The mountain Democrat., 1864-07-23
Lincoln and Johnaon.

I The age Of statesmen is gone; the az
7 Of rail.splitters and tailors, Of buffoons
Doors and fanatics, has succeeded. God
forbid that we should reproaeh Mr.. Lin
coin or Mr.. johnson with the narrownes
Of their early circumstances, which pre-
cluded opportunities Of culture. Blu
when men are proposed for the highes
and most responsible Offices in the Re
public, there necessarily arises the ques
ton Of fitness-a complex question relat
ing in part to training and antecedeRts
but turning, in the main, on the posses
sion Of present qualifications. The prob
lens presented for solution within the
next four years are more complex anC
difficult, they require larger grasp and
deeper penetration, than any which have
ever been offered to the consideration o.
statesmen. But Mr.. Lincoln and Mr.
johnson are both men of mediocre talents
neglected education, narrow views, def
cient information, and coarse, vulgar
manners. A statesman is presumed to
be man Of some depth of thought and
extent Of knowledge; profoundly versed,
if not in history, at least in the policy,
resources, and aims Of all the leading con-
temporary governments of the world; in
the character, qualifications, and idiosyn-
crasies Of their public men; and in the
bearings of their most important measures
and projects on the development of com
merce, the growth Of civilization, and the
progress or retardation Of free principles
of government. 1t is needless to say that
neither in this sense, nor in any high
sense, are the Republican nominees states
men. Except superficial knowledge of
our domestic politics, such as may be
picked up in the newspapers and in in.
tercourse with the vulgar herd of office
seekers, Mr.. Lincoln and Mr.. Johnson
have no attainments to distinguish them
from the mass of ordinary citizens.
That country whose jurisprudenc has
been adorned by Marshall, Kent, Story :
whose diplomacy boasts of such names as
franklin, Jefferson, the Adamses, King,
Webster whose finances have been man,
aged by Hamilton, GalIatin, Tanev 4;
whose congressional debates have bor-
rowed luster from the eloquence of Ames,
Clay, Calhoun; whose chief magiStracy
has been filled by Washington and an
unbroken succession Of illustrIous states
men down to Van Buren, and by many
able men since;-that this country. with
SO proud record, should now be reduced
to such intellectual poverty as to have
presented to it two such names as Abra-
ham Lincoln and Andrew johnson for its
highest stations, in the most trying crisis
Of its history, is cruel mockery, bitter
humiliation.
The only merit we can discover in this
Baltimore ticket is the merit of consisten-
cy; it is all Of piece the tail docs not
shame the head, nor the head shame the
tail. A raiLspliuing buffoen and boor-
iSh tailor, both growing up in uncouth
/ ignorance, they would afford grotesque
subject for a satiric poet, who might cele
brate them in such strains as Dean Swift
bestowed on Winston spd Ditton or Aris.
tophancS on that serviIe dcmagogue, Hy-
peroolus. We Upgrade our highest offices
as the free republics of antiquity scorned
to degrade even their political punish.
mcnts. When the ostracism by which
illustrious statesmen like Aristides, The
mStocles, and Alcbiades were banished, at
length fell on man Of an origin and
character similar to the Baltimore canGi.
dates, namely, on the aforesaid Hyper5o-
lus, the proud and high spirited Greeks
abolished the ostracism which had been
thus debased. But we are less jealous OF
the honor of our highest offices than they
were Of the dignity of the method by
which they set the pretensions Of their
statesmen aside.
If the Republican party, having weigh
ed Seward and the resoof their statesmen
in the balance and found them wanting,
are too poor in talent to present from civ
il life any more commanding names than
those they have selected at Baltimore,
they might at least have shown grateful
appreciation Of the merits of our distin-
guished soldiers. In point of intellect and
craftsmanship it would be hard to find
among our educated generals men OF
smaller caliber than the actual candidates;
while the luster of arms would have shed
dignity on the ticket which might have
rescued it from the contempt Of intelligent
men. The military feeling of the country
never SO active and prevailing as now, will
refuse to keep step to the music of this
ticket. A popular candidate from the
army will take from the Baltimore nomi.
nees all support, except such as can be
controlled by fanaticism and shoddy.
In a crisis of the most appalling mag,
nitude, requiring craftsmanship of the
highest order, the country is asked to
consider the claims of two ignorant, boor-
ish, third-rate, backwoods lawyers, for
the highest stations in the government
Such nominations, in such conjuncture,
are an insult to the common sense of the
people. God save the Republic
New York World.