Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1856-02-14

no longer submit to be governed bythe opln-
ions or prejudices Of any man Or set of men,
be their position in the State ever so promi-
nent, but Judge for themselves and after
calm ratification, and the experience that
has been gained by years of close observa-
ton, assume the same position that is now
occupied by the Democratic parties of allthe
other Southern States, and send Delegates
to the Cincinnati Convention. That preju-
dice and not principle has been the cause of
South Carolina's opposition to National Con-
ventions, will be proven by going back q few
years in the history of the State, and show
ing that when members Of Congress, and
not delegates from the people, formed the
caucus or Convention for nominating Presi-
dents of the United States, South Carolina
participated as freely in them as any State in
the Union; and is there any man in South
Carolina willing to assert that there would
be more purity and fairness in a Congressiou-
al caucus than in Convention composed Of
delegates chosen directlyb the people them
selves. But I am inclined to the opinion
that the preference given to Mr.. Crawford
over Mr.. Calhoun, by the friends Of Mr..
Monroe's administration, did more to alien
ate South Carolina from any further partici-
patton in nominating Presidents, than any
principles she entertained against National
Conventions. Mr.. Crawford, at the time al
luded to, was the great champion and advo-
cate of State Rights and State Sovereignty,
but these doctrines were not at that time pop
ular in South Carolina, nor did any Of her
leading statesmen have any affinity for them
five are to judge of their principles by their
published opinions. In publication styled
"One of the People," from the pen of one
the most distinguished statesmen of South
Carolina, and with notes added by another,
equally as prominent, strong national gov
ernment, capable of protecting itself, and
causing its laws to be obeyed and respected
by all the States, was warmly advocated,
and the doctrines of State Rights and State
Sovereignty as warmly condemned, as i'm
practicable and dangerous, and tending to
weaken and obstruct the action of the Fed
eral Government, and impede its full opera
tions. But those days have passed away, and
South Carolina now views with wonder and
amazement her former fallacies and errors,
and perceives by the light experience has
given her, the wisdom of those very princi-
Piles she formerly condemned, and now clings
to them as the only ark of her political safety
from the despotism of irresponsible majori-
ties and all the evils of consolidated gov
ernment.
At former period in the history of South
Carolina she considered the doctrine of State
Rights as dangerous and injurious to the op-
erations of our republican government; may
she not have discovered by the same means
that experience gave her to discover that op-
position to State Rights was only fallacy and
prejudice, that opposition to Conventions, a
measure approved of by all the Slave States
but South Carolina, was also prejudice that
time and experience has dispelled, and should
therefore be discarded, and that this measure,
so much derided in South Carolina, may yet
prove like the doctrine of State rights, sure
protection to the South, by producing union
of sentiment and action that will ensure the
equality and rights of the slave States. I
have admitted that prejudices exist in South
Carolina against National Conventions, and
yet, in May, 1s43 a Convention actually
assembled at Columbia, in which every
district in the State was represented
This convention was called 'to present for
mally the name of John G. Calhoun for
the Presidency, and to provide for having
the State represented in the then approaching
Democratic Convention" 1t was presided
over by the late Gov. Seabrook, and the Hon.
orables Jacob Bond Ton, John B. O'Neal,
Job johnson, D. L. Wardlaw, Angus Pat
terson and W. F. Colcock, acted as Vice
Presidents, and James Simons and B. c.
Yancy as Secretaries. After passing sever
al resolutions, one of which was "that this
Convention concur with the Democratic Re-
publican parties of Maryland, Massachusetts,,
Rhode Island, Louisiana, Kentucky, Penn
sylvania, New Hampshire, Michigan, Ala
bama, and Mississippi, in the appointment of
General Convention of the Democratic Re.
publican Party of the United States, to as
semble at Baltimore, in the State of Mary
land, in May, 1874, and that this Conven-
tion recommend the fourth Monday in that
month as the day of meeting of the said G en-
eral Convention" Resolutions were also
passed suggesting that the votes in the said
General Convention should be per capita,
and recommending to the people of the sev-
eral Congressional Districts of South Caro-
lima, that they should elect Delegates to the
said General Convention. The Convention
also passed a resolution that it would go in
to ballot for two delegates for the State at
large, and did proceed to ballot and elect
Coils. Elmore and Pickens to represent the
State at large. Those gentlemen attended
the Convention of 1874, but the cause of
their not taking their seats does not appear,
although they assisted in obtaining the nomi-
nation of Mr.. Polk for the Presidency. From
what has been stated, it is evident that at
least in lS43, South Carolina was in "a
vor of Democratic Convention to be held at
Baltimore, and actually fixed the day herself
for the meeting of the said Convention If
she was then in favor Of 4 Convention, and
did not think it unsafe, dangerous or degra-
ding to affiliate with the Democratic party of
the United States, surely there can be no OBJ.