Washington, June 28, 1852.
My Dear Sir, I
received only today your letter of the 15th. I left the city on the adjournment
over upon the assembling of the Whig Convention and was detained by the
necessity of making some summer arrangement for my daughter who is at school in
New York, and whose school has a vacation at this time. I was detained beyond
my expectation and only reached the City this morning.
I agree with you in thinking that I cannot consistently
sustain Pierce, King, and the Slavery Platform of Baltimore. I have declared my
purpose not to do so. What is to be done beyond I am not so clear about. If we
could have an Independent Democratic Rally, thoroughly democratic in name &
fact, without wild extravagance and without any shrinking from a bold avowal of
sound principles, I should support it cheerfully. But a mere freesoil rally
will simply elect Pierce and, I fear, ensure the indefinite extension of
slavery. Can we have such a rally?
We might have had, could we have prevailed on the New York
Barnburners to stand firm. Indeed if they had only stood firm we should never
have been placed in a situation making a rally necessary. If 1 had time I could
tell you much on this subject. Now without a single New York leader remaining
firm what can we do? Whom can we nominate? At present it seems to me that we
must endeavor to organize without nominations—upon the Herkimer principle of
refuting our support to nominations we cannot honorably support. A Democratic
Association with its members pledged to carry out their democratic principles
in to practical & consistent application to the slavery & other
questions, & refusing their support at this election to Pierce & King,
because of their own positions & the character of the platforms they are
nominated upon — this seems to me the best present measure Next we should do
what is possible to have a good nomination on a right platform & under the
right name at Pittsburgh. If Wilmot and some good western Democrat say Spalding
could be nominated for President & Vice President we could get a good vote
for them of the right sort. Hale don't want the nomination. He wishes to be
free to canvass New Hampshire.
My impression derived from a journey in New York is that
Pierce will not carry that State. The Whigs here are confident that Scott will
carry Ohio. What do you think?
I wish we could have the right kind of a Press in Ohio. But
where can we get the money. I wd. give $500 — who besides?
SOURCE: Diary and correspondence of Salmon P. Chase, Annual
Report of the American Historical Association for the Year 1902, Vol.
2, p. 242-3
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