CHAPTER XIII.

THE SENATE.

It is impossible for an American to enter the Senate chamber, without feelings of respect and veneration. The time-honored memories which enshrine the place, the traditions of illustrious men that have occupied these seats, the grand words of statesmanship and patriotism uttered within these walls and which still seem to linger in the air, and the august assembly now gathered for high deliberative purposes, combine to impress the imagination and to awaken something like a solemn delight. Here have stood Macon, of North Carolina; John Taylor of Caroline; Randolph, Barbour and Giles of Virginia; Pinkney of Maryland; Porter of Louisiana; Rufus King and Silas Wright of New York; Benton and Linn of Missouri; Grundy and White of Tennessee; and a host of other men who, together with Clay, Calhoun, and Webster, by their conspicuous abilities and virtues, constitute the parliamentary glory of our brief history. I doubt not that by the purity of the motives of its members, their incorruptible patriotic integrity, their eminent

endowments coupled with large experience, and by their powers of oratory and debate, we may boldly challenge a comparison between the Senate and any body of lawgivers ever convened.

of

I my readers with brief mention of some of the men whose names seem sacred to the spot.

may be pardoned for refreshing the recollection

Probably no man has ever filled a chair in the Senate, whose personal influence was so weighty, whose character was so revered, as Mr. Macon of North Carolina. A sturdy patriot even from boyhood, relinquishing college-life to take part as a private in the Revolutionary war, serving with Greene in his arduous campaign against Cornwallis, he had won the respect and confidence of the citizens of his native county, before attaining his majority, and despite his youth, was elected by them to a seat in the General Assembly of the State. Receiving the Governor's requisition, while Greene's forces were protected from the superior power of Cornwallis only by the swollen torrent of the Yadkin, he determined to disregard the summons and to abide the perils of the camp with his fellow-soldiers. The wise commander, hearing it, sent for him and demanded if the story were true. The young private quietly answered, "Yes." "Why, then, do you remain in the camp, while the halls of the State-House await you?" "Because," said the energetic young soldier, "I have often seen the faces

of the British, and for once I want to see their backs." Greene showed him how, as a member of the Assembly, he could be of far more service to the country, and especially to its army, by representing their distressed and forlorn condition and pressing the vote of supplies, than as a private soldier, and induced him to proceed to the capital. Such was Mr. Macon's entrance upon the noble legislative career, which the earnest desire of his constituents induced him to pursue, for fifty years. Identified with the founders of the Republic; some will read these pages who remember "the noblest Roman of them all," as he quitted the Senate a little more than thirty years ago. A planter of moderate means, accustomed to work in the field company with "his hands;" living in frugal but hospitable style, raising his own wheat, corn and bacon; his two or three hogsheads of tobacco, shipped annually, serving to procure him all the luxuries he ever knew; he always appeared in Washington, in a suit of navy blue, in the cut of Revolutionary times, in immaculate linen, his head surmounted by a broadbrimmed Quaker-hat, and his hand grasping a massive gold-headed cane. As to the Constitution, he was a

in

strict constructionist. He was the confidential friend and adviser of Mr. Jefferson and the next two Presidents, as well as of all the first statesmen of the time. "Nathaniel Macon was the austerest of advocates for public economy and simplicity. A late President of

the United States informs us, that while in office, he and several members of his cabinet paid a visit to the North Carolina patriarch. He was quartered on his plantation, in half a dozen log-houses, one of which served for kitchen, another for dining-room, and so on. Fine linen, old wine, silver and cut glass, however, profusely abounded. The first day wore off briskly. Early the next morning, the President and his secretaries were invited to a horseback ride over the grounds. When they stepped out to mount, our informant was struck with dismay. There stood a dozen grooms stripping the requisite number of race-horses, whose fiery eyes, dilated nostrils, impatient champing, and light, sinewy forms, apparently capable of mounting into the air, augured anything but a quiet morning's airing to sedate, middle-aged gentlemen who had never ridden a steeple-chase or made experiments in flying. Macon insisted, the well-broke horse was as kind as he was spirited, and all took a parting look of the ground and mounted. The animals vindicated their master's eulogium, and no accidents occurred. As they swept along in the exhilarating morning air, with the sensation of being poised on aërial springs, the patriarch 'held forth' on his horses. One was an 'Archy,' another a 'Wildair,' another something else; but each had a pedigree as long and aristocratic as a German baron of sixteen quarterings. Their exploits, and their

ancestors' exploits were proudly recounted. Each, in his opinion, was worth a plantation. Mr. Macon's amused guests were almost persuaded' before their return to become horse fanciers."*

Although a consistent member of "the Baptist persuasion," as he called it, the great Senator could not resist the taste for horseflesh, so predominant among gentlemen south of the Potomac. Another illustration of the same passion is connected with one of my earliest recollections. The only time I ever saw Andrew Jackson was early on a bright summer morning, when he came into my father's yard to look at some blooded animals that had just been imported from England. And well do I remember how the patriarch's face glowed and his eye shone, as he gazed upon the noble creatures,† and spoke in excited tones of the exquisite blending of beauty and strength in their mold. Never shall I forget the impressive appearance, the tall spare figure, the glittering eye and the commanding presence of the erect old man.

Returning to Mr. Macon;... when he had reached his seventieth year, which according to the Psalmist is the due limit of human life, he resigned his seat in the Senate in 1828, to spend the residue of his days in serene preparation for the last silence; leaving behind

*Randall's Life of Jefferson, p. 665, vol. ii.

+ By the way, "Creetur" is almost the universal name for horse in many of the rural parts of our country.