Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1858-08-03

Snia" with South Carolina. in 1882 says: AT this
lark hour, wh-n every thing appeared desperate, and
military preparation was being made TO resst turt
With force mediator appeared. 4 gallant State
brew herself into the breach, and arrested the arms
.! ei her par'y-Virgina" =" On the 26th of January,
lo3J Virginia adopted her resolutions OF mediation,
sid despatched that eminent CITIZEN B. Watkins
Leigh, comuissary from Virginia. In 1892 South
Caroline did not regard that kind act "a sorry sup
por." No! She thanked Virginia for espousing her
cnuss end yielded 10 the mediation of her siater State
rhis is the Grs time We ever heard the kindness Ct
virginia so coniempuously spoken OF in South Caro-.
.lra' II was kind act, dictated by spirit OF love
aid affection from sister Stale to another and We
hardly expected to hear 1t csrriralured as "a sorry
support Graiitudeshould have forbid such aIusion
TO that act Of State kindness.
No. ). There is truth Of Our history inoreappa-
rent than the fact that Virginia has done than
any other State 10 provide the world with the sound
philosophical doctrines which are now relied on by
thinking to defend the institution of slavery in
AL its aspectsmora social, political end economical.
The first great step towards this result was the very
discussion before the General Assembly which the
Mercury" now denounces reproach to the State.
Look the Up to 1892 the question of slavery,
a. ii then misunderstood throughout all the South.
ern S:s,es, was envsloped in Ignorance and doubt,
fear and diaru4t. The greater number, even of it's
defenders regarded it as little better than an newt.
able burden.
How this shroud OF darkuess dspelled Partly
by means Of giievOus accident-mainly by the VIE
dom and moderation which prevailed in the councils
OF Virsinis. The horrors Of n seryie war had com
menced 10 rago in our midst. Brave men were ssugh-
tered in cold blood vr,uous women dresdipg fate
wore than death when the voice of the people at
last echoed shoutnot for vengeance but for LIGHT.
Is The the necessary consequence OF slavery Does
this social system which We have Inherited from our
fathers, furnish Il us safe aud proyident regulation
oi lho relations OF master and servant Or i'd il Di
quilouG, was;e!u and lsaught with inevitable peril TO
lie Gnd honor Such us these the questions
which the people Of South Carolina, we'll as Of Yir
gin,a asked, esch man Of his neighbor. No fanacal
party had arisen in the slsvehoding States, to
disseminate doctrines o murder and revolt, or even
awaken spirit Of resistance to lie social nvasions,
destined in ae! days 10 lend spur TO thorough en-
quiry. 1t the spontaneous voice OF people
sruping in the danger of darkness, aud struggling TO
reach tie sunlight of truth; all earnestly sought to
know whether this thing of God or OF the
devil" Then it was tha. Virginia called her wise
men nnd her elders together, FOR the purpose OF frank
enquiry 81! unbiased debera,ion. No RomaI Sc
nate ever discussed Issue Of grave import, with
such moderation and dignity. BY means Of these de-
Jbersuns, FOR the first time tie inp-ac,icsbiiy Of
smRncp patton in Virginia was rendered manifest
Building upon this truth the greg minds of the State
immediately commenced the task OF revealing the
social and moral aspects Of slavery and 30 rapidly
did the work progress, that two years afterwards,
ahvn British emancipation in the West Indies hac
liz the torcss fanaticsm in some of our Northern
States, the statesmen OF Virginia were eminenty pre-
pared TO meet and TO ward every shaft Of bigory or
of ca4uistry which a:s4iled the institutions of the
Soa;h. Even the very men who had advocated, with
youthful enthuslssm, the cause OF emancipation had
rerut new lesson. Charles j. Faulkner aud Others
who had been honestly msl-E.=n on the subject i'm
nedis,-iy commenced political record which
hss ryer eince placed them smoug the foremost in the
cause OF truth.
On the hoo, OF Congress, Virginia took the lead ii
the great battle egaias, sUp:itionsG Does the Mer.
curry Enuv ,hG o! the earliest oi these CAM
or;gus n representative iron South Carolina WAS tn
r-t o iai-r in h- strife, i- fret offer overurest
tne common enemy And, vn The nstau:, yOu's
representative from Virginia boldly denounced bin.
a. a TRAITOR" Another representative from South
Clso!ina endorsed aud repeated the charge. The
two accusers now occupy high places of trust. One
i. Governor of Virginia; the other Senator from
South Carnliua.-The Mercury says.
81 But the grest matter which, more thhn all other
tpe shaken the confidence of the South in VrsniH
has been hrr the admission oi California Int
the Union and the consequent exclusion OF the Soutb
from all that magnificent territory Virginia undertook 10
lead the south and her the leadcrship conceded
by all. Ry separate and consecutive Legislatures
she declared , -hr would resist the WinOt Proviso oI
anv kindred measure. all hazards and to the last ex
trrmiiy." Constitution WAS gotten up in California by
Brgniier General o the United S,",ed then in Calior
MIA in which the Wmot Proviso waa Incorporated eH
cudng slavery from California MIR. Clay himself an
mrd that this Constitution had 10 validity Whatever
Yet Cnliurnih with this Conattuton was admitted into
~ the Southern excepting South Carolina had
adopted the Virginia Resolutions rertam 81 lheratn
thus placing themselves besides Virginia for the high pur
poses of rrstunce. They were prepared to back her
lead Did Virginia redeem her solenny repeated pledge'
20 me south aud the world Ear from It. By the Com
prCmi.e IL called admitting California into the
, Union Fugity" Slave Law one OF its terms sup
posed be peculiarly important 10 Vrns and the othc'
frontier Stnies Virginia submitted with the frontier be
n"tt OF the Fugitive -lave Law and she dragged
down with h.r the whole South into submission In MIS-
sisspp and South Carolina effort VIVA made. despite
her abandonment -eccde from the Union which had
,,rru.,ted the enormous wrong excluding their pco
p from this magnificent territory, Won by some oi thtir
blood and their full contribution ot treasure In
failed with the whole weight OF Virginia cast sgns
them
yrciuia's "cour.e on the admission of California
into the Unjon is 'h' great matter" OF the "reasons
which have shaken the confidence of the South III
this STATE. Th. is indeed strange. The representa-
tives Virginia by speech and vote protested against
that outrageous act-her people with q unanimy
hitherto unprecedented, sustained the delegation in
the course they had taken. recent very able edi.
toria of the Richmond Examiner" thus meets this
point. That paper says: "In all the Cotton
States, except South Carolina, Union ticket was
formed against the anti Compromise States Rights
ticket and in every Cotton State except South Ca
rolnA tho Union party the subml.sonists "a they
we're termed by their opponents, were triumphant -
The anti Compromise members, including some of the
rnostpopular and distinguished representatives OF the
Cotton Sta.es defeated JO, asking Too much in
behalf of the South. Jefferson Davis defeated for
that renscn by Henry s. Footc. for Governor of Mis-.
sissppi. In Alabama, after violent struggle the
Uniona.s or submlssio1iss, "a Mr.. Yancey called
them, elected majority OF Congressman. How was
il with The Virginia members who voted against the
Coupromisa and Denounced it as a surrender Of
Southern righ,s7 Every one of them was reelected
BY m increased majority"
And five years after how was this sams question
regarded by the people of Virginia, when the "sober
second thought had queied the excitement of 1851
rhe prosen; Governor OF Virginia every where pro.
claimed the following As his sentiments And the
sui, of hia canvass is now matter Of history. Mr.
Wi.-, said:
''Rut gen:cmet sm hurrng all these topics get
at which IS the subj OF the dHyhe fatal subject
:i-cu.-v mean the interstate relations of this Union
on the suJect OF slavery. have had very train.
ing collision wiki the acuiest, the astu,es the archest
enemy Southern slavery that ever existed; the
old man eloquent John Quincy Adams. must ha re
heen dnll boy indeed Il have learned my lesann