The Daily state journal. [volume] (Alexandria, Va.) 1868-1874, 1873-11-11

MEET
We said last spring that there was no such
thing postponng the meeting of the next
General Assembly until the LIST of January next.
We said this when many Conservatives thought |
it necessary TO maintain the reverse ia order to /
Justify the election Of county judges by the last
Legislature. We are confident to- Gay that the |
Legislature Is in duty bound to meet in Deem |
Der. Indeed, we are not sure but that body is
constitutionally bound to meet even without a
call from the Governor Dispatch.
We thank our neighbor for anticipating
what we had to say on this subject, al d |
for so promptly eating its own words in
advance Of the little "spread" we had in
reserve for it. Give us The Dispatch
against the world for double-back sum-
mersaulting. 1t beats "Yamadiva," Of the
Virginia Opera house, all hollow, and leaves
no room for competition on any other
boards. Last March, when w6aiscussed
this question with our city contempo-
raries, and took the ground that
the Legislature could not constitutionally
postpone the meeting Of the next General
Assembly to the first day of January, 1874,
The Dispatch, although conceding our
position in the first instance, promptly
backed down on it, and fought US, in
leader after leader, on the issues we had
raised, claiming that there was not thing
the Legislature could not do, in strict con-
formity with the constitution, under the
partisan law as then passed. And when
we took the ground that it would be the
constitutional duty Of the next Legislature
to meet in December, with or without q
call from the governor, our neighbor raised
the cry OF revolution against US, as if we
were the worst dsorgan'zsr in all the dis
organized South.
But more than this. Less than two
months ago, it paraded our assurance
that, if the Republican party should carry
the state, the legislature would thus con-
vene, in flaming capitals, and kept it as
standing matter, declaring our position to
be one Of 'REvoLUTToN' 1--WE use the
exact emphasis Of our neighbor) and call
ing upon the people Of Richmond and the
state to heed our threat as one promising
to precpitate another "Chahoon usurpa-
ton" Nay, the appeal was made to all
classes of our people, calling specifically
upon "workingmen, merchants, mechanics
lawyers, doctors, clergymen, voters Of al
Sorts" to heed our position, and prepare
for the threatened revolution we wert
fomenting. We stood forth before the
people of the state as denounced conspi
rator by The Dispatch for taking the posi-
ton we did, or the identical one that jour
nal now assumes! Did ever huma
effrontery 80 further?
But who we're the real revolutionists il
this little game to upset Republican LEG
isature, in case one should be elected
The confessions of The Dispatch most con
clusively show us, in its attempt to stea
our thunder and avert its own bolts fror
the head of its own party. We charge
upon the Conservative party tn
intention to revolutionize the state go,
eminent, and bring about "Louisian
muddle' in Virginia, in case the Republ
can ticket should be elected and Tn
Dispatch now shows that such would hav
been the result, had we. and not the,
been successful in the election. 1t no
says that General Kemper and Colon
Withers have "an absolute right to be in
Quoted into office ON the first day of Jan
uary;" but is their right any greater i
this respect than Colonel Hughes and Nj
Ramsdell's would have been, had the
been the successful competitors for th
Offices named? We opne not. The RICH
secured to one party is as inviolable a
that secured to the other /; and the law {
last winter, which was SO vigorously chan
pioned by The Dispatch, was unconstitr
tional and revolutionary in this state-tha
it was designed to deny this right (nov
deemed "absolute" by our neighbor) t
the Republican candidates. should tn
Conservatives lose the state, as they the
pretty generally feared they would.
We content ourself with this passin
notice Of The Dispatches extraordinary an
most remarkable editorial of this morning
We do not charge its editorial corps wit
being reyolutionary-with threatening an
other terrible "Chahoon usurpation"- =
usurpation by which the said Chahoon wa
usurped out of office and another ma
usurped m-but we give them the cred
of having come to their senses by one {
the most extraordinary political CONVEX
sions we have had occasion to chronicle
the whole course OF our editorial life.
The New York papers continue thei
survey of the business situation. Outsid
of Wall and Broad streets, among til