The Evansville daily journal. [volume] (Evansville, Ia. [i.e. Ind.]) 1848-1862, 1856-08-05
TEN CENTS PEHs WEEK
NUMBER I.

acterzs his conduct as it no doubt win be
characterized, by every right minded and
1chlvalric man from the St Johns to the Rio
: Grands, and from the Atlantic to the Pacific:
(. 'ut we may be pe rmitted to express our deep
regret that any man of ordinary intelligence
should have suffered himself to send chal-
/ enge, and then decline it on the plea that the
llace was not Convenient As to the fdaa !of
Brooks being in danger from the people of the
North, that is simply absurd. Men who are.
Iabout to fight duels are not usually afraid of
1any such contingencies. We speak from q
somewhat large experience when we say.
nat they fear far more their opponents bah
nan MODS or pohce; and they would not fight
1t all, Ut they did not fear more than all com
1 med, the cenSure and contempt of the world.
We wonder that Mr. Brooks did hot fear tfig'
Ioplnlon of gentlemen everywhere, far more
than he did the countenance of Northern men
who would not have known him from Adam
unless he proclaimed his name; and AMONG
whom he may travel unharmed te-nfor1ow.
with his name labelled upon his brow. without
lenconntering ANYTHING more dangerous than a
look of contempt for his mode of assaultint
Sumner But after all, Mr.. Brooks simply
ayalled himself of his right to Withdraw his
challenge and decline the fight which be had
Invited; and nobody is authorized to take MIN
Ia Hotel, and imagining himself hungry. orders
| a certain dish for his dinner, it does not follow
that he is compelled to eat it. 1t may not be
Cooked to suit him, or he may have no st0n-
lach Tor the things ordered; and he declines
leatlng and pays the penalty-the Landlords
Bill And so when man asks for fight
uncertain whether it can be obtained When
'iieIed, he may have discovered that after all
ne did not much desire it, or that he has no
.tomach Tor 1t in the mode and place offered;
and therefore, he declines partaking of tn;
which he asked for, precisely as the man at f
he hotel refuses to eat the dinner which he
supposed he wanted. In the latter case, as ia
5he former, he has perfect right to decline
paying the penalty of so doing. This NJ,
Brooks has done. lie asked for fight under
the code" Mr. Burlingame foolishly agreed
accommodate him, instead of referring hfre
Judge Wade, as it was his duty to do.
But IN the meantime Mr.. Brooks has chang
ed his mind, or thought better of the practice,
or dislikes the conditions of the fight. or the
weapons, or the place-we care not what flfs
plea u.s. Suffice it is to say, he declines accept
ing what is offered, and for which he has been
a supphant all winter; and we insist upon it,
1t IS his right so to do, taking the consequence,
wblch In this case, is to brave the opinion of
his fellow citizens throughout the United
States
As for Mr.. Burlingame he has done every-
thing, and more than everything, that the
gentleman of United States, or ''the code" itself
of him. He has been in peril: bus
he met it like man who wots not of Dragging
and bullying and clustering; but who was
ready with his life to defend the great princi-
pies upon which our institutions are based
Liberty of Speech. But had we been the ad-
wiser OF Mr.. Burlingame, he never should have
accepted Brooks challenge. His response
should have been-"On the floor Of the Senate
Of the United States an honorable Senator
proclaimed your assault upon Mr. Sumner,
cowardly, murderous and assassin like. Go 10
vndcate your suIlied honor from these ssper-
sions, and then, and not till then, will l give
you the satisfaction you demand for language
used by me far less degrading to b.
your manhood than that under which you
have SO long rested without an effort to re-
lress'
Such, we say, should have been the Ian
5uage of Mr. Burlingame; and it would have
been the more proper, because he bore Mr..
Brooks no ill-will and was simply yielding
aim fight to put an end to the braggadoeio
spirit which has constituted so staple an article
1t Washington of late. And what is more,
according to ''the Code" no gentleman can
meet Brooks for words spoken in debate, until
ne first settles his affair with Senator Wade. II
But it all over now. The North, through
one of its gallant sons, has met and put down
he arrogance of which we have witnessed SO
much for months past; and while the friends
'f Mr.. Brooks will unquestionably, visit upon
lim precisely such censure or approval as
heir notiDns of Aon0r may dictate we of the
North will not fail, at all times to do homage
% the gallant son of New Engand. who with
lis life was ready to vindicate the liberty of
speech and the honor of the Old Bay State
SO much for Burlngame,"