The daily exchange. [volume] (Baltimore, Md.) 1858-1861, 1861-02-01
SOUTH CAROLINA AND VIRGINIA.
Governor Pickens transmitted the Virginia reso-
lntons to the Legislature, with the following Mes

iutIons to the Legislature, with the following Mes
sage
STATE OF SoUTu CARoLryA,
EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT.
| January IS, 1861
| To the Speaker and Members of The
House Of Representatives:
GENTLEMEN, His EXcellency, the Governor of Vir.
| glnia, has transmitted to me the enclosed resou
tions, passed by the Legislature Of that iustriou.
Commonwealth.
1t will be seen that their object is to induce the
Legislature Of South Carolina to send on commits.
sloners to meet commissioners from Virginia, and
also from all The States that think proper to send
similar commissioners, on the 4th of February next
in Washington city, to ''consider, and if practical
bic, agree upon some suitable adjustment" Of the
great issues that have been made in the Confede-
racy.
We are disposed to treat with the most profound
consideration every proposition that may emanate
from the State of Virginia, and to yield to her al.
most everything, except what may involve vital
principles More than year ago, the State of
South Carolina, actuated by most sincere desire
to do every thing in her power to avert the dangers
that it manifest then threatened the Federal
Union, sent commissioner to Virginia, and made
an urgent appeal to her to step forward ard devise
some plan upon which the States Immediately con-
cerned might act together, and their peace
and their rights, and yet preserve the common
Constitution a blessing for all the States 1t
was then thought unnecessary, on the part of Vir-
gnla, to take any steps to act in concert with
South Carolina.
If our sister States had acted at that period per-
haps something might have been done to secure
new guarantees, by which our peace and our char
tered rights might have been protected in COM
mon Union. As far as the Northern States are con-
cerned, they have, many of them often violated
their obligations States under the Federal com
pact and the compromises that have been made
between the two great sections of the Confederacy
have been wantonly set aside. We have appealed
in vain to their pghted faith and to the integrity
OF the covenant. We have been traduced and de-
nounced through their pu pits, their press their
orators and their statesmen as unworthy of equal
lty with them as States, and even as their interiors
IN social point of view. Their people have uni
ted in overwhelming ma jorites at the recent cleo
tons, upon issues which openly involve our peace
and existence, to put into power party who enter
tam the deepest and most malignant hostility to
our institutions and our people.
rms Is the great overt act of the people at the |
ballot-boX, from which there is no appeal to anv |
nigher tribunal, under our system of government |
They have agreed to place at the head of the army
and navy President not for the protection of the
rights and the peace of our people under a common
fixed and transmitted by express char
ters from the very origin of the government, but
with open and avowed principles of deep and set
tied hostility and with pledges made by him at the
head OF powerful party, for the final extermina-
ton OF institutions essential to our power as a |
people, and to the peace of our society. We have |
been forced to resume our original powers of gov
and to assert our separate sovereignty as
State, IN order to seek that protection which we
were compelled to believe would not be given to US
and to our people under the power of such party
and such Chief Magistrate.
Under these circumstances, however much |
might be disposed to yield the most profound re-
spect to the State of Virginia. and to any sueges
tions from her, yet it is difficult to perceive upon
what grounds this State could agree to send com
missioners to Washington to meet commissioners
from the Northern States well as from the South
ern States. 1t might only result in deeper and
wider difficulty and confusion. refer the whole
matter, with great Difference, to your wisdom and
decision, hoping in any event that the kndest and
most respectful reply may be made to Virginia.
Perhaps it is not improper to state that this State
has agreed, through her Convention, to meet dele
gates from other seeding States at Montgomery
on the 4th OF February, and our Convention has |
actually appointed delegates to attend this meeting
from these States. The object of this Convention
OF States will be to form Immediately common
Government for the States that have seeded and |
by efficient organization to secure their permanent |
independence beyond the reach of any contingency |
1t would obviously be impotic for this State to |
send delegates to a meeting at W ashington, ap-
pointed for the day. to meet the States of the
North with view to preserve or to reconstruct
the Federal Union with them when we have agreed
first to meet our sister seeding States, to whom
we owe our deepest obligations, and feel bound bv
every tie to make compromises with any other |
powers until we have first formed with them a |
separate and independent Union