The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1875-05-06
c., THURSDAY MORNING, MAY 8, 1875.
Ex-senator Carl Schurz on the Tendency of
American Politics.

Ex-senator Carl Schurz on the Tendency OF
American Politics.
Hon. Carl Schurz, of Missouri, on the occa-
sion of his approaching departure to Europe
for brief season, has been banquetted by dis
| tinguished citizens of New York as a compli-
ment to his eminent services in the United
States Senate. Of course, speech making was
the order of the evening, and we herewith pre-
sent the remarks of Mr.. Wm NJ. Evarts, who
presided over the entertainment, and the elo-
quent response of Mr.. Schurz:
SPEECH OF WILLIAM NJ. EvARTs.
At half-past nine O'Clock the heavy work of
the evening began, when Mr.. Evarts, the chair
man, rose and spoke as follows: II am very
happy to be called upon to represent the i'm
portant elements of society in rendering this
compliment to Carl Schurz. We all thank him
for the eminent services which he has rendered
to the nation. This occasion, Mr.. Schurz, is
entirely personal to yourself. 1t is personal to
you as q public man, and to mark our appre-
citation OF the share you have had in staying
the tide of immortality, and in presenting to
the American people amid evil surroundings
the picture of pure, exalted American states
man. You are not a native citizen of this
country but one who has done it the honor to
make it home. 1t is now some twenty-five
years since you came to these shores, and there
are few of our public men who have reflected
more credit upon America. We come to honor
you as lovers of our country, who prefer to
honor purity rather than partisan politics.
We should like to see competitions in public
life in which the prosperity of the combat
would depend rather upon actual superiority
than ufon lesser defects. In this country, by
the organism of our government, all power is
in the hands of the people, but there may be
an interest to seize this power and appropriate
it to private parties for selfish ends. The ques
ton is not whether we can fight kings that do
not exist, but enemies that are in our very
front and have shown us their powers for evil.
Now let me read passage from the "Greville
Memoirs" Mr. Evarts read the passage say
ing that George w hated the best men of all
parties, and then went on to say that King
Caucus hated the best men of all parties, and
followed out the simile to the end of the para
graph referred to. Now, the great corporate
organization that attempts to wrest the power
from the people is that of placemen, and the
government by placemen must always be the
weakest. King Caucus always makes con-
test between placemen and those who wish to
displace them to get their places. Hence our
political life is reduced to a struggle between
office holders and ofice-seekers. The question
is, Whom do the people prefer?' Well, the
people don't prefer either of them. And what
is our remedy? Well, we have few men like
yourself, Mr.. Schurz, great defenders of the
nations honor. If King Caucus has sent you
to private life for the present he has yet not
Withdrawn from you the admiration and the
hearts of the people, You lost your place by
the placemen, and not by the people against
the placemen.
This people have been accustomed to see
somewhere in the high places the champions
of national honor they have seen them in the
Senate and expect to see them in the Senate.
| remember the time when Massachusetts,
Kentucky and South Carolina were the most
important States in the Union, but when Clay,
Calhoun and Webster were dead, these States
appeared no longer so all-important. Missouri
has recently been a great State in the councils
of the nation. Why? Because it sent Carl
Schurz to the Senate. How shall we impress
upon the minds of young men that subservlen-
cy to the caucus is not tie only road to Amer-
can craftsmanship? This is the greatest prob
lem we have now to solve, and which will make
the next Presidential canvass not race between
two lame horses, bu compel all parties to fur
nish their best and strongest competitors.
There is a disposition among the people to
make demonstration at that election which
will show that this government was worth
founding. Freedom of thought, purity Of
character, infexibility of purpose are the
qualities which distinguish great patriot from
a caucus leader. Mr.. Schurz is one of these,
and he had the choice of being great Senator
or being reelected by caucus, and he chose
we'll. And now, gentlemen, let us rise to drink
Al IL &c II Cot,n oIo nj
happy journey, q joyful summer and a safe
return.
SPEECH OF CARL sCHURz.
The hero of the evening then rose modestly
and, in that beautiful English for which he is
famous said:
To earn the praise of public-spirited and
pure citizens like you is an ambition which l
am not ashamed to own. l can certainly say
one thing, that 1 have, at least tried to do my
duty and if you will be so indulgent in regard
to the execution of my intentions, heartily
promise you that my gratitude will not be
barren one. l co-operated with the republican
party until its aims had been secured against
subversive purposes; but when that point was
reached I devoted myself to the other great
problems of our national life. BY wise policy
of conciliation justice and honesty the South
could be recorcied. 1t was necessary to return
to sound constitutional principles, which were
necessarily disregarded during the war; to drive
away that rapacity which sapped the public
power; to reform the civil service, which was
suffering from abuses unexampled all over the
world; to restore to the country sound cur
rency once more, and to tighten the burdens
resting upon the people by wise and equitable
system of revenue and taxation. l fondy
Hoped that the great party which had sent me
to the Senate would take hold of these prob
lens, but you as well as know that they are
still unsoved, and that in some respects even
retrograde movements have been begun. be-
lieve that the majority of the republican party
desire to solve them, but are in the meshes of
politicians who regard their places more tn an
the good of the people. Under these circum-