Butler citizen. [volume] (Butler, Pa.) 1877-1922, 1882-03-01
The Nomination to the Su-
Dreme Bench.

preme Bench.
Guiteau has made Supreme Judge,
as we'll as President ; and he is not
hung vet.
There is not human being in the
country so ignorant as to believe that
Mr.. Roscoe Conkling would have been
awarded the highest judicial office in
the gift of the President, If cold-blood-
ed assassin had not murdered the
President whom the people elected.
For that horrible murder no man liv-
ing is thought by the people of the
United States more responsible than
Mr.. Conkling himself. The President
gave him fve-sixth of the important
patronage of this State. He demand
ed it ali. On the nomination of
single man whom he disliked, he de-
clared war upon the Administration,
fought it in the Senate till he found
the struggle hopeless, then betrayed
his party and threw the Senate into
the hands of the opposition by resign
ing, and then hesought the State of
New York to return him with letters
of marque as a licensed privateer, to
wage war upon his own people. Mean
time on the day after his resignation,
his disciple, Guiteau, bought his pistol;
and the very physician who was after
ward called in to probe the Presidents
wound went about saying that Gar
field deserved to be shot.
Mr.. Conkling was beaten in his own
State in the contest he invited-over-
whelmingly, hopelessly, disgracefully
beaten. A Legislature of his own
creatures dared not reflect him. The
people of the State were as q hundred
to one against him. When he return
ed, defeated, from Albany, he could
not have been elected Road Supervisor
or Justice of the Peace in the strong
est Republican County of the State.
Then Guiteau stole up behind Garfield
and fired his shot. And now the man
whom Guiteau made President makes
Roscoe Conkling Judge of the Su'
preme Court of the United States.
These are the simple, historical facts,
known to everybody, undisputed by
ANYBODY. We recall them now, mere
ly to set this appointment in the light
of the attendant facts.
} If the nomination were otherwise
| ft one, something would be pardoned
to the personal friendship and personal
gratitude of the late Vice-President
But the nomination is, on othel
| grounds. notorlously unfit
a. Mr.. Conkling has no. standing
at the bar to entitle him to be ever
thought of in the connection with the
Supreme Bench. He has had no con
siderable practice since his youth. Ht
has been retained in no cases save
those which came in the way OF pay
for political influence. The appear
ance he has made in the court have
been such as to provoke the contempt
and ridicule of real lawyers. On this
point, in spite of the high position ant
great influence he had, there has scarce
" been a divided opinion. No doub
be might have been good lawyer
But he chose to devote his active year.
to something else, and he is now to-
old to learn.
(2.) Mr.. Conkling is unfit for tn
Supreme Bench, or for any bench
because he is not a man of judlcla
temper. Everybody, friend and fo'
alike, knows him as an intense, red
hot partisan, who never sees or car
see more than one side of question
There was absolute accuracy in Mr.
Curtis's description of him as persor
who divided mankind into two classes
slaves and enemies. Such man may
do good service in some places, but n
is no more fit for Judge than he i
for bank-note engraver or Sunday
school superintendent.
| (3) The nomination is grossly unit
because it is fragrant abuse OF TIT
appointing power to use the Suprem
Bench to pension a broken-down poll
tician, whohas made himself odious Il
the people. If he must be provided for a
the public expense, it should be afte
the manner he himself recommended
This is what he said about Collecto
Robertson to Garfield: Send hin
abroad to some 'second-class consul
ship; and l will 60 into the lobby
and hold my nose while he is con
"firmed. ."-NeU York Tribune.