The Portland daily press., 1876-03-14

Wnom SeVen-elghthS at least are nominaIIv Re-
pubcans. Two-thirds of them take the
trouble to vote at ordinary state and municinal
elections. When Governor is to be chosen
three-quarters of them incur the fatigue of
registration and attendance at the polls, and in
a Presidential canvass nearly all of them nerve
themselves to the performance of the quadren-
NAL duty.
They are thoroughly houest, upright, well
meaning body of men. They have no forbear-
ance towards wrong doing of any sort. They
have been successful in life by honorable prac-
tices, and are worthy exemplars of integrity
and fair dealing. They are thrifty and well-to-
do and pride themselves especially on holding
themselves aloof from politics and politicians.
Their knowledge of public men AID public
affairs is derived almost wholly from the news
papers. Il is not to be wondered at therefore
that it is a good deal muddled, for they are
inveterate readers of those equivocal sources of
Information. They peruse the fabrication of
yesterday and the contradiction of to-day with
equal credulity and interest. Both furnish
themes of gossip which are turned to good
account in spicing the evening conversation
which taxes place among the groups assem-.
bled in the reading room and picture gallery.
The men Of Athens, of whom mention is made
in the 21st verse of the XVII chapter of Acts,
were not more intent 'either to hear or to tell
some new thing" than these we'll dressed and
well conditioned gentlemen when they have
sauntered into their Club after a luxurious
dinner, on extremely good terms with the
world in general and themselves in particular
But OF course society of this description is
singalarly liable "to be put upon" aud there
are occasional instances in which it is uncon.
sciously set to turning grindstone for the pur-
pose of sharpening somebody's axe which is
kept neatly concealed while the operation is in
progress. A case of the kind occurred last
Thursday evening which is amusing enough to
deserve being chronicled.
For some weeks past a movement has been
on foot for pushing forward the candidacy of
Mr.. Bristow. The New York agency for this
branch of the business of President-making was
assigned to II. L. Burnett, formerly of Cincn-
nat but now a law partner of Judge Emott,
Of this city, and to Gen. Jas. H. Wilson, a
brother of Bluford Wilson, the solicitor of the
Treasury. Mr.. Burnett was one of the origina-
tors of the Cincinnati bolt of 1872 but after the
nomination of Greeley he retired from that
circus and remained passive during the cam
paign. He has occasionally shown symptoms
of Republicanism since, but they were invari
ably followed by relapses. These two gentle
men have been circulating subscr ption paper
10 the interest of their chief 1t occurred to
them that it would be good thing to turn the
Beknap malfeasance to practical account, and
so they got together little caucus of members
of the Club and prevailed upon it to adopt and
introduce in the monthly meeting a series of
resolutions, in which the offense of Be,knap is
not even alluded to- but declamatory attack
is made upon the administration without
single specification or distinct charge.
That may do no injustice to the authors of
this wild and incoherent arraignment, quote
the first paragraph entire:
That in view of the recen. and repeated ex-
posures of corruption and fraud in the admin
istration OF public affairs the welfare of the
Republican, party, as well as of the country de-
mands searching and thorough Investigation
of the condition aud conduct of every branch
OF the public service, to the end that all COR
rupt practices may be brought to light and that
all who have abused and betrayed their public
trusts, whatever may be their station, may be
exposed and punished.
Recent and repeated exposuresl Fraud in
the administration of public affars!l Why
this sounds like stump speech from Tamma-
ny Hall platform. What recent exposures af-
fecting the administration can be cited? A
Cabinet officer has been shown to have com
mitted fragrant trassgression. He atones for
his sin by the loss of official and social position
and by fall as pitiable as it is remediless.
Does that isolated instance of turpitude palli-
ate sweeping and vituperative assault upon
the executive and his advisors? Certainly there
were four members of the Cabinent, when that
resolution was written against whom no charge
of corruption or fraud had ever been made
And as to the President if any body in the light
of his civic life has the slightest doubt of bis
personal probity he must either be destitute of
ordinary intelligence, or believer in the doc
triue that there is no such thing as human
virtue.
And then suppose we consider for a moment
the nature of the allegations made against the
two ministers who have not escaped ribald abuse
and calumnous imputation. These are Secre-
taries Fish and Robeson. The latte, is charged
with q variety of misconduct in the most vague
and intangible fashion, but the must searching
Investigation" has Tiled to elicit scintila
of evidence impeaching his character. The as
saults on Mr.. Fish have been excessively gross
and impudent, but anybody who believes the
must be more different kinds of fool than are
apt to be concentrated in single person. He
has been accused repeatedly and in the most
direct terms with having sold the honor of his
country to put fees into the pockets of his
daughters husband. Is this one of the "re-
peated exposures which demands search
ing and thorough Investigation? 1t is the
mere rubbish and offal that floats in the sewers
OF that portion of the press which sticks at
nothing in the way of libel of the existing ad-
ministration.
For more than four years the business of in
vestigating abuses has been pursued with unre-
mittipg pertinacity. Every branch and de-
partment of the public service has been SUBJ
jected to vigorous and usually unfrieudly
scrutiny. What has been the result? =
ing more nor less than to establish conclusively
that the servants of the government are for
the most part upright and faithful, that IN
stances of dereliction are rare and exceptional
that all the stealings from the federal govern
ment throughout its entire territory for the
seven years since Gen. Grant became President
do not amount TO as much as the citizens OF
New York were robbed of annually during the
decade which preceded The downfall of Tweed.
Aud here it is well to remark parenthetcally
that one of the leading members of the Union
League Club, who aided and abetted the above
quoted diatribe against President Grant, Secre-
taries Fish, Bristow, Robson and Chandler,
Postmaster General Jewell, and Attorney Gen.
eral PierrepoDt was not so awfully indignant
against corruption and fraud" in the summer
of 1871 but that he consented to become broth
er director with Tweed, Sweeny, Connolly and
The rest of the Ring thieves forty days before
the explosion which brought them to destruc-
ton. He is thoroughly estmable gentleman
amiable of manner and exemplary in conduct
but you see how much greater evaporation he
feels in reference to imputed misdeeds at dis
tance than to actual robberies committed with
in stones throw of his own counting room.
The fact is the Club, by suffering itself to be
the catsptw of the electioneers for a presi-
Dental aspirant, missed great opportunity
The crime of Belkuap should have been dealt
with by itself and with severity of opprob,i-
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