The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1872-01-19
THE PRE- SIS.
FRIDAY MORNING, JAN. 10, 1872.
MIR. Blaine and His Friends.

Tacitus, Livy, Xenophon and other ancient
writers were accustomed to put whoie ora
tions into the mouths of their historical per-
sonages. representing their own illusions as
the genuine productions of their heroes. In
modern times such practices have come to be
justly regarded as pernicious, the tendency
being to undermine the confidence which it
is desirable should be reposed in the state
ments of historians. But modification of
this ancient practice has been adopted by
some of our greatest and best Americans.
The speeches of Patrick Henry" which are
still so Familiarity known to every American
schoolboy, are not the work OF the great
Virginia orator, but of his biographer, Writ
The famous speech of John Adams in sup
port of the Declaration of Independence was
put into his mouth by Daniel Webster. There
was no sin against veracity committed by
Webster, because the intent to deceive was
wholly wanting, and the whole matter was
well understood by his contemporaries, but
already the origin of the famous speech is
becoming obscure, and there are multitudes
of intelligent persons who regard it as the
genuine performance of the first Adams.
A still further modification of the practice
referred to is now in every days use. A
writer or speaker, not having time or space
to state at length the arguments of his sup
porters or opponents, and not undertaking to
cite their exact language at any particular
time or place, indicates their general position
on given subject by very concise sentence
or sentences in which their views are summed
up with greater or less precision and fairness
according to the mental or moral qualities of
the person making the statement. The for
mula is not ''Mr. A.'s position is represented
by such and such language" but "Mr. A.
says so and so." Mr.. Pendleton says that
''the bonds should be paid in greenbacks."
Gen. Butler declares that ''gold and silver are
unfit for currency Mr.. Sumner says: "Let
us be just to the freedman before we are gen.
erous to the Rebel" The Advertiser says:
''Let the railroads consolidate, and then we
will control em." The Wing says that ''the
European & North American road is all
right" and ''the suffering corporation has
been abused by the PRESS" The Wing says: :
"Give us more State aid" Or Mr. Brown,
making a speech on the subject of politi-
cal corruption, says: ''Senator Carpenters
remedy is woman suffrage. He declares
that we have only to give woman the ballot
and the millennium will come" ...f..,o.
From causes like these, and like that touch
ing Mr.. Blaine, of which some of our con-
temporaries complain, the element of UNI
truthfulness is completely eliminated. Every
body understands what is meant. The in
tent to deceive which is the essence of false
hood is wholly wanting. Such rhetorical
figures are open to objection only when they
misrepresent the position of the person in
whose mouth the condensed statement is put.
1t is not claimed by the Kennebec Journal or
by any other of Mr.. Blaine's supporters that
the language attributed to the Speaker in the
manner described and for the purpose indi-
Gated above, conveys false impression as to
question. On the contrary, they defend that
position, and say that all our other Maine
Representatives shared in the merit of hold
ing them. Not only is the ground taken by
the Speaker correctly stated, but it is held by
his friends to be no disparagement to him.
What stark lunacy it is, under such circum-
stances, to talk of ''maligning prominent
mem and to demand apologies where no
offense has been committed! We cannot un-
derstand the effort of three Maine dailies
to convict the PRESS of falsehood where,
according to their own admissions, it has
told the truth