[ON this occasion, Mr. Clay (then in private life) being on
his return home from a visit to New Orleans, was invited by
the citizens of Natchez to partake of a public dinner, which
invitation he accepted. A brief sketch of his remarks in reply
to a toast in honor of him, taken from a Natchez paper, is given
below, in which he shows that the operation of a protective
tariff is beneficial to the cotton-growing regions of the south,
as well as to the interests of the north, although the latter
are more directly employed in manufactures.]