Daily Nashville patriot. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1857-1858, 1857-12-25
Governor walkers letter.

We yield most Of our space this morn
ing to the letter of resignation of Gov
WALKER. We have refrained from pub
fishing the telegrapl's copies, for the reason
that we preferred to give the document en-
tire, as amatter Of justice to Gov. WALKER,
as well as for the information of our read
ers. Much of the letter is taken up with
the Governors individual opinions of pop
ular sovereignty, as now and at various
other times held by him.
These opinions are in perfect accordance
with the radical views and extreme ten
denotes of modern, progressive democracy.
Whilst we hold to the correctness Of the
high and liberal principles of popular soVe-
reignty, as applied in the organization OF
free Republics, such as ours, we dissent
from the modern theories whose illogical
consequences" may be carried so far as to
create and sustain a spirit of mObOcracy
scarcely less violent than red republican
ism, or less dangerous than Jacobinism i'll
full swing
The Governor makes a strong point
against the President in declaring that he
has, in all his official acts in Kansas, but
obeyed the instructions sent him from
Washington, a fact which none but the
most violent partizans have ever been found
to deny. If the Governor is entitled to
credit, his statements certainly place the
President in a most awkward position,
to say the least. And to those of our
democratic friends, such as the Richmond
Enquirer, who, while sustaining Walker
and the President last summer, conceded
that he had gone beyond the strict line of
his duty, in propOunding his isOthermal
theory" and demanding a submission of
the constitution, as a whole, to a direct
vote of all the people, his declaration that
his addresses and speeches were delivered
in the nature of o6TciaL prOolamati6ms, will
come gratingly. We leave these points for
reconciliation to those who have the deep
est interest in them.
The strongest point, and the only one
of any serious import, made against the ac-
ton of the Lecompton Convention by the
retiring Governor, is the deficiency of reg
istration under the territorial law. 1t is
alleged that nineteen counties were neither
registered, nor voted for delegates, to the
Convention. This was either the fault of
the officers appointed to make the registra-
ton or of the citizens refusing to be regis
tered; and the abolitionists and national
democracy may settle this question among
themselves.
But Notwithstanding this, Secretary
STANTON and Gov. WALKER, after him. and
even after the election of delegates, repeat
edly said that the Laws of the Territorial
Legislature should be respected and obey
ed. On the arrival of STANTON, in advance
of WALKER, he laid down this policy, and
when told by the free-State men that they
would not obey these laws, he replied
'then II IS aoar to The knife, and the kuifi
10 the hH." The Legislature of the Ter.
ritOry was silent as to the submission Of
the Constitution, leaving that question en-,
tirely in the breast of the Convention.
The exercise of that discretion became,
therefore, part of the territorial law; and
according to the pledge to sustain the laws,
we cannot see wherein his letter relieves
him. No fne-spun theories will answer the
purpose. We have not time to enter fur
Their into the subject this morning We
commend the letter to the careful perusaI
of our readers.