The national Republican., 1861-04-17
VIRGINIA AND PEACE.


If the people of Virginia desire peace, as
they have special reasons to do, it is fortunately
in their power to assist in its restoration, quite
as much, to say the least Of it, as the people
of any State in the Union. The process is
easy, and the way is open. They have merely
to discard and repudiate the politicians, who
stimulated secession at the outset, and who
have been encouraging it ever since, by excl.
ting the expectation that Virginia would join
the rebellion, unless certain things were done
which every body knew would not be done, and
if certain other things were done, which every.
body knew to be inevitable.
These politicians have been threatening for
months, that Virginia would secede, unless she
could have the Breckenridge platform, with
some alterations for the worse, made part of
the Constitution of the United States. And
they have also threatened the same thing as
inevitable, unless the United States would
quietly give up what few forts were left to them
in the seeded region, in the general wreck
brought on by the treachery Of Mr.. Buchanan,
or il, in any way, the national authority should
be asserted against the traitors, thieves, and
robbers, who have usurped temporary author.
ity on the Gulf 1t is these threats Of politicians
in Virginia, a portion Of them traitors per Sc,
and another portion of them, well enough aE
fected, but destitute equally of sense and cour,
age, which have kept alive the existing dis.
fractions to this time.
The people of Virginia are not responsible,
as yet, for the language and conduct of the
politicians to whom we refer. They have de-
clared for the Union, so far as they have had
the opportunity to declare at all, and as we
fully believe, they are for it to-day, pure and
simple, without any conditions, and in all i'm
aginable contingencies. And they can restore
peace and prosperity, by so manifesting their
attachment to the Union, as to put an end to
the false hopes of their ultimate cooperation
in the rebellion, which, more than nything else
have kept the rebellion alive.
The vacillating policy of the men who have
assumed to speak for Virginia during the pres
ent crisis, has inflicted wound upon the repu
tation of that State, which her intelligent cit
zens cannot but earnestly desire to heal.
To illustrate what is thought and said in the
border slave States, of the recent course Of
Virginia, that is Of the politicians, not the peo
pie, of Virginia, the Baltimore american pub
fishes the following, being part Of a letter writ
ten on the 9th of April, by "a distinguished
gentleman Of Kentucky:"
off Kentucky and Tennessee, with thei
compact and central situation, and their two
millions Of white population, stand fast, as
think they will then the three free States, Iii
nois, Indiana and Ohio, and the seven slave
States, Virginia, North Carolina, Georgia, Ala
bama Mississippi, Arkansas, and Missouri
that surround and border on the two States o.
Kentucky and Tennessee, must in some de
gree accommodate their policy to the deter
mined action of those two powerful, central
and combined States, which, unitedly, are
stronger than the seven seeded States.
AT present the great necessity is, that the
public mind should emancipate itself from the
idea that Virginia is able or fit to lead us il
times like these. When the tug comes, it vii
be hard work for Virginia to save herself; i
she does that, she will have to change her no
tons and her conduct very considerably Mary
land ought no longer to allow herself to be con
sidered mere satellite of Virginia, but take @
resolute stand for herself. She and Delaware
united are a full match for Virginia. As long
as the rest of the border slave States allow
Virginia to imagine that they depend for their
sense, their courage, and their policy, on her, VIZ
shall have nothing but trouble and uncer
tainty."