Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1876-06-06

PreSlueDt oil the Unlleu StateS,-WnlcH VIC
do not by any means believc,-one OF the
worst consequences of the success would
be the encouragement that would be there
by afforded to the most dastardiy group OF
political assassins who ever disgraced this
or any other country. MIR. Blaine has
never, we believe, made a secret OF his de-
sire to be the republican candidate. The
ambition is most laudab!e one. and it Is
shared by many prominent politicians VINO
like to be thought coy. In all the ele-
ments that 90 to make up popular leader,
there is no man in the country who comes
nearer to the ideal than Mr.. Blaine. lie
has also unusual experience in public life.
great knowledge of men, line acquire
ments as scholar, and the manners OF a
gentleman. Moreover, his record as a
public man is both consistent and
honorable, and his sincere devotion
to the principles of the republican
party has never been questioned in the
more than score of years he has been a
to make successful government must
believe, in party. He does not believe.
and ought not to believe, in fighting poll
tcians, but in using them to further the
ends and the policy he has in view. When
such man, strong in himself and in his
power over others, appeared on the scene
| oanliIaf, for tho Pro lido n
CIV, it was the most natural thing in the
world that he should arouse fierce opposi-
| ton.
| Take the charge made against him in the
Northern Pacific matter. Has anybody APP
peared to support any accusation OF wrong
doing, or is there anything in it at all ?
The whole thing has been abandoned, and
whyP Because of the Mulligan sensation.
Admit all that Mulligan says of Mr..
Blaine's business transactions, and, pray,
OF what offence would a court of honor
convict Mr. Blaine? Of none whatever
that any business man in Boston would be
ashamed. The ground is shifted once
more, and now the offence is in refusing
to allow private letters on business affairs,
not in the least degree connected with any
charge against him, to be printed. Mr..
Blaine, his lawyers. and Mulligan himself
says that the letters have no connection
with the matter under investigation. We
may Judge the merchants of Boston harsh
| ", but we doubt if there is one Of them
ten years in business who has never writ
ten business letter, perfectly innocent
| but liable to be misunderstood, which he
would prefer not to have published. Nay,
we do not believe there is a member Of the
Massachusetts delegation to Cincinnati
who would dare to submit himself, his bus
mess affairs, his correspondence to the
process which those of Mr.. Blaine are I'M
dergoing And yet we do not suppose
one of them hos ever done anything that
would, on the score either of public or of
private morality, unfit him to be a candi-
date for any office.
We wish not to be misunderstood. We
have never said that Mr.. Blaine was the
best or the fittcst man to be President, and
we do not say it now. We do not pin our
faith to any man to that extent that we
believe he has never sinned, or that he
will never sin. We do not say that the
malice of his accusers proves that Mr.
Blaine is pure man. But it is the truth that
nothing wrong has yet been proved upon
him. He has certainly been rash, and
made mistakes under circumstances of such
personal provocation as no other public man
ofthis generation has been called to endure
Is not that all Is there shred of evidence
that the original charge. or any other thai
should affect his standing before the pub
lie, is true? People will cease to wonder
at his conduct with regard to the letters,
if they coolly reflect whether or not they
would care to publish their own cores
pondence without explanation. And if
they are to drive him from public life be-
cause of anything that has yet been
proved we will 90 farther aud say of any
thing that has yet been charged, where
are we to find the thousands of saints we
need to fill our public Offices"
An affectionate postal circular requests
us to notice eratuitously that some Rev
erend will provide boarding places for
christians in christian families during the
Centennial Exhibition where they can
have Bible readings, prayer, and grace
three times a day, at much lower rates
than the worlds people can find board
He offers, if he will send him copy of the
paper containing the notice. to put us in,
to one of those same christian families, per-
haps into the very one where he says
grace! One conundrum rather sticks us,
that we would like to have substituted for
ane asier onc--"At the next Centennial
where shall we be ?" The cheap things
that are done under the cloak of religion
or masonry, find full development this
centennial year.