Daily constitutionalist. (Augusta, Ga.) 1846-1851, March 12, 1847, Image 2

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THE CONSTITUTIONALIST, j JAMES GARDNER, JR. 'TERMS. ! Daily, per annum,., - fS 00 j Tn-Wcekly, per annum, 6 00 i 5 00 ! if paid in advance, I Weekly, per annum, * ~ 1 .... , 2 50 1 It paid in advance,- To Clubs of five, remitting $lO in advance. 00 j jK7*All new subscriptions must be paid in advance. ; aid Lefers nf business. I BEMAuitS OF MIL CALHOUN. I.V REPLY TO MR. HEM TON. 15 Senate, February 24, 1847. Mr. Calhoun rose and said : One thing, Mr. \ President, at least, may be inferred from tbe ; unprovoked attack of the Senator, and the 1 great solitude he evinced to trace the author- ; thip of The war to me—and that is, that the war i« unpopular. There can be no mistake, j He felt that the tide of public sentiment nad turned against it, and hence the anxiety ex hibited to place its responsibility on roy shoiilc - ers, and lake it from those on whom H ought justly to rest. Had he supposed the opposite —had he believed that tbe war was necessa- : rv and unavoidable, and that its termination j would be success—l am the last man to ; whom lie would attribute any agency in j causing it. lam gratified that tbe Senator | h„s furnished this evidence. It affords rea- j enable hope that those who are responsible ; for it, will exert themselves, and I hope with ■ buccess, to bring it to aspeeyd termination. He traces the authorship to me, because, as he asserts, I am the real author of the an nexation of Texas, and that annexation is the real cause of the war. I trust, Mr. Pres ident, there will be no dispute hereafter as to the real author of annexation. Less than twelve months since, I had many competi tors for that honor: the official organ here claimed, if my memory serves me, a large share for Mr. Polk and his Adminis'ration, and not less than half a dozen others from other quarters claimed to be the real authors. But now, since the war has become unpopu lar, they all seem to agree that 1. in reality, am the author of annexation. I will not put the honor aside. I may now rightfully and indisputably clain) to be the author of that great event —an event which has so much extended the domains of the Union, which has added so largely to its productive pow ers, which promises so greatly to extend its commerce, which has stimulated its industry, and given security to our most exposed fron tier. I take pride to myself as being the au thor of this great event. But the Senator objects that I so conduct ed the question of annexation as necessarily to lead to the war. On what does he rest this charge ? He rests it on the ground that I selected the Resolution as it came from the House of Representatives, as the basis of the annexation, instead of giving the Tex an Government the choice between the Hon.-e Resolution and the amendment of the Senate originally moved by the Senator himself. He complained bitterly tiiat the Senate Resolution —passed at the very heel of the session, under the expectation that it would be carried info effect by the present A [ministration, then just coming into power, and not by Mr. Tyler’s Administration, then about to expire—had not been adopted. He seemed to think lhat tiie then Admin istration had no right to act upon it, and that, undertaking to do so, was depriv ing its successor of one of its rights. He accused me of acting with the greatest promptness. The fact is so. The Resolu tion, if I recollect, was signed by the late President about the first of March. I saw the importance of acting promptly, and ad vised the President to act without de ! ay; that he had the constitutional right of doing so, and that I deemed it necessary that he should act in order effectually to secure the success of a measure which had originated with his Administration. His cabinet was summon ed the next day, and concurred in the opt ion. That night I prepared the despatch for Mr. Donelson, our Charge in Texas, and the next day,late in the evening of the third of March, it was forwarded to him. It was my last official act of any importance as Secre tary of State. I selected the Resolution cf the House in preference to the amendment of which the Senator from Missouri was the author, be cause I clearly saw, not only that it was every way preferable, but the only certain mode by which annexation could be effected. My reasons for thinking so were fully set forth in my despatch, which may be found among the public documents accompanying the first annual message of the present Exe cutive. They will speak for themselves; they never have been controverted, and nev er can be successfully. Indeed, I never con- j sidered the Senator’s amendment as ex- ; pressing the deliberate sense cither of the Senate or House o f Representatives. It is well known that he, and a few of his friend?, had the power of greatly embarrassing the | passage of the Resolutions of the House, if not of defeating them; and that his amend- j ment was moved, not so much as an improve- j inent of the Resolutions, as to gratify him j and them. That the course I adopted did j secure annexation, and that it was indispen- , sable for that purpose, I have high authority in my possession. That which all would ad- | init to be the highest, if I could with propri- j ety introduce it; and for this prompt and de cided act, if for nothing else, I might claim the authorship of annexation. Now, can anything be more absurd than the assertion that the war with Mexico re sulted from selecting the House resolution, j instead of the amendment of the senator! He has ventured the bold assertion, without j the shadow of an argument to sustain it.— What possible difference could it make with Mexico, whether the annexation was made upon one or the other ? Why should the one not be as offensive to her as the other ? In deed, I doubt much whether, even to this j day, the government of Mexico knows wheth- ! cr the resolution was passed with or without an alternative. Such is the baseless ground on which he has charged me with being the author of the war. I hud heard, fur several days past, that he had prepared to make an elaborate attack on me. Some of my friends asked, .ather jestingly, if I did not Expect to be annihilated. After these givings out, and auch laiVorious preparation, ] did suppose the senator would make some show of a formid able charge; but of all tbe attacks 1 have ever witnessed in this or .any other' legisla tive body, I have neves kfiown one so empty and ridiculous. Evety one of his charges is founded either in,gm«s error or partial statement of facts, or on some forced and absurd conclusion. I may Login with the ver\ first tiiat he made, lie had the ms?ur mce to assert, in '.he pretence of the &ena'e, , - - - ! that I was the first to introduce the question, ; who was the real author or cause of this j i war ? Now, 1 appeal to every senator, and : every other individual who was present on i ; the occasion, whether rhe senator from Ten ! neesce [ Mr. Turney] did not first charge me S 1 with being the authorof this war, and wheth- i j er I did not limit myself to repelling Ins j | charge, by showing that it originated in lhe I order to General Taylor, to march from Cor- j I pusCbristi, and take position on the KiO del j ! Norte ? Igo further, and ask, is there a sen ' at or here ignorant of the fact, that the ques- , | tion of who was the author or cause of the j | wari Lad been long before elaborately dts ! cussed in this body—in the House of Repre ! sentatives, and throughout the whole country, j f rom its declaration up lolhat time. Intlieface ; j 0 t all this, tbe senator rises up in bis place, j | a fier a long and laborious preparation, and I i asserts, that it was 1 who originated the in quiry, as to who was its author. I his is a I fair sample of the accuracy of the senator, in ■ i his numerous allegations to show that I was j the author of the war. I might go on and ; 1 take them up one by one, and show that every j one of his positions and deductions is equal ly unfounded in fact or false in conclusion. Ido not deem it necessary. A large por tion of his speech was hut the stale repeti tion of what he said in I lie session of 1842 i : —’43, when the treaty which I had conclud- . | ed with Texas, was under discussion in this | body. All the documents now brought for- j | ward, were then before the Senate, and he j J went over the same topics very elaborately, j i and with much more power than on the pre- j sent occasion, without making any irnp r es- , sion on the country. The country was j against him then, and still remains against | him, and it is in vain that he undertakes to : to disturb its settled conviction. It will re- | main ever unchanged, in spite of a: 1 that he ; can do. Under this conviction, 1 will not I weary the Senate, by repelling assaults then i made and then repelled. The most promi- | nent of the charges —the orders given by the ; administration to place a fleet in the Gulf of Mexico, and a portion of the hi my on the frontier of Texas—was repelled by my then colleague, (Mr. McDuffie,) of whom he sneaks’ so highly on this occasion. In re- | pel ling it, he said, that if the orders to which ; the senator then and now objects, had not been issued, the Executive would have been i guilty of great dereliction of duty. The Florida treaty, forming another sub ject of attack, figured also on that occasion, in connexion with annexation, and what lie has said now is but a repetition of what be said then. He then, as now, made me res ponsible for that treaty, although I was but one of six members of Mr. Monroe’s cabinet, and tbe youngest of its members—responsible, without advancing a particle of proof to show that I even gave it my support or approbation. He rests the charge on some disclaimer, as ; it seems that the then Secretary of Slate (Mr. Adams) has, at some time, made, that he was not responsible for the treaty. The senator may be right as to that; but how can that, by any possibility, show that I was responsible? But lam prepared to take my full share of responsibility as a member of i Mr. Monroe’s cabinet, without having any I particular agency in forming the treaty, or | influence in inducing the cabinet to adopt it. I then thought, and still think, it a good treaty; ; and so thought the Senate of the United States for, if my memory does not deceive me, it received nearly every vote of (lie Sen ate. [A Senator. ‘-Yes, every vote.”] It j then received the unanimous vote of the j Senate, promptly given. Os course, if that , treaty was the cause of the war with Mexico, 1 as the senator seems to suppose, this body is as much the author and cause of the war, as j the individual on whom he is now so anxious to fix it. I have said It is a good treaty, not without due reflection. We acquired much by it. It gave us Florida—an acquisition not only important in itself, but also in reference to the whole southwestern frontier. There was, at that time, four powerful tribes of In dians two of whom, the Creeks and the j Choctaw’s, w’ere contiguous to Florida, and | the two others—the Chickasaws and Chero- j kees —were adjoining. They were the most numerous and powerful tribes in the United States, and from their position, were exposed ; to be acted on and excited against us from Florida. It was important that this state of things should terminate, which could be done by obtaining the possession of Florida. But there were other and powerful con siderations for the acquisition. We had a short time before extinguished the Indian title to large tracts of country in Alabama, Mis sissippi and Georgia, lying upon streams and rivers which passed through Florida to the Gulf—lands in a great measure valueless, without the right of navigating them to their mouths. The acquisition of Florida gave us this right, and enabled us to bring into suc cessful cultivation a great extent of fertile lands, which have added much to the increas ed production of our great staple— cotton. Another important point was effected by the acquisition. It terminated a very troublesome dispute with Spain, growing out of the cap- | j ture of St. Marks and Pensacola by General ' 1 Jackson, in the Seminole war; and finally, j it perfected our title to Oregon, by ceding to | us whatever right Spain had to that Terri i lory. i Such is the treaty on which the senator i has lavished so much of his abuse; but there were other reasons for adopting the Sabine I as the boundary, and of which 1 was ignorant j j at the time the treaty was formed, and to the knowledge of which I have come w ithin the last lew years. Mr. Monroe, if I am correctly informed, in adopting that line, acted under circumstances which left him little option. I am not at liberty to state them—the infor ! mation I received confidentially. It is suf ficient to stale that he had ascertained that the Senate would not ratify a treaty with a boundary farther west. It was communicat- I ed to him by senators of first respectability. Their reason for refusing to ratify a treaty which would extend the boundary beyond the Sabine, I do not choose to go info, although j it was communicated to me with the infor ! mafion to which I have alluded. But if we take out of the speech of the senator what he has staled in relation to an nexation, and the Florida treaty, in which, as I have stated, he has repeated old and stale charges, tiiat made not the slighest impress ion on the country at the lime, what is there left of his present attack on me? Ilia sur prising that a man of his experience and sa gacity should suppose that the repetition of these thread-bare charges, regarded as futile when made, should make any impression j now. Indeed, I may consider myselt obliged '[ to him for repeating them, after such elabo ! rate preparation, as it affords the most enn •; elusive proof how exempt my course has been from amyjust censure during tbe long period of time in which he has attempted to truce it. To nnke good his allegation that I am the author of annexation, and that annexation caused the war, fie asserts that I was in favor of the annexation of Texas as far back as 1836, immediately after the battle of »San Jacinto, and the capture of Santa Anna, to prove which he read an extract from the speech which I delivered on resolutions from Mississippi, presented by her senator now | Secretary of the Treasury, instructing the ; senators to obtain an immediate recognition | of the independence of Texas. It is true that 1 then advocated an early i recognition of the independence of Texas, and I its admission into this Union; but I was not alone in that, nor did I take a leading part in I the discussion: the two most prominent ad vocates of her cause at that time were the | senator from Mississippi, and my then col i league, [Mr. Preston,] but they were seconded ; by a large portion of this body at the time. The distinguished senator from Massachu l setts bore a part, in the debate, and expressed ! his opinion in favor of recognition at an early ! period, and of the vast importance of the future condition of Texas to our country. I i have not had time to examine the discussion; ! but find that 1 was among those who advised delav until further information could be ob tained, and many were for prompt action; but tlie senator from Missouri has thought proper, | in the face oflhose facts, to hold me up as the ■ only individual disposed for a prompt and I immediate action. He has done more. He j has suppressed tlie fact, very important to be i known, that before the close of that very session tiie report of the Committee on For i eign Relations—recommending the acknowl ' edgment of the independence of Texas as ! soon as satisfactory information could be ob- j tained that it had successfully established a j government —was adopted by l he unanimous j vole of the Senate, i ncluding the senator | himself; and that at the very next session her j independence was recognised, i Sir, I admit, even at that early period, I j j saw that the incoporation of'Texas into tiiis j Union would be indispensable both to her safety and ours. I saw that it was impossi ble that she could stand as an indepen dent power between ns and Mexico, with- , out becoming the scene of intrigue of j foreign powers alike destructive of the | ; peace and security of both Texas and i I ourselves. I saw more, the bearing of the I I slaveqneation at that early stage, and that ! it would become an instrument in the hands i of a foreign power of striking a blow at ns, | and that two conterminous slveholding com | niunities, could not co-exist without one be ing wielded to the destruction of the other. — 'The senator is right. Wiial I then said was intended to shadow forth the future; that future which actually came, when I was call ed, by the unanimous voice of the country, so take charge of the State Department, in re ference to these very events. I saw, with i General Jackson, that tfie golden opportuni- ! i tv had occurred when annexation must fake place in order to avoid interminable difficul ties and great disasters; and, seeing if. I did not hesitate to undertake the duty which had been assigned me, notwithstanding the dis- j | {lenities, from the weakness of the adtniuis- j I tration at that period. I succeeded, in des-j i pite of them; and that, ton, without war; and j ! nil the elaborate efforts of the senator from! ! Missouri, nevercan deprive me of I lie credit, ; to wliic.h I am entitled, in reference to the | i r reat question of annexation. I ° Qn a review of the whole, my course, I I rnav say, exhibits; not only some foresight in j reference to if, but also some powers of avert- j I ing the dangers, and securing the end which • I desired. i Every measure towards the accomplish- | ; rnent of annexation had been consummated before the present administration came into power. No war followed, although the act of annexation had been completed more than a year before the rupture between us and Mexico took place; nor would war have fol lowed at all had we acted with ordinary pru dence. That Mexico was chafed, chagrined that she threatened much and blustered much; ta’ked about war, and even the existence; of hostilities are all true. It was, 1 however, but talk. The strong should al | wavs permit the weak and aggrieved to talk, ' to bluster ami scold, without taking offence; j and, if we had so acted, and exercised pro i pp r skill in flie management of our affairs— j Mexico and ourselves would, by this time, have quietly and peaceably settled all diffi culties and been good friends. We have chosen to pursue the opposite course, and are in war. Every senator knows that I was opposed to the war, but none knows but myself the depth of that opposition. With my concep tions of its character and consequences, it was impossible for me to vote for it. When, accordingly. I was deserted by every friend on this side of the house, including fny then honorable colleague, among the rest, [Mr. McDuffie.] I was not shaken in the least de gree in reference to mv course. On the pas sage of the act recognising the war, I said to many of mv friends that a deed had been done from which the country would not be able to recover for a long time, if ever; it lias | dropped a curtain between tlie present and 1 the future, which to me is impenetrable; and for the first time since I have been in public life, lam unable to see the future. I also added that it iias closed the first volume of our political history under the constitution, and opened the second, and that no mortal could tell what would be written it. These deep impressions were made upon my mind, because I saw’, from the circumstances un der which the war was made, a total depar ture from that course of policy which had governed the country from the commence ment of our government until lliatiime, and that, too, under, circumstances to lead to most disastsous consequences. Since then, less than a year has elapsed, but in that short period enough has already been developed to ! make what was then said look like prophe cy. , . . _ But the senator charges, entertaining as 1 did these impressions, that I did not take a stand* and arrest the march of Gen. Taylor to the Rio del Norte. I have already stated the reasons on another occasion why I did not; and however unsatisfactory they may be to lhe senator, they are satisfactory to mvself, and I doubt not they will be to the community at large. He also intimated that I ought to have communicated my views to the President. I was guilty of no neglect in that respect; I did not fail so state in the proper quarter explicit}’ what I thought would result from the order given to Gen. Taylor, but I found very different views from mine entertained there. Those in power were quite as confident that the march of Gen. I aylor to the Del | Norte would not in its consequences involve i war, as they were that notice without com promise in reference to the joint occupancy of Oregon would not involve war with Eng land. In looking back upon the*e matters I have the satisfaction to feel that I luPy performed rny duties both here and elsewhere with re ference to these important questions. With my view of the character and conse quences of the war, I have forbone much. I have sufferend not a little in the estimation of my friends both in and out of Congress for refusing to vote for the bill recognising the existence of a war made by the act ot Mexico. I have been urged by them to ex plain tiie reasons for my course on that oc-, casion; but I persi.-ted in declining to do so because I could not see that it would be of any service to the country, while it might weaken the hands of those who are charged with the prosecution of Lite war. I adopted the only course which, according to my opin ion, I could with propriety —to take no ac tive or leading part in reference to measures intended for carrying on the war, but to give a quiet and silent vote in favor of all which did not seem to me decidedly objectionable; but, in the mean time, to look out for the first favorable opportunity of presenting my views how the war should be conducted to bring it most advantageously to a successful termination. I accordingly embraced tiie opportunity on the discussion of tiie three million bill now before the Senate, to present my views, not in the spirit of opposition, but of kindness, to the administration, reseifing to myself the expression of my opinion as to the causes of the war for some suitable occa sion. It seems, however, that tiie friends of those in power were not satisfied with this course on my part; it became an object of as sault both in this chamber and without its walls. 'Tiie senator from Tennessee imme ] diately on mv right [Mr. Turney] commen | ced the attack here by directly charging me with Ucing the author of the war, and itlias since been followed by the senator from Mis | sonri on . this occasion. 1 have thus been : forced, in self-defence, to depart from tiie line j which I had prescribed for myself,and to en : ter into the question. Who is the author of , cause of the War? The responsibility is not on me. but on those who have compelled me to makefile departure. Thus far I have limit- j ed what I have said strictly so self-defence, | as I shall also do on the present occasion. [to be continued.] I ATGUSTA. Clin.. 1— FRIDAY MORNING, MARCH 12, 1847. O” Pursuant to promise, we commence to day, tiie publication of Mr. Calhoun’s speech, in reply to Col. Benton. We have penned a few comments upon if, but will defer them j to our next piper. James K. Polk for u ftevoud Term. We lave recently received tiie following let ter from one of our subscribers — an honest, j sensible, plain planter—a politician in a very quiet way, and wholly unambitious of noto riety. His letter was evidently written only for our eye, and not with a view to its publi | cation. But we take tiie liberty of laying it | before tiie public, because it is expressive of the views of a respectable portion of tiie de | mocracy, and makes a suggestion worthy of consideration. It has already been much discussed and will challenge in due lime still further discussion. While we consider it, I however, premature to discuss tiie question 1 as to who tiie next nominee of the democra i cy shall be, it may not be too soon to decide i upon tiie preliminary question, whether liio ; present incumbent could with propriety, un der 3 iiy circumstances be again placed as a ( candidate before the American people. We do not recede from the opinion former- | lv expressed that the distinct manner in which Mr. Folk announced to the country, in his letter accepting the nomination, that fie accepted it with the express understand- j ing that he would not be a candidate for a se- | cond term, precludes him from aspiring to j the nomination. In saying this, we cannot | forbear the expression of our profound regret ! that this obstacle, or that any obstacle should interpose to prevent his nomination. He is one of the very best Presidents tiie country ; ever had. We make ho exception in favour j of any one in tiie very distinguished list of ; Statesmen who have occupied that exalted i station. No man could have acted belter I than Mr. Po!k lias done under all the frying | circumstances of his administration. His fidelity to the principles of that political creed j of stern republicanism in which he was rear ed—to which he lias through life been pletig ed, and on tiie faith of which he was elected, are worthy of ail commendation. With less firmness, and less purity of character, he might have wavered, or been swayed by sinis ter influences. But fie has calmly ami philo sophically pursued tiie even tenor of his way, amidst tiie fierce collisions of party and tiie unscrupulous strifes of sectional inter ests. He lias kept tiie vessel of Slate steadi ly on the republican tack. He lias been a shield to protect the constitution from in roads and violation. Many and dangerous would have been tiie attempts to innovate upon, and disregard its restrictions, but that 80 faithful a sentinel (armed with the Veto power,) was watching over its safety. The South especially, whose security is so much dependent for a faithful regard to tiie princi ples of strict construction, should feel grate ful that the President has so nobly fulfilled the expectations of his Slate Rights sup porters. We tiiercfore esteem it a misfortune that Mr. Polk should by his acceptance have placed himself in an attitude that forbids his becoming a candidate again. We of the south may never again get a President to come up so fully to our wishes—one whose political tenets are so fully coincident with those of tiie south. We should feel great er security for southern rights, and for the perpetuity of tiie Union, if assured that Mr. Polk could remain another term in the Executive Chair. The question proposed, as to the duly of tiie President to obey in case lie were called on by the voice of the country to serve a se cond term, we consider we have already vir tually answered. He ought not to allow his name to be proposed or offered in any way— nor ought any party to consider itselt at liber ty to urge him. A pledge was made to the country that he would not be again a candi date. That reconciled conflicting preten sions of candidates. It was perhaps the means of influencing many votes in his fa vour. We know of no circumstances strong enough to justify a violation of that pledge. We can suppose cases, which might be so extreme as to justify it. But these would not be in the range of probabilities. \V e will say in conclusion that but for this obsta cle we would rather see Mr. Polk President for the next term than any other man in tiie United States, and would support him with all the zeal and energy of our n iture. Dear Sir: I perceive you think that James K. Polk, in accepting his nomination on the one term principle, deprived the democracy of the privilege of running him for the Presi dency a second lime. Now, 1 had not thought so, and yet think it with the people, and if they call on him to run again, tiiat it is for him to obey their vo ce. So far in his administration I see no reason to wish to change him. short of anoth er four tears term. I think that fur any thing that has yet appeared, he would be as apt to be successful as any man the demo crats could run. The triumph of the demo cracy depends on running a man on whom tiie party will unite. Therefore we need never fear, if ice run the right man. But if not, we may expect a defeat, as has been and may again be the case. He must be a thorough going, straight forward Jackson democrat, to unite the party. I think James K. Polk that man, and should like to see democratic editors bring his claims before the people, if on reflection they may 1 think as I do. I recollect the anxious sus ; pense I was in when the Baltimore Conven tion was in session, for fear Mr. Van Bnren, or some one on whom the party would not unite, would receive the nomination; and I ; recoiicct ton, Sir, when I received intelli gence of the result, how firmly I believed that they had selected exactly the right man; and the first words escaping my lips to a whig who was present —‘‘Henry Clay is beaten.” • A Public Bulbing Hornet Our city is in need of an establishment of I this kind, got up in good style, and under the 1 charge of a person who will attend faithfully to tiie business. We would suggest tiiat the plan adopted in Savannah, as it has been in other cities, would be well worthy of our imitation. Let such an establishment be built by subscription, each subscriber taking the amount of the same in tickets at tiie re gular valuation. This will secure the erec tion of such an establishment, with all ne cessary fixtures, and it can bo made the in- | terest of a person who would he in every \ way suited to keep it up, to fake charge of it for tiie profits. The subscribers could on consultation arrange these details among themselves. We make this suggestion as one most likely to secure so great a desideratum for our city. Private enterprise has never ven tured an amount sufficient to get up a bath ing establishment, upon a scale commodious and elegant enough to tempt our population generally to patronize it. But we believe a liberal expenditure in tiie first instance, will , accomplish this, and secure to our citizens a : ! great and permanent luxury. We deem it ; unnecessary to dilate upon the blessings such i an establishment would confer. Our citizens I generally should feel a strong personal inter ! esl in this matter on account of their own i comfort and convenience. Every bus ness | | man, and every owner of property here i j should feel interested to promote an enter- j I prize which would add to the attractions of j tiie city, and would afford additional induce- ! ments to strangers visiting or passing thro’, | ! to prolong their stay. Tiie spring is upon us—the summer will j j soon be here, and it is discreditable to our i i city tiiat it has no public establishment, ; 1 where tiie fatigued, heated and dusty travel- j ; ler can refresh himself by a bath, after wea [ ry days and nights of travel. Animal itlajgnctinm. Dr. J. P. Webster, who proposes lecturing in this city, brings testimonials of high character as to his capacity in lecturing on the above subject. His experiments in Clairvoyance , Phreno-Magnetism, 4* c will no doubt be highly entertaining and instruc j live. We recommend persons who feel an ! interest in tin’s mysterious science, for we I believe it aspires to tiie d gnity of a science, i to attend his opening lecture on Monday eve i ning next at tiie Masonic Hall. I ° The Great Northern .Hail. We learn from the Charleston Mercury, that by contracts for the ensuing four years, the great Northern Mail will not reach that city until 12 M. and leave Charleston at 1 p. m. The Mercury complains of this arrangement, as being very de trimental to the interests of the merchants of that city, and soil will be, for the letters will not come to hand until after the close of business hours. The present arrangement is not v%ry favorable to our citizens, for they never get their Northern cor respondence until 5 p. m., but by this new arrange ment it will be worse, for they will not be able to obtain their letters before next morning. The Mer cury suggests tiiat the citizens of Charleston and the Chamber of Commerce take this subject into consideration, and we would respectfully sugge? | the same course to the citizens of Augusta, for it is a matter in which they are deeply interested. jirDr. M. T. Mendenhall, has been elect ed Ordinary for Charleston district. The vote stood, Mendenhall, 935; llarleston, 438; R. Eife, 265; R. Q. Pinckney, 255; E. C. Peroneau, 233; H. Simons, 233; Cooper, 169; Godfrey, 100; and Capers, 56. o*The Northern mail failed last evening from offices beyond Charleston. The Wes tern mail due yesterday morning, also failed from offices beyond Columbus, Ga. Noa* Vcrrona. The correspondent of the Boston Courier (anti-war) says that Mr. Webster paid Mr. Calhoun’s great speech in the Senate the compliment of remarking that it would end the war.—Oh, Daniel, thou art no prophet ! Recent rire iu Columbus. The Times of the 9th inst. says—“ The damage by the fire, which in our “extra," we estimated at £>30,000, will very considerably exceed that. It must be nearer 60,000 dol lars. “Most of the parties burnt out, whether in buildings or merchandize, were insured in whole or in part. There are, however, several cases of severe loss to parlies who could ill afford it." CrThcre are 18 cotton factories in Geor gia, with an aggregate capital of about sl, 600,000. [D*The amount of Treasury notes outstan ding on the Ist inst, was $7 730 97. OTt is known to most of our readers that not nine months since a very large part of the town of Nantucket was destroyed by fire. The loss was estimated at SBOO,OOO, yet the people of that place have sent S2OOO to Bos ton for the sufferers in Ireland. Volligtur Regiment. We notice the following correction in the last Columbus Times, in regard to one of the recent appointments to the Army, made by 1 he President : John Jones, Esq., of Georgia, now in com mand of the “Crawford Guards" in Mexico, is appointed Captain of Volligeurs. Leonidas Mclntosh, son of Col. Mclntosh, both of whom distinguished themselves in the battles of the Rio Grande, is appointed Ist Lieutenant, and Robert C. Forsyth, (not the Editor of this paper, as stated by the Savannah Republican, but his younger brother) is 2d Lieut, of the same company. The Corps is to be armed with Rifles, and Howitzer and Rocket Batteries, and to b« mounted. ITlurdcr. Sawney Reid, a tree man of colour, wu killed on Monday evening last by a slave called Ambrose, belonging to the estate o. W. W, Gordon. Tne parties had some diff ficulty in the street, near the Eastern end of the city, when Ambrose struck Reid with a club and knocked him down, alter which Ried took refuge in a* shop, kept by F. W. Averfeld, when Ambrose pursued him with a knife ami inflicted a blow upon the left sid« of lie neck, which caused his death in a few minutes. Ambrose was arrested and sent to jail, and will he brought up before Mr. Justice Bollineau for examination this morning. The alleged cause of the murder was jealousy.—* Savannah Republican, \ oih inst. The Races. In consequence of the late rains, we un derstand that the track yesterday was quite heavy. The weather, however, was fine and the sport exciting; First Race —Colt st;ik^—sloo entrance (halt forfeit,) and SIOO by the Club; three entries,miles heats: H. K. Burroughs’ b. f. Mi-s Chase, 1 I M. McAlpin’s br. f. Betsy Beil, 2 3 Mr. Lowndes paid forfeit. Time-— 1 59—2 02. Second Race—Mile hcatt—Purse SIOO. 11. K. Burroughs’ b. g. John Watson, 11 A. Wilson’s b g. D.m’l O’Connell, 2 2 Time —2 00—2 00. The following are the entries for this day’s Race—Pur.-e S2OO: — Louis Lovell enters his b. f. out of Sally | McGraw.hv Gano, 1 years old. James H<rri>on enters his s. m. Henrietta, ! 4 years old. out of Miss Emily, by Boston.—• Savannah Republican ICh'/i inst. mrUiHciiolf Suicide. Th° New-Vork 'Tribune ot 6ih inst. state* that Ezra L. Miller, a resident of Brooklyn, took a room at Stewart’s Hotel, in Newark, N. J, on lhe evening of 'Thursday last.— About noon the following day the report cf r pistol was heard, but excited no suspicion at the time. About an hour and a half after ward a servant went in to attei d to llie cham ber, and found sitting in a chair in one corner with his head hanging, dead, and a discharg ed pistol lying on the floor, he having shot himself in the right side of the head. A let ter was him,found on a hureua,addrefsed—“S. P. Britain,Eq. Elizabethtown—to be sent.” He entered his name on the register as Mil lard or Miller, of New-York. Mr. Miller was well known in this city, and his melancholy fate will excite the sym pathy of all who had the pleasure of his ac quaintance. Mild and unassuming, tempe rate and correct in his habits, and irreproach able in character, he possessed an indomita b e energy and perseverance that commanded admiration and respect, and carried him through many eventful changes of fortune.— Charleston Courier, 11 th inst. We are authorized to announce THOMAS HOPKINS, as a candidate for Council, from Ward No. 2. March 12 iO-BENJ. CONLEY will be supported for re election, as a Member of Council in the Third Ward, at the ensuing election. March 11 jKr Wb are authorized to announce Dr. L. D. FORD, a* a candidate for re-election to the May oralty of this city. [March 6 131 We are authorized to announce Dr. L. A. DUGAS, as a candidate for re-election to Council from the second Ward, at the election to he held in April next. March 5 J£T" We are authorized to announce Dr. J. G. McWHORTER as a candidate for Mayor of the the City of Augusta, at the election on ihe second Monday in April next. Feb. 16 £C Cr Mr. Editor —Please announce the follow ing named gentlemen as candidates for Membera of Council for Ward No. 1, at the coming election in April next:—J AS. GODBY.A. P. SCHULTZ. Feb. 13 *— JCT Mr. Editor —Please announce Dr. I. P. GARVIN as n candidate for Member of Council for Ward No. 1, and oblige Many Voters. Feb. 20 —* H 9 JC7" Mr. Editor —Please announce the name of CIFARLES E. GRENVILLE, Esq., as a candi date for Council in Ward No. 1, And oblige Feb. 17 *— MANY VOTERS. ~KT DR. J. A. CLEVELAND, has returned to this city, and may be consulted at the office of Cleveland <fe Spear, over the store of Messrs. Al drich & Green. Felt. 23 We are requested to announce H. D. BELL, us a suitable candidate for Council in Ward No. 2. 17