AND THE SENTIMENT OF UNION 401 



Had there been any such chance, Mr. Webster de- 

 feated it by staying at his post in order to finish the 

 treaty with Great Britain. The Whigs were inclined 

 to attribute his conduct to unworthy motives, and no 

 sooner had the treaty been signed, on August 9, 1842, 

 than the newspapers began calling upon him to re- 

 sign. The treaty was ratified in the Senate by a vote 

 of thirty-nine to nine, but it had still to be adopted 

 by Parliament, and much needless excitement was 

 occasioned on both sides of the ocean by the discov- 

 ery of an old map in Paris, sustaining the British 

 view of the northeastern boundary, and another in 

 London, sustaining the American view. Mr. Web- 

 ster remained at his post in spite of popular clam- 

 our, until he knew the treaty to be quite safe. In the 

 hope of driving him from the cabinet, the Whigs in 

 Massachusetts held a convention and declared that 

 President Tyler was no longer a member of their 

 party. On a visit to Boston, Mr. Webster made a 

 noble speech in Faneuil Hall, September 30, 1842, 

 in the course of which he declared that he was neither 

 to be coaxed nor driven into an action which in his 

 own judgment was not conducive to the best interests 

 of the country. He knew very well that by such 

 independence he was likely to injure his chances for 

 nomination to the presidency. He knew that a move- 

 ment in favour of Mr. Clay had begun in Massachu- 

 setts, and that his own course was adding greatly to 

 the impetus of that movement. But his patriotism 

 rose superior to all personal considerations. In May, 

 1843, having seen the treaty firmly established, he 

 resigned the secretaryship and returned to the prac- 

 tice of his profession in Boston. In the canvass of 



2 D 



