The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1875-12-23
THURSDAY, DEC. Is, 1875.

~ = AAANhh w AAS nv kAAs " 80 SNNAN SNAShI
on the SlsI OF January, 1861, alter his
nomination rs the candidate Of the BOur.
bon or Breckenridge wing Of the DemOC.
racy to represent that countyin the Rich.
mond Secession Convention. The Profess
sor was at that time u member OF the fac.
ulty at Bethany College, and being
Kentuckian by birth and deeply dyed in
the pro.sIaVery faith, he was anxious to
20 to Richmond and rescue the fair fame
Of Brooke county from the tarnish OF
Abolitionism, with which it had become
soiled by reason OF the vote cast in the
county for Abraham Lincoln at the Presi'
dental election in the fall preceding. In
this circular he appealed to his "BreCk'
enridge, Bell and Everett and Douglas
friends to come calamity to the rescue,
and redeem old Brooke from the foul as
persion cast upon her at home and
abroad Of being RepublicOnizcd and Alb
olitionized,"
But the chivalriC professors appeal
was unheeded by Brooke county. Instead
Of electing him to the Convention she
chose an unconditional Union man, and
left the professor to stay at home and
pack his trunk for an early departure
south to Join in the war Of the rebellion.
We presume that in the fifteen years that
have elapsed since tho issue Of his circu.
lar he has had time to reflect upon the
vanity Of llis ambition, and no doubt II he
could restore the Status quo ante bel
lum" lie would be abundNntly satisfied
with the quantity and quality OF the
"rights" which he then possessed. The
great trouble with the professor, who was
very excellent man, was the same that
afflicted good many other people in
these parts at that time. They thought
they could not live in u Union where
slavery was to be recognized Ns section.
al instead Of q national institution, and
where II was not to be allowed to spread
abroad and occupy the virgin domain Of
the territories Of the country, In order
to make people quit combating Its pOlit.
iCal pretGnSions and questioning It's divine
authority, It was thought best to engage
- = =
in war to coerco the moral sense oil
the nation into subsection Men like
Professor Pickett could not understand
that the anti'slaVcry sentiment oil the
country or oil the Christian world had
any rights which they were bound to re-
spect. Their idea was to intimldate and
conquer 1t by constant threats TO With
draw from the Union, These threats,
often uttered, and used Tor many
years to advance the pro'slavery stand
ard into tho very heart OF our national
politics, they, unhappiIIy Tor themselves,
at last attempted to put into execution
They supposed that the abolition States
would yield as a matter oil course, Tor
according to their standard OF measuring
men there was very little manhood out
side Of the slave States. Therein they
made their last grand and fatal mistake
Never were people more wotully de-
Ceiyed. Never were people called upon
to answer more previously for their pre-
sumption and folly. Never were tables
moro completely turned.
After the lapse Of fifteen years Brooke
county has abundant reason to bless her
stars that she did not elect a man OF Prof.
Picketts procIivitieS to the Richmond
Convention, and still more that her peo'
pie did not follow his example in joining
their fortunes to the rebellion suppose
that these Panhandle counties, along WIN
oil the border counties OF West Virginia,
had taken part in the secession move
ment instead oil standing by the Union,
what would have been their condition TO-
day. Very different from what 1t Is
Not unlike perhaps the border counties
oil Virginia along tho Potomac, literally
trampcd out. And yet Prof.. Pickett was
blind enough to call on the people to ioI'
low him and thereby promote their
agricultural, mechanical and manutac-
turing interests" Follow me, said he,
and you will be respected at home and
honored abroad" Poor man he would
have been " blind leader OF the blind
and we would all have fallen into the
ditch together.
We discover in the professors circular
the same old talk about reserved rights
that Is still INDUCED in by Democratic
leaders wherever you find them. In 1901
they proposed to resume their reserved
rights" and break up the Union because
the people had elected President upon
the platform that slavery ought not to
spread into the Territories OF the United
States. And now In 1875, after the war,