Robert Remini, Henry Clay: Statesman for the Union

[elektratig]

Henry Clay (1777-1852) was a man of prodigious faults. Proud and arrogant, he could and did repeatedly use his oratorical powers to deliver ad hominem attacks on his fellow legislators that belittled and humiliated them, insinuating, for example, that James Buchanan (a favorite target) was homosexual and mocking his defective wandering eye. Clay could also be an imperious “tyrant” whose insatiable lust for the presidency destroyed any chance of obtaining it. His political defeats at the hands of Andrew Jackson (1829-37) are best known, but the defects in Clay’s character come through more clearly during the presidency of John Tyler (1841-45). Ignoring the warnings of Tyler, a conservative in Clay’s own Whig party, the Great Compromiser refused to compromise by accepting the administration’s banking bill, central to Clay’s “American System”. Instead, he arrogantly rammed his own banking bill through the senate and dared Tyler to veto it – a challenge that Tyler was forced to accept. As a result, the United States lacked a central banking system until the Twentieth Century. Most famously of all, Clay’s sometimes obvious ambition lent credence for the rest of his life to the charge that he had entered into a “corrupt bargain” by delivering the presidency to John Quincy Adams in 1824 in exchange for appointment to the position of Secretary of State, then viewed as the stepping stone to the presidency.

And yet . . . and yet . . . it is hard to avoid the conclusion that Henry Clay’s great virtues outweighed his substantial defects, and by a wide margin. Both in public and in private, Clay was utterly charming and charismatic. Professor Robert Remini, the well-know author of a three-volume biography of Andrew Jackson, repeatedly notes how many people who met Clay only briefly – over dinner or while playing cards – immediately fell in love with him and became his devoted friends and admirers. An optimist who wore his heart on his sleeve – one of Clay’s most endearing traits was his willingness to weep in public (and not for affect) – Clay was simply adored by both men and women. Political enemies, including many of those he tore apart in Congress, likewise could not resist him. (Unfortunately for Clay, Andrew Jackson, who could hate with a passion, was one of the few who did not fall under Clay’s spell.) And publicly, of course, his greatest orations were utterly spellbinding. Professor Remini draws these scenes masterfully: packed galleries listening intently as Clay used his lithe body, props (such as a snuff box) and mellifluous voice, softly at first, later rising to a crescendo, to create an oratorical art that has never been matched since.

In addition, of course, are those periods throughout his career when Clay – “the Great Compromiser”, “the Great Pacificator”, “the Sage of Ashland” – magnificently rose to heights of statesmanship to save his country. Professor Remini relates these scenes in compelling fashion and clearly conveys Clay’s love of and commitment to his country, for example, describing how Clay, old and sick, ventured unannounced to Daniel Webster’s house on a bitterly cold night in early 1850 to discuss his plan for a compromise, and then used all his powers of oration and persuasion for months until he was utterly exhausted. Although Clay had departed Washington before the pieces of the compromise ultimately passed, Professor Remini argues convincingly that Clay’s Herculean efforts in rousing public support were a necessary prerequisite to the successful conclusion.

The first half of the Nineteenth Century – a period so different from our own, when many seriously believed (for example) that the establishment of a national bank would lead to tyranny and despotism – is incredibly difficult to recapture. In this, Professor Remini does an outstanding job. He conveys to the reader a real feel for the personality and mindset of Henry Clay and the worldview of his contemporaries. Although the book is lengthy (almost 800 pages of text), Professor Remini’s writing style is clear and flowing. In addition, the book contains an extremely helpful 6-page chronology of events during Clay’s life and an invaluable 12-page bibliographical essay that will guide my future reading about the era. For a reader interested in the period, I recommend the book without reservation.

I can’t help concluding by quoting at length a portion of Professor Remini’s description of Clay’s “last great oration in Congress”, delivered on July 22, 1850 in support of the Compromise, both because it illustrates the author’s ability to paint a compelling picture and because it displays Henry Clay at his most sublime:

“One magnificent moment came toward the end of the speech when Senator Robert Barnwell of South Carolina ‘rushed into the lion’s mouth with a fool-hardiness absolutely appalling’ and accused Clay of using ‘disrespectful’ expressions about a friend, Robert Barnwell Rhett, the principal secessionist speaker at the Nashville Convention. In a ‘grand exhibition of power and spirit,’ said one, Clay shattered the charge. ‘But, if he [Rhett] pronounced the sentiment attributed to him of raising the standard of disunion and of resistance to the common government, whatever he has been, if he follows up that declaration by a corresponding overt act, he will be a traitor, and I hope he will meet the fate of the traitor.’

“The galleries applauded wildly and shouted approval. The whooping and yelling became deafening. The presiding officer gaveled for order, threatening once again to remove all visitors. ‘The Senate chamber is not a theater,’ he lectured.

“Clay concluded with these words:

“’ If Kentucky to-morrow unfurls the banner of resistance unjustly, I never will fight under that banner. I owe a permanent allegiance to the whole Union – a subordinate one to my own State. When my State is right – when it has a cause for resistance, when tyranny, and wrong, and oppression insufferable arise – I will then share in her fortunes; but if she summons me to the battle-field to support her in any cause which is unjust against the Union, never, never will I engage with her in such a cause.’

“Should South Carolina or any other state ‘hoist the flag of disunion and rebellion,’ gallant men and devoted patriots in every other state would respond. ‘Thousands, tens of thousands, of Kentuckians would flock to the standard of their country to dissipate and repress their rebellion. These are my sentiments,’ and then Clay flung his outstretched arms down to his side and cried, ‘[M]ake the most of them.’

“The Senate exploded, thundering its approval. A great man and a great cause had been joined. The result had the audience reeling. According to the National Intelligencer, Clay ‘surpassed even his ancient fame as a powerful, impassioned and impressive debater.’ Men and women wept. The eloquence of an old man standing tall and imploring his fellow senators in the name of their countrymen to preserve the Union ‘penetrated the minds and souls’ of virtually everyone in the chamber. The hall shook with cheers.”