The Portland daily press., 1872-05-04
THE PRESS.
SATURDAY MORNING, MAY 4, 1879.
The Cincinnati Nominations.
nj, l,,.o;,,.+; assemblage of Adullamites

,,,.o c;nc;nn.ti assemblage of Adullamites
have made ticket as homogeneous as them
selves. Horace Greeley, extreme protection
;st and lifelong temperance advocate is unit
ed in bonds of Presidential matrimony with
Benjamin Gratz Brown, extreme free-trader
and not by any manner of means teetotaller.
Greeley is thoroughly well-known to the peo-
pie OF this country. A vigorous and aoie
writer, he early devoted himself to the ree
soil movement and the change fpubllc opln-
ion on this subject was largely assisted Dy
him and, reciprocally, from the popularity OF
the views advocated by him, he gained great
influence. He has never, however, been re-
garded as a discreet man in guiding the prac-
tical working of the theories which he advo-
Gated. To go no farther back than the begin
ming of the war of the rebellion, he advocated
vigorously peaceful acquiescence in secession.
The nation ignoring his counsels, he next
made vehement demands that our unframed
anduntried troops should bepushedintoinstan
action and son to Richmond p bristled all over
the Tribune every day, until the exhortations
were needed, and the disaster at Bull Run had
filed the land with mourning. Our govern
ment thus speedily learning that Greeley was
an eminently unsafe counselor, was compen-
ed, in common discretion, to disregard his
wishes; whereupon he opened his batteries in
full attack upon Mr.. Lincoln and his advis-
ers, which never ceased until the death of the
good President, and embarrassedthe admins
tration infinitely in all future operations. His
various eccentric escapades during the war,
including his amateur peace-making expedi-
ton to Niagara, where he coquetted with
rebel leaders and disturbed the constansy of
patriotic hearts in the very agony of the con-
fict, are well-known toeverybody. He strong
ly opposed Mr.. Lincoln's denomination, for
which the people were eager and intent. He
ostentatiously became bondsman for Mr..
Davis, to the very sincere sorrow of the
Northern people, who felt that, if treason
were not to be punished by death or imprison-
ment, it should, at least, not receive tcounte-
nance and ACKNOWLEDGEMENT from loyal men. As
matter of current history. We shall give all
the points in detail in the course of the cam
paign, which is now opened. Mr.. Greeley's
whole record shows that he is an eminently
unfit person for the grave responsibilities of
government. He is fiercely intolerant of op-
position; he is indiscreet, uncertain and alb
normally eccentric. A man of large capacity
in some directions, he would be as entirely
unsuitable for the head Of an administration
as Wendell Phillips.
Benjamin Gratz Brown, his associate on
the ticket, is native Missourian, good
speaker and naturally an able man. He SYM
pathizes to the extreme in the views Of his
section which are Numerically opposed to
the theories which Mr.. Greeley has always
advocated. He is the gentleman who was OBJ
served at public hotel table to butter slice
of watermelon and eat it for bread. The
country has suffered chagrin from one drunk
en- Vice-President sufficiently keen to render
the prospect of repetition of the disgrace ex-
ceedingly unpalatable. The whole affair is so |
utterly incongruous as to give rise to the sus- |
picion that it is the work of the adversary;
that many of the conyentionists finding that /
their own pet measures were to be defeated
united upon this ticket to make the matter so
ridiculous that none would follow and thus
the result become a practical nullity.
1t viii be curious to observe how our Demo-
cratic friends win regard the situation. Their
hopes were so high for the nomination of |
Davis, Adams or Tumbull, that the disap-
pointment must be great 1t would certainly
be queer political experience for them to
find themselves voting for Mr.. Greeley, who
has vilifed, ridiculed and denounced them
more than any other man in America.