This independent spirit was well illustrated when he was vice-president and was nomi nated for a second term along with President Jackson, on the Republican ticket. The tariff bill of 1828 was then before the Senate, and as a tie vote was anticipated, it was thought that it would be necessary for the president of the Senate to cast the deciding vote. Mr. Calhoun's views on this question were well known, and it was thought by some of his friends that it would not be politic for him to show his hand, as it would hurt his chances of reelection. Accordingly it was suggested that he should be conveni ently out of his seat when the vote was taken. He courageously declined any such sugges tion, but he went on to assure his friends that, if it should become necessary for him to cast the deciding vote, rather than it should injure Jackson, he would at once take his own name off the ticket. I would not, however, at this point be misunderstood. I do not think Mr. Calhoun was perfect. Like other men, he too had his weaknesses. It is true that he was am bitious and that he aspired to the highest office in the gift of the people. And it is true also that in the earlier part of his ca reer he watched the trend of public thought and very naturally, like his great compatriots, Clay and Webster, from motives of expedi ency he may have varied somewhat from the strict rigidity of the course which he himself thought best, and may, to some ex tent, have so shaped his political conduct as to be in line with the popular sentiment of the day; but, in the main, and certainly in the latter part of his career, he was actuated by the highest motives of patriotism and pur sued an independent, manly course. His advocacy of the war of 18 12, his bold and aggressive course, the strong and vig orous measures which he advocated, the eloquent and fiery speeches which he de livered in the House of Representatives, em boldened the members of Congress, gave an impetus to the war, stirred up the patriotic
ardor of the people, and acted like magic throughout the entire country in dispelling the despondency and gloom which had fallen like a pall upon the people, and in bringing back to the hearts of his country men fresh hope and courage. So eloquent, so animating, so inspiring, so courageous and martial in their tone, were the speeches which he delivered on the floor of Congress, that they were not only spread broadcast throughout the Union, but they were also read to the soldiers by the generals in com mand of our armies. In his speech on the tariff act of 18 16, Mr. Calhoun advocated the building up of the navy, an improvement of the army service, the establishment of good military roads, and the encouragement of the indus tries of the country by a proper tariff. The concluding part of this address is so broad and national ih its sentiment, so ele vating in its character, and so buoyant and hopeful in its spirit, that I cannot resist the temptation to quote it. And then I wish to quote it for another reason. As a rule Mr. Calhoun's speeches, though always ex pressed in plain, good English, are some times criticised as lacking in ornament and beauty of style. This quotation clearly shows that, if he clothed his thoughts in sim ple garb, it was not because he lacked the ability to adorn them with attractive rhet oric and beautiful imagery. The quotation is as follows : "The love of present ease and pleasure, in difference about the future, that fatal weakness of human nature, has never failed in individuals or nations to sink to disgrace and ruin. On the contrary, virtue and wisdom, which regard the future, which spurn the temptations of the mo ment, however rugged their path, end in happi ness. Such are the universal sentiments of all wise writers, from the didactics of the philoso phers to the fictions of the poets. They agree that pleasure is a flowery path, leading off among groves and meadows, but ending in a gloomy and dreary wilderness; that it is the cup of Circe, which he who drinks is converted into a swine.
