The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1869-06-21
prNNsYLyAN1As FAvoRTrE SON.

Kellev. there is the poet Boxer! But we |
rOean Andrew Curtin Just now. The true |
ampbitryon is the amphitryon who entertains |
lia at dinner Pennsylvanias real favorite |
son is the last son got into high Office |
Curtin now fills the post, for Curtin is now |
ON his way as Minister to Russia. Before he |
wrune his nomination out of Grant, Curtin |
had not been latterly much of favorte. |
But the commission did the work. Like Ca
madam feld-to-day all snow, tomorrow all |
flowers like a varioloid patient-to-day all |
fever and tomorrow all pustules-Ourtin,
despised of all men when Borie was preferred |
before him, suddenly bloomed out the Penn
sylvanian of the period Pennsylvania is
agonized at the thought of parting, even for
a brief period, with her 'favorite SON" The
Rachel of the Delaware refuses to be COM
forted. Every village within her wide bor-
ders, from Stony-Batter to Young -Womlns-
town, from Tinicum to Tideout is in mourn
ing The hammers of Centre county droop
and decline to trip. The eyes of Belefonte
the Governors natal place-have become
fountains of tears, and the Bald Eagle and the
Susquehanna rivers, ordinarily as dry at this
season as the Spanish Manzanares, swell and
throb with emotion.
Philadelphia is a perfect Niobe, save that
hers is not a voiceless woe. All her insti-
tutions shrek, save, indeed, the Union
League; and from that, owned as it practically
;,
iointed nose. nothing was to be expected.
All else is genuine praise and heartfelt lamen-
taton. Independence Hall, which, in 1856,
was refused by Known Nothing Councils to an
eminent Pennsylvania statesman returning
from successful mission, is rendered to
Curtin; the Democratic Mayor writes him
touching letter" and makes him mild
speech, and for an hour by the cracked
bell of the Declaration" he shook hands
xuifb fba tocr hn of
occasionally, after the manner of Lafayette
on the same spot, embracing some transient
anti Catholic veteran of 1854. Then in the
evening there was a banquet at the Academy
of Music, with Hasslers band and reserved
seats for ''the ladies'; none, however, for the
negroes-they, prOh pud0r, being secluded in
f'the gallery Judge Thayer presided, and
made iudicous Introductory speech, to
which ''the guest responded, and the gay
scene went on without interruption till the
small morning hours. And yet to us who
look on things at a distance, there are in
all this some unpleasantly noticeable features
negative and positive. Why were so
many well-known Pennsylvanians, military
and civil absent or mute Why was it
that, at the festivity in honor of the great
''War Governor" Philadelphia soldiers, now
residing within a stones throw of the
Academy of Music-Meade and Humphreys
and Patterson and Cadwalader and Nagle
and Wister and Haupt and Crawford
and Tyndale-were absent, and do not
seem even to have heen invited Tho horo
of Gettysburg Eve don't mean Sickles) was
not even toasted or alluded to. Then, emil
nent loyal Philadelphia civilians, founders of
sanitary fairs and Christian commissions
Stuarts and Ornes and Claghorns and
Bakers and Fells and Pratts-where were
they ? We do not detect Forney even in
letter though we do our own Walbridge.
i - l.,
and Senator Scott absolutely went out of
his way to pooh-pooh the great anglopho-
bist's Alabama rhetoric. These are certainly
strange omissions Nor is this all. There
were ominous utterances, too, as we'll as awful
lapses, at the loyal board, to which, as faithful
chroniolers, we feel bound to call attention.
If Democrat, soldier or civilian, were even
now to speak disparagingly of the war ad-
ministration of the sainted Lincoln, whether
as manipulated by Cameron or by Stanton,
great would be the wrath of the 'loyal;" yet
Governor Curtin said, with emphasis and ap-
parent deliberation, speaking of that very adj
ministration, and no bottle of just indigna-
ton sienced him:-''The General Govern
ment, charged with the preservation of the
life of the republic, was pitiLeSs, relentless,
and deGf to the just claim of volunteer
soldieryo To which his friend, Colonel
Mcclure, whose speech is carefully reported,
added
"Maj0r-General Patterson, commanding in Penn
sylYania, made requisition for $4,000 threeyears
men, and they were being rapidly organized when
the national authorities revoked the order denied
the commanders authority, and refused to accept
the troops, because not needed. Our State was
threatened and defenseless, and the Reserve Corps
was authorized after painful and desperate strug
gle with united imbeclity and inhdety."
The truth is, and it was so known, though
concealed at the time, that in her hour of need
PENNSYLVANIA was more than once shamefully
abandoned and offered up sacrifice to Lin
coins chronic alarm about Washington and
his own precious person, and to Stanton S
fierce personal antipathy to everything and
every man that bore the name of penn
sylvanian; and Governor Curtin really does
deserve credit for what he did, with Gov
ernor Seymour's help, to protect his State
and its metropolis, and the miserable orna-
mental Leaguers who now shrink away from
him, and who, says the ECeRiRg Bulletin
commenting on this very banquet, could
have no power but for the lavish use of i'll
gotten money.
With all these drawbacks, however. the
honors of Curtin were worthy of his mother
commonwealth, and he goes on his way re-
ioicing in their fresh luxuriance. On his
arrival at st. Petersburg, which we trust may
be safe and speedy, he will, as all newly
fedged Ministers do, study the archives of
the legation and the correspondence OF his
predecessors. In Russia this correspondence
extends over nearly ninety years; for the
first American Minister reached there III
August, 1881, so the work of revision will
not be an easy one. Aided however, by
two intelligent and experienced secretaries
Mr.. Curtin can, perhaps accomplish it-espe