The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1879-11-08
DEATH OF ZACH CHANDLER.

s DEATH OF ZACH CHANDLER.
The announcement of the sudden death u
l Zachariah Chandler week ago came upol
the country like shock He had taken N
, active part in the Ohio campaign, then haC
made several speeches in Wisconsin, and ol
Friday night had made "A speech Of unrsua
length and earncstness at McCormlck's Hal
in Chicago seemingly in robust health an(
the highest spirits He had complained how
ever, for day or two of indigestion and pair
at the pit of his stomach, and seemed to fee
the latter more than ever when, at nearly l.
O'Clock on Friday night he retired to his bee
at the Grand Pacific in Chicago, leaving di
rections to be called at 7 in the morning
When at the hour indicated however, the office
boy raped at his door there was no response
and when few minutes later the clerk effect
ed an entrance to his room through the tran
som, he found that the senator was dead. His
body was still warm, showing death to have
been quite recent, and his face was tranquil
showing it to have been painless. The doctors
pronounced il case Of heart disease
Zacharah Chandler was born in New lamp.
shire, in 1918, but while yet young man mi.
grated to Detroit Mich, where he engaged IN
mercantile business, amassing large fortune.
1t was not until after the retirement of Gen.
Cass in about 1853, that he became noted IN
politics. Of limited education, sturdy, but q
rough, coarse nature, he was no less intlexible
than harsh as a politician, and nothing was
more IN keeping with tho man than that be-
fore the outbreak of the rebellion he should
make his famous uttcrance in favor of blood
letting" as the only remedy for the national
Ills. Through the whole war his every vote
and utterance was in the same spirit While
this may have had its uses and excuses then,
1t chung to his harsh nature only with appsr.
emily greater intensity after the war was over
He was, par excellence, the champion of the
bloody shirt" Though it is barely cOnceiv.
able that his perception. were so blunted as to
render him incapable of seeing that the future
peace and wellbelng of the country required
that the hates and animosiies Of the war
should be buried and forgotten, he rated party
success above patriotism, and conscious from
his own instincts that man was more devil
than angel, he relied more surely for partisan
success on campaign of hate than of concili.
alton. Fighting his political battles on this
basis, he was no more than consistent in the
assumption that victory over enemies who
were only rebels and traitors was justifiable
by any means. So when he found that in the |
last presidential contest the republicans were
beaten he felt himself entirely justified in or
ganizing the monster fraud by which Florida
and Louisiana though clearly casting their
votes for Tilden, were counted for Hayes; and
later, when Hayes showed signs Of weakening
on the republican programme Of hate, it WAC
~Saiu Chandler VINO turned the tide of party
defeat by bulldOzlng Hayes into hosting the
banner of the bloody shirt, ana fall into line
with the stalwarts and malignants.
But, as the proverb goes, 'De mortuts nil
o'st boAum.' Speak only good of the dead.
With all his coarsness, malignity and. implica.
Oility, there were many sterling qualities about
Did Zach. He had bold, open, blunt way of
speaking thA suited most of his audiences.
Then he had stern honesty about him that
made him trusted in affairs His alminlstra
ion of the Interior Department during the
asst two years Of Grant was able and lifted
I'm above the suspicious that had stained the
lanes of his predecessors and so many Others
If Grants officials. Yet 1t would be the sheer
st hypocrisy to say that we regret his death
The time when the country needs such polite
ans has passed. With the return of prosperity
hould come an era of good feeling and burr.
i of sectional ieuds and hates