Lynchburg Virginian. [volume] (Lynchburg [Va.]) 1829-185?, 1851-11-10
POLITICAL.
From Tie abingdon Tuginian.
MIR. Summers Speech,


MIR. Summers Speech.
On Monday last. it being Court day.
our country friends were, many Of them,
agreeably SURPRISED. on coming to town.
to find the Hon George W. Summers, the
great champion Of Western rights. and
the Wing candidate for Governor, among
them. He arrived the previous evening
on a flying visit through Tazewel and
Russell, and from this point hurried on
through Smyth, Wythe, &c, TO join his
competitor in the Valley.
On Monday, he addressed large con
course Of persons in the Court House,
and, If cheerful couutenances and cnthusi-
astic applause indicate any thing. we
should say he made a favorable impress
sion. He was introduced 10 the audience
by c. f. Trigg, Esq, who complimented
his signal services to the State in a few
brief, but happy remarks, at the conclusion
Of which Mr. Summers addressed the mul-
tiiude. He came before this people, he
said, stranger, and yc not stranger
for he was Virginian, Western Virgin
ian, and he felt at home within the limits
of this great Commonwealth, and he felt
that his fellow-citizens Of Washington were
his brethren. He came here. in some
sense stranger--not from his own choice,
but in opposition to his wishes, candidate
for the Gubernatorial char under the new
government of the Commonwealth. He
came at the callof the delegates of large
portion of the people, wlrich.calhe did not
feel at liberty TO disregard. He regretted
his competitors absence. They lived far
apart. He was resident Of the Kanawha
valley, whilst Col. Johnson resided upon
the waters Of the Monongahcla, near tire
Pennsylvania line. He had understood
that Col. Johnson had gone out upon the
canvass, and he hoped 10 meet him in his
tour.
Mr. Summers thenadvertcd to the charge
ol the Democratic press, that he was avoid
ing old issues, aud Went on to show that
thesehad no connection whatever with the
Office for which he was a candidate He
was Wing, it was true, and if he believ-
ed in the consttuiionality of u. S. Bank,
he had illnstrious examples for his faith
George Washington, who presided over
the deliberations Of the Convention that
framed the constitution. and who might be
to understand the spirit as well
as the letter Of that instrument, was IT,
S. Bank man, and signed the first Bank
oil that passed Congress. Madison and
Calhoun were Bank men, as were all the
prominent members Of the Republican
party Of 1916, whilst the FederaIists Of
that day were distinguished by their oppo-
siIion to the institution. Ii he was to be
put down, therefore, for this belief, he
would 20 down with some Of the greatest
names upon the pages of American history.
1t was also urged as an objection against
him, that he was in favor Of Protective
Tariff SO he was, AMI in this, also, he
was guided by illusirious example The
first Protective Tariff law was passed by
the first Congress under the Constitution.
and was approved by President Washing
ton. 1t was the iniunt voice, as it were.
of the true policy of the American gov
ernment. 1t was also the policy of all the
Presidents from Washington down, not
excepting jackson and Van Burcn. And
of all people under the sun, he thought the
people Of Virginia ought to be in favor of
a Protective Tariff, He did not approve
of high discriminating or prolibirory du
Ties. but The practical operations Of the
Wing protective policy-a policy that
would lessen foreign competition and en-
courage domestic Industry-would have
made Virginia the first State in the Union,
instead OF being as she is at present. a
Mird-rate State. This would have built
up commerce and agriculture, and made
Virginia the richest State in products, as
she now is in natural resources. Under
the operations ofihe Democratic Tariff of
1916, our Government had undergone a
continual drain, with heavy balance Of
trade against US, largely indebted to Eu-
rope, and no discerning man could fail 70
see that we were on the eve of a monetary
crisis. The Protective policy would have
guarded us against these evils, and made
our prosperity as wide and hcalthful, as
our adversely is now palpablc and ominous.
AS 10 Distribution, he had advocated
the doctrine, because he believed it TO be
right TO return to the States ceding them.
the residue of the public domain ceded for
a specific purpose, after that specific pur
pose had been accomplished. Virginia
had given the splendid domainup which
had been erected some FIVE or six com
monwealths, and among the various pro-
positions disposng of the surplus, one had
been offered by Mr.. Calhoun, giving these
lands to .hc States in which they lie,
which States. Of course, or several Of
them, had not cedcd solitary acre. See
ing, then, that Virginia would be thus
stripped of her share, he was in favor of
just and equitable distribution. and Of ap-
plying that share to the construction Of iu-
dicious internal improvements within our
borders.
And last, bn not least, the Bankrupt
Law was another bug bear raised against
him. by portion OF the political press of
the State. and denominated Wing mea-
sure. But the zeal Of his political adver-
saries was not according to Knowledge
1t so happened, that. when member OF
Congress in lS4l, he was opposed to the
Bankrupt Law, voted in the affirmative in
the test vote to lay the bill on the table, and
recorded his vote in favor Of its repeal
But suppose he had voted for this law, he
would only have done what many Of his
Democratic friends in the House did, a.
mong not the least conspicuous friends Of
which, was the Hon. Robert J. Walker
afterwards Mr.. Polk's favorire Cabinet Of.
ficer. And it had been charged that this
was Wing measure. Its history is, that
it was first recommended to Congress by
Martin Van Buren,, and subsequently
framed and presented to that body by
Garret D. Wall. conspicuous and lead
ing Democrat sof New .5srsey A. for