New-York tribune., 1877-09-17
A POST-OFFICE FEUD.


rrnoN STAFF CORRESPONDENT OF THE TRiBuNE'l
Turpo. Ohio, Sept. 13.-The quarrel about the
Toledo Post-ofce Is still kept UP, and much more Is
sd here about the assertions and doings OF the suS
pended Postmaster and his de facto successor ana Oh
,br rcsective partisans .han about the State cam
raicn This fact. and the possible influence OF ihe
alteration on the result of the coming eiecuon
,orrout an inquiry into affair, which, as Tar as
its real merits are concerned, would other ise oo
mere neichborhood teapot tempest
pa,ricl H. Bowling an energetic lrishman was
snpointed Postmaster about three years ago on inc
The recommendation of Gen. J. II. Sherwood tnen
,Io CONGRESSMAN from this district They bad
scrved in the same regiment, and Mr.. Downing hau
,yorlcd hard TO get Gen. Sherwood nominated ana
elected. so il was a case of mutual uckihg NJ
Dovling made good official and his recoiu ~ ~ ~
Dspartmcnt in Washington is hrstIa'V'
was an active local politician however anu many
of ,ho Marty managers disliked him Oh account VI
t h.Lit of oppo,ing now and then some oi the ON
inces on the county and city tickets NHeh MS
fricnd GEN Sherwood failed OF denomination III
1S74 il is said that Mr.. Dowling intrigued WIN 'no
n.mocrat, 70 defeat his successful competitor, Mr.
Pratt. and did good deal sub rosa to eject FRANK
Hprd las, Spring soon after President hayess III
auguration Mr.. Bowling received letter from AS
sistaut Postmaster-General Tyner informing hm
that the President desired to make change In the
Toledo Pos-ofiice and that the Department was ul-
rected to ask for his resignation. lie haStcheu u
Washington. aud saw the President, who gave MN
no reason for removing him, but told nm he h"u
made I'D his mind about the matter Mr' lowing
refused TO resign and the President suspended hlln
under the Tenuro-ofofice act, and appointed Alex
ander Reed his successor. Mr.. Reed, prominent
citizen had been active politician Tor long llie'
He was an early Republican, but held under John
IL. .,.in.a Of
and aferward that of Postmaster at Toledo-the lat-
ter nrocured for him by the joint efforts Of Gen.
st,dman and Senator sherman. In word, he
".Johusonized." He went out Of Office when Grant
,yo ipaugurated and soon after returned to his al
lesiance to the Republican party.
Mr Reed is a man Of wealth, and Is the manager OF
both the Republican daily newspapers published
bcre-7he Commercial and he BGde-which have
consolidated aud are published, one in the morning
and the other in the evening. Controlling the Only
daily papers of lis party in Northwestern phlo' he
is, Of course, power ia politics, ana Wheh nc "ehV
down to Columbus last Winter TO take hand III the
Senatorial fight, his help was no doubt sought 10y
bofb conpctlt rs At an events, Matthews secured
il. and tle votes which Il ed influenced gave Inn
tbe nomination. Thus far. | believe, am Oh the
safe ground of fact. When, shortly after"ard, Mr'
Reed was made Postmaster, ana Mr. Naggouer the
editor of one Of h5 Wspapcrs, CcectorGt Internal
Revenue il was very natural conjecture tUaJ ms
was the new Senator's work, and that Mr. keed had
got his reward iu the ola-iashioned way Ia vogue
before the Civil Service Reform Administration
came IN.
Now Mr.. Bowling not the sort OF man TO taRe
lis discontinue with ncckness. lie had no uaHy
paper TO blow ms horn III, but his friend Gen. Sher-
wood WAS editing a Sunday wechly-I" Journal
and 1t promptly opened fire on Stanley hattheWsand
.I.. lttr rr1fn Bnf
which the Post-ohice was made the price of the
transfer of the Lucas delegation from Mr.. Taft 10
Mr. Matthew'S Ii has been banging away ever since,
with what effect | cannot say. but certainly IN an
exceedingly lively manner The quarrel has been
carried into the County Conventions, and 1t showed
itself in the late State Convention at Cleveland,
VIII re Mr. Dowlng supported Mr. Taft because he
supposed him TO be opposed TO Mr. Hayes, and by 50
doing frightened away five Of MIR. Iaits adherents
who were warm Hayes men. The newspapers out
side of Toledo have had a great deal TO say about
the affair." especially the Democratic papers like The
Cincinnati inquirer and The Chicago lines, who have
made al the capital they could ont Of the apparent
violation Of the Civil Service policy IN the removal
of Mr. Bowling without cause. Mr.. Reeds friends
saw that the Bowling faction have supplied these
papers with correspondence from Toledo on the sub
iect am getting now into foggy region Of con-
nicting assertions and accusations and when in
ouire what the effect Of the unfortunate controversy
will he on the Republican vote next month in this
city and county, nothing can be plainly forcseen
cxcept the very prominent fact that it can do the
party nothing but HARM Mr.. Reed says that Mr..
bowling has less than a score of sympathlZers Sir.
bowling asserts that nearly all the business men
aud threc-OurhS OF the voters are Oh ms SIDE
Mr.. Reeds friends say that he IS acceptable
TO the people Mr.. DOwlings .partisans declare
flat Nj. Reed is very unpopular. On one side
il is stOutly asserted that the ado Mr.. bowling
is making is wholly personal affair; on the other
that the party and the community have taken II up
Mr. Downg's friends tell ne that Gen. Robinson,
the Chairman of the Republican state COMMITTEE,
said when here few days ago, that 1t would be
worth 800 votes 10 have MT. Reed resign; but the
postmastcI's friends TctOrt that Gen. Robinson con
sllted with hlm about the campaign in this part of
the State, and expressed confidence that the POST
office quarrel would have tangible effect on the
result Which side shall believer A correspond
ent cannot 90 around and poll the town to how
many Reed men and how many DOwhng men there
are IN t. Insuch controversies II Is generally safe
to discount the claims of both sides One-half APP
pvug this rule here, 1t still leaves the dissatisfied
element large enough to have an important Influence
on the election, at a time when the labor movement
is cutting into the Republican vote heavily, and
when both the county and Senatorial District, as
well as the State, are III doubt.
lam confirmed in the opinion that the Post-Ohice
quarrel is a serious matter by the confidence the
Democrats express that it will work to their benefit
Gen. Steedman, whom / found to-day sitting at a
pine table with sleeves rolled up. writing editorials
for his Democratic newspaper, in the midst of his
printers said: IL hope You don't come to heal the
Post-office sore It's helping our party good deal,
and we Ike TO have a fellow come along and give it
a scratch now and then" Gen: Steedman is run
ming for the Senate and IS confident of being elect
cd Gen. James NJ. Ashley, the famous antl-slavery
agItator before the war; and the Rcpubllcan men,
Der from this district for about dozen years snow
a Democrat, but is not III active politics. lie was
Greeley man in 1872, but coming afterwards TO the