Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1851-05-23
From the Washington Union.
nn. a,I aI1sA


The special organ complains of our allusion to the
part which Mr. Fillmore acted on the abolition ques-
tion alleging that in the last elections 't the
staple of stump speeches and party resolutions and the
american people elected Mr Fillmore to the rice presi
denev IN spite of it," According to the logic of the
special organ the statute of limitations exculpates
entirely the agency of the wing party in giving birth
and dignity to political anti-savery in order to
cure the election of Gen. Taylor and Mr.. Fillmore,
but must be interpreted in the very opposite sense
when it suits its convenience to assert that the dem
ocratc party is responsible for the Buffalo platform
and for the combination which elected Mr. Sumner
to the Senate of the United States. This kind of To-
gic will not d. and is contrary to the rules of
common sense, that inclined to think 1T is
ly way the special organ has of manifestlng its i'll
will that two such distinguished members of the
binet as Messrs Webster and Corwin should have
left US some records the subject which make the
true logic one of the qualities that must ever be
cluded from the Republic Did not Mr. Corwin i'm
pore the abolitoniSts to vote for Mr.. Fillmore, say
ing they are my childrem-nay arhig children !! Did
not Mr. Webser say the same thing, substance, ahem
he reproached the Buffalo platform as theft-an fHl-
cit tuking Of Uhig property? But the special organ
admitting all this, says, in substance, Did not the
people elect Mr.. Fillmore an spite Of it? And can At
be supposed that anything arhach Mr. Fillmore did be-
fore tie last election to haze any freight an determln-
ing his claims as the present candidate ofie hg par
! ty for the presidency?
This is the point which we wished to see distinct
ly put by the special organ, in order that read
ers may not mistake the lame and impotent defence
which it sets up for the nUincbilny of the present
administration. Instead of making the manly dec
laration which the truth demands that the combi-
nation by which Gen. Taylor elected implicated
the whig party both the author of political anti
slavery and the beneficiary of all the results of the
power it bestowed-instead, say, of admitting
what is as clear as daylight on this subject, and
founding the desire of Mr. Fillmore to be elected to
the presidency the magnanimity OF his country
men, who might forgive such fault in the presence
of the credit which is due to him for his conduct as
the present head of the administrations special
organ prefers to persevere in charging unjusty the
democratic party which has nobly defed the incen-
diary spirit of abolition in all the stages of its
croachment the peace and harmony of the land
But if in this respect the special organ is unfortu-
nate it is not less SO in maintaining that the election
of Mr.. Fillmore to the presidency precludes an in
quiry into the objections which were made to him
during that canvass. This is indeed strange logic
whether applied to morals. laws, or politics. The
wrong done by individuals parties is often not re-
ally understood until the authors have been long in
possession of the advantage which tempted them tc
commit the wrong. If such logic were recognised
by the peopleif the objections made to the election
of individual to the presidency are to be consider
ed as invalidaed by his success-one of the highest
safeguards against the dangers of party spirit would
be withdrawn Such logic would have kept John
Quincy Adams in power; for all the faults of his
administration were anticipated the natural re
suit of his unsound political principles, by those
who opposed his election Yet it did not avail hin
to say to the American people that the objections
made to his reelection had been disposed of by hi
first election and to plead that, if they were true
the constituted authorities ought never to have trus
ted him with the highest Office in the gift of the re
= public
We assure the special organ that we have no de
sire to profit by the very bad defence it makes fo
| Mr.. Fillmore, when It tells that we ought not II
go hack to the circumstances which connect hin
with the abolition societies; but we insist upon i
that common Justice claims for the democratic part,
those societies, by whose influence, feel authorz
ed in saying the whig ticket succeeded at the las
election. 1t will not do to answer this demand fo
justice by saying that the Erie letter mas printe
and reprinted ten thousand timeS'' during the las
election, nor that Gen. Campbell asserts that h
kneuO Mr. Fillmore to be as free from abolition sen
! timents amy in the Morrill," Gen. Campbell
cannot be presumed to know Mr.. Fillmore vel
0 as Messrs. Webster and Corwn, whose testimony i
before the whole country proving, beyond all doub
dispute, that abolition and freesol were the pro
perty of whiggery, relied upon for political pur
: pose, and never abandoned until it that
political power thus organized could not exist with
out destroying our Constitution and Union.
But it is not alone on this question of the respon
siblity of the administration for the evils of poiti
T cal anti-savery that think the defence of tn
special organ will be- and ought to be- unsatsfacto
l ry to the country. When we stated facts proving
Il the inadequate protection of interests GU
Il Mexican frontier, the reply set up was that W
seemed disposed to take the side of the Mexican gov
i eminent that, at best all that could be mad
out of that fact was, that democratic Congress
had left the War Department without means for tn
next fiscal year. 1Uhach does not until tn
first of JuiY neat. All the means were granted tina
were asked for during the past two years; and ye
E the frontier not defended during that time, AM
the singular excuse is given that the appropriation
for the estimates of the next year not what tn
heads of bureaus had desired. What relation coul
there be between such appropriations and the der
and to prevent which there had been the most am
= pie means provided by Congress?
The DUKE OF WELLINGTON AND THE FRENC
o SCULPTOR .-Among the visitors to the Great Exh
bition last week was the Duke of wellington accom-
: panied by his daughter-in-la the Marchioness
; Douro. After walking down the transept, the nobl
: and gallant duke turned into the French depart
e ment, and paused to observe of the exhibitor
removing from oaken case various articles of s
e yer and gold plate. Among the naorceaur uncovere
o as the duke walked up pair of silver eques
tran statuettes representing the duke himself & hi
: once formidable rival, Napoleon The great CAP
It tain smiled at the incident and to nquirng loo
/ instantly spread that the Duke of Wellington wa
within the French territory" and in few moment
probably for the first time in his ife-the nobl
and gallant duke was surprised and surrounded b
Z a body of Frenchmen. Happily, in the present in
stance the national character for politeness prevail
ed over every other feeling The hats and caps
V the bearded strangers instnctively raised t
Great Britains hero,' and the noble duke, havin
returned military salute passed on to the next de