Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1853-1862, 1860-08-18
SnenkIng at PIkeviIIe.

HIkENllI.E, Tenn, aug IL, 1obU.
MEssRs EDITORS Last Wednesday was great
day for the Democracy of this county. 1t was the
opening of the canvass with The electors for
the State at large to speak, and as the Circuit
Court was in session and the day was fair, large
crowd assembled to hear the distinguished gentle
men,
At half past eleven, Col. HOPKINS took the stand
and for one hour and twenty minutes labored hard
to prove without convincing any one that | have
heard of that Judge DOUGLAS and his handful Of
worshippers were the great Democratic party, and
that the great mass of tie party are seceders and
disunionsts He tried to prove that we all had en-
dorsed the views of Mr. DOUGLAS up to the split at
Charleston, and that then we suddenly became in
fused with the spirit of VIM L. YANCEY for disunlon,
and for three quarters of an hour he pitched INTO
that gentleman. in something of the way the
Know NOthings used to do into an old gentleman
known as the Pope of Rome" a few years since.
And this was about all he did do. 1t is true for
few moments he said something about Mr.. BELL,
but not like his speech at the district convention at
Cleveland last May. Then he raked him. This time
it was only a fent He did charge Col. BELL with
voting for the compensation BILL" the measure
that defeated SAM A. SMITH for Congress in this
district last year. and the only thing that did defeat
him. But when Col BRABsoN denied the charge, he
Col HcPKINs) took it back. Of course he did-can
anything be palmer!
Col BRABSoN our brilliant u Congressman then
took the stand and oh! We gods how he did rant and
foam. For nearly an hour he rendered his
friends uneasy and miserable, with his yelling,
stamping his feet beating the stand, and rolling up
his eyes. He denied that Col BELL voted for the
compensation bill, said that he had heard of
the charge being made before, and that he Col BRAB
son, wanted the people to examine the record and
see if he (BRABSoN) was Eot right the goose.
This Messrs Editors, was amusing to me, for have
carefully read the congressional news, and for the
life of me could never find a single thing he had
said or DONE and feared he had shed his light I'M
der a bushel;" but Opposition friend of mine in
formed me that at the time the opposition IN Con-
gress was giving fits to ROGER A. PRYOR, and after
all the other members had had their say that most
positively R. BRABsoN did rise and say: "Mr. Speak
err if the gentleman from Virginia repeats that Ian
guage SHALL sir to respect him." and this IS
al THAT his friends bring toward that ne did say
But sirs as everything must end, so the Hon. Cen |
tleman suddenly broke down. and our gifted and
noble champion took the stand, and with indisputa-
BILE facts and unanswerable arguments answered
the charges made against the party by both OF the
opposition men, Coils HOPKINS and BRABsoN. Gen.
WHITTHoRNE then viewed the course of Mr.. DOUGLAS
and his friends, and showed conclusively that the
delegates from the South could not have continued
in the convention at Baltimore any longer than they
did, with their rights denied, their serespect IN
suited; they withdrew as they should have done.
and forming pure convention, with national plat
FORM and national candidates returned to their con-
stituency; they did this, and their action meets a
warm response in every true Democratic heart.
The cry of disunion was not thing and was
only made for effect that every national man North
or South in his heart endorsed the platform of the
party that nominated those pure and gallant states
men BRECKINRDGE and LANE; no one, SAID he be.
lieves they are for dsunon. He then reviewed the
course of Mr.. BELL and showed he bad been on both
sides of all questions first anti-Bank man. then
a Bank man, an ant-Tarif man and then a Tariff
man. &C., &c. Very Respectfully, BLEDsOE.