See also:

• THOMAS
• THOMAS (c. 1654-1720)
• THOMAS (d. 110o)
• THOMAS, ARTHUR GORING (1850-1892)
• THOMAS, CHARLES LOUIS AMBROISE (1811-1896)
• THOMAS, GEORGE (c. 1756-1802)
• THOMAS, GEORGE HENRY (1816-187o)
• THOMAS, ISAIAH (1749-1831)
• THOMAS, PIERRE (1634-1698)
• THOMAS, SIDNEY GILCHRIST (1850-1885)
• THOMAS, ST
• THOMAS, THEODORE (1835-1905)
• THOMAS, WILLIAM (d. 1554)

THOMAS See also:

• HART, ALBERT BUSHNELL (1854– )
• HART, CHARLES (d. 1683)
• HART, ERNEST ABRAHAM (1835–1898)
• HART, SIR ROBERT
• HART, WILLIAM (1823–1894)

HART See also:

• THOMAS HART BENTON (1782-1858)

BENTON (1782-1858)  , See also:

• AMERICAN

American statesman, was See also:

• BORN, IGNAZ, EDLER VON (1742–1791)

born at Hillsborough, See also:

• ORANGE
• ORANGE (Citrus Aurantium)
• ORANGE, HOUSE OF

Orange See also:

• COUNTY (through Norm. Fr. comae, cf. O. Fr. cunte, conk', Mod. Fr. comae, from Lat. comitatus, cf. Ital. comitato, Prov. comtat; see COUNT)

county, See also:

• NORTH
• NORTH, BARONS
• NORTH, MARIANNE (1830—1890)
• NORTH, ROGER (1653-1734)
• NORTH, SIR THOMAS (1535?-16o1?)

North Carolina, on the 14th of See also:

• MARCH
• MARCH (1) (from Fr. marcher, to walk; the earliest sense in French appears to be " to trample," and the origin has usually been found in the Lat. marcus, hammer; Low Lat. marcare, to hammer; hence to beat the road with the regular tread of a soldier: cf.
• MARCH, AUZIAS (c. "1395-1458)
• MARCH, EARLS OF
• MARCH, FRANCIS ANDREW (1825– )

March 1782 . His See also:

• FATHER

father, an Englishman of refinement and scholarship, died in 1790, leaving the boy under the See also:

• INFLUENCE (Late Lat. influentia, from influere, to flow in)

influence of a very See also:

• SUPERIOR

superior See also:

• MOTHER

mother, from whom he received lessons in See also:

• BOOK

book learning, piety and See also:

• TEMPERANCE

temperance quite unusual in the frontier See also:

• COUNTRY (from the Mid. Eng. contre or contrie, and O. Fr. cuntree; Late Lat. contrata, showing the derivation from contra, opposite, over against, thus the tract of land which fronts the sight, cf. Ger. Gegend, neighbourhood)

country . His See also:

• HOME
• HOME, DANIEL DUNGLAS (1833-1886)
• HOME, EARLS OF

home studies, facilitated by his father's See also:

• FINE

fine library, were supplemented by a brief stay at the university of North Carolina (See also:

• CHAPEL

Chapel See also:

• HILL
• HILL (0. Eng. hyll; cf. Low Ger. hull, Mid. Dutch hul, allied to Lat. celsus, high, collis, hill, &c.)
• HILL, A
• HILL, AARON (1685-175o)
• HILL, AMBROSE POWELL
• HILL, DANIEL HARVEY (1821-1889)
• HILL, DAVID BENNETT (1843–1910)
• HILL, GEORGE BIRKBECK NORMAN (1835-1903)
• HILL, JAMES J
• HILL, JOHN (c. 1716-1775)
• HILL, MATTHEW DAVENPORT (1792-1872)
• HILL, OCTAVIA (1838– )
• HILL, ROWLAND (1744–1833)
• HILL, SIR ROWLAND (1795-1879)

Hill) in 1799 . The See also:

• FAMILY

family removed, probably in this See also:

• YEAR

year, to a large See also:

• TRACT (from Lat. tractare, to treat of a matter, through Provencal tractat and Ital. trattato)

tract of See also:

• LAND

land which had been acquired by the father on the outskirts of the See also:

• INDIAN

Indian country (at See also:

• BENTON, THOMAS HART (1782-1858)

Benton See also:

• TOWN

Town, now Leipers See also:

• FORK (Lat. furca)

Fork) near See also:

• FRANKLIN
• FRANKLIN, BENJAMIN (1706-1790)
• FRANKLIN, SIR JOHN (1786-1847)
• FRANKLIN, WILLIAM BUEL (1823-1903)

Franklin, See also:

• TENNESSEE

Tennessee . The following years, during which Benton was at various times school teacher, See also:

• FARMER, RICHARD (1735–1787)

farmer, lawyer and politician, were the distinctively formative See also:

• PERIOD
• PERIOD (Gr. irepioSos, a going or way round, circuit, aepi, round, and &Sis, way, road)

period of his See also:

• LIFE

life . His intense See also:

• DEMOCRACY (Gr. 3np.oKparia, from S)µos, the people, i.e. the commons, and Kparos, rule)

democracy and many features of his boldly See also:

• CAST (from the verb meaning " to throw "; the word is Scand. in origin, cf. Dan. kaste, and Swed. kasta; " cast " in Middle Eng. took the place of the A.S. weor pan, cf. Ger. werf en)

cast See also:

• PERSONALITY (from Lat. persona, originally an actor's mask, from personare,1 to sound through)

personality were perfectly representative of the border See also:

• PEOPLE

people among whom he lived; al-though his See also:

• EDUCATION

education, social See also:

• STANDING

standing and force of See also:

• CHARACTER (Gr. xapareri7p, from xap&crew, to scratch)

character placed him above his See also:

• FELLOWS, SIR CHARLES (1799-1860)

fellows . In 1809 he served a See also:

• TERM

term as See also:

• STATE
• STATE, GREAT OFFICERS OF

state senator . Between 1815 and 1817 he transferred his interests to St See also:

• LOUIS
• LOUIS (804–876)
• LOUIS (893–911)
• LOUIS, JOSEPH DOMINIQUE, BARON (1755-1837)
• LOUIS, or LEWIS (from the Frankish Chlodowich, Chlodwig, Latinized as Chlodowius, Lodhuwicus, Lodhuvicus, whence-in the Strassburg oath of 842-0. Fr. Lodhuwigs, then Chlovis, Loys and later Louis, whence Span. Luiz and—through the Angevin kings—Hungarian

Louis, See also:

• MISSOURI

Missouri, and in 1820 was elected See also:

• UNITED

United States senator from the new state . His senatorial career of See also:

• THIRTY

thirty years (182,-1851) was one of extreme prominence . A friendship See also:

• EARLY
• EARLY, JUBAL ANDERSON (1816-1894)

early formed in Tennessee for See also:

• ANDREW (Gr. 'AvBp4as, manly)
• ANDREW, JOHN ALBION (1818-1867)

Andrew See also:

• JACKSON
• JACKSON, ANDREW (1767-1845)
• JACKSON, CYRIL (1746-1819)
• JACKSON, FREDERICK GEORGE (186o– )
• JACKSON, HELEN MARIA (1831–1885)
• JACKSON, MASON (c. 1820-1903)
• JACKSON, THOMAS (1579-1640)
• JACKSON, THOMAS JONATHAN (1824-1863)
• JACKSON, WILLIAM (1730-1803)

Jackson was broken in 1813 by an armed fracas between the principals and their See also:

• FRIENDS, SOCIETY
• FRIENDS, SOCIETY OF

friends, but after the presidential See also:

• ELECTION
• ELECTION (from Lat. eligere, to pick out)

election of 1824 Benton became a Jacksonian Democrat and Jackson's See also:

• CLOSE
• CLOSE (from Lat. clausum, shut)
• CLOSE, MAXWELL HENRY (1822-1903)

close friend, and as such was See also:

• LONG, GEORGE (1800-1879)
• LONG, JOHN DAVIS (1838– )

long the Democratic See also:

• LEADER, BENJAMIN WILLIAMS (1831– )

leader in the See also:

• SENATE (Lat. senatus, from root sen-, as in senex, old; the root is the Sanskrit sana, cf. Gr. 'vos; the same element appears in senor, seigneur, seneschal)

Senate, his See also:

• POWER [WILLIAM GRATTAN] TYRONE (1797-1841)

power being greatest during Jackson's second term . He continued to be the See also:

• ADMINISTRATION (Lat. administrare, to serve)

administration's right-See also:

• HAND
• HAND (a word common to Teutonic languages; cf. Ger. Hand, Goth. handus)
• HAND, FERDINAND GOTTHELF (1786-185r)

hand See also:

• MAN
• MAN, ISLE OF (anc. Mona)

man under See also:

• VAN

Van Buren, but gradually lost influence under See also:

• POLK, JAMES KNOX (179 1849)
• POLK, LEONIDAS (1806-1864)

Polk, with whom he finally See also:

• BROKE, or BROOKE, ARTHUR (d. 1563)
• BROKE, SIR PHILIP BOWES VERE, BART

broke both personally and politically . The events of Benton's See also:

• POLITICAL

political life are associated primarily with three things: the second United States See also:

• BANK

Bank, westward expansion and See also:

• SLAVERY

slavery .

In the long struggles over the bank, the deposits and the "expunging See also:

• RESOLUTION

resolution" (i.e. the resolution to expunge from the records of the Senate the See also:

• VOTE

vote of censure of See also:

• PRESIDENT (Fr. president, from Lat. praesidens, post-Augustan Lat. for praeses, director, ruler, from praesidere, to sit in front of, preside)

President Jackson for his removal of the See also:

• GOVERNMENT
• GOVERNMENT (0. Fr. governement, mod. gouvernement, O. Fr. governer, mod. gouverner, from Lat. gubernare, to steer a ship, guide, rule; cf. Gr. xv(3epvav)

government deposits from the bank), Benton led the Jackson Democrats . His opposition to a See also:

• NATIONAL

national bank and insistence on the See also:

• PECULIAR

peculiar virtues of " hard See also:

• MONEY

money," whence his See also:

• SOBRIQUET

sobriquet of " Old See also:

• BULLION

Bullion," went back to his Tennessee days . In all that concerned the expansion of the country and the fortunes of the See also:

• WEST
• WEST, BENJAMIN (1738-1820)
• WEST, NICHOLAS (1461-1533)

West no public man was more consistent or more influential than Benton, and none so clear of See also:

• VISION (from Lat. videre, to see), or SIGHT

vision . Reared on the border, and representing a state long the farthermost outpost across the See also:

• MISSISSIPPI

Mississippi in the Indian country, he held the ultra-American views of his See also:

• SECTION
• SECTION (Lat. sectio, cutting, secare, to cut)

section as regarded See also:

• FOREIGN

foreign relations generally, and the "See also:

• MANIFEST (Lat. manifestus, clear, open to view)

manifest destiny" of expansion westward especially . It was quite natural that he should See also:

• ADVOCATE (Lat. advocatus, from advocare, to summon, especially in law to call in the aid of a counsel or witness, and so generally to summon to one's assistance)

advocate the removal westward of the Indian tribes, should urge the encouragement of See also:

• TRADE (O. Eng. trod, footstep, from tredan, to tread; in M. Eng. the forms teed, trod and trade appear, the last in the sense of a beaten track)
• TRADE, BOARD OF

trade with Sante Fe (New See also:

• MEXICO
• MEXICO (Span. Mejico, or Mexico,)
• MEXICO, FEDERAL DISTRICT OF
• MEXICO, GULF OF

Mexico), and should oppose the See also:

• ABANDONMENT (Fr. abandonnement, from abandonner, to abandon, relinquish; abandonner was originally equivalent to mettred banddn, to leave to the jurisdiction, i.e. of another, bandon being from Low Latin bandum, bannum, order, decree, " ban ")

abandonment in the Spanishtreaty of 1819 of American claims to See also:

• TEXAS

Texas . He once thought the Rocky Mountains the proper western limit of the United States (1824), but this view he soon outgrew . He was the originator of the policy of See also:

• HOMESTEAD

homestead See also:

• LAWS

laws by which the public lands were used to promote the See also:

• SETTLEMENT
• SETTLEMENT, ACT OF

settlement of the west by home-seekers . No other man was so early and so long active for transcontinental See also:

• RAILWAYS

railways . But Benton was not a land-grabber, whether in the See also:

• INTEREST

interest of slavery or of See also:

• MERE
• MERE, ADALBERT (1838-1909)

mere jingoism . In the See also:

• CASE
• CASE, JOHN (d. 1600)

case of See also:

• OREGON

Oregon, for instance, he was firmly against See also:

• JOINT (through Fr. from Lat. junctum, jungere, to join)

joint occupation with See also:

• GREAT

Great See also:

• BRITAIN (Gr. Hperavuml vi7vot, Bperravia; Lat. Britannia, rarely Britannia)

Britain, but he was always for the boundary of 49° and never joined in the See also:

• CAMPAIGN

campaign-See also:

• JINGO

jingo cry of " Fifty-four See also:

• FORTY

Forty or Fight." It was he who chiefly aided Polk in with-See also:

• DRAWING

drawing from that untenable position . He despised pretexts and intrigues . Both in the case of Oregon and in that of Texas, though one of the earliest and most insistent of those who favoured their acquisition, yet in the See also:

• FACE (from Lat. fades, derived either from facere, to make, or from a root fa-, meaning " appear "; cf. Gr. cbatvstv)

face of See also:

• SOUTHERN

southern and western sentiment he denounced the sordid and devious intrigues and politics connected with their acquisition, and kept clear of these .

For the same See also:

• REASON (Lat. ratio, through French raison)

reason he opposed the Mexican See also:

• WAR
• WAR (O. Eng. werre, Fr. guerre, of Teutonic origin; cf. O.H.G. werran, to confound)

War, though not its See also:

• PROSECUTION

prosecution once begun . In the Texas question slavery was prominent . Toward slavery Benton held a peculiarly creditable attitude . A southerner, he was a slaveholder; but he seems to have gradually learned that slavery was a curse to the See also:

• SOUTH
• SOUTH, ROBERT (1634–1716)

South, for in 1844 he declared that he would not introduce it into Texas lands " where it was never known," and in 184.9 proclaimed that his See also:

• PERSONAL

personal sentiments were " against the institution of slavery." In the long struggle over slavery in the territories, following 1845, he was for the extreme demands of neither section; not because he was timorous or a compromiser, —no man was less of either but because he stood unwaveringly for See also:

• JUSTICE (Lat. justitia)

justice to both sections, never adopting exaggerated views that must or even could be compromised . The truth is that he was always a westerner before he was a southerner and a See also:

• UNION
• UNION (known locally as Union Hill and officially as Town of Union)

union man before all things else; he was no whit less national than See also:

• WEBSTER
• WEBSTER, ALEXANDER (1707-1784)
• WEBSTER, BENJAMIN NOTTINGHAM (1797-1882)
• WEBSTER, DANIEL (1782-1852)
• WEBSTER, JOHN (fl. 1602-1624)
• WEBSTER, NOAH (1758-1843)
• WEBSTER, THOMAS (1773-1844)
• WEBSTER, THOMAS (1800-1886)

Webster . Hence his distrust and finally hatred of See also:

• CALHOUN, JOHN CALDWELL (1782-185o)

Calhoun, dating from the See also:

• NULLIFICATION

nullification See also:

• EPISODE

episode of 1832-1833 . As the South under Calhoun's See also:

• LEAD
• LEAD (pronounced iced)

lead became increasingly sectional and aggressive, Benton increasingly lost sympathy with her . Though he despised political inaction Abolitionists, and hated their propaganda as inimical to the Union, he would not therefore close the national mails to Abolition literature, nor abridge the right of See also:

• PETITION (Lat. for " seeking " or " praying ")

petition . No statesman was more prescient of the disunion tendencies of Calhoun's policies, and as early as 1844 he prophetically denounced the See also:

• TREASON (Fr. trahison, Lat. traditio)

treason to the Union toward which the South was drifting . He would not See also:

• DRIFT (from "drive ")

drift with her for the See also:

• SAKE

sake of slavery, and this was his political undoing . In 185r Missouri rejected him in his See also:

• SIXTH

sixth candidacy for the Senate, after he had been an autocrat in her politics for thirty years . In 1852 he was elected to the See also:

• HOUSE
• HOUSE (O. Eng. hiss, a word common to Teutonic languages, cf. Dut. huis, Ger. Haus; in Gothic it is only found in gudhiss, a temple; it may be ultimately connected with the root of " hide," conceal)

House of Representatives, but his opposition to the See also:

• REPEAL (O.F. rapel, modern rappel, from rapeler, rappeler, revoke, re and appeler, appeal)

repeal of the Missouri See also:

• COMPROMISE (pronounced compromize; through Fr. from Lat. compromittere)

Compromise caused his defeat in 1854 .

An unsuccessful campaign for the governorship of Missouri in 1856 ended his political career . He died at See also:

• WASHINGTON
• WASHINGTON (or WASHINGTON COURT HOUSE)
• WASHINGTON, BOOKER TALIAFERRO (c. 1859– )
• WASHINGTON, BUSHROD (1762-1829)
• WASHINGTON, GEORGE (1732-1799)

Washington on the loth of See also:

• APRIL

April 1858 . Benton's entire career was eminently creditable, and he is, besides, one of the most picturesque figures in American political See also:

• HISTORY

history . His political principles—whether as regarded See also:

• LOBBYING

lobbying, congressional jobbing, See also:

• CIVIL

civil service or great issues of legislation and foreign affairs—were of the highest . He was so See also:

• INDEPENDENT

independent that he had great dislike for caucuses, and despised party platforms—although he never voted any but the Democratic See also:

• TICKET (O. Fr. esliquet, also estiquette, mod. etiquette, from Ger. sleeken, to stick up)

ticket, even when his son-in-See also:

• LAW
• LAW (0. Eng. lagu, M. Eng. lawe; from an old Teutonic root lag, " lie," what lies fixed or evenly; cf. Lat. lex, Fr. loi)
• LAW, JOHN (1671—1729)
• LAW, WILLIAM (1686-1761)

law, J . C . See also:

• FREMONT
• FREMONT, JOHN CHARLES (1813-1890)

Fremont, was the Republican presidential See also:

• CANDIDATE

candidate in 1856; nor would he accept instructions from the Missouri legislature . His career shows no truckling to self-interest, and on large issues he outgrew partisanship . Although palpably inferior to each of his great senatorial See also:

• COL
• COL (Fr. for " neck," Lat. collum)

col-leagues, Webster, See also:

• CLAY (from O. Eng. claeg, a word common in various forms to Teutonic languages, cf. Ger. Klei)
• CLAY, CASSIUS MARCELLUS (1810-1903)
• CLAY, CHARLES (1801–1893)
• CLAY, FREDERIC (1838–1889)
• CLAY, HENRY (1777–1852)

Clay and Calhoun, in some gifts, yet if character, qualities and career be taken in the whole his were possibly the most creditable of all . See also:

• BEN (from Old Eng. bennan, within)

Ben ton was austere, aggressive and vain; besides, he had a fatal deficiency of See also:

• HUMOUR (Latin humor)

humour . Nevertheless he had great influence, which was a deserved See also:

• TRIBUTE (Lat. tributurn, a stated payment, contribution)

tribute to his ability and high character . An indefatigable student, he treated all subjects capably, and especially in questions of his country's history and the exploration of the West had few equals—in the latter none .

He acted always with uncalculating boldness, and defended his acts with extraordinary courage and persistence . Benton wrote a Thirty Years' View . . . of the American Government (2 vols., 1854-1856), characteristic of the author's personality; it is of great value for the history of his See also:

• TIME (0. Eng. Lima, cf. Icel. timi, Swed. timme, hour, Dan. time; from the root also seen in " tide," properly the time of between the flow and ebb of the sea, cf. O. Eng. getidan, to happen, " even-tide," &c.; it is not directly related to Lat. tempus)
• TIME, MEASUREMENT OF
• TIME, STANDARD

time . He also compiled an Abridgment of the Debates of See also:

• CONGRESS (Lat. congressus, coming together, from congredi; cum, with, and gradus, step)

Congress, 1789–1850 (16 vols., 1857–1861), likewise of great usefulness; and published a See also:

• BITTER, KARL THEODORE FRANCIS (1867– )

bitter See also:

• REVIEW (Fr. revue, from revoir, to see again, Lat. re and videre)

review of the Dred See also:

• SCOTT, ALEXANDER (fl. 1550)
• SCOTT, DAVID (18o6-1849)
• SCOTT, MICHAEL (1789-1835)
• SCOTT, ROBERT (1811-1887)
• SCOTT, SIR GEORGE GILBERT (1811-1878)
• SCOTT, SIR WALTER, BART
• SCOTT, WILLIAM BELL (1811-1890)
• SCOTT, WINFIELD (1786-1866)

Scott decision full of extremely valuable See also:

• HISTORICAL

historical details—Historical and Legal Examination of . . . the Dred Scott Case (1857) . All were written in the last eight years of his life and mostly in the last three . The best See also:

• BIOGRAPHY (from the Gr. (3ios, life, and yp&4 , writing)

biography is that by W . M . Meigs, Life of See also:

• THOMAS
• THOMAS (c. 1654-1720)
• THOMAS (d. 110o)
• THOMAS, ARTHUR GORING (1850-1892)
• THOMAS, CHARLES LOUIS AMBROISE (1811-1896)
• THOMAS, GEORGE (c. 1756-1802)
• THOMAS, GEORGE HENRY (1816-187o)
• THOMAS, ISAIAH (1749-1831)
• THOMAS, PIERRE (1634-1698)
• THOMAS, SIDNEY GILCHRIST (1850-1885)
• THOMAS, ST
• THOMAS, THEODORE (1835-1905)
• THOMAS, WILLIAM (d. 1554)

Thomas See also:

• HART, ALBERT BUSHNELL (1854– )
• HART, CHARLES (d. 1683)
• HART, ERNEST ABRAHAM (1835–1898)
• HART, SIR ROBERT
• HART, WILLIAM (1823–1894)

Hart Benton (See also:

• PHILADELPHIA

Philadelphia and See also:

• LONDON

London, 1904) . See also See also:

• THEODORE
• THEODORE (602-690)
• THEODORE (Fedor) GRIGORIEVICH ORLOV, COUNT (1741–1796)
• THEODORE (Rus. Fedor, or Feodor)

Theodore See also:

• ROOSEVELT, THEODORE (1858— )

Roosevelt's Thomas IIart Benton (See also:

• BOSTON
• BOSTON, THOMAS (1676-1732)

Boston, 1887), in the " American Statesmen " See also:

• SERIES (a Latin word from serere, to join)

series, which admirably brings out Benton's significance as a western man; and See also:

• JOSEPH
• JOSEPH, COMTE DE (1785-1870)
• JOSEPH, FATHER (FRANCOIS LECLERC DU TREMBLAY) (1577-1638)

Joseph M . See also:

• ROGERS, HENRY DARWIN (18o8—1866)
• ROGERS, JAMES EDWIN THOROLD (1823-1890)
• ROGERS, JOHN (1627–c. 1665)
• ROGERS, JOHN (1829-1904)
• ROGERS, JOHN (c. 1500-1555)
• ROGERS, ROBERT (1727-1784?)
• ROGERS, S
• ROGERS, SAMUEL (1763-1855)
• ROGERS, WILLIAM (1819-1896)

Rogers's Thomas Hart Benton (Philadelphia, 1905) in the " American Crisis " series .