Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1883-11-22
THE SIGNIFICANCE OF BLOOD"
The Richmond Wings Explanation
of the Virginia Election.


The Richmond Whig, in an editorial
entitled The Significance of Blood,
proceeds to establish its position that
the intimidation and massacre of the
last election were all premeditated. The
Significance of the recent election in
Virginia, it says, is the potency of the
bullet. 1t has no other "significance.'
1t shows that small hand, fortified by
the pistol sweeps the deck" By this
we do not mean that the negroes were
greatly bulldozed except at Danville, by
the bloody massacre of November 3d.
although it is certain that it had its in
timidating effect upon them to greater
or less extent all over the State.
What We mean is that the "Danville
Circular" followed by the Danville
massacre, and reinforced all over the
State by the same spirit which led t.
the Danville slaughter, operated either
to deceive. demoralize or terrify the
white voters heretofore voting the Re-
adjuster ticket, so that large proper
tion of these white voters either did
not vote at all, or else voted with the
Funders. In this city, for instance
scores of white men who had been zeal =
Gus and Outspoken Readiusters, enthusi-
astic for Hudnal, Tyler. Gastwright and
keenan, up To the morning of Saturday
November Sd, voted, with trembling
hands, on the 9th, AL open ballot tor
Evans, Christian, Dunlap and Curtis.
This was observed at nearly every
precinct in this city. and we need not
doubt that similar instances occurred at
| nearly every voting precinct in the Com,
monwealth. Either by the false clamor
of negro rising" or by the proclama-
| tion of a "war of races" already begun
and to be continued. or by the menaces
uttered on every hand against every
| white man who dared to vote the Liber-
al ticket, men everywhere were deferred
| from the free exercise of their elective
franchise, and voted the Bourbon Fun
der ticket, either under duress or under
the influence of the most wicked misrep
reservations.
This writer, on Sunday, being at his
home in Louisa county, was accoste by
former Readjuster, who anxiously in
quired: "Have the negroes been put
down yet at Danville and Lynchburg? p
Living off the roads, and taking nc
newspapers, Funder runners and riders
had industriously impressed upon him
and others whom they could impose
| upon that the negroes of all the South
Side were in state of iDsurrection, and
that they had killed many people at
Danyille and elsewhere. The same
statements or rumors were busily circu-
lated to the remotest corner of the
State, as in Essex, where the whole
Danville massacre, in its Funder YER
sicu. was spread abroad by Funder
emissaries on Saturday, before it occur
red. and before, by any possibility, the
news could have got there, except rs d
preordained event duly notified in ad-
vance 10y special agents.
Another curious illustration of the
wide foreknow wledge in certain quarters
of Funder plots to influence and terror
rize the State is the fact that kilograms
were received at this office on Monday
night preceding the election, ipquiring
the particulars of an alleged riot in Man
chester, where it was supposed Hon.
John S. Wise had attempted to address
the people that night. Mr.. Wise did not
60 to Manchester that night at all, for
tunately; being too much, wearied by
the exertions of his incessant canvass
to that date; but the inquiries show not
only what was premeditated if he should
speak, but the further fact that nOtifica-
tion of the intended row and massacre
had been sent abroad.
OF course the Bourbon Funders and
the organs plead "not guilty." but never
was great crime proved by more absO-
lutte cumulative and overwhelming evil
dence-evidence anterior, contemporary
and posterior to the event. The Sicilian
Vespers. for the expulsion of the French
from the island; the massacre of st.
Bartholomow's eve by the Leaguers, to
extinguish or extermiDate the Hugunot
party, were not more clearly and decis-
lively the result of generalization than
this massacre at Danville and its con-
cOmitant terrorism.
The significance of this Danville mas
sacre has only the Significance" of ali
like affairs, whether in our own history
or that of other times and peoples. 1t is
the Significance" of brute force and vio-
lence against peace and reason; the
Significance" of armed preparation with
malice aforethought against unarmed
and unsuspected victims; the "signifi-
ca Dce' of blood to precipitate and force
false issue of passion and prejudice, in
defiance of the laws of God and man,
and to whelm free thought and action
under a storm of rage and brutality"