Page:The Presidents of the United States, 1789-1914, v. II.djvu/204

160 LIVES OF THE PRESIDENTS in several instances were rescued from the custody of the United States marshals, and a few citizens of Christiana, in Pennsylvania, were killed. Although it was admitted that Fillmore s administration as a whole was able, useful, and patriotic, although his purity as a public man was above suspicion, and no other act of his administration could be called unpopular, still, by the signing and at tempted enforcement of the fugitive-slave law and some of its unfortunate provisions, of which even Mr. Webster did not approve, the president, as has been already stated, lost the friendship and sup port of a large portion of his party in the north. Mr. Fillmore s administration being in a political minority in both houses of congress, many wise and admirable measures recommended by him failed of adoption; nevertheless we are indebted to him for cheap postage; for the extension of the national capitol, the corner-stone of which he laid July 4, 1851; for the Perry treaty, opening the ports of Japan, and for various valuable exploring expedi tions. When South Carolina in one of her indig nant utterances took Mr. Fillmore to task for send ing a fleet to Charleston harbor, and he was officially questioned as to his object and authority, the answer came promptly and to the purpose, "By authority of the constitution of the United States, which has made the president commander-in-chief of the army and navy, and who recognizes no re-