Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1872-09-27
From the Louisville Courier journal
ALT HOUSE, LOUISVILLE, Sept. Il.


Although the - straigntout " Democrat c
Convention is rapidly dissolving INFO the
ncbul0us condition from which its elements
were temporarily condensed, and, | sir
ccrely hope, will soon fade even cut OF re-
meinbraucc, l Will nevertheless ask your
indulgence for this explanation Of my cor
nccti0n with it before the subject is finally
dismissed. | do this in justice to myself,
having been thoroughly deceived j. the
whole sorry business, and ECllu,, / am
unwilling to occupy ia the opinions of my
friends i'll this State and i'll my own tie
ldiculOnS position which l feel | would
Justly deserve if l should consent to be ali
accolnplce, after having unwittingly sub
mitted to be dupe. | came to Louisville
as a delegate duly accredited from the
State Of North Carolina to the aforesaid
COnvention-thao is, l presume | wSs &C
credited. l was self-appointed, like all
the others l saw here. l had the same
kind of credentials which the others had.
None we're very formal or regular
| received 10 votes al home, and never
claimed that | represented many voters !;
but the authors Of the Convention or those
4ThO induced me to come, said it E'Would
be all right and that it was cOnvOcatiOn
of the faithful, at which all me n il favor OF
perpetuating the Democratic creed and or
Sdu1ZdJlOIl MOulu DG WCICOln6. 90 CdIu0.
honestly believing, Mr.. Editor, that l was
going 20 help my people and aid IN the re-
construction OF my old party. l do not
claim that | understood how these beside
rata were going to be attained. | frankly
confess that | was completely in the dark
about the means and the mOdus Operandi.
but Twas assured that all was arranged,
and that our action, whatever that should
be, was to be followed by grand, spon-
taneous, irresistible upheaval OF the
masses, compared with which the Greeley
ground-swell would look like a mole-hill al
the foot Of Mont Blanc, Well, sir, every
body knows the result, ana | am too sick of
the thing to wish TO recapitulate. It is
not very pleasant to thus publicly express
my regret for any course L may have taken
anything but agreeable to my private
feelings to find myself putting on record
my participation i'll movement SO
entirely, as l now see, without sufficient or
even rational motive and excuse. | at
tended the Convention thinking that, if
the worst happened, l would at least be q
martyr to the cause OF Democracy. | am
now exhibiting myself as the victim Of the
most impuaent imposure and miserable
charlatanIy that even this age Of shams
and tricks has shown, and / cannot derive
consolation from the knowledge [althOugh
possess it) that many other honorable
and well-meaning gentlemen were fooled
as badly as | was. But l see that this
movement, farce and failure as it is, is yet
calculated to injure the very interests [
hold most dear, and have always sought,
however imperfectly and unwisely, to fur
ther. l see very plainly that it is calc,lla-
ted, and perhaps by some of its self-consti-
tuted inauguratOrs and managers intended
to divide and break down the opPosi-
ton to General Grant, and, in doing
so, put off the day Of relief and deliverance
for the Southern people, and build higher
the barrier of fanaticism and hate which
keeps apart good men Moth and SOnth,
whose Instincts and better natures would
make them, if permitted, friends and fel-
lOW-citiZens. l have no wish to assist in
such work. l have wished, it is true, to
preserve the Democratic traditions, priL-
ciples, aud name, but not at such q cost.
1t is better, begin to think, that the conn-
try should be Uacifed, the sections recon-
ciled, and the Southern people have relief
and rest, than that the resolutions of 1898
should be republished. A pure and per-
feet Democracy would be a great blessing
to the age and country, and my soul pant
ed to restore it, but l find that | am no. a
Thomas Jefferson, nor did | "meet up
with" any man in that Convention who
was.
C.. W. CAUSE.-THE.
For light straw this will do: In 1871