The southern press., 1851-06-04
Letter from gx governor Lumpkin.
AIHENs, Ga, May 4, 1851

| ATHENS, Ia, May a, 1901!
| GEYTLEMEH: have been honored with the
receipt of your invitation in behalf of the citi.
\ zens of central Mississippi, to participate in an
entertainment % be given Mt Jackson in honor
of their distinguished fellow citizen, Gen. j. A
Quitman, on the l4th inst. | would most
gladly mingle with you, and all those who may
assemble on that occasion, but other duties will
forbid my enjoying that pleasure.
In times like the present. it is most delight
full duty to honor the character and services OF
such men as Gen. Quitman. lie has proved
himself to be able, patriotic, and firm, both ia
the field of battle and the council chamber. II
often requires more moral courage to resist the
overwhelming and blghting heresies of a CON-
bination of selfish and designing politicians, such
as at this time are corrupting and undermining
the foundations of our political system, than to
meet the well appointed legions of the enemy,
on the field of mortal strife and combat
Mississippi is highly favored in having so
! MANY able and faithful men, among the faith.
less at the present crisis. Quitman, Davis,
Brown. Thomson, and many others, have act
ed nobly. May they prove faithful to the end.
look with the deepest disgust and horror
on those Southern men who have abandoned
the South. Let me suffer war, pestilence, and
famine, rather than sell my birth-rght, and that
of nv confdng friends, for little brief distinc-
ton, notoriety. and authority. The great qucs-
ton ia now being forced on the country-shall
the constitutional reserved rights of the States
be maintained? or shall we yield to consolida-
ton. when the will of the majority shall govern
in all cases? This great question embraces all
the minor issues of the day. We of the South
are in settled, fixed, and permanent minority.
And. being Shareholders, we are under the curse
and hatred of a large sectional majority OF the
Union. Our constitutional rights are disregarded,
trampled on, and destroyed. Our only alterna-
tives are degraded, meek, and quiet submission,
or manly resistance. However, every patriotic
attempt to organize resistance to the most griev:
Gus aggressions on our constitutional rights is
met by political leaders and papers of the South,
misrepresenting and classifying our motives, per-
vertinr our acts, traducing our characters.
We are not allowed the poor privilege Of
complaining Of our wrongs without being ac-
cused of reasonable designs. But, after all
that has transpired, feel assured that upon the
slave question: and cur territorial rights, there
is much unity of sentiment among the masses
of the Southern people, and most OF them have,
in some form or other, again and again pledged
themselves to define those rights, at adj hazards,
and to the last extremity. But yet, in many in
stances, where the enemy has marched up to
our fighting line, upon the ground of our own
selection official men in our own ranks, have
sounded ain alarm, produced panic in ourranks,
ordered a retreat advised capituation-yea hu-
initiating, unconditional submission--and great
" mapnified the strength as well us the gen.
crosby of our invading enemy. Thus the
South has receded and the North has advanced
But little confidence is now rcposed in Southern
resolres by the euemy; and, what is still worse
we have lost much of our own sef-respect and
reliance. Can we yet make stand upon our
rights, or shall all be lost in the bottomless
gulf of consolidation?
Under the existing state of public affairs,
there is just cause for alarm at the attempts to
form a new party at the South, styling itself
"the Union party" A party whose only avowed
principle is to divide amongst themselves all the
officers of the country both State and federal
see already enrolled in the ranks of this party,
Wings and Democrats, Shareholders and Adolf
tionists, Nullfers and Submissionists and don't
know how many other strange components
Some of the organs of this party are already
advocating the doctrines Of consolidation.
Should this party triumph, we have consol.
idated government, without constitution, a.
though they have prefxed the word constitu-
tional to their party name. is il not surprising
strange, that in this year OF our Lord 1851, that
party should rise, styling themselves Union
men, whose purpose, If successful, cannot fail
to destroy the Union of the great American con-
federacy of State?
am, gentlemen, very truly. yours,
WILSON LUMPKIN.
offer you the following sentiment:
The sovereignty Of the States, and the Union
of the States, one and indirisi5le.
Committee Of Iapuation-Messrs. c. s. Tar
ploy, Geo. T. Swami, ID. N. Barrows, f. Barks-
dale and c. b. Green.