The New York herald., 1868-01-06
Small Men and Greet Opportunities
Warnings Of Hist0ry.

an epoch OF small men, mousing politicians,
brawling demagogues, reckless fanatios and fac
tious disturbers ofthe public peace, thenost dis
astrous consequences are apt to follow TO the
people thus afflicted. From Moses down to
Abraham Lincoln history abounds with shining
examples Of great opportunities skilfully seized
and bravely appropriated to glorious achieve
ments by great men but in the vicissitudes Of
nations we also find numerous opportunities
for grand results disregarded, misdirected or
weakly frittered away by small men in power.
How full Of suoh illustrations are the ups and
downs Of the whirligig Of American politics
during the last half century-yea, Of the last
sixteen years-and how ominous are the les
sons thus given 10 the party now in power .
very brief recital will enable us to show.
Poor Pierce, on the platform Of Henry Clay's
satisfactory compromise measures Of 1850, was
elected President in 1852 by an overwhelming
majority Of the people Of the States, North and
South, against our greatest soldier of that day,
General Scott fresh from his conquest Of
Mexico. What splendid opportunity was thus
offered to Pierce for tho glory Of the country, for
the perpetuation Of the democratic party in
power and for great name! But poor Pierce
was small man, and his splendid opportunity
was thown away. Deluded by his supposed
personal popularity and the apparent strength
Of his party, he became the willing victim of
bold conspirators, and SO, with his repeal of
the Missouri compromise, he opened, in the
border rufian war of Kansas, the dismal over
ture Of the great rebellion. The leaders and
managers Of the Northern wing Of the demo-
cracy of that day, however, we're also small
men Of what John Randolph called the dough
face species, like Pierce, and so the ignomini-
GUS blunders Of his administration must be
divided among them.
Buchanan, the immediate successor Of Pierce,
was, however, q still weaker earthern vessel
from the same pottery. The daring Southern
conspiracy, actively commenced under Pierce,
ripened into hostile, fighting Southern con-
federacy under Buchanan. To a great man
like Jackson such an opportunity would have
been seized and used in snufing out the rebel
lion at once, as be snuffed out the notification
candle of Calhoun but to small man like
Buchanan there was no power in the cOnsti-
tuition to save the government. And so, as he
rode up from the White House to the Capitol
on the 4th Of March, 1861, in the same carriage
with his successor elect, the legacy OF Buchanan
to Lincoln was Southern confederacy in full
blast under JEFF Davis and vigorously arming for
war. In consequence OF the rollies of Pierce and
Buchanan the Southern slaveholding oligarchy
had lost the government OF the United States,
and had, therefore, under the wing o! Buchanan,
set up King Cotton on his throne Of Afri-
can slavery in their separate establishment Of
the "so-called Confederate States."
Abraham Lincoln, had he been a small man,
as weak, corrupt or vain man, nigh. have
left to his successor the United States bounded
on the south by Mason and Dixon's line and
the Ohio river and Southern confsderacy
resting firmly on the corner stone of negro
slavery by treaty stlpulations. Fortunately,
however, in Lincoln we had diamond, though
a rough diamond. In adopting the policy Of
carefully following the forward movements OF
public opinion instead of attempting to hasten
or rashly TO anticipate them, he carried the
government safely through the Red Sea of the
rebellion and to the very borders Of the prom
ised land Of universal liberty. Had he lived
we dare say that all the rebel States, on some
basis of qualified negro suffrage, would have
been represented in Congress within twelve
months from Lees surrender. As the question
now stands the admission of the ten outside
States is more perplexing puzzle to-day than
ever before.
But while the war revealed to us in Lincoln
a man equal to his opportunities, it disclosed
a number Of men who fell below the mark.
Horatio Seymour cast away his great opportu-
mites of 1862; General Mcclellan at the head
of the army, permitted his to slip through his
fingers; and the same may be said Of many
others. But neither the suicidal folies poor
Pierce, nor the shocking blunders Of Buchanan,
nor the fatal mistakes of Mcclellan, nor
the blindness of Seymour, will compare with
the stupidity and folly Of the radical managers
of the republican party since the November
elections of 1866. We have here degree OF
rashness and self-conceit for which we can find
parallel only In the late domineering South
ern oligarchy.
In the Northern elections Of 1856 the consti-
tutional amendment, providing, among other
things, that suffrage and representation shall
go together as each State for itself may elect,
was sustained BY popular majori.ies which
marked the path of duty and Of power to the
republicans so distinctly that blind man
might walk it In departing from this, the
peoples highway, the radicals have diverged
into the downhill road to swift destruction.
Their kingdom is turned over to the Medes
and Persians. The man Andrew Johnson, who
was supposed by enemies and friends to be
dead as Julius Caesar, has recovered his feet,
and no man since the time of poor Pierce has
had broader and brighter opportunity to
shape the issues and the results OF the con-
teat for thu aucceasion than IL now pOaseesed