Centre Democrat. [volume] (Bellefonte, Pa.) 1848-1989, 1880-08-12
The Pinchbeck Nominee or Pinchbeck
Politicians.
From Fcrney's Progress.


Politicians.
From Fcrney's Progress
The pinchbeck Buckeye politicians
who have seized the National Govern.
ment have forfeited all claims to respect
and confidence by their shallowness,
selfishness and treachery. Garfield is
an embodiment of their vices and
weaknesses, and the people will exhib.
it their usual sagacity in penetrating
his mask of pretensions and hypoc.
risy. BY emphatic and ncontrovertible
testimony he stands convicted of the
fiagrant crime of selling his potential
influence as Chairman of the Commit.
tee on Appropriations of the House of
Representatives to modern pavement
spectators. This hideous wrong, per.
petrated by the trusted custodian of
the purse.strings of the American peo
pie, displays ineffable baseness, and is
analogous in infamy to Benedict Ar.
nold's betrayal of the cause of the
Revolution. To understand fully the
De Golyer transaction, the essential fea.
lures of the charge and Garfields
Pecksnitiian defence should be careful.
ly examined by every citizen who de.
sires to protect the republic from the
perils and disgrace involved in the ele.
vation to the Presidency OF a dishonor.
ed Representative.
The code of political morality BY
which Garfeld's conduct in relation to
the De Golyer pavement and the Credit
Mobilier stock is palliated is q pinchbeck
10 81, L. =. a =.
and creditable, it will be useless TO op.
pose the election of any cormorant who
has grown rich by corruption, inasmuch
as it Is impossible to conceive of any
betrayal OF public trust susceptible OF
direct proof for which n defence cannot
be invented as valid as that now made
by the champions of the Chicago nomi.
nee. The clatter about civil service
represents another form of pinchbeck
Buckeye statesmanship. The contrast
between promise and performance is
strong enough to recall the saying
that there is only single step between
the sublimd ane the ridiculous. The
nomination of Arthur as Vice. Pesident
by Ohio influences, after he had been
ostentatiously removed from the New
York collectorship on the express
ground that his official management
grossly violated the sublime Ohio stand.
ard, makes a material addition to the
long catalogue of civil service absurdi.
ties, and Garfield's letter of acceptance
completed the circuit Of hypocritical
charlatanism by the covert announce.
ment which is interpreted as a formal
surrender of the appointing power to
the influential machine managers who
have converted politics into q lucrative
profession.
The chief claim to public support ad.
vanced on behalf of the pinchbeck
nominee OF pinchbeck politicians hing.
es on the audacious and insulting asser.
ton that the revival of American pros.
perity, the preservation of American
institutions, and the continued great.
ness of the Republic is due to their valor,
their sagacity, their patriotism and their
craftsmanship. Tweed might as we'll
have claimed that the continued growth
of the city of New York was due to
his rapacity. II is the people who
have borne the burden of war, debt,
and the restoration of specie payments.
IL is the sturdy labors of millions of
of thousands of skillful inventors. |
the enterprise of many adventurous
business men that have expanded the |
fields of productive industry, rather in |
spite of governmental neglect and op-
preston than in consequence of govern.
mental assistance. Macaulay enunciat.
ed truths as applicable TO the modern
history of the United States as TO the |
ancient history of England. when he
said that mo ordinary misfortune, no |
ordinary misgovernment, will do so |
much to make a nation wretched as the |
constant progress of physical knowledge |
and the constant effort Of every man TO |
better himself will do TO make nation |
II has often been found |
that profuse expenditure, heavy taxa.
ton, absurd commercial restrictions, |
tribunals, disastrous wars, sedi.
tons, prosecutions, condagrations, in.
have not been able to destroy
capital so fast as the exertions of private
citizens have been able to create t."
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