Constitutional Whig. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1824-1832, 1830-08-17
MONDAY MORNING, AUGUST lo, $40.

W We particularly ask the attention of the Peo
pie of Virginia, to the following article.
The Editor Of the Enquirer-.uore Consistency.
The Political Arena deals our contemporary neat
thrust about the Jefferson letter 1t saws:
''Mr Southworth has declared his intention r.
send the letter to Richmond-there, the hand wri-
ting of MIR Jefferson well known, and fit is for
gerry there hundreds who are able to prove il .nc
When weighed in this balance and found wanting yve
shall yield to In the sincerity and yebemenca of
our remuneration We shall hold its author in the
same scorn and detestation, which we extend IN tho
writer of the East Room Letter. We shall hold. en-
co-equal IN infamy. and take pleasure in expo q
them to the scorching contempt of an insutcd CO,
munity
The Enquirer, somew hat unfortunately we think
observes, "when we were unfortunate as once to
puoiish the 'East-Room Letter., we called upon the
author publicly in the papers, as well as in private
e.SeIs, 70 mare atonement to the publc-and if he
haa not done should have left ourselves at lib
cry TO do with his anne, seemed besfto ourselves
we would ask for how many weeks did The Enourer
presses guarded silence IN reIation To this lette-
inter the faisity OF Its statements, had been establish
ed 6y evidence not to be questioned? How manv
weeks elapsed between the publication of that most
mendacious epistle and the making by the writer of
.hae atonement to the public which thus satisfied
the Editor Was not the Editor persuaded that his
correspondent had wlifully lied long before he pub
lished the very lame attempt explanation of the
anar! And m this interval. the letter repui-
ished. with editorial comment and Typographical ero
blazonry by every Jackson print in the country md
by many who have never to this day undeceived the
puDilc IN regard to its character? We wish to be
understood,-we do not intimate that Mr.. Richie
at the time of publishing the letter had the least
OF the fasehoods it contained In the honorable sta
ton held by his correspondent he (Mr r. had q
guaranty for the veracity of any statement which
might proceed from him The Editor was culpable
In the delay which took place in contradicng the let
ter after he must have known that it was not true
The Enquirer has more than once alluded to the
anende made by the author of the East Room Letter.
as complete atonement for his ofence-no. oolv To
the Editor whom he had made Instrumental in i'm,
posing upon the Public, but the Public itself This
is so far from being true that the Public verv oene
rally thought the amende insulting TO its under
standing, more profigate than the East Room letter
itself What 1t? Why this in effect-,hat
whereas in the East Room letter, the Honorable
author alledged that he had visited the East Room
IN person, and had his old fashioned Republican no.
lions greatly scandaized at the regal magnifcence
o 'he aniende, that is to say, the apo
iogy, for the unmitigated and unqualified fasehood of
LIE Whoie statement was neither more nor less, than
confession that he had not been in the East Room
a' all out haa proceeded upon rumor mistaking one
room TOT another! That is to say-the an,efade is
made for one most gross and injurious untruth, by
cool and even Justificaory acknowledgment that il
'0as an untruth an acknowledgment that he had not
been, where he said he had been, op seen what he
said ne had scent This is the amende honorable to
an abused Public, with vengeance. helped out bv
what every body conceived to be another falsehood-
namely, that the author had mista ken one room for
another ne never blamed the Editors of the En-
quireF for the publication of that letter Thew were
imposed upon by the standing of the Hon. author and
the most cautious and sagacious might have been i'm
posed upon in the way. But thew were d,atorv
IN correcting the error-they suffered considerable
time to eapse, after they had the evidence of Mem
bers of Congress- of its total fasty before thew made
the correction--and when they did So it was accom-
panied by an apology for the unprncipled mendacity
OF the author-(the Senior was then we think in
Massachusetts,
Now we think that gentlemen who have been
SO fagrantly imposed upon ought to make some al
ioWanee for others who incur a similar misfortune
ought to be able to find corner of their hearts
grain Of charity for others who have been duped
by knavery and love of mlechicf Let us see if our
contemporary has been able to find this little Grain
OF love--if he has found the magnanmity to extend
that mercy to another, which generous Public has
extended to him If the beautiful Prayer has not es-
capped his memory
"Peach me to feel another's woe
To hide the fault I see
That mercy to others show
That mercy show to me-"
In his paper of Aug. 10, he has the following re-
aections:
but the beauty Of the matter is that tie Editor of the ~
Commercial denounces Mr. Souhworth in the most unura
lied terms for palmngEbis spurious Letter off upon the Public
The very Editor who has just published outrageous libel up
on MIR handoph-and from honorable too
from man, who, in the brighter age the Republic when
worth made the man. stood high in the confidence ceun
els OF his country Indeed and who this honorable man?
And what now says Col Stone?"
The Editor ofthe Commercial Advertiser had been
imposed upon too-so at least say Mr.. Randolph's
friendsbut he acted in the most honorable manner
-ProfessiDg his continued confidence in his cores
pendent, but declaring his readiness to repair the
mistake if convinced of it, and republishiug the con-
tradction of the Norfolk Herald. What more could
he do? could any man do? When Mr.. Richie pub