Daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, Va. [W. Va.]) 1859-1865, 1861-06-21
VIRGINIA CONVENTION
NINTH DAY.
THunsDAY, June 90, 1861

/ . 4uG uIluuSGA Va AhC w GIG
\ read and approved.
JAMES o. WATSON, of Marion, who was
| in the Convention for the first time, came
forward and took the oath of office, E
Mr.. LAMB offered the following resolution
which was adopted:
Resolred That the Secretary OF this Convention 10
instructed TO procure suitable book for the record
ing Of the Ordinances Of this Convention the record
to be equivalent to the enrolment Of said Ordinance
Mr.. CARLILE offered the following as ad
ditional to the resolution submitted By Mr..
Lamb, which was adopted:
Resslrsd, That all Ordinances passed ty this Con.
yOption shall be roconlmitted to tho Committee on
IIuSifess for revision and correction aud when
ported back the Convention ~ revised and correct
ed, they shall be a. pF0Ved IN the foregoing
resolution. --.s5 $500 -
Me. DoRsEY offered the folloWing- =.
ResOlpsd, That the Committee on Business, be and
are hereby instructed to report to the Convention,
an Ordinance declaring Tcant the offices Of all office
holders in the Commonwealth, who voted for tile Or
nance Of Secession passed by the Richmond COnven.
tion which assembled the 18th Of February last,
Mr.. CRANE, of Tucker, moved to amend
the resolution by striking out the word
s'report," and insert Henquire into the ex-
pediency Of reporting"
Mr., Dorsey accepted the amendment but
subsequently withdrew1the acceptance.
Mr.. CRANE insisted on the amendment
Mr.. LAMB arose to privileged question.
He presented the credentials of Henry g.
Moore and Duncan M'Laughlin. represen-
tatives from Webster county. On his mo-
tiOps the credentials were referred to the
Committee on Credentials. ,..-e7 T :
Mr.. CRANE then proceeded to. support
his amendment in, some remarks. He
thought the resolution would not touch
many of the cases arrived at, if the resoln-
ton merely instructed the committee to
vacate the Offices of those who voted for
the ordinance. There were many persons
who did not vote for the ordinance of Sc
cession, who now held offices, and were
yet secessionists of the worst stamp, and
for these men the resolution did not pro-
vide. He thought it would be better to
wait short time, when peace might be
restored, and the secession forces now
terrorizing oyerthe people, driven out of
the country, than to take this kind of ac-
ton now. He thought the resolution look
ed a little vindictiVe. In his county, and
he doubted not, elsewhere many strong
Union men were compelled to vote for the
ordinance, who were now as heartily in
favor of supporting this movement here
and the United States Government as any
member on this floor, and us soon as they
cOIld be relieved from the presence of the
secession soldtery they would make that
support effective. THIS resolution would
not be just: he thought, to these men.
He hoped the Convention would simply
authorize the committee to enquire into the
expediency of declaring the offices of such
persons vacant.
Mr.. DORSEY, said the resolution was in
tended to meet case not met by any of
tho ordinances yet adopted. There might
be many who voted for the ordinance of
secession that would be willing to take the
oath prescribed in one of the ordinances
OF this Convention, but for his part he
would not be willing to take the oath of
any of them. He denied that such were
sound Union men. If they had been they
would not have signed the ordinance. They
were not as good Union men as he was !;
for he would not have voted for that ordi-
nance at the point of the sword and bayo-
net If they had been good Union men
they would not have evOnlIOOlsed gtdSlV1ys
at -StlEut ordinance. Is to the objection
that the resolution did not provide for all
the cases that needed correction, he thought
that no reason why they should not pro-
vide for any of them. He believed that
those who would be LEFT in office, unless this
resolution or its equivalent should be
adopted, would give them great deal of
trouble. He wanted the Offices to be in the
hands of good Union men whom they could
trust, so there would be no danger of hav-
ing the authority exercised against the new
| State government in times of war.
Mr.. WEST said he felt proud that he had
the honor to inaugurate this move in a
resolution he had offered yesterday. AL
though that resolution was then voted
down, and although the gentleman who
now offered this resolution, was one of
those who opposed its adoption, yet he
was not prepared now to make my dis
tinction between his proposition and the
one now made. The only difference be-
tween the two propositions was, that this
one WAS more stringent than his own-and
stringency was the ground on which OBJ
lection to it had been founded. His reso-
luton only provided that such parties as
were therein named, should be debarred
from holding Office during hostilities.-
This one made that provision without limi-
tation. He would vote for the geutleman's
resolution in any shape, thought it be ever
81 stringent BE was glad to see that
since yesterday there were indications that
the Convention was waking up to the i'm
portance of Arresting those parties who
had given evidences of their disloYalty 10
the United Suites Government and the
Government of Virginia now being re-or-
ganizea here. For his part, he would
shoulder the responsibility of such 4
course. He in part represented a people
who it had, been proclaimed in Richmond
as diSunioh people. He wanted to re-
store the reputation of that people, and
relieve them from the false and odious
charge. He would stand up for the peo.
nle who had sent him here, if he should
have to die for it, and he intended the
world to know that Wetzel county was
not represented in this Convention by
Leonard s. Hall. rApplause-suppresseS
by the Chair.
He came here under the threat that he
would lose his scalp If he did so. He hadn't
lost il yet, and did not feel very much ter
rifed about the probability of doing so.-
In his county, which gave Union major
ity Of 100 againsts the ordinance of secss.