Worcester daily spy. [volume] (Worcester [Mass.]) 1850-1888, 1859-06-13

Hon. EDWARD L. KEYEs.-Among thu no.
tees of Mr.. Keyes, since his death, we have
seen none more just to his peculiarities of
character and faculty than that of the Boston
Courier. We mention this circumstances par
ticularly, because the conductors of that paper
have always been among the most unconciliat-
ing antagonists of the conscience Wings"
and Free Soilers," as they are now of the
Republicans. Mr.. Reyes died in the hospital
for lunatics at Taunton. He was born in
Brimfeld, where his father was physician :;
and, it is said, that Keyess unfortunate habits
which were so disastrous to him in the last
years of his life, were inherited from his IA
Their Before he became connected with the
Dedham Gazette in 1914, he had been a trader ;
and he was at one time associated with George
Odiorne, Esq, in the auction business But
he became known to the public as Con
science Wing" politician. William S. Robin
son, whose experience and observation in the
same political communion made him well ac-
quainted with all pertaining to it, writes as
follows to the Springfield Republican, concern
ing Mr.. Reyes and the political fight that oc-
CURED here ten and twelve years ago.
"Being gifted with rare oratorical powers
and a taste for politics, he soon made striking
figure in that line. He was in the House in
l047 in Gov. Briggs Council in 1913, and in
the Senate in 1851 and 1852 and in the Con-
stitutional Convention of 1858, representing
the borough of Arlington, his own town hay-
ing become hunkerized enough to send Ezra
Wilkinson. During all this time he was an
active speaker at caucuses and conventions.
Very few men did more towards breaking up
and breaking down the Wing party. Let his
services IN this behalf be ever freshly re-
membered. He was a member of the "Con-
science Whig" party. This phrase took its
rise from some antithetcal remark about cot
ton versus conscience, made by Hon. f. r.
Hoar In debate III the Senate, probably about
the time of the annexation of Texas, when the
Appletons and Lawrences and Winthrops for
the sake of cotton smothered their opposition
to the extension of slavery. The titles were
by no means misnomers, for have no doubt
the conscience wings did have almost a mon
opoly OF the article of conscience which be.
longed TO their party. Some of their indiyid.
ual members, however, did not, | suppose.
have any more than some of the opposite side.
Reyes was an unsparng denouncer of hunk
ersm in all its forms. On the stump and in
the columns OF his newspaper, he was terribly
severe His vocabulary of cxecration was
more copious than that of any man outside of
.he Garrsonian party, and am not sure that
ought 70 make this exception. The dici-
plne OF the tunes from 1916 to 1854 tended to
make the liberal wings and afterwards the free
soilers very tree in the use Of denunciatorv
Language, and Reyes was the Acknowledged
master Of this style. The Dedham Gazette
used TO be read with great delight by the anti.
slavery politicians. 1t was a consolation IN
the days of our adversely to know that if we
could not out-yote our opponents, we had one
raa..., az least, if not more. who could eycol
them all in the use of strong epithets. Keyes'
articles were eagerly seized upon by the other
side, as evidences of the BLACKBOARD character
Of the party which could SO encourage him.