Martinsburg Gazette And Public Advertiser

From the Norwich Conn. Courier.

MR. CLAY.—Our readers will have noticed in our last, the address of Mr. Clay, at a dinner given him at Washington, and cannot, we think, have failed to admire the bold, frank and decided manner in which he alludes to his own political course. There were no indications of bitterness arising out of disappointed ambition; nor was there, on the other hand, any servile bowing down to the idol of the day, any mean or base compliances, with a view of conciliating the good will of his opponents. He spoke with the boldness of a man not afraid to speak his mind, and he spoke with the plainness and distinctness of a man not accustomed to conceal his opinions or feelings. He stopped not to weigh his every word, to ascertain whether it would be popular and prudent to utter it—they were his sentiments, and sentiments of which he need not be ashamed. This is the trait in the character of Henry Clay, that makes him the admiration and delight of his countrymen and which, as much as his splendid talents, ensures him their respect, and will always make him their favorite.
It is difficult to see what Mr. Clay has lost by being displaced from office. He is acknowledged even by his enemies, to have discharged the duties of the high station which he has held, with honor to himself and credit to his country, and his name is in no respect impaired, nor can his reputation or his peace suffer by enjoying a little repose from the laborious duties of office. It is true, a man acquires a taste for public life, and is not always satisfied to return to a private station—but in what station can Mr. Clay's high talents appear with more splendour than in the popular branch of the National Legislature? It has been the field of his fame, a field in which he has stood unrivalled—it is there that he has witnessed the profound homage which belongs only to those highly gifted, possessing talents like himself, talents of the very highest order. To such a man office can confer no distinction—he possesses a reputation independent of, and far above that of official rank. That he would again enter that field was early anticipated, and it is now stated in the papers that the member from that district in which he resides has resigned, with a view to his election, and that he will probably be returned to the next Congress.