New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1881-06-18

! HSdtIlHS cAiif-~ lIllu
TIE CENTRE or III THINGS.
Isn't there bare po>,ililty-vc mean To
suggest it with lccoming reverence, and with
10 purpose Of trcItin, an uucunmrny great
man with ANYTHING like l'.i,y-hut Si't il
just barely possible that I'll tie political move
mcut@ OF the past siN OF eight years have
/ not circlcd round the intense personality OF
/ ex-senator Con,l.ns? GiIatcd that the Sleep
/ L., mllcyulrncr of "thM man from Maine "
/ la> uI>urd with r.-tlc., and untirns emery
/ thu, great HEAD; tlat he has had no other
earthly o,jcct these many years thln to fol-
/ low and worry and battle the object of his
! cnycuomod hate; that lac la, bought NJ almost
| the entire lIr~N of the country, and l. in the
! habit of writing and melting anti-Conkling ar
| tales in the dI,l, ard weekly newspapers he
own, AMI controls; that he appointed himself
Secretary Of State for the sole purpose of
thvartng Nh. Conkling in hi- patriotic en-
dcayor To harmouizc and strengthen the Re-
publican party that hc has been the toad
at the ear of the American people whI>-
prIing mean things about the pr,It states
man of the period all this being granted,
is it not possible, We repeat. that Mr. Conhling
may not have 50 entirely occupied the thoughts
Of all other men that some things may have
gone on that did not relate solely and cx-
clusivcly To Mr.. Conkling. 1t does not seem
to ia irrcvcrcnt to imagine that social and
| political movements and the operations of ma
turc might take place without immediate ref
| crcncc to Mr.. Conklng and his plans We
cannot bring ourselves to believe that upon
every event in human progress the first qurs-
ton asked by all mankind is How will this
affect the Hon. Roscoe ConklingT Indeed. if
| the world should come to IN end to-day, ms
| has been confidently predicted, we put on
| record now-for there will be- no opportunity
later our belief that it will not he because the
! Hon. Roscoe Conkling has been disappointed
i'll the WAY things are going on.
But this does not seem Ia be- the opinion Of
Mr.. Conklngs dcvotccs. In their belief, all
political and social movements, and pretty
much all the operations of nature, rvohc
around his stately figure. General Grant gives
| expression To this singular conception in his
latest published interview. Being inquired of
49, - his views upon the upprrno>t topic, he
| said hr believed the whole thing Was fixed
! lous aga" to iuiurr the great mans feelings
and hunt his friends. EN-Irr~Ilcnt HAYES WIS
in the mo, cmcui. and that man from Maine"
v..,. oi cuuf-c. "kohrrtsou', appointment, hr
,N>. am SURE Ma- settled before Marrh /
YES. before the Chirlso Convention" How
much mthcr back than the Convention hc
Il .rc, the conception of this Infamous outra,"
.u.n Nr. Coukliny We de- not know. Tut he
gives o. To- understand ll. il was one of iho>r
Ir ,uh.us schemes that malignant naiuIc>
like tlli of "ihlt man from Maine" delight ~
iv nl.us and working oGt through !cals
f tuiunu~ trichcly and slowly eliminating
deceit In the minds of General Grant and
Others Of the ex-senator, Wor>hppcr~. it -, M
=. reasonable >uppo>tI"n that iar whole course
of political events - Tar H. II rond be- CON
lrullrd by " that man lrom NLinr.' was Ill
r,ctcd with the sole view of insulting and
humllLltne Nh Conhling. This nomination of
Robertson WAS agreed upon in the secret conn
els of the cons piritors, We know not how long
ago. Still, hr says, % do not think Blaine has
per, ,uilly said anything To Garfield in the
mattc.." He thinks Blaine wanted To bc in
position where he could say hc had not inter
f,rcd VIII. appointments; aud 50, with mar
ycllous cunning, hr rcirIinrd from asking the
appointment, but so managed II that the Pres
dent could not do otherwise than make il. He
uirf.tftl the appointment NliiNHl fffl S'll lllP
n word to the President about it, The char
octcr of " that man from Maine seems, in this
view of it, to be without parallel in the his
tory of human phrnomcna, ~ combination
of malice, revenge, foresight and low cunning.
II may all be. "'Ihat man from Maine"
may be- the monster of wckcdncSs that Gene
raj Grant and Mr.. Conklng obviously believe
him to Ice, and it may be that the humiliation
of Mr.. Conkling il the result of this long, la
borious and intricate patient plotting. And yet
we venture timidly. and not irrcvcrcntly, to
suggest that it is not absolutely impossible
one or two things have gone on in this world
since Mr. COnkling arose and began to shine
upon il that have not related entirely in their
inception and progress to him or his bcnciiccnt
plans for the government of mankind. We
have repeatedly given him credit for being
grcat-yery grcat-magnccnt. Still we must
insist, firmly yet respectfully, that the universe
does not rcvove around him, and that all
the acts of men and the processes of nature
do not hinge upon him and his plans alone.
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