Centre Democrat. [volume] (Bellefonte, Pa.) 1848-1989, 1879-06-05
A. II. &. and the Great American Teaser.

FROM The Capital.
The Springfield Republican, anent
the passage in the Senate the other
day between Blaine aud Bayard--or
rather the personal assault of the
former upon the latter--observed that
Blaine is fast earning the reputation
Of the Great American Teaser. 1t is
worth while to remark that the ReplJ-
Iran, founded by Sam. Bowles, honor
ably perpetuates the memory of that
noble fellow and splendid Journalist
under the management Of his worthy
son, and therefore is hostile 10 Blaine :;
unlike the Tribune, founded by Hor-
ace Greeley, which, having fallen into
the hands of Jay Gould, quite natu-
rally admires the hero of the Little
Rock and Fort Smith infamy, and
worships the author Of the Mulligan
correspondence. But this not TO the
point. The affair between the two
senators mentioned has provoked an
unusual volume Of comment, the gen
eral drift of which is in the direction
ofamazement at the temerity of Blaine.
Reasoning simply from the vulnera-
bility of Blaine himself. and upon the
logic of the proverb touching residence
in glass houses, nothing could be more
natural than astonishment at the utter
abandon with which that remarkable
person rushes into personal strife.
Upon such premises it would appear
that no man in the United States
ought to fight shy of inquiry into per-
sonal record for no man now promi-
nent, un ess we except Robson, is
handicapped with such an utterly
wretched and absolutely miserable
personal record as he is. Living, as
he does, at the mercy Of his fellow
senators, bis impertinence il so absurd
that it ceases 10 be offensive and be.
comes ludicrous.
But If you take second thought upon
il, the reckless turbulence Of Blaine,
instead of being a phenomenon, is
really the most sensible course he
could adopt. There is no reason why
he should refrain from inviting per.
sonal recrimination, for his own rec
ord is a bad already as a record can
be, and nothing that Bayard or Thur
man, or anybody else could say in re-
tort or rccrimination. could make it
any worse, either in fact or in ap-
pearance. Under these circumstances
Blaine stands in the attitude Of man
who has nothing to lose. On the 9th.
or hand he can fairly assume that the
association of his name with those Of
Thurman and Bayard, even though it
be the association of conflict, must
tend to elevate j; in the general esti.
nation. IL il related that certain
English nobleman once tamely sub.
miitcd TO rank ahront from a gam.
bier at Newmarket; the nobleman
was one Of the boon companions of the
Regent, afterwards George ", and
that spirited prince demanded to know
why his friend had not resented the
indignity, adding "If you don't chas-
tise the fellow, I'll go and kick him
myself"
Il beg YOU, sir, to do nothing of the
kind, replied the nobleman. That
fellow would give thousand guineas
TO be chastised by me to be kicked
by the heir apparent would make his
everlasting fortune"
will not say that the degradation
Of Blaine is such that the kick of a
gentleman would be boon to him !;
but his behavior sometimes amounts TO
n sort of paroxysmal desperation, or
hysterical hardihood, calculated to
suggest as much.