Old times in Tennessee, with historical, personal, and political scraps and sketches, Part 14

Author: Guild, Jo. C. (Josephus Conn), 1802-1883
Publication date: 1878
Publisher: Nashville, Tavel, Eastman & Howell
Number of Pages: 1012


USA > Tennessee > Old times in Tennessee, with historical, personal, and political scraps and sketches > Part 14


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Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45



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ticular acts, and it may, under a different state of things, forbid their continuance; therefore, to repeal or rescind the resolution under consideration, would be to express no opinion upon its merits at the time of its adoption. To declare said resolution void, and of no effect, is to say nothing-it was void; it had no legal effect from the moment of its adoption. It was not de- signed to produce any legislative proceeding in the Senate of the United States, nor could it produce any ; a vote of censure and condemnation of the President, which the Senate had no consti- tutional right to pass until the accusation was preferred by the House of Representatives, was the object intended and accom- plished.


"' The question, then, directly presents itself, How is this stain, this blot upon the records of the highest constitutional body known to our government, to be acted upon ?


""'A majority of the Senate have tried the President of the United States without authority, no accusation having been pro- posed against him by the House of Representatives, who alone, under the constitution, by their accusation, can give the Senate power to try the Chief Magistrate. They have condemned him unheard; not only so, but fearful that posterity might see and judge impartially between him and his accusers, they have re- fused to permit his defense or vindication of his conduct to be placed upon their journals; they have refused to order said vin- dication to be printed, while at the same time petitions, memori- als, and remonstrances, got up under the influence of the Bank of the United States, misrepresenting the conduct of the Presi- dent, and calumniating his motives, were printed and spread be- fore the public by order of the Senate. They have usurped the impeaching power, and taken it from the immediate representa- tives of the people, with whom it was clearly and expressly vested by the constitution.


""'These unwarrantable proceedings of the Senate demand a signal expression of public disapprobation. To expunge from the journals of that body the obnoxious resolution, is the only right- ful, adequate, and constitutional remedy which can be adopted.


"' The idea that the Senate does not possess the power to ex- punge said resolution, is wholly fallacious. Precedents in the parliamentary history of England, as well as in our own country,


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can be abundantly shown. In the celebrated case of John Wilkes, the House of Commons, on the 17th day of February, 1769, had entered on its journals, "That John Wilkes, Esq., having been, in this session of Parliament, expelled this house, was and is incapable of being elected a member to serve in this present Parliament." On the 3d of May, 1782, a motion was made, "That the said resolution be expunged from the journals ;" and the same was expunged by the clerk, at the table, accord- ingly. In the case of John Hampden and the ship money, the House of Lords made the following entry : "That all the rolls be razed across with the pen, and subscribed with the Clerk of Parliament's hand," all which was done accordingly. In the Earl of Strafford's case, the Parliament directed that part of the journals which related to his attainder to be vacated and expunged. The Clerk, in executing the order, crossed that portion of the journal also which related to the impeachment. Afterward it was ordered, "That whatsoever stands crossed upon the journals relating to the impeachment of the said Earl, ought not, nor shall be looked on as obliterated ; and that the several orders for obliterating and vacating any proceedings concerning the Earl of Strafford, must be taken to have been intended as to what re- lated to the acts of attainder only ;" and it was further ordered, "That there be a note or memorandum of the said order entered on the margin of the journals, where any proceedings relating to the impeachment of the Earl of Strafford hath been obliter- ated, which do not concern the acts of attainder." In the Sen- ate of Massachusetts, after the close of the late war, a motion was made to expunge from its journals a resolution which had been adopted in the progress of the war, in disapprobation of it. The motion prevailed, and the said resolution was expunged from the journals of that body.


"'In our own State, upon the trial of the impeachment against Judge Williams, after the record or journal was made up and signed pronouncing the accused discharged from the impeach- ment, a motion was made to "strike out" from the journal the judgment of acquittal. The "yeas and nays were taken on said motion, and it prevailed, and in conformity therewith the Clerk of the Senate, in its presence, drew with a pen a black line around that part of the journals directed to be stricken out.


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This was considered a compliance with, or fulfillment of, the or- der directing the judgment of acquittal to be "stricken out," or expunged from the journal.


"' The execution of an order to expunge has not the effect to destroy the journal, or to render the former proceeding illegible, but to signify clearly that it cannot stand for any thing; and to place upon it an indelible stamp of disapprobation, and in such way that, in all time to come, those who see the obnoxious reso- lution upon the public journals, will also see, from the black lines drawn across or around it, explained by proper marginal notes, that judgment has been passed against it, and that it bears upon its face its own condemnation, having been illegally and unconstitutionally made.


""'The difference between such a proceeding and a resolution repealing, rescinding, or annulling said resolution, is apparent and palpable. In the latter case, the act of the Senate would be prospective only; in the former, it would be retrospective, and operate upon the original resolution at the time of its adoption ; besides, if the original resolution stand upon the journal without any indication of its invalidity affixed to it, thousands may see it who may never see the journal made in after time, impeaching and condemning it. Therefore,


"'Resolved, That the resolution of the Senate of the United States, of the 28th of March, 1834, declaring the President of the United States guilty of "assuming upon himself authority and power not conferred by the constitution and laws, but in derogation of both," ought to be expunged from the journals of the Senate.


'"'Resolved, That the representatives of this State in the Sen- ate of the United States be, and they are hereby, instructed to aid in carrying the foregoing resolution into effect, by voting to expunge from the journals of the Senate the said resolution of the 28th of March, 1834, for the reasons set forth in the pream- ble to these resolutions.


"' Resolved, That the Governor be and he is hereby requested to present to each of the Senators in Congress from this State copies of the foregoing preamble and resolutions.'"


I made a speech of an hour's length, enforcing the specifica- tions and advocating the adoption of the resolutions. A motion


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was then made to lay the resolutions upon the table, which mo- tion prevailed. Before the Legislature adjourned Mr. Topp, of Memphis, offered his white-washing resolution, which he sus- tained by a speech. He said that he would withdraw the resolu- tion after giving West H. Humphreys an opportunity to reply. I then obtained the floor and offered a protest, which I extract from the journal of the House of Representatives, under date of Feb. 20, 1836, as follows :


" Mr. Guild offered the following protest, which was read and ordered to be spread upon the journals of this House, to-wit :


"'The undersigned dissent from and protest against the fol- lowing acts of the House of Representatives:


"'The member from Shelby, Mr. Topp, this day introduced the following resolutions :


"'Resolved, That it is the opinion of the General Assembly of the State of Tennessee, that the resolution of censure introduced by Mr. Clay in the Senate of the United States, and adopted by that body on the 28th of March, 1834, in the following words: "Resolved, that the President, in the late executive proceedings in relation to the public revenue, has assumed upon himself au- thority and power not conferred by the constitution and laws, but in derogation of both," was not unconstitutional, but within the legitimate exercise of their powers and freedom of debate.


"'Resolved, That it is the opinion of this General Assembly that it is not constitutional to expunge said resolution from the journal of the Senate, but said process would violate that provi- sion of the constitution of the United States which requires that each house shall keep a journal of its proceedings, and from time to time publish the same-except such parts as may in their judgment require secrecy ; and the yeas and nays of the members of either House on any question shall be spread upon the journal, in order that the people of this State might know what the House had refused to receive and hear read.


"' Upon a question of order being made, the speaker, Mr. Nicholson being in the chair, decided that the motion of the member from Fayette was in order.


"' Upon an appeal being taken, the House overruled the de- cision of the speaker, and pronounced said motion out of order.


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And, consequently, refused to have the said preamble and reso- lutions entered upon the journal.


"'The undersigned enter this their protest against the acts of the House in refusing to entertain the motion of the member from Sumner, and their refusal to have entered upon the journal the said preample and resolutions. They view these acts of the house as calculated to suppress debate, and withhold from the people a knowledge of the public acts of their representatives. This Feb- ruary 20th, 1836.


S. C. PAVATT,


ALFRED GARDNER,


Hop. L. TURNEY,


JOHN BUCHANAN,


W. H. HUMPHREYS, W. ESTILL,


JARED S. ALLEN,


Jo. C. GUILD,


H. ROBERTSON, GEO. SMITH,


THOS. D. DAVENPORT,


GEO. W. JONES,


WOODSON NORTHCUTT, GEO. R. POWELL.' "


The offering of this protest provoked a fiery debate, in which Hopkins L. Turney, West H. Humphreys, A. O. P. Nicholson, Bloomfield L. Ridley, S. C. Pavatt, and myself, and others, took part.


Mr. Benton's expunging resolution had been before the Senate for nearly three years, during which time it had been discussed in and out of that body, and, as previously stated, a number of Legislatures had instructed their Senators to vote for this resolu- tion. At length the time had arrived when the Democrats had a majority in the Senate, and the resolution must be adopted. Gen. Jackson's term of service was about to expire, and his friends determined that justice should be done him before he departed for the Hermitage. Monday, January 16, 1837, was the day upon which the resolution was called up with a determi- nation previously agreed upon by the friends of the measure, that there should be no adjournment of the Senate until the resolu- tion should be finally acted upon. " Expecting a protracted ses- sion, extending through the day and night," says Mr. Benton, in his "Thirty Years' Views," "and knowing the difficulty of keeping men steady at their work and in good humor, when tired and hungry, the mover of the proceeding took care to provide, as far as possible, against such a state of things ; and gave orders that (Saturday) night to have an ample supply of cold hams, tur-


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keys, rounds of beef, pickles, wines, and cups of hot coffee, ready in a certain committee room near the Senate chamber, by four o'clock on the afternoon of Monday." The resolution was taken up immediately after the morning business, and forthwith a debate sprung up, in which long and rather acrimonious speeches were made by Preston, of South Carolina; Bayard and Clayton, of Delaware; Crittenden, of Kentucky; Southard, of New Jersey ; Ewing of, Ohio; and Judge White of Tennessee. The friends of the measure took but little part in this debate. Finally, Clay and Calhoun, seeing that the tide had set firmly against them, pro- nounced very bitter philippics against Gen. Jackson and his friends. Mr. Webster, having no personal griefs against the old chief to be redressed in a wordy ebullition, as had Clay and Cal- houn, spoke with more moderation than they did. The commit- tee room containing the collation had been resorted to in parties of four and six at a time, always leaving enough on guard in the Senate chamber to prevent a surprise by a flank movement of the opposition ; and that room was not resorted to by one side alone, for, Mr. Benton says, " the opposition were invited to full partici- pation-an invitation of which those who were able to maintain their good temper readily availed themselves; but the greater part were not in a humor to eat anything-especially at such a feast." The debate was protracted until midnight, when, it be- coming evident that the struggle had assumed the shape of a trial of nerves and muscles, of physical endurance, in which the stom- ach sympathised, the opposition concluded to " lay down the fill- ing," and the vote was taken in the presence of a crowded gal- lery, and resulted twenty-four for and nineteen against the reso- lution. A motion was then made to execute the order of the Senate forthwith, which was agreed to. "The Secretary there- upon," says Mr. Benton, "produced the original manuscript journal of the Senate, and opened at the page which contained the condemnatory sentence of March 28, 1834, proceeded in open Senate to draw a square of broad black lines around the sentence, and to write across its face in strong letters these words: 'Ex- - punged by order of the Senate, this 16th day of January, 1837.'" Thus the authors of the censure of the old chief witnessed the execution of their own offspring. Gen. Jackson was highly grati- fied at this result, and he gave a grand dinner to the expungers,


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and being too weak from infirm health to sit at the table, he re- ceived his guests, and then retired to his sick chamber. The great expunger (Thomas H. Benton) occupied the head and dis- pensed the honors of the table. Gen. Jackson brought home with him the pen used in drawing the black lines around the res- olution of censure, and he prized it greatly. I saw it frequently at the Hermitage.


It may not be wholly amiss to state in this connection, that, in 1842, Congress refunded to Gen. Jackson the fine imposed upon him in 1815 by Judge Hall, of one of the New Orleans courts, . who had been imprisoned by Gen. Jackson for violating his or- der suspending the writ of habeas corpus pending the siege and battle of New Orleans, an order necessary for the protection of the city. The fine was originally one thousand dollars, but the accumulated interest swelled the amount to two thousand seven hundred dollars. Col. J. Geo. Harris has often heard him say that he accepted it, not so much for the sake of the amount as that the resolution of Congress entirely annihilating every vestige of imputation upon his conduct at New Orleans, might be ful- filled to all intents and purposes. It is perhaps due to the men- ory of Mr. Calhoun to say that he voted for the resolutions re- funding the fine.


THE EAGLE AND THE LOOKING GLASS.


Young Harris, editor of the Nashville Union, rendered yeoman service in the campaign of 1839. From the day that he took the editorial chair up to the day of the election, every newspaper and stump speaker of the opposition were down on him as attempt- ing to disqualify an important witness. He baffled their person- alties as mere bagatelle, and kept up the attack on their leading statesmen. Whenever any cheering intelligence or political vic- tory was to be announced, he had the cut of a broad spread eagle under whose wings it was sent forth in an extra. Judge Grundy told the story of being at the Murfreesboro post-office when news was expected from an election in an adjoining State, and while the mail, just arrived, was being assorted, a leading Whig, peep- ing through a window, exclaimed : "It is all over, there is Har- ris' infernal buzzard in the mail !" Harvey Watterson, the suc- cessful candidate for Congress in Mr. Polk's old district, tells


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that when he congratulated an old citizen of Maury, on hearing that henceforth he would vote, not as formerly against, but with the Democratic party, the old gentleman replied, " I have been consulting the documents, and glancing into Harris' Looking Glass ; I am all right."


REST OF THE VICTORS AT TYREE SPRINGS.


After the August campaign of 1839, which resulted in the election of of James K. Polk to the gubernatorial chair, and filled both branches of the Legislature with decided Democratic ma- jorities, by whom Mr. Grundy was subsequently elected to the United States Senate, the leading Democratic politicians in and about Nashville assembled with their families and a con- course of young people at Tyree Springs, in Sumner county, for a little rest and recreation.


Gen. Jackson was there. Felix Grundy, then Attorney Gen- eral of Mr. Van Buren's administration, with Judge Campbell, the old minister to Russia, Gen. Armstrong, a lineal descendant of the gallant old trooper, and captain of Gen. Jackson's body guard in the Creek war, Gov. Polk, who had just been elected, and all the old notables of that party, with a bevy of beautiful young ladies to grace the occasion, were also there.


The weather was delightful, the spring waters refreshing, and arrangements were made to pass the time pleasantly. An old gardner, not far distant, was employed to bring fresh melons, fruits, and flowers to the party every morning, and upon the green sward under the ample shade of the great elms with which the yard was studded, was held every day, after breakfast, a moot or mock court, of which Judge Grundy was the Chief Justice, and Gen. Jackson, who sat near by, an Associate. The court was opened in due form every morning by Col. Harris, the mar- shal, and the young gentlemen, indicted for every little trivial offense conceivable, such as failing to bow when passing a lady, or any other slight breach of common courtesy, were brought up for trial. To be tried, was to be fined. No one got clear. Judge Grundy announced that one rule of the court was that he who grumbled at the magnitude of his fine should be fined double. So the fines were always paid without a murmur, and the party was constantly supplied with watermelons, muskmelons, canta-


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loupes, peaches and pears in abundance, while all the ladies had a daily supply of beautiful flowers.


After each and every gentleman had been fined several times, the marshal reported to the court that the expenses were becom- ing a little too binding on some of the guests, and asked what should be done. On ascertaining that the wagon had arrived that moring and was full of nice supplies, Judge Grundy decided that as so much money had been already paid to the gardener his prices must be exceedingly high, and, therefore, he should be in- dicted at once and brought before the court for extortion. Ac- cordingly the old gardener, who had been a soldier with Gen. Jackson in the Creek war or at New Orleans, was formally in- dicted and brought into court. He had retained two eminent lawyers of Louisiana, who happened to be of the party, as his counsel, and they argued the case with much ingenuity and humor for an hour or more, taking the ground that not being of the party their client was not within the jurisdiction of the court. To the guests who attentively followed and enjoyed the argument, it seemed that the old gardener would certainly get clear, but at the close Judge Grundy turned to Gen. Jackson and asked, "Gen- eral, is not a sutler subject to the rules and regulations of the camp?" Gen. Jackson replied, " Most certainly, Judge Grun- dy." "Oh!" exclaimed the old gardener, "it is all over with me; there is no appeal from the decision of Gen. Jackson." So the Judge fined him the entire load of his wagon, which he promptly delivered without a word of complaint. Albeit a sub- scription was quietly taken up, and the old gardener was fully remunerated.


And it was quite remarkable that during that week, so pleas- antly spent there, not a word of politics or upon any question of public affairs was heard, notwithstanding it was a sort of Demo- cratic love feast.


THE STATE CONTEST OF 1841.


Gov. Polk was a candidate for re-election in 1841, and was defeated by James C. Jones-not from any dissatisfaction with the State administration, nor for any lack of energy and ability in the prosecution of the campaign. The Whig party had tri- umphed so signally the year before, in the presidential election, that it gave them the inside track, and the popular prestige was


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all in their favor, while the conclusive arguments of log-cabins and coonskins were freely used. Gov. Polk argued all the ques- tions before the people with his usual great ability, but was promptly met by his wiry and witty opponent everywhere. The Governor had a happy faculty of illustrating his arguments before the people with telling anecdotes, pat and to the point, and Col. Jones took great pride in anticipating and turning all the jokes in his own favor, which always elicited popular applause. A good story is told of a speaking match between them up in the moun- tains. When Gov. Polk had argued the great questions of the dav like a statesman for more than an hour to a quiet and atten- tive audience, Col. Jones rose, drew a coonskin from his pocket, stroked it off with his hand and exclaimed, "Did you ever see such fine fur ?" which perfectly electrified the crowd.


THE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION OF 1840-THE GREAT POLITI- CAL DELUSION.


The campaign of 1840, which carried into the Presidency " Tippecanoe and Tyler too," involved little or no discussion of public measures or political principles. Mr. Van Buren had failed to arouse and keep alive any enthusiasm even in his own party either for himself or his administration. "A change!" seemed to be the cry everywhere. The effort of the Democratic orators and presses to advocate their principles was met and over- whelmed with log-cabin, hard cider, and coonskin displays by the organized and uniformed Straightouts, who made a perfect frolic of it. But the asperity of politics in Tennessee had abated to some extent, and men could differ in opinion without personal enmity.


About the middle of June, 1840, it was heralded through the Whig papers and hand-bills in the city of Nashville, that a dele- gation of the Whig party of Indiana would arrive at the levee on the steamer Rio in the afternoon of a certain day, with an Indian canoe and other partisan emblems, as a present to the Tippecanoe Club of this city. At the hour appointed, the club proceeded to the steamer, when a canoe labeled "Harrison and Tyler," was pushed ashore, and a cage containing a 'coon, with patriotic flags all over it, was transported from the deck, amidst the wildest screams and cheers from the crowd of youngsters that had assen-


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bled there. The procession, escorted by the Straightouts, a cam- paign military company, marched into the city with the 'coon upon the top of the cage, and passed through the principal streets to the log-cabin, on Market street, near the Nashville Inn. This log-cabin had been built that morning in the presence of thousands of Whigs. The principal workmen in making notches in the logs (carrying up corners), were Hon. John Bell and Dr. Boyd McNairy. Speeches were made by members of the Indiana delegation tendering these emblems, as they were called, to the Tippecanoe Club of Nashville, which were replied to in patriotic strains by representatives of the club. The 'coon was placed upon the top of the log-cabin, and Mr. Bell welcomed him to the State as the great leader of the party, addressing him as " His Majesty," and then speaking to the thousands of his followers who attended and welcomed his advent to the State. The Whig papers made the most of the display, describing it as a splendid pageant. Harris, of the Union, thrust his spear of wit, like that of Ithureal, into this bubble every day. Hall, of the Banner, made a perfect frolic of it, quoting the old refrain :


"'Possum up a gum tree, Cooney in the hollow."


To which Harris replied-


" Whiggies to the rescue- Cooney in a cage, Go it with a rush, boys, Go it with a rage.


"'Mum' is the word, boys, Brag is the game ; Cooney is the emblem Of old Tip's fame.


" Go it, then, for cooney- Cooney in a cage ; Go it with a rush, boys, Go it with a rage."


This pleased the Whigs so greatly that they had it set to music, and actually made a campaign ditty of it, so wild was the furor of the day.




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