privileges granted by treaties, public right, favor of Government, possession, or customary right. Obeying to this rule, I am now obliged to call the attention of your excellency upon an incident occurred yesterday on the occasion of the dinner to which you made me and my wife the honor to invite.

"It is a principle established by the Congress of Vienna, and adopted by all the civilized nations even those who were not represented there (as the United States and Brazil), that the precedence between the diplomatic agents of the same capacity must be established only by the priority of the presentation of their credentials.

"Being yesterday present at your table the minister of Mexico, I, and the minister of Great Britain, your excellency gave the first places to the minister of Great Britain and his lady, contrary to the rule above mentioned.

"As the delivery of our credentials was previous to the appointment of your excellency as Secretary of State, this fact could immediately be attributed to a mistake or an oblivion of dates, if some circumstances could not induce some to believe that this was not the motive.

"Great Britain is an European power, Mexico and Brazil are American powers; between Great Britain and the United States there are affinities of race, language, etc., etc. Great Britain is considered, as to forces and wealth, a power of a superior order. Man could [not] believe that, giving the precedence to Sir Henry Bulwer and his lady against the rule above mentioned, your excellency was guided by the old considerations infirmed by the rule simple, clear, and easily applicable of the Congress of Vienna.

"I do not believe that the Government of the United States wish to establish in favor of the representatives of the European powers a right of precedence in Washington upon the representatives of the American powers, nor to attribute to the British ministers privileges, which would certainly not obtain in London any reciprocity in favor of the American ministers. But as the incident of yesterday can induce some persons to understand so, your excellency certainly will agree that this point wants to be clearly established.

"I must inform your excellency that even yesterday the distinguished and estimable representative of her Britannic Majesty, as soon as he found an opportunity, made me spontaneously an apology, declining the responsibility of the fact. This proves that I cannot be accused of excess of susceptibility when I address myself in this way, and on this subject to your excellency, from whom I am sure to receive an answer in accordance with your known urbanity and justice, clearly establishing that I am entitled to the precedence upon the actual representatives in Washington, of Great Britain and France, and upon all other representatives of American or

European powers who shall afterward present their credentials, and whose capacity shall be inferior or equal to that of envoy extraordinary and minister plenipotentiary.

"I avail myself of this occasion to present to your excellency the renewed assurances of my most high and distinguished consideration.

"S. DE

"His Excellency Mr. D. Webster, Secretary of State, etc., etc."

Mr. Webster was disposed to give a grave rebuke to this note; and his answer, as he first wrote it, and as it now remains in his handwriting, ended with an intimation that no future occasion of the same kind would be likely to subject the complainant to the necessity of remonstrating against the social arrangements at Mr. Webster's table. But the answer finally sent was in these words:

"DEPARTMENT OF STATE, WASHINGTON, January 27, 1851.

"SIR: I have to acknowledge the receipt of your letter of the 25th instant.

"It happens to be my fortune not to be entirely unacquainted with the rules adopted by the Treaty of Vienna, respecting the rank of diplomatic agents; and, although the Government of the United States was no party to that treaty, it has usually conformed to what was then established, as being the regulation prevailing with other states. But the Treaty of Vienna, like other treaties, affects only official acts, and does not assume to give the law to private intercourse; and, although I exceedingly regret that any thing should have occurred to cause you concern, yet I am sure you will see, upon consideration, that the private hospitality of my own house may well be regulated by my own discretion, without being made the subject of diplomatic representations.

"MOST EXCELLENT SIR: I had the honor to receive your letter dated yesterday.

"In my letter of the 25th, I have not put in doubt your being acquainted with the rules of the Treaty of Vienna. On the contrary, I only attributed what seemed to me irregular to an oblivion of dates, or to a mistake. I shall not discuss the distinction established by your excel

lency between official acts and the private hospitality of the Secretary of State to the diplomatic agents. I rather accept it as saving the principles, which seemed to me could be put in doubt on account of the incident then mentioned.

"To explain the sensibility I manifested, I shall only say that, when precedences between gentlemen are not left to general and admitted rules, to chance circumstances, or incidental positions, but appear indicated by preferences which wound their natural self-esteem, or their national pride, the explosion of those feelings is natural.

Thanking you for the kind expression of the regret you manifest for an occurrence which caused me concern, and regretting also to have troubled your excellency, I conclude with the renewed assurances of the highest consideration, with which I have the honor to be

"Your most obedient servant,

"S. DE

"His Excellency Mr. Daniel Webster, etc., etc., etc."

an official ceremony, to which alone treaties could apply; and that a child would tell him this.

"He seemed sorry, and will be perfectly satisfied with your assurance that you have the good fortune to be acquainted with, and don't mean to dispute, the great act of the Congress of Vienna.

"Lord-a-mercy, what a difficult and important affair it is to ask three or four men to drink a glass of wine and eat a piece of mutton together, if they be officially inclined!

"I tremble at the thought of it, and dedicate a drawer in my chancellerie to dinner correspondence.'

66

Yours most sincerely,

"H. L. BULWER.”

Monday, 27th January. "MY DEAR SIR: Your [first] note is so capital that it caused me no small consideration to decide whether it could in any way be altered so as to be amended; but, as you call my attention to the latter passage, I think, upon the whole, though the culprit richly de serves the chastisement thus administered, that I should be inclined to soften that severe rebuke down to the quiet tone of gentle admonition.

"I am afraid I have kept your messenger some little time, for, to say the truth, I have found it very difficult to decide whether any change, and if so, what change, was desirable.

"I am now doubtful; but, at all events,
I have demonstrated my good intentions.
66 Ever, my dear sir,

"Yours most sincerely,
Respectfully, and truly,
"H. L. BULWER."

CHAPTER XXXVIII.

1851-1852.

POLITICAL ISSUES AND CANDIDATES OF 1852-EXCITEMENT IN RE-
GARD TO HUNGARIAN AFFAIRS-MR. WEBSTER'S SPEECH AT THE
KOSSUTH BANQUET IN WASHINGTON-POPULAR MOVEMENTS TO
EFFECT HIS NOMINATION TO THE PRESIDENCY BY THE WHIG
NATIONAL CONVENTION DISCOURSE BEFORE THE
HISTORICAL SOCIETY---ARGUMENT OF THE INDIA-RUBBER CAUSE
-RELATIONS WITH ENGLAND-SPEECHES AT HARRISBURG AND

NEW-YORK

ANNAPOLIS-VISIT TO MARSHFIELD, IN MAY-A SERIOUS ACCIDENT -SPEECH IN FANEUIL HALL-THE WHIG NATIONAL CONVENTION-NOMINATION OF GENERAL SCOTT--PUBLIC RECEPTION OF MR. WEBSTER IN BOSTON-FALSE STEP OF THE BRITISH MINISTRY IN RELATION TO THE FISHERIES-MR. CRAMPTON SENT FOR TO MEET MR. WEBSTER AT MARSHFIELD-WELCOME HOME BY THE NEIGHBORS- WISHES TO RESIGN-YIELDS TO THE PRESI

DENT'S REQUEST, AND REMAINS SECRETARY OF STATE-DESIRE

OF POLITICAL FRIENDS TO MAKE HIM AN INDEPENDENT CANDIDATE FOR THE PRESIDENCY-MAINTAINS ENTIRE SILENCE IN RESPECT TO THE ELECTION-RETURNS TO WASHINGTON FOR A SHORT TIME-THE AFFAIR OF THE LOBOS ISLANDS-LAST DIPLOMATIC PAPER-AT HOME ONCE MORE-DECLINING HEALTH -SUDDEN VISIT TO BOSTON LAST TIME IN SOCIETY-LAST GUESTS AT MARSHFIELD FOR PLEASURE-RAPID PROGRESS OF DISEASE-LAST ILLNESS-DEATH-FUNERAL.

THE

HE approach of the first session of Congress after the adoption of the "Compromise Measures," and the nearness of the next election of a President of the United States, render the year on which we are now to enter-the last of Mr. Webster's life-one in which his relations to the country and

his political position will be found to be of even greater importance than they had been on any other occasion when he had been regarded as a candidate for that office. The coming election was to be decided as between the Whig and the Democratic parties, by the attitude which they should respectively assume toward the great adjustment of sectional difficulties that had been effected in the summer of 1850. To render that adjustment final, it was necessary that it should be submitted to the action of the people of the United States, by being made the principal issue in a national election; for it had now become apparent that the people of the whole Union would consider this as the turning-point in the canvass; and that, if they should so will it, the slavery questions would be settled, leaving that institution to be ultimately removed by its own inherent tendency to gradual extinction, and so preventing it from becoming a cause of a sectional and civil war.

But, while among the public men of the country, who were the leading politicians of the Democratic party, there were no considerable differences of opinion in regard to the duty of regarding and proclaiming the "Compromise Measures" as a binding and final settlement, the case was far otherwise among the Whigs. In that party there were prominent, active, and important men, who did not mean to regard this settlement as one on which they were not to be at liberty to continue their opposition. They did not intend to have their party committed to this adjustment as a final one, in such a sense that they would be under a party or personal obligation to forego future agitation of the same questions. Hence it will be found that, when the time approached for the selection by that party of a candidate for the presidency, there was a body of men in the North who intended so to shape the action of the Whig nominating convention as to prevent, if possible, the selection of a candidate whose election must be regarded as determining that the late adjustments of all questions relating to slavery were to be considered as binding upon the new Administration and its supporters. Every thing would of course depend upon the candidate selected, and upon his public and personal relation to the settlement that had been effected in Congress, and which had been made a final one so far as the legislative and execu