Weekly national intelligencer., 1851-11-15
DowSrEsyrLLg.

have little talk with you about the affairs of the
nation. And if you amt in the land of the livin,
but have dropped off since I've been away to the
gold diggns of Calforny, if you'll contrve to let
me know it Ill 60 to one Of the sperrit rappers"
cousin Nabby knows of 'em) and try TO have
chat with you that way. And my old friend Mr..
Richie too, want TO have chat along with him.
But don't know where to find him, for Uncle
Joshua tells me he isn't in the Washington Union
paper now, and they We g carried him back to Old
Virginny." Now that's very bad it's treason
agin the Government. How can the country get
along through Presidential campaign without Mr.
Richie! They never have done it, and it cant be
done; it's impossible. / don't know who they've got
in his place in the Union, nor don't care but /
know they never will find one that can fight agin
the Federalists like Mr.. Richie. How many times
he's saved the country from bein eat up by Fede-
rallsts; and, what's very remarkable, he could fight
agin EN- for years and years after they was all
dead, jest as well as he could when they alive.
There's to be great battle for the next President
and we cant get along without Mr.. Richie. He
ought not to gone off so; he owed his services
to the country, and he ought to be ketched and
brought back to Washington under the Fugitive
slave law That law is carried out every where
here to the North, and we expect it to be carried
out to the South. What is sass for goose is
sass for gandar. If the South wants to keep
the North in the Union, she must give some good
strong proof that she is willing to fulfil and carry
out the fugitive slave law. And she couldn't do it
any better than to ketch Mr.. Richie and carry him
back to Washington, and shet him up in the Union
paper Office, and tie him down in the editorial chair
and put ream Of paper before him and a pen in
his hand, and set him to writing about the next
Presidency. Then the dark fog that now hangs
over the whole country would begin to be blowed
away, and parties could begin to see where they
again; and the knots and the snarls of politics
would begin to he unraveled, so that we could all
tell where to take hold and pull with fair chance
of doing some good. Then we might stand good
chance to get President next year. But as things
now go the chance looks slim enough.
Times isn't now as they used TO be, when we
hadn't only two parties, and every body could tell
who he was fghtin aginst. Then single blast
from Major Ben Russell in the old Boston Cent?
mel would call out all the Federalists in the coun
try, and make 'em draw up in straight line; and
then another blast from Mr.. Richie in the Rich
mond Enquirer would call out all the Republicans
into another line-and when these two parties were
called out there wasn't nobody left but women and |
children-and then the two parties had clear field
before 'em, and marched up face to face and had
fair fight and they always knew which got whipt
But things isn't SO nowadays. There's more |
parties now than you can shake stick at. And
they face in all manner of ways, SO that when you
are fghtn for one party it would puzzle Phila-
delphy lawyer to tell what parties you are fghtin
agnst, or TO tell who is whipt when the battles
over. didn't know things was in quite so bad
snarl till got home 'tother day from Calforny
and sot down and had long all with Uncle Joshua,
who told me all about il. Uncle Joshua is getting
old, but he holds his age remarkably well think
full equal to Mr.. RItchie; and don't see but he
keeps the run of politics as well as he used to.
Says l. " Uncle Joshua, what's the prospect
about the Presidency %
"Well," says he, Maior,'-he always calls
me Major-says he, " Major, there aint no pros
pect at ALL
Il How SO" says l ; I" how can you make that
ou.l'
well" says he, /" there's so many parties now,
and they are all so mixed up, higgledy- y-piggledy,
that you cant see through em with the longest spy
glass that ever was made. That's why there amt
no prospect at all. :
Well, now, uncle Joshua" says l, 81 jest name
over all these parties, SO | can begin to have
some idea of them"
Well,'' says he, swell begin first south-side
of Mason and Dixon's line. There's the old Whig
party, and the old Democratic party, and the party
of Union Wings, and the party Of Secession Wings,
and the party of Union Democrats, and the party
of Secession Democrats, and the party of absolute,
unqualified Secessionis;s, and the party of Co-ope-
ra,icn Secessionists. And then if we come to the
north side of Mason and Dixon's line, we find the
regular Whig party, and the regular Democratic
party, and the Union Wings, and the Abolition
Wings, and the Union Democrats, and the Abo-
ton Democrats, and the Silvergray Wings, and the
Wooley-head Wings, and the Hunker Democrats,
and the Barn-burner Democrats, and the Seward
party, and the Union Safety Committee party, and
The regular Free-Sile party, and the regular Vote
yourself-a Farm party
Here Uncle Joshua paused little, and Aunt
keziah laid down her nittin-work, and looked over
her spec,acles, and says she to me, I" Your uncle
Joshua must have wonderful memory to keep all
them hard names in his head for my part, don't
see how he does it," Then cousin Nabby she
clapped her hands and laughed, and says she,
Now cousin Jack, which party do you belong to I"
Says l, "I'll be hanged if | know. II the Old
Gineral was alive-I mean Old Hickory-Id 90
with his party, let it be which 'twould for then
should know was going for the country. The
Old Ginetal was always ready to fight for the
country agnst Bank monsters and Notification
monsters, and all sorts Of monslers.''
"Well, now,' says Uncle Joshua, how do YOU
suppose we are going to work to make President,
with all these parties in the field fgh,n cross hand
,ed, and cahy-corners, and every which way 20
"I'm sure cant see" says |, sunless we can
get up party that will surround the whole of em,
as The Irish corporal surrounded the halEdozen
soldiers that he took prisoners"
/" What do you think Of Mr.. Calhouns plan,'
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