Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1872-08-16
NO. 1876.
THE NASBY LETTERS.
Mr.. NAsBY AT CHAPPAoUA-A DILEMMA AND
HOW IT WAS NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. PRovI-
SION FOR THE FUTURE.
From the Toledo Blade.

SION FOR THE FUTURE.
From the Toledo Blade.
Chappaqua,
(Which is in the State Nv Moo York.
August 5, 1872,
am now quartered more nearly to my
taste than hev bin sence the halcyon days
Nv a. johnson, who is now no more. hev
a room to myself to wich my meels is sent.
l hev my own private bottle, and the labor is
light, though the responsibility is heavier than
could wish. l wuz sent here by the ma
shunal Democratic committee, to take charge
Nv these premises, and to see that eur te-
loved candidate, the great and good Greeley,
does not make an ass Nv hisself more frekent-
ly than is good for us.
l arrived yesterday mornin and to- wunst as
soomed the dooties Nv the posishen. Ny first
work was the inspeckshun Nv the axes on the
farm, which the great and good Ho-ris yooses
on his trees. | found them all too heavy for
sich continyuous chopin ez he hez to do.
With them axes, his strength wood give out
long afore the campane is over. ordered
half-dozen lighter ones, and sold the stock on
hand to the naberin farmers, the proceeds Nv
wlch shell remit to the nashnel committee
ct don't forget it. Then, agin, found the
ladder wich the great woodchopper yooses to
ascend trees, wuz not only clumsy in its con-
struction, but dangerous, and ordered an
other Of better pattern. l he'd many other
things to reform. Just after the Cincinnati
convenshun it was reported to Horrs that it
wood hev good effect eff visitors shood alluz
ketch him up tree trimmin branches, and
ever sence the old man hez gone out at 9 in
the morning, clum tree and stayed there till
mite, wien loonatic procedure wuz a fearful
waste CT time ez visitors only come four times
day. He was terribly exhausted. l fixed
this by hevin a small but intellectual boy
pirch hisself onto post in the road wich leads
to the house, with a signal flag. When a
party, headed for the philosophers house,
makes its appearance, the boy waves his flag,
and the great and good Greeley takes off his
coat and gets up tree, waiting to be sur
prised at his yoosual .avocation. At first he
yoosed to get down too quick, to make it
look natral, but hev trained him SO that he
whacks away with a most bland expression
on his face, till l call twice sr three times.
To save walking too far, dig up tree and
plant it near the house. One will keep green
for ten days, and when the branches is cut
off we take out the naked trunk and put
another in its place.
l hev, however, some trouble. My person.
al appearance is better sooted to the latitood
Nv kentucky than Moo York, and l hev to
wear a hat without any rim to it, in the sun,
to account for the redness of my nose. Then
hev to meet so many kinds Nv people. We
hev here the old aboisbnist and the old DEM
ocrat, wich are the hardest to manage. Then
comes the modified democrat, who accepts
Niger suffrage and sich, eff he kin be asloored
the post-otfis in his native village, and the
modified republican who is willing to swaller
amnesty, and likewise to doubt whether uni
versal suffrage wuz good thing after all,
provided he kin be ashoored Nv the collec
| -, IN. ...lT
and which is now held by a minyun and and
| nepot. In short we hev all shades here and
its bother to take care NV em all. l don't
like mulatto babies, becoz every one of EN-
is proof positive that there's bin adultery
somewhere. For the same reason l don't like
coalishun parties. They amt natral and
every one Nv EN- bears the mark NV the sin
thro wich it come into the world. Ours is a
mule party, eff ther ever wuz one, and l
heartily wish we wuz thro with it.
had fearful time ov it yesterday. Our
picket guard waved his flag. Horris got up
his tree, and in moment there appeared
delegashun ov Moo Workers escortin dele
gasEun ov Southerners. l took EN- out under
/ the tree, Horris come down, and he went to
the house and commenst immejitly discussin
the questions wv the day. The Moo Workers
wuz importers and Consistently free traders,
and the Southerners wuZ free traders NV
course. The great and good Greely wuz ekal
to the emergency. He did not deny that at
various periods ov his life he he'd leaned
somewhat to the doctrine NV perteckshun.
| What his views were now on this important
subjeck lie would not at this time state, that
| is, in full. By reference to his letter, it wood
be seen that all such miner questions he'd been
left to the people. Eff the people wanted
| free trade they should hev it. Eff the peo-
pie wanted perteckshun, while his views
he'd modified somewhat on that question, he
shood-
At this pint interrupted him. My horri-
| fed vision saw that internal flag wavin.
torris started for his tree from sheer force
NV habit, but checked him and went out my
self to meet them. l. wuz not long left in
suspense ez to who they wuz. They wuz
manufacturers from Massachusetts! Here
wuz a fix. Southerlers and Moo York i'm
porters, and Moo England manufacturers, all
callin on presidenshul candidate to wunst!
1t wuz too late to git Greedy out NV the way.
and there wuz no way but to let them come
together and trust to luck. / nterdoosed em
and stood by to see the result. Poor Horris
saw the fix he was in, and prespirel.
The Moo Engandels opened by direct
reference to the tariff question, when throwd
myself into the breach. l remarked that this
wuz no time to teach questions Nv so little
| m0ment-tnat all tlese nlatterS neu BIN lett
to the people, who wuz entirely competent to
say what they wantid-that our principle biz.
ness wuz to clasp hands across the bloody
chasm, that reconciliation aud brotherly
feelin was our best holt-that wat every pat
riot most desired wuz to see the flag of oul
common country, without a star missin, agir
toatin in the breeze, and that eff any gentle
man desired to see to what perfecshen th'
next president he'd brought turnip cultur,
shood be pleased to show them over the farm
and quatf with them the eoolin waters NV the
spring which he'd become as famous, almost
ez the spool ofeBethesda."
One Of the Moo Englanders remarked tha
the flag was all very well-the turnips wuz
all very well, and that the spring was very
pool of Bethesda, for all the halt and biind'
and them with sores, congregated here, but
wat he wanted to know about wuz the tariff
Here, thought /, is trouble, but there
wnsn't. At this critikle moment, the great
and good Greeley wuz so overcome with the
heat that he tainted and fell from his chair,
;oh with eknl Dresence of mind seized