The weekly pioneer and Democrat. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. Territory) 1855-1865, 1860-08-03

pnen "A. UOuSlaS as tneir CuOiCe io1 'o0
Presidential Office. .-......-
The enemies of that distinguished States
man have asserted many times that his
friends were disposed to force him upon the
National Convention. The falsity OF this
will appear from the fact that his friends
could have nominated him at Charleston,
after the secession, in accordance with the
ancient rule demanding two-thirds of the
votes given; whereas they altered that rule
Immediately, and required o-thirds of all
the electoral votes, or nearly four-ffths of
the votes which remained.
ADJOURNMENT TO BALTIMORE.
At, last, unable to discharge satisfactorily
the trust con6ded to it by the Democratic
party of the United States, inconsequence of
the secession to which we have referred. the
Convention adjourned from the Sd of May
to the 18th of June, and from the city of
Charleston to the city of Baltimore, calling
upon the Democracy of the several States,
whose delegates had retired, to fill the va
cancies caused by such retirement. The
resolution was proposed by Mr.: Russell,
chairman of the Virginia delegation, and
unanimously adopted in these words:
jonrns to-day, it adjourn to reassemble at Bal
timore. Maryland, on Monday, the 18th day of
June, and that it be respectfully recommended
to the Democratic party of the several States
to make provision for supplying all vacancies
in their respective delegations to this Conven.
ton when it shall reassemble.
1t is impossible to misconstrue this reso-
luton. There was no vacancy whatsoever
in the Convention, except such as had been
caused by the secession of certain delegates;
and unless the States of Alabama, louisa
ma, Mississippi, Florida, Texas, South
Carolina, Georgia and Arkansas were
thereby invited to elect new delegates, the
State of Virginia, and all other States
which renamed in the Convention at Char
lesion, deliberately stultiied themselves
That the seats of the seceders were under
stood to be vacant at Charleston appears
also from the decision of General Gushing,
sustained on appeal, that the minority of
the Georgia delegation could not vote in the
Convention after the majority seeded.
That the seceders intend to resign all claims
of membership is evident from their speeches
and protests at the time of secession. No
language could have been employed to
express more plainly the determination of
those delegates to retire from the Conven
ton at once and forever.
CONVENTION OF THE sECEDERs AT CHARLES
TON.
Having thus separated themselves from
the Democratic party at Charleston, the
seceders forthwith organized party of their
own, assembling in regular convention at
st. Andrews Hall on the 30th of April,
electing permanent officers, adopting rules
and appointing committee upon Organiza-
ton and committee upon resolutions. The
latter committee reported, on the I'd of May,
certain resolutions 1.-THE second majority
report which had been rejected by the
Democratic convention pending which, as
their journal informs US,
Mr.. Yancey, of Alabama, moved that report
be amended so as to strike out the words ''Of
the United States" after the words "Democra-
cy," and insert Constitutional before the
same word as often as it occurs in the report
Can there be any doubt as to the temper
of such proceedings? Mr.. Yancey desired
to adopt even a new name as well as a
separate organization and it is notorious
that he was master spirit of the whole
secession movement. Others, it would seem,
were not quite so bold; and, therefore, after
some debate, his amendment was withdrawn.
Several days of hesitation, doubt and
controversy among themselves ensued but
at length ascertaiDiDg that the Democratic
convention had adjourned to meet at Balti.
more, on the 18th of june the seceders were
compelled to adopt some definite course.
Mr.. Jackson, of Georgia, then proposed
this resolution, and it was adopted
RESOLVED, That the Democratic party of the
United States who are opposed to the doctrine
of squatter sovereignty, and in favor of the
platform of principles recommended by a ma.
jOrity of the States in the Charleston COnven.
ton and unanimously adopted by the delegates
OF eight withdra awning States, be invited to send
delegates to Convention to be held in Rich
mOnd, Virginia, on the second Monday of June
and, in order to secure concert of action, that
the basis of representation be the same as that
upon which the States have been represented
III the Charleston Convention.
Another quotation from their journal is
somewhat significant
On motion of Mr. Barry, of Mississippi, the
following resolution was adopted:
RESOLVED, That the delegates from South
Carolina be requested to publish the proceed
ings of this convention, and to incorporate them
in a pamphlet containing so mach of the pro-
ceedings of the Convention of which this Con-
"
separation from it.
On motion it was
RESOLVED, That the South Carolina delega-
ton be appointed committee to make ar
fragments for the Convention to be held at
Richmond.
We pause here to ask, in all candor, how
these gentlemen could any longer claim to
be members of the party whose convention
had adjourned to Baltimore, and, especially,
TO be members of that convention
SUBSEQUENT ACTION OF THE sECEDERs.
The Richmond Convention proved mis-
cradle failure. None of the Northern
States, and no Southern States, except
South Carolina, Florida, Mississippi, Texas,
Louisiana, Alabama, Arkansas and Georgia,
ever appointed delegate to attend it. The
seceders returned to their constituents from
Charleston, and all of them surrendered. at
home, their commission in the Convention
which mad adjourned to Baltimore. A
brief recital of what transpired in each State
becomes now essential.
SOUTH CAROLINA
The delegates who represented this State
in the Charleston Convention declined fur
Their service; whereupon new delegation
was appointed in State Convention at Col.
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