The Portland daily press., 1870-06-17

CIT is great deal BETTER" says the astute
Josh Billings, "not to know thing than to
know what amt so." We commend this phil
osophical remark to the conductors of the
Advertiser. Their cool assumption of know
ing all political knowledge from the move
ments of individual candidates to the issue of
the closest contests, frequently leads them
astray. Thus they erred in stating that Gen.
Hersey was at the Augusta House on the eve
ming of the 14th inst. Fortunately for Mr..
Perham the kindly presence, genial laugh and
cordial grasp of his competitor were not seen
nor felt at that rendezvous of politicians:
otherwise Mr.. P.'s scanty majority might have
melted away beneath their magic influence.
But it was, quite naturally, supposed that
Gen. Hersey would be there; therefore the
Advertiser man, Immediately after his own
arrival Tor possible before he left the editorial
sanctum) wrote the dispatch announcing the
presence of the Eastern candidate. Possibly
the expectation of seeing him so affected the
imagination that some other form was mis-
taken for his. But the information that he
was not present led their reporter into graver
errors still. With their own peculiar and re-
markable prediction for discovering combin-
atoms, rings, ''gambits," and every descrip-
ton of political plot aud scheme where no.
body else can see aught but the farest,straieht-
out fight, Gen. HIS absence was at once sup
posed to indicate that he was conspirng in
secret with somebody to defeat his opponent
at all hazards; and Hon. Samuel E. Spring
happening to be present, as a delegate from
this city, and known to be friendly to Gen.
Hersey, he was selected as an eligible second
party to the imagined conspiracy, and it was
gravely asserted that eff the Hersey marty
should be beaten on a test question, as of sus-
tanning the rule of the committee about sub-
stitutes, they would attempt flank move
ment for Mr. Spring, of Portland, hoping to
defeat Perham at all events" The truth is
that the friends of both candidates were san
guine of success, and never contemplated de-
feat as possible contingency nor made any
preparation for it; nor did they seek or expect
to avert it by any other means than by active
efforts for the only men named or thought of
in the contest
When Hon. Samuel E. Spring is candi-
date for Governor he is strong enough and
suhclently sasacious, as well as honest, to
contend for it openly and not under the cover
oi any other name, however popular; and
VIII win Or lose in fair fight and not PLAYING
CAMPUS or Matching treason, stratacem and
spolls," for which the Advertiser has sucb n
keen SCENT. Those sounds which in the pa
litical Wilderness "of that paper. syllable
mems names" as connected with every nossi-
BILE form of political treachery are too purely
imaginary to affect the honor of men whose
straightforward dealings are well known in
this community; they are, like those which as
sailed the knight of the charming German story
as he passed through the enchanted forest, in
tended only to delude and bewilder: and like
them, too, in being attributable only to ma
hgnant and diabolical origin. and not as rep
resenting any actual occurrence of the every
day lie OF this world.