The Hartford herald., 1880-04-21
THE LATE REPUBLICAN cDNyEN.
TiON.
Interview with Mr. +. 6. Hubbard.

NNNll iI diililaltb s.IldiI AildA w SlNt
the substance Of nm interview with Mr..
T.. G. Hubbard, of Hartford, who was
chosen delegate to the Republican
Convv,.,ion at Chicago.
Reporter, Mr.. Hubbard, how did the
convention go of:
Mr.. H., Wei, we had a large and an
enthusiastic meeting, perhaps larger
convention than ever was before mus
tered by minority party. . -
Rep, The Grant men seem ta have
carried The day.
Mr.. H., Ies, but it was Il dearIy
bought victory. They had the instruct
ed votes, but L think it can he fairly
said that u majority of the delegates
in attendancc We're against Grant, and
. II they had not considered themselves
( bound by their Instructions, we would
have carried the day. | say we, for !
was numbered aS one opposed TO Grant.
I. | say the victory was dearly bought, for
/ if | am not mistaken the moral force
and effect of the instruction for Grant
was entirely broken. Indeed this was
/ the policy orthe opposition, and We sue
ceeded i'm il so well that We feel ~ if We
Z had also won victory, be sides which,
We have four delegates certain. Ham,
ilton and Barbour from the 9th district;
/ Brown, from the 9Th, and myself, from
! the md. | understand that there are
Others for Mr.. Blaine, but have no di-
rect information on the subject.
Rep, 1t was Il stormy affair was il
not !.
Mr.. H., O, yes. The minority was
well and ably managed, contested ev-
cry point vigorously, and thoroughly
refuted any idea of a popular Grant
wave. The temporary Chairman, Jno.
w. Lewis, from Washington county, at
one time lost control of the Convention
entirely, and order was restored only by
an adjournment. The Grant men at
the very first opportunity introduced
resolution binding all delegates to sup
port the nominee as well as the pro-
ceedings of the Convention. 1t was n
simple proposition introduced at the
wrong time, and the mere fact that
resolution so simple should bo debated
for two hours, seems to me conclusive
that the Republican party can not be
harmonized with Grant as the nominee.
| was at Cincinnati and no one even
limited that such resolution was neces-
sary. Such resolution, at such time,
and before the Committee on Creden-
tials had reported as a matter of par
liamentary practice, was clearly out of
order, and the minority managers seized
hold of the point, and pdndenOni,,m
was the result.
Rep, Mr.. James Speed was made
Chairman believe.
Mr.. H., Yes, and in doing that the
majority used excellent policy. If Mr..
Walter Evans, whom / understood
wanted to be Chairman, had been Sc
lected, there would have been split,
and two Conventions held, but the very
name of Mr. Speed was Il guarantee of
fair dealing, and the opposition was
somewhat disarmed. They would have
been suspicious of Mr.. Evans.
Rep, How We're the delegates Sc
lected?
Mr. H., Each OF 10 districts selected
two and the convention four. The dis
tricts reported the names so selected,
and no additional vote upon them Was
taken. II was contemplated at one
time by the Grant men to throw out all
district delegates who We're not Grant
men, but this was so against the form
er custom that the majority did not
dare do it.
Rep, Did you consider the ironclad
instruction as binding on the district
delegates?
Mr.H., Think that is for each delegate
TO decide and amounts to no more than
a mere expression of preference would
amount to. The Hon. JnO Feland. on
the part of the minority, expressly so
claimed, and think he was right.
Each district elected its own delegates,
and the Convention as u whole, took no
action, and il seems clearly that each
delegate is representing his own dis
trict and not the State. | think il
would have been i'm the power ofthe
Convention to have said who should be
delegates, and even to have excluded
those elected by the district; but falling
in this, regarl the ironclad instruc-
ton You speak of, as no more than II
mere expression of opinion.
Rep, As delegate, will you vote at
Chicago as directed by the instruction
4 Mr.. H., This will depend entirely
upon the situation when the day ar
rives. / shall act as seems best for the
Republican party. In Il close contest
| was elected over Grant man in the
2nd district, and was not selected by
the State at large, and it would seem to
me that lam Mt liberty to reflect the will
of my friends who knew my intense
opposition to the Third Term, and
who were my friends, because of that
fact | do not say, however, that i shall
not vote with the majority as unit for
Grant. ~ -
Rep, The Grant men clainr that
nine-tenths of the Republicans in .the
State are for Grant. au
Mr.. H., There is no earthly fOunda-
ton for the claim. Exclude the color
ed vote, and three-fourths of all = Re
publicans are opposed 10 the Sd Term.
The State has been carried by organiza-
ton and by II block of town colored
men who frequent the county seats,
and who misrepresented the true senti-
, ment of the State. Evans, while max
| ing the canvass for Governor, constant
ly alluded to Grant as a candidate, and
then add all ex-gaugers, men out of Of
flee and men who want Office and n
handful of hero worshippers, and the
, block of town colored men, and tho
majority is easily explained. Why this
Grant instruction no more represents
: the State than does the action of the
majority, in voting for a colOred man
for delegate at large and then changing
/, TO another of the same color to defeat
the Hon. Geo. Denny or the Hon. Jno.
Feland who We're before the Convention
+ for those appointments.
: Rep, Your men seem TO have male
some fine speeches.
| Mr.. H., | think the speech of Mr.
p Oliver y. Root was the most transcend
ant speech | have ever heard. Ii was
{ eloquent, electric and produced pro-
1 found impression, but of course availed
nothing as against the proxies which
I the Grant men carried in their pockets.