American citizen. [volume] (Canton, Miss.) 1864-1890, 1880-04-24
Model Defense Of Washbnrnism.

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~ 'o VI ""'"""' "''"'
The most unique vindication of Mr..
| Bill Washburn which we have met ap-
| pears in the columns of our esteemed
contemporary. the Rochester Post. Most
of the Republican papers fall to abus-
ing Donnell::-, fire few heavy shots at
the Democracy on general principles
| and wind I'D with a shout about three
| thousand majority. That. thew consider
settles it.
The Post approaches the subject with
a philosophical, s.they- all-do-it'' sort
of an air, and finds a great deal of COM
fort in the developments. It announces
| that no one could be elected in this dis
trict without resort to some means
that George William Curtis and polit-
ical saints of his sort would disapprove
of We presume that this is intended
to indicate that "political saints" are
fools enough to favor political honesty.
Our critic having conceded that the
"political saints do not reside in the
disappointment. He saws zone would
expect to find some revelations of au-
usual skulduggery in tho report of the
committee, but they will be disap-
pointed" The editor of the Post dis
which almost leads us to suppose that
he has resided in Minneapolis. He is
disappointed, not because the report
failed to expose skulduggery, but it
was simply the 'tsLsuGt'' Kind of g skull
duggery," such as buving up an cleo
ton, etc. Nothing short of some ras-
cality more monstrous than Washburn's
would be regarded by our contemporary
as unusual for the Republican party,
and the Globe is constrained to agree
with the critic on this point.
He approaches the details with COM
mendable resolution. "The voting for
Washburn of couple of camps of lum-
bermen is shown" The editor con-
cedes that this was an IS entirely unjus-
tifiable outrage" He is working too
straight from the shoulder to assume
that the Republicans of the Washburn
stripe repudiate this s'unjustifiable out
rage" but he cautiously declares that
mo Republican is under obligation to
defend it. That is excellenti the Re-
PuDhcans do defend political outrages,
but they are not under any obligation
to do so. This announcement will I'M
doubtedly be great relief to many per-
turbed souls who have supposed that
defense of Washburnism was essential
friends, however, should not be led IN
to any hasty reputation of rascality by
the authoritative announcement that
they are under no obligation to defend
1t, Tor In the next breath the editor an
nounces that he suspects" this =" un-
Justlhable outrage" g has always been
practiced up there" In other words
they not only nail do it, but have al
ways done it. This is strong point for
Washburn.
The next. point in this remarkable
vlndication is settler. The buying up
of men by the wholesale is conceded,
but astonishing as it might seem to a
political saint they were presumably
INSCRIPTIONS fellows" and as if that
was not sufficient defense they went
cheap. "Cheap bummers'' who only
Gemanoed a cheap price ana rem
dereo cheap services, IS the way our
champion Oh Washpurnism explains that
tnere was no corruption ABOUT 1t. The
F0st was doubtless again the victim OF
disappointment when it found that the
market price OF voters in the Third
Minnesota district IS not exorbitant.
ana hence 1t hnds an excuse Tor WASH
burn bribery on The ground that they
were "cheap bummers" and sold them
scNeS al cnoaP PI!Co' hcSuaIinS
the standard OF morality by the price
paid for the scoundrelism is certainly
worthy OF Washburnism.
The only other feature presented is
that these " unJustitiabie outrages'
which Republicans defend without be-
ing under any obligation to, were per-
petrated by the Republican Committee
and not by Washburn in person. The
Post comedies that there Is " single
instance" where 1t is asserted WASH