Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1867-08-06
Radical Convention in Richmond.
FIRST DAY.

On Thursday last, the day appointed for the
meeting of the Radical Convention in Rich
mond, the chief cooks of the Radical party of
this State, composed of ''black spirits and
white" put their pot to boil which contained
the mess of pottage for which they had sold
their birthright, and as its contents seethed and
dubbed those who surrounded it may have
sung in chorus, as did the witches in the dark
cave on the blasted heath,
Who did ''about the cauldron sing,
Like elves and fairies in ring,
Enchanting all that they put In"
The witches cauldron contained, among other
sayory ingredients,
eye of newt, and toe of frog,
"a Wool of bat, and tongue OF dog,
: Adder's fork and blind-worm's sting,
Lizards leg, and owlet's wing"
The hell-broth of the witches cauldron was
not comparable to that of the Radicals, and the
stBlack spirits and white
a. Red spirits and grey,
who sang in glee around it, would have been
abashed and ashamed and would have vanished
in disgust could they have been thrown into as.
ISOLATION with the ''black spirits and white
who composed the Radical Convention in Rlch-
mond.
The scene is represented by those who wit
messed it as being indescribable "Hunnicutt
and his set'' had their own Way-the patriotic
co-operationists were not recognised in the pro-
ceedings-they were not deemed worthy of any
consideration-they were as chaff before the
black storm-as mere drift-wood in the dark
rushing torrent. 'Hunnicutt and his sci" first
filled the African church to Sufocation, then
adjourned for more air and room to the Capitol
Square, where they organized temporarily, then
appointed committee who recommended IN
their report the election of the same officers
who acted in the Hunnicutt Convention of the
18th of April last, and the adoption of the same
platform of principles-making this Convention
re-afirm what was done in that. This report
was adopted by the meeting, after which the
Convention adjourned till the next day at 10
o'clock. Having despatched all the business
they wished, "Hunnicutt and his set" would
have adjourned sine die, had they not wished
to remain in session that they might watch the
action of Bolts and the patriotic cooperation
lists. The Dispatch has full and graphic re-
port of the proceedings, but being too long to
publish, we give the brief and tame report OF
the Wing as follows:
''The African Church was designated as the
place and twelve o. clock as the time for holding
the Republican Convention for the State of
Virginia on Thursday the lst inst Many
thoughtful friends and members of the party
believed that it would meet as other conven-
-. Il, hoG don in
years-that outsiders, black and white, would
stand back and let the delegates be seated, but
such was not the case Before the hour of
meeting, the African Church, which, in winter,
seats comfortably two thousand persons, was
damned to an extent that recalled all of the re-
puted horrors of the black hole Of Calcutta
Delegates of the highest standing and the most
undoubted loyalty stood In front Of the steam
ing gliding in mute amazement at the exhlbl-
ton. A bake-oven would have been preferable
to the squeezing quarters into winch they would
have had to crowd had they sought admittance,
and business in such an assembly and under
such circumstances was, to say the least OF it,
an impossibility. In the meanwhile, PROPOSE
tons without effect were offered to diminish the
crowd, and speeches made which no doubt led
them to forget that they were perspiring like
glass blowers or hearty pugilists preparing to
become light weights. But neither persuasion
nor harangues availed to bring about an evac-
uation of the building until they were authori-
tatively informed that the convention would
meet forthwith on the Square Then a stam-
pede indescribable commenced and within a
period too short to calculate with accuracy, they
were on the east side of the Capitol, when Mr.
Tucker mounted the steps and proceeded to
nominate Mr.. Hauxhurst, of Alexandria, for
temporary chairman, and Mr.. Charles White
sy, Of the Alexandria State Journal, was ap-
pointed secretary.
Mr.. Tucker next moved to appoint COM
mittee of five upon permanent organization,
which a stentorian voice in the crowd, which
table colored man from Alexandria, cried out
give us fair chance-one from every county.
Somebody else amid the hubbub which pre-
vailed proposed one from each Congressional
district, while another, more grasping, wanted
one from each precinct. Mr.. Tucker, who rep
resented the Chairman as soon as he could re-
store moderate approximation to order, put the
question amid cries, eve are not ready for the
question" when it was decided by him that the
proposition to appoint one from each county
was agreed to by the meeting, which, at this
point resembled a bedlam more than anything
else of which we can now think. Then came
calls for delegates from the various counties to
meet at designated places. Some under trees
on the Square, some at hotels, and others at
points too numerous to mention. At this juno
ture, we discovered that the white delegates
were nearly all absent, and that the colored rep
resentatiyes of counties and colored people of
Richmond were having it all their own way
A recess of half an hour was voted, to give the
delegations time to select their representatives
on the committee, but, as usual, it was elonga-
ted considerably, and it was quite clock be-
fore the committee reported, when it recon-
mended the election OF all of the officers of the
Republican Convention of the 18th of April
last. The retirement of the delegations did
not, however, retard the exuberance of oratory
which had been manifest from the beginning of
the meeting. The speeches We're varied in
style and argument some Of the speakers be-
ing applauded, while others less fortunate or
attractive were hooted down.
One of the speakers, the colored preacher
Givens, replied to his predecessor who had re-
Aected harshly upon Mr.. Bolts, and said that
he regretted it as much on account of his hear
ers as Mr.. Bolts. He then proceeded to state
that Mr. B. would be required to shape bee
line The times have strangely changed when
colored adventurer from New York deems it
his duty first to defend John Minor Bolts from
assault and then to prescribe the course of his
political action in the future.
The convention wound up its proceedings on
''the square" by adopting the platform and re-
electing the officers of the convention of the
18th April last. After which, it adjourned un-
I'll fen q CLOCK Friday morning