The Port Gibson reveille. (Port Gibson, Miss.) 185?-1857, 1853-07-20
The following is our reply;
YIcKsBURc. june oSth. 1853
II. 5. FOOTE.

NlCkSBURG, June Zoth, 1898.
Gov H. S. FooTE: SIR Your letter Of
the 26th inst, came to hand few moments
since II being addressed to me as the Ed
hor Of the Vicksburg Sentinel, and careful
" transcribed and punctuated. [ suppose it
il intended for publication. and / accordingly
insert it in the Sentinel
asked you. as you admit, "a plain ques-
tion, and instead Of answering il in plain
manner, as a gentleman. disposed to observe
the common courteses Of life would have done,
you consume four pages Of foo's- apin reply
and at last fail to answer, except infcrentially,
my interrogatory. My wish was to comment
upon your letter strictly as political card,
but could not pass over unnoticed, a passage
SO foul and 50 false, as the one quoted in my
letter IL was an insult, and if intended for
me, would Of course notice it only as such,
and resent it in the only way open 10 me. II,
instead of acting the part Of querulous dem
agouge, you had exempted me from the de-
nuuciation, as an honorable man would unbes-
itatingIy have done, | should have passed it
by in silence. 1t is not the first time YOU
have taken advantage Of your position to in
suit those Who oppose your return to the U.
s. Senate knowing that the ermine you wear
protects you from merited castigation.
| knew that you were corrupt, basely SO
that you naturally Judged others by yourself.
and being notoriousy incapable Of doing a
disintercsted thing, always open to bribery,
you were ready. without cause. to charge cor
ruption upon others. Iknew the Legislature
meant what it said. when it declared, that the
honor Of the State was not safe in your hands
but then I preferred not to speak OF these
things if it could be avoided The resolution
Of censure added no stain to your character,
it simply declared fact which the history Of
your misdeeds furnished. The stain was not
put there by The Legislature. nor can the Leg
islature wipe it out. cared not, however, to
allude to the supreme depravity Of man who
once bore the honorable name Of Democrat"
who bad once represented my State in the u.
8. Senate. even though he did disgrace hima
self AMI his State, BY playing alternately the
political harlequin and bully, and thea fed
in most cowardiy manner as soon as his adj
yersary cried, boo to the infinite amusement
Of the hundreds Of spectators, and the morti-
ication Of his constituents.
am free 70 confess that am not 50 COM
plaisant under your dcnunciation as you say
you are under my "strictures !" for your po-
sltion gives weight TO it. AT home, such y
sweeping denunciation Of the independent and
incorruptible State Rights Press Of Mississip-
pi, can injure no one; as it is well known here.
that to forward your interests, you scruple at
nothing, not even moral perjury itself You
have been known to tell the most extravagant
falsehoods. and in the most approved theatre
cal style, strike your hand upon your breast.
aud declare in true, /" So hekp you God !"
But your denunciation may chance to be seen
by those who do not know you as you are
known at home. and therefore proper re.
spect for myself and the slandered press Of
the State, required me to repel the insult.
The denunciation is made in such a conuec-
tion as to preclude the possibility of its being
intended for any than that portion Of The press
Of Mississippi opposed to your election. It's
application Is direct; too much so to ba mis-
understood BY any So much so indeed, as
to make your miserable attempt at "explana-
tion," not only ridiculous but contemptible
You will see by my Thursdays paper that
| have taken advantage Of your carts blanche
and / hereby extend the same TO you, and ii
you wish anything more, oral. written" or
otherwise, you can have it from
Your obedient servant,
n WALKER