Nebraska advertiser., 1880-08-26
Hancock as a Traitor.

The publication of Frank p Blair's
famous Broadhead letter, by which he
secured the Democratic nomination
for Vice President in 1868, and of Ham
cocks letter to Glover, i'll which he in
dOrsed the action of the Convention
and the nomination of Seymour and
Blair, is valuable contribution to cur
rent politics. Although an officer in
the regular army, and rs such forbid
den by the duties of his profession to
take an active part in politics, Han
cock was even then scheming and plan
ming for that nomination which has
come to him at last, and, seeking po-
litical employment at the hands of the
Democracy, he was anxious to COM
nit himself thoroughly to their cause
and to assure them that there was no
work so dirty and shameful that he
would not gladly undertake it for the
reward of political preferment.
The job for which he was an unSuc-
cesSful bidder twelve years ago was
simply treason; treason not one whit
less criminal, black-hearted and Odious
than the crime of secession which had
plunged the country late into four
years of bloody war and robbed it of
ten years of its national prosperity.
The crime which Blair planned, and to
which Hancock lent his candid sup
port" was the crime of Davis and Beau
regard repeated. The country still
reeled and staggered from the shock
of that civil war; its citizens, red
handed with the blood of brothers,
still grasped and painted with the ex-
ertion of battle, at the time when
Blair before the Convention, and Han
cock in the army, calmly proposed to
renew the bloody ordeal, to issue once
more the challenge to war, to call back
into the two armies every wearied vet
eran and to force a conscription of all
the young blood of the nation, and,
handing over the government to the
rebels, to lead them to the fray in bet
ter condition than when their cannon
had awakened the echoes of Charleston
harbOr in 1861.
1t was war, nothing mere nor less.
Blair's letter meant war between the
rebels and the Union men, with the
rebels in possession Of the White House
and the Treasury, the army and navy
and the whole Federal Government.
He made plan and clear threat to set
aside the amendments and the acts of
Congress by force, to substitute for
the tribunals to which we have been
accustomed the military authority of
Presidential dictator, Under the hyp-
Ocritical pretense of defending the Con
stltutiOn he proposed to uSurp an au-
thOrity which the Constitution never
conferred on any one man; the single
will of the President would decide
what acts of the National Congress
were legal or not, what State Govern
ments were lawful and what amend
mentS to the Constitution were bind
ing.
1t would have been a very bad day
for Mr.. Blair and for Gen. Hancock if
they had ever undertaken to carry out
their brilliant programme of treason.
Out of the millions of traitors in the
rebellion not one was hung for treason. |
but the clemency of the victors was
exhausted, and if the war-wearied |
country had been compelled to take
arms again in its self-defenSe it would |
have vindicated the prOpriety of visit |
ing on the authors of civil war the |
penalty which falls on so many of the |
What might have been done or not |
been done is now fortunately only a |
matter of conjecture, The evil was
averted, no thanks to the Democrats. |
The fates have decided the question |
at issue. Blair is dead, the amend |
mentS against which he fought are no
longer questioned, but the reconstruc-
tiOn acts and the loyal State Govern
mentS at the South, which were de- |
signed to enforce the amendments, |
have disappeared before the persuasive |
terrorism of that white Democracy to |
which Blair appealed All that is left |
lis of the struggle is the knowledge |
that we have in Hancock candidate |
who is prepared to set aside by the |
hand of violence legislation which is
not in accordance with his construc- |
tiOn of the Constitution, and this has
a certain Importance to-day. That he |
was traitor at heart and in purpose |
twelve years ago will not be denied by |
any candid reader of the Blair letter
or his Endorsement of it. He has |
net said one word nor done one deed |
since to indicate that he is less of a
traitor to-day than when he went out
of his way to lend his candid support |
to treason twelve years ago.-Glo6e-
Democrat.