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This newspaper page contains 21 articles. Subscribers can read the full text of each article.
Newspaper
Wilson Ledger
Location
Wilson, North Carolina, United States of America
Date
Dec 04, 1860
Page
3
The article argues North Carolina will carefully consider secession, weighing options from repealing Personal Liberty Bills to forming a Southern Confederacy. It contends slavery is a national issue, favors state sovereignty, and predicts a swift shift depending on the President's message and northern abolitionist pressure.
The Standard notes the defeat of A W Barton a disunionist by Coleman a Buncombe Democrat in the canons with an animated contest Coleman a Chapel Hill graduate nine year Navy veteran and eminent lawyer is praised though the piece cautions Barton’s loss does not reflect Legislature sentiment and compares it to Holden’s defeat over state rights.
The Wilmington Journal reports two men posing as Masons to solicit subscriptions were expelled, then arrested after returning. One alias Allen, a supposed naval lieutenant, impressed locals, drank and socialized, paid little, claimed to be bound for the Mohawk off Cuba, and vanished before an arrest was arranged. The paper says charges exist and a settlement is sought.
The Vermont Legislature fails by nearly three to one to repeal Personal Liberty Bills as an initial step toward reconciliation between the North and South. The vote signals Vermont’s unwillingness to aid in healing sectionalbreach, with indications that other Republicanmajority states may follow suit and risk the Union if the North maintains its fugitive slave law stance.
The State Journal lauds Marcus Erwin Esq a gallant Senator from Bincombe while denouncing any soft stance toward Union. It asserts the Legislature in North Carolina will demand equality in the Union or seek independence and questions Erwin’s suitability for national convention secession plans.
Rev Hunnicutt of Virginia Union Baptist will preach at the Court House on Thursday night the 6th inst Rev Caldwell Presbyterian will preach at the Court House on Sunday next the 9th inst at 10 AM in this place
The town paused for Thanksgiving with stores closed and a general holiday mood. Morning was cheerful, but evening brought mixed sights in some garters districts as some residents fled from wine districts. The Wilson Light Infantry paraded under Capt Radcliffe, a skilled drill-master, with hopes of future full uniform parades.
The Raleigh excerpts from the New York Herald describe fierce partyism in North Carolina. The Legislature pushes resolutions amid a governor’s request to curb the slave trade, while secession sentiment grows as old Whigs cling to outdated views.
The Cincinnati Enquirer remarks on the hypocrisy of Northern mobs opposing federal authority while criticizing Southern secession. It argues that resisting United States law equals nullification and should provoke North to respect the Constitution as Charleston does, warning that such outrage could fuel southern disunion sentiment.
The first issue of the State Journal is published weekly and semi weekly at Raleigh by John Spelman, editor and proprietor. In his prospectus he declares the paper will advocate democratic principles and support Democratic measures as occasion requires, aiming to serve the entire state and common interests.
The December number of the American Farmer edited by N. B. Worthington and published by Worthington & Lewis in Baltimore, Maryland, is praised as a valuable monthly magazine on agriculture and horticulture for readers and researchers.
A Washington dispatch says the President will enforce customs payments at Charleston and across the Union, refusing to recognize secession. Senator Jefferson Davis notes Mississippi leaning toward secession. A New York meeting of leading Republicans aims to discuss a possible compromise as an olive branch to the South.
Washington City reports Thomas Corwin, Lincoln’s ally, stating he would not attempt to coerce any Southern state that secedes. The New York Tribune argues for state rights to secede, suggesting no external power can prevent it. The piece warns civil war could erupt if the South remains in the Union under Lincoln.
Hon. Caleb Cushing of Massachusetts speaks at Newburyport on the 26th ult about a bloodless revolution and the peril to the Union. He says northern and southern conflicts over slave labor threaten the nation, urges united action to avert disaster, and recalls the Union’s founding and rights of states.
A Waynesburg couple elopes across the Pennsylvania line to marry without a license. A gaunt sister and a staged room quarrel escalate at a Wellsville hotel, ending with the sister-in-law occupying a separate room while the newlyweds salvage the evening. The event becomes a local sensation.
The New York Court of Appeals holds there is no statutory law in the state defining or prescribing punishment for murder in the first degree. Since last winter the only statute defining the mode of punishment was abolished, no court has the right to enforce that method.
A light school event piece features a parody inspired by Hood's Lot of Thee and dedicated to the Normal Class of Wilson Schools. The article notes performances by students and teachers with playful references to classroom life.
A laboring schoolmaster voices weariness and anger at harsh schooling, poverty, and social injustice. He laments long hours and low pay while recalling enriched classes for the privileged, fearing the impact on students and condemning exploitation by the wealthy. The poem ends with a plea for relief and dignity.
Stuart reports a band of 12 to 16 followers of Christ demanded to go down to the city’s depths near the gate of hell. A guide led them to a spot where Satan is said to hold court. There a two year old boy preached Christ to a crowd beneath a lamp shed over pages.
A judge notes slaves in the Revolution showed fidelity to masters, with few forming British‑backed contingents. Many stayed loyal and fought for their owners, enduring danger and privation, while remaining morally restrained amid wartime chaos. The piece lauds Southern efforts and decorum in adversity.
A fragmentary verse-like meditation asks for the man who helps the deformed and unprotected, treats all women with delicacy, avoids libertine behavior, and never stoops to ridicule. It seeks a true gentleman who honors every woman regardless of rank or circumstance.
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