Farmers' gazette, and Cheraw advertiser. (Cheraw, S.C.) 1839-1843, August 23, 1842, Image 1
' "0 u t Ml ? ?18' <!? ? > 111 r >
asfw ?wm?nwVOLUME
VII. CIlEltAW. SOUTlI-CAf^.LINA TUESDAY, AUGUST 23, 1842. NUMBER 41.
By M. MACLEAN. .
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~~~
[From the Temperance Advocate.]
REPORT
Of the Committee on Potatoes before the
Newberry Agricultural Society, July i
27, 1842.
The Committee on Potatoes, find little i
difficulty in reporting on this root, so
generally cultivated by the planters of
South Carolina, which culture has been '
quite successful ; yet we beg leave to j
suggest its improvement, and believe it
practicable to add valuable qualities to it, ;
by careful attention ; deriving this opinion
from contrasting the scarcely edible u Solannum
Tuberosum" which was discover- j
ed indigenous in South America, and tne
cultivated Irish Potato, a root which has
contributed at least one half to the sustenance
of the peasantry of tlie middle climates
of Europe, for the last twenty years.
It is conceded that to ensure a plentiful
crop of this species of potato, it is only
necessary to prepare the soil well, plant ;
early, and manure properly; for which;
purpose recourse should be had to the
bountiful materials at the command of!
every planter, in the shape of hog-hair, ,
rotten straw and chaff, China-berries and
cotton seed, all of which are admirable '
ingredients to promote this crop. We
cannot recommend the latter too highlv, ;
as the best Irish Potatoes we have ever
seen grown in Newberry District were ,
manured with cotton seed. With tho i
above general directions, and a moist cli- j
mate, after having selected (he seed care- j
fully, no one need despair of a good crop ,
of Irish potatoes, as it is a fixed maxim
in regard to this crop, that the least work
ensures the best and most palatable tubers.
?The tubers of the Irish Potatoes, having
no distinct taste, and being compost d
chiefly of starch, have more of the nature ;
of flour, or the farina of grain, than any j
other vegetable, which causes this potato j
to he a versa I ly a lavonu:; a no u uun uc
longer used without becoming unpulutuO
t i
blc, than any other article of diet. Among
its various domestic uses, in (lor- i
many and Ireland, bread is made of it, by
a preparation of flour from tiie dried roots,
^ and the addition of a small quantity ol
wheat flour-; and puddings equal in flavor
to the- "celebrated mil et puddings?to
which we may add potato starch, which,
independently of its use in tin; laundry, is |
an equally delicate article of food for in- I
validsassago or arrow roof. In the North- 1
ern States it is extensively used as food !
lor cattle, horses ami hogs.
We deem the peculiar province of our !
rcp??rt confined to the cultivation of the
sivect potato, (Convalvolus Batatus,) j
which was introduced into England pre- i
vious to the Irish potato, and was in those
days, supposed to possess the qualities of
restoring decayed vigor, and more frequently
found in the shop of the confertioner,
than in the (aider of the cook. It
is a native both of Spain and the Canary i
Islands, and was, as an edible, in such had !
repute in the year 1699, tiiat the renown- !
Evelyn, in his work on gardening, recom- j
mends that potatoes should he planted in !
* 1 * ?ml n;n n pn rrII
ine worsi "iuuiiu, nuu < v.
u * p
we live in an age and country where \vc
can say, plant sweet potatoes in your best
land; though probably in the days of the
author above quoted, the promise by this
root was such, that it held forth no inducementsjto
the cultivator ; and certainly
time has proved that England's soil and
climate have been uncongenial to its irn*
improvement. Though there are many
who, even in Newberry, take this advice
and neglect this crop, for the sole fact,
that they themselves are not fond of potatoes?not
consulting the tastes of voracious
hogs and cows, who squealing and
lowing for corn and hay, would he happi
Iv regaled w ilh a satisfactory meal from
O the
potato pile.? We regard the successful
cultivation of the sweet potato as an
easy attainment. It delights in a light,
^ rather sandy, deep and well stirred soil,
^ which must be located mi a dry subsoil,
though we have raised good potatoes on
clay lands. We think a moist atmosphere,
the temperature of which is warm,
most conduci ,*c to the early growth and i
? * ill/, l\?ln!n.
ji it'UNim ii'i? ui wi luv . ?
Our rule, when we do manure for jm- ;
tntoes, is lo spread liie manure broad caM i
over (lie soil?hence, the easiest manner
of preparing the land properly, is to row
poll the ground intended for potatoes late '
in the summer, and during the fall giving
it frequent ploughing, so that the manure j
deposited may not he evaporated or washcd
away bv rains. Plough uj) the land
J ' _ c
very docj) earl v in January ; to which
ploughing \vc would rece;:i:uciid a suo j
soiling to those who have the proper implement.
Plough again in February,
and in March repeat with a like plough
ing; immediately after which, we bed up
our land with a common twister plough
four feet wide, upon which beds we drop
our potato slips five or six inches apart,
covering them with a hoe. one and a half
inches deep, with good mellow soil.
Tiiis mode of planting is usually termed
ridging ; and simply to cross the beds
at equal squares with their width, we can
form potato hills by drawing up the corners
of the squares with a hoe. We have
tried both hills and ridges, and have no
preference, though the soil, when planted
in hills is most likely to be washed away
by violent rains. We plant four or five
slips in each hill. So soon as the potatoes
begin to sprout, the ridges or hills should
be scraped off with a hoe, which will enable
the young plants to come up readily,
and immediately after they have appear- ;
ed above ground, the beds should be I
ploughed down, which ploughing should
be performed carefully, and as close to the
nl.mfs ns ihov will hear, so as not to (lis
turb the parent slip. This yields to the i
young plant that warmth which is so '
much desired in this culture, and potatoes
thus cultivated will stand the summer j
drought better than those which have
been tended otherwise. Frequent j
ploughings with a few times hoeing is all
that is necessary, until the vines attain a
length which interferes with the ploughing,
at which period the ridges and hills
should he drawn up with a hoe, fuller than
they were originally, and in such a manner
that they should be hollow at top.
(ireat care should be taken not to throw
anv soil on the vines, and therefore, whilst 1
drawing up tiic bed, they should be gently !
raised by the hand. Just before the !
vines reach the bottom of the beds, a !
plough should ho run twice through the j
tows, in order to give them mellow earth !
to root in. This will serve to sustain the
vine in extreme drought, and as the leaves
are almost the only organs which feed tuberous
roots, we earnestly recommend an !
abandonment of the practice of topping !
potatoes, or tearing the vines with a j
plough?and particularly the practice of J
making a calf pasture of the potato patch, i
late in the summer. Potatoes for plan- I
1 iriir should always he raised from cutO
-?
tings, as they are generally more succulent,
and vegetable better in the Spring
than those which are raised from small
potatoes. And hence, large potatoes
bringing forth stouter plants are preferable
to very small slips. The chairman
of litis Committee has raised 500 bushels
of good sweet potatoes on an acre of land,
and 1300 bushels has been an average
crop with him.
They were of tlie dark mottled Spanish 1
variety, which we think are the best; 1
though any and every sort should he cultivated,
and we are not advocates for any I
particular variety, us the yellow yarn
would suit a sandy location, whilst the
dark Spanisn would succeed better on
clay soils. The yam is best cultivated
from sprouts drawn from a bed, but for
the cultivation of almost every other variety
of the sweet potato, we deem it advisable
to plant the root itself. Our plan to
preserve potatoes is simple : making a circular
bed 8 or (J feet in diameter, on
which wc place pine straw or corn stalks ;
in the centre of which wc set upright a
plank tube with a great many holes bored
in its sides, around which tube we pile up
our potatoes until the cone is completed
within a lew inches of the top of the tube,
when we cover them up with pine straw,
corn stalks, and lastly with earth four or
live inches thick. The tube may be
closed in frosty weather by a wisp of
straw?during mild weather, it may be
opened, in order to allow the gas arising
from decayed, bruised potatoes to escape.
Willi this and the addition of a temporary
shelter, we have always succeeded in
saving potatoes.
The sweet potato, independently of its
great use in culinary concerns, is a crop
which deserves mote attention ut (he
hands of our up-country planters. The
fine effect which they give when fed to
milch cattle, should make it a favorite
with all who delight in good milk and
butter. They furnish a line wholesome
beverage in tne shape of potato beer; and
we ask, as a matter of inquiry, whether
the sweet potato could not be dried so as
'1 - I 1 A - 1 4 ^
to turnisn a Hour eminently auapieu 10
culinary purposes, at those seasons when
we cannot enjoy the root in its green
state ? \Ve unhesitatingly recommend
that the same land be planted in potatoes
each succeeding year, lor wc believe that
the culture of this crop adapts the soil for
the increased reproduction of this root,
believing that the covering of the vines
where potatoes are gathered, restores the
land a larger supply of nutrition than is
consumed by the production of the crop.
?There is now growing, in the garden of
ttie chairman of this Committee, a variety
of potatoes entirely new in this section of
ihe country, known as tiie Massicolton,
- * * - ,|rir
(>l .ViiiUill! yiiui, pua^vasuig niv aiiumui
faculty of p.oducing its tubers on tlie
vine above the ground. It is characterized
bv very rich and luxuriant growth.
It seems to be admirably adapted to the
construction of arbors, us it easily attains
t he length of twenty and twenty-five feet.
It is said to he line llavored, and as the
vine lias a quantity of potatoes nowgiowing
on it, this Society l-JijH be informed
I of its value, should it possess r.ny, and
of the success of the cultivator in growin?jr
it.
I
All of which is respectfully submitted
John* Summer, Sen., Chairman,
J. II. Maffktt,
C. B. Griffin.
From the Farmer''s Register.
MARLING IN SOUTH CAROLINA.
To the Fditor of the Farmer's Register.
* * * I am still pressing on with
the marl, and have collected on my bluff,
| since I planted my crop, some 25,000
bushels, and arnstill bringing up ii,4UU
bushels per week : I shall begin to haul it
I out as soon as I gather. The forwardness
of cotton will interfere with me some,
i as I shall have little or no time between
gathering fodder and commencing to
pick, but I am resolrcd to have between
GOO and 7U0 acres marled for the next
crop. The land marled this year shows
the effects very plainly, and that marled
i earliest shows best, which gives me faith
in its continuing to improve. I think, as
thinks every one, that the effect this year
\ is fully equal to a fair coal of our stable
I manure. Both the corn and cotton marled
are also in advance of earlier plantings,
apparently a week or ten days now. I
find that some bald places, have been injured,
but, to counterbalance, low wet
places which I thought too wet for marl,
have proved to have been only too sour
heretofore, and are bearing finally. My
experimental acres in corn will afford a
pretty fair test, but not in cotton. It turns
out that the acres without marl and with
the .300 bushels of marl were far superior
in point of soil to those with the 100 and
250 bushels. I was deceived by the
stalks of cotton. The last year being a
very peculiar one, the poorer acres produced
as well as the best. In addition to
this, the marled land being slower to come
up, iny overseer planted it all over again.
The acre unmarled vegetated earliest,
and was only replanted : half of it is ten
days or more older than the others. On
the whole, however, I am fully satisfied,
and if it goes on as it now promises, I
_! II ? - F imnrl oil fvitf T\? onlln/f
1 U IIU JK, .VA., -r ? J
From the Southern Planter.
AN EXPERIMENT ON STONE FRUIT,
i You know, sir, how difficult it is to ripen
the nectarine. liem^ a smooth skill
SlUlll ?>;i UIIW1 1 lllllll till llljr |iiuiiitng
land. .My people all say the marl has
very much improved the land for working.
The stiff parts arc mellowed, and the light
made more consistent. They say, loo,
that they can work the out-grass better,
and k;ll more of it. This terrible nuisance
made its appearance a few years
ago on my place. I have done nothing
to arrest it, for I have never known anything
to avail. Do you suppose marl
can have any effect on it? Possibly it
is an acid grass, and, like sorrel, may be
tooted out by alkalies.
Remarks by the Editor.
[We I iuve heretofore, on several occasions,
remarked upon the absence of all
effort to improve by marling in South 1
i Carolina : and afterwards welcomed the
; news of the earliest movement towards
I that great and beneficial work. We rc;
joico now to learn that, at least on one
large plantation, marling is in that state
I of progress, and has been already so suo1
cessful in profitable effects, ns to leave no
I doubt of there being now fairly commenced
such operations as will soon make
I South Carolina a marling country. In
*
this great ''internal improvement" of
j that state, (more valuable for private
j profit, and for augmenting the pub|
lie wealth, than nil her great and
; costly improvements for transporta;
lion, on rail roads and by navigation,)
the writer of the private letter from which
i we have taken the liberty of extracting
j for publication the foregoing passage will
j be one of those p oncers who will render
the greatest service to the countrymen,
by practically showing to them the way
to improve and reap rich profits from their
great and almost totally neglected natural
resources. In consideration of our object,
, to make his example more profitable to
i others we trust that he will excuse this
' use made of a portion of the last received
i of his several private letters, written to
obtain information for his own guidance
! in mai ling. We cannot presume farther,
and point out the writer or his locality
more distinctly. But we may say to
i those of his countrymen who can use
| inarl, and have done so?Seek out for
the most extensive and successful marlling
operations now in progress in South
Carolina?sec them and judge for yourself,
and then act according to your judgI
ment of the proofs of success and profit."
[It is true, and lamentable, that all that
i is said, written, or published to urge to
i this or any other novel improvement in
: agriculture, has scarcely any etfect, even
j on those who hear and read all the facts
, and reasoning. But exhibit the same
truth to the eves of the same persons, and
| twenty of them will follow the example,
: where one would without such ocular
I proofs being presented. Wc have, in our
! way, by writing and publishing, done
1 very far more than our correspondent to
instruct his countrymen, as he has been
instructed, and almost to no purpose ; but
iiis practice will do what our precepts
j have failed to cliectin every particular,
! except on himself and perhaps a few othj
ers. .Mav he ellectually do this good
work, in which we have, for this Slate,
??wl ~<\ fir uirmnllv failed. Kn. F. R.l
not got a lodging place in the soil." i
Yours, with (he best wishes for the sue- I
cess of your Planter, T. Ritchie.
Richmond, June 1, 1342.
P. S.?If your friends desire any cut- i
tings of the black apricot, they are welcome
to them. I will send you a specimen
of the fruit when it is ripe. The ,
tree grows in my hack yard. My nectarine
tree was an old tree, much injured by
the worm before I removed it?and was
stripped down by the wind tiie fourtii year
after it was transplanted. T. R.
There is no man in this country, who
understands,.better than Mr. Ritchie, the 1
proper mode of demonstrating to an editor
the truth of ;i proposition : we have received
a plate of the fruit, rare as it is delicious,
the black ap-icot, to which ho refcrs.
In the name of our friends, we return
thanks to Air. Ritchie for his polite
offer with respect to the cuttings.
That the fruit is saved from the curculio,
if the passage of the worm from the
fallen fruit to the ground can he interceptod,
is confirmed by the testimony of
John Carter, the celebrated nurseryman
1 in this vicinity. Instead of the trampling
or pavement, Mr. Carter subjects them to
the devouring jaws of his swine, which
have a regular run in his peach orchard.
From the Southern I'lanter.
Flow to cook Cucumbers.?We have
seen a recipe to cook cucumbers, somewhat
a Iter this fashion :
Take the cucumbers and after cutting
off the rind, cut them into slices, then
cut up a few onions wilh them, pepper
and salt them to your liking, and add
vinegar to them?and then,?open your
window and throw them away.
This is the usual way of preparing them
for the table, and doubtless, the recipe is
so worded as to impress the idea of their
unheal thincss, and we must confess, that
we are among those who have so esteemed
them. Hut ifcooked as beiow stated,
we conceive them not only to he wholesome,
hut among the most palatable vegetable
dishes with which the table can be
"arnished. Our method is this :
o y
ParcofTthe rind, then cut the cucumber
into slices lengthwise, dust either side
of those slices with corn meal or wheat
flour pepper and salt them to please your
taste ; this done, fry them brown, and you
will have one of the most delicious dishes
that you can imagine, combining in their
flavor those of tlie oyster plant and eggplant.
Of their health fulness, thus cooked,
there can he no question, and of their
palatableness, it is only necessary that you
try them, to say with us that they are exquisite.
novel mode of cultivating corn.
Extract from Louisville Journal.
My universal rule is, to plough my corn
land the fall preceding the spring when |
1 plant; and as early in the spring as I
possible, I cross plough as circumstances
will permit, and as soon as this is done,
I commence checking otf the first way
with my large ploughs, and the second
with my small ones, the checks, three feet
by three, admitting of working the land
both ways. And then I plant my corn
from the 20th to the 25th of March?a
rule to which 1 adhere with scrupulous
exactness ; planting from eight to twelve
grains in each hill, covering the same
from four to six inches deep, greatly prej
furring the latter depth ; and in this par. j
I ticular I take more pride and more pains ;
than any other farmer in Kentucky, hold-;
ding it as my ruling principle, that the j
product of the corn corresponds very |
-1- . i?nr/,iu.rlr rovcred.
mucn upon us ut'iiiu ?
and much on its l?e?u?i properly ploughed
the first time. So soon as n;y corn crop
is U|? ufsw/litit'llt height, f stait tiie large
! ned fruit, free from the furze, the curculio
is fonder of attacking it than the
poach, and it is generally eaten up by its
worm. As the immature fruit fulls, the
worm retires into the earth, only to rise
again the next springand renew upon the
young nectarines. I had been so often
tantalized in the growth of this beautiful
fruit?none of my three trees bringing in
many years a single specimen to maturity
on my little farm, that I determined to
remove one of them to my back yard in
the city, which is well paved with brick.
In the second spring the tree produced as
beautiful nectarines as could be desired.
My apricots always succeed in the same
situation?and a worm is never seen in
them (for ten years)?among them is the
bhcli apricot, a sound, very pretty and
racy fruit, partaking of the character of
the plum and the nectarine.
My attention has been drawn to this !
matter by an article in the last farmers'
Register," 207, on 44 The Fruit Curculio,"
from Ilillsboro,' North Carolina, April
8th, which states that,44 a few years since,
while at the house of a very intelligent
farmer of Lincoln county, I was forcibly
struck with the lively and clean appear,
ance of his plum trees, which were then .
loaded with fruit. On inquiring his mode
of treatment, he remarked, that the only
secret in tho case was to set them out by
the roadside, (as his were) or along somepath
where the ground would be trodden
down as hard as possible. It would appear,
therefore, that the rationale of the
thing is not to be sought in the shell marl
or in the clay, but in having such a hard
pan of earth around and under the trees, (
that the insects, which infest them, can- 11
harrow directly over the rows, allowing a |
horse to walk on each side, harrowing the '
way the corn was planted ; and on land 1
prepared as above and harrowed as directed,
the hoeing part will be so completely
performed by this process, that it
will satisfy the most skeptical. Then, al- j
lowing the corn thus harrowed to remain
?
a few days, I start my ploughs with the.
har next the corn ; and so nicely will '
this be done, that when a row is thus
ploughed, so completely will the intermediate
spaces1, hills, &c., he lapped in by
the loose earth occasioned by this system :
of close ploughing, as to render any oth- I
er work useless for a time. I thin to 1
four stalks upon a hill, never having to j
transplant, the second ploughing being
performed with the moulubonrd towards
the rows of corn ; and so rapid has been j
the growth of the corn between the first j
and second ploughing*, that this is per- [
formed with ease ; and when in this stage,
I consider my crop safe ; my general rule ;
being, never to plough my corn more than
four times, and harrow once. My prac- (
ticc is, to put a field in corn two succes-!
sivc years, then "rass it and let it liecmlit
J ' Co D
years, a rule from which I never deviate.
Now, I do not pretend that the labor bestowed
upon a sod-field, to put it in a
stato of thorough cultivation, does not
meet with a fair equivalent from one crop,
hut I presume no farmer will doubt when
I say, the second year's crop from sod-land
is better than the lirst, with not more than
one half the labor. The best system of
funning is, to produce the greatest amount
rS frnin the smallest amount of
HI |l| -
labor.
1 lay it down as an axiom incontrovertible
in the cultivation of corn, that whenever
a large crop has been raised, it was
the result of close and early planting; and
I defy proof to the contrary. 1 plant my
corn three feet by three, four stalks in a
hill, and allow hut one ear to a stalk,
and one hundred ears to a bushel, and
then ascertain how many lulls there arc
in a shock, sixteen hills square, which is
the usual custom to put it up. My present
crop, planted on the 20th of March,
hids fair to outstrip any preceding one ;
I am now ploughing and thinning the
first planting. Walter C. Young.
Jessamine Co., Ky., April 2G, 1842.
From the Southern Planter.
It LACK SHEET.
Messrs- Editors,?A neighbor selected
a very likely young ram which he designed
"turning out" and at shearing time
o o
made known such intention to his "headman,"
Peter. The shearing over, Peter
came to his master and said the lainh he
had selected would not do to "turn out"unless
he wished to have black sheep in his
llock. How do you make that out, Pete ? !
* m
said his master ; the lamb is the whitest
'ft -. i.~ ?i:?,i
in tlie Hock, inai may uc, iw-pucu i tic, ,
but I tell you half his lambs will bo black,
for he has a rlack streak under his ;
tongue. The master and myself in talk, j
ing on the subject.came to the conclusion
that a greater man than Pete had advan- I
ced the same opinion, and accordingly '
we picked up an old Virgil and common. I
ced the search. After no little trouble,
we found the following :?(Geo. 3?387.) !
" Ilium autcm, quamvisarics bit candidus ipse, j
Nigra subest udo tantum cui lingua jKtlato, !
Rejice, nc maculis infused vcllcra pullis,
Nasccntum."
The English of which, I presume is, "But.
though the ram himself may be white, !
reject him, under whose moist palate j
there is a black tongue, that he may not ;
darken the fleeces of the lambs with j
blackish spots."
Whether Pcto had borrowed the idea
from the " Mantuan Bard " or not is a
matter of no consequence. The question
for you, Mr. Botts, or some of your correspondents,
is-Js the idea correct ??
Wc have, you see, the opinion of a " book '
farmer" and a practical one?of an ancient
and a modern?a great man and a I
little one. P. B? W. j
Nottoway.
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.
Wednesday, August, 1812.?
The speaker having announced the
business in order to be the consideration
of the message of the President of the
United States yesterday received, stated
the question thereon, (as it will be found
in another part of this paper) when?
Mr. Adams said that in some observations
lie had submitted in the [louse on
Friday and Saturday, lie had requested
the indulgence of the House to postpone
the subject then before the House, in the
hope that some ciicumstanccs might tran- !
spire between that time and the Monday
morning lb.'owing, which would relieve
the House Irom a great portion of what
he should otherwise feel it his duty to sub- j
mit. That contingency was the possi
billty (a possibility he had been most reluctant
to relinquish) that the dissension !
and discord existing between the Execu- 1
live and the Legislative branches of the
Government might, within eight and
forty hours, he entirely removed. It was
his opinion then, and he related it now,
that if it had been the pleasure cl tac
President to eirect an entire reconciliation
of the Kxecutivc with Congress, he had
nothing more to do than to put his name,
accompanied by the word " approved." to
an act which had been submitted to him,
and which was of infinite importance to
the honor, the credit, and the prosperity
of this nation. He had thought so then ;
thought so now. He did most conscientiously
believe that if the name of the
President, with the word "approved,"
had but been atfixed to the tariff bill, that
hoth Houses of the Legislature?ho
thought he might safely speak for a majority
at least of both Houses?would have
loridllpn nnrl fnrffii'on n II thnt h nil linn.
" O
pcncd before ; and the country, instead of
remaining in that state of prostration and
distress in which it was now found, would
at once have risen to a condition of
comparative peace and prosperity, and
credit and honor would have taken the
place of the disgrace and calamity which
now unhappily prevailed. The more reconcilcmcnt
of the two branches of the
Legislature with the Executivo head
would, of itself, have been hailed by a
universal burst of joy throughout this
Union as the harbinger of happy and
prosperous times. That hope had been
blasted ; and now, by the paper before the
House, the Executive and the Legislature
had been placed in a stale of civil
war, for which, henceforth, thero
could be no remedy but that which the
People would take into iheir own hands.
t i -: i * t _ 4
i say, sir, exciaimcu mr. .a., mic wak
is note declared and I admit that the Executive
can no longer retreat without disgrace,
as I also hold that neither this nor
the other House of Congress can without
me same consequence. The position has
been taken on both sides: the issue has
been offered and accepted ; and now nothing
remains hut that an appeal be taken
to the People, or?which may- Heaven in
its infinite mercy prevent!?an appeal;
be had to the God of baiilcs. [Much
sensation in the IIousc : laughter and cries
of " oh, oli!"?" the God of battles, indeed?only
hear that."] ?
Now, said Mr. A., while I have contes.
ted, and do still contest, the truth of the
position of my colleague over the way,
(Mr. Gushing,) that it is the destiny of
this Congress to accomplish the prostration
of the cour try, I still concur with
him in the resi It at which he arrived, and
I put, as he did. the question, to whom is
its prostration, if finally proslrated it shall
be, to he attributed 1 He has already
said that it will be justly charged upon
Congress, understanding him, as I do,
thereby to mean the respective majorities
in the two Houses.
We were told yesterday by another
gentleman (Mr. Marshnll) that though ho
did not concur in the imputation of this
prostration?-which ho also foretold?to
Congicss.and although by the force of an
esprit (lc corps he should be found with
the IIousc and with Congress on that
question, we should have a great battle to
tight in order to place the responsibility
on tho risht shoulders, where it justly be
longs, and to cast it off from ourselves.
Now, assuming as a position conceded,
that nothing further is to take place between
tho Executive, and the Legislature
on this question, which I say cannot fako
place without disgrace on the onosidc or
on the other, 1 have a few observations to
offer upon the inquiry to whom this prostration
of the country is to be attributed.
I shall not have time to enter into tho
details of that comparison which it wilt
he necessary for the People to institute
between the proceedings of Congress and
the acts of the Executive since he has
come to the occupation of the chair: I
shall, therefore, simply allude to tho
points from which conclusions will bo
drawn in comparing the one with tho
other, beginning with the commencement
of the present Administration.
And, in referring to the action of Congress,
it is with great satisfaction that I
am able to say that, in respect to a very
great portion of them, the rancor of party,
spirit has had no place; and that, in regard
to some of the most important acta
of the .National Legislature, we havo
had the benefit of the aid of those who
call themselves the Democratic party in
litis Hall, who have contributed, nearly
i as inuch as the majority, to the passage
of the acts which 1 shall now proceed to
enumerate.
And the first act which distinguished
the present Congress was the general
! bankrupt law, a measure which has oxtended
relief to a most distressed portion
of the community. And here candor
obliges me to say that in regard to the
expediency of that act this House did not
differ front the Executive, for it was sanctioned
by his signature and approvaL
How far his doing so may have given
satisfaction to that portion of the community
on which his hopes must ultimately
rely, i shall not inquire. The act
was the act of the majority in the two*
Houses of Congress, though perhaps tbey
might not have been able to pass it witlu
out the aiJ of a small portion of those on
rim other side of the question. It is the
majority of Congress, and to a certain
extent a majority of both parties in that
hotly, who carried through this important
measure against the most formidable opposition.
Tins, then, is not one among
the sources of the existing difference, nor
is it a measure for uiucti Congress will
sustain a responsibility peculiar to itselt.