are all old-fashioned, wooden-bottomed chairs, which have been independent of each other heretofore, but which are now being screwed by the half-dozen to pine planks placed across the bottom. There is a good deal of gaudy and unceuth ornamentation about the hall. The frescoing is mere daubing. The principal effort in art is immediately over the stage. Three highly colored but very improperly dressed females are there engaged. One seems to be contemplating matters and things in general. Another is mixing colors with the apparent intention of painting something. The other is pointing with what seems to be a common bowie-knife, to a globe. The point of the dagger is plunged into the Black Sea. It may be held to be according to the proprieties, that the continent which is outlined most conspicuously on this globe is marked "Africa." There are rooms behind the stage, and two private boxes above it.

The Hall is situated on the principal thoroughfare and near the business centre of the city. The Hibernian Hall-the Douglas head-quarters is situated on the same street, a square and a half distant. This building has two large halls, and is two stories in height. The first floor is divided into two small rooms and one spacious hall, where a gigantic bard of Erin is holding a harp, such as was heard in Tara's Halls before the soul of music fled. The smaller rooms are furnished with long tables, plenty of chairs and writing materials, and a large supply of Sheahan's Life of Stephen A. Douglas. The second floor is one large hall, and is full of cots for the Northwestern delegations. There are several hundreds of them, with white spreads and pillows. They are arranged in rows and sections, numbered and marked for the different States.

The Douglas men are to be found for the most part at the " Mills House." The fire-eaters congregate at the "Charleston." The spacious passages and public rooms about these houses are already swarming with politicians. It must be admitted that the Southerners have the advantage in personal appearance. The strong men of the South are here in force, as they always are upon such occasions. There is sufficient wisdom among the oligarchy to be represented in Congress and Conventions by men of experience and intellect, and they attain weighty advantages in this way.

The arrival at the Charleston Hotel to-day, is that of the Hon. W. L. Yancey of Alabama, the prince of the fire-eaters. He is the man said to be charged with a three days' speech against Douglas. He is a compact, middle-sized man, straight limbed, with a square built head and face, and an eye full of expression. He is mild and bland in manner as Fernando Wood, and has an air of perfect sincerity which Wood has not. No one would be likely to point him out in a group of gentlemen as the redoubtable Yancey, who proposes according to common report to precipitate the cotton States into a revolution, dissolve the Union and build up a Southern empire. The strong point made against him by the Douglasites is that he is a disunionist. It will not frighten him, nor his Southern friends, however, to apply that epithet to him. I very much doubt whether the Douglas men have a leader competent to cope with him in the coming fight. It is quite clear that while the North

may be strongest in votes here, and the most noisy, the South will have the intellect and the pluck to make its points. I do not think any importation of Douglas men can prevent the Convention from "wearing a southern aspect, as the Mercury, of this city, said it must. Prominent in the crowd at the Mills House, is the burly form of the farfamed Geo. N. Sanders, New York navy agent. The politicians here are fond of inquiring whether he feels comfortable about the neck, it being rumored that the President is about to remove him for his audacity in coming down here as a Douglas man.

There are a great many men of distinguished personal appearance to be seen about the hotels, as usual during National Conventions, speakership contests, and other times of extraordinary commotion among politicians. A large number have the general characteristics of first class gamblers, and the probability is, there are keepers of the playful animal known as ye tiger" to be found in this vicinity. There are great portly fellows, with protuberant stomachs and puffy cheeks, red foreheads, hair thin and grizzly, dressed in glossy black and fine linen, with the latest style of stove-pipe hats, and ponderous gold-headed canesperspiring and smoking, and engaged in mysterious conversations, concerning caucus stratagems, of intense interest to themselves. Every body is talking about the Convention, and prophesying and wondering as to its action. The Douglasites claim prodigious things. The ultra Southern men sneer at the idea of Douglas's nomination, and inquire— "Where was he two years ago?"-and answer the question themselves -"Caucusing with Seward-leagued with the Black Republicans against a Democratic Administration.' They say his pretenses in the Lecompton rebellion were false, and that his subsequent talk proves them to be so. They say his line of policy then, if honestly followed, would have carried him where John W. Forney is now into the ranks of the Republican party. The Douglas men generally respond by speaking of their champion facing dreadful mobs of Black Republicans, and gazing into the mouths of pistols, in defense of the rights of the South. They inquire further, whether Illinois has not always been true to the Democratic party. I heard this question put to a fire-eater, and he said, "Did'nt Illinois elect a Black Republican Governor?" "Who was Bissell?" The response of the Douglas man was, that Bissell was not not elected by a majority vote. The Southern rejoinder was: "Did Douglas have a majority of the popular vote in his Senatorial contest with Lincoln?" And the Douglasite come back with a broadside, directed at the Danites, or Administration men, who gave Lincoln aid and comfort. And so the battle rages along the whole line.

The Douglas men came down here from their head-quarters in Washington, where whisky flows like a river.

Like some vast river of unfailing source;

Rapid, exhaustless deep,

-they were full of enthusiasm-rampant and riotous-"hot as monkeys" and proclaim that the universal world is for the Little Giant. They have a desperate fight before them, and are brim full of the sound and fury of boastfulness.

THE DOUGLAS DEMONSTRATION-SENATOR SLIDELL.

CHARLESTON, S. C., April 21st, 1860.

The principal hotels swarm like hives this morning. The greatest crowd is at the Mills House, which is the Douglas head-quarters The air is full of tobacco-smoke and rumors. There is nothing definite to be found out. The private consultation rooms are the centres of interest, but it is impossible to arrive at results. The friends of Douglas are by no means disposed to talk about their second choice. They swear they have none, and will stick to Dug while the hair is on their heads. They won't, however. Many of them would be weary after two days' balloting. The Administration and Southern U. S. Senators scout the idea of the success of Douglas. They consider his defeat a foregone conclusion. Slidell was urged last week to come down and attend to the extermination of his enemy, but said at first, he would not -for there was no danger of the nomination of the obnoxious individual. The Douglas men made such demonstrations in Washington, however, and indicated such power and confidence, that "Old Houmas, as his enemies style him, concluded to come. He will be here this evening, and will operate against Douglas. He is a matchless wire-worker, and the news of his approach causes a flutter. His appearance here means war to the knife. It means also, that the Administration is uneasy on the Douglas question-and feel constrained to exert every influence against the Squatty Giant of Illinois, whose nomination would be perdition to Buchanan, Slidell & Co.

There is not, however, for the moment, so much bitterness of denunciation in the talk of the Southern delegates here, as there was on the road. The Douglas element is so powerful, that it would be indiscreet to exasperate it. And the Douglasites repeat very few of those disparaging words so familiar in their mouths at home, about the Southern fire-eaters and fanatics. They sing low and roar gently about Southern sectionalism. All these ill humors must, however, have their breaking out in the heat of the Convention. In these piping times of private caucuses, the bad blood is diplomatically preserved for home consump

tion.

THE DAY PRECEDING THE CONVENTION-DOUGLAS STOCK UP.

CHARLESTON, S. C., April 22d. The run of the current this morning is Douglas-ward. The friends of Douglas are encouraged by the events of last night. In the first place, the Executive Committee adjourned sine die, without repudiating the action of Judge Smalley, the Chairman, in issuing tickets to the Cagger, Cassidy and Dean Richmond New Yorkers, and to the Douglas Illinois delegation. Fernando Wood and Ike Cook and their delegations are full of wrath, and denounce Smalley in extreme terms. The fight in the Executive Committee on the question of adjournment sine die, was a small fight between the Douglas and Anti-Douglas men, and the former triumphed by one majority. The Committee, however, was not full, only eighteen States being represented. This sends Douglas stock up this morning. Another thing is, the Southern delegations

have held caucuses and consultations for two or three days, to try to agree upon a candidate upon whom to concentrate their vote, and upon the points of the platform. They had a special meeting last night and failed to accomplish any thing, except to exhibit their incapacity to come together. The game of the Douglas men, just now, is one they are not well qualified to play. It is to be quiet and conciliatory. They try to think and act upon the presumption, that they have the Convention in their hands, and wish to make all the friends they can in the South. They say, and it is possible there is some truth in it, that the failure of the South to unite, arises from secret Douglas influences. The ultra Southerners are becoming more bitter. The delegations from Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Florida, Arkansas and Texas, have agreed to withdraw if Douglas should be nominated, and it is believed that a portion of the North Carolina, Virginia, Kentucky and Missouri delegations would follow. The Douglas men look a little wild at this, but say they don't care, and console themselves by assuming that this course on the part of the South would be great gain to them in the North. They assert their ability to carry all the Northern States, if this Southern withdrawal should take place. The South is not unwilling, if it fails to control the Convention, so far as to defeat Douglas, to accept the hazard. The ultras have no doubt of their ability to carry six or eight, perhaps more, Southern States.

They expect Douglas then to carry enough Northern States to carry the election into Congress, where they have no doubt the Senate would finally be called upon to elect. In case of the nomination of Douglas by the Convention, and the withdrawal of the Southern ultras-there would be a desperate battle fought in the ultra Southern States between the slave code and Douglas Democracy; and it might do the fire-eaters great good to be whipped in that way upon their own ground. They have, however, unlimited confidence in their ability to carry their own States.

Several incidents occurred last night to raise the spirits of the Douglasites.

The majority of the Pennsylvania delegation is against Douglas and proposing in the caucus last night that Pennsylvania should vote as an unit in the Convention; the Douglasites rebelled, and threatened to leave the caucus room if the movement of the majority were persisted in, whereupon the caucus adjourned, to meet at nine o'clock to-morrow morning, when the majority will experiment again on giving the vote of the State solid. The prospect of attaining this solidity, is by no means flattering. On the other hand, in the Indiana delegation, the Douglas majority triumphed, and the stiff-necked Administration district delegates, Develin of Wayne, and Tabot of Marion, knocked under, and agreed to go with their Douglas brethren and cast the vote of the State as a unit. My opinion still is that the chances are against the nomination of Douglas. I can see how he can get a majority votebut I cannot figure out a two-thirds vote for him. The tide of affairs is, however, favorable to him to-day, and the capacity of the presuming and vehement bearers of the political fortunes of the Little Giant to realize their prophecies, may be very great.

THE NIGHT BEFORE THE CONVENTION.

CHARLESTON, S. C., April 22-10 P. M.

The excitement in the city to-night is higher than heretofore. The politicians are in full blast. I think Douglas stock, which went up a little this morning, is now drooping.

Passing Magnolia Hall this evening, I saw the Douglas delegation of Congressmen from Illinois, seated mournfully on the steps. Their native resolution seemed sicklied o'er by the pale cast of thought, and to have lost the name of action. They were pensive and silent. There was Logan with his dark, narrow face, and black hair and eyes, gazing upon one of the pillars, his hat tilted far back on his head, his hands in his pockets, and his mouth full of tobacco. There was Col. McClernand, with peaked face, running to a hooked nose, sadly playing with his watch-guard. Presently there was Richardson, the Douglas leader in the Cincinnati delegation, and the champion in the House of Representatives, of the Little Giant, in the days of the Kansas Nebraska Bill. Poor Richardson has had a hard time of it. He left Congress, where he might have been a fixture, and made the canvass for Governor of Illinois against Bissell. He did this against his wishes, and to carry the State, where his popularity with his party is second only to that of Douglas. He was influential in carrying the State for Buchanan, but lost his own election He was appointed Governor of Nebraska, and resigned after the Lecompton rebellion, to escape removal. He is a fine specimen of a strong, coarse man. He has an immense nose and mouth, and fine eyes, and amid such scenes as are here being enacted, he is second to none as a worker of sagacity and force.

The Mills House, where Douglas "men most do congregate," is as lively as a molasses barrel with flies. Here is where the outside pressure is brought to bear. It is here that "public opinion" is represented according to Douglas. Here they tell you Douglas must be the nominee -"all that is to be done is to ratify the voice of the people.' There is nothing but a few ballots, and all is over-Douglas the nomineeSouth will come down-certain to be elected. The country safe-the party safe. They only want a "chance to raise the war-whoop for Douglas in the North-west-that's all. Carry every State North-west -carry Ohio? Lord, yes! Carry Ohio by twenty thousand. If somebody suggests, but where are your figures? How can you obtain the two-thirds vote requisite to nominate? And half a dozen of the makers of public opinion tell you all about it. Every thing North is claimed of course, and you hear that on certain ballots, Kentucky, Missouri, and Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee, California and Oregon, are coming into line. "And suppose Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia and Louisiana, with scattering delegates in other States, go out-what then?" "What? why tremendous gains in the North, to be sure, just the thing we want. But if you suggest, "Douglas stock is drooping a little this evening. It is not at the high mark it was this morning. You have enthusiasm enough, but you have not the votes." You are told, "Not a bit of it. Douglas stock down-not possible. It can't go down."