The Portland daily press., 1880-02-18
WEDNESDAY MORNING, FEB. is.
solid
* Definition Asked ror
70 The Editor OF The Press.

70 the Editor Of the Press:
l see by late number of q Boston daily that
a distinguished Democratic statesman from
this city has honored the Hub with his pres
ence. What errand took our bright luminary
there / have been unable to learn As the
movements of all great men, like Bismarck,
Grant and Blaine, are watched and conf
mented on, presume I may be pardoned for
coniecturing that perhaps our great man was
sent as Envoy Extraordinary and Minister
Plenipotentiary from Gov. Smith and his
Council TO negotiate for a loan to carry on the
fiat government. Or he may have been in
consultation with that son Of Mars who PROM
ised the sanguinary and blood-curdling Fogg a
thousand men to put down the minons of des-
potism who sustain the Supreme Court of our
State. Or he may have gone there to confer
with that human bellows known to the read
ers of the Argus as L. W. S. AS last guess
he may have landed there to arrange quarters
for his crony and chum, the pure and honest
rillsbury. who is going TO punish this State
and bring us to grief by removing to Boston
for the purpose Of introducing those beautiful
SA"iAP'co Va iosoiey ahu NSdiihS ia poll-
tics that have made him such an object Of affec-
ton to our people. At any rate our Webster
was there, and one of that modest class of citi-
zens known to the public as newspaper re-
porter, by the merest accident fell in with our
great man, who talked with said reporter in
the most heightened manner. In fact mo
man high-tonder can be found" than our Web
ster.
Among many words of wisdom our oracle
was pleased to convey to the wondering people
at the Hub, / single out three expressions of
opinion which are of the gravest importance
and should be treasured and taught to the ris-
Ing generation. They are: Ist. He was proud
Of his position; End. He held the Court as not
worthy of his high-toned respect; and lastly,
He was solid" AS to his being proud OF his
position, that is, l would venture to inform our
statesman, a matter of taste: and men will
differ in their tastes. 1 once heard man say
he had been In States Prison and was proud of
It. Another had a father who was hung for
murder, and no felt proud over this family
reminiscenco. Another had the itch and was
proud Of ii. Anyone who has known anything
about the political antecedents of our great
man would not for moment doubt the truth
OF his feeling proud of the esteem in which he
is held by the three thousand five hundred
Republicans who reside in this city as well as
the thousands all over the State No doubt
our leading mind feels that he is ensbrined in
the hearts of the people of this State, and that
he will have place in history as a brilliant,
learned and eloquent statesman, and that his
pride will increase year by year. Hero again
tasfoS 1iffAr Some Obfuca and loo
minds who cannot appreciate greatness will
declare that our great man has a place in a
pillory and will be consigned to lasting infamy;
but the noise of these detractors should not be-
Our leading mind is proud in his way and
should be left to the enjoyment of 1t.
He has poor opinion Of the Supreme Court.
most sincerely hope that dignifed body will
not lose sleep nor resign because of this. Our
respected townslnan, Judge Symonds, trust
wheels OF justice will move right on all the
same, even if our leading mind has lost conf
dence in the men who administer it. The
great man may relent and change his mind.
When he does no doubt We shall hear of it il
the papers. His excessive modesty will take
him there.
The third and last gem Of this famous inter-
view is that our gifted townsman Is "Solid".!!
This is a sockdolager, and although have
wrestla1 with it for hours it still remains as
muCn 1yStory as nay Mystery OF CIllgal. "
/ have consulted Worcester and find clue to
it-but only clue. The only reason have to
guess at it is that the definition reminds one of
him. Worcester says "solid'' means affecting
gravity or seriousness, wearing an air of as
sumed dignity. This is a pretty correct defini-
ton of our great man. But he is ready made
statesman He troubles himself no more with
the dry details of a dictionary than natural
bone setter does with text books of surgery
Hence he means something else. If I heard
that Democratic statesman was liquid could
get an idea of what was meant. If one of
them said he was condoner, or coparcenor, or
demnitional, or tabulator, a fusionist-co-
ordinator or a jackson, could easily under
stand it; but "Solid' is too much for me- /
hope Voorhees, when he summons Pillsbury to
explain the reason for his exodus from our
State will compel our Webster to appear and
explain what he meant. Perhaps he was think
ing Of Solid Soulful he ever takes the
trouble to think. If the great Voorhees, won't
investigate the matter let the committee at
Augusta who are hunting up the official acts
that our great man is so proud of, compel him
to tell an intensely expectant world what he
means by solid" NIcoDEMus.