Daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, Va. [W. Va.]) 1859-1865, 1864-11-19
For the 1ntelligeneer.
Benjamin Watkins Leigh and the
Southern AFIHtOcFacY.

Benjamin. Watkins Leigh and the
Southern ArIstocraey.
This gentleman was appointed by the
General Assembly of Virgina to prepare and
coilats the revised eodelo eighteen hun
dred and nineteen. Ten years lateEhe was
tional Convention. In lSthat body q ques.
ton arose as to the extension of the right
of SUFFRAGE Mr.. Leigh opposed the mea:
sure, and in, the course of ,his speech made
the following observations: tThey tell US
that our pea1Gntry will rise in the scale of
intelligence. 1t may be so, but others will
ill their places, equally upintelligent,
equally Incompetent. The men who delve
the soil and dig the mines and hew the
timbers, never yet were capable of dis
Greet exercise of political functions, and
they never will be. the nature of things,
those who think must govern those who
toil." At still later period. he delivered
himself as follows: sit is remarkable.
mention 1T foR the curiositYlof the factt,'
says Mr.. Leigh ''that if any evil, physical
OF moral. arise in! any of the States south
Of us, il never takes portherly direction OF
taints the Southern breeze; whereas if any
plague originates in the North, tits sure to-
spread to the South and to invade us soon
or or later; the influenza, the small pox, the
vsrioloid, the hessiRn fly, the circuit court
system, ,UEIyERsAI SUFFRAGE, all licome from
the North; and they always cross above the
falls of the great riHers; below, It seems, the
broad expapaer of waters, tnterposing, EFT
fsctually arrests their progress." So much
for Mr.. Leigh. Then the Editor of the
Richmond ERgnirer, of the I'd inst, adds:
Against such invasions as these we are
now tighting;;n that Is, against the small
pox and UNIYERsAL, SUFFRAGE, which to the
distempered imagination of those arrogant
aristocrats, n o doubt, exhibit equal hor-
rors.. Let 1t not be supposed that BenIa-
min Watkins Leigh was at all more aris-
tocratic' 'or;afroR6nt, than the generality of
the F F. V's around him. On the contra
ry, he was very favorable specimen of
what the Southern papers call "high-
toned pentlemapIny He acted his, part
creditably in that aristocratio state of So
cistyi I'M which ualEabove'is tinset refine
ment and all belowis barbarism and bru.'
tality." He did notgo as far as r. NJ. 7.
Hunter; who declared that the, "capitalist
ought to own the laborerI" nor even as
those newspapers who used regularly to
declare that they Ghated everything with
the word free attached to it, free soil, free
upeeSh,i free churches, free schools and
free nigRers.'' z But the mystery of mystic
ries issGthat, it. is our, democracy" who
championi theI cause Of these naughty
and imperiots men, who boldly pro-
elaina that sas 4 Roon as they "get
rid of the Yankee connection they
inteud~-to shape 9ll their Institutions
into.a high toned aristocracy. 1t'isi the
Democracy. who meet in lodges of
Knights Of the Golden Circle and plot for
the sGiisgrace.oEour national arms and the
ruin of our national cause. 1t is the de-
rmocracy who dash like 9, ,whirlWind through
streets of our little county towns, and
vex the dull ear Of night by shouting with
all the strength of their lungs, "Hurrah for
JEFF. Davis, Hallelujah."
9Fellow.cilizens, friends, brothers, you
are utterlyWrong in this matter. You have
been led to the very verge Of crime by
wibked, cunning, and unscrupulous lead
srs. If those bad men. caniwin q triumph
for southern institutions, or if they can de-
tach the northwestern States from the
IURfon aud attach them to the Southern
Gonfsderacy, they confidently expect their
treward from their Southern masters. But
lchampio1izing the .causeof your natural
enemies, of naughty and simperioqs men,
| who would not set you with the dogs OF
their aocks, ,WhO would not permit the
slightest soctaiS Intercourse between you
| and their circle. War is sometimes inev-
table, bat it is always q calamit ty, d and
the reasons against it are always .Weighty'
| No 9donbt the peace party in Revolutionary
times thought they had weighty reasons
AGAINST the war of independence. So the
pSsee party of 1914, thought, no doubt
that they had weighty reasons against the
last war with Great Britain. But the pos.
terity of those turbulent and factious men
inow try1to disoYpt then .5and some ,,ll 10 the a
i pF6sehtSod day may pr6fA by their example
| A discontented and faithless minority can
not eonpsla tnajority5to makaA dtsastrout
and disgraceful peace; but by parslyzine
thu national arm and weakening the ma
tionsI snergie they nla1 tq9ehhttely pro
tract tte horrors and increase the .calami.
1.tips- of war: - -. QATENBIsH.
.laa aHowzLnsooLx AND SEWARD xAnE, THIII
4 lSPsRoHHs-AsY sYashipgto latter, describ
ling the miduigbt rejaicings There over th'
lPrhsid sideniial victory, and the speeches q
1.-THE moving meeting OF people, says:A g..
Mr. Lincoln appeared at the window o
the sscoudIstory over the front door, and
,thaYing bow his ReknoBlsdgmentsjh be pu
Ion his glasses, took O. lamp in ahtsHrtgh
Inland !. and then proceeded to read his re-
tmarks from loose sheets which he held II
! hislleft hand sImprompt9 FemaEksIyo
lhaEe been more acceptao!et' but some zap
an! !lInpup might have been misiuterpre
L ia. Secretary Seward, leaning on tn
How sill, OF one Of ths, open WtnuoWs o
Ibis house: indalged in aomore. oolloquta
chat which ELECTED rounds of cheers, AMI
which wotild hays read all the better haE
mot thaEepprted, ,andeaVor to polish aud Z
q Eahnehd tt4s31t sSaslaIeapital off-hAnd speed
d a. dellIeFed!ssssi afT-al so5 ~ ilo. Ia
a.