Lancaster daily intelligencer. [volume] (Lancaster, Pa.) 1864-1928, 1882-03-11
Ad,utaste, fllteIligenrer.
SATURDAY EVENING, MARCH II, 1882
Garfleld's Political Character.

Garfleld's Political Character.
The estimate which the editor of the
st. Louis Globe Democrat puts upon the
late president, in an interview which we
print, is not likely to he accepted as a just
one by Mr.. Garleld's political friends
and personal admirers. Mr.. McCullagh
is Stalwart and will be charged with
partiality for his faction and a bias
against those who differ from its policy.
But his criticism is to he measured by
the facts upon which he bases it, and if
they are true and correspond with we'll
authenticated contemporaneous history
it must be conceded that he has some
reasonable ground for bis belief that
Garfield's administration would not
have been success and that it would
have been forced to fatally espouse one
side of a factional quarrel which Mr.,
Garfield had, with. probable sincerity,
disclaimed all purpose to participate in.
tits we'll known that Mr.. Garfield was
at one time very uncertain Of his
election, and that it was the
response OF the Stalwarts at that
crisis to the call upon them which
saved him. His personal and political
relations with that element OF the party
previous TO this had no. been antag0nis-
tic. He had been generally found ready
to 20 to the extreme limit of partisan
zeal in behalf of Republican measures.
Though he volunteered for the defense
of constitutional principles in the Milli
gan case he subsequently belied his elO-
quent appeal before the supreme court
by his votes in the House. He was
notably scholar and theorist, rather
than politician. lie concerned himself
little about the spoils Of politics and had
a constituency which did not demand
that kind of service from him. Mr..
Conkl:ng and his wing Of the party were
not indisposed toward Garfield, if they
were to be given fair chance 1T run
ming his administration, and when they
felt some assurance Of this they were
quite ready to turn in and work for his
election. it was quite natural that he
should not contemplate any special os-
tracism of these people in the purposes
of his administration.
When he came to single out the ele
ments which should compose that admin
istration, he found three sorts of claim
ants for preferment. There were the
Blaine people, who maintained that they
had nominated him, and between the
lines of Mr. Blaine's letter of acceptance
of the se"retaryship could easily be read
his assumption Of a right to appropriate
the administration and to become heir to
its political fortunes. He was SO con-
scious of this that when III indiscreet
friend first gave that letter to the pub
lie he felt that his purpose was detected,
and was angry enough about it. Then
there were the Stalwarts who maintain
ed that while Garfield owed them
nothing for his nomination, lie owed
them everything for his election. Aloof
from both these was smaller and Sc
lect company, who, disclaiming fellow
ship with either of the political factions,
expected the administration to practi-
cally espousethe cause of civil service re-
form and plant itself above consideration
for the politicians of the party. 1t was no
doubt, the loyal party purpose of the
president to conciliate all of these and
to endeavor to harmonize their differ.
ences in his party by his selections for
the cabinet places. As a representative
of the last class he took Mr.. Mac Veagh ;
thus he satisfied the claims" of PENN
sylvania and checkmated Don Cameron
at the same time. Logan and the West
ern Stalwarts he placated with Lincoln s
appointment. Mr.. Conkling he in a
measure assuaged with James and to
Blaine himself he gave the highest place
of honor. He had probably succeeded
as we'll as the purposes he had in view
would admit.
1t was not long before he was made
aware of the difficulties which attended
his undertaking. He found the Stal
warts were only half satisfied and felt
that they had been overreached by
Blaine; while the hord of hungry
camp followers who attended his secre-
tary of state expected the edge of the
knife to be kept constantly turned to the
opposing faction and themselves to be
in unending favor at court. This strife
had hardly fairly begun when the presi
dent was shot, but two important Incl
dents had occurred which illustrated the
depth Of his embarrassment and his in
ability to surmount the situation.
Had Mr.. MacVeagh known that
Blaine's friend, Bill Chandler" was To
he appointed solicitor of the department,
ofjustice, he would not have taken the
Office of attorney general, and when he
discovered it, it was very hard to keey
him in the cabinet. 1t is now no secret
that MacVeagh only remained because
he had Gar6eld's entire permission te
accomplish the senatorial rejection OF
Chandler, even to the extent of securing
the necessary vote to defeat his confir.
nation from Don Cameron. Whether
Blaine readily assented to this sacrifice
of his friend or was forced to allow it to
be made, it is very certain that no ad-
ministration could survive the frequency
of being compelled to make nominations
of which it was likewise compelled tC
v,roo,,ro ,.oiootinn Ix, tho Conofo