Civilian & telegraph. [volume] (Cumberland, Md.) 1859-1875, 1864-03-17
For q Convention.
Wake Up.

lance, was never more truly appilcapie
than at the present time. Frecmen of
Allegany wake up! The issues to be
decided on the 9th of April next, are of
the highest Importance to the whole State;
of the gravest moment to yourselves.
The first question to be decided is whether
the organic law of the State shall be
changed or not.
No one will pretend, who loves his
State more than party, that the present
Constitution, which was failure of the
highest expectations of its friends at the
period of its adoption, in the vastly
changed condition of affairs is in the Sigh
test degree adapted to our present wants
and circumstances. The events of the
last three years have developed such vast
and radical changes in the social and
political relations of the people of this
State, as to demand their immediate and
unfinching action to reform their Coasti
tuition in such manner as to bring it up
to the changes of the times. Great and
radical changes have taken place in our
political and social standing, and these
changes have not yet reached their climax;
corresponding changes must be made i'll
our organic law to suit the changes if we
would not have our State hanging at the
tail end of the kite, and our march toward
prosperity thrown century behind our
sister States in the onward march of pro-
gressive events.
If you desire that your Constitution
shall be changed to suit the changes go
ing on all around you; if you desire to
keep progress with others; if you desire
that the prosperity of the State shall be
promoted and made to increase, you must
lay aside all feelings of apathy and indif-
ference. You must not only attend the
polls yourself, but you must stir up your
neighbors by enlisting their feelings, and
by making certain that they all attend
the polls and deposit their ballots. 1t is
matter of the first Importance that
every friend of Constitutional reform in
Allegany county Should work and vote
for Convention, as every vote east here
will tell not merely on this county but on
the whole State. If Allegany county
give two thousand majority for a Con-
vention, it will counterbalance the ma
jority cast against the Convention in
Charles and St. Mary's counties, or the
majorities which may be given in the
counties of Somerset, Kent and Queen
Ann against Convention. The whole
vote cast for the Convention in the State
is what decides that question. 1t is
therefore necessary that Allegany should
cast every vote that favors it at the cleo
ton on the 9th of April.
All the slave power in all the slave
counties will be cast against Convention
in solid mass In all these counties
you will find that they nominate for that
Convention men opposed to emancipation,
opposed to any change in the Constitu-
ton which will give the people more
power, opposed to any change which will
lesson the control of the slave counties
in your legislative halls. They hold
the control in your State senate, and are
afraid if they loose that control that the
action of the Legislature may enlarge the
power Of the more free and populous
counties, and that representation will be
based on the free white man instead Of
the ''nigger." They are afraid that
white men will be encouraged to emigrate
into this State, and that their large plan
tations will not be the home of slaves,
but will have to be filed up by white
men. whose votes they cannot control,
and who will vote to disenthrall the State
from its long continued, and destructive,
bondage to the slave interest,
If you will look to the nominations
made in these counties you will see
q pie-bald whiggery," conservative
Unionism, " all represented with peace
party. seccssionists, under the name Of
democratic Union," composed mostly
Of old line Wings, selected as the men to
represent those counties in that Conven-
ton; if the voice of the people shall de-
eide that Convention shall be held. If
fhey cannot vote Convention down, the
mort scheme Il to send such men as will
vote new Constitution down, or make
il worse than the present one. 1t is
therefore necessary that you should turn
odE Il al your strength. and vote not only
lbf Convention, but for the uncondi-
fIonal candidates who have been placed
No you. This IL no time TO be luke
1sfn~av,f MR. "a u Trina xrha,.