The herald and mail. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1873-188?, 1878-02-15
Vas Nj, eonkliag Right?
IN. Y. sum-

IT will always stand to the lasting
honor of Roscoe Conkling that he has
not opened any personal or political
relations with the Fraudulent Presi-
dsRt has not visited him, or spoken
10 him, or said a word In his favor,
or written him letter, or gone to
the house in which he lives, but has
kept sternly alOOf from him, In spite of
every overture and every art employ
ed to draw him into the net.
These facts, we say, are most honor
able TO Mr.. Conkling, not because
they INDICATE any nlsre personal dis
like, but because Hayes wears the
brand of Fraud on his forehead; be-
cause he was put in the Office by fraud
not mcOnsciOusly to himself, but
consciously, and with his own active
and industrious cooperation: And
this is the reason why the Senator
from New York, knowing all the de-
velopments and the circumstances of
the case, hating with equal intensity
the Electoral Conspiracy and the
fraudulent title TO the Presidency
which it produced, has taken up an at
titude to hostility, and expressed him
self with such unqualified and such
just contempt toward the representa-
llNf bt tlitAt E4AIfAttbktS Glatt4p VIII
which our country is now 0yeFshad-
owed.
Nevertheless, tits a matter ofrecord-
ed history that, although Mr.. Couk-
ling never at any time yielded any
aid, or comfort, or cOuntenance to the
Electoral Conspiracy, and although he
endeavored in the Senate to arrest its
progress and prevent its completion,
yet, i'll the final struggle, when the
Senators had to give their deciding
vote on the report of the Electoral
Commission concerning the Electoral
College of Louisiana, he was not pres
ent in the Senate, but went away,
leaving lhe vote to be taken and the
crime to be contaminated without
any active, energetic, heroic resistance
from him. The reason for such alb
stention OH his part-and it was COM
mented upon at the time-is now
known to have lain In the conviction,
derived from well-informed friends
Who were anxious to cooperate with
him, that a sufficient nEmher of Re
publican Senators could not be brought
to follow his lead in that matter Ia
produce in the Senate the desired eff
| feet OF rejecting altogether the votes ot
the Louisiana electors, aud preventing
! their being counted for Hayes. such
a body of Republican Senators had pre-
viOusly been brought together, OF, to
speak more precisely, sufficient
number of them had agreed to 20
| against the fraudulent Louisiana counts
! but at the last moment some of them
| proved faitAless, so that, when Inc
| should have entered the Senate cham
| beT with the certainty of success, there
was reason to believe that, instead of
| his defeating the Fraud, the Fraud
| would he able 10 defeat him; and un-
| der such circu Instances, mortified and
! enraged to a degree we do not presume
| to express, Mr.. Conkling withdrew
from the struggle, and let the conspi-
racy take its triumphant course.
Now, The question is, whether iu
| thus Withdrawing he was right, oI
whether he should have remained t.
make in the face of a probable or of q
/ certain failure n gallant and possibly
unsuccessful struggle for truth, justice
and the honor and safety OF the 0oun
| try.
The answer to this question will de
pend upon the point of view from
which the subject is considered. A:
II politician, anxious first and foremOs
| 10 stand well with the party, at tn,
| moment, it would no doubt have beer
n mistake for Mr. Conkling to attempt
| in the Senate TO resist the tide of feel
| ing which had then been evoked, anC
cultivated, and infiamed throughout
the masses of the Republican organi
zation. The Republican journals il
all parts Of the country were unanj