The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1878-06-06
Chat Win simon Cameron-The
Plot 10 Unseat Former Pres

Chat With simon Cameron-The
Plot 10 UnSeat q Former Pres
ident.
A correspondent. Of the New YorL
TfHa met ex-senator Simon Cameron
the other day at his Pennsylvania farm
and had a long talk with him about biz
life and.public service. BE was hale and
hearty as ever, in spite Of his seventy
nine years Of active Life and constant
struggle. In the course Of the interview
the ex-senator took occasion to remark
that be commenced lie In 3 printing Of.
fee, became an assistant editor, and 70 far
from dlsliking press men he had always
had high regard for them. "ThAt sto-
ry,p he said, they tell Of me talking Of
: them literary fellows Is made up ont Of
whole CLOTH" he told also how he then
got into the banking business and made
money, and then into politics. After a
while Gen. Cameron drifted into war
times, and related wha. he termed 8 Be-
cret effort to unseat President Lincoln,
an effort which was even then known TO
but few people. he said:
"Itwa shortly after I came back to
America, from Russia, in 1882 and
while l was resting at my home in Penn.
sylyania, that I received from q number
OF most prominent gentlemen an
invitation to visit Washington and at
tend 4 consultation which was to be held
in regard to national affairs. / after.
wards discovered that this invitation was
extended to me because 1t was believed
that my somewhat unpleasant exit from
the War Department had rendered me
hostile TO Mr.. Lincoln and bis admins.
tration. Knowing nothing Of this at the
time, however, | went to the capital and
found assembled there 4 number OF most
influential gentlemen, who had come to-
gether ostensibly for the purpose Of ad.
yising together regarding the condition
Of the country. This, 1say, was their
ostensible purpose for calling the meet
ing, but I soon found that their real OBJ.
ject wa to find means by which the Pres.
ident could be ~impeached and turned out
Of his office. The complaint against Nj.
Lincoln was that he lacked ability and
energy, and that he was not pushing the
war with sufficient vigor. These reasons,
and the plan Of attack, II 1may use the
expression, were all made known to me,
and / was asked for my advice. gave
II at once, and stated with "a much earn.
estness a. I could command that the move.
ment proposed would be q disastrous one
and strongly urging that 1t would be lit.
short Of madness to interfere with Mr..
Lincoln's administration. Then l left
Washington and returned to my home q
frmer friend Of the President than l had
ever been before. And rs you know
the Senator said in conclusion, the i'm
parchment scheme never amounted TO
anything. Indeed, it was soon afterwards
utterly abandoned"
Mr.. Cameron, it may be mentioned,
was Of the opinion that with the battle
Of Gettysburg the wal should have ended,
and after that engagement he visited Gen.
Meade's headquarters. where he became
90 strongly impressed with the conyic.
ton that the advantage Of that fight
ought to be followed up with q fresh at
tack that he was on the point Of tele-
graphing to President Lincoln. He did
not, however; but shortly after, on seeing
him in Washington, related the circun-
stance, when Lincoln assured him that
had he received his telegram he would
have ordered q general and immediate
battle; but, referring to Meade, he said:
ave cannot blame him, Nj. Cameron;
we cannot censure q man who hu done
80 much because he did not do more"
In the course Of the interview" Mr..
Cameron takes considerable credit to
himself for having from the first seen that
the war was TO be long and bloody
struggle, while Seward and othsrs thought
it was 10 last only s few months. With
the democratic talk now OF u~nseating
Hayes, the disclosure OF a republican
plot to unseat Lincoln Is not inoppor-
fnna.