The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1870-12-20
sPTRIT or THE PRHss.
Editorial Opinions Of the Leading Journals
upon Current Topios-CompiIed Every
Day for the Evening Telegraph.
GENERAL GRANT AND HIS DISAP-
POINTED PARTY LEADERS

and reasonable of men, singulary disposedt to
avoid qu9rrels and to cultivate peace and
harmony with all men, and particularly With
the maguates of his party, is threatened with
all sorts of disasters by his disappointed
party leaders Universally recognized as the
Republican candidate for 1872, it would be
supposed, according to the elementary prin-
ciples of common sense, that all the leaders
and managers of the party, looking to their
own interests, would be harmonious in his
support, however discordant among them
selves But the truth is that Tom, Dick and
Harry, each for his petty personal disap-
pointments, are resolved upon revenge
against Grant and his administration, and as
each of these local leaders has his band of
followers, the whole Republican camp is be-
coming demoraliZed.
Senator Fenton, for example, wished to be
recognized by General Grant as the Yiceroy
of the Republican party of New York-a sort
of Pacha of Egypt-absolute within his
Jurisdiction, and more an ally than a subor-
dinate of. the Sultan. Hence, when General
Grant nominated "Honest Tom Murphy" as
Collector of this port-an independent sort
of Republican who had made himself obnox-
ious to Fenton-this nomination on the part
of Grant was an offense to Fenton which
must be punished How, then, could Grant
expect to escape, when, adding insult to ia
jury, he was charged with the defeat of Fem
tons man, Greeley, in the Republican State
Convention for Governor, and with the nomi-
nation of Murphys man, General Woodford?
Could Fenton overlook such outrages? No.
And so, while in the heat of the battle Gree
ley went off on lecturing tour on farming to
Colorado, Fenton, in disgust, went off on a
pleasure excursion to California, What were
the results? The reelection, first, of Gov
ernor Hoffman by thirty thousand majority,
and, secondly, an opinion from Fenton that
Grant is failure.
Next take the case of Senator Sumner
Mr.. Motley, of Massachusetts, the historian,
somewhat roughly treated as our Minister at
Vienna by Mr.. Seward as the Secretary of
State of President Johnson, isappointed Min
lister to England by General Grant. Sumner
is delighted at the success of his protege; but
Motley, neglecting his instructions, is re-
called, wheroupon sumner becomes indignant,
and, as chairman Of the Senate Committee
of Foreign Relations, seizes his first oppor-
tunity to declare war against favorite pro-
jeot of the President, the annexation of the
splendid tropical island of ST. Domingo,
which may be ours for mere bagatelle, but
which would be a bargain at fifty millions.
OF course Sumner agrees with Fenton that
Grant is failure, and that it is necessary to
fix things in order to cut loose from his ad-
ministration.
Then we have the case of Carl Schurz A
recent political adventurer and squatter in
man and as a supporter of Grant to the United
States Senate. Having secured this position
he next assumes the:right to dispense the pa
tronage of the President throughout the
State, and because the President declines alb
solutely to surrender his authority over these
Missouri appointments to Schurz we find
Schurz boiling, with other disappointed
office-seekers and turning the unsettled poll
tical elements of Missouri all into chaos. Sub
stantially other disappointed and ambitious
politicians had played the same game among
the turbulent and unsettled political elements
of Virginia, North Carolina, and Tennessee,
and with the same results of defeat and dis
aster to the administration party.
And yet again, among the disaffected party
leaders there is Senator Trumbull, of Illinois
What private griefs are his we know not but
it is said that he is ready to join a new party
on free trade and civil service reforms, or on
ANYTHING else, in order to have his satisfac-
tion against Grant and his administration
Evidently Trumbull thinks his claims as the
big man of Illinois have been overlooked,
and therefore is he likewise ripe for revolt.
The history of the old Jacksonian Demo-
cratic party and the old Wing party is full of
such cases; but case or two on each side will
serve to show the mischief which one of these
soured and disappointed party leaders may
work if not taken in hand in season. Martin
Van Buren,, as the favorite of Old Hickory,
was made the Democratic candidate and
elected President in 1886. He thought, how
ever, that, although run again in 1910 and
defeated, he was still entitled to another term;
and, betrayed as he held himself to be from
the manner in which he was cut out by the
two-thirds vote of the Democratic Convention
of 1874, and provoked beyond all forbearance
in being ignored by the convention of 1946,
he ran that year as the independent Free Soil
candidate, and thus carrying off half the De-
mocratic votes of New York from General
Cass, he defeated Cass elected General Tay-
lor, and had his revenge. On the Whig side,
Fillmore, becoming President by the death of
Taylor, was ambitious to be President in his
own right, and made very good fight for ths
Wing nomination of 1852, though General
Scott was too much for him. In 1856, how
ever, failing to get the Republican nomina-
ton, Fillmore ran as the candidate of third
party, and had his satisfaction thereby in the
defeat of Fremont. In 1860 the squabble
among the Democratic leaders, which broke
up the party and brought on the Southern
Rebellion, never would have happened hat
such man as Jackson held the place of pool
old Buchanan in the White House.
Now, if history is philosophy teaching by
example, we can understand the drift of these
disaffections of Fenton, Schurz, Sumner
Trumbull, and others, still claiming to b'
among the lights of the party of Genera
Grants administration. These rebellion
movements are aimed at Grant, aud as thirt
party is the most convenient stepping-ston
to the regular opposition party, we have thes
hints of third party organization. What
then, is the policy of General Grant as th'
recognized head, representative, and candi
date of the Republican party? IL is CLEARLY th