The national Republican., 1869-06-17

| As the time for the election In Virginia
approaches the interest felt In the State
upon the subject increases. A State con-
stitutlon-a section disfranchising parties
engaged In the rebclllon-is 10 be voted
upon, and Governor, State officers and q
Legislature to be elected.
| For Governor the Conservatives have
made no nominations. The Republicans
have nominated Gen. II. II. Wells, and Sec
tion OF the Republican organization calling
themselves "true Republicans have placed
In nomination Col. Gilbert c. Walker, who
Is supported by tho Conservatives. Both
gentlemen have become citizens OF the State
| since the war. Both candidates are now
canyasslng the State. Gen. Wells Is now In
the southwestern part Of the State. Col.
Walker spoke at Leesburg on Monday, and
reached Alexandria on Tuesday.
A large meeting Of the citizens Of that
ancient city met him at Liberty Hall, where
he occupied the tribune from which Sum
mcrs, Wise and Flournoy have canvassed
| for the gubernatorial chair Of Virginia. The
| hall was packed with voters, Il being the
/ first time since the close Of tho war that any
i genuine interest In political speaking has
been displayed BY the mass OF the white
people.
Mr.. W. A. worthlngton called the assem-
blagc to order. Hugh Latham was called
to the chair, ten vice presidents and three
secretaries appointed.
These preliminarics having been ar
ranged, the chairman introduced Colonel
Walker as gentleman true to Virginia and
| Vlrginians. TApplause.l
| Col. Walker is gentleman about Q feet
| In height, and Is claimed by his friends to
be ''the handsomest man In Virginia"
Col. w. came forward and, when the ap-
plause which greeted him had subsided,
| spoke as follows
| GENTLEMEN AND FRLLow-CITrzHss We
are engaged In q canvass the most peculiar,
and, perhaps, the most important, that the
people Of Virginis could engage In. 1t is
the most peculiar, fellov-citizens, because,
instead OF the discussion of principles and Of
| platforms, our contest has been wholly upon
one feature. The whole efforts Of the oppo-
sition have been directed to assail the per-
sonal rather than the political merits OF the
candidate who Is now before you. say Il
Ia peculiar In this respect They do not as
sail my principles nor the platform set forth
In the speech delivered at the opening Of
the canvass, but the attempt has been made
TO assail my character by one report or
| another.
It has been said that was under tho con-
troll of some particular individual OF the
State, or OF come particular corporation Of
the State. want to say here now.that any
person who repeats this accusation under
stands little OF the man they arc talking
about. think, my fellow-cltizons, II the
good people Of this State elect me to the Of
fee to which | aspire, will bc governor OF
thls State, and nobody else. Loud ap-
plause.l shall bo governor Of Virginia,
and not Of Alexandria, or Norfolk, or Char
lottesyille, or Danville, or Abingdon-goy-
ernor Of the whole broad limits OF the Com.
monwealth.
Fellow-citizens, the man who votes for me
with the expectation or anticipation that
shall be controlled by any other interest 6
than the true interests Of each section, the
interests of each locality, the interests oil
each corporation and Individual In the State,
mistakes the man he votes for. appear be.
fore you tonight, appear before the people
Of the State, not as the representative of any
political party or any distinctive political
idea; appear before you rather as an inde.
pendent candidate who is devoted TO the ma.
terial interests Of the State Of Virginia; and
II elected governor Of the State, 1t shall be
my great object to promote and foster these
interests wherever they may be, whether il
1
fellow-citizens, the men who make thii
charge against me do not understand what
manner Of man they talk about. A voice
: they are fools. Well, they may not be fools
they may be more rascals than fools.
Well, fellow-citlzens, pass on from thi
to the serious questions involved In this can
vass. Let me tell you l shall have nothing
to do in this canvass with the subject of tn
| political rights Of the colored people. Tha
l Ia m Vad in
A | consider the question settled, 1t matters no
how at this time; look upon Il as out O
this canvass. II Is vain for men TO say the
will not vote for negro suffrage. That ques
} ton Is out Of their power; we have negr
suffrage now.
Our space does not permit a further yer
) batin report Of Colonel Walkers remarks
and having given this specimen OF his style
we arc compelled 10 condense his positions
He continued urging that though negro sui
? frage was . fixed fact, the question of tn
freedom Of tho white man was still m ope
question, and II was the duty Of every ma
| to register and vote, so as to be able to n
A lease his fellow-citizens from their shacklei
His opponent had not defined himself clearl
upon the question whether the clause Of th
constitution which excluded 1900 or 15,0O
It of the best citizens OF the State from voting
and ninety five out of every hundred whit
4
> that Underwood document-he would nc
call 1t constitution. Governor Wells ha
u said "if Gen. Grant thought these clause
0 should be stricken out, and II tho peopl
n were In favor Of striking 1t out, he though
that there could be no harm In striking
= out" [Derlsive laughter.l
He did not believe tho people Of Virgini
would remain at home and allow the
1t clauses to be adopted. Though Virginia he
| haan bnyastatnd and had Loaf much hn bs
n not lost that nice sense Of honor which b.
:, tokened q man everywhere. The adoptit
III Of those clauses and the supremacy Of Il
D. Radical party would destroy the prosperi
s. Of Eastern Virginia forever. He avowed
~ purpose to vote for the constitution, expu
gated Of the test-oath clauses, &C., and n
vised the people to do so, for 1t was the be
a. they would be able to get; and II 1t was 7
70 jected they would have the present-part m
10 ltary, part carpet-bag-governmen CO
to tinued, or perhaps worse. To Gen. Grant tn
y, owed the opportunity Of striking these o
=, noxious clauses from the constitution
a privilege which had not been given to d
"a, people OF Tennessee. He urged all to vol
,s, for, with a Governor and Legislature d
n voted TO the interests Of tho people, 1t wou
~ be in the power OF the Legislature to call
e. convention and provide new constitute
to before October, or, even II that course W
y was all that was needed to secure su
>" amendments as the people might desire.
On closed by again declaring Tin allusion to t
charge that II elected he would be subsei
he lent to Gen. Malone and railroad corpoi
We tons adverse to Alexandria) that II elect
OF he would rise superior to every private
1 ,p terest and do Justice to the whole State.
ne Lewis Mckenzie, independent Republic
tie candidate for Congress, followed. He spC
to OF charges which had been brought agai
,dnE him Of selling saltpeter to tho confederi
Nv government; said he never sold an ounce
he saltpeter to anybody in his life. He 81
to posed that the story originated from the 4
he that when the confederate troops were
y; Alexandria they seized all the gunpowder
IA. the public powder house, among which W
he some twenty kegs belonging to the Alex
ar dria, Loudoun and Hampshire railroad.
ry defended himself from other charges,
- nounced that Loudoun was good for him
/, 500 majority, and that unless there wa
H. convention to knock everything over,
=, would represent this district In the n
IL Congress. He thought tho colored peo
stood in their own light. There were
nnn II.