The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1867-06-21
FRIDAY, JUNE 81, 1867.
mr. stanton SAYS " No y,

Es
Tag country owes its thanks to the authorities
at Washington for publishing in detail the
Cabinet proceedings, including the vote OF the
members upon the various points in Attorney
General Stanbery's opinion with reference to
the qualifications Of voters and the manner OF
conducting the elections under the Reconstruc-
-tion law. 1t is gratifying to know that each OF
the Attorney Generals quibbles, whereby he
has sought to nullify the provisions of the law,
received the emphatic negative Of the dis
tinguished Secretary of War. 1t is not too
much to say that, upon any question involv-
ing the rights and dignity of the nation in
connection with this great question OF recon-
struction, the opinion of Edwin M. Stanton
has more weight with the loyal people of the
land, ten times over, than the combined OPT
Mons of the President and all the other mem
bers of the Cabinet. Mr.. Stanton is the only
representative left in the Cabinet OF the
spirit which carried the nation successfully
through our great war. He is the only
man there in whom the people have
any confidence Mr.. Seward has become
the mere echo of the sayings and opinions of
the man whom he delights to call his "ohief."
Poor old Mr.. Welles never had any opinions of
his own. Stanbery is Copperhead at heart,
and manufactures "opinions" to order. He
can take both sides of the same question with
equal facility. He is completely destitute of
moral and political honesty, and has not sufi-
oient intellectual pride even to keep him from
resorting to the most pitiful quibbles and
all; . tbo
and-butter' man, and Browning is a man
after Johnson's own heart. Stanton, we re-
peat, is the only man left whom the people
have any confidence in the only representa-
tive of that grand loyal sentiment that inspired
the nation during the Rebellion. Aside from
him, the Cabinet is ruled by the same senti-
ments and opinions which might have been
expected to rule in it had George B. Mcclellan,
instead of the late lamented Abraham Lincoln,
been chosen President in 1864.
No doubt, had Mr.. Stanton consulted his
own feelings, he would long since have with
drawn from position which, in many re-
speots, must be an embarrassing and unsatis =
factory one; but he had a duty to perform to
the loyal people of the land which no personal
considerations could absolve him from. He
has nobly performed that duty, and has
earned new title to the gratitude of his
country. Indeed the entire career of Mr..
Stanton, from his first entrance into the
Cabinet of President Lincoln down to the pre-
sent time, has been most honorable and re-
nowned. His administration of the War
Department during the tremendous struggles
of our great war, was characterized by an
ability such as would have adorned the record
of any war minister whose achievements his
tory has perpetuated. And what at the pre-
sent day is, perhaps, still more to his credit,
in all the vast transactions of his department in
volving theexpenditure of hundreds of millions
of dollars, the breath of suspicion even has never
sullied his personal integrity. His bitterest
enemies have never dared to accuse Edwin M.
Stanton of making, directly or indirectly one
cent beyond his lawful salary out of his Off
cial position. At time when official corrup-
tion seems to be threatening the very founda-
tions of our social structure, this is much to
say. If similar spirit of incorruptible inte-
gritty could be diffused throughout the entire
administration of the Government, good men
would feel relieved of their most serious appre-
tensions for the future. In short, as we look
over the public field, it would be difficult to
find any man who has better served his coun-
try, or who unites in himself more of the
characteristics of truly great man than
Edwin M. Stanton.
"A Triumph Over the Wire-pulIers.