Norfolk day book. [volume] (Norfolk and Portsmouth Va.) 1868-1880, 1869-07-16
INTERVIEW WITH GOVERNOR
WALKER.

Tuesday--so he says. Although we
place but little reliance on the account,
our readers will be interested in read
ing it:
Reporter--The radicals talk, Cover
nor, Of contesting the validity of the
election. How is that2
Governor-Oh, that's always the
way. In their desperate straits the
whole host of carpet-baggers say any,
thing and everything. 1t was life or
death to them, because the instant that
intellect and worth became emancipated
from the shackles thrown around them
by prescription and injustice the doom
of the carpet-bag office-holder was
sealed They held offices for which
| God nor nature never intended them,
and now that they have been routed,
horse, foot and dragons, of course they
set up a cry of being cheated. This
charge of being cheated is just as nat
ural for them to make as to find them
selves accused of. But then it is all a
waste Of time to talk of the Virginia
election being otherwise than true ex-
preston of the peoples voice. do not
believe there ever was in the whole his
tory Of this country an election more
fairly conducted or one attended with
such marvellous results, as viewed from
the starting point. A gentleman,
strong and prominent radical of this
| city, said to me to-day, Governor
Walker, you have won great victory
indeed, and all the power of Wells and
h---ll can't take it from you" Promi-
nent republicans, in various places I
have passed through, Washington, here
and elsewhere, have spoken in the same
way though not quite so emphatically.
| have not the slightest fears of the
result, because there are no grounds for
fear. Virginia did exactly what she
was asked to do in the question of
adopting certain specific legislation of
Congress and specific instructions from
the Executive. Ali those who support
ed me voted against the proscriptive
clauses which General Grant desired
should be voted upon those who sup
ported Wells on the contrary voted for
their retention in the constitution and
thus placed themselves in direct anta-
gonism with General Grants admins
tration
Reporter-Then of course, Governor,
the administration was on your side,
and will take immediate steps to recog-
nize Virginia as restored
! ACKNOWLEDGMENT Grant l am sin
cerely inclined to believe was and is still
resolved to stand by the policy he rec
commended to Virginia, but in the late
canvass members Of his administration,
such as Boutwell, and Creswell, with the
Treasury and Post Office under their
control, did all they could for Wells.
These two vast engines of power were
used against us as they were never used
before, and Of course nothing could be
more encouraging to the hungry leaders
of the negro than this boundless pros
pect if the victory became theirs of Fl l.
i"o vi'oi. sltl r-a->> rTt,nlo Ga n, q treas
ury. Few know the tremendous pres
sure that was brought to bear upon the
poor blacks to vote the Wells ticket.
They speak of conservative intimidation,
but the open, fragrant, notorious intimi-
dation of the radical darkeys by their
carpet-bag and scalawag leaders, was
something altogether unparalleled. The
leagues worked themselves into demos
niacal frenzy but what is the result :?
Those leagues in the reaction which has
now set in, are breaking up all over the
State, and will continue to break until
not a vestige of them is lett to keep
alive the spirit of evil between the two
races.
Reporter--Does this movement in Vir-
ginia mean the initiation of uew party
or simply a democratic subterfuge to
secure a certain vital end for ultimate
and ulterior purposes ?
Governor-On that head | discover
almost all the papers here at the North
are at fault. The great majority, seven
| eighthslof the men who voted the con-
sentative ticket are as far removed from
the old Northern democracy on the one
hand as they are from radicalism on tue
other. They want neither but they
have had the sense and manhood to per-
ceive and cheerfully accept the inevita-
BILE, and in thus doing they mean to re :.
ject the fatal lessons of Northern democ-
racy, as taught them to their ruin, and
at the same time maintain a bold yet
dignilied front against the unconstitu-
tional aggression of republicanism run
Wild
Reporter-What was the secret of the
| wonderful success that attended your
canvass, Governor
Governor Well, in the first place,
the people were sick and tired of the
prevailing coalition of things, longing
| for quiet and unable to see where it
should come from. Among their own
native leaders there were few or none
who had the moral courage to stand up
and tell them the true line of action to
pursue. | was differently placed, felt
perfectly independent and determined
to yield none of my honest convictions
to the radical clamor on one side or the
conservat i've preiudices on the other. l
started out on a liberal republican plat
foIm, and that is the name by which
our party in Virginia should properly
be designated. Leaving Norfolk made
a tour through the counties east, south
and west; and finally ended in Rich
mond. In the commencement I had
four-ffths of the whites against me and
all the blacks. At the end of the can
vass | had one-fifth of the blacks with
me and all the whites, and all this in
space of six weeks or so, and without
yielding an inch to either side. Now
the great mistake made by the repub-