The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1872-03-20

| IN the PRESIDENTIAL canvass New Hampshire,
instead of terrifying the auti-Grant men, seems
to have given them new existence. Mr.
Trumbull has avowed his allegiance to the
new movement Mr.. Schurz has been in sym.
pathy with it for long time. Mr.. Greeley
with an effort to retain his consist,
ency as amusing and as sincere O.
the efforts of Donna Julia in Byron's
epic to preserve her honor, avows that he
will 60 to Cincinnati if he can have his own
way on the tariff question. In other words,
if a cow ention of free traders will say MOTH
ing about free trade, he will assist in the cleo
ton of free trade candidate like Trumbull
and the defeat of a prOtectionist like Grant.
Upton will be there in bowling condition.
Fowler and Ross, having been turned out OF
the Senate for voting against their party, will
attend in the most revengeful temper. There
is rumor that Andrew Johnson will be pres
ent, with the constitution in fine state OF
preservation. And, over all, we are informed
officially, Charles Sumner will preside, and,
| perhaps, deliver two or three days speech
| Now We are far from ignoring the strength
or the character of these gentlemen or belit-
Ting their movement 1t Is possible, as Mr..
| Greeley says that the Cincinnati Convention
| will nominate the next President of the United
States. We say this is possible, but not prob
! able. We are anxious that the Conven ton
| shall not meet under false pretences. We do
these men the justice to believe that they
would not assemble in any convention without
| a definite purpose and the hope of establish
lag definite principle. The purpose is plain
enough. It is "anybody to defeat Grant,"
But what is the principle? Mr.. Sumner wants
civil rights and Observation-Disclosures, Mr..
Schurz desires amnesty, while Mr.. Fowler
would be far from regarding a negro as the
equal of white man. Mr.. Greeley yearns for
protection, while Mr.. Cox would prefer free
trade. There Is no existing political principle
that will not have friends and opponents in
this Convention. The platform, or indeed any
platform, that will meet the wishes of such
Convention will be as negative In Its way as
the platform adopted by the Convention which
nominated Bell and Everett in 1860. That Con-
vention assembled to defeat Lincoln, and was
itself defeated, and, having erected platform
without principles, it came back from the
people without any votes.
We understand the position of Mr.. Sumner
to be that General Grant has quarrelled with
his associates in the administration of the
government, and cannot therefore expect to
retain the confidence and support of the
thoughtful men Of the party. Mr.. Sumner, as
the Amiable Statesman, running upon plat
form of Universal Harmony, is as odd figure
as Governor Geary, Of Pennsylvania, dis
solving partnership with an agent who robbed
the Treasury of three hundred thousand
dollars to proclaim himself ''the elder
brother of reform" No man in public
life has shown as much Impotence and
anger and irritabilty of temper as Mr..
succession of quarrels. He quarrelled with
the old Southerner, but that was pardoned to
his radicalism and patriotic devotion to free
dom. But when his party came into pc wer
he continued to quarrel. He quarrelled with
Lincoln on the Louisiana Reconstruction ques-
ton, with Mr.. Johnson for his "whitewash-
ing" message about affairs In the South, with
General Grant for removing Mr.. Motley for
incompetence as English Minister. He quar-
relied with Fessenden constantly, and often
honored the Senate with public display of
temper. He quarrelled with oster of Con-
necticut and contributed to his defeat in Con-
necticut and with Clark Of New Hampshire,
refusing to allow o single resol ution Of thanks
to be passed for his services as presiding
officer by the declaration that he would make
public assault upon Mr.. Clark in the Senate
If it were offered. His quarrel with Mr..
Trumbull was so long and bitter that we ques-
ton if they can keep the p eace at Cincinnati.
The quarres with Edmunds and Hamlin, and
Conkling and others, might be recited to show
that the man who bitterly complains of what
he calls General Grants disposition to petu-
lance has really been the most quarresome
and impatient Sena tor in public life Mr..
Sumner, as the Amiable State sman, is no less
grotesque than Mr.. Trumbull as reformer
and Mr.. Schurz as de spiser Of patronage.
As to the latter, when he came into the
Senate his clamors for Office and patronage
were so incessant that his CO leagues felt he
was exacting. Here is a man who has been
in office ever since he began his English
grammar, who has been honored far beyond his
years and deserts, who ne YER made political
speech for which he was not well paid, who
used his nationality as on argument for his
own advancement, who has settled in as many
States as the most nomadic carpet-bagger in
the South, who failed in the diplomatic SER
vice, in the army, as an editor and as Sen
ator, until he made desperate effort at
recognition by betraying the party which
honored him and becoming malcontent.
Is this the man to lead the party against
A.. A IA