The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1873-02-20

The FIRST OF THE KANSAS CoRRuPTIoEIsTs.
Old jim Lane stood ut the head of the regime
of the Kansas corruptionists as long as he
lived, being ably and piously seconded and
supported by Pomeroy. The only difference
between Pomeroy and Lane is, that POme-
row is sleek and sly and covers up his tracks,
while Lane,was bluffand audacious,a killed
those who got on his trail, which he always
left stark plain. Lane sleeps under the sliad-
ow of the State University of Kansas, amid
the memories that he made famous and that
made him great He was great man. 1t
made no odds how well you knew the intrin-
sic debauchery of bis life or the cursedncss of
his character, YOU could not stand in his rug
ced presence without feeling ofawc and Il re-
spcpt born Of admiration for the very qualities
in him which in other men are despised and
oathed Edwin Forrest was not his supe-
rior in dramatic intensity and impetuoslty.
lie commanded men as lion or tiger might
awe lesser beasts. He could walk into a
crowd that welcomed him with the clicking
of a hundred reyolvcr-locks and in FIVE min
utcs every man in that crowd would have
spilled the blood right out of his own heart
in fighting for jim Lane. He could stand
mute before Kissing and grooming mob and
breath of love in the air rustic the scented
tre>scS of a maiden in the hush that would
be there. lie could stand before m audi
ence, speaking to them with those great,
cavernous eyes Of his, while his lips were
shut and still. raise bis hand and every one
would rise with his gesture; lower his hand
and every one would sit down obedcnt to the
wonderful electricity of bis will. He was one
of those men whose utter failure TO compre-
hcnd that there is such thing rs danger
made his courage Of no particular credit TO
him. His impulses ruled him utterly, and he
never could see anything between himself
and the object he sought. If there WAS any
obstacle he always looked right over the top
of it and walked over or through it with the
s;tIne unhceding unconccrn. The possibility
that there was or might be anything which
he could not overcome was suspicion that
his mind had no room TO entertain. And
when he pulled the trigger of his own Der
ringer, with its cold muzzle against his lips,
I doubt if he realized that there was any
personal danger in the act. Still he was n
knd-hearted man, as far as generosity
goes. But his generosity was no more
a credit to him than his courage WAS,
because, while the latter sprang from
bis ignorance of danger, the former resulted
from his inability to comprehend the value OF
money, except as it miniStered to his needs
and his passions. His religion was curious
compound Of wondering superstition and
vague idolatry, devoted to external observ-
anccs and forms. lie was Methodist, and
his idea Of the plan Of salvation was about
as clear rs Pawnee's comprehension Of the
logarithmic tables he sees the surveyor using
in his computations. But Jim Lane cor
ruptcd Kansas and laid the foundation of
that penalty which has eliminated in the
tribulationS of Caldwell and all the other
ills and scandals of the rotten Common
wcalth.- Correspondence Of The 81. Louis
Republican.