Worcester daily spy. [volume] (Worcester [Mass.]) 1850-1888, 1872-10-02


severe, may even add that they seemed to have
been taken directly from the columns of the
New York Tribune. In place of an intelligent
appreciation OF the great principles to local self
government, we had a code of force bills and
civil government bills and Legislative meddling
in general; policy of which Mr.. Senator Sum-
ner and the New York Tribute were two of the
most earnest advocates, and which was re-
deemed from utter badness only by the marked
good sense and Judgment with which the presi-
dent exercised the dangerous powers entrusted
TO him. Finally there was, to nv mind, above
all general lack of elevation of tone in the
administration, which was painfully apparent
Doth IN its foreign and in its domestic policy.
AT home the executive cOndescended 10 peddle
like a huckster with little clique of greedy
senators for a portion of its own patronage,
until degrading trade in offices threatened the
very equilibrium ofthe coordinate departments
of the government; while abroad, the singular
episodes of the indirect claims and of San
Domingo seemed to evince an equal incapacity
to appreciate the requirements either of the
national dignity or of the federal constitution.
thus found myself in opposition to all my
previous political affiliations, and in hearty ac-
cord with the Cincinnati movement. Fortunate
ly for me, did not attend the convention in
which that movement resulted. At the last
moment, and, at the time, to my own regret
felt compelled TO withdraw my name from the
call TO which i had already signed it, and to
notify my friends that could not be at Cincin-
so suddenly given to Mr.. G. F. Adams as a can
didate before that convention forced me to the
conclusion that l could not 90 to it without
placing both him and myself in a false position
did not then represent the views of that gen
tleman any more than do now. As YOU here
well know, Mr.. Adams is very much in the Gus
tom of forming his political opinions without
much regard TO those of his sons and / can
assure you his sons claim the same liberty for
themselves. He speaks for himself; we for our
salNr Na,N-arA tala- -, Loo IL.
might naturally have concluded that l went to
Cincinnati TO angle for him in those waters aud
while an Importance would thus have attached
to myself which in no way was my due, my
presence might well have tended to compromise
Mr.. Adams in a manner which he would hardly
have approved, holding, as he then did, high
public position. Accordingly, | stayed at
home, and very glad now am that did stay
at home.
As you all know, the Cincinnati convention
our convention-the convention which origin
ated in the movement for free trade, civil SER
wee reform, and the protest against all central
izing legislation, nominated Mr.. Horace Greeley
as its candidate for the presidency. In due time
the democratic party-the party of free trade
and of local scli-government the party of JET
ferson and Jackson-in convention duly assem-
bled, ratified this nomination. | have nothing
TO say against Mr.. Greeley personally. He has
achieved marked success in his special calling;
he has done great work in life; he has exer-
cised prodgious influence. have, however,
rarely had the satisfaction of agreeing with him,
and have ever entertained peculiar and, per-
hapS, exaggerated lack Of confidence in his
practical Judgment and administrative ability.
10 use vulgar but expressive phrase, he ''sops
over too frequently; popularity which he has
not succeeded in holding in check DUR
ing the course of the present canvass. |
do, however, believe Mr.. Greeley to be a thor
oughly honest and earnest man in his convic-
TONS, and one who cannot help forwarding
them by all means in his power. In whatever
position he may be placed, Mr.. Greeley's views
upon every single question in which the Cincin-
matt movement originated are, and always have
been, Numerically opposed to that movement.
10 force him upon us as our candidate was
therefore an absolute insult redeemed only by
its humorous features, which, however keenly
we might appreciate them, we could hardly be
expected to enjoy. We went to Cincinnati in
open revolt against the party manipulations of
MesSrs. COnkling aud Cameron and Morton and
Chandler; when we got there we were met by
Messrs. Fenton and Cochrane and Mcclure aud
Wentworth and Tilton and Warmoth, and they,
with the aid of Mr. Frank Blair, kindly proceed.
ed to manage" things for us in the good old
way, and, in the first place, TO provide us with
candidate. | do not see how we gained
greatly by this change of masters; for myself |
prefer the old set. We went protesting against
''caTpet-bagism," and they "carpet-bagged" our
convention with an ingenuity which excited
even our ruelul admiration. We went calling
for free trade, and they gave us the most noto-
rous and consistent protectioniSt in all America.
We went crying out against Capitalization, and
saying the world is governed too much" and
we came back with the great apostle of unlm-
tied legislation on all conceivable subjects for
our chosen candidate To cap all, the gentle
men who had thus handsomely provided us with
everything peculiarly offensive to our feelings
and aDtagonistic to our convictions, then pro-
ceeded to add insult to injury by treating us to
a choice bit of the purest electoneering cant, to
the effect that the "old white hat of our sngu-
lar candidate covered the largest brain and
kindeSt heart in America" They not only in
sisted on our accepting an empty change in lieu
of the improvement TO which we had aspired,
but they actually carried their undisgused con-
tempt for us as reformers to the extent of
openly asking us to go into contortions of sup
posed eXtasy over their ridiculous campaign
Josh, made up, like scare crow, of a dilapi-
dated hat and shabby coat
For some of us this was really too much. The
demeanor of our new managers toward us was
q tritie suggestive of those worthy New York
barn-burners, who in 1913 Joined the free soil
movement in order to defeat Cass, and who
wonderngly remarked Of their Massachusetts
allies that they were "free soiers-yesl-and
damn EN-, they believe in It'll" Strange as it
may seem, it rs so with some of us now. We
believe in our principles as free traders, as civil
relormers, as friends of local self government
we propose also to continue to believe, and, if
VIC CdilJ VIC luIlLeT pIopOSe 10 make the Dellet
that is in us respected of Others. We feel very
much now under the candidacy of Mr. Greeley
as we should have felt in 1860 had the "unterri-
fed assumed control of the Chicago conven-
ton, referred the question of slavery to the sew
egal congressional districts, nominated for us
Nr. Jefferson Davis, and then rolled up their
eyes in spirit Of sanctity aud assured US that
some garment of our candidate covered physical
contormations of surprising beauty and excel
lence.
What would old freesoiers, sturdy anti
slavery men, have done under those circum.
stances? Would they have looked astonished,
hesltated for an instant, and then have buc1led
quietly down to their work under their new
driver, pulling in one set of traces Just as well
as in another, provided only that they were in
some traces, and somebody held whip and reins?
Not, imagine, to any alarming extent. Those
men were in earnest. So are some of u.s. pro-
moters of the Cincinnati movement. Being so,
we now recognize one especial duty of the hour.
We have no fear for our ideas and our primer
pies; they will keep and improve with the
passage of time; defeat will only harden and
rpen them, for we remember the Fremont cam.
paign Of 1856 and the Lincoln campaign of 1890
Victory treads close on the heels of defeat and
four years is short time even in short human
life. There is but thing we cannot suffer and
live under: that is dshOnor, made more unen-
durable because ridiculous. With what hope or
even face could we, during the rest of our lives,
90 reforming" again, when once we had al
lowed ourselves to be made such very stool
pigeons Of with impunty, aud even actually
assisted those who cozened us in the successful
prosecution of their game. We may not be sue
cessful POLITICIANS but we can at least try to be
honest men.
am not one of those who pretend to regard
the present as "the most important election
which this people was ever called upon to de-
eide" We all know it is nothing of the kind
This great country, which has triumphantly
passed Of late through such greYous trials, is
not going to come to harm as the result of any
such summer breeze as this; it could, fancy.
without serious injury, stand all the misgovern-
ment which a dozen Grants or gross of Gree
leys could inflct during the next four years. We
can all Of us afford, therefore, to be very cool
and quietly to bide our time; and so find my
self once more acting with you Of the republican
party. do not profess to be myself republic
can, or to have any claim for party considera-
ton. ! hope never again to belong to any par
ty; for after all, campaign eXhortatiOns and |
torchlight professions to the contrary notwth- |
standing, there is something better than party
fealty within the reach OF all of US. For me, as
citizen of Massachusetts, do not care to put
myself in any position in which | cannot to-
morrow, if occasion offers vote to retain Charles
Sumner in the United States senate; for no
matter how much / may differ from him to-day,
/ know that upon the whole he is, with all his
faults, one Of the purest most enlightened and
most diSintereSted of our public men, So of