Tuesday, April 23, 2024

A. D. Banks to Senator Robert M. T. Hunter, November 23, 1855

PETERSBURG, [Va.], November 23rd, 1855.

MY DEAR SIR: For the past ten days, I have been in Richmond and while there have had frequent conversations with influential democrats from all Quarters of the State. It affords me pleasure to communicate the agreeable fact that Mason's re-election is already un fait accompli. There will be no opposition. The movement against him has signally failed and about the first business of the session will be his triumphant re-election. This you may confidently rely on. The attempt of which we spoke at Richmond on the part of certain gentlemen to head a feud between your friends and Wise's will also fail. Many ardent admirers and advocates of Wise have assured me that you were their second choice and that none would be more ready than themselves to frown down and discountenance any efforts at fomenting rivalry and dissatisfaction. Some of them express a determination early in the session of the democratic State Convention to introduce a resolution to the effect that the Virginia democracy have no choice between their two Prominent chiefs who have been named for the succession but will support either with cheerfulness and alacrity, leaving the fortunate one of them to be selected by the National democracy of the Union. This argues a better feeling on the part of Wise's friends than we had good reason to expect, and it is in fact all that we could ask of them.

I shall see you in Washington next week and should like to have a full and free conference with you on the future. We can then better understand the current and its course. Douglas' Position cannot be known too soon.

By the way my friends intend urging my name for the House clerkship I can lose nothing certainly while if a fortunate train of circumstances should conspire to place me in the Position it would be a most desirable place. Being the only person at present named from the South I ought to get quite a respectable vote. The Examiner and Enquirer here both voluntarily offered to support me warmly. Present me kindly to Garnett.
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* Blog Editor’s Note: Publisher of the Daily Democrat, Petersburg, Virginia.

SOURCE: Charles Henry Ambler, Editor, Annual Report of the American Historical Association for the Year 1916, in Two Volumes, Vol. II, Correspondence of Robert M. T. Hunter (1826-1876), p. 171-2

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