The daily gazette., 1878-07-09
Letter from Scaford.
For the Delaware Gazette.


the influence against him is decidedly
weak, emanating from those who are
actuated by personal malice who could
not command enough votes to make
respectable corporal's guard"
In strict military parlance, have been
taught that a .corporals guard was COM
posed of four privates; but as the term is
used here In political sense, and quail
fled by the word respectable" it may
mean number numerically large, or in
tinitesimally small, or an unknown guam
tity
Commissioner Martins political record
would indicate that he was in the direct
line OF promotion to higher sphere
where his attainments would evidence
the material of which his brain consisted;
for tell you, Mr.. Editor, little secret
OF which you may not have been previ-
ously advised, the Congress of the Uni
ted States is the grand tilterer of the nat
ional intellect-the dross and dirt and
rubbish sink of their own weight to the
bottom, and are carried off and lost in
the sewers of dark obscurity, whilst only
the hight golden grains are left refulgent
in the light of their own innate brilliance
though sometimes shaler of intellectual
lightness, float for a time upon the upper
surface only to be dissipated by the first
conscious breath of an intelligent public
opinion.
None of these contingent calamities
need disturb the peaceful repose of our
Commissioner Martin; for has he not for
the past six years battled bravely for the
political honors of his county and carried
them all off too? What matters it to him
if Sussexs share of the State officers has
dwindled down to the poor, pitiful isolat-
ed one of the State Treasurer and that
one the best in political importance of
the eleven? Has he not been all his time
the weighty representative of the honors
which were allotted to this county?
Do not the people of this county feel
the obligation thus thrust upon them in
his consenting to assume in this person,
in their name, and in their behalfso many
honors and so many responsi nsibilties?
One of the three Commissioners of
Foreign affairs on the Riparian boundary
between this State and the Empire of
Jersey!
One of the three Commissioners on
piscatorial culture !!
One of the three Commissioners on the
saccharine beet y
No one will suppose for a moment that
Commissioner Martin was
not acting In the strict line of his duty
when he accepted these Commls-
sions for had not his party in 1872
made him Chairman of the Execu-
and did not that include the acceptance
and theretention by him of each,and every
and all the houses, ,honors perquisites, and
emoluments of State patronage which
might by any possibil be allotted to
Sussex county as her equal and undiv ded
share of the little things which have
sometimes been uenomlnated the side
shows of the Legislature?
Nor would have you tell it, Mr.. Edi-
tor, that the allegation is anything more
than political whisper, breathed one to
another in low breath, by not more
than nins ont of ten, of the generous
heated and confding democrats, that the
cons ant attendance of our much Com
missioner Martin upon the sessions of the
Legislature had any influence upon his
acceptance of these conferred honors.
| hope, Mr.. Editor, your Wilmington
people will not take any umbrage with
us Sussex folks down here in the sands
for being as well satisfied with our very
much high Commissioner who by the
force OF rcumstances (and that man is
nbald who dares assert that circum-
stances can be forced) has become, or is
made, or is, or if you like it better) seems
to be taken for granted to be our sole po-
litical representative, when they remem-
Der how impartial and how unpartizan
our Commissioner was in the assistance
he gave, when so assisting legislation at
Dover, TO the act which gave you your
new reservoir. What mattered it to him
IL a delegation of the representative DEM
ocrats OF your city moved in body ON
the Legislative fortress at Dover, please
remember the "corporaPs guard" as ex-
cuse for my martial allegory) and both by
herald and by loud acclaim sounded the
alarm that this act was a deep, dark con-
trivance of the enemy intended only to
support and give employment to foreign
mercenaries and black visaged retainers,
to be held in reserve, and brought into
action often and repeatedly, for the utter
and complete overthrow of the hard
pressed phalanz of the Democracy and
this too by aid of heavy tribute to be
levied out of the possessions mainly of
the Democracy.
Your water works committee must
have erred when il reported the pay
ment of a large fee to our Commissioner
for services in the passage Of that act.
And suppose he was paid this fee? Is
not our Commissioner a lawyer and a
graduate in the legal lore of non-suitlsm ?
How extremely childish it would be to
Imagine that the wearying wearing sac
rifice of time and talent during biennial
campaigns should not receive It's reward |
in the ready rhlno as well as in the hope |
of political prefefment. All wars are ex- |
pensive luXuries and not the least IL a |
winters campaign in Dover as Colonel of
the Third House, Delaware Representa- |
tives. A Colonel aud n Commits |
sioner is bat a man and must be fed and |
feed as other mortals. Lobbying, Well |
suppose it is Has he not the right to ? |
Is he not professional Lobbyist? Is |
not the lobby of Dover an excellent |
school Of practice and preparation for the |
larger arena of Washington where the |
reservoir runs perennial stream of gold |
en- results.
In palliation we most humbly and |
devoutly recognize the situation that |
this is an age laitudinarianism that our |
commissioners is chairman of the Demo- |
cratic Exaontiva Enmmittaa of Sua.ax