National Republican. (Washington City (D.C.)) 1872-1888, 1875-03-16
MIR, SPEAKER BLAINE,

TIONAL REPUBLICAN. cit is able and in
I" teresting; but don't think its course is
" calculated to strengthen the Republican
"party. 1t is too dictatorial, scolds too
" much, and does not sufficiently take into
"account conscience as a power in politics.
You denounce every member of Congress
who did not support the caucus or your
views as weak, or as a traitor to the
"party. 1t seems to me the character Of
" some of the members who thus refused
" to be driven into the support of doubtful
measures might have led you to suspect
" conscience had more to do with this ac-
" ton than cowardice or ambition" From
certain other passages in this letter we
infer that our friend takes a particular
interest in Mr.. Speaker Blaine, and
that his criticism of our course was pro-
voked by the fact that Mr.. Blaine's
name has frequently appeared in our col
umns in connection with charges that the
failure to pass the bill to Protect Electors
was mainly due to the recreancy of the Re-
publican members who refused to abide by
the action of the caucus. In all that we
have said regarding Mr.. Blaine we have
never intended to intimate any disloyalty
on his part to the principles Of the party;
but we have insisted very pointedly that
the results of the wavering policy pur-
sued by himself and friends would amount
to treason to those principles. Mr..
Blaine has served so long in Congress
and has been so intimately con-
nected with the legislative record of the
party that he was during the last Congress
expected to become the leading exponent
of those principles and defender of that re-
cord. His very position as Speaker gave
him the power to do this, and if he had
used that power discreetly he would have
retained the respect and admiration which
the Republicans of every section so gene
rously rendered him when the session be-
gan. But as we have said before, he began
with blunder-a blunder which the New
York World gloated over during the first
week of the first session-in the appoint
ment or selection of thin skinned or tainted
members of the party to be leading COM
mitteemen. The Credit Mobilier and back
pay scandals taught him no lesson. He
knew, as we knew, that the mass of these
ISLANDERS bad no foundation in fact, and that
the suspicious about the characters Of these
gentlemen were unjust, but he should have
known that, having been subjected to SIAN
der and suspicion, they would also be SUBJ
ject to influences which under other cir
cumstances would have had no effect.
They were, in truth, not only thin-skinned,
but the skin was off in spots, and when the
Independent Press began to throw salt
upon those bare spots, they jumped with
smarting, pricking pains. In this way the
House was organized under circumstances
which indicated its certain decentralization
when the time arrived for substantial action
in support of the party principles. Among
these gentlemen were a number who enter
tanned the delusion that the Independent
Press spoke the truth when it declared that
the Administration could not be trusted
with the execution of extraordinary laws
because it might attempt to impose itself
upon the people for reelection. Whether
Mr.. Blaine is candidate for the nomina-
ton or not, it is certain that other members
of the House who acted with him were
possessed of ambition for pre- motion. Thus
the Third Term spectre became antago-
nized with First-Term ambitions, and the
gentlemen to whom we refer battled against
the airy nothingness evoked by sensational
newspaper writers with less unselfsh earn
estness but all the foolish gallantry of so
many Don Quixotes fighting the shadows
of windmill. By strange coincidence,
TO which we have called attention before,
committees were selected having the duty of
considering certain especial recommends
tons of the Presidents message, the major
ity of the members of one of which at least
were VIGOROUSLY known to be unfriendly
to the President. Was this fair? Was it
honorable? Did it not disclose conspiracy
to injure the chosen leader Of the party?
In truth, the influence which prompted
this act seems to have inspired other acts,
and very pointed effort was made to de-
stroy the Administration, and, as the New
York World aptly remarked, bury it with.
out putting the Republican party in the
same grave. But the majority of the party
was true to the Administration, not on
personal grounds, but because they found
in it faithful and staunch reflex Of Repub-
lican sentiment, and saw in its every act an
unselfsh support of Republican principles.
The minority of the party, although aided
by the earnest efforts of the Democrats,
failed to accomplish the result indicated by
the World, although they did succeed in
impeding and defeating important legisla-
ton for the remedy of the Southern situa-
ton. In short, the remarkable spectacle
was presented to G. close observer of a
clique in the dominant party striking hands
with the minority party to seek the injury
of respected and honored leaders of the
former. We may be accused Of speaking
out in meeting" when we say this, and of
washing dirty linen in public :" but we
mean every word Of it, and the public may
as well understand that we intend to talk
equally as plain in the future.
But Mr.. Blaine's greatest blunder was
when he forgot or ignored the fact that as
the party organized and enacted the re-
construction of the South, it is responsible
for the result Of the reconstruction acts.
We have gone over this ground very often,
and our readers are therefore familiar with
our belief that to preserve the reconstructed
States from positively threatened revolu-
ton in their organic acts, legislation was
required of the last Congress to prevent the
White League Democracy from obtaining
control of them, and striking from those
acts the clauses placed in them. by the SOL ]
emn enactments of previous Republican
Congresses recognizing the supremacy of
the power of the General Government.
We believed then and we believe now that
the very life of the Republic is endangered
by the possibility that the White Leaguers
will be able to accomplish this result, and
we sought to arouse in the House that
spirit of earnest love for the results OF the
war and care for the future which prompted
Congress in the days of reconstruction to
attempt to provide against the recognition