Excerpt from Speech Delivered by the Hon.: Henry Clay, in the House of Representatives of the United States, on Friday, the Eighth Day of January, 1813 Mr. H. Clay (speaker) said he was gratified yesterday by the recommitment of this bill to a committee of the whole House, from two considerations; one, since it afforded to him a. Slight relaxation from a most fatiguing situation, and the other, because it furnished him with an opportunity of presenting to the committee his sentiments upon the important topics which had been mingled in the debate. He regretted, however, that the necessity under which the chairman had been placed, of putting the question.* precluded him from an opportunity he had wished to have enjoyed of rendering more acceptable to the committee any thing he might have to ofi'er on the interesting points it was his duty to touch. Unprepared, however, as he was to speak on this day, of which he was the more sensible from the ill state of his health, he would solicit the attention of the committee for a. Few moments. I was a little astonished, I confess, said Mr. C. When I found this bill permitted to pass silently through the committee of the whole, and that, not until the moment when the question was about to be put for its third reading, was it selected as that subject on which gentlemen in the opposition, chose to lay before the House their views of the interesting attitude in which the nation stands. It did appear to me that the loan bill, which will soon come before us, would have ali'orded a much more proper occasion, it being more essential, as providing the ways and means for the prosecution of the war. But the gentlemen had the right of selection, and hav ing exercised it, no matter how improperly, I am gratified. What ever I may think of the character of some part of the debate, at the latitude in which. For once, they have been indulged. I claim only, in return, of gentlemen on the other side of the House and of the committee a like indulgence, in expressing, with the same unrestrained freedom, my sentiments. Perhaps in the course of the remarks. Which I may feel myself called upon to make. Said he, gentlemen may apprehend that they assume too harsh an aspect. I have only now to say that I shall speak of parties, measures, and things, as they strike my moral sense, protesting against the imputation of any intention, on my part, to wound the feelings of any gentleman. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.