The Richmond palladium. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1855-1875, 1871-04-15

A discriminating estimate OF al
public man is rare in these days.
Party feeling is apt to make it
eulogy or detraction. The GUS
tomary advice to average the two
as an approximation to fairness, is,
like most advice, easier to give
than to take. The result, if prac-
ticable, might not be far out of the
way, but no one could fix the ele
ments that composed it. 1t might
not be a bad guess, but it would be
no analysis. 1t would not array
debit and credit. with q clean bal
ance, and that is what an intelli-
gent man wants, even if he be sus-
picious that debts and credits need
traLsposing at times. Such an es-
innate of Senator Morton of this
State appeared recently in Euery
Satuday, the leading literary and
illustrated paper OF New England.
1t is not Our estimate, it is not
quite accurate in its statements, it
is strongly tinged with the immov7
able faith Of New England in the
advantages which q New England
nativity gives any man over other
men, it is partial, but it is neither
eulogy nor detraction. 1t allows
merit, and suggests defects, aud,
though it does not allow merit al
together in the right direction, and
suggests defects in the wrong one,
it will give reader clearer con
ception Of the Ex-Governor's char
acter and abilities than all the edi-
torials of all the party papers in
the State, from his Court House
speech on coercion in 1860 to his
last speech on the Ku-Klux bill
With its biographical sketch we
have nothing to do but correct its
statement as to the Office for which
he was q candidate in 1856. II
was that Of Governor, not Lieu.
tenant Governor. The two points
we care TO notice are. Ist, the com
parison Of him with Governor An
drew, of Massachusetts,. and End
the depreciation Of his ability '.tt
comprehend what the sober judg
ment of the country demands"
Of the dozen loya. Governors
who signed the famous address o
the Altoona meeting to Mr.. Lin
coin, we are told that s.the tw,
most notable were "John A. An.
drew and Oliver P. Morton" "Il
both, devotion to the cause of th
Union Was lofty, heroic and ear
nest, but the Western Governo,
cast in . different mould, lacke
the fervid and solemn religious en-
thusiasm which made his Massa
chusetts colleague the noblest. fig
ure of his time and position" w
allow Governor Andrew all th
religious enthusiasm" that Ne,
England admiration may see
him, but we do not allow that it G
any other ''enthusiasm" makes
man . "nobler figure" than til
cool judgment, the dauntless reso
luton. the prompt decision, til
unflagging energy that avert gre'
perils, overcome great obstrue
tions. defeat great conspiracie
and meet great demands with litt
means and less help. There
something grand in the unsel6s
fervor Of any real enthusiasm, b,
when a higher place in history
allowed to it than to the iron wi
and ample brains that do the riel
work at the right time. we shs
look for our "noblest figures" in
mad house. We do not mean al
disparsgement to Governor Al
drew. We have no thought of /.
implication that his 4eDthusiasu
exhaled in rhapsodies, or expl,
ded in follies. He was a practic
man. an able, energetic, and glor
GUS man, who did all that his hal
found 70 do, and did it with all
might. But he had no such ta
as fell to the lot of Governor Nc
ton. 1t was all plain sailing
him where the rocks were plentie
and the currents hardest for
colleague. What WAS harbor al