New-York tribune., 1868-10-19
iTP 4DAJIS At COLUMBId,

| We have read the speech Oh MI JOHN S"ncJ
| Adams of Massachusetts, delivered at Colum-
| bia S. c., on tho 11th inst. and cheerfully ad-
nit that it gives evidence of ability and OF an
aptitude for public affairs. Mr.. Adams went to
| the South as n Northern representative OF tho
Democratic party, and, as he is prominent
advocate of the election OF Mr. Seymour, the
Democratic party is to certain extent respOn-
sible for his sentiments and language. Now
anxious rs we arc TO do injustice to no mans
motives. we are yet obliged to av0w our belief
| that Mr.. Adams's Southern speeches are not
| intended for Southern audiences at all. Great
pains have been taken to reproduce them i'm
mediately after delivery and to circulate them
extensively at the North. And our belief is that
the main purpose Of sending Mr.. Adams to
| the South mt all, was to impress upon the
| mind of the Northern public tho notion that the
Sccessionsts are now in such an amiable tenn
per that they will checrfully listen to tho most
unpalatabo truths from the mouth of New
Englandcr without uncoling their ropes and
without warming up their tar-pOts. In pursu-
ance of this judicious arrangement, Mr.. Adams,
whose name made him the very fttost person
TO bo called upon, was invited to come to the
| South and to say to tho Southern people just
what he pleased. IIo was promised Il kindly
reception and fair hearing. He saw at once
the immense service to the Democratic cause
which tho good luck of this opportunity might
enable him to perform and acquesced in the
scheme with cordial alacrty. The moral effect
of n Massachusetts, Adams making speeches
in South Carolina in behalf of Seymour
it was supposed would tell immensely upon
the October elections. The peculiarly of this
scheme was not only that it left Mr.. Adams
quite ut liberty 10 say what he pleased, with
out peril of his life but that it also imposed
upon him the necessity of mildly rebuking his
auditors for their Secession tendencies, and OF
saying 10 the Freedmen many comfortable and
encouraging words. The difficulty of the plan
WAS to be found, however, not in Mr.. Adams )
premises, but in bis conclusions. Being Dem
ocrat, he was to talk like Republican for the
benefit OF wavering Northern voters. Unfor
tunatcly, there were millions OF miles between
his premises and his conclusions. He said "a
great many fine things To which Therefore
"vote for Blair and Seymour" was but n
limping corolary. lie is fresh enough from
the University to remember the warning Of
Horace, aeans, joining mans head to a horses
neck, but theoretically hc has presented
| IItflrtll nhAh l''''A'N h'Ho''-
10 the community. Positively, for Seymour
there is hardly anything in common between
that candidate and Mr. Adams, if the latter is
to be Judged ly his speech at Columbia. The
effect, however, Of his undisguised preference
remains the same. He has such n good under
standing with his audience that he can even
afford TO pay n passing compliment to Cen
Grant, for which the Republican party, de
| priycd Of Mr.. Adams's countenancc and gen
cral support is profoundly and humbly CRATE
| ful. HIS words deserve here to be specially
| recorded 81 do not believe said he, "that
| Gen. Grant is your enemy. | feel sure he
"mcans kindly 20 You, and will try 20 do justice
land show mercy IN his course TO YOU a
"largo MAS of Republicans will help you
4" if you will do your best TO help yourselves.
a great majority OF all the North only wait
ito be sure IL is safe to take yOu cordially by
the hand once morc.n But Mr.. Seymour as
surcs us that it is safe " now, to-day, this
very hour, this very moment Mr. Blair de-
| clarcs that the South il the injured party, and
that il is the North which churlishly wlthholds
! It's hand The Democratic National Convention
does not wait To be assured that il is safe,'
but warmly aud fratcrnally grasps those hands
upon which the blood of our brothers il hardly
| div. Mr. Adams, during the last few days, has,
| without question, shaken thousands Of hands
with the genial fcrvency peculiar to his family.
| If little hand-shaking could but adjust all
our differences, what n beautiful band of broth
crs we should be II might not have been
safe for some of his old political associates,
but under the circumstances he did not run
the slightest lisk. He was in no danger from
what he mildly termed /" the indiscroton of the
South but one who had come uDinvted to
say what he said, might have met with n less
h0spitable reception.
Throughout Mr.. Adamss speech at Columbia,
the anxious reader will look for the link lead
! ing to the coroary OF Blair and Seymour"
and he will look for it in vain. The gentle
man, being in rather II tight place, did the best he
could to maintain his logical respectability; but
| the result, il not failure, was at best an
evasion The fine things said OF the Repubi-
cans tho declarations and promises made for
the North, the avowals that Southern dread OF
Northern domination ia no more than night
mare-all these remain upon the record, but
| the Seymour sequitur. wherever We may seek
| it, Is sought for in vain. The Republican party
is IN an immense majority in the North, and it is
for that majority that Mr.. Adams is speaking
out of the very necessity Of the case, when he
| earnestly assures his Southern hearers that
there Is no design OF trampling upon their
liberties, no wish ncedcssly to abridge their
political privileges, no thought of setting up
dominion over them, no conspiracy against
their material prosperity. This is the way in
| which Mr.. Adams puts tho matter and he is
entitled To a fair quotation Of his own words: