参考译文：

1824年的美国总统竞选出现了人身攻击

美国已有的五位总统中的四位来自维吉尼亚州，他们是乔治.华盛顿、托马斯.杰斐逊、詹姆士.麦迪逊和詹姆士.门罗。美国第二任总统约翰.亚当斯是一位新英格兰地区的人，在1824年的美国总统竞选中，他的儿子约翰.昆西.亚当斯是四位领先的总统候选人之一。与此同时，美国西部也开始要出现在国家的政治舞台上了。

在本周美国史话系列节目中，我们向你讲述1824年的美国总统竞选。

田纳西州的安德鲁.杰克逊将军获得了最多的选票：九十九张，但他必须获得131张选票才能获得多数票而当选总统。国务卿约翰.昆西.亚当斯位居第二，他获得84张选票，而财政部长威廉.克劳福德得到了41张选票，而西部肯塔基州的亨利.克莱只获得37张选票。

没有一个候选人获得多数选票而当选总统，于是由谁来当总统就由众议院来决定。众议院只能在前三位候选人中投票决定，因此国会中最有权力的人----亨利.克莱就不能作为总统的候选人纳入国会的投票之中，但克莱的支持者对任何一位候选人而言都将起到决定性的作用，因此，这三位总统候选人都希望能够得到亨利.克莱的支持。财政部长克劳福德在总统选举之前身患重病，他的身体状况很不好，克莱认为没有必要支持他。

于是三位总统候选人也就剩下了亚当斯和杰克逊。克莱并不完全同意亚当斯的政策，但他认为亚当斯享受过良好的教育，完全有能力当总统。而克莱却不喜欢杰克逊，尽管杰克逊是1812年美英战争期间新奥尔良的英雄。克莱知道杰克逊没有受过什么教育，非常容易生气。克莱认为杰克逊不会是一位好总统。所以，克莱决定支持亚当斯当总统，但当时他什么也没说。克莱的几位好朋友拜访亚当斯，他们对亚当斯说，如果亚当斯当选总统后能够提名克莱为国务卿的话，那么克莱的西部支持者将会感到非常的高兴。亚当斯对他们说，如果西部选他当总统，他将让一位西部人进入他的内阁，但亚当斯并没有承诺这个西部人就是克莱，也没有承诺这个内阁的职务就是国务卿。

克莱仍然没有对他人说他决定支持哪位候选人，但他支持亚当斯已经变得众所周知了。在一月末，费城的《哥伦比亚观察报》发表了一封未署名的信，这封信指责克莱和亚当斯进行秘密的交易。这封信说，克莱将支持亚当斯，作为交换，亚当斯将提名克莱为他的国务卿。

克莱非常愤怒，他不仅否认了这种指责，而且他还提出要与这封信的作者(他的名字早晚会知道)进行决斗。这封信指责克莱把他的选票卖给了亚当斯，但又根本拿不出什么证据。克莱要求对此进行调查，但那位在报纸上写信指责他的人却拒绝说出任何东西。克莱确信杰克逊的支持者应该对此负责。

1824年2月9日的早晨，华盛顿正下着雪，这一天是国会投票选总统的日子。到中午，参议员步行来到众议院，他们统计选票，并正式宣布，没有一个候选人获得胜利，随后参议员离开了。此时众议院开始投票。众议院投票选举总统，每个州只有一票。亚当斯确信他能够获得十二个州的选票，而克劳福德获得四张选票，杰克逊获得七张选票。纽约州便成了问题。纽约州有十七名众议员投票给亚当斯，同时还有十七名众议员却反对亚当斯当总统。亚当斯需要这些反对者中有一位将选票投给他，从而使他获得纽约州的这一票，进而他就能够当选总统。

在纽约州这些反对亚当斯当总统的人中有一位是富人，他代表纽约州的奥尔巴尼地区，他叫斯蒂芬.范.伦斯勒。尽管范.伦斯勒已经支持克劳福德或杰克逊，但他并不能确信现在他要支持谁。那天上午，亨利.克莱把这位老人请到他的办公室，和他交谈。当时丹尼尔.韦伯斯特也在场。他们对这位纽约州的众议员说，国家的安全有赖于这次总统选举选亚当斯当总统。克莱和韦伯斯特对这位老人说，他的选择在整个国会中是最重要的一票，你，斯蒂芬.范.伦斯勒将决定由谁来当总统。这位老人在听完克莱和韦伯斯特的讲话后，脑瓜还没有反应过味，他仍然不知道该怎么做。

当纽约州的众议员投票时，范.伦斯勒还是对自己的选择拿不准，他把头低在桌子下，祈求上帝帮助他做出正确的选择，在经过短暂的祈祷后，他睁开眼睛，看到他脚底下有张纸，那纸上写着亚当斯的名字，范.伦斯勒捡起这张纸，并把这张纸作为他的选票投到了投票箱中。

这就让亚当斯获得了纽约州的选票，从而使他当选美国总统。一个众议院委员会奉命到亚当斯家，告诉亚当斯，总统选举的结果。该委员会的一名议员这样描述这位国务卿：“(当亚当斯听到这个消息时)汗顺着脸往下流，从头到脚都激动异常，他紧张的都难以站着说话。”

到晚上，亚当斯平复了他自己的情绪。门罗总统在白宫举办一个盛大的晚会，亚当斯出席了，同样，杰克逊和克莱也参加了这个晚会。在晚会上，亚当斯和杰克逊面对面碰到了一起，杰克逊用他的胳膊揽住这位年轻人，“你好，亚当斯先生。”杰克逊说到，“正如你所看到的，我把我的左手给你，而对我的右手而言，则是致力于公平。先生，我希望你能够做的很好。”“会做的很好，先生。”亚当斯平静地回答道，“我也希望杰克逊将军也能过的很好。”

两天后，亚当斯对门罗总统说，他决定让克莱担任他的国务卿，他说，他之所以这样做，是因为西部支持当选总统。克莱就此提议深思熟虑了一周时间，他征求了许多朋友的意见，绝大多数朋友都劝他接受这个职务，他们对他说，应该有一个西部的人进入内阁了，而且，他们还说，能够担任国务卿将对他有一天竞选总统起到极大的帮助。克莱接受了出任国务卿的这个提议，他说他将担任亚当斯的国务卿。到现在为止，杰克逊将军仍然不相信那些针对克莱的指责，这些指责说克莱为了获得内阁职务而将他的选票出卖给亚当斯，现在，他确信了这一点。他在给他的朋友写信时说：“这是迄今以来最赤裸裸的腐败，用选票谋取官职，如果不是贿赂，那是什么？”

杰克逊的许多支持者认为约翰.昆西.亚当斯没有能力当党的领导人，他们认为克莱攫取了党的领导权，并利用党的领导权来帮助他自己竞选下一届总统。杰克逊，他自己是一名参议员，当参议院表决批准克莱为国务卿时，他表达了他自己的感受，他投了反对票，而且有十三位参议员与他一起反对这次提名，但他们的力量太弱小了，无法阻止克莱出任国务卿。

下一届总统选举那是在四年之后，安德鲁.杰克逊将军对自己说，下一次总统竞选他将不会失败。在他离开华盛顿回田纳西州之前，杰克逊写了一封信，这封信很快就公开了。“我为我的国家的美好未来而成为一名战士，”杰克逊写到，“我所迈的每一步都困难重重，我感谢上帝，战胜困难是我的责任。我对克莱无愧于心，我们的社会有一个公正的法庭，我将把我自己交给我们那些爱国的和诚实的选民，让他们做出明智地判断。”

杰克逊将军回到了纳什维尔休息，并为下一步做出计划。他仍然是一位参议员，他在寻思，辞去参议员对他而言是否是最好的选择，如果辞去参议员，他将是华盛顿政坛的一位自由人，他将有能力为1828年的总统选举聚集自己的政治力量，他决定辞去参议员。

简评：

政治就是交易，政治行为是就是由众多交易行为所组成的。只是有的人是为了国家利益或民族利益而交易，而有些人则纯粹为自己的那点利益在交易。

既然是交易，那也就是相互利用，只有有用的人，才有交易的价值。

既然是交易，那么为达目的，自然就会利用各种手段，这种人身攻击，自然就免不了了。

既然是交易，就谈不上什么道德、什么正义、什么公理，需要是交易的原则。

既然是交易，就谈不上什么是朋友，什么是敌人，有的只是利用。

既然是交易，就谈不上什么是好，什么是坏，与我有利则为好，与我无利就不好。

放眼看看我们今天的世界，那些天天在从事政治活动的人，他们在忙什么呢？不就是在忙交易吗!

In Election of 1824, a Clash of Personalities 1

Four of the first five presidents of the United States came from Virginia. They were George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison and James Monroe. The second president, John Adams, was a New Englander. In the election of eighteen twenty-four, his son, John Quincy Adams, was one of four leading candidates for president. At the same time, the West began to make its presence felt in national politics.

This week in our series, we discuss the election of eighteen twenty-four.

General Andrew Jackson of Tennessee got the most electoral votes: ninety-nine. But he needed one hundred thirty-one to win a majority. The secretary of state, John Quincy Adams, was second with eighty-four votes. Treasury Secretary William Crawford received forty-one. And Henry Clay of Kentucky got thirty-seven. 

None of the candidates got a majority of the votes. And the decision went to the House of Representatives. The House voted on only the three top candidates for president. The most powerful man in Congress -- Henry Clay -- was not, therefore, a candidate. But Clay's support would be the greatest help any of the candidates could receive. All three wanted his support. Treasury Secretary Crawford had suffered a serious illness before the election, and his health was bad. Clay felt he could not support him for that reason.

This left Adams and Jackson. Clay did not agree with all of Adams's policies. But he did believe Adams had the education and ability to be president. Clay did not like Jackson, the hero of New Orleans during the War of Eighteen Twelve. He knew Jackson was poorly educated and easy to anger. Clay did not think Jackson would be a good president. So Clay decided to support Adams for president. He said nothing about this for a time. Several of Clay's friends visited Adams. They told him that Clay's supporters in the West would be pleased if Adams, as president, named Clay as secretary of state. Adams told them that if the votes of the West elected him president, he would put a westerner in his cabinet. But he would not promise that the westerner would be Clay, or that the cabinet job would be that of secretary of state.

Clay still had not said publicly which candidate he supported. But it became known that his choice was Adams. Late in January, the Philadelphia newspaper Columbian Observer published an unsigned letter. The letter charged that Clay and Adams had made a secret agreement. Clay, the letter said, would give his support to Adams. In exchange, Adams would name Clay his secretary of state.

Clay was furious. He not only denied the charge, but offered to fight a duel with the letter-writer, should his name be known. Much was made of the charge that Clay had sold his vote to Adams. But no proof was ever given. Clay demanded an investigation. But the man who accused him in the newspaper letter refused to say anything. Clay was sure Jackson's supporters were responsible.

Snow was falling in Washington on the morning of February ninth, the day that Congress would elect the president. At noon, members of the Senate walked into the House of Representatives. The electoral votes were counted, and it was announced officially that no candidate had won. The senators left, and the House began voting. Each state had one vote for president. Adams was sure he would get the votes of twelve states. Crawford had the votes of four and Jackson, seven. New York was the question. Seventeen of the New York congressmen were for Adams, and seventeen were opposed to him. Adams needed just one of these opposition votes to get the vote of New York and become president. 

One of those New Yorkers opposed to Adams was a rich old man who represented the Albany area, Stephen Van Rensselaer. Although Van Rensselaer had supported Crawford or Jackson, he really was not sure now whom to support. Henry Clay had taken the old man into his office that morning and talked to him. Daniel Webster also was there. They both told the New York congressman that the safety of the nation depended on the election of Adams as president. Clay and Webster told the old man that his was the most important vote in the whole Congress. That Stephen Van Rensselaer would decide who would be president. The old man's head was not too clear after listening to Clay and Webster. He still did not know what to do.

When the New York congressmen voted, Van Rensselaer still was not sure of his choice. And he put his head down on his desk and asked God to help him make the right choice. After this short prayer, he opened his eyes and saw on the floor at his feet a piece of paper with Adams's name on it. Van Rensselaer picked it up and put it in the ballot box as his vote.  

This gave Adams the vote of the state of New York and made him president of the United States. A committee of congressmen was sent to Mister Adams's home to tell him of the vote. One member of the committee described the secretary of state: "Sweat rolled down his face. He shook from head to foot and was so nervous he could hardly stand to speak."  

Later in the evening, Adams had control of himself. President Monroe gave a big party at the White House. Adams was there. So was Jackson, and Clay. During the party, Adams and Jackson met face to face. Jackson had his arm around a young lady.  "How do you do, Mister Adams," said Jackson. "I give you my left hand, for the right -- as you see -- is devoted to the fair. I hope you are well, sir."  "Very well, sir," answered Adams, coolly. "I hope General Jackson is well." 

Two days later, Adams told President Monroe that he had decided to offer the job of secretary of state to Clay. He said he was doing so because of the western support he had received. Clay thought deeply for a week about the offer. He asked a number of friends for advice. Most of them urged him to take the job. They told him that a man of the West was needed in the cabinet. And they said being secretary of state would greatly help his own chances of becoming president some day. Clay accepted the offer. He said he would serve as Adams's secretary of state. Until now, General Jackson had refused to believe the charges that Clay had sold his vote to Adams for the top cabinet job. Now he was sure of it. He wrote to a friend: "Was there ever before such bare faced corruption. What is this trade of vote for office, if not bribery?"

Many of Jackson's supporters did not believe John Quincy Adams had the ability to be political leader of the party. They believed that Clay would seize the party leadership and use this power to help himself become elected the next president. Jackson, himself a senator, showed his feelings when the Senate was asked to approve Clay as secretary of state. He voted no. And thirteen other senators joined him against the nomination. But they were too few to prevent Clay from getting the job.

The next presidential election was four years away. General Andrew Jackson promised himself this would be one election he would not lose. Before he left Washington to return to Tennessee, Jackson wrote a letter that soon became public. "I became a soldier for the good of my country," Jackson wrote. "Difficulties met me at every step. I thank God that it was my duty to overcome them. I am in no way responsible to Henry Clay. There is a purer court to which I will put my case -- to the intelligent judgment of our patriotic and honest voters."   

General Jackson returned to Nashville to rest and plan. He was still a senator, and he questioned if it might not be best for him to resign from the Senate. He would be free of Washington politics and able to build his political strength for the election in eighteen twenty-eight. He decided to resign.

http://www.wwenglish.com/m07/voa/spec/2008/10/wwenglish.com_nation081002.mp3