The Dallas daily herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1887, 1880-06-15
A Visiting Statesman.

Confronted with inevitable and most
deserved defeat under the lead of Grant
or Blaine, the Republican party was
ready to have any other nominee as II
deliverer. But Mr. Garfield has
mono of the strong points of the
dark horse" When party is divided into
factions under rival leaders, the choice gen
orally f lis upon some one without record,
against whom the past cannot speak. In
1876 the Republican nominee was called from
comparative obscurty to lead forclorn
hope; at this time nominee is elected
whose life has been passed in politics, and
who owes much of his influence to the for
bearance and good nature of his political OPP
ponents.
General Garfield is stronger with his party
and with thepeope than he will be Mt any
time between this and the election. He will
be subjected to an ordeal for which his leg
slative career has not prepared him. He
has ambition nd application; he has u certain
gift of speech that ia pleasing hut Not con-
vincing; he satisfies those whose opinions are
already formed and they refer to his elaborate
explanatory excuses and apologies as argu.
ments, but Garfield never argues. He has
mind and memory for statistics, but facts
to deceive himself md others. He
chooses position and then begins to fortfy
himself with skill that is quite remarkable
de is rhetorical rather than logical, but his
rhetoric is often vague and confused. He is
not man of great moral courage, nor has he
any Of the qualities needed in an emergency.
In short, he is a selfseeking politician who
rec gnzes the necessity of keeping up ap.
pearances. In m rails and in craftsmanship
Mr.. Garfield is II pretender. That bis scholar
ship is in all essentials US shallow as his polit-
cal wisdom is plainly indicated by letter he
wrote last winter when n candidate for the
Senate before the Ohio Legislature. 1t was
charged by some Of the protectionists that
he was free trader, and rs evidence of the
fact it was said he was n member of the Cob
den club. Mr.. Garfield repudiated all sympa-
thy for the free traders, and explained his
connection with the 9 bden club. After
speech in behalf ola sound currency, Mr.. Gar
field says John Bright had him elected
member ofthe Golden club, and notified him
of it. At that time Mr.. Garfield coniesses
he had never heard of the Golden Club. and
was entirely ignorant of the principles it up
held Later, when he understood that it
Represented the advanced thought in Eng
land on all questions of political economy,
he was surprised and chagrined. 1t is some-
what humiliating TO have such confession of
profound ignorance come from man who
aspired to seat in the Senate, who for
eighteen years has served in the House
of Representatives, and who ia now the
nominee of great party for the highest
office within the gift of the people One does
not expect John Logan nor Flanagan, of |
Texas, to understand anything Of politics "a
a science; ignorance of history from such |
men does no. astonish one. But we are asked |
to admire the scholarship and the sta tesman-
ship Of Mr.. Garfield. We are expected TO ex-
press great awe when we contemplate the col |
umns of figures with which he illustrates his |
speeches, and to receive his dogmas as demon.
stratiors and his deductions as axioms. II |
may be possible that the ignorance he pro-
fessed was assumed; indeed, 1t is difficult to
believe any boy out Of college with taste
for politics could be ignorant of the Golden
club, the principle it holds and the history il
helped to make, yet such conclusion does
not elevate the man.
In morals, as in politics, Mr.. Garfield must
be considered pretender. He assumes all
the virtues that he lacks in order to accom-
pllsh the ends ct which he aims. He was
one of the visiting statesmen, and his con-
duct then delighted the most accomplished
ofthe Louisiana intriguers. That he is insin.
cere and false to his friends his conduct
during the past two months plainly indicates.
He was the trusted leader Of John Sherman.
To Mr.. Sherman he owed political allegi-
ance he had no right TO question, but there
were rumors before the meeting of the Chi
papo convention that he vas WILLING IN hatray
the man who trusted him. His conduct
at the convention confirmed what had only
been surmised before. Had Mr.. Garfield
been out OF the question entirely, as was
Roscoe Conkling, he could SO