Richmond daily times. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1853, 1852-05-06
GEN. CASS.

GEN. CASS.
All the rays Of intelligence caught from the
great centre Of political intrigue converge to one
point; and that is, that the extreme disgust of
Gen. Cass for public life, and the emouments of
office, is about to be overcome by the gentle vio-
lence of frieuds--that the dimmed glories of the
broken sword are about to be resuscitated and re-
newed by the action of the Baltimore Convention.
He is said to have more thqn majority already
of the constituents of that distinguished body in
his favor, and nothing prevent its forcing the
distasteful honor of nomination upon him, but
the operation of the celebrated canon of Democ-
racy--the t1co-tHirds rule-a continuance SEEM
ingy designed to suppress the voice of the
jority and to force mediocricy and nothingness
into distinction. Should the application of that
memorable regulation extinguish the expectations
of his friends there will be perceived in the event,
something of an equal retributon for the disap-
pontmeut which crushed Mr.. Van Buren, in the
Convention of 1S44-a misfortune known to be
mainly due to the patriotic labors of Cass & Co.
Strange how mischief will return to ''plague the
inventors" This two-thirds rule, shot from the
hot-bed of New York intrigue, made Mr.. Van
Buren, and his hopes. In A it crushed him, and
made straight the way for ~Cass in '48. In the
present year it may preciptate the latter into
irretrievable disaster. 1t is pleasant, however,
to know with what charming philosophy each
can receive those changes of fate which met by
less regulated tempers with the bitterness of dis
appointment. Gen. Cass is known to have
sured his friends after the event of l848, that
nothing could again tempt him to be placed in the
position of candidate for the Presidency and as
for Mr.. Van Buren,, his stoicsm under like cir
cumstances would have shamed The Porch itself.
'No one" exclaimed the sentimental sage of
Lindenwald after the reverse of 1e4O) C can OK
pect or should desire to be Arrays IN office under
n government and institutions like ours, and l
have enjoyed the privilege long enough to satisfy
my utmost ambition. Ny political friends every
where will, hope and believe do me the justice to
regard this declaration, made in the fullness of
a grateful heart as indicating, with absolute sim
cerity, the feelings by which am actuated. They
are made upon consideration of the subject, so
full and mature as to exempt the views and opin-
ions they express, as far as belongs to human de-
termination, from liability to change"
e NeSca0 meus h fat1 SOrtisque future,
EFT serrare MEDIUM, rebts sublata sounds!
But what is it thatha suddenly terminated the
seemingly lifeless hopes of Cass? Surely nothing
In the perSonel of the man-not the voracity of his
yet ungorged appetite for public money-his life
spent in salaried office-his small and tmid self
seeking-his weathercook veering with the popu-
lar breeze-not the absence of every personal
oh, IL,
pie! We must look elsewhere for the source of
this wonderful resuscitation; and we have not far
to seek We find it in the unmistakable evidence
of daily events which show that Casss doctrine
of sqnatter sovereignty, its aptitude to catch the
freesoil VOTE its flrherance of the avowed design
"should the Wings candidate on Southern
grounds, to Democrat who can get as many
votes as possible at the North" and his pious
prayers for the abolition of slavery everywhere
make the tasman that has wrought this sudden
effect. The go-bye given to Southern rights and
wrongs in the late locofoco concave in Richmond
and in similar assemblies elsewhere, will be re-
peated at Baltimore unmeaning generalities
against Congress s'taking incipient steps in rela-
ton to slavery in the States" and an endorsement
of the resolutions of '95 will be sufficient pro-
pitiation to the Southern Democracy, who have
too often abandoned the vital rights of States and
people to the of party to be at all feared or
respected in the approaching struggle. Again, the
last successful nominee of the Democracy came
from slave State. This farther restricts the
choice now to be made, to certain geographical
limits, and as between the three aspirants within
those limits, Buchanan, Cass and Douglas, the
first seems to be passee with the Polk Cabinet
pasatter at best, which none but it's own defunct
constituents desire restore, and the last is iden
tihed with that plebeian insurection in the party,
which all other ranks will combine to pat down.
Thus may the field be left again to the hero of
the broken sword, whose glittering terrors will
soon reduce to proper intelligence the fools and
asses in the South who hadn't sense enough to
understand the Nicholson letter.
We close these speculations on the future of
Gen. Cass by referring readers to the exposi-
tons we have recently published from the dstin-
guished leader of the Democratic Genital Com
mttee, of the position of the General in the free
soil issue. We think "HaIett's commentaries on
Cass," with the lamentations of Thompson on
both will make a very pretty little text book for
Democratic orators in the South in the approach
ing campaign.
Another Dodge.
The Democratic State Convention of Florida
has adjourned after adopting platform in which
no mention is made of the Compromise. The
resolutions as follows