Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1872-04-12

ing the editor Of the Herald with personalities,
which were entirely uncSlled for. saying that hi,
criticisms were prompted by aspirations for
Office, All thst their plans would interfere with
his deecns, referring 20 the Congressional strug-
gle in the tirst district Vt the last election. We
would say that the editor Of the Herald YVES in
no way personally responsible for that movement
AMI was not IL the St.te At the time it was in
sugurated, sad ths; he is not as aspiring az
these gentleman would have the public believe.
So much for that matter. Ifthey have no other
arguments to otter save personalities, their
csuse is certainly lame one. Hss not the Her
ql{ as public journal, right to differ with
contemporEries,-Snd honestly too, without
being set upon by organs controlled
by a clique CT ring in our State politics, for We
believe, as the Register says, " that the people,
will should be consulted, instead Of deferring
the prelimiaries Of the selection Of cSndidates,
wholly to the few political mAgnstes who assume
10 control nominations" whom the FREE Pass
sad Register represent, IN this instance. We
are called " csptious' Can it be Justly said
that We are captious because IN honest differ
ence Of opinion is expressed, Or because The
Herald sees not f; TO follow the Gmi4ble FREE
Press in all it's views, or follow its arrogant die
tation in State politics. for - since when pray,
did the people or the preLs lose the right to dix
cuss candidates" or propositions for candidates,
in opposition or differ from clique or ring,
who assume 10 control nominations and dictste
to the people, what they shall DO
The FREE Pass assumes that the Herald
makes opposition 10 Governor Stewards becom-
ing candidate Tor Congress from the First biz
trict We have made no opposition TO Gov.
Stewards candidacy in that direction. but that
the people should be asked 10 ssy in advance
what Office he must have of c1u7se. on the as
sumption that he must have one Office or the
other. Neither have We deriel his ability 70 fill
any nosition. All Of our offending is simply in
truth this, We have objected 10 the method in
which hit friends bring him out There may
be objections urged 10 him a. a candidate for
Congress, and valid ones, laying aside the uues-
ton Of his pre-eminent ability. But this Is =
question 70 be hereafter discussed, when the
time comes for action. Il has been simply
claimed that no districts are yet in existence IN
der the new spport.onment, Snd thst It is too
esrly to discuss candidates. The First district
may be IS it now stands, or other geograp hicAl
divisions mxy he assigned. It is not certain
that even Il Vermont has only two districts, that
the west side shall compose enc and tie eStt side
another; therefore. il is eminertly uufEir 10 Sc
sumo that il shall be raid there is only one man
who must be selected The people Of the new
district mty have men whom they desire 20 pc
sent without having the question torec!osed be-
fole they have a local hSoitadou.
Tie Herald zsser,s that it makes 70 opposi-
tiou to Gov. Stewards candidacy for Congrsss,
and it has before stated that j, hal no opposition
to ofer to his denomination for Governor. Al
it objects TO, it seems is 70 'the metboi in which
his friends bring him out " In what way, prsy,
would the Herald have him brought cut? Il
seems to US thst Bh.tever bringing ont there
has been in the mstter, Aas been exceedingly
natural 4 une1cep;iousble. one would sup
pose from the HcraiFs wsy Of treating the
subject, that the suggestion ci 5ir. S;evsrt's
nsme, fer & congressional nomination, vasslme-
thing sudden ard surprising. What sre the
facts John W Stewart has been before the
public in ore capacity or another for good
many yearr Known first ~ prominent law
yer, and 81 earnest sni working republican, he
wss chosen 70 represent his town in TIE House
and bis county in the State Senate, End took high
rank in each body. He vas Speaker Of the House
for three years, sud one Of the most popular sui
capable Speakers that body has hal PROM
nerce and capacity in such positions Of course
suggested to many his fitness to represent Ver-
mont in Congress He was more OF less
talked Of in his distric. for Congress four years
ago but he did not encourage the suggestion.
Two yesrs sgo he WIS strongly urged by leading
Republicans in his district, TO be a candidate
for Congresg Believing in what Masachu-
setts exchange calls " the good old Vermont
practice Of giving every faithful public servant
second term he absolutely declined 20 per-
nit the use Of his name IN opposition 10 Mr.
Wizards denomination. Since then he has
served = term as Governor, with credit, aud hat
tdded to the number Of Lis friends and to his
wide and envisb!e reputation in and out Of the
State What wonder, then, that when the sub
ject Of nominations came up afresh, lie name
should be one of the first talked Of, in many
quarters, both for reelection as Governor and
for Congress? The Miiilebury Register, with
out consultation, go far as We are aware, with
any other paper without any prompting or in
spirstiyn from Governor Stewart; and as it de-
clares without any knowledge what his personal
preferences were in the matter, suggested, very
mildly and without indication Of its own choice,
that the voters might want to tend Mr. Stewart
to Congress, and that the peoples will should
be consulted. The FREE Pass and other State ps-
pers have also discussed the subject, as probably
they had come right to DO, this being free com
try; ami We have added while declaring explicitly
that personSl wishes should be Eubordinated
to the public good and that the question was
one for the people to settle, expression Of our
conviction, based on some knowledge OF the stu
stion, that Nj SteEart's name would harmonic
more interests than any other in the First Dis
trict, as it i, or as it il likely to be, and that the
call on him to be candidate for Congress was
likely 20 be al imperative one. What sbsurd-
ity it il, under such condition Of facts, to talk
about " arrogant dictation"
The Herald, with characteristic inconl;st-
ency, declares that the FREE PRESs and Register
represent only clique or Z" ring in the same
breath in which it copies spprOvingly the Reg
listers objection to " defegring the preiminaries
Of the reelection Of candidates 70 few political
msgnstes. As to that, we undertake to say
that the Herald's trouble is jutt that this is a
matter which no clique can control It
knows inst Governor Stewart stands high
with the people; that there are men in every
town in the State who know and esteem him as
an upright, capable and faithful son Of Yer
mont, who has thus far been found not wanting
in any public position in which he has been
placed 1t knows that his name will be pow
erful one in any convention into which it is
brought and it lie on this account that any al
asion to such possibility is SO unsAvory to the
Herald.
If the Herald had let iis readers zee our re-
nsrkr, they would know, as ours do, thar the
personalities - of which it complains, 50 far &c
his paper is concerned, have consisted in a |
simple anufion to the fact that our friend of |
he Herald has been. and if no; belisd would |
ike again TO he, & candidate for nomination
o Congress, He had, and has, perfect right, of
'ourse, to be candidate 4; but such being his
connection with the CANVASS, be cannot expect
he Circumstance to be overlooked, or that intelli
,ent people will fail to End in ii sn explanation
( the peculiar course Of the Herald and Of its
ague illusions to some hitherto unheard of ar
Of districts, under which such can
dscy may have some faint hope of success.
The Herald thinks it 60 too early to discuss
andidatef," but we arc not aware that any one
member Of the press has the right to fix the
ime when public discussion on such subjects
hall begin. We did not open the discussion
ut we agree with the Watehman that the early
pening is an evidence Of good faith and of
esire for the. fullest and fairest comparison Of