National Republican. (Washington City (D.C.)) 1872-1888, 1876-07-31
ARKANSAS AND THE NEW YORK TIMEs.

NS~~~-'
The New York Times has never clearly
comprehended the situation of affairs in
the South. Two years ago it had some
correspondents in the South who neither
had the ability nor the desire to represent
matters fairly. Their mission seemed to
be to SANDER every prominent Republican
leader, and the Times still continues to
furnish editorials on the information OBJ
tanned from these correspondents. The
issue of the 2Sth instant contains an article
on Arkansas affairs which either betrsys
lamentable ignorance of the situation there
or q malicious desire to SANDER men and
pervert facts. The situation there is
briefly this: The Republicans, in April,
held at Little Rock full, free and fair
convention, composed of representative
Republicans from almost every county in
the State. That convention decided that
it would be impolitic to place o State
ticket in the field. There were several
good reasons for this, but one was suffi-
Gent. The State election was held on
different day from the national one,
avowedly for the reason that it should not
be under the direction of the United
States supervisors. 1t was proven before
the Poland committee that more than
thirty thousand votes had been added by
the supervisor to those cast in favor of the
adoption of the new constitution. The
same men who committed that fraud con-
troll the election machinery now, and would
"count out" any majority that would be
polled for Republican candidates. 1t was
considered folly to court defeat in this
way, and the convention decided not to
do so.
A few restless spirits were not satisfied
with this result They panted for notoriety
even at the cost of defeat; fame at any cost
even burning the temple of Ephesus, was
their desire. These men, few In number,
but as industrious in cackling and kissing
as the geese upon the Capitoline Hill, issued
an address to the Republicans. The non-
inal leader in the party was General Albert
W. Bishop, an educIted Ounce, who was
one Of the Republicans that acsiGted in
turning the Republic n Ste of Arkansas
over to the ba'lot-box stirling Democracy.
The real / ader in the movement was Ben
jamiu F. Rice, that unquiet spirit, who
never rests from mischief the leader of the
Greeley movement in Arkansas in 1872.
lie is the monkey who uces Bishop as the
cat's-paw to draw his roasted chestnuts from
the fire, hoping, like Micawber, that
something would turn up" that would
benefit him.
These men called Strte convention to
meet on the 9th, for the purpose of putting
State ticket in the field. The central
committee, duly appointed by the State
convention, anxious to preser re ha1 nony,
was c.lled together by Senator Dorsey, its
chairman, and proposed to call regular
convention on the 9th of August, at which
the proposition to nominate a State ticket
should Re fully discussed. This was de-
cl'ned by Bishop and his friends, and they
have held what purporis 70 be Republi-
can State convention. 1t was composed
almost entirely of persons f.om Little Rock,
pretending to hold proxies from and repre-
cent the Republicans of various counties in
the State. That body has put a ticket in
nomination, with Bishop at the head as
the candidate for Governor.
The Republicans of Arkansas almost en-
masse repudiate the entire concern. They
do this for two reasons. One is that they
" stand to and abide by" the action of the
State convention the other, that they have
no confidence in Bishop, who was one of
the Republican traitors that aided Baxter
in turning over the State to the Democrats
and afterward held position under them, as
president Of the State University, until his
services were quietly dispensed with.
The New York Times taxes the oppor-
tunity afforded by these men to attack the
Republican leaders IN Arkansas, calling
them "schemers and office holders" and
to laud the leaders of this new movement
as patriots and true Republicans. 1t
would be nearer the truth to designate the
latter as chronic office seekers-men who
have no aim or desire but their own per-
sonal advancement, and who. knowing
they will be defeated in the canvass, only
enter into it in the hope to make their de-
feat the groundwork for claim upon
Federal patronage. Almost every name
upon that ticket is that of a man who has
held or sought office ever since Arkansas
was reconstructed, some of them having
been repudiated by the party, and none
of them representing anything but their
own selfish purposes The Times would
do well to inquire into the condition of
affairs in Arkansas before it indite5 another
editorial upon them.