Biography of Henry Clay

Front matter

The Institute of Museum and Library Services through an Indiana State Library LSTA Grant

HBtai

BIOGRAPHY or

Preface

I should be blind indeed to the present state of publiek feeling, net to be aware, that, in presenting this volume to the publiek, I am exposing my name, humble as it is, to much obloquy. This, however, is a matter of little consequence. I have guarded myself against the more disagreeable effects of abuse, by endeavouring not to deserve it. My motives are good ; and hence I am willing that the breath of political malice should, like the wind, "blow where it listeth," and I shall not stop to inquire "whence it cometh or whither it goeth.,:

The publiek are perhaps apprized, that most of the following pages have been prepared at Lexington, near the residence of Mr. Clay. From this circumstance, I deem it proper to say, that Mr. C. is, in no degree, responsible for the manner or matter of a single paragraph in the volume. I have often had the pleasure of meeting Mm in society, but I am confident that he has communicated to me far less information, with regard to fumself, than he would naturally have done, had he not known that I was preparing a sketch of his life. Some months ago, my Publishers applied to him, by letter, to know whether he was willing that his Biography should be given to the world. In his answtr, he stated, that, as his acts were before his fellow-citizens, he could properly exercise no censorship or control over the comments, either of friends or enemies ; but, that he must frankly acknowledge the repugnance of his own private feelings to the contemplated publication. Had I read this answer in season, I should have remained in New- England.

IV PREFACE.

For many of the imperfections of this volume, the intelligent reader will require no apology. During the greater part of my stay in Kentucky, I have been unable, from indisposition, to endure the labour of writing ; and hence, when my health has permitted, I have necessarily written with a degree of haste wholly inconsistent with the care and attention which, under other circumstances, I should certainly have bestowed upon my work. The necessity of sending the manuscript to New-England, sheet by sheet, without even allowing myself time to preserve copies of it, has undoubtedly led to some errors of plan and arrangement. The same necessity, together with that of limiting the volume to a given number of pages, has compelled me to omit several important incidents in the more recent portion of Mr. Clay's history.

I am not unaware, that the written history of a man, whose life exhibits no adventures, save those of an intellectual character, is seldom read with that enthusiasm, which is generally called forth by the story even of a second rate chieftain. The reading community are more fond of tracing the progress of action than of thought, although the latter is the source of the former. They can gaze with rapture upon the beauty or magnificence of the stream, without caring to understand the mysteries of the power by which the 'fountain-wave is cast up from its secret home. The achievements of the great intelligences of the age are too little regarded. If mankind would be careful to trace the mental histories of the mighty ones of the earth ; if they would but mark the gradual unfolding of the principles, the powers, and the passions, of those great master spirits, that give form and pressure to the ages in which they live ; each generation would be furnished with an amount of moral power, by which it might elevate itself into a nobler sphere of being, and leave behind it a long train of glory for the illumination of posterity. Henry Clay is such a man — one, whose moral and mental history should be regarded as a portion of the common riches of the human race— one of those noble-minded existences, from whom the world's happiness and glory are yet to spring ; and there is more profit in scanning the mind of such a being— in marking the origin, the combination, and the development of its powerful elements— than in contem-

PREFACE. V

plating the successes of all the military conquerors, from Alexander to Napoleon.

I have already been freely charged with undertaking the BiogTaphy of Henry Clay, with a view to influence an approaching political election. That I have formed my opinions on the subject of that election is certainly true. That I wish, by every honourable means, to diffuse those opinions, is equally true; and if this sketch of what Mr. Clay has done — this imperfect detail of his struggles and his triumphs in his country's cause — shall have a tendency to quell the spirit of detraction, that, for years, has been pursuing him with a malice not of this world, the result of my labours will, thus far, be gratifying to my feelings. This is no place for the discussion of political topicks ; yet, I cannot forbear saying, that, if the personal enemies of Henry Clay succeed, to the extent of their present efforts, his achievements and his reward will bear a parallel to those of the Titan, who. for his divine gift to the human race, was doomed to undying agonies.

In the following work, I have, when speaking of Mr. Clay's intellectual efforts upon the floor of Congress, endeavoured to give, in most cases, a general idea of the arguments by which he sustained his opinions. I am sensible that I have, in no case, done these arguments justice ; but, perhaps the faint and disfigured copies which I have given, may have the effect to turn the attention of some of my readers to the glorious originals. Whenever attempting an outline of Mr. C.'s arguments, I have used his phraseology or my own, according as I found either the one or the other best adapted to my purpose.

THE AUTHOR.

Lexington. Kentucky, November 14th, 1830. 1*

BIOGRAPHY

OF

HENRY CLAY.

Section First

The life of Mr. Clay is so thoroughly interwoven with the civil and political history of the country, that it would be impossible to do full justice to it, without embracing a range of topics and an exactness of detail, that would extend the present volume far beyond the limits which we must necessarily allot to it. During the last twenty years, scarce a single great and salutary measure has been adopted, upon which the signet of his wisdom is not set, and therefore we may well leave to the Nation's future historian the task of furnishing a minute record of his intellectual achievements. Our task will be of a less ambitious character.

Henry Clay was born in Hanover county, Virginia, on the 12th of April, 1777. His father, a clergyman of considerable talent and high respectability, died while Henry was yet a child. By the kindness of a gentleman in Virginia, we have been furnished with a variety of interesting anecdotes in relation to the ancestors of the subject of these memoirs, but we scarce deem it expedient to give them to the publick. We are writing the life of a man, whose fame, whatever it may be, is his own creation, and not an inheritance from his progenitors. His claims to distinction are rested on something better than a penny's worth of ribbon transmitted from generation to generation — the light which hovers around his name, is something more glorious than the phosphorick ray, that gleams from amid the bones of a buried ancestry.

At an early age, Henry Clay, having obtained a common-school education, was placed in the office of Mr. Tinsley, Clerk of the High Court of Chancery, at Richmond, Virginia. In this situation, he met occasionally with the distinguished men of the State, and, at length, by his amiable deportment, and his striking displays of intellect, attracted the attention and gained the friendship of Chancellor Wythe and Governor Brooke, who, by their joint advice, persuaded him, at the age of nineteen, to undertake the study of the law. For this study he seemed peculiarly fitted, both by genius and inclination, and so assiduous was he in his application to it, that, at the age of twenty, he was admitted to practice. Soon afterward he went to Lexington, Kentucky, but, instead of entering immediately upon his professional career, still confined himself to his legal studies, with the determination of making himself thoroughly master of the great principles of law, before he assumed the responsibility of practice. Up to this period, he had never made an effort at publick speaking, and was wholly unconscious of his own oratorical powers, although it is said, that his style of conversation was universally admired by his associates, for its extreme correctness and elegance. The first display of his powers of extemporaneous eloquence was made under peculiar circumstances. Soon after his removal to Lexington, he joined a Debating Society in that place, but continued, for some weeks, to attend its meetings, without offering to take part in its discussions.

On one occasion, however, when the vote on an interesting question, which had been the subject of debate, was about to be taken, Mr. Clay remarked, in a low but audible whisper, that the subject did not appear to him to have been exhausted. This remark was overheard by several of the members, who, from their high opinion of his powers, had long wished to persuade him to participate in the debates of the Society, and they addressed the Chairman simultaneously — £{ Do not put the question yet — Mr. Clay will sjpeakP The attention of the Society was now, of course, directed to Mr. Clay, who, not having sufficient confidence to resist the appeal, arose under extraordinary embarrassment, and commenced his speech, by saying — u Gentlemen of the Jury'' The members of the Society, all of whom were his personal friends, were unwilling to increase his agitation by seeming to take notice of his mistake, and he repeated it several times in a stammering tone, till, at length, he gradually gained confidence from his own efforts, and finally, concentrating all his vigorous and disciplined powers upon the subject in debate, he surprised his audience with a beauty and compass of voice, an exuberance of eloquence, and a force of argument, well worthy of a veteran Orator. A gentleman who heard this speech, has assured us, that it would hardljr suffer in comparison with those brilliant efforts of its author, which have since thrilled like a voice of salvation through the country. It is scarcely necessary to add, that his reputation as a speaker was at once established, and that he immediately became a leading champion in all the debates of the Society. The circumstances attending the first speech of Mr. Clay, and that of Mr. Burke, were strikingly similar. We have somewhere read, that the latter orator, like the former, gained in a Debating Society the first knowledge of his own vast powers, and was there first visited by visions of coming glory.

A few months after the incident above mentioned, Mr. Clay was admitted as a Practitioner before the Fayette Court of Quarter Sessions, a court of general jurisdiction. His experience, while with the clerk of the Richmond Court of Chancery, had acquainted him with the routine of business, and, during the first term, he obtained an extensive practice. The Lexington Bar, at this time, was the ablest that had ever been in Kentucky, consisting of George Nicholas, John Breckenridge, James Brown, James Hughes, William Murray, and several other gentlemen, either of whom would have been the leading attorney in almost any other place. Notwithstanding the number, experience, and strength of these competitors, Mr. Clay soon came to be entrusted with more suits than any rival practitioner, and was more successful in the management of them. It is said of him, that, although he was frequently called on to address the Court with but little time for preparation, he always understood his causes well, his strength of mind and perspicuity of judgement being such as to enable him to comprehend them at a glance. We have heard much in relation to his early professional efforts. They are well remembered by his fellow citizens, from whom we learn, that he was universally regarded as a powerful spirit, destined, in the meridian of life, to take his place among the leading intelligences of the age. He certainly possessed, in a remarkable degree, those qualities and powers of mind, which fitted him for success in his legal practice. He always seemed to discover, as if by intuition, the peculiar character of every man with whom he came in contact. He would read it in the eye, and in the flitting expression of countenance, and this power, especially when he was called on to address a Jury, enabled him almost invariably to triumph. By watching with the instinctive keenness

HENRY CLAY. II

of his vision the vibration of the master-chord in each man's bosom, he knew when to confine himself to severe argument, when to indulge in the playfulness of humour, when to wither his victim with the scorching blast of his indignation, and when to pour his whole soul abroad in a rushing tide of eloquence ; and if, at any time, he chanced to excite an unfavourable prejudice on the part of his hearers, he would perceive it on the instant, and dexterously change his subject, or his mode of treating it, until he read in their countenances the proofs of his success. The consequence was, he scarcely ever failed of gaining the verdict of a Jury. This intuitive knowledge of character is undoubtedly one of the means by which he has so generally through life secured the attachment of his associates. Probably he has more personal friends — more friends, who, in the fullness of their enthusiastick love, would almost shed their blood for him, than any other man in the United States. This fact is, in part, owing to the manliness and ingenuousness of his character, but it must also be partially ascribed to that unerring certainty with which he reads the thoughts, habits, and feelings of those who approach him, and the skill and delicacy with which he adapts himself to their peculiarities.

Mr. Clay, though well acquainted with the law during the early years of his practice, was not, in this respect, distinguished beyond some of his competitors. In legal science he had several formidable rivals, but, in eloquence and persuasion, none. Though capable of analyzing the most difficult questions, and applying the abstract principles of law with extreme ingenuity and force, his genius was still better adapted to discussions, in which the natural powers of intellect were principally called into exercise. Whenever the subject of debate admitted of being brought within the range of reason, and his mind was al« lowed to break away from the technicalities and arbitrary forms of law, he never failed to excite admiration and surprise by the closeness and cogency of his reasonings, the boldness and originality of his conceptions, and the sublime strength of his language — sometimes pursuing, by the hour, an unbroken chain of metaphysical disquisition, and then giving utterance to a gush of magnificent thoughts, like the bursting forth of an imprisoned fountain. It is, by no means, rare, that the greatest minds are not those which are most conversant with the trifling details of legal decisions. Genius delights in open space. It is the Eagle, that dashes freely abroad through sun and storm, and not the Canary, that is content to nibble at its narrow cage in the parlour window.

Mr. Clay had not been long in practice, when he was employed to defend Mrs. Phelps, a woman indicted for murder. Up to the time of this trial, it had been doubted by some, whether his powers as an advocate were not overrated by a too partial public. It had been sometimes suggested, that the youthful stranger caught the eye and charmed the ear by the fascination of his manner and the melody of his voice, rather than convinced the understanding by the profundity and force of his arguments ; but all controversy upon this point was now to be put forever' to rest. Mrs. Phelps was the wife of a respectable farmer, and was herself respected, both on account of the general correctness of her deportment, and the good character of the family from which she was descended. Her victim was a Miss Phelps, a beautiful and amiable young lady, and the sister of her husband. It seems, that Mrs. P., while in her husband's house, taking some offence at her sister-in-law, seized a gun and shot her instantly through the heart. The poor girl had only time to exclaim, "Sister, you have killed me," and expired. This case excited the intensest sympathy for the husband of the accused, and gave rise to a thousand speculations as to the nature and" extent of the crime. When the trial came on, the Court-House was crowded to overflowing, and the interest of the spectators was eloquently expressed by the anxiety of their countenances, and the deep hush that pervaded the hall. The fact of guilt on the part of the defendant could not be contested. The act, for which she stood indicted, had been committed in the presence of several witnesses, and of course, the only question was, to what class of crimes the offence belonged. If it was pronounced murder of the first degree the life of the wretched prisoner would be the forfeit, but if manslaughter, she would merely be punished by confinement in the gaol or penitentiary. The legal contest was long and able. The efforts of the counsel for the prosecution were such as might have been expected from a powerful and learned man engaged in a case of deep and general interest ; yet Mr. Clay not only succeeded in saving the life of his client, but excited in her behalf such a degree of pity and compassion, by his moving eloquence that her punishment was mitigated to the lowest degree permitted by the law. In the management of this case, Mr. C. convinced his fellow citizens, that he was not only profoundly versed in the criminal laws of his country, but that he was skilled in the science of human nature, and knew the home of every weakness and passion. Another criminal case, in which Mr. Clay was engaged shortly afterward, is said to have been scarcely less interesting. It was tried in Harrison County. Two Germans, father and son, had been indicted for murder, and Mr. C. was employed to defend them. The deed of killing was proved to the entire satisfaction of the Court, and was considered an aggravated murder. The whole of 2

Mr. C.'s efforts were consequently directed, not to the entire exculpation of the defendants, but to the saving of their lives. After a warm and unintermitted struggle of five days, he succeeded. The Jury found a verdict of manslaughter. Not satisfied with this signal triumph, Mr. C. moved an arrest of judgement, and, after another day's contest, prevailed in this also, and, of course, the prisoners were discharged, without even the punishment of the crime of which the Jury had found them guilty. During the whole of this long trial, an old, ill-favoured German female, who was the wife of the elder prisoner and the mother of the younger, had been sitting in one unvaried posture, watching the countenances of the Jury, and listening to the spirited contest of the counsel, though she probably understood little of the language in which it was conducted. After the success of the final motion for an arrest of judgement, a gentleman, who had been observing her, - approached where she sat, and whispered in her ear, that her husband and son were acquitted. Her sudden rapture broke over all restraint She threw up her arms in a wild excess of joy, and ran to Mr. Clay, and, clinging with desperate strength to his neck, almost smothered him with her kisses. The young advocate, no doubt, would willingly have dispensed with these tokens of female favour : but the hearts of the spectators were so touched and purified by the contemplation of the happiness they witnessed, that, if a smile rested for one moment upon the lip, it was a smile, not of derision, but of sympathy and kindred joy.

Whilst we were making inquiries in relation to the cases in which Mr. Clay distinguished himself, duringthe early part of his legal practice, we were, several times, referred to that of a Mr. Willis, a citizen of Fayette County, who, as was supposed, had committed a murder; under circumstances of peculiar cruelty and cold-bloodedness. From representations made previous to the trial, Mr. C. consented to undertake his defence, and, by a mighty effort, succeeded, in almost direct defiance of testimony, in creating a division of the Jury as to the nature of the defendant's crime. This was the object at -which he specifically aimed. At the next session of the Court, the Attorney for the Commonwealth moved for a venire facias de novo, in other words, a new trial, which was granted by the Court. Mr. Clay made no opposition to this motion, but reserved all his strength for the argument before the Jury. When his turn came for addressing them, in reply to the arguments of the Attorney for the Commonwealth, he rose, and commenced with assuming the position, that, whatever opinion the Jury might have of the guilt or innocence of the prisoner, it was too late to convict him, for he had been once tried, and the law required, that no man should be put twice in jeopardy for the same offence. The Court was startled at this assumption, and peremptorily prohibited the speaker from proceeding in the argument to maintain it. Mr. Clay drew himself proudly up, and remarking, that, if he was not to be allowed to argue the whole case to the Jury, he could have nothing more to say, made a formal bow to the Court, put his books into his green bag, and, with Roman dignity, left the hall, followed by his associate counsel. The consequence was as he had foreseen. He had not been at his lodgings more than five or ten minutes, when he was waited on by a messenger from the Court, requesting his return, and assuring him, that he should be permitted to argue the case in his own way. Instantly he made his re-appearance in the Hall, pressed, with the utmost vehemence, the point he had before attempted to establish, and, on the ground that his client had once been tried, prevailed on the Jury to give him his liberty, without any reference whatever to the testimony against him. Such a decision could not now be obtained in Kentucky, and, at the period in question, was obviously contrary to law.

We have found, from an examination of the court records, in Fayette and the neighbouring counties, that, in trials for capital crimes, Mr. Clay was almost uniformly the advocate of the defendant. We know but one exception, and this grew out of his public relations. It appears, that he had made an effort to procure the office of prosecuting attorney for one of his friends. The Court, however, would not give it to this friend, but were willing to confer it on Mr. Clay himself. The latter felt a strong repugnance to the appointment, but consented to accept it, from a belief, which afterwards proved correct, that he should be able to transfer it to his friend in a short time. While in the discharge of the official duties of this station, he appeared at the bar against a man accused of a capital offence. The defendant was a negro slave — a proud and faithful servant — and one, who had never been accustomed to the degradation of corporeal chastisement. During a temporary absence of his master, however, he was placed under the charge of a young and passionate overseer, who, for some slight or imaginary offence, struck him rudely with a horse-whip. The spirit of the slave was instantly roused, and, seizing a weapon that was near him, he laid his overseer dead upon the spot. This offence, if the perpetrator had been a white man, would have been so clearly a case of manslaughter, that the counsel for the prosecution would have contended for nothing more. It had all the distinguishing characteristicks of manslaughter, having been committed in a moment of sudden exasperation, and without the shadow of previous malice.

The negro, however, stood indicted for murder ; and it belonged to Mr. Clay, as ,,ounsel for the Commonwealth, to sustain, if possible, the indictment, In order to this, he contended, in a long, subtle, and elaborate argument, that, although a white man, who, in a fit of rage on account of personal chastisement killed his •assailant, would be guilty of manslaughter and not murder, a slave could plead no such mitigation of a similar offence, inasmuch as it is the duty of slaves to submit to punishment. We have not a doubt, that this argument was directly opposed to the true spirit of the law. Perhaps a slave is bound by law to submit to chastisement — but does not the law require a white man to submit to the same thing, rather than take life ? Certainly. Even manslaughter is punishable with imprisonment. The particular law, which distinguishes manslaughter from murder, has no reference to the duties of the offender, but has its whole foundation in the indulgence, which has been thought due to those weaknesses and passions of human nature, which lead to the violation oc duties. Every man, who, in a moment of excitement, takes life to revenge a personal indignity, is guilty of a wrong — the white man no less than the slave. The law of manslaughter inquires only as to the fact of the existence of the excitement at the time the deed is perpetrated — and its provisions are as valid in behalf of the slave, as of any other member of the community, unless it can be shown, that the endurance of the wrongs and miseries of slavery annihilates the darker passions, instead of fostering and unchaining them, in all their wildness and strength. Mr. Clay was successful in his argument, notwithstanding the invalidity of his positions. By his strong and plausible reasonings, and the exuberance and felicity of his illustrations, he wrought so completely upon

2* the minds of the Jury, that the prisoner was convicted of murder, and sentenced to death. Soon afterward, he was borne to the place of execution, and the pride of spirit and character, which he there displayed, is said to have been worthy of a Roman patriot. Being asked, whether he was anxious that his life should be spared — "No!" said he, sternly, " I would not live a day longer, unless in the enjoyment of liberty." Mr. Clay was not a witness of the execution, but we have heard him remark, that he regretted the part he had taken in procuring the conviction of this poor slave, more than any other act of his professional life. „

It is indeed a remarkable fact, that, notwithstanding the immense number of capital cases, which Mr. Clay has defended, not one of his clients was ever sentenced to death. We do not believe, that the history of any other advocate, either living or dead, can exhibit such a series of splendid triumphs. The state of society that existed in Kentucky, some years ago, is well known. Murders were of frequent occurrence, and, as a natural consequence, Mr. C. was almost constantly engaged in defending the accused. From his uninterrupted success, it will readily be inferred, that, whenever those who were indicted for murder were so fortunate as to engage his professional services, they felt that their lives were safe. Such was indeed the case — but Mr. C. would not consent to undertake the defence of all prisoners indiscriminately. It is said of him, that he never, in a single instance, consented to appear in behalf of a man charged with a capital crime, unless he either believed the charge to be unfounded, or discovered in the crime some little palliating circumstance, which enlisted his benevolent sympathies. Such indeed is the ardour of his temperament, that, whenever he had once enlisted for a client, his feelings continued deeply and ihrillingly interested, whatever facts might be developed in the progress of the trial. He has oftenv been heard to say, that he was never engaged in eonducting any defence, where he would not gladly have given up the last cent of his fee, if, by so doing, he could have advanced, in the slightest degree, the interests of his .client's cause.

Although Mr. Clay was peculiarly distinguished for his skilful management of criminal causes, his success in civil suits was scarcely less signal. In suits that involved the land laws of Virginia and Kentucky, he had no rival. — But it would be in vain to attempt even an enumeration of the cases, in which, during the early years of his practice, he gathered a rich harvest of gold and fame. In a short biographical sketch, that was given of him about three years ago, we find mention of an incident in his professional life, which was certainly a striking illustration of the rapidity of his intellectual combinations, and his power of seizing upon the strong points of a case intuitively. We give it as a single specimen of what he could tfo. In conjunction with another attorney of eminence, whose name we have forgotten, he was employed to argue, in the Fayette Circuit Court, a question of great difficulty — one, in which the interests of the litigant parties were deeply involved. At the opening of the Court, something occurred to call him away, and the whole management of the case devolved on his associate counsel. Two days were spent in discussing the points of law, which were to govern the instructions of the Court to the jury, and, on each of these points, Mr. C.'s colleague was foiled by his antagonist. At the end of the second day, Mr. Clay re-entered the Court. He had not heard a word of the testimony, and knew nothing of the course which the discussion had taken, but, after holding a very short consultation with his colleague, he drew up a statement of the form in which he wished the instructions of the Court to be given to the jury, and accompanied his petition with a few observations, so entirely novel and satisfactory, that it was granted without the least hesitation. A corresponding verdict was instantlj returned by the jury ; and thus the case, which had bee on the very point of being decided against Mr. Claj client, was decided in his favour, in less than half hour after Mr. C. entered the Court-House.