In a recent issue of
the Washington Union, an article
appeared, in which, to the astonishment of the country, an attempt was made to
disparage the public conduct of Daniel S. Dickenson. What purpose the writer
sought to serve, we are at a loss to divine, but that he meant to sink Mr.
Dickenson in the esteem of the South, is evident from the nature of the
article, unless it be unwarrantable to infer a murderous intent from a savage
stab at the very seat of life. Be the blow, however, the stroke of a felon or a
friend, it is not the less incumbent upon every Southern man, and especially
upon every Virginian, to interpose a defence of the South and Virginia, when
they were assailed by traitorous hands.
By every obligation
of gratitude and of honor are we of the South bound to sustain Daniel S. Dickenson,
under any circumstances and against any foe. When an attempt is made by our
enemies to strike him down because of his services to us, this obligation comes
upon us with irresistible weight. But we do injustice to Mr. Dickenson. It is
not to the South only that he may look for protection against the wrath of
those who would immolate him because of his heroic resistance of the
aggressions of abolition. Upon every patriot and friend of the Constitution and
the Union, no matter in what State or section, he has a claim for sympathy and
support.
It is idle to
attempt to impeach the consistency and honor of Dickenson's devotion to the
South. It has been illustrated under circumstances which would have appalled
any but the stoutest and truest heart. Mr. Dickenson's was not mere parade of
patriotism which incurs no risk and renders no service. He struck for the South
and the Union at a critical moment, and he now suffers the penalty of his
patriotism in exclusion from office and in the assassin stab of abolitionists.
We need not recount his services to the South. They may be read in the history
of the country. They are fresh in the memory of all. Among all the gallant
spirits of the North, who in the hour of trial bravely fought for the constitutional
rights of the South, Dickenson stood pre-eminent, for the absolute devotion of
heart and soul with which he surrendered himself to our cause. The South recognized
his service at the time by a gushing fervor of gratitude and universality of
admiration, such as she has extended to no other public man. His image was on
every Southern heart; his praises were on every Southern tongue.
If it be allowable
to appeal to so selfish a motive, we might tell the South that her interest as
well as her honor demands that she do justice to her Northern friends. If we
shrink from sustaining such men as Daniel S. Dickenson we must prepare to fight
our battles alone.
There is a special
obligation in Virginia to sustain Mr. Dickenson in his struggles with the
abolitionists. She has become in some sort surety for the consistency and
integrity of his public character. She gave him the highest attestation of her
esteem and affection in the Baltimore Convention, by casting her vote for him
for President of the United States, and any aspersion on him touches her own
honor.—She cannot be silent when calumny assails him.
Blog Editor’s Note:
The spelling of Senator Dickinson’s surnam switches from its correct spelling
to Dickenson frequently in this article, I have kept the spellings as they
occur in the original.
SOURCE: “Daniel S.
Dickenson,” Richmond Enquirer,
Richmond, Virginia, Friday Morning, September 16, 1853, p. 2
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