The New York herald., 1876-03-21
Senator conilIng and tho Syracuse
Convention.

morrow as the favorite candidate of the New
York republicans is past doubt. On this
point there is not likely to be any dissent
but there are two other questions on which
the unanimity of the Convention will not be
so omplete-questions of great interest in
side the State and elsewhere These ques-
sions are, first, whether the Convention, be-
sides indorsing Mr.. Conkling as its choice,
shall pledge the New York delegates to vote
for him-and second, whether, if this be
not done, the New York delegation shall be
! instructed to vote at Cincinnati as unit.
There will be a small but resolute minority
at Syracuse, led by Mr.. George William
Curtis, who will resist the pledging of
the delegates to Conkling and also an
instruction to act as unit Mr..
Curtis is covert Blaine man, who
thinks it impolitic to avow his preference,
because the inveterate and irrecopcilable
feud between Mr.. Conkling and Mr.. Blaine
makes the support of Blaine in this State an
espousal of his side of the quarrel, and
would be taken by Conklings friends as a
personal atfront Any faction in New York
which gives its influence to q man with
whom Mr.. Conkling has not been on speak
ing terms for many years would exasperate
his friends, inevitably split the republican
party and surrender the State to the demo-
| Gratis. For this reason Mr.. Curtis and his
followers do not disclose their real purpose
by an open support of Blaine. But their
aim is understood, and will be met with
smothered but determined resentment. We
mention the fact that Mr.. Curtis is a secret
adherent of Blaine as clew TO guide our
readers in interpreting the proceedings at
| Syracuse tomorrow, in some parts of which
more will be meant than meets the eye.
| If Mr.. Curtis and the minority who will
act with him we're working in the interest of
Mr. Bristow instead of Mr.. Blaine there
would be moro force in the arguments they
are disseminating in such newspapers as they
can control They say that Mr.. Conkling
has been steady and unfinching supporter
| of General Grants administration; but this
is equally true of'all Mr. Conkling's leading
rivals. On what occasion has Morton or
Blaine put himself in opposition to the
President? Did not Blaine and Morton sup
port the Louisiana policy of the President?
the South ? Have they not had their quotas
o. the federal patronage in their own States,
and used it in the spirit of Grantism
to reward their personal supporters ?
Did not Blaine make haste to adopt
Grants anti-sectarian school policy as
soon as the President announced it-a COM
plaisance which seemed all the more servile
as Mr.. Blaines kinspeople are Catholics?
Did he not skulk the anti-third term vote
near the beginning of this session, not dar-
ing to give offence to the President even in
concert with majority of the republican
members =? On one point, to be sure, both
of Mr.. Conklings chief rivals were out of
harmony with President Grant, but that dis
sent did them no credit We refer to the ex-
citing currency debates in the spring of 1874,
which came so near splitting the republican
| party, when Morton was an open imitation
ist and Blaine trimmer On that occa-
sion Senator Conkling was of the
most strenuous champions of hard
money, as he has always been.
His record compares favorably with that
of oil his rivals except Mr.. Bristow, but
| if there should be any pretence of support
ing Bristow by New York republicans it
would be only mask to conceal their in
trigue in behalf of Blaine The movement
must be judged by its intention, not its pre-
| texts.
Mr.. Conkling must take his chances at Gin
cinnati, and so many things may intervene
that the proceedings of the National Conven-
| t;oD cannot ba foracaap Rut IL iS not diff.
cult to form judgment as to what the Syra-
cuse Convention ought to do. 1t should, in
deed, have been called six weeks later, but
having been called and being about to meet,
it must act with reference to the long inter
val. AS Mr.. Conkling will be the nearly
unanimous choice of the Convention it
ought to make its choice efficient by binding
the delegates. But what difference does it
make whether they are pledged or
not if they are elected as friends of
Conkling? The difference is this, that the
members of pledged delegation cannot be
approached by Presidential intriguers from
other States, whereas an unpledged delega-
ton would be piled by all the arts of political
trickery and cunning, and the State would
be a theatre of incessant cabals during the
two months Ifthe State Convention had been
deferred until within week before the as
sembling of the delegates at Cincinnati it
would make comparatively little difference
whether they were pledged or not because
there would be no field for the political sap
pers and miners. If Conkling delegation
is elected, but not pledged, half of the AS
sembly districts in the State will be nests
of intrigue in the interest of Blaine,
and that kind of corrupting inhu-
ence is to be deprecated, aside from
the merits of candidates. As Mr.. Conk-