New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1872-09-04
THAT'S WHAT'S THE MATTER.

Tvs WHAT'S THE MA11Eh.
There is a newspaper issued in Paris called
The american Reqister, from which good Amer
leans in that heavenly city get their Journal
"jsticn pabulum; but we infer that the quality
of the ratiOns furnished is OF the sort which
will be specially rclished at the American Lee
cation. What this Yankee in partibus says
of our great national canvass eagerly copied'
we observe, by the Grant and Wilson sheets
in this country, which proves rather tho short
ness of their resources than tho length Oh
their heads. For this writer, who is probably
n small sort of q clerk in the ambassadors OIL
fee. ia so saturated with the notion that
nolitics mean nothing but Ofice-holdlng
that he burts out the fears which
aoitate his soul after the following fashion
"If Mr.. Greeley is elected it will be as Dem
"ocratic President, and the backbone of the
Republican party will be broken. The Dem
" ocrats will swOop down upon the oihces from
(which they have been SO long exciuded'"
This writer, you see, is thinking OF his salary.
He is afraid that President Greeley will turn
him out, or turn out his master, which VIII
amount to the same thing. The poor man
is Mt to blame. There is plenty OF good,
straight Republicans like him here at home'
equally patriotic and equally hungry. They
think, too, that "the Democrats Will sWoop
down upon the oflices,n and they regard such
descent as an invasion OF their venerable
and vested interests. They have been so long
in place that they fancy tho places belong 10
them. They have been so long among the
Ins that they think putting them out would be
equivalent to manslaughter, ~ very possibly
it would be.
It is this feeling Of personal interest which
has SO embittered the speech and the writing
and the general action of the denomination
lists. In all our experience of political cam
paigns, we have never known anything hhe
it, The Grant retainers are simply savage
and cross. They seem to think that TINS ~
no longer free country; that Conventions
have no right TO nominate, that citizens havo
no right to vote for anybody except DR..
Grant; that whoever supports Mr.. Greeley
must be a fool or knave; and that the
present President has a personal and
vested interest IN the Presidency, which
il is insulting or something worse
70 question. They substantially say: "Ths
+" Government is ours these places belong 10
Gus; these salaries are our property; ana
"whoeyer attempts to put us out by putting
" ont DR.. Grant is an intrusive rascal upon
whom good words would be wasted" What
astonishes us is that these gentlemen do not
enter q formal protest against the elective
system altogether. No doubt, if they could;
they would bestow upon DR.. Grant his office
for his life, if they could be sure that he in
turn would bestow upon them their offices for
their lives. Voting once in four years they
reckon to be an unnecessary and announcement
absurdity unless indeed it be a cut and dried
thing, everybody voting for their man and
nobody against him. IL seems to be neces-
sary TO go through tho motiOns-tbat is all!
Perhaps it will do no harm TO remind these
people, whether they be PlenipotentiareS
abroad or Postmasters at home, that this is
free country. The whole life and soul of our
institutions is in the theory that every citizen
is capable of forming an opinion aud honest
enough to vote as he thinks. 1t as of bad
augury, this domineering, brow beating, dog
NAUTICAL, and, we may say, aristocratlcal
method of canvassing which the RenOminatOrs
have introduced. 1t should be frowned down
by every friend of intelligent popular suffrage.
Carried out according to the notions of some
men. it would make constituencies no better
than so many hOrdes of dumb, driven cat
"tle.r 1t is not and it cannot come to good.