New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1860-08-27
FROM BOSTON.



Railroad, and that be had accepted, and would not
be candidate for reelection, excited much aston
ishment here because it had been denied by one OF
our newspapers on his authority, within ten days.
His letter to the Republican State Committee ID
printed in the morning papers. Massachusetts
thus loses one Of her most distinguished citizens,
and in some respects one of her ablest men. Gov.
Banks does almost everything he undertakes ex-
ceedngly well and in some respects he is quite I'M
riyaled. As a presiding officer he has never been
equaled here, and all public occasions he makes
an excellent appearance. Perhaps his available
qualities were never made more manifest than dur
ing the late commencement and Inauguration exer-
cses at Cambridge. Learned professors aud lit
erary men were wonderfully impressed with the
matter and manner of his speeches, and the COM
plments 80 freely lavished upon him by Mr..
Everett and President FELTON, were probably
as sincere as anything in the purely complimentary
line ever uttered. But while Gov. Banks has gained
in the estimation of scholars and literary men, who
are generally democrats and ready to acknowledge
merit where they find it, the snobs OF wealth have
pretty steadily refused to countenance him, for in
spite of his political successes, he has always been
poor man. The petty arist0cracy Of the town OF
Waltham, consisting Of agents and Overseers Of
cotton mills dislike him as heartily now as they did
twenty years ago when they were rallied out, year
after year to put down what they considered the
disgraceful attempt of the iremen and the boys in
the machine shops to elect him to the Legislature,
believe they sneer at his pretensions as q me-
chanic and suspect between ourselves, that his
achievements in that line have been Overrated. but
that is not of the slightest consequence. He doubt
less knows something of the mechanic arts, and his
early life was life of pTyatiOn If not OF excessive
toll / have spoken of his general success
in whatever he undertakes; but think
his essays in the editorial and legal professions
are exceptions to the rule. For short time he had
charge of The LO,ceH Advertiser or Patriot, Dem
ocIatic paper, but | could never discover any re-
markable ability in it at that time. Hewas born for
a talker not writer. AS a stump speaker on the
Democratic side he early had a high rank, and he
has maintained it to this time. Few men appear
better on the political platform. do not think he
IS great worker or deep student He Is q man OF
intuitions rather than of study and contemplation.
His decisions presiding officer never seemed to be
the result Of research into precedents; he decided
according to the exigency, and trusted to find the
reasons and precedents afterward, and always sue
cseded. 1t is common to speak of the Governors
great and unrivaed success as politician. 1t does
not seem to me to have been very great. His merit
az a presiding officer made him Speaker OF the
House of Representatives two years and Pres
ident Of the Constitutional Convention Of 1853.
The same quality made him Speaker of the
". %. a
liar political position, one third Democrat one
third American, and one third Republican pointed
him out as the available man. The friendship Of
the Free Sellers, won by his own tendency toward
liberal principles, gave him a seat in Congress. The
darkest hour, probably, which he ever saw, was 10
the year 1854, when the Know NOthings of the dis
tfct he then represented nominated the Rev. Lyman
Whiting. He had broken with the Democrats
who would do nothing for him. and it was evident
that Know Nothingism would elect all its candi-
dates. BY some means or other, Mr.. Whiting was
removed out of the way and Mr.. Banks received
the nomination and elected. 1t is, perhaps, to
his credit that he faithful to the American party
which thus aided him at a trying period of his po-
litica life. He was thus enabled in 1857, when
Gardner had become a nuisance to be got rid OF at
some rate or other, TO bring into the joint oppO-
sitiOn to him certain amount of capital as an
American, which rendered him an available candl-
date. But his Amencanism, on the whole has
been the great blunder of his life although by 1t he
was chosen Governor. 1t was contrary to the in
stncts of his youth and the principles he had always
prOfessed, ana man can disregard these with lm-
punity. As a Governor, Mr. Banks has made an
excellent appearance, and his salary being only
1880 year, without fees or perqUisites, he has
saved nothing, for he has thought it proper to
crafty all sorts of people by attending all sorts
of shows to which people could with decent
grace invite him. He has been farmer, military
man. patron of colleges, normal schools, and other
educational processes and i have known him to
be good enough to make speech at the
opening of horse railroad in country town.
He has thus cheapened his Office and himself, aud,
in my opinion, has lost popularity rather than
gained it. His appointments to high stations have
generally been good; but much fault has been found
with some OF his minor appointments. lie has
never fully obtained the confidence of the radical
Anti-Slavery men, having disappointed their rea-
sOnable expectations as to legislation in several
instances. His prompt removal of Judge LOrng,
however, will always be freshly remembered by
them.
Governor Banks withdrawal makes il necessary
to select new candidate. 1t has been generally
conceded for year past that John A. Andrew,
esq, OF Boston, was to be his successor whenever
he should see fit to retire; and If he allows his
friends to present his name, do net think his NOM
nation can be prevented. Already, however an
opposition to him is springng up, and the name of
Henry L. Dawes, N. c., from the Nth District is
mentiOned; also tie name of Dir. Kellogg of Pitts
field, Alexander II. Rice M. C.. from District No.
"; j. S. c. KnOwtOn of Worcester, and Others.
Mr. Andrew has never held any Office except a seat
in the Legislature where he took a high rank and
maintained the honor of the Republican party IN
several hard contests with Caleb Gushing. La no
case did Mr.. Gushing, able as he is in debate, OBJ
tain any advantage over Mr.. Andrew. Mr.. Andrew
has great personal popularity, and the respect Of
the whole community, by whom he is regarded as
thoroughly conscientious and honest man, as well
as good lawyer, and an effective debater. Mr..
Dawes is now well placed. He is, perhaps, the
most seryiceable of our members of Congress, and
can stay there as long he likes. So can Mr. Rice.
Mr. Kellogg and Mr. KnOwltOn are excellent men,
but their claims are not superior to those OF Mr'
Andrew, and the expectations of their friends have
not been raised as have those OF Mr.. Andrews
friends. If the intelligence of Gov. Bankss pur-
poses had not been withheld so long, Mr. Andrew