National Republican. (Washington City (D.C.)) 1872-1888, 1882-01-12
" Sing Hny TO You"

dispatch sent by Whitelaw Reid for the
eye of President Garfield last March was
addressed to Johnny Hay. Johnny was
then Assistant Secretary of State, and he
and Reid were equally devoted TO "the
Premier" They might be likened to two
spotted dogs trotting under the frontaxle
OfMr. Blaine's political T.cart. They were
friends of the President TO whatever ex-
tent they could thereby push the political
fortunes Of their master. 1t was for
Blaine that Robertson had "fled his
mind" at Chicago; il was for Blaine
that Reid had cackled and Hay had
sung; it was for Blaine that the
conspiracy against Garfield and
Conkling had been entered into, whereby
the seeds of enmity between them were
TO be sown, to their mutual disadvantage.
The game was to manage the President
into u hostile attitude TO Conkling, and
then make it difficult for him to recon-
slider the step, by declaring that if he did
30 he would be laughed at and regarded
as under the control of the New Yorker.
1t is weakness of human nature TO fear
ridicule and to fear the imputation of
being under somebody's control. This
weakness General Garfield shared with
many great and good men, and upon it
his false friends manifestly played. He
was urged by Reid's dispatch to be-
ware of two dangers-viz., of becom-
ing laughing stock" and of seeming to
be under the control of Conkling. These
could only be avoided, it said, by not yield
ing to his natural impulse TO undo the
wrong he had begun. Nothing could
well have been more devilish than these
suggestions. They were well supple
mented with the statement (since adj
mitted by Reid to be falsehood) that
Platt was pledged to Robertson's con-
frmation. This was to remove from the
Presidents mind the fear of defeat Be-
sides, says the artful Reid, eve can get
enough Democrats to Offset anything that
Conkling can do"
But all these things must be doEe by
Mr.. Blaine's friends, Reid and Hay, ap-
pearing in their lavorite assumption, as
the play-bills say, of Garfield Republi-
cans" And so after the form of the dis
patch is decided on it is sent by White
law Reid to Johnny Hay. Johnny could
not excite fear that he was trying to
run President, and SO he could be used
as the telephone. OF course Blaines
man Reid did not send his long dicta-
torial dispatch into BIaine's Department,
to Blaine's man Hay, under any impress
sion that it would be concealed from " the
Premier" 1t was sent thus in
directly to the President, either that
il might be secn on Hte ,Uay or else so that
Reid might afterward prove service
of it in case the President should ever
deny having seen it. By sending it to
Hay instead of to Blaine, and by having
the latter send Hay to the President in
stead of going with it himself there
would be less danger Of exciting in the
Presidents mind against Blaine the very
thought they were cultivating then as tc
Conkling-vi2., that somebody was die
tating to the President.
Hay now writes to Reid that he never
allowed the attcr's dispatch to go out OF
his possession. You may proceed" he
says, con this with absolute confidence ,
OF course he may. Hay will never g
back on Reid after such a notice. Bu
Hay does not pretend that he did no
read to Mr.. Blaine, as he did to the Presi
dent, the eXasperating appeal of Reid
He says, Nobody has ever seen it but
myself, not even Garfield took it over
to him and read it TO him. lie never
saw it, except in my hands-nevel
touched it in his" All this is to aid Reid
in proving that the dispatch las been
stolen instead of having been fur
nished by General Garfield. IL is much
like the plea of Jenny Twitcher in the
play, who, being accused of stealing eggs
whines out as a defense "Vell vot o
it? If did steal 'em didn't suck 'em.'
He admits having administered the poi
son, but says the witness ought not t
have been peering through the keyhole
These cOnspirators dragged men in higl
station into conflicts with each othe
foreign 10 their nature or intentions, ant
held back the President when he would
have retraced his steps No wonder
they shrink from the effect of the ex
posure. If General Garfield ever wrot
10 Tom Nichol that Blaine was no
in the Robertson matter it onl
shows how possessed he was witt
the idea that lie must allow none TO thinl
he was controlled. He had been so Pile
with exhortations not TO allow Conklin
TO seem powerful with him that the COZ
spirators had to be very guarded lest h
should become afraid Of seeming undo
Blaine's control.
As the facts Of the conspiracy come
light the great regret Will be that tfeI
eral Garfeld's four months Of power wer
embittered by a controversy contrive
and dkeptaliveb by traitors inhis own cam
Between Guiteau's threats If he d
not displace Blaine and Whitelaw Reid
threats if he wayered in his war upc
Conkling, he was in periious plac