WRITINGS OF 5AM HOUSTON, 1859
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if Mr. Buchanan did say as is charged: "General Houst~n, you have given my administration as cordial a support as any demo- crat in Congress, and I am thankful for it." Is it a sin for a democratic President to appreciate the support of a man, even though his name be Sam Houston? Being a democrat, it was my will to carry out the wishes of my constituents, but if it had not been, it was my duty. This is pure Jackson Democracy. But you say, I did not vote for Mr. Buchanan. True, but you remember that about that time Mr. Pierce was in power. He had violated, in my estimation, the pledges which obtained him support. He had insulted the Govern- ments of Europe, and disturbed our foreign relations, by sending men to represent us in foreign Courts, of all others not calcu- lated to maintain friendly relations; he had thrown out national men at the North, and given their places to free-soilers; he had turned the cold shoulder to national men at the South, and given his favor to disunionists,-after pledging that the country should receive no shock during his administration, he had suffered it be convulsed by agitation, the consequences of which were en- tailed upon his successor. It shall not be said that I stabbed it under the guise of friendship. I did what I deemed to be· my duty. You have rebuked me for it and I yield to your will. About this time the American order was started. It bid fair to be a separate element; but it became corrupted. During my connection with it, I met some of the most clever men alive,- nearly all of whom are the leaders of your present Houston Con- vention party. If they make as good Democrats as they did Know Nothings so long as it lasted, they will serve you well. Give them office and you need have no fear of their deserting you, but if you don't, look out! These clever men found there were not offices enough to go around, and so they turned, and kicked the pail over. I wrote the other day to Mr. Flake, an honest German editor at Galveston, who interrogatecl me, as he had a right to do, and I was bound to answer, "that since 'i-855 I had not been connected with the order. It was said to be 'dead,' and so I regarded it. I knew of no attempt to agitate it, and I had no desire to see it agitated." I will say here that if an attempt were made to revive it I would oppose it, because no good result could be attained, and there is no necessity for it. I have told you that platforms, when they are used to blind the people to the designs of men are dangerous. (Here part of the staging erected for the audience fell down, bringing a num- ber of the sovereigns to the ground.) There, did I not tell you platforms were dangerous.
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