Daily Kennebec journal., 1877-02-14
An Athenian Prophet Giveth Ut
terance.


The communications thus written from a
central standpoint are often valuable for
their suggestive wisdom and practical
views. The Washington editorials of
Thurlow Weed and Horace Greeley had
in them the real gristle of common sense,
were strong and fearless, rightly pointing
the way of great political organization,
while the letters of the old Boston Atlas
editors were clean-cut and representative
of the better popular impulses when that
newspaper was The bold and uncompro-
missing organ of the manly side OF Missa-
chusetts politics. But there are other
newspaper men who when they find them
selves in Washington, like some Congress
men, get lost in seductive mist
.and obfuscated by the good dinners
of Senators who put on Webste-
rian airs, though far from possessing the
yrie, hard-htting. sense of that Leviathan
of men before he stranded in the shoal
waters where a Winthrop and Fillmore
seemed 10 have had fitting depth.
or these metropolitan wise men of the
press Of the latter type, perhaps no Amer
lean city at the present time has greater
number than she who prides herself as the
Athens of the new world. Certain it is
there are some striking resemblances be-
tween the two political, commercial, and
e l., ,,,I aff fxxa fy-
two centuries ago-the Athens of the At
lantic and the Athens of the Egean There
is some grain of truth in the adage-
"there is nothing new under the sun"
Political philosophy and its workings, po-
litical partizanship and its agents and
agencies, repeat themselves in successive
generations and periods. The political
Athens of the ancient time had its heroic
epoch and its epoch of decadence. THE
modern Athens is not without correspond
ing periods. There can be found striking
resemblances in their parties and political
men. Quite clear it is that our Colum-
bian Athens has not small number OF
those who had they lived in the heroic
years of the other Athens, would have
been in the ranks of Kimon, or at best
hanging tremblingly on the outskirts OF
the supporters of Ephialtes and Pericles,
and in the times of Philip of Macedon
would have thought Eubulus and Phokion
wiser than Demosthenes when he was do
ing his utmost to awaken his countrymen
from the delusve dreams of false peace
and the fatal consequences of compro-
missing policy. Grote touches the marrow
OF great truth when he graphically de-
scrbes the enervating influences OF trade,
art and elegance on Athenian politics, and
recent decades present equally suggestive
lessons in our Atlantic Athens. Trade,
art and sweet elegance seem to have a
strangely weakening effect on the human
vertebral column and sadly enervatng
influence on the public conscience. Gar
rison, Horace Mann. and Sumner in his
best years, had keen appreciation of
this strong tendency in their surroundings.
against which they iearlessly contended
with sharply define and unyielding pur
poses.
One Of these newspaper men, writing
recently from Washington. under date OF
February 9th, shows himself a correct ex-
ponent of this soft, spneless. elegant side
of Boston politics, en- rapport with the
like at the national capital. Speaking of
the complete unpartizan makeup of the
Compromise Commission for counting the
Electoral vote, he says:
"Never until now have they known q political
question Of this magnitude TO be taken absolutely
out of the hands of the political managers. Natu-
rally those who have been successful in the man
agement of political machinery and have acquired
some faith in their capacity to manipulate political
forces, take a somewhat sombre view Of the
future."-Boston Adrertiser, Feb. Sth.
Wise or unwise, never was a measure
more absolutely and completely the pro-
duct Of political managers than the Elec-
toral Commission. Four days after the
above rosy lines were written the votes of
Clifford, Fields, Bayard, Thurman, Payne.
Hunton and Abbott proved how utterly
D childish was all the talk of the complete
absence of political partizanship in the
Commission If the Democracy of the
country has any leaders, some OF the
ablest and most determined of them are
among the seven headed by Nathan Cliff
ford, and it is the merest namby-pambyism
10 pretend to the contrary.
But this astute Athenian editor on his
Washington visit is greatly troubled about
the future OF the republican party. Like
his Springfield contemporary, who had
similar troubles In 1872, he half fancies
he sees a speedy reconstruction of parties,
when bottled moonshine is to be the quint-
essence of craftsmanship and politics, ex-
clusively managed without politicians.
When will some men learn that great par
ties cannot be constructed and recon-
structed just as mechanics build and
rebuild faorics OF timber. boards and
brick--learn that they spring from inde-