The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1876-10-06
HOar ON Butler.
Why Judge Hoar Consents to Take the
Nomination.

Below is the letter written by Judge R.
Hoar in response to one addressed to him by
prominent Republicans in the Massachusetts
Seventh District asking bim to consent to run
as an independent candidate to Congress
against Gen. Butler At a conference held in
Boston, Wednesday, Judge Hoar with his con-
sent was presented to the electors of the Sew
enth District as candidate for their suffrage.
The following is the letter:
CONCORD, Oct. 4, ,i1S76
Gentlenaen:-I have received letter with nu-
merous signatures from voters of the Seventh
Congressional District. in which the signeTs
sta. } that they ARE profoundly impressed with
a conviction that the character and political
record of Benjamin f. Butler make him an M
fit candida. for Representative in Congress at
a time when the publican party, under the
leadership of Rutherford b. hayes and William
A. Wheeler, is pledged to radical reform Of
the civil service and sp 2dy return to specie
payments and SIX me t. allow my name to be
presen ed by them to the voters of the district
ar candidate for that office.
With the )nvictio1 thus expressed fully
agree. With no ! srsonal hostility to General
Butler, L could not but regard him as very
Objectionable candidate, even if his connection
with the Republican party were such as to per
NIT ms to support him on purely party grounds
When public servant cannot bring a charac-
ter from, his last place it is wise to use some
caution in accepting his advancesstO new en-
gagemeDt, however pressing; and the represen-
tative whom the voters OF the Sixth District
could tolerate no longer, might live among us
a wear or two at lie st before insisting that the
Seventh District should repeat the experiment.
With unquestioned ability and unbounded au-
dacity, the methods by which he pursues the
objects of his ambition seem to me pernicieus
and evil At the last State convention at
which he SO us bit the nomination for governor
and led his own forces, it was only after they
had been detected in large amount of double
voting that he yielded to the will of the honest
majority, 1t was on that occasion that ne
asked with humor of his own, "Why it was
always insisted on taking extraordinary pre-
cautions to secure an honest vote whenever he
happened to be candidate? They were never
needed i'll a Republican State convention in
Massachusetts before.
When he boasted to two OF his colleagues at
Washington in 1874, That he knew what thev
were telegraphiDg to Boston that he got their
kilograms before they did; that he had
| a man who read them on the wires by
the click and brought them to him,
and the House of Representatives passed
| protect the telegraph from his depredatonsi
| and if as the newspapers inform US, he en-
| ployed such an agent as John ID. Sanborn to
! dog the steps of Mr.. Pierce in New YORK and
| find out his business there, General Butler
showed that he regarded as legitimate weap-
| ons of political warfare means which IN private
| or professional life he would undoubtedly
| think base and dishonorable on level with
| listening at keyholes or picking pockets. l
| do not believe the Republicans OF our district
! wish to employ such agencies.
| Rnt a serious question presents Itself. of the
| right of nominating convention to call upon
| Republican voters to support for representative