Daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, Va. [W. Va.]) 1859-1865, 1861-12-16

v
/ say in his late proclamations and messages,
about the honor aud the chivalric spirit of
the rebels-especlally the Eastern Virginia
portion of them. Those who read the ex-
tracts which we published from his last
message, must have noticed one confession
which illustrates most striktngly his exnlt-
ed character. He says that, as far back as
! the 9th Of January, he had consultation
respecting tile feasibility Of taking Fort
ress Monroe The traitor knew that Yir-
GINA had no more right to an inch of the
soil covered by Fortress Monroe, than she
had to that covered by Fort Lafayette
Nay, be had not even the poor excuse that
| it Has hers by virtue Of secession, for Yir-
gin d did not secede for more than three
MONTHS afterwards. It was not till the
lI7ah Of April, not till the attack on sump-
teri had cred the heart of Virginia, as the
Cafoliniaus satd-au object which they
aimed at in assaulting the fort-not till a
hubdred days after this Infamous fellow,
whip still kept up pretensions to loyalty,
had made the inquiry which be shameless
i
ly confcsses, that the State Convention
succeeded by jugglery and terrorism, Ia
obtaining small majority In favor OF the
ordinance of secession. he boasts, too,
that military preparations had been going
Ion: for some time in Virginia before the
ordinance was passed. Here are his words:
.tFor this struggle, 50 suddenly COM
.menoed, Virginia had fol some time been
making such preparations as her means
enabled her to make: and though she was
moi so well prepared as was desirable, still
she was better prepared than most of her
southern sisters-better perhaps than any
one of them. For some time anterior to
the secession she had been engaged in the
purchase Of arms OF different kinds, am
intuition, and other necessary articles, and
In mounting artillery, in anticipation OF
the event which subsequently, occurred"
How well she was prepared is evident
from this statement:
sin addition to arming our own troops,
/ have issued arms to such unarmed regi-
ments, battalions and companies as came
afrom other States to participate in this
struggle, Il have furnished to our friends
in Maryland three thousand muskets; to
Tennessee FIVE batteries of six-pounder
field pieces, comprising four guns each,
an d have armed number of her infantry
regiments, TO Missouri two six-pouuder
srified cannon and FIVE hundred muskets; to
Kentucky thirty six hundred muskets, and
have fnrnished arms to regiments, battal-
ions, and companies from Texas, Louisiana,
Georgia, aud South Carolina. Very re-
Gently have furnished one thousand mus
.kets to South Carolina, and some heavy
guns and five hundred muskets to North
Carolina" sH
We sec now what was meant BY the neu.
traltty of Virginia. 1t was condition of
invidious preparation to betray-a forgoue
treachery.
But this moi all. 1t was these very men
who were selling out the State to JEFF Da=
Wis, that with brazen faces asked for a
Peace Convention, to whiohwere sent John
Tyler and some other delegates, now known
toius to be traitors oftbe deepest dye
Does any one who reads Letcher's message
doubt they were traitors theu2 Can any
one persuade himself that they were not all
the while playing the part ofthe most i'm
pudent hypocrisy on record for the mere
purpose of gaining time to consummate the
iniquitous work in which they were enga-
gedP We have been puzzled to know
which ofthe southern States,has displayed
tho most contemplate meanpess in its
opposition to the general Governments
Letcher has, in his message, putin a strong
plea for securing to Virginia this unenyia-
Bile notoriety.