Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1859-03-01
Ai1bmono Enquirer.
By nlTcrlr. puxxAvAxr, TYLER 4 WISE
TUESDAY MORNING, MARCH 1, 1850.
MIR. LErcHER AND THE PRESIDENTS MEssAe,

TUESDAY MORNING, MARCH I, 1859,
MR.. LETcHER AND THs PRESIDENTS MESSAGE
Ina late editorial of the New York Herald, "
written with reference to Virginia politics, We
find the following paragraph:
Much will depend upon the course Of Mr..
Letcher in this canvass. With the adjournment
of Congress, we presume he will go home and
take the stump. Should he defend the A'lmin-
/ iStration and the leading measures of the
Presidents message. he may expect to get a
very cold support from Governor Wise and his
followers. but should he second the peculiar
views Of the Governor. the Hunter men will b.
apt to desert him. There is still the middle
course. Of CARRYING water on both shoulders;
but this is always dangerous experiment.
Mr.. Lctcher. in this matter, like Mr.. English
! on the Lecompton question: may slip through
under c,ver oi compromise. but he * really
in an emb rra>Sing and critical o,ition."
The Herald is wrong-altogethe wrong
Opposition to the Fedcralist sentiments Of the
Presidents message is not peculiar to Governor
Wise. We have Yet to see the first Virginia
Democrat who fails utterly to dcnounce the
leading measures of the Presidents message"
And Mr. Lctcher was nominated, and is sliS-
tained, under the conviction that he is uncoln
p:om,Singly opposed to every feature Of policy
which the President has abStractcd from the
FcdcraliSt creed, and endorsed ~ his Official
! recommendation. That Mr. Letcaer will take
an early opportunity to speak out, even more
plainly than IN his letter accepting the nonina
ton, 10 vindicatc the Democratic faith, aud to
dcprccate each and all Of the Frdcralst recon-
mendltiops of the President, we do not permit
ourselves TO doubt There is no opportunity
for middle course or for compromise" oi
any description Mr.. Letcher has but one
course before him, consistent with the creed Of
his party and his own declarations. On the great
issues of funcompromsing opposition to lattudi'
marian Constitutional construction TO aSsump.
ton Of monarchical power by the Federal
Executive, to Federal control over State cor
poraton>--to internal Improvements by the
General Governnent-to specific tariff du.
tics--,he Democracy Of Virginia stand united
AMI harmonious And 30 sooa as Mr.. Letch-
crS voice shall be heard from the stump dc.
nouncing the attempt at Federal usurpa.
tiou. which the President his advocated,
and which Congress has received with
silence as ominous as il is rcprehensible-ju Just
so soon will the people rally to the support Of
the Democratic candid,tc. with the same enthu-
siasm which has ensured u, tue victory for moro
than half century
As for the twaddle about Wise men and
Hunter men. which has been encouraged by
jeremiads from some Virginia journals, that
goes for nothing. That large majority Of the
Virginia Democracy are divided (how equally
or unequally we will not attempt to dcfine) in
their respective preferences for the Governor or
the Senator, for the nomination at Charleston,
cannot ba dcnied We will even rnntnrn IN
say, that out Of nine-tenths Of the party in the
State, each man has fixed upon Wise or Hunter
a, his first choice for the Presidency. There
arc Wise men and Hunter men; and, taken to-
ce,hcr, they certainly make up very large
majority Of Virginia Democrats And why
should it not be so: How are the people to
choose President at all, without forming and
acting on individual preferences: And yet, the
same men who saw nothing wrong, whatever,
in being Letcher men, Edmundson men, Brock
cnbrough men, Hopkins men, or Smith men,
few months since, now pretend to sec some.
thing very portentous. indeed, in division Of
the Democracy into Wise men and Hunter men.
We have had enough Of this twadde, out Of
which grows the 'IIeralds" idea, that Mr..
Hunters partisans are ready to desert the
established principles of their party, merely
because Gov Wise's friends have manifested
an earnest intention to maintain them. Mr..
Hunters friends have never announced any
such ultra fac,ious and unprinciped policy.
nor can they do so without committing
suicide amounting to political humiliation for
them and for him.
To return to the IIerald's prime hypothesis
As We have said. Mr. Letchcr is obliged by po-
licv. as we'll as by principle, to oppose openly
the doctrines Of the Presidents Message. II
he should fail to do so--if he should agree to
take the Presidents Mes sage for his platform
he woul leave his party only choice Of evils
as between himself and Mr.. Goggn. 1t is true.
that very few Democrats Of the right stamp
would, even in that case choose the latter
alternative. Bnt the great mass OF the party
who might vote for Mr. Letcher, would do so
hcsi,atingly and under protest. And we are
we'll assured tha; "A very large portion of the
party would not vote for him at all. They
would quietly fold their arms and take n" part
whatever in contest between two Fcdcralist
champions. In short, an endorsement OF the
Presidents message by Mr.. Lctcher, would In
eyitahlv insure Mr. Lctcher's defeat