Pictorial life of Andrew Jackson . , yet he held the destinies of the nation inhis hands. The states by which he had been sup-ported, could decide the election as they chose. Byuniting with the South, they would unquestionablybring in General Jackson; and by joining the East,they would as certainly effect the election of Adams. The course of Mr. Clay in this contest has beenseverely animadverted upon by his opponents. Itseems that he considered General Jackson, though adistinguished military officer, as destitute of the re-quisite talents and qualifications for the presidency;that it was hazar
Pictorial life of Andrew Jackson . , yet he held the destinies of the nation inhis hands. The states by which he had been sup-ported, could decide the election as they chose. Byuniting with the South, they would unquestionablybring in General Jackson; and by joining the East,they would as certainly effect the election of Adams. The course of Mr. Clay in this contest has beenseverely animadverted upon by his opponents. Itseems that he considered General Jackson, though adistinguished military officer, as destitute of the re-quisite talents and qualifications for the presidency;that it was hazardous to the liberties of the countryto elevate a person to the chief magistracy, the dutiesof which are mostly of a civil nature, merely becausehe had been a successful general. That on the otherhand, he considered Mr. Adams as possessing, in ahigh degree, the requisite qualifications; that his ta-lents were of the first order, and his life had beenspent in the proper school for the office. With these 424 JACKSON AT THE Henry Clay. views, or perhaps others, Mr. Clay determined to sup-port Mr. Adams. That this determination was theresult of collusion between them, is strongly denied;but if it was not, Mr. Clay undoubtedly committed acapital error in accepting the appointment of secretaryof state, which was conferred on him, immediately onthe accession of Adams to the presidency. Mr. Adams was elected on the first ballot by theHouse of Representatives; he receiving the votes ofthirteen states, Jackson of seven, and Crawford of four.* General Jackson submitted, as he should havedone, to the decision of the constitutional authorities * Perkins. JACKSON RENOMINATED. 425 of his country; and his conduct was marked, on thatoccasion, with that propriety and dignity so charac-teristic of him. He was present, with the other mem-bers of the Senate, in the hall of the representatives,on the 4th of March, 1825, when the president electdelivered his inausural address and took the
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