Holmes County Republican. [volume] (Millersburg, Holmes County, Ohio) 1856-1865, 1858-03-18

Extra Session in vIreinla-.Gov.
Wise.
The end Of ninety days session found
nearly thousand unfinished bills and re-
ports on the hands of the Virginia Solons.
No sooner had the House of Delegates ad-
journed sine die, than the Speaker request
ed the members to preserve order, and he
handed the Clerk Proclamation by the
Governor to the Senators and Delegates to
convene Immediately and ''to legislate fur
ther for the interests of the Commonwealth,
as they may deem necessary and proper
The Proclamation stated that there would
be no need of increasing the expense Of
mileage. and the Richmond Enquirer thus
describes the townmeetingish character of
the proceedings of dignifed Virginians:
During the reading of this proclamation,
the Delegate were standing in the aisles,
or at their desks, some of them taking
more elevated positions upon their chairs
and desks. The clause relative to mileage
produced burst of laughter and applause
which continued for some moments, and
was renewed when the summons to the
Legislature to meet on Monday was pro-
claimed. After the Clerk had finished the
reading of the proclamation, general call
for "Wise," @Wise," was made.
The Governor, whe was sitting near the
portrait of Chancellor Kent arose to re-
spond, and Speaker Crutch6eld, remarking
that he would constitute himself presiding
officer for the occasion, called the assem-
blage to order, but the members, and
others who had crowded into the Hall,
whilst observing silence, continued to stand
in the aisles, etc. The galleries were filed
with citizens.
Gov. Wise proceeded to make q stump
speech, and related his Herculean labors,
'morning, noon and night, to prepare mat
ter for the. consideration of the General
Assembly of this beloved Commonwealth" I"
He considerably added = "Perhaps, sir,
three regular messages and an extra mes
sage, were little too much for biennial
session of three months. acknowledge
the error" After discussing matters and
things generally and the unfinished legis-
lation particularly, during which Gov.
W. boasted that the Old Dominion is ..just
beginning TO put on all the beauty and
freshness of youth"-the peoples session
funnily wound up as follows:
Gov. Wise said that when he came into
the Hall this evening, he thought it not
impossible that, in a moment of excite
ment, bitter curses would be hurled at him,
in consequence of the duty he had perform
ed, but, if they had come, they would not
have deferred or intimidated him. All the
powers of earth could not have prevented
him from issuing that proclamation. Ap-
plause.
No man, (said Gov. W., in concl,lsion,)
loves the praise of his friends more than |
do, and no man would go further and work
harder to secure it. Nothing could be
more gratifying to my feelings than to re-
ceive these marks of appreciation from the
members of the General Assembly. 1t is
only when 7 stand alone, and have the
world in arms against me, that I can grow
taller and feel more independent. 1 knew
not whether l should win or lose by calling
an extra session, but win or lose, I felt it
my duty, and accordingly 1 determined "to
do or die" Prolonged applause.
A citizen in the western gallery called
loudly, "Mr. Speaker" "Mr. Speaker" un-
til he attracted all eyes towards him.
The Speaker said in response-"Othello's
gone" Laughter and cheers.
The citizen would not be deprived of a
hearing. He exclaimed: "We are the SOW
ereigns here, and 1 give you Governor Wise
with all his faults and alterations, say
still-Governor WISE"
Amid the laughter and applause which
this sentiment evoked, the crowd dispersed,
the opponents of an extended session evinc-
ing becoming resignation, and the other
side repressing their exulation at the aid
and comfort received by them from the
Executive.
The most important unfinished business
of the regular session is the failure to pass
the bills to provide for the payment of
the debts of the Commonwealth, to tax
oysters, and to sell free colored citizens in
to perpetual slavery! Verify, Virginia "is
just beginning to put on all the beauty and
freshness of youth!'