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to invite him to partake of the proposed Dinner,
at Colo. Taylors, five miles from Winchester
on the Lexington road. Mr. Clay attended, and
in response to the sentiment embodied in a toast
in favor of his innocence, delivered a very hand
some & eloquent speech - concluding with the
following toast

"The Ladies of Clarke County: good husbands
"for the single ones & happiness for all"
The Dinner was one of the very best, I ever sat
down to, the day was spent in the utmost gaiety
& hilarity. Conversation, eating, drinking, dancing
&c. &c. Amongst the M. S. may be found a rough
sketch of the Meeting in Winchester, & of the address
to Mr Clay. These proceedings were published
in all the Newspapers friendly to Mr.
Clay & were every where considered, as a Verdict
of Aquittal from his Constituents. Mr Clay
has at all times, very properly considered me one
of his best friends; I have always been satisfied
that it was fully reciprocated on his part,
and I have lately received very satisfactory evidence
of that fact in a letter, recommenda
tion &c. which I forwarded to the Honble John
Bell, (Senator in Congress from Ten) at Washington
Copies of which are on file, in the letter bundle
of the present year (1849)

(Jan 16. 1850) . The original letter of Mr Clay is
on file, in the bundle of Letters, of 1849, having since
then been returned to me by the Secretary of the
Treasury. I desired to get an appointment at Washington
but did not succeed, as I certainly should if
Mr. Clay had been President, I did not go to Washington,
and confided my application to the [torn]
John Bell of Tennessee, who had other [torn]