Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1860-05-03
The CHARLESTON CONVENTION.

CHARLESTON, May 1, 1850.
DEAR STAR; fear your readers will soon come
TO tire of my letters, as / have already certainly
tired of the vexatious pulling and hauling and
| arguing back and forth to no apparent purpose,
| in which in common with all here have been
so busily engaged for more than a week past
Pity me, dear Star, and pity all of us unfortunate
mortals now so employed, of all cliques and fac
tons of the party, in this already swelterng city
1t Is hard for an excitable scrap of humanity like
myself-naturally perfect finder box of conflict
ing emotions, catching FIRE from every passing
| spark-to keep cool enough amid such circum-
! stances and associations as those in which have
been immersed ever since arriving here, to come
to rational conclusions concerning the matters o,
which 1t smy duty to write you. So, IL there has
| been lack Of method In those conclus ons-of
| methodical harmony, meant pray you charge
| the shortcoming TO the rightful account; to the
imperfection of my nature and the perfect " bella
| oulloo" Of conflicting struggles of most cunning,
Persevering, INSCRIPTIONS, mendacious industri-
Gus, oilytongued, lmperious and voracious set OF
locofoco politicians numbering thousands, whom
the Lord ever yet permitted to assemble together
| whose Bedlamite-ish and Babel ish clatter has
been dinging in my ears from dawn till dawn,
| without an instants cessation, fer more than a
| week past.
The step taken yesterday by the seeding south
ern delegations, it is already plain, has knocked
| the calculations of the Douglasite managers
clean into the middle of next week. As have
all along imagined, the latter never until now
permitted themselves to realize that the South as
represented here, lin earnest. Or in other words
that politics at the SoHth is anything but the mere
game for place and plumber that 1t is at the North
| where few but desperate gamblers and unscrupu-
QemdpOUues IN MA 70
| Up to the secession, no power on earth seemed
competent to convince those, in and out of the
Convention, bent on fighting the great coming
contest Of November next througho the North on
platform that can be advocated there as better
anti-slavery one than any the Chicago Convention
can devise, and with candidate who can be put
forward as being, IL elected to do more by his
personal influence aud governmental policy to re-
press the extension of slavery than any Republican
President can do-that the South as here repre-
scented has really made up its mind to ignore the
right to play that game hereafter and yet claim
identity with the Democratic party whera that
party possesses strength sufficient to win electoral
votes. The realization Of that fact has come at
last and the consequence is that the traders and
hucksters in and out of the Convention who I'D to
yesterday afternoon have been blatant with their
boasts and bluster, to-day sing small enough
They are now as mute mice-wonderfully
changed in tone and bearing, indeed. Still they
talk of nominating Douglas on the Cincinnati
platform pure and simple, with his avowed free
soil Interpretation Of that SO ingeniously -con-
structed soft-sawder machine. But not man of
them can stand, in conversation, to have put to
him the facts that they have not real Democratic
electoral vote for him in all their forces-that if
they nominate him and the secession assumes the
nd eh h.I.
morning, Douglas cannot posi- bly, carry single
electoral vote in any State in the Union in Noyem
Der next
New York at length sees the force of this reas
oning in all its length and BREADTH and the con-
sequence is that the counsels Of Cochrane and
Croswell, and Schell, are now beginning to prevail
IN her deliberations. Her delegation, consequent
ly, Is diligently engaged in urging that of Tennes
see to mediate with the seeding southern dele
cations, to the end of inducing them to accent a
platform proposition which Mr. Cochrane has
drawn up, and which they (the New York dele
gation) will support In lieu Of the one Yesterday
adopted by the majority, If the South will return
to their seats in the convention and support II
The prospect is at this moment, that the arrange
ment will be effected; as hear that Tennessee is
pleased with it, and expresses the confident belief
that 1t will prove acceptable to the whole South.
or course, New York as yet keeps In the back
ground in this suggestion; as, If it be ssblown''
too soon, the Douglasite leaders may find some
means of defeating it in their now very evident
desPeration-'hat Of despair; which may make
more Of them insanely reckless
To-day, Caleb Cushing is the most intenselv
abused man in the United States His rulings
(as you will doubtless learn by telegram ere
receiving this letter. all points affecting re-
suits, have one and all been apparently directed
to the end Of healing the breach; and what is
more CALLING to the inside and outside Douglasite
leaders, the majority Of those remaining in the
Convention seem bent on sustaining him in his
course.
But may not speculate at such length over
current events here. Douglas is said TO have
telesraphed to Charleston urging his forces to
vote Tor him from first to last, and to make him
the presidential nominee Of any porton-grsat or
small-of the original Convention, that it may be
possible In any possible event; and believe in
the truth Of the rumor, drawing this conclusion
from the desperation exhibited by the portion of
his supporters whose pecuniary and political for
times are evidently bound up with his success.
On the other hand, the seeding delegations.
and others, symPathising with them, that have
not yet seeded, are hourly in the receipt of dis
patches from Influential friends In Washington
ciy' urging concert OF action in 1.-THE BoltD on
the part Of the Democratic States, and opposition
to Douglas, to the DEATH as the only means Of pre-
venting the dissolution Of the national Democrat
&c party, and the consequent destruction of the
Union Of the States. The latter, however, scarce
ly need any such prompting; for II is clear that
the end CT the business will be--unless the New
:ork-Tennessee scheme succeeds-the adoption
Of constitutional platform, and the nomination
Of sound and popular candidates by all those sew
enteen delegations, aided by the delegations of
i've or six other States; leaving Douglas and his
uosuia GUY III the cold CORRESPONDENT
THB GENERAL Posr OFFICE REvEsuE-The
receipts and expenditures of the General Pest
Office Department for the quarter ending Dec 81.
le59, as shown by an exhibit Just completed in
the office of the Sixth Auditor, were as follows.
Amt Of letter postage paid In money SI96. 1863 u
Newspapers and pamphlets. 1926 II
Registered letter postage. ... 63s5 *
Postage stamps and stamped envel-
opes sold ...........,:. ....,,-. 1,Gae ,l65 IS
rents. ......................... 21 ,.66 70
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