Daily Kennebec journal., 1879-12-05

and have recently read in the papers favor
able notices of him. | see it said, ''He is a
leyel-headed man." "An honest man, "A
man who will do right regardless of party,
and many other equally commendatory re-
marks. If all this is true of him, and am
willing to think it is, | must say he IS very
funny man. Last summer he went to Geor-
gia and as the papers reported him he toldthe
Georgians that the republican party was the
same as extinct in Maine, that our probibi-
tory law is failure, more intemperance IN
Maine than ever before, and came home and
told some one that he hardly saw man
drunk whilst he was gone, but that the hrst
man he saw when he left the cars at Lewiston
was intoxicated; that there is more intemper-
ance in Lewiston than in any Southern city
he visited.
In August he visited our village, and
made campaign speech of two hours in
length He told our people what enormous
and excessive taxes they paid upon cotton
and wooden goods and that they were ground
down and kept poor by excessive and need
less taxation, that the trust funds and sinking
funds which should be in the State treasury in
Augusta are all gone, not one dollar there, all
squandered by republican officials. lie SAID
that he knew wealthy man in Bath who,
some years ago had $4,000 in United States
bonds, that he sent them TO Washington and
received for them $40 200 in National Bank
bills These he Immediately exchanged for
s45 900 in bonds bearing interest and has
been for years receiving interest on 5000
worth of bonds, although all the bona fide
property he has in the world is $4,000
find the same story told in the National Trb-
une or quoted in the Portland Advertiser of
a banking operation at the West only then it
was company with a capital of 81 ,000,000
with which they created series of banks
down to the last which had capital of about
$50, 900; the capital of each bank being ten
per cent less than the preceding one. All
the real capital they had was the Sl,O0O,00O
with which they began. Now if man who
tells such stories as the above, whether for
electioneering clap-trap, or for any other pur-
pose, is ierei headed, then do not know the
meaning of that slang phrase.
In 1865 Samuel Wells was democratic can
didate for Governor of Maine. The clap
trap of his campaign speech was against the
prohibitory law of Maine. Although he was
said to be an able lawyer, yet he told the
people of Bangor, where | heard him, that
what man could legally buy, he could not
be constitutionally deprived of the right of
selling that if the constitution and laws OF
the United States permitted citizen to buy
intoxicating liquors, he could not be deprived
of the right of selling it. On such issues as
that he became Governor of Maine, deposed
Judge Woodbury. Davis from his seat upon
the bench of the Supreme court because he
would not do his party work, and did many
others equally foolish. The next year the
people seated Hannibal lIamlin Governor by
20. 900 majority and gave Mr.. Wells and his
adherents leave to retire to private life. |
risk nothing in predicting that whatever this
administration may 10 if it does not retire
this year it will next.
COMMON SENSE.