The Rutland daily globe. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1873-1877, 1873-10-22
BUTLER ON REPEAL,

General Butler has been credited with be
ing remarkably shrcwd and astute poll
tician, as well as with having slight
knowledge, at least, of law. Any one who
has watched his course, either as Il lawyer
or politician, must, by this time, be con-
WINGED that his reputation is not unde-
served, but, on the contrary, has been well
earned. If it is true, rs he boasts, that his
fees in single case are equal to his whole
annual salary as a member of Congress,
and that he has plenty of such cases offered
to him, he must be a first class lawyer, and
we have no doubt that he is. As poll.
tician, too, he has shown himself shrewd,
astuc and, perhaps, overbearing and un-
principed, but we doubt if anyone ever ac-
cused him of being a statesman. lie is too
much OF demagoguc and time server for
that. Why any person should consider his
opinion of the political forecast of the
future OF any worth, may be a matter of
some surprise, but, as strange as it may
appear, there are those, outside of his fol-
lowers in Massachusetts,, who seek his
opinions and views thereon. A supporter
ne supporter of the back pay bill in all its
stages through Congress, he Extensively
defended it, and his course thereon, before
the people of Massachusetts,. To one of
his immediate constituents who, as he had
"a right to do, demonstrated with him on his
course and sought an explanation thereof
he ln'ultngly answers by enclosing IA three
cent postage stamp as the full amount Of
his, The constituents proportion thereof.
Herein benjamin +. Butler shows to the
world the motive by which he, as a poll
t'cian, Is governed. lie cannot compre
hend tht there can be such a thing as a
principle involved in matters of legislation.
hut everything is brought down to the low.
groyclling ideas Of dollars and cents. Fur
ther along in his defense, both by speech
aud letter, he defends himself by assailing
others, answering the charges preferred
against him by the entirely original and in
controyertiblc argument of ''your an
other" For once, this did not close the
discussion, and driven to the wall, he is
forced to declare that he considered the in
crease OF salary, back pay and all, right
and proper, and therefore, sustained and
voted for it but if his fellow citizens of
Massachusetts-lh "dear people, who
were the final arbiteIs- should decide other
wise, he would be the first to take steps for
its repeal Here he displayed the astute
demagoguc and time serving politician, but
it didn't work. His fellow citizens, the re-
publicans of Massachusetts in state con-
vention assembled, did 'emphatcally and
unanimously dsapprove and condemn the
increase of the pay of members of Con
gress' and General Butler has Just in
formed reporter, for the benefit of the
country, how far he is disposed to redeem
his pledges. 1t is true that he was driven
to the wall when the pledge was made. and
therefore, under the plea that IT was ex-
torted under "duress" we presume nj
though it is not SO stated, he Informed n
conhding reporter in New York, Monday
evening, "emphatically that he did not in
tend to Introduce bill to repeal the salary