The weekly North-Carolina standard. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 186?-1869, 1866-02-28
Jhf aIetkIp gtandaFd. .
"Wednesday, February Is, 1866.

Wednesday, February Is, 1866.
Our contemporary of the Wilmington
Journal makes use Of the classical ex-
pressionth that Ex- Provisional Governor
Holden is too dead to skin" Of course
this is uttered in political sense, for
the worst enemies we.haye do not even.
intimate that our personal character is
not good. Well, if this be SO, what of
it? 1t only provestlatths Union cause
is dead IN North Caroliaa, for, all
things considered, no man in this State
is so identified with this cause as we
are.
The above expression was used by the
Journal with reference to the. rumor
that Mr.. Clingman and ourselves were
about to form q new party in this State.
We have already replied to and dis
posed Of this rumor, but the Journal
will not do us the justice to publish our
reply. Republication ofanything from
the Standard would injure the Journal
as good Confederate" paper. Du-
ring the rebellion our agent in Whining
ton was compelled, from fear of con-
scription, to discontinue the sale Of the
Standard; and we apprehend Whining
ton has not improved much in loyalty
since. #
The Journal appeals to everybody
not to "dabble in the pool of party pol
tics" That paper does nothing else.
Every breathit drawsis party breath.
1t regards Union men as traitors to the
State and to the Confederacy, and it be-
ieves that wisdom and virtue will die
witt the old secession Democratic party.
TheJ Journal says weare " ambitious"
Well, SO we are, in a proper sense. We
are ambitious to do right, and to pro-
mote the best interests Of the people,,
We have never sought Office, except
when large portions Of our fellow-citi-
zens have sevinced wish to vote for us;
! and we have never abandoned any prin-
ciple to retain or obtain Office We shave
been betrayed and abandoned by friends,
but we have never betrayed or ADAM
doned a friend. The people of Wake,
who know us best, have never deserted
us, nor do we believe they will, SO long
as we maintain our principles and prove
true to them. We would not pander
to disloyal feeling among the people, or
abandon our principles as a astraitest
sect" Union man for all the offices in
| the Union. While Provisional Cover
moran Office we did not seek--we per-
formed our duty faithfully to every man,
woman, and child in the State. We
wore ourseH to skeleton in our inces-
SAINT efforts to serve all the people, with
out regard to party, and to restore the
State to the Union. We had the power
to prevent free election of Governor
by the people, but we scorned to use
this power We wanted free election,
and we had it. We were beaten because
of our decided Unionism. There is no
doubt of that. We had in our posses
sion, ten days before the election, dis.
patches from the President expressing
his deep concern in the result, which, if
we had published, would have turned
the scale in our favor. But we would
not do it, because we wanted free cleo
ton. Again, if we had avoided the
performance of our duty in relation to
the rebel debt, we could have prevented
opposition, for that was one of the main
elements that created and stimulated
opposition. And if we had shrunk from
responsibility in relation to the nom
pardon of Gov. Graham, and had thrown
that responsibility on the President, as
we ought not to have done, we should
(! have had no opposition. It is moso'
known that the President "will par
don" Gov. Graham "after while, but
not now, on account of the radical pres
sure" That is what the President says.
Wetell our contemporary that if we
had been ambitious" as some men are.
we might have been reelected Governor,
and might have stepped from that to q
seat in the Senate. And if we looked
now to selfish ends without regard to
means, and if we were ambitious"
without regard to the honor of our
State or the good of our fellow-men, we
could and we would start issues that
would sweep the State by an immense
majority. But we shall do no such
thing. We shall pursue the even tenor
/ of our way as Union man after the
most straitest sect" and no temptation
will be strong enough to induce us to
J desert our principles or our friends. 4
Z Or indefatigable Local Editor con-
tinues to give copious reports Of the
1 Gee trial. We have nothing to say for