Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1846-05-15
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H.. L,rH
He had, however, given The een'ien'du '''1N
questions 10 answer ,,:.,;n;a
Mr.. PAYNE said ifthe gentleman from tifs,n.' a
,rould reduce his questions 10 writing, SO mat W
P might be able 10 recollect what lhey "eio' ~
should lake pleasure IN answering .ne.u M
lhey were so numerous he could mol w,'i,ou. ".'s
assistance promise 10 answer them all, o'eause
aSa,,,J craet ,bcm He denied that he had m
,crf.red with Inc internal affairs oil virginia. lle
lr,, Tho neople Of Virginia 10 fight their own Dat
,lss bn, he must protest against adding three thou
| sand voices 10 eastern Virginia 10 enaoie 'Eeui ~
control for a still longer time the people OF thF
western norton OF the State, who were IN,
for the right Of suffrage. He said names Oh
f.as YOU were!" Let The battle go on. II wa.
not for Congress to lend us power ~ t' ,hs;r
majority against a minority struggling lot 'he'i
rights. Al. obscrved
! ,bat tbis was The only important question "nich
had been asked him, and he thought ne mao Iait-
vanswrred il He was only discharging what he
believed 10 be his duty He believed The effect OF
this bill would be TO retard Tor al least len years
longer a state of things which he earnestly &C.
sired TO sec. and which no action OF his should ey-
Or defeat or relard. lie hoped Congress would
no, act on the bill till they had given il further
reflection.
Mr. Bayly said that be had not designed 10
take any part in This debate, nor should he haze
done so but for the very extraordinary speech OF
the gentleman from Alabama. Mr.. q. had been
a member in this House Tor lhree successive
sessions. During that time he had heard many
speeches al which he had been greatly amazed,
| but never had his amazement been 50 profound
as on listening 10 the speech which had Just been
concluded. 1t had fallen from the lips OF gen.
tleman who, more constantly and invariably than
/ any other man in that House, dashed himself into
q state of excitement whenever members from
another parl of The Union attempted in The slight
est degree 10 interfere with the domestic concerns
of the Southern States II there was any indi-
vidual on that floor who signaiZed himself in
this way, il was this very gentleman from Ala
| bana And YET he, Of all other men, undertook
10 drag before The House OF Representatives the
domestic policy and politics THE Stale OF Viz
ginia and utterly 10 misrepresent the feelings
and opinions OF that portion oil Inc State IN winch
Mr. 3. resided.
! Who gave the gentleman from Alabama
commission TO ask the Congress of The Uhited
States TO lake part in The local politics Of Viz
sinia-ro take part with western Virginia against
eastern Virginia. Mr.. E. denied Tia; he had
any such authority; and without intending any
personal offence Il 4 gentleman towardo whom
! he had always ents tanned kind feelings, ne must
say that more impairment interference IN mat
ters which did not concern him Mr.. u. had ne
yer witnessed in any man.
He could tell that gentleman that the people OF
Western Virginia would not thank him for The
interference Mr. b. distinguished friend from
/ Western Virginia, who had pu,to the gentleman
few hard questions, had sl2nallzed himself
with an ability that lhs gentleman from Alabama
would never be able 10 equal, in repudlaling, as
(, Mr.. b. repudiatcd, the sentiments Wnch me
gentleman from Alabama had attributed 10 East
ern Virginia. That gentleman had lhousht II
,h..I II thafo Ctr p
lone exlstcd in Virginia between portion OF her
citizens who were in favor OF extending the right
OF suffrage, and another portion who were op-
posed 10 il, and had asserted that these two parties
were geographically divided. Mr.. b. denied II
| 10 be n fact. So far vas from being The truth,
that the people Of Eastern Virginia were as zeal
| Gus and able advocates OF the extension OIL The
RICH, of suffrage any that could De found in The
Western portion OF the State. There was no
local division, and he asked mat gentleman
where he got his iniormatioL1 Mr. B. had re-
presented a portion OF the State since his early
manhood, and, with personal knowledge, ne
denied the fact OF any such territorial division.
| This was not proper place nor proper time Tor
the discussion OF opinions on The subject Of SUI
| frage In his own Stale his opinions on mat
subject were well known; they had been repeat
eily proclaimed and always maintained.
! Ii was not the least astonishing part oil the gen.
tlemans speech, that, while ne protested himself
so extremely anxious to extend The right OF sui
frayc 10 all the people OF Virginia, he should re-
sist a bill which went 10 give that ghl 10 TWO
thousand people in the city Of Alexandria, who
were now DISTINGUISHED He thought the gentle
man would do better 10 display his friendship Tor
the people of Virginia in This way. II The gen
tleman wanted allies for the cause OF extended
| suffrage his best course would be 10 bring The
! county OF Alexandria into the Stale on the terms
OF this bill, which provided an extent oil suffrage
| as wide as lis most Jealous advocate could de-
mand. And this had extended 10 all tree white
persons in the county, but paupers. unalics. and
| elons. He would become security that every
voter in that county would be the immediate ally
of those who were for extending suffrage. They
never would assent to deprive others OF recov-
cred right SO dear 10 themselves. The gentle
man from Alabama, in his impairment intcrie.
renee with the internal affairs Of Virginia, had
said that the Eastern portion OF The STATE was op-
noscd 10 a convention. Mr. 3. denied the iact.-
| THE county p which he now lived, as well as IN
adjoining county where he formerly resided, were
both in Eastern Virginia, and had both voted Tor
the call OF a convention. For The space oil more
than forty years, that old and veneraled county
had uniformly voted in the same way. And yet
the gentleman, with facts like these staring him
in the face undertook 10 inform this House that
Eastern Virginia wasopposed 10 convention 10
correct existing errors IN The Constitution. Inc
gentleman was mistaken and, before he cam: |
3ooin 10 ,eII This House what were the internal
notifies OF Virginia. he had better first learn |
something about Virginia. He denied the gen
,leman's right 10 come here and make any such |
statements. MIR. B. had listened, but he had heard
no answer 10 the argument OF his colleague, me
Chairman of the Committee for the District OF
Columbia, (Mr. Hunter)
And here Mr.. b. begged leave 10 state that
TO-, b,j hoap n ndino the mari OF 4
another colleague OF his (Mr. Johnson) as 10 the
vote given by his own representative IN The Lc-
gisaure of Virginia. That vote had no respect
10 the re,roccssion OF Alexandria, but 10 the pre-
sent calling OF convention.
Mr. johnson here rose and made an explana-
ton. admitting in substance what Mr. b. had |
stated; but added that, on The subject OF con-
vention that gentleman and himself were direct |
" al issue. Western Virginia had not accepted /
and would not accep, the terms OF convention |
which had been offered TO her.
Mr.. Bavly declined entering into any discus (
sion on this point. He would, however, stale 10
the gentleman from Alabama one very singular
fact. In the last convention OF Virginia there
was but one delegation which presented solid
undivided front in favor OF the doctrines OF West
| ern Virginia, and that was the delegation from
Loudoun and Fairfax, every one OF whom, with
| Mr. Fitzhugh at their head, a gentleman locally /
connected with Eastern Virginia, had advocated
sirenuously the Western policy. And ye, The
gentleman from Alabama demanded that Con-
sress should keep Alexandria out Of Virginia,
for the sake OF extended suffrage, when every
gentleman from this portion OF The State had
most zcalously advocated it. That gentleman
might rely on il, that Western Virginia would
strongly suspect that sort of friendship which was
displayed in weakening the hands OF her friends !
and advocates II was friendship she would
| scarcely understand and she would be very apt |
to suspect tina, The zeal which SO loudly proclaim
ed it had in truth some other motive.
| Mr. B. here went into a calculation, from the
usual ratio Of voters in the population OF South
en States, TO show that the remuneration OF The
county Of Alexandria would add not more than
six hundred voters 10 the present voters in Virgi-
MA State whose population amounted 10
million and half He concluded by begging
the House 10 decide the question before them upon