry with him into government, the authority
he has derived by that process, accompanied by the in
structions, wishes, and principles of his constituents; to
vivify, supervise, check, controls—to be' disgraced by
failure, and to wear the laurels of success. Aided as he
tteCcasarily must be by associates and agents of his own
selection, the lustre of their limited spheres coinbines
foi ‘ the effulgence of his boundless ono;—and brilliant as
tho sithordinato excentiona.of duty. may be, everything
is ao constitutionally and essentially dependent upon tho
offspring of the popular suffrage, and upon his troth to
his mission, that he rightly bears the palm aChleved by
united excellence. The American people will hereafter
rank among the most effective achieveinents of the late
President, the discrimination with which he chose, and
the wisdom with which he irupolicd, the variously gifted
counsellors of his Cabinet.
t will be remembered that, when withdrawing from
Oegress, Mr. Polk, had left at the head of affairs an ad
mired and approved statesmaut—that the discomfiture
Of f :the Democracy in tho fall of 1840, under the awl
eci of Don. Harrison, gave the direction of government
toitheir opponents; and that public policy and persons
htl undergone uu almost entire change. If taken by
surprise, when proclaimed a candidate, it was iinpossi
ble fur him, when elected, to shut hie eyes to the hercu
lean labors to which ho was summoned. Not only wa4
the'Vessol of state to ha restored to Its republican tack;
but he felt, and knew, and acknowledged that lie had
incurred nn engagement, alike distinct and solemn, to
accomplish,' if accomplished they could ho, favorite na
tional objects, both external and internal, of the utmost
possible delicacy and importance. He looked at his now.
hievetabletask, however, with an Unflinching rosoulu
flan, and sternly dedicated to its consummation his time,
tole.ritii, health, end life.
The admission of Texas ne a State of the Union, up
on her acceptance of certain terms, had been provided
for'by a joint resointion of Congress, passed but three
days before 'ho took the oath of office; and nothing was
leryta be done but to expedite tho proceedings, so as to
forestall the preplexities which might spring from foreign
intermoddling; and .to make such military arrangements
as would protect our new frontier from inroads. These
duties were promptly and skillfully discharged.- The
people of Texas held a convention, remodeled their con
siltation,submitited it to the inspection of C:ongreas, and
&Marne, by law, an intergul part of our confederacy, be
fore tho year elapsed.
sitairld deem it ill-timed and misplaced, to trace the
-•
copses, dr to vi»diento the right and the expediency of
thicexteissien of out Republic. Perhaps a defeat of the
Dottnictallc party at the election in the fall of 1844, wo'ld
discoltragedand thwarted that movement: Their
success, on the contrary, proved how fixed a hold it had
upon the popular judgement; and recommended it to
more legislative favor than it before enjoyed. Certain it
is, that the incorporation took place only after the will of
the American people, and the sense of the American
Congress. had been tested and recorded, agreeably to the
ferMs of the American Constitution; and that every na
tional functionary, cspycciolly the President, who em
phatically "shot! mks care that the lases befaitlifupy axe
rabid," was bound to apply his legitimate resources and
powers to its defence. Precautionary steps, to the extent
authorized by existing acts of Congress, were taken, and
it was hoped would overawe thn gasconading fever of
our discontented neighbors. They crossed, however.
the Rio Grande, on the 15th of April 1846. and reckless
ly commenced a series of hostilities, that only termine•
ted with the ratification of the Treaty of Peace, on the
50th itlay, IglB. The contest had a duration two years,
being six months shorter than the last with Great Bri•
tam. •
For us, there is nn blemish upon the war with Me:l
-oot-4 is oil brightness. In its principles, its origin. its
instruments, its character, its designs, end its end, there
is nothing to regret, save only that it displaced the ines
timable blissing, and white-robed innocence of Peace.
If in the ceaseless course of human events, the curse of
War be unavoidable:—if the genius of universal brother.
hood breathing end glowing through our institutions,
cannot prevent its being forced upon us by others—let
posterity be- grateful to Providence, should its features
and conduct make a counterpart of that which the late
President so ably managed. Whet were its fruits? Some
were certainly bitter enough, and common to all belli
gerent action, severing and blasting the dearest ties and
fondest hope of domestic affection:—vet even those, in
extent and form, were unusually restricted and Mitiga
ted. Although I do not rank as valuable the acquired
privilege to Vatint our prowess, I do not rank as priceless
the protriwted pence, with a knowledge by others of our
real, though latent, power. is sup; to leave us,--the un
disturbed and expanding commerce and intercourse ea
apt to follow in the train of social dignity,—and the ex
ample, first and alone, set by America, of a war divested
of intolerance, rapine, treachery, licentiousness or injus
tice, ,Nor can those who fairly appreciate the ameliora
ting influences of our religions and educational habits,
as a race, of-our eagerness to elevate the condition end
perfect the happiness of humanity; contemplate without
pride and hope the realms, hitherto derelict and savage.
now opened to our enterprise. and conceded to the die
semination of our bibles, our school,, our ploughs, our
looms. Mid our laws. They who gather. from the fiery
crocible'of war, such pure end permanent deposits as
these, may be pardoned if ,they forget, in the success of
their ordeal, its inseparable solicitudes and sufferings.
Posterity will probably acknowledge. frorkihe admin.
istration of the late President:4 civil benefit',equal to, if
not greater than, the consequences of his triumphs in
arms. Such at least will be the Me, if the progressiv e principles of that class of citizens; at- whose invitation I
ant epee:thug, continue r as they long hove continued; to
receive the sanctions of time and trial. I refer to the ea.
i ,
tablished and Well'tested system of obtaining, adequate
revenue y, moderate duties on imports. The relations
of coninveities, and the dependences of social and do
me:die life, may-possibly, in some remote future, under
go vital changes; and exact at the handeof caution and
benevolence, a retrograde march, with a spit:4n of, re-
Waive. 'tilmost feudal nod eastellOted intrenehment.—,
' While, h
,Wever, the epread of life. liberty,lind the per-
zeal of h *nese," the reedy ministration to the Want , .
comforts.i
and oujoymente, of the great Anuses. the true
path to all the blessings of- a universal Civilization end a
naive:set sense of mingled fraternity and independence.
are_ objects at heart, his financial reforms will stand to at.
test his fidelity.struth and patriotism. Elaborated with
the utmost care, they hew( worked - with the Utmost ease.
Three years have thrown everywhere the proofs of their
salutary:tendencies. Taxation' reduced. softeqed. and
equalized: as to individuals.' would seem. slts%st in the
same ratio. to augment the national means. We have.
ae it were. been made to steer away trim the shin A—- -.
waters. hidden shoals, sod dangerous currents, of a
coast long timidly hugged, Into the freedom and safety
of an open sea. As, from age tottage, from year to year,
we gradually reached, in defiance of plausible dread.,
and even or Its own misuses, the liberty of the press, so
may we ultimately, notwithstanding partial disadvanta
ges and misgivings, find the true solution of the tax
problem, in releasing trade from e6'ery unnecessary fetter
or incumbra'ace.'
Another diking feature'of Mr. Polk's internal policy,
was the revival of the mode of keeping and disbursing
the public money, now in operation. In his first toes
sage to the legislative body, on the 241 of December, 1845,
after some brief bnt forcible reasoning, he used the fol
lowing expressions: "Entertaining the opinien that the
separation of theamneys, of the government, from bank- ,
ing institutions is iudiepensable for the safety of the funds
of the government, and the rights of the people, 1 re
commended to Congress that provision be made by a law
for such separation, and that a constitutional treasury be
emoted for the safe-keeping of the public money." In
his estimation, the fundamental charter contemplated
the creation of a public treasury„ irrtehieh the public goon
ey shouti be kept from the period of eolteetios until need
ed for public wee":—and that to confide its custody to
banks, of one description or another, most of which had
hvotoforo proved •Ibithless," endangered its loss, by
their employing It in discounts and loans. and was a de-
Mation from the warrant and intent .'f the Constitution.
It is true._ this conception did not originate with himself.
First started in the form of a r:solution of inquiry, in
the House of Repreeentatives. On the 3d of January.
1835, by Mr. CaIIUILIC, of Georgia; it was accepted, as a
remedial and conservative plan, by President Van Buren,
after the general suspension of stre l cio paythents by the
banks. in the spring of 1837: was matured and syste
matised for legislative enactment by the profound, com
prehensive. practical mind of Silas IWrighti—was resis
ted in its progress by the united force of ability and par
ty. and was only first made law on the 4th of July, 1840.
Then too it had no time, to exhibil l more than the falter
ing steps of infancy, when it was struck by the blow of
repeal on the 13th of August, 1841, Whether, in eve
ry possible aspect of commercial business end exchange,
no more convenient, available, end secure, disposition of
the public treasure Nri be devised, is an enquiry which
involves considerations alike complex and delicate. Thus
far, the solidity, stability, and composure of moneyed
transactions in general, seem to have resulted from a trial
of throe years:—While the government. through its
moans, met even the disquietude@ and emergencies of a
foreign war, without loss or embarrassment, in the most
distant transfers of its coin. No subject or arrangement
has more direct bearing than this, upon the relations be
tween the political and the money powers of our free
p3oplet—relations which. if they cannot be wholly se-
Vored. should never be tightened; but, for the benefit of
both, ba kept as pure and independent as possible.—
When tho Constitutional Treasury shell have become
familiar, in its form and effects, to our practical habits and
prudent reflections, it is difficult to doubt that it must bo
regarded, with entire unanimity, as a monument of whs.
dons and patriotism, entitling its inventive framers, and
its persevering founders, to tho warm gratitude 'of their
country.
Among the great and lasting administrative irnprove
wants introduced by the last President, there is one which
1 must be permitted to mention. seemingly subservient to
commercial interests only, but by its necessary operation
coutribming in fact to the advancement of others, and
especially to the &mute and safety of Manufacturing
ones, 'lt will doubtless be remembered, that. from the
earliest period of our government, the laws 'which regu
late the collection of revenue from customs, allowed ex
tensive credits to importers for duties imposed, and, that
this indulgence, whence many mischiefs flowed, was
withdrawn in 18453, and pay nients iii chash on entry sub
stituted. - The discouragement of trade, its monoply by
the rich and already established, with' easily unsettled
markets and piste'', wore evils apprehended as likely to
flow from the change: ancim avoid thtm the system now
practised was adopted. It is generally known as Me
Ware/touring system;—permitting merchandise, on arri
val. to be stored underthe joint custody of its owners end
the public officers. for two ur three years—to be taken
whenever wanted, either for domestic consumption, on
payments" of duties and expenses, or for exportation, on
payment of charges only. By those who are unaccus
tomed to note the consequences of such progress, their
bearings and influences upon industriel operations. the
extensive and important effects oleo simple an arrange.
arrangement can scearcely be immagined. It at once
opens the wide field of mercantile adventure to youth
ful enterprise and prudence, superseding tho necessity of
having at command large resources of credit or matt_ it
invites the accumulaticM of immence quantities of goods,
of every decription, in the ports of the United States, as
depositories from which cargoes may bti-drawn, for voy
ages to all parts of the world; it gives superiority, if not
eontrolcover what is termed the Carrying Trade: it reaer
yes to our own citizens vast profits on insurence, which
would otherwise be paid abroad: it prevents sudden al
ternations, as to any commodities, from scarcity to abun
dance and abundance to tho scarcity: end it thus dimin
isheis.if itdoes not destroy a large range for more specula
tiOn. so subversive ofatently values, and so ruinous to; reg
ular labor. The advantages are, indeed, so numerous
and impresiive, tflktfrtheir consideration_ overpowered
the impulses of political party; and whet:eta vote for es
tablishing the system came before Congress. with the
countenance of Mr. Polk's administration; the most relen
leas, as the moat enlightened, of his opponents gavel it
support. In the course of a century. England has deriv
ed more aid perhaps from such a system; than from any
other instrumentality. in attaining her commercial emin
ence; end it is estimated that, at presence. her customs
WarehoUses contain nothing short of three hundred
millions ;worth of imported merchandise. What may we
'not fairly anticipate as its fruits in this wesharn world of
ou re!
Mr. Polk was no less happy in promoting international
arrangements. trunally solid and durable in . their charac
ter. The Postal Convention concluded with Great
Britain on the 15th of Dee.i,mber, 1848. l and which the
parties expressly declare to be designed to endure for an
indefinite period. attains certainty and cheapness. while
its promises au almost unlimited expansion to'correspon
dance by letter. between oar country and Europe. And
the quick, light, living literature of the tinies—the news
papers. parodical works, and printed pamphlet—those
ceasless choristers of civilization—find punctual. regula
ted. safe channels of interchange. Thie is a practical
blessing to nearly every class of population. Business,
intellect. and sentiment—the trader. the scholar. the em
rnigrant—itro all aceonicalated end comforted. Again;
In a spirit (O r lin utility. the thirty-fifth article of a Treaty
with Gratitida, on the 10th, June. 1848, secured to the
government and citizens of the United Busier; the right of
way; or transit and traneportotion, acmes the lettimus of
Panama, upon any mode:J . of corarnstnicatien that now ex
ist. or that may hereafter be constructed; guaranteed. I n
perpetuity. the neutrality of the territory. Here is an as
eured,basis for the 'noblest material monument which
which the agency 061101112 can aceomplishlone that will
bind together our opposite ocean-fronts; that will give to
commerce aaeope never before known; end that will Our
the lights of Christianity and science upon myriads of the
human race, who'iroW groups their gloomy way, from the
cradle to the grave. Already this nem* portion be.
twsen the Atlantic. and the Pacifist. like 7erthern Cali-
Si $0" II TZIAIt, in Adirsm.
fornia, for ages regarded as a rugged and uselee waste.
hasbeene touched by the wand of the American pioneer .
A topographical exploration. conducted by en accom
plished officer of the national service, places beyond doubt
the practicability of a through-cut canal of the largest
dimensions—fit to float frigates on—at a cost which the
wealth and expedients of modern -.enterprise cannot fail
soon to regard as insignificent. Aar/ again: By a series
of cempacts nitb the secondly states of the Germanic
Confederation. commencing in a treaty with Hanover,
of shelOth of June. /846. to which the accessions of
Oldenburg. Mecklenburg-Schwerin. Nassau. Bavaria.
and Saxony, were obtained subsequently,' the salutary
principles and relations of reciprocity are established, and
growing markets reached, upon advantageous terms for
ourstaple productions.
In these ab:irt and superficial sketches, fellow citizens
of the prominent features by which the late President ,
stamped forever illustrious the 'lngle term of his admin
istration, my purpose has been to enable you at once to
appreciate the entire and untiring devotion with wh'eh
he livened himself to the attainment of your prosperity
and honor. However various opinion might be as to the
merit of his poltics, it must be uniform as to his patrism .
No citizen-1 speak with equal reverence and reflection
—ever has made, or over can make, that light shine
more steadily In the path before him. His patriotism
was not. itis true, of the monsible and dazzling nature
whose gleams, in the emergencies of peril, attract all eyes
and win al: hearts: it resembled rather the unilickering
and undying flame of the vestal's lamp. It was so true.
so ceasless, so tranquil, that it lulled the conciousness of
its own perpetual action. It impelled him to on ever ad
vancing serr.th for the real interests of his country: to
unremitted, Clent, and secluded labor: to the sacrifice of
domestic ease, of the delights of friendships, of the COll5O
- of health. It strained to their utmost tensionhis
intellectual faculties. his moral energies. and his bodily
endurance. Itsvas, in fact, his master-quality—superior
if you please, to his judgment, or 6 . scrimination. or con
stoney, or knowledge, or skill; and guiding, and cootrol-
Mg, and tasking one and all of these, irresistibly and un-
I
i interrruptedly. In the measures of his policy—separately
or colletively—ila his extension movements, his conduct
of—the war, his free trade, his financial systems, his
foreign intercourse—whatover differences of senti
ment may and must exist, as-to the prudence or expedi
ency of their details, you cannot avoid feeling and
confessing. amid their broad bearings and progressive
aims. the pervading presence of a generous and genuine
patriotism. I know nothing so worthy of encomium and
acknowledgment, as this sort of patriotism. It is the
on:y element on whose buoyancy can be safely confided
the majestic argosy of the Republic, full-friighted with
your liberties, union, rights, and fame. It should never
fail to receive the encouragrnent of our applause in the
living. and the homage of our gratitude in the dead,
It is worthy of remark, that, on quitting the Presiden
. tint office, he left nothing unfinished. Inutile attempt
ed, he did. Ills Measures of policy were, one and all,
urged, discussed, adopted, carried out practically, tested
by time, and triumphant in results, before he relinquish
ed the helm to another band.
Who needs evidence, will find it in his pulse, that
since the Spring of 1845, the people of the United State/,
their constitution, science, resources, courage, and char
acter, have assumed, to the whole world, a position morn
elevated and influential, than was ever before accorded
or enjoyed.
Who doubts that, from the same period. their financi
al credit has been constantly rising; unt:l their contracts.
and securities, in despite of the venomous defamation
with which they were previously overwhelmed, are now
highest in the confidence° of all Chr;stendom?
Who questions, with sincerity, ti.) emancipation of
their currency, commerce, business, strength and elas
ticity, from a palpitating and trembling dependence up
on the fluctuating schemes of bank parlors and stock
boards abroad?
Who disputes that New Mexico and California are
inexhaustible sources of bullion-capital, destined to aug
ment the wages and secure the independence of their la
bor; and to swell the aggregate of their wealth beyond
all precedent?
Who. in fine, does not firmly believe, that the condi
tion and attitude in which Mr. Polk, after toils that were
fatal to'himself. has left his country, are the most effec
tive guarantees for her prolonged ponce and happiness?
In his personal deportment, he was plain, unaffected,
affable. and kind. 1u uo one.respeet, that lam aware of
did Inedepart from a ccosistem simplicity of fife and puri
ty of manners. All his habits were exemplary and reg
ulated. He was temperate but not unsocial. industrious
but accessible, punctual but patient, moral without aus
terity, and devotional though not bigoted. Accustomed,
through a long service, to observe the diversities exhibi r
ted by opinion on every subject, he was never surprised
or provoked by any of its phrases, into individual intoler
ance. His ordinary intercourse and associations were
equally respectful and cordial with the friends and the
foes of his politics. And I must be pardoned for adding
that, in this general amenity towards his follow-citizens.
without distinction of party, or condition, or pretension,
he was aided by a wedded partner, to whom, all who had
the happiness to know her, have united with a single
voice, in awarding that high and affectionate tribute, won
only by lirroproa.chable conduct. intelligence, gentleness.
and virtual
Fellow citizens'.—He whose career, in obedience to
your call, I have thus imperfectly traced, mink. with un
murmuring resignation, to his last rest, at Nashville. on
the 15th of June, surrounded by his dearest friends, and
amid the soul-inspiring hopes and sanctions of religious
faith. To him are now alike indifferent the praise and
censure of men: His ear. that' was wont to be se quick.
is numb and heedless:—his eye, that flashed with recog
nition over multitudes, knows no one—not even her who
gave him birth, nor her who charmed 'his life:—but
though he be as insensible to your soothing as tho cold
sod which coversitia_relics, the voice of a just and gen
erous humanity bids you to deplore a loss so signal, so
sudden, and so premature The tears shad by, a nation
on a patrioPe grave, canneanimate the dust within:—
but they do attestrthe existence ~ of au honorable public.
gratitude. and they do freshen thte pursuits of a noble
fame.
WEAR or TUE NIARARA nits.— e 710,000 tons of
water which each minute pour over thqrecipice of Nia:
gars, are estimated to carry away a foot okthe cliff eVery
year. Taking this average, and adopting tlia clear gala
gical proof that the fall ouccenisted.ot Queenstown, foar
miles below, we must suppose a . period of tweoty thou
sand years °topical!, this recession of the cataract to its
\
actutc sight—while the Delta of the Mississippi, n arty
14,000 square miles in extent,' en estimate founded o its
present rate of increase; and in a milenlation of t 0
amount of earthy matter brought down the stream, ha \
justificel.k. Lyon in alleging that sixty-seven thousand \
veers meat have elapsed since the formation of this great
deposit. began---Nuartely React& ,
A airman FOR THE CALIEOESIA Farzn.-4 friend
who he. 3 seen some service in camp life offers to those
afflicted with-the prevailing epidemic, the following pre
scription:. •
first.—"filleep three nights in your wood-house. with
the door open and swinging in the wind—during which
time letyour diet be pork, cooked by yotunelf at a smoky
fire its the garden.
Second.—impitive all the rainy nights to sleeping be
tween your currant bushes and garden fence.
Thirrf.-06 the fourth day of our regime, let your di
ethe mole Steak.
Fourth.—Tharaafter dispense with all kinds of food
save dog meat. If this be followed resolutely. it le cen•
fidently believed a permanent curs ATI be eirectcd•"
NUMBER 11.