Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1861-03-16
Ii Army OF Coercion.

When Lieut.. General Scott commenced a
stealthy concentration 0: armed forces at
Washington, tho excuse paradcd before the
public was, an apprehension Of assault from
Virginia on the Federal metropolis. Later
the additional apology was brought forward
that the life Of the President elect would be
endangered on the day of his inauguration,
and that TO prevent the outrage Of his assass.
nation, every foot Of Pennsylvania Avenue
and all the surroundings Of the White House
and Capitol ought to bristle with bayonels.
Every honest and well-lnformcd man rejected,
at ONCE, the fimsy pretexts put forth by the
Lieutenant General aud his Black Republican
allies; nor did the press Of Virginia fail to an
nounce openly that the real intent design and
object wus the formation of the nucleus Of an
army Of coercion at Washington.
The preteHce Of apprehended invasion from
Virginia has bcsn scattered to tho tour winds,
even through the willing ascncy vi Black
Republican Committee Of investigation. The
President elect has boon inaugulutcI without
o single demonstration Of attempted violence
Yet the army at Washington is kept there un-
der arms, and the work Of Reinforcement or
ganiza,ion and iortiiica,ion, is continued with
increasing vigilance ever since the 4tii Of March
Wha. does this mean? What is the design
of Mr. Seward in thus employing Lieutenant
General Scott, without resortins to the trouble
of Offering to the public even the prctehce Of
rrctextF
The best index we can obtain Of Mr. Seward'S 5
ulti,uate designs is to be procured by careful
attention TO the movements of Mr.. Seward $
partisaus ard allies in the Convention now hs.
senbcd at Richmond Mr. George W. Sum.
uerS is, perhaps, the most Intimate and conf.
Dental Of Mr.. Stewards Richmond allies. From
the indications afforded by Mr.. Summers, and
corroborated by reported movements at Wash
ington, it is sufficiently obvious that Mr..
Seward will scarcely attempt ut present, the
armed coercion Of tho ccnlcderuted States.
Mr.. Summers has openly proclaimed his un.
yielding oppositi0n to such policy,-and
this is the next thing to satisfactory de-
monstra,ion that it will hot be pursued
by Mr. Seward. Mr. Summers informs US
that, so far Us the seeded States are cun-
cerned, they must be left to time. c. they
must be left free to remain out of the Union,
or permitted to return, must come back only
on such terms as may be arranged without
their assistance, by tho border States Of the
South acting together with the Black Republi'
can party Of the North.
In word, Mr.. Summers unintrutionally ex.
poses the real object of his great ally and dis
linguished leader, Mr.. Seward That policy
was foreshadowed months ago, in the editorial
columns Of the New York Tribune. It is
simply to slough OF the Gulf States
The real object OF the Seward wing o: the
Black Republican purity is to pre7snt tine return
ui the Gulf States to the Union. When :heir
exclusion shGll be permanently established, the
next step will be union with Canada, where
| by new aild fercer element Of ab0itionism
will be introduced into the Northern Confede-
racy, and preponderance Of non slavehoding
States secured, ut once sufficient 10 use the
"clear-o5scure" language Of hr. Seward, to
by the "co-operation ofState Governments and
Federal Governments acting together under the
Constitution y or, ir palmer phraseo!ogy, to
abolish slavery down to the line Of South ca
rolna, BY means Of thrce-fourths vote Of the
States for such an amendment 10 the Federal
Constitution This is what the New York
Times means by bringing tie line Of Canada"
to the borders Of slavery.
This is the ultimate object, to secure which,
Mr.. Seward desires the establishment, in the
FIRST Instance, Of a separate Conlederacy, reach
ing from the line Of Canada to that Of South
Carolina, 10 be consolidated under the dcta
tiou Of Black Republican majority in Ma
tioual Convention, to be assembled alter de-
lay OF lone, two, or three years. "
This delay, and, finally this assembluge Of
a National Convention, is what Mr.. Summers
s evidently cndcavor!ng TO secure. In Mis-
souri,, Mr.. Stewards coadjutors have been en-
abled TO work more directly, perhaps too di.
rec,ly for tho same object. His coedjutors in
Virginia, no doubt endeavorcd during the
earlier sessions Of the Committee on Federal
Relations, 10 operate The recommendation Of
ar ordinance similar 10 that adopted by Mis-
souri,, Immediately referring the settlement Of
our federal relations to the delibcration of
National Convention. But our Virginia Se-
wurdtes have found it not only safer, but
much more proInotive Of Mr.. Stewards policy
Of delay antccedent to the call for National
Convention, to take auother policy, amply
developed 10y the conclusion Of MIR. Sum-
mers' late t"e hours speech. This is the
asse.nblage Of Convention Of the border
States Of the South, which Convention Of bor-
der States, it is Intended, haH first consume
sufficient time Jy ;'s deliberations to enable
Mr.. Sssrard 10 orgunize his .tv-ees--gice Ir.
Ssuard all the "delay" lie desires, and then
SIMPLY RECOMMEND TIE AssEMDLAGE OF a Ma
TIoSAL CONVENTION.
The whole plan is well concocted in oil its
details. sir Summers expects 10 be able 10
elect by tho Convention now assembled in
Richmond, only such delegates to the border
State Convention as shall be pledged 10 the
Seward policy to ar,u thcss with all the pow
or and prestige Of Virginia's influence, and to
trust to NJ. Seward and his conductors
throughout the border States 10 secure similar
delegations from Delaware, Maryland, North
Carolina, Kentucky, Tennessee and Missouri.
Moreover, in order to furnish sufficient mate
rial for long debate and prolonged deibcraticn
in the border State Convention and, if posi-
ble 70 divide even the border States on subor-
d;nat,. onestions tie eEdravcr will he made to