Daniel Webster, the Defender and Expounder of the Constitution
[1782-1852]
[Illustration: Daniel Webster.]
Andrew Jackson's stern rebuke of the nullification movement was a timely
one, for there existed in the South a widespread feeling that the Union
was not supreme over the States. In the North, on the contrary, the
Union was regarded as superior to the States and qualified to enforce
any law passed by Congress unless the Supreme Court should declare such
law unconstitutional. Which point of view was correct? The answer to
that momentous question involved a long and bitter struggle between the
two parts of the Union. The great statesman who set forth the northern
view was Daniel Webster.
He was born among the hills of New Hampshire, in Salisbury (now
Franklin), in 1782, the son of a poor farmer and the ninth of ten
children.
As Daniel was a frail child, not able to work much on the farm, his
parents permitted him to spend much time in fishing, hunting, and
roaming at will over the hills. Thus he came into close touch with
nature, and gained much knowledge which was useful to him in later
years. It was his good fortune to have as a companion on these out-door
excursions an old English soldier and sailor then living in a small
house on the Webster farm. The two friends, so far apart in age, were
good comrades, and were often seen walking together along the streams.
The old soldier entertained his young listener with many thrilling tales
of adventure on land and sea, and the boy read to his friend from books
which the old man liked well.
Daniel's father had also been a soldier, having served in Indian wars
and in the Revolution, and related many interesting experiences to his
son. One which always appealed to young Daniel was the account of a
meeting, years before, with General Washington at the time when Arnold
was found to be a traitor. In this interview Washington had taken
Webster's hand and, looking seriously into his face, had said, "Captain
Webster, I believe I can trust you." This expression of confidence by
the general to his subordinate stirred the boy's imagination.
In these ways did his patriotism receive a great stimulus. An incident
which occurred when he was only eight years old illustrates the
seriousness of his mind. Having seen at a store near his home a small
cotton handkerchief with the Constitution of the United States printed
on it, he gathered up his small earnings to the amount of twenty-five
cents and eagerly secured the treasure. From this remarkable copy he
learned the Constitution word for word, so that he could repeat it from
beginning to end.
Of course this was an unusual thing for an eight-year-old boy to do, but
the boy himself was unusual. He spent much of his time poring over
books. They were few in number, but of good quality, and he read them
over and over again until he made them a part of himself. It was a
pleasure to him to memorize fine poems also, and noble selections from
the Bible, for he learned easily and remembered well what he learned. In
this way he stored his mind with the highest kind of truth.
Naturally his father was proud of his boy and longed to give him a good
education. One day, when Daniel was only thirteen years old, they were
at work together in the hay-field, when a college-bred man, also a
member of Congress, stopped to speak with Mr. Webster. When the stranger
had gone his way Mr. Webster expressed to his son deep regret that he
himself was not an educated man, adding that because of his lack of
education he had to work hard for a very small return.
"My dear father," said Daniel, "you shall not work. Brother and I will
work for you, and will wear our hands out, and you shall rest." Then
Daniel, whose heart was tender and full of deep affection, cried
bitterly.
"My child," said Mr. Webster, "it is of no importance to me. I now live
but for my children. I could not give your elder brothers the advantage
of knowledge, but I can do something for you. Exert yourself, improve
your opportunities, learn, learn, and when I am gone you will not need
to go through the hardships which I have undergone, and which have made
me an old man before my time."
These words show the earnest purpose of the father. The next year the
boy, now fourteen, was sent to Phillips Exeter Academy. The principal
began Daniel's examination by directing him to read a passage in the
Bible. The boy's voice was so rich and musical and his reading so
intelligent that he was allowed to read the entire chapter and then
admitted without further questioning. This was only one illustration of
his marvellous power as a reader. Teamsters used to stop at the home
farm in order to hear that "Webster boy," as they called Daniel, read or
recite poetry or verses of Scripture.
The boys he met at the academy were mostly from homes of wealth and
culture. Some of them were rude and laughed at Daniel's plain dress and
country manners. Of course the poor boy, whose health was still weak and
who was by nature shy and independent, found such treatment hard to
bear.
But he studied well, and soon commanded respect because of his high
rank. One of his school duties, however, he found impossible to perform,
and that was to stand before the school and declaim. He would carefully
memorize and practise his declamation, but, when called on to speak, he
could not rise from his seat and go upon the platform. During the nine
months of his stay in the academy, he failed to overcome his deficiency
in declaiming.
After leaving this school he studied for six months under Dr. Woods, a
private tutor, who prepared him to enter Dartmouth, at the age of
fifteen.
Although he proved himself to be a youth of great mental power, he did
not take high rank in scholarship. But he continued to read widely and
thoughtfully, and acquired much valuable knowledge which he used with
great clearness and force in conversation or debate. While in Dartmouth,
he overcame his inability as a declaimer, and gave striking evidence of
the oratorical power for which he afterward became so famous.
After spending two years in Dartmouth, Daniel begged his elder brother
Ezekiel to join him there. But Ezekiel was needed at home, for their
father, who was now sixty years old, was in poor health and had even at
that age to work hard to feed and clothe his family. He had found it
necessary to mortgage the farm to send Daniel to college. How could he
send Ezekiel, too? It seemed foolish to think of doing so. But when
Daniel urged such a course and agreed to help by teaching, the matter
was arranged.
After graduation Daniel taught for a year and earned the money he had
promised Ezekiel. The following year he studied law and in due time was
admitted to the bar. As a lawyer he was very successful, his income
sometimes amounting to $20,000 in a single year. But he could not
manage his money affairs well, and no matter how large his income he was
always in debt. This unfortunate state of affairs was owing to a
reckless extravagance, which he displayed in many ways.
Indeed, Webster was a man of such large ideas that of necessity he did
all things on a large scale. It was vastness that appealed to him. And
this dominating force in his nature explains his idea of nationality and
his opposition to State Rights. He was too large in his views of life to
limit himself to his State at the expense of his country. To him the
Union stood first and the State second, and to make the Union great and
strong became a ruling passion in his life.
Webster's magnificent reach of thought and profound reverence for the
Union is best expressed in his speeches. The most famous one is his
brilliant "Reply to Hayne."
Senator Hayne, of South Carolina, had delivered an able speech, in which
he put the authority of the State before that of the Union, and said
that the Constitution supported that doctrine. Webster, then a senator
from Massachusetts, had but one night to prepare an answer. But he knew
the Constitution by heart, for he had been a close student of it since
the days of childhood, when he had learned it from the cotton
handkerchief.
Senator Hayne's masterly speech caused many people to question whether
even Daniel Webster could answer his arguments, and New England men
especially, fearing the dangerous doctrine of State Rights, awaited
anxiously the outcome. When, therefore, on the morning of January 26,
1830, Mr. Webster entered the Senate Chamber to utter that memorable
reply, he found a crowd of eager men and women waiting to hear him.
"It is a critical moment," said a friend to Mr. Webster, "and it is
time, it is high time, that the people of this country should know what
this Constitution _is_."
"Then," said Webster, "by the blessing of Heaven they shall learn, this
day, before the sun goes down what I understand it to be."
Nationality was Webster's theme, his sole purpose being to strengthen
the claims of the Union. For four hours he held his audience spellbound
while he set forth with convincing logic the meaning of the
Constitution. The great orator won an overwhelming victory. Not only
were many of his hearers in the Senate chamber that day convinced, but
loyal Americans all over the country were inspired with more earnest
devotion to the Union. His last words "Liberty and Union! one and
inseparable, now and forever" electrified his countrymen and became a
watchword of national progress.
Webster's power as an orator was enhanced by his remarkable physique.
His striking personal appearance made a deep impression upon everyone
that saw or heard him. One day when he was walking through one of the
streets of Liverpool a navvy said of him, "There goes a king!" On
another occasion Sydney Smith exclaimed, "Good heavens! he is a small
cathedral by himself." He was nearly six feet tall. He had a massive
head, a broad, deep brow, and great coal-black eyes, which once seen
could never be forgotten.
To the day of his death he showed his deep affection for the flag, the
emblem of that Union which had inspired his noblest efforts. During the
last few weeks of his life, troubled much with sleeplessness, he used to
watch the stars, and while thus occupied his eyes would often fall upon
a small boat of his which floated in plain view of his window. On this
boat he had a ship lantern so placed that in the darkness he could see
the Stars and Stripes flying there. The flag was raised at six in the
evening and kept flying until six in the morning to the day of Daniel
Webster's death, which took place in September, 1852. On looking at the
dead face a stranger said: "Daniel Webster, the world without you will
be lonesome."
[Illustration: Marshfield--Home of Daniel Webster.]
Although we need not be blind to his faults, we may indeed count him
among the greatest of Americans. For he did much to make the Union
strong. He filled many high positions and had a wonderful influence in
all the affairs of the nation.
REVIEW OUTLINE
YOUNG WEBSTER'S FONDNESS FOR HUNTING AND FISHING.
THRILLING TALES OF ADVENTURES.
DANIEL'S READING HABITS; HIS RICH, MUSICAL VOICE.
WEBSTER IN COLLEGE.
DANIEL WEBSTER AS A LAWYER.
HIS NOBLE IDEAS OF THE UNION.
SENATOR HAYNE'S MASTERLY SPEECH.
DANIEL WEBSTER'S OVERWHELMING VICTORY FOR THE UNION.
HIS STRIKING PERSONAL APPEARANCE.
HIS DEVOTION TO THE FLAG OF HIS COUNTRY.
TO THE PUPIL
1. What do the following topics suggest to you concerning the
boyhood experiences of Daniel Webster; Daniel and the old English
soldier and sailor; Daniel's reading habits; his power as a
reader; his deficiency in declamation?
2. What was Daniel Webster's idea of the Union? Tell what you can
about "Webster's Reply to Hayne."
3. What picture have you of Webster's personal appearance? What
is there in Webster's character that you admire?