New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1880-05-04
NEW-JERsEY POLITICS.
4 rA1K WITH VIM WALTER PHELPS.


AN INDEPENDENT ANTI-GGANT DELEGATION
WITH A PREFERENCE FOR BLAINE OR SHEER
MAN.
Iron STAFF CORRESPONDENT OF THE TRIBUNEi
PHILADELPHIA, May FL used to see good deal
of William Walter Phelps when he was In Congress
several wears ngo He had remarkable career III the
House. 1t was rather meteoric. for he disappeared
after only two years service, but in those two years
he became one Of the best-knOwn men at the Capl-
toll
While other new members were occuPieu'
like green boys at n school, in getting the latliude
and longitude of their seats, and growing accns-
toned TO the strange surroundings, ho stepped at
once into the little circle Of old stagers who control
legislation. and was treated as one of them. DE
made two or three speeches rs remarkable for thclr
sound Judgment as for their wit and humOr. when
drew eycrybody's attention to him, and his charm
ing social qualities threw MI doors OPEN 10 him. lie
WAS n strong Republican, but n very independent
one. He opposed the methods of the Grant Admin
istratiOn. He had his own ideas OF whhI
was right and eXpeGient for the party
to do. and if the men who thought
themselves entitled to manage the party did not
agree with him, he went his way and let them go
theirs. He was not what they call hlcNor
here in Pennsylvania-a man who opposes Wha'-
ever the majority of his party proposcs-but IL 10"
and then happened that nc differed from the ma
iorty and when this occurred lie held to his views
in frank and manly way. In fifteen wears OF OBJ
servatOn of the House. ! remember no man VINO
made so much Of IA mark In so short n time.
The correspondents i'll the gallery, who knew how
to value brains and independence, used to predict
great career for him, and we were greatly disap-
pointed when ho suddenly dropped out OF public
life. Il-health, the demands Of business upon his
time and the charms of his thousand
acre farm, stretching from the Hudson to
the Hackonsack. caused his reluctance to
wrestle again with a Democratic district.
thought at the time he had made II mistake-that
his extraordinary success in politics should have
shaped his future-but when few years later spent
n Sunday at his home near EnglcwoOd-a house that
is delight to the eye and a comfort to the soul and
bOdy-and rode over his estate of Tcancck, ana
not wonder that he preferred to plant trees and en-
JOY his library and his landscape to struggling In
the hot and dusty arena of public life.
/ lost sight OF Mr.. Phelps for long time. News
paper men are obliged to cultivate the people who
are in the thick of the political fray, and have nm
fortunately no leisure to seek the society of those
who have dropped out of the contest and labor
ing in other fields or reposinR the shady hooks OF
life. SO when met him on q train the other day.
there was much to talk concerning old times aud
recent events.
BOLD sTrP.
Speaking of his Congressional experience, re-
called a conversation in Washington just after the
Civil Rights bill passed tho House. Mr.. Phelps was
the ONLY Republican who had the courage TO speak
and vote against that absurd measure, predicting
as "A lawyer that it was unconstitutional, and as a
philosopher that its policy was bad one for the
colorcd race.
"Ycs,n said Mr.. Phelps, Il remember it we'll II
was not an easy thing to make that speech, know
ing as did that my friends. who sat in mOuTniul
silence around me, believed that was scaling my
political doom. Perhaps ! did, for the colorcd
people, who are very numerous in my district, wcrr
made to think that vote proved INC their enemy,
and they went against mo to man the next chance
they had
"Did they never discover their mistaken"
"Oh. they are all right now. Long before the
Supreme Court declared tho act unconstitutional
as knew they would they discovered that the pol
lev Of the bill was a bad one, that no. III
the Southern States, where the blacks were u
control, th"ucht Of enforcing the Law. So
they concluded they had done me Injustice
and the consequence H. for they area maguanlmous
set of fellows. they are very anxious g. show their
regret and to make up for the past. Why it was
one Of the plcasautc-t sights III the EuGlcwOod
primary OF last month, about which you newspaper
folk made such fuss, to src long line Of their
smiling faces as they passed In line by the box
dropping heir ballots for Colonel Grosvcnor. Each
man Of them smiled ana noddcl and several Of them
seized my hand 10 say, 1t is pleasant to be- back
on your side again. Mr. Phclps'"
THE CONTEST Al ENGLEwOop.
Were you not urging Colonel Grosvenors cleo
tion as a delegate against Grant ~
"Of course I was, and as earnestly rs could, for
really believe that the nomination of Grant is sure
10 bring Us defeat at the polls"
But ddu't the cOlOred people want CIR mt re-
nominated ~
NO; nor any one else of the 500 Republican
voters who crowded that assembly. Perhaps that
too strong There may have been a few but they
were careful to conceal their preference. No ono
except rX-C0llcctor Lydcckcr and his family really
wanted Grant"
"Whcrc. then, did Mr.. Smith get ms 100 votes I"
e lie owed them mainly to personal regard. He
is a gentleman of mature age, of unblcmished char
acter and of great public spirit. All of ny wished
TO vote for him and to gIVo him ANYTHING he
wanted. ! offered myself, again AMI again, to Use
my Influence to make his election unanimous if hc
would cniy say he would never support GcurIul
Grant in the Convention. This, for some reason. he
could not do He admitted that ho wasn't for
Grant that Grant wasn't his fist choice. but
he would 90 no further lie asked 10 20
to Chicago mtrammcllcd, with his course left to
his own Judgment when he got there. lie had no
lrJuilcrS against any candidate. lie would Nuir
for Washhurnc Blaine, ShcrmaI Edmunds or
Grant as might seem wiscst when he got there
This was his position. You see IL was the strJnt Il
any man could take aud when backed hv the Errh
regard we all had for Mr.. Smith aud his discretion
II seems invuncrablr And vet the dread of a third
term great that, with the strength of all The
candidate, combined, and his own strength hr,!d,-
Mr.. Smith was defeated by Colonel GI0svcnor by 80
votes.
HARMONIOUS CONVENTION.
"When is your State Convention !"
"ThuIsday next, at Trenton"
"What will be tho character OF your delegation
TO Chicagop
Like the Republicarism Of the State as il is to-
day, Harmonious uusclish and loyal