Richmond daily Whig. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1842-1861, 1845-07-11

before HIS nose. that the call OF Convention 4
not matter If doubt but of certainty, not Of spec
uation but Of necessity. Even were il poss,bl,
to unite the East in abstract opinion against
Convention, il is impossible to unite il in legsla
tive action against the loud wishes Of a known ma
jority Of the people of Virginia: Such a course
weakly adopted and wickcdly persevered in
would produce consequences far more scrou,
than any rational man can apprchend from a
Convention. Violent euds and ultimate division
would ensue OF necessity.
But our object now more particularly TO
show that there were many Just and weighty rea.
sons for the call of a Convention besides the ba-
SIS of representation. That is the more promi.
nent motive in the West, because the West feels
natural sense OF injustice and degradation, un-
der an arrangement, which, with the larger pop
ulaton leaves that division of the State in hope.
less minority in the Legislature But in the West
there are other strong and convincing arguments
used Tor calling Convention. These are felt
still more powerfully in the East. and have rallied
here strong minority, il not majority for the
Convention. We adduced these arguments last
fall, but will briefly rccaptulate them: l. The
uncertainty and ohscuri,y in which the eectiv,
franchise is lcIt-obscurity so great. that IN no
two counties of the State arc all the qua.ilica
of voters understood aiks by the officers contact
ing the electon-obscurity SO great. that no ,hree
of the fathers who be.at the Constitution under.
stand this part other work alike Is this no e, i
Verify It is-a great and crying and demoralizing
cvil-leaving the citizen in doubt and perpleNity
rs to his righ,s-pushing the impudcnt and bra
zen to claim rights not belonging To him--re.
straining the modest and diiiident from appearing
at the Polls. lest his privilege should be chsllcng
cd-openng the door TO nnumerablc frauds--rol
lutiDs iha ballo, box. the purity of which all con-
ieSs to he the ark of Republican Liberty and ma
tional safety. To remedy this corrupting evil
would Of itself justify the call Of; Convention and
weighed against it, the womanish fears arising
from the preponderance ofslayery in the East over
the West, are ridiculous.
,. To gre The East fair play in Presidential
elections That fair play the East has not now
West of the Blue Ridge, freehold of 81 acres
can in almost every county be purchased for -
ar 30 ccnts--ior il the whole 80 acres are rock,
it is still competent freehold. East of the Noun.
tans, freehold costs money. and the conse.
native born and intelligent men have no right of
voting, while every man votes beyond the Noun.
iainS. To illustrate Shenandoah with not more
white men than Richmond. and not more unani.
nous for Mr.. Polk than Richmond was for Mr.
Clay. gave Mr.. Polk 1880 majority, while Rich.
mond could not give Mr. CLAW 60Ul Ii is easily
possible that Pok's whole majority in Virginia
was made up by this inequality between the East
and the West. This, TOTO put all Virginia on
platform of equality-would of itself Justify the
call of Convention--a thing by no means so ter
rife, by no means such Hydra, as some good
people would fam persuade the old ladies and the
little children
3. To abolish The Erecmire Council. Mr. JEFF.
fersun pronounced the old council which welded
the Executive power of the State, rs useless rs a
fifth wheel TO wagon. What would he saw if
living. Of that more refined piece of stupidity in.
vented by the Convention Of ls29, and invented
we verify believe for the sake Of one man. and to
keep him still in office he had been and has
been in office all his life, tho mighty stIckler
for "Rotatlon too, IN other peoples casrs-Juhge
Peter V. Daniel! What we ask, would Mr.. JET:
ierson have thought OF an advisory council, when
he thought the old fungus They. advise,
but the Governor need not even look at their ad.
vlce-certalnly there is not the slightest ohliga-
ton upon him 10 follow 1t. Some $1,000 per an.
NUN appropriated TO stall three gentlemen TO
give advice which Ia not needed or followed un.
less 1t jumps with the Governors humor. 10 30
years, these 5000 would be 100000, and IN 30
years 500 900 would educate respectfully we
should suppose, some hundreds OF poor children
But we have not time space TO 20 over the
whole ground. There arc many strong argu.
mcnts behind, of Eastern as well as Western mp.
plIcaton Of these the most patriotic and unan.
swerable is to the wise not to oppose what they
cannot present, and which by opposition they may
render source of discord, and to the true Repub.
lican and Patriot, to yield promptly aud graceful.
ly TO the wishes Of II majority of his countrymen