Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1859-06-14
The Moral Effect of Letcher's Election.

The Moral Effect of Letcher's Electlon'
It is well known that we do not belong to OF
have any admiration for the slavery sensation
class of politicians, who swear by the peculiar
institution and denounoe all who do not 60 10
the extremes of notification and secession, Us
destitute of southern "chivalry." upon the
subject of slavery, as upon all others, we aim 10
be moderate, and, during the recent canvass, aS
the columns of the paper will estaoilsh' mr.
Letcher was not assailed by us on the grounu Vi
present unsoundness upon that question: We
did however, appreheud that the election u .
man with such record, by party winch nau
arrooantly assumed to be the special gusroians
Of tho orest institution of the South, would have
tho unfortunate effect of encouraging the enc
mics of the South in the northern section OF the
copfederaoy, aud confirming their purposes OF
AGGRESSION. 1t will be remembered that the
"Richmond Enquirer took the same view OIL
the matter before the nomination of Mr.. Letch-
er and fought against it on that ground to the
bitter end. After the nomination, the "Nation'
al Era" the leading Abolition organ at Wash
ington, was loud in its acclamations OF Joy, ana
manifested much concern for the fate OF It's
"weak and erring brother" Since the election
the language Of the Northern journals pile up
the proof that the fears of the true friends OF
the South were not unfounded They exult
over the election of Mr.. Letcher, as an anti
slavery triumph, in proof of which we quote the
following extracts:
From the Boston Li6erator, Nay 80, 1859.
ABOLITION VICTORY IN THE SoUTH.-The tel
egraph informs US of the election of Virginia
Abolitionist to the Office of chief magistrate OF
the Old Dominion. We were not prepared for
such cheering news. His majority may be
small. but we have abundant cause to rejoice
that slave-ocracy is on the wane in Virginia,
and that so large portion of her people is i'm
bued with the principles of the early, and best,
aud purest statesmen The Governor elect lives
among the Scotch-Irish, in the heart of the
State, and was the ardent advocate, few years
ago, of the abolition of slavery in Western gir-
GINA.
From the Neao York Ecening Post Democratic
Free SoiL) Aay 80, 1859.
1t fills US with Joy to report the election of a
Democratic Free Soiler to the important Office
of Governor of Virginia. 1t justifes the policy
we have sustained, of refusing to join the Abo.
litionists in invading the institutions of the
Southern States. With no agency of ours the
black wave is recediug to the South. MIR. Letch.
er was an advocate of emancipation in Western
Virginia some 10 or IL years ago, and though
driven by apparent policy to palter to Eastern
Virginia, it is well known that he cherishes his
earlier opinions, and will be encouraged by his
election to resume them at an appropriate sea-
son. His Democratic Free Soil brethren at the
North hail this victory with unalloyed pleasure.
While the election Of Mr.. Letcher is thus re-
garded at the North, we find the extreme pro-
slavery men of the South mourning over the
same event as indicating that Virginia and the
Virginia Democracy can no longer be trusted
on the vital question of slavery. Here is what
Mobile paper says:
From the Mobile Southern League, May 80.
We have hardly believed the telegram which
reports the election of John Letcher, the Abo-
litionist of the Valley of Virginia. 1t confirms
the opinion we have often expressed, that yir-
ginia was unsound upon the subject of slavery
on the north side of James River and west of
the Blue Ridge. 1t confirms, too, our opinion
that the States soltl of that line must form
confederacy of their own, to resist the encroach-
ing wave of Black Repubcanism. We have
long seen the necessity OF disunion, and we now
invoke orr timd friends, who have dreaded o
dissolution of the Union of the States, to join
the Southern League, en- mssSs, and build anew
the barrier which no longer exists on the banEs
of the Potomac Let US have our cherished
Southern Confederscy from the James River to
the Gulf of Mexico.
Nor is it surprising to Us that such is the view
taken of the recent remarkable vote cast by the
people OF Virginia. 1t is certainly fact that
Mr.. Letcher's heaviest gains were in the North
western section of the State, where anti-slavery
opinions are more than tolerated. The "Wells-
burg Herald" paper published in the county
of Brooke thus accounts for Mr.. Letcher's large
gains ia that section of the State.
SIN the West, SIT says" Goggin hardly re-
ceiyed the usual Wing and American vote, In
the Panhandle, he fell considerably behind it
to the amount of several hundred votes. In
none Of the Western counties Chat is in North
Western) do there appear to have been any
gains-indeed the vote was rather light one
all over the State. Goggin was Objectionable to
many of liberal notions on the slavery question,
who otherwise would have supported him, some
of whom voted for Letcher, on the strength OF
his opinions in lS48, and for the sake of the
moral effect of his election, thinking that his
conversion having been so recent and radical,
the masses would set it down aud regard 1t as
insincere, and his election being thus equivalent
in some degree and in effect to Black-Republl-
can triumph in the State of Virginia. Others
not liking TO vote for Letcher or Goggin either
stood sloof to witness the result"
This county of Brooke and the county Of Han
cock constitute what is known as the "Pan
Handle" and both of them contain according
to the last census, Just "a sIaces. These facts
are certainly significant, and it is not wonderful
that the extreme parties of both sections con-
cur in the opinion that the election of Mr.. Letcher
indicates q change of public sentiment in the
State upon the subject of slavery. The North
ern Republicans, encouraged by the result, will
persevere in their assaults upon the South, while
the extremists of the South, maddened by the
suspicion of treachery in their own ranks, are
emboldened in their assaults upon the union
of the States.
The Voters of Boone.
The Richmond Enquirer thinks we have re-
Rected npon the intelligence of our political
friends in Boone county, by stating that the en-