Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1835-12-24

rive when Virginia will usaiu stand erect and her so US with
VOICE. hui ~ @ H~s" I 1e s: de-: g. 'S"
The orator was prophetic. The panic Of 33 had
passed away. The proscrptive policy of 81 contributed
to rouse the opc the designs Of the Wings Virginia
stood erect in the spring Of 35and her sous now hail
these hasty lines had the honor CT being the first
,naryr to the reign OF ption-Thc Wing spout
ers in the H. of D. have, of course eagerly opposed hs
rcsioraon Bnt they hare gene jurthcr-Ihey have re-
so,ted 10 the most shameless subteugrs 10 disguise their
prescription of last winter and the very aspey oftheir
abuse tnrasks the inposture We struck at par
ty grounds; and lie very violence of their irsentnents
points out the fact r. Il. 1ras prescribed far opnon S
sake. Their party confessed ny their lriunp's N
'3l-Tfr people saw through the thin disgnIscs which
were assumed Tcy themselves called for The dgy q
7.trtLutiOn and it is worse than idcit was d!singenu
OBS and unnmny, for the late orators whose speeches
We mean 10 review. TO resort to other prctcXts.
What are The facts? AS we stated in lr:S2 when the
Wins made their first blew at US, the Public Printing
had been riren to an Editor Of papcr from tie !ounda
ton of the Commonwealth. 1t had run through old
Pur,lic Augustine Davis, hcriwether Jones, and Samuel
Peasants down I. Richie. The last had held It for
- ycars-ccrlany not without interruption, hut he was
never before opposed the ground OF his beng an
Editor. The Adams and Clay men had more than once
run another Editor against him. He John Hanpdcn
Peasants did not then think it the most 0douS feature
in the riTena Legislation to eject an Editor, who
no Practical Printer He at least tried it, until the
grapes were sour-and then had the cgregous folly to
Congratulate himself on his disappointment. she
first sought the Office and then rroiced at the tTadnm
he had escaped. With characteristic Inconsistency, he
sought the possession Of office which lie admitted
might have corrupted the independence Of his press.
The usage Of Virginia had thus counenanccd the EN-
ploynet Of an Editor The very words Of the law,
or regulating the office OF Public Printer that passed
in ~ and revised in olJ confirms the practice for, 1t
expressly says, 'll.a it shall be the duty OF tie Public
Printer TO pudh IN his Ga=tc or otherwise Us lie may
be directed, all intelligence, notices Of particular Laws,
4 No lrH "
tended to The other States and TO the Federal Govern
ment. The Wings had not been 10th TO employ them
selves. The i:nacuatc Panic, Senate elected Gales u
Scaton wio we venture to say never tGuch type nor
read proof sheet The Wings o! y. Carolina, but few
weeks since, attempted TO run in Party Editor-but
failed. They have recently succeeded in Tennessee
and in Prnnsy lvan!aln word, has been the custom
here and cwhrrc-and I. r. the first Editor to be
sacrificed by rrosc plive Party, OIL fictitious prccxt
Aye-most of the very men, who raised thc cry against
him in 3, and voted linn out in 81, had for years sup.
ported hinl-un in ':3, the genius Of Whigg ism was
determined 10 sacrifice him for his opinions and looked
around for plausible disguise 10 conceal lis purpose
Il found such precxt in tie argument about pEacti
cal printer.
Had the duties of the Office been faithfully performed
No one denied it, The mGs violent Wings dare dis
pute it. The voice of the Legislature had pronounced
its approval Of the manner which the public work had
been executed In the winter Of 27-2S the cAuIorS OF
rival press had got up an enquiry into his conduct =
Mr.. Wilchcr, who figures IN the foreground as the
friend OF practical printers, was then his p9lca !rrnd
and stood by him during the whole invest, Tatiun. How
did il result In the adoption Of resolutions reported by
the Select Committee, that the public printing was ex
ecucd with accuracy, ncatncss, and despach and that
the public printer was in their opinion, enli'lcd to the
undimnished confidence Of the Legislature.
IN ,ghat The acOrk done? There not 4
man in the committee or in the Legislature: who
acquainted with the fact that II. X. practical
printer-yet the objection nerer made TO him, till
the vioch! Wing, panic season Of 30 An knew that
the public work was we'll done All might have known,
and many did know that TO ensure its execution in the
best style: Il Il. had taken course which other pub
lie printer here else where it is believed, had
pursued. Where is the editor in this Stale, who had
ever shared equally the profits Of the Office with practi-
cal printers for the sake Of lis being well executed: Do
Gales d. Scaton share their profits with the printers who
carry the work. No one believes it. But such was
the course which L. r. pursued lie claims merit
for the notivc-bu lie believes the effect to have its
duties better discharged. His partner is admirable,
rcgularbred printer lie employs fine foreman and
celent compositofs under HIM 10 assist him. When T.
r. thinks it necessary he exercises general superm
tendency the work. The Wing orators have done
him much injustice in this respect.
We seize this occasion to say in reply query that
was put by Mr.. Wchcr during The debate. Mir Ioc!nan
could not answer It, tor the best in the wosldbe
cause T. r. not candidate for the o:iice-and had
Stunned all communications with the members upon the
subject Mr. j. T. Brown mi ht, with equal Justice. have
said ofus, what he said Of Mr. She phe-that 'nryer
solicited their votes; followed members to obtain
their favor. But now inform Mr. Wchcr. that
it is the Office Of Shepherd Il Co. which is to do the
work. And il as the ippant MIR. Brown says sit has
been said By that ii had been better done during
the last year, why he may take some comfort from the
assurance that it will be at least well done during the
ensuing yearWc also pledge ourselves to the rcd0ub
able Mr. Dornan, that shall frequently put foot
into the office, and read the proosheets often we
Such was the arrangement under which the public
work was done, up TO December last II had always
been executed in Virginia, by the Editor Of paper. 1t
had been done elsewhere without complaint
We too had filled the Office for years. The confidence Of
the Legislature had been Expressed for in the most rra
flying terms Some Of the very Wings who now cant about
the Public Printer had voted for year after year.
without the slightest compuncon. Where VIM
cent Witcher's conscience all this time? Where was
he who now nsinAatcs that it was not till 27-2S he
ascertaned that Thomas Richie knew nothing of print
ing" (hlr Dorman's proot:shccts even, presume in
cluded } and That Shepherd was the acting man." Why
did this Wing vote afterwards for u. r.? So late as Dec
1899, he r. r. had the honor of receiving an unan-
nous vote in the Legislature-and among them, will the
reader believe it, are these Simon Pures, Witchcr and
Brown? How comes it about, that the smooth tongucd
Orators Brown could reconcile it to lis tender coIsc
cnce 10 vote for Editor Why, did he not himself
look up for Printer in Richmond, and tring linn fer
acard3 Why did he say only the day before S. Shep-
herd was run against T. Richie hathc was astonscd
to hear OF any, opposition To- Mr. R-what objection
could they possibly urge &c. &c-and yet the very next
day stand up in the House, and s,ammer out his u;sera
bic cant about the practical printer This oily speaker
tells the House, that it only two years SINCE when
Mr.. S. was presented TO tic House candidate that
i offered all opportunity for efectng an object which
had always appeared to him of importancethe separa-
on Of the Press from public Offices" If this of
much Importance repeat. why did lie not himself,
years before, present such candidate to the House
Ec wrll acquainted with ali the facts in TIPS,
his wise colleague of Ptsy Yana rnd yet he sum-
bers over his duty all along presses his surprise any
opposition being made to Mr. r. and late Dec. 5,
1885, buton tile nextday, is, fer the first n,c whipped
into the ranks.
But there is clue to e of Politics, well as
TO the Labyrinth Of Crete The Of this sudden
yo!uton towards T. K. is easily explaned On The 7th
December, 1892 he received al! the votcseven Mcssrs.