Daily Nashville patriot. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1857-1858, 1857-04-23
seetionaIisrn.


readers are aware, the representative OF an ex-
IRENE sect; vet il cannot be deuied that Its views
are enforced with singular ability. frankness and
manlness and that diges,e of what the world often
CALI, and frequently treats as impractic1ltes; 1t
has given volumes of sound practical ADVICE to the
Southern people, within the last three or four years
Bat Of its radical opinions on some minor points
minor, we mean, when contristed with the mighty
question that Is rapidly approaching soluton-and
It's occasional ignoring of the lessons everydS fe
inculcstes influence would have been, long since,
co-extensiVe with the 81 ,vehulting Stat 8.
This is priedcal, business age, and must be so
regarded in preeept and practice II We would aVold
the vortex of rtifying failure. Money not mind,
now rules the worIi. Pence, not pltrotism, now
governs with imperial sway. Personal profit and
personal agrandizement, not sel-sacrihrl1g puohe
spirit and singe-hearted devotion to the general
veal, now animate the bosOms of our leading pcil-
ticians-for statesmen we have none ID place SC
cordOg TO the stand ird of measurement adopted by
washington, ADAMS, JEFFERSON and their ilustri
Gus successors "CommeFce il King all over the
tn, and must be respected, and IS go respected
! by those who do and expect 10 succeed. Ine.e
may be humiliating truths. but they are truths
nevertheless; and such We commend them to the
| consideration of thinking men.
10 the Mrrcurv of the OH inst-let u be borne IN
mind tbat the Mercury las ever been Democratic
Il
! ticle, which we take pleasure III copying;
"Se.tionlism, nur,urad and fed by tribute exacted
| by the North from the South impiugss upon
the whole property of the South. Il formerly plum
dered our ircome only through the Tarif-it now
aims at annih ting the capital OF our pre- riS IT.
| self 1t once was content to aPpropriate-lt now
| seeks to suhjngate and DESTROY. When poor anu
weak it was content to grow rich and strong; but
now, becoming itch aud strong by the passive suo-
mission of the South. it raises its head and as
| pires to dominion. 1t has found all it's sh How
| sopistries to plumber US received as vision and
right ousness-and it now re- Is drunk with piis-
try, and dares with all the rsolence OF unchecked
| power IL has now a conscience IL ry long
since discarded every other principle than its inter-
| est-it now robes itself ia conscience which Is
| Synonymous with its villa will above the Constr
tuition or law of Col: sic volo sac jUbeo, Ana
| the political power of the COnlederacy Is TO De
grasped to carry out its despotic will All the
politics of the country consequently consists IN
| nothing but sectionalism. It has Just made Pres
dent of the Unit4d States-and yet large portion
of his best supporters declare shat he cannot be the
president of section because sectiOnali5m 10 dead
| The whole South voted for i'm, the whole North
gave the popular Voie against him, with the excep-
ton of two States Pennsylvania and CALIFORNIA;; vet
sectionslism, it is asserted, by this election has
been estroyed-destroyed by its very triumph
|
| odd inference to declare that il would expire--but
when it is the weaker section which has succeeded
by a mere plurality, it is the widest fAntasg TO i'm
! agne that the stronger section. with a manifested
m jorty in the Uuion will disband their power and
lerve the minority to rule the country.
Every motive which occlsoned the late section
al struggle is etlI in full activity. African slavery
and the control Of the government, fauaticism and
ambtion, are sill un-atisfe1 and unchecked ny the
lin Of In inst in
every country, they have hitherto carried their vo
/ tares to the grand end of their aSpiratons-the
abolition Of slavery. If they now abandon sec ion
alism powerit will be the first time in all history
such an event has taken place. And il it does
| pause will it cease? OF what avail will it be to the
| South to obtain a bIief exemption from immediate
| aggression when we must know that the struggle
| is inevitable and that every day renders Us weak
er to meet it? The South has but the alternative OF
being ruled by the Free States or to rule them
selves"
| If our respected contemporary, instead of harpng
upon the 'tribute exacted by the North from the
South, would only t,ke business view OF the
matter, and tell ts readers how they can not only
avoid paying that tribute (the tariff to the North,
but build up a magnificent source OF revenue at the
same time-make this odious tariff subservicnt, in
stead of detrimental to their progress it would ac-
complsh much for the permanent good of the
Southern people. We claim to be true Southern
| men as the editors of the Mercury, and perh ,ps
have much intere st in Southern safety and pros
perty but nothing to object to in the
oper ltions of the tariff on the grounds usually adj
vanced hy South Carolina journals Instead OF
| finding fault with the Northern people, we are 10
clined to commend their industry, skill and enter
prise. Instead of charging the ills under which we
labor to the account of the revenue laws OF the
country, charge il directly to the spathy. lack
| Of enterprise and skill OF our own people. We do
not mince words nor shall we muce words, when
conc i've it duty as Southern journalists to
speak the plain and mayhap unp1lat Iblrtruth. II
all other Southern Journals would do the same thing
| a wonderful Improvement would be everywhere
visible. Massachusetts has grown Rffluent and
| strong to an unprecedented extent from the manu-
facture OF the great staple Of the South Til tariff
operates and has operated x4ctly in South Carolina
! as il has in Massachusetts,. There hasn't been the
variation Of hsis breadth in its workings, aud so
with all the other States of the conederacy. And
! If the Mercury will consult any intelligent cotton
merchant in Charleston il will find that for manu-
featuring purposes, taking production, climate md
location into the calculation, that South Carolina
| el JOYS many advantages over Massachusetts,.
Is the tariff responsible for thi-g Not at all The
facts fix the responsibility else her,--f1 it upon
lelhsreic and insppreciative Southern people-upon
a people who, enjoying unsurpassed natural advan-
tagrs, but who, too apathetic TO improve those I'D
vsLtages permit-ther rivals and enemies, thousand
Of miles distant to reap The largest profits IRON fab
ricsting the staple product Of their own labor!
| Again we cav the Northern ople serve CREDIT
| for their enterprise, and the Southern people will
deserve to remain foreveri in condition of CONNER
cia vsssasge if they do not avail themselves Of the
Qusled superiority their section has vouchsafed
| them.
As well might an epcure complain Of luxurious
ly furnished table because his conduct has de-
prvrd him OF appetite, rs for the South to COM
plain of the tariff aud the North, because have
wantonly, wiliully and perisrently neglected the
glorious endowmenis with which the hand OF nature
has protusely clothed US.
With the political portion Of the Mercury's arti.
| Gle almost entirely coincide. The argument al
vanced by the pensioued presses of the adminstra
ton. whose whole catalogue of principles is enume-
rated in three words-"spoils "spos," spois, ~
that sectiouslism has been destroyed by the election
| Of Mr.. Buchanan, we regard Ms the veriost chara
tanism altogether unfs to ceive a moments seri-
| Gus thought. S ctionalsm was never so frafiully
rife 10 the Union a. now. Southern secuonaiism
alone elected Mr.. Buchanan. Northern abol ton
sectionsI.sm came very electing Col. Fremont.
And these tao ~ariiug elements Of cionali-m de-
feated the only man who could have quelled the
whirlwind. sted the storm, and brought repose
out OF agtaton-Mi Willard Fillmore. At least such
sre the deliberate convictions of our judgment and
they grow firmer days. weeks aod months alarse.
The Black republicans IF the North are nov
stronger than beiore. Their defeat last fall has
shown them their strength. aud instead of dispirit-
ing has encouraged them-has bestowed Bpon them
new life, energy and 7, solution. They have ri
umphed a, the sprin; ,lecton-, and weentcrtsn It-
Gle or no hope OF their d fat at the fiI Z, ctions
We anticipate that Ihev will 20 conquering and
10 conquer until 1860, when William H. seward
viii be elected TO the Presidency OF the United
States ~ the aid Of the Freeso representatives, 10
Congress from Kansas, Nebraska, Minnesota Ani Or
egon, even il he il not chosen by popular sufFrsg
With such past, such present aud such IA
ture before us, seli msy the Cbsrl ston Mercury.
and well may the people OF the South. DOUBT that
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