The weekly pioneer and Democrat. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. Territory) 1855-1865, 1859-12-16
Governor Wise's Message to the Vir-
ginia LIE gislature.
RICHMOND. Va. Dec. 5.


The Legislature Of Virginia organized to.
day
Governor Wise's message reviews the
Harper's Ferry affair at great length. Il
speaks OF the spirit of fanaticism and Ont
idea of the aholitionsts which has seemed tt
madden whole masses of one entire section
of the country which enters into their re.
igion, education, politics, prayers, courts O
justice and legislatures which has trained
up three generations in moral and socia
habits of hatred to the masters of African
slaves in the United States, but turns not
upon slavery elsewhere which would have
sent a rescue to assassins, robbers, murder
ers, and traitors, whom it has sent to felons
graves. Unless the numerical majority shall
cease to violate the confederate faith, and
cease to disturb our peace, to destroy our
lives and property, and to deprive US of all
the protection and redress under the per-
verted forms and distorted workings of the
Union, we must take up arms The issue
is too essential to be compromised any more.
We cannot stand such insults and outrages
as these of the Harper's Ferry, without
suffering worse than death as citizens, and
NituOut SuuCiiuS III uiSuOuOr luc ucdtu vi u
State. 1t is not to be denied that we have
many sound and sincere friends in the nom
slaveholding States but the conservative
elements are passive, whilst the fanatical
are'actlve, and the former is fast diminishing,
whilst the latter is increasing in numbers
and force.
With regard to the insurgents, lie says it
Is a mockery to call them monOmaniacs. If
they were, then large portion of the people
of many of the States are monomaniacs.
The leader himself spurned this plea, and it
was not put In upon their trials. They
were prompted by the evil spirits of incen-
diarsm which demoralized numerous
host of enemies behind them, who now
sympathized with their deeds before the
world. These hired them, without them
selves mourning the risk of their crimes, and
no wonder they now sympathize with them
even to madness, and that John Brown
despised the hypocritical cant of their pre-
tence that he was insane. The execution of
our laws is necessary TO warn future victims
not again to be the tool of this sympathy
We have friends or we haze not in the
States whence these invaders came. They
must now be not only conservative, but
active to prevent the invader coming 1t
was impossible for so much of such sympa.
thy to exist without exciting bad men to
action-rescue or revenge. On this be
acted. He has been compelled by the ap-
prehenSlon of the most unparalleled border
war to place the State in as full panoply of
military defence as if foreign enemies inva-
ded the United States. Indeed one most
irritating feature of this predatory war is,
that it has its seat in British provinces,
which furnish asylums for our fugitives, and
send them and their hired outlaws upon MS
from depots and rendezvous in the bordering
States. There is no danger from our slaves
or colored people. The slaves taken refused
to take arms, and the first man killed was
respectable free negro while running from
the philanthropists who came to liberate
the black race.
In closing the message he says: We must
rely upon ourselves, fight for peace, organize
aud arm, demand Of each State what posi-
ton she means to maintain in the future in
respect to slavery, and the provisions of the
constitution and laws of the United States
and the provision of the State laws for its
pIOlCCIIOu III TtldllOlS, anu Ut
governed according to the manner in which
the demand may be answered We are in
arms. With regard to the reports and
rumorS of organized conspiracies to obstruct
our laws. the Governor says that they were
from so many sources, so simultaneous, SO
far apart, from persons so unlike in evil
dences of education, they could be from no
conspiracy to hoax but he relied not so
much upon them as upon the earnest con-
tinued appeal Of sympathizers with crimes.
Let US defend our own position or yield at
once. Let US have action and resolve upon
a definite settlement. No more temporizing
with the cOnstitution-no more compro-
misses The other convicts await execution,
and will be executed unless the General
Assembly orders otherwise This will meet
the open invasion, but acts only on ndivid-
ual convicts, and don't settle the question of
our peace and protection in the future. 1t
remains only for me to offer myself, all that
| am, and all that have, to the Common
wealth, whenever she may order me or mine
IN service when my term of Office closes.
The second message makes detailed re-
Communications, and aludes to State matters
generally.