The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1869-01-22


Let us pray that it may not be Gen. Butler.
Let the litany be amended and this interpolat.
ed: "From Benjamin Franklin Butler, Good
Lord, deliver u.s."
But our own Washington correspondent
generally reliable-said the other day that
Butler was gaining marked ascendency in
the House and that the smaller fry of Con-
gressmen were clearing a path for him to the
vacant chair of Thaddeus Stevens. This au-
thority and many others express the opinion
that Benjamin has got into a lions skin 'h''.
terrifes all the Congressional mice, who uo no'
even dare to squeal when he is III HIS scat
Tie debates of Congress are watched III VAN
for anv attempt even to question the sound
mass of his Financial views" as set forth in a
recent speech plagiarized from the English
against him. He is supposed to have the pow
er of the evil eye. His anger is fatal. Who
ever crosses his path, finds himself suddenly
baset by some unexpected visitation of provi-
dence. Gen. Fitzpatrick, who took the stump
against him in the Essex district last fall, must
cen lose his diplomatic head. His resentment
is as lasting and implacabe as that OF an In
dian brave. He knows everybody's antece-
dents, and when they, for any reason, go coun-
ter to his wishes, he trips up their heels.
Yes, there is a genuine glamour about this
Yankee "statesman"-this political banshee
who casts spells on whole Congressional dis
trcts that awake to find him their duly ac-
credited Representative none but men
of heroic natures can withstand. Grant, being
hero, survived his wrath and still lives, a
prosperous gentleman. He could chain up
Butler for thousand years. if he would, but
he prefers to allow him TO go at large az a
striking example of the power of his own
puissant arm.
But we do protest against Butler-frst, be-
canse he is quack. Half the prominence be
he has gained is due to the skill he has shown
in stealing other mems ideas and presenting
them as his own, to the confidence and
aggressiveness of his address and to the I'M
scrupuousness of the means he is willing to
adopt to carry his points. The real man But
Ter, apart from such adventitious aids as he
possesses, would be no more than any other
successful criminal lawyer with superabun-
dance of physical energy and an iron-clad con-
science. The insubstantial nature of this
almost any one of his public acts. Believing
that that the people are all knaves at heart, he
early created schism in the Republican
ranks by advocating reputation. In the fur
Their development of his theory he last week
delivered speech in which he attacked the
very corner stone of finance and advocated a
plan for making the irredeemable paper dis
case with which the country is afflicted Ghron-
ic. Following the natural promptings of a
perverse nature he was the first man to intro
duce measure for The repeal OF the tenure-of-
office act. This is to give Congress more 'pat-
ronage" Abiding incidentally to the subject
OF reciprocity the other day, he took strong
ground against it, holding that Canada would
hnally be coerced into annexation by keeping
up the custom house wall that now divides her
from the United States. He is man who, in
general, looks at all matters from the lowest
possible standpoint, that of his own supposed
private interest His Radiealism is that of a
man who has observed the irresistible drift of
public sentiment in that direction and has too
much shrewdness to oppose himself to it, He
was the greatest blessing possible to New Or
leans, but has since been the greatest possible
curse to the Republican party by lowering its
tone and bringing down its average respectable
ity very considerably by uniting himself to it.
The hour of such men as Butler has not vet
come. These are the days that bring men of
the stamp of Grant, Lincoln, Colfax and Ham
lin to the front. William Atkinson, during
the campaign last fall, besought the people of
the Essex district not to marry the "widow
Butler" The party alluded to is now wooing
the nation, with, let us hope, but small pros
fofxI