Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1851-08-15
KlCHlIOND ENQUIkEH.
o.RID.Y MORNING, AUGUST Is. 1881.

o,.,cr on oayed upon it, Personal liberty
be roh, Of property political franchises irecoom Oh
once partial voice in the government as coh'on 1o
ultimately the supreme control OF government
mo sovereign are the successive gada'lohs WHICH w pe
I , ra,ched one after the other, by hard contests
,bropph blood in the long course OF centuries. In
we are abou, 10 ascend the last step OF the pyramid
proplE long acknowledged upon this continent 70 oc
Of all legitimate political authority, but long denied
by their own choice acquescence, the compete
If their ghu powers are abou, assume, themselves tue
rcins of government. ,o,
T, 10 remarkable that the people OF this common
wealth more capable of selfgorerninen' oy "i." 49,
Ioence social condition. Distinguishing trans '.
ter habits and manners, than any o'"ei peop' - -
American Union, in the ~ofiu' s'ou'o - -,
the las, of the people OF these STATES a'su"o
snnreme authority. If they had taken '"F ieau ~ ~
,,eme experiment in self government there "ouu o
FIR anxiety and apprehension while on the eve u ~
Ru, other States have tried the experiment OF uni
,e.,e and nopular elections whose people are more
FESTIVE than ours disposed to break ''fous" :"
;,s ,f Ia W less law loving and law.respechne anu zoe
sa i,h rho elements Of conservatism than tnhse VI
80 TX Guy VI old States. amongst '"e'e 49, ~,
nent has been attended with perfect SUCCESS. w. ~
have those rights and interests which are no' "aoo "
popular assault-such as the rights OF properly Gnu
f ita nature apper,aining minority cusses-oeen re-
,he old sysem has been experienced in the ACTIVITY ana I'M
,o !, has Unmarried to the whole machinery OF society,"
rh o,neent has not been confined to the tree STATES VI
The Union 1t has been tried in Tennessee Missouri MIS-
ssop Alabama Florida Texas and TO considerable extent
in Louisiana and Georgia II cannot be denleo lal soce'
has been more rude and unsteady in most OF these
and in the newly organized free States than IN inc oo
which still preserve restrictions upon popular fehs' W"
,be fact is attributable sufficient variety OF oef
and cannot Be lesimatey referred 10 the enlargement. " "'
r,;., ,owcrs Of the people. Turbulence and violence
would have been far greater in the new States au oe
aemnted 10 place shackes upon their bold adventures re-
ed from the restraints society and traversng the WHO'S
Of the vast country in which they have organized 60
vernments according TO their choice.
Neither are the agrarlanism inhdellty ana 1anauclsh
which are so prevalent in Northern States the irus Oh INC
popular institutions which those people have
They are different manifestations OF the same
which have belonged that stock OF people from inc
nerod of their distinct political organization Let any one
who believes these vices TO be the result OF recent causes
examine the history Of New England Mltchcait; ana
of those absurd and unique specimens OF New England
LEGISLATION usually known as the Blue Laws of Conpec-
,icu and still later the disgracefu history OF New England
detection during the of "Blue Lights, where ne VIII
find .xac naae TO the recent of George Thomp-
son member of the British Parliament These melancholy
from reason and patriotism, seem to De
the result of some inherent, mental dsuganlZaIlon IN ms
wonderful stock people, They have had their Theodore
Parkers and Lloyd Garsons at all periods OF their history
as we'll as their Otises Adamses and Qunces Ihey are
bgoted voen, in all their opinions and are ever as CIT
zens either the most Jealous and efficient patriots or the
most peYverse obstinate dscontcnts in the land Ihey
run wild with all their IDEAS political and religious Inc
French philosophy has unfortunately found ioognent
amongst them and they are rushing into the ex,avagances
nl,
French people themselves Indeed however NUMEROUS and
wide their differences in social habits and private character
from the French they very ike those people in the reci
plate and mad extremes into which they allow false theories
carry them.
In those States Southern portion Of the Union in
which popular rights have been !ci unamnecd There no
exhibition OF this dangerous and vicious philosophy lhey
carried into practice those political tenets which were
nculcated by Jeeson and the fac, that they are entirely
free from the infection Of fouriera and kindred maiades
Of the French Philosophy is living proof that American
Democracy is not the same with French Terrorism, and an
enduring REPUTATION Of oil those federal sanderers VINO seek
10 identify the the public mind, and to connect the
ustrious name OF Jefferson with the depiscd names OF
Robesperre and Mara
We have no fear from the enfanchisement of tho people,
Least OF all appreend dangers from eniranchsng Tue
Virginia people, We will sultfy the people of our own
Commonwealth. They incapable Of abusing popular
privileges Extend the r; Of suffrage may there
still overpowering conservative resduum OF population
left, which will eecluay prevent the abuse Of the right by
those who exercise it, Our Constitution grants the
right to white males wentyone. These ure but one
fourth part Of the whole people. Many OF them fail to
exercise the right from accident, or lack the qualhca-
ton Of residence, circumstance which reduces the
voting population onc-th Of the whole people, This filth
is invariably divided into two parties, which alter
na,ey triumph CHI other the beaten party ever exert
ing defeat powerful check upon the party In power
Thus tenth only Of the whole people actually hold the
reins of governmental popular minority entirely TOO small
adventure outrage upon the popular majority or the
voting minority idle therefore TO orcbode evil from the
extension of suffrage Those persons are mistaken who
suppose that the constitutional restrictions this rights
which have heretofore existed in this State were the actual
conservative principles Of our governments for they VIII
find the of effective conservatism IN the new
government as existed in the old The principle itself is IN
ta, great resduum Of population which is left after ckn
away the actual votesn the giant himself after his rgh
arm is let loose. Ii weak absurd unphlosophc to think
true conservatism abide in the wlsps OF straw which
Constitution makers and wgvers bind around the efficient
limb of the body polite and the body polite ITSELF
-@sss---
The recen, address of the Legislative Wing Committee oil
New York. which have published and discussed Is we
believe universally conceded have been intended TO pro-
duce coalition between the Seward and Fillmore wings OF
the Wing party of that State The Fillmore papers there
sanctioned it, and the Seward papers endorsed H. 1t was
defended, repeatedly and deliberately, by Mr. F!nioes Or
gan at Washington The Republics and the New York Til
bune lavishcd concentrations upon it. BY reason OF the
cordial reception which il received from Dir Fs organ, and
from both the rival wings OF the New York Wings, 1t took
The NAME among Democratic papers, of the "SEwARp AND
FILLMORE PLATFORM The Baltimore American and the
Petersburg Inteligencer, two leading Wing journals con-
dcmned this PLATFORM exposed its and denounced
both the address aud its trainers in measured terms
We commended the honesty and independence of this Of
theirs regarding it bold and manly assault upon what
ace knew as the "SEwAIp and FILLMORE platform" The
Petersburg negencer conesses the assault md to the
repudation protests against the applied to the
object assaulted and epudated in connection with its denun
citation. WE'LL the Integencer may call it by any name
may suit alteration Of "Hs CmIEF MAesTRAcv;"
but that will chance The in the least render