The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1870-10-21

Friday Morning, Get Der 81, 1870.



We suppose it must have occurred 10 many
people that Mr.. Honeythunder OF poor DICK
ens's unfinished story is toleraoie porlraiI Vi
Wendell Phillips in some OF MS intellectual
aspects No doubt hundreds have already
congratulated themselves on detecting the re
semblance especially if they have read Mr..
Phillips's Music Hall speech which was pub
lished in Yesterday mornings PRESS. But the
resemblance is by no means perfect. The
professional philanthropist' of the story is a
bore, while the Massachusetts orator is the
most entertaining of men. Mr.. Honeythun
der is loud and vulgar, while Mr.. Phillips rep
resents in his person and manner the best cul-
ture and the most fastidous taste of the mod.
ern Athens. But both are exceedingly ag-
gressive in their love of their fellow men, and
both live comfortably on their professional de-
votion to the interests of humanity. Both
are ready, like the famous clergyman, Peter
Cartwright, "to pound the grace of God" in
to whoever dissents from their views. They
denounce, hrowbeat and intimidate whoever
is not of their guild
But no one can deny that Phillips has been
extremely useful in his day, and that the gen.
eral direction of his thought has been toward
the good and the true and the just. There
have been minor and temporary departures
from this course, but these alterations have
had relation chiefly to methods and not to
ends 1t seems to us that just now the great
agitator has put himself in the way of pro-
gress while attempting to effect moral and in
dustrial reforms through other agencies than
the only party that has power enough to
effect. them. By accepting a nomination for
Governor from the temperance and labor re-
form parties he has placed himself in the best
possible position to do the greatest possible
amount of damage to reforms of all kinds
We believe that in all the numberless in
stances in which the more ardent friends Of
special reforms have organized independent
parties the result has always been unfortu-
nate, and that instead of fastening the pro-
gress of the reformatory movement they have
retarded it. 1t is very easy to find fault with
the Republican party because it moves slowly
and because it often requires outside pressure
and sometimes the impulse of great emergen-
cies to cause lit act boldly and efficiently
But the people who are loudest in their COM
plants do not consider what the Republican
party is; they do not consider that it COM
prises more than half of the entire people
and that it is work of some magnitude to
produce concurrence of opinion among SO
many individuals. Whether reformers work
inside or outside of the Republican party they
must obtain this concurrence of opinion
among more than half of the voters of the
State or nation. This being the case they
can work with some hope of success within
the limits of party that already comprises
the necessary numbers and has already an
unmistakable tendency in the right direction
however slowly it may move. If they work
in antagonism to it they may assist in its
overthrow or humiliation, but at the same
time they destrow the only means of success
in that which they especially desire. Within
the Republican party, we believe that every
thing is possible; outside of it there is so tar
nothing but darkness and moral anarchy.