Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1860-02-20
wAsHIBaros H.ws AND eessIr.
Editorial Correspondence of The Stor.]

February 10, 1860
I left Richmond shortly after day break yes
terday morning, on my return TO Washington,
completely tagged out with the excitement, con.
fusion, and real hard work Of attempting to main.
tain position in the body of the Democratic State
Conventions hall for two days and nights NV
Last was written ere they had fairly organized, and
afterwards, ere getting this far on my way back.
had no opportunity to put pen to paper As for
"fHing There, the thing was not be done, wedged
In az all were, so to make it almost impossible
70 move hand or foot for hours except as the
OF the crowd moved all at once. And then no one
could hear half most of the orator. said though
oeiiowlng never 30 loudly within ten feet of ONT
ear. With the exception of half dozen Of the
many speakers, who were listened to with some
SORT OF attention, the speeches of all the rest were
accompanied by side bar criticisms, cat-calls,
snou" Ior the fun of the thing, &C., e. c., OIL all
sides, and from all parties, as though Bedlam
rather than the staid and respectable Democratic
party Of the Old Dominion were in consultation
In the far-famed African Church of Richmond
Va
On Friday morning, Mr.. Chapman, Of Monroe.
proposed the resolution expressing the opinion
that Ex-Governor Wise is the choice Of Virginia
Tor the Charleston nomination, which he prefaced
oy a speech extravagantly laudatory of that gen.
ueman This was the signal for the commence
ment Of the end-a condition of excitement, tur.
MOL ana confusion up to the moment when left
the place at 10 p. m. that beggars every possible
capacity for description with the pen. His reso-
luton was received with cheers from the Wis
ites as was substitute therefor read by courtesy
Tor Information, by the opponents of the innova-
uon In the usage Of the party on such occasions
thus proposed by Mr.. C. From that hour until
III p m the policy Of voting the proposed instruc-
ton was ably debated by many gentlemen on
both sides, and the blood of the Hunter men and
Wlseites was duly stirred up against each other.
Az ABOUT IL p m. they began to vote on substi-
tute declaring 1t nexpedient and improper for the
convention TO assume the prerogative Of declaring
what Vlrglnia's Democratic Presidential prefer.
ence is.
AT one a. m. the Convention broke I'D in a POW
the books and papers being carried away by the
Secretary, after the Chair had pronounced a
motion to adjourn carried, which fact was dis
puted with great violence in the body of the hall.
On the disappearance of those officers there seemed
to be little visible diminuton of the number of
members present, and Col. Henry Nj. Garnet of
Westmoreland, was voted into the chair, and the
convention or meeting reorganized under the
auspices Of the anti-Wiseites, who are said 70
have agreed to hold separate meeting Yesterday
Saturday-that doubtless came off, though wa,
not in Richmond to witness it.
A large number Of the opponents Of the resou
ton Of Mr.. Chapman left the hall early Friday
night, disguised with the pertinacity with which
the proposition was pressed, and the appliances
that had been and Were then being resorted to. to
secure for 1t majority vote. These gentlemen
denied, IN toto, the right Of the Convention to
1ke any such action, and designing to snap thei,
fingers at ito disregard it--they chose to with.
draw. Though there was no concert Of action on
their part, full one hundred or more thus counted
themselves out; refusing even TO remain to vote
Tor the substitute, which they favored Some
thirty delegates left Richmond on the train on
which travelled yesterday morning, every man
OF them opponents of the proposition, highly in
dignant at its introduction by Gen. Chapman.
AT this time know not what was the fate of
either resolution or substitute. The latter if the
sound of the voters voices amounted to any
proof, was overwhelmingly adopted, and the
"iseites We're thus inglorious.y beaten in the
voting OF Friday night. But, as remarked in
previous letter, some half a dozen alternates-
Wlseites-carried in their breeches pockets prox.
les to vote the strength CT many distant counties
that had been procured for them, that count some
twenty thousand strong in footing up the result
IL Gen Chapman's proposition prevailed, it was
by and through the use of these proxies. with
nearly two-thirds of the delegates representing
their own counties dead against 1t. The repre-.
sentatives by proxy, Of course, were without con-
stituencies to whom they were I'm any manner re-
sponsible W.D W-x