National Republican. (Washington City (D.C.)) 1872-1888, 1881-05-23
The President and the Party.

The President and the Party.
The events that brought the present
administration into existence were of
character calculated TO have inspired its
head with some degree of modesty and
forbearance. Prior to the assembling of
the National Convention there was no
wild acclaim for the nomination Of James
A. Garfield. The names of Grant, Blaine,
and Sherman were much heard of, and
the delegates chosen to Chicago were in
the main distributed between them
Those who preferred General Grant and
those who were instructed to vote for
him constituted a clear majority in the
National Convention, and this, too, in the
face of much more machine" opposition
than was ever before set in motion
against the nomination of particular
candidate. By methods not necessary to
be recounted here delegates enough were
debauched at Chicago to deprive General
Grant of the nomination which the
masses Of the voters of the party had
clearly given him in the choice of their
delegates. Three hundred and SIX of his
supporters resisted all pressure, and by
adhering to him rendered the nomina-
ton of Mr. Blaine impossible unless the
Ohio delegation, headed by General Gar
field, should come to his rescue, which
they refused to do. The deserters from
Grant to Blaine had not power to nomi-
date the latter. The Ohio Mahomet
would not go to the Blaine mountain, and
so the mountain went to Mahomet. The
nomination which had by foul play been
wfested from Grant was not destined to
go to the chief instrument of that work,
fury of the hour until it descended upon
the head which had been posturing to
receive it if by contriyed accident, it
should come that way.
The nomination fell like pail upon the
country. The friends of Grant knew they
had been basely cheated; the friends
Of Sherman did not know whether they
had been or not; while the friends of
Blaine grOaned to think their chief had
been beating both the Grant and the anti
W
to 60 to an Ohio dark-horse. The party
was so badly demoralized that it was
difficult to organize the National Com
mittee. Gloom and distrust prevailed.
The August conference came. The presi
dental nominee visited the great metrop-
oils to confer with the men of brains and
the men of money. How gracious he
wasl No frowns, no dark looks for any,
least of all for the friends of Grant.
Then came the thirty days campaign
in Maine, the State which had never
sounded false note in a presidential
year since the Republican party was or
ganized, twenty-four years before. The
great leader of the anti-Grant forces was
himself the chairman of the State Central
Committee. All that he desired was done
to aid No divided counsels embarrassed |
him. He was sole commander Of the Re- |
publican army. And he lost! Not his |
adroitness, or skill could save !
the day. There was lead in the hearts !
Of the voters and lead in their shoes. |
Appalled, and disheartened, the party
seemed only waiting for the day Of doom. |
But while many tremblcd, others planned !
and worked. The uurivaled organization
Of the party in New York. under the
leadership of General Arthur, who was
its official head, stood the shock of the
Maine disaster like an army of veterans.
Indiana, marshaled by a courageous State
headed by John c. New,
sturdy friend Of Grants, and aided by
of the National Committee
also Grant mem, who had been invited
there to aid them, undertook the task Of
retrieving what had been lost in Maine
How well she did this work will be re-
nembered as long as presidential cleo
ions shall be held in the United States
The Empire State sent her great leader
Roscoe Conkling, to the West. Illinois
net him in Ohio with her renowned citi-
zen, Ulysses S. Grant, and when the War
EN- meeting dispersed no Republican
leart was faint or timid. The popular
created by Grant and Conk-
ing and the organization of work in In
Llama and New York elected James A.
Garfield to the Presidency. Was it Re-
publican victory or was it an anti-Grant
victory? Did it mean the discontinue of
he Democrats or of the StalWartS?
Whatever the President NAV do, Stall
yart Republicans will not lower their
standard to Democratic or half-breed