Washington telegraph., 1849-05-02
From the Baltimore american. March 20.]
.BOMBASTES AND HIS BOOTS.

There is trouble brewing in South Caro-
lima. The rest of the Union does not
seem to be aware of it, but there is no
doubt of the fact The genial warmth of
the spring, instead of animating her more
kindly sympathies, seems only to ferment
the sap of her asperity. Her patriotism
and her palmettoes become green toge-
ther The temperature of her heroic ar
dor rises with the mercury, and by the
time Of the dog days she will be equally
ready for the hydrophobia or fight
The newspapers of South Carolina are
talking of.acomlnlttee of safety and cores
pondence, non-intercourse, confscation,
and such revolutionary things. All this
is very alarming yet such is the apathy
of the public mind that we observe no
signs Of wholesome terror any where.
The little State is quite in earnest; yet
the public mind will not believe it-and
at discount that we seriously fear no
| body would care about it. But, for our
| own part, such is the admiration we cher
| ish for chivalry that it is always sure of
| bur applause even though it appears
mounted only on the stump, or figures no
where but upon paper. 1t may be per-
versity of taste, but We must confess that
our idea of hero is the greater in pro-
| portion as his stature is less; we prefer
Gen. Thumb to the Belgian giant; and
cannot imagine perfect champion eX-
| cept in high-heeled boots, and of such at
titude only that he would have to stand
on tiptoe to pull an adversary's nose.
! South Carolina is remarkable for perse-
verance in wrath. She varies only in the
aspects of it. She will not. be in good
humor on any terms. Her nose, like her
musket, is always cooked She would
consider it an abandonment of dignity to
put on an affable look, and State rights
would be in danger if she should once re-
lax into smile. The price of liberty is
eternal vigilance-and she watches hers
so closely that she has no liberty to do any
thing else. The latest 2,rO7aunc1dnze,at0
from the land of lofty dongs is to be
found in the South Carolinian of the 10th
inst 1t is to the following effect
The people of this State may, after due
deliberation and reflection, adopt a strict
non-intercourse in trade and commerce,
as regards the Northern States This,
if adopted, would doubtless have the same
effect, but to make it thoroughly effec-
tive it must receive the full consent of
the mass of our people. 1t must be adopt
ed only after calm and mature delibera-
| ton. We want to see no storm raised
within our own confines; we would de-
| Z I,
portion of the people of this State against
the other, either in sentiment or action.
! Whatever course is deemed advisable, to
be OF any avail, it must be adopted with
| the greatest unanimity.
When agitation was necessary to a.
rouse the people, it was our duty to be
diligent in the matter. Now that the
| people have taken the initiative in their
district meeting, our duty, and the duty
of the press throughout the State, we be-
Iieve to be the securing of perfect harmo-
ny and unanimity of opinion in their fur
ther acts and deliberations. TO this task
the Carolinian will apply itself, and will
endeavcr to avoid the agitation of any
scheme which might carry within itself
the elements of its own destruction, and
consequently defeat our purposes. Con
! fscation' of the property of the people of
| the North has been limited at and 'sug-
gested. We believe such proposition
wholly inaefensible at this time 1t is an
extreme measure, and should only be
adopted at the last extremity And is
| there any man of common sense who
| does not know that such a procedure
| would at once involve us in civil war;
| Better, far better, would it be for the
whole South calmly to avow their deter
| nina ton to withdraw from the confede-
racy and define the limits of a new re-
public.
The course to be pursued-the mode
of action to be adopted-is now, we con-
slider, entirely in the hands Of the Com
mittees of Safety and Correspondence
They must get to work. The people did
not appoint them under any other expec-
tation but that they would work. We
feel confident they will not abuse the So
lemn trust committed to their charge, and
that we will hear from them at all early
day.
Our time or limits will not permit us
to consider the non-intercourse PROPOSE
ton to-day; we will do so probably here
after. We believe the suggestion to be
good one; and that no better means
could be used to bring the people of the
North to their senses. But it must be
the voluntary sacrifice of the whole peo-
pie, and must be the policy Of two or
more States to render it successful TO any
great extent.
1t is lamentable that with heart so
set upon treason, this unfortunate COM
monwealth should never find her way to
it. The Tantalus of States, she pines