Year: 1860




The following letter from Senator Ham
mond was written in reply to an invitation to
attend the late political gathering at William.
ston


REDCLIFF, August 5, 1850


Dear Sir: have just received your polite
| invitation to a dinner to be given on the 9th
inst. at WILLIAMSON, to my esteemed friend
and your able Representative, Col Ashmorc
If the weather was not so unusually hot, my
engagements would not permit me, on 80
short notice, to do more than thank you We
ry sincerely for your kind remembrance. The
shortncss of the notice, however, is not due
to you, for your letter is dated week ago,
and might have reached me in twcnty-four
hours. But this humbug of " "cheap post
age" so gratifying to those who live ON rail
roads, and are not aware that by other meth
ods of taxation, they pay twice the nominal
charges, in the South four times, has, under
system of economy which strikes down the
weak rural routes, reduced this route, once
daily, to weekly one.


election of the next President. 1t gives me
great pleasure to find that South Carolina,
having with her usual promptness and una
nlmity, made her choice, is properly and con-
sstcntly pursuing the same quiet course in
reference to it, that she has so long pursued.
1t never was sounder policy than at this
time Every man in America knows where
she stands, and the whole influence of her un-
divided support of Messrs. Breckenridge and
Lane is fully felt, though she says nothing as
1T would be, were she ever so vociferous
while any departure from the course she has
so long followed, and any unusual expression
of interest would perhaps be damaging to the
candidates of her choice. South Carolina is
VIGOROUSLY charged with dsunion proclivitics
and the charge cannot be well denied, though
really it is not true in regard to a Constitu.
tlonal Union. 1t is loudly proclaimed that
the ticket she supports is therefore disunion
ticket, and any uncommon effort in it's behalf
on her part, will have the effect of sustaining
this charge.


have had the pleasure of somewhat in
Innate acquaintance with the Vice President
and Gen. Lane during the last tllree sessions
OF Congress, and while deem them eminent.
ly qualified for the exalted positions for which
they have been named, | do not believe that
any two men could be found in America who
would SO promptly, and without second
thought, lay down their lives, if needed, for
the preservation of the Union | confess,
am myself very far behind them in that par
ticular. In my humble judgment, every vote
given to them is a vote for the Union, and ev-
cry vote given to any other candidate in the
field is, whether intended or not, vote
against the Union And it is to me passing
strange, that, while every sensible man in
! this country must know that the election of
MIR. Lincoln will put the Union in imminent
and instant hazard, and that neither Mr..
Bell nor Mr.. Douglas can lay claim to one
single authenticated and assured electoral
vote, any Southern man, or any Northern,
Eastern or Western patriot, should, under
any prctenco, withhold his ardent support
from the only men who, in this greatest Of all
the crises which our country has known since
the adoption of the Constitution, can under
the circumstances, prolong and, perhaps
make permanent this Confederacy / cannot
help believing that they will be elected. 1t
is the best next step, for the success of whic'
everything but principle should be sacrifc, L.


Very truly yours,


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