Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1882-09-01
viii the Boiler. Of IsaI BIOL, In 1sss

Mr.. EditOr As l am neither a politician
nor an office seeker, it may seem out OF place
for plain, unlettered old fogy to attempt TO
write letter trying to refute the charges
which certain of our one-horse editors and
cheap ring politicians are now making, to the
effect that 1.-THE present nomination of Mr.
Poland was brought about through still hunt
inaugurated and conducted by him, and that
the boilers of 1874 will bolt him again in 1882"
Now am not an office seeker having filled
no Office above that Of a delegate to the bolt
ers' convention at White River junction in
1874, where l was one of the immortal thirty
eight "a position which have never felt like
Dragging about who, perched upon molasses
hogsheads, tobacco boxes, ETC.. in the freight
depot of that place truly Republican place.
not aristocratic at all), without the least ex
pectation of ever being heard of again, organ
lied the bolt that defeated Mr.. Poland and
elected Mr.. Denison. Such being the case,
you will allow me to state what l know con-
corning that bolt, and not charge me with
egotism when give the manner in which the
bolt was first started and how it was carried
out-not so much because there was any par
ticular hatred of Mr. Poland, but because we
liked Mr. Denison and wanted some fun. So
first will give what believe to have been
the first conception of what have ever con-
sidered a most disastrous bolt, not only to our
state but to the whole nation. In the early
summer of 1874 friend of mine visited me,
and during our conversation said "While
riding over the mountain the other day, the
thought occurred to me that everybody was
stirred to fever heat upon the salary grab,
and as Uncle Luke Poland was one of the
'grabbers, Gas was unjustly charged upon
him, for all knew, or might have known, that
he voted against the so-called salary grab
bill, but when passed he received his addi-
tional pay from the Sergeant-at- Arms Of the
House of Representatives and recovered the
excess back into the Treasury of the United
States doing as did our Senator Morrill,,
only that Mr.. Morrill, gave his excess to the
state of Vermont instead of recovering it back
into the U. S. Treasury we might get up a
political middle of our own and have some
fun. What do you think of it told him
that was all right that had always been
strong Denison man, and that we would shout
for him, not that we should accomplish any
thing at that election, but that 1t might bring
Mr.. Denson before the people, and that
| when, in after years, the people really want
| ed a new man to send to Washington, they
might take him up, and that inasmuch as the
| people were so excited over the salary grab,
we would pitch our tune upon that text Ac-
| cordingly, the next week there appeared in
some paper letter advocating POlands re-
| trement and Mr.. Denison's election. One of
| Denison's heaviest supporters has since told
| me that that letter did more to elect him Mr..
| Denison) than any other thing OF course
| did not know who wrote it, any more than l
did large proportion of others that followed
it. In the meantime my friend and l sat
back and laughed at the hubbub that was 60
ing on among the little politicians, who i'm
sgned that they were really doing the nation
a service by crowding the matter, while we
two fellows began to grow serious and doubt
our patriotism-not that we loved Mr.. Deni-
son less, but Uncle Luke more-and TO feel
that we were not doing the country much
good by advocating the swapping of an old
and we'll tried servant for a new and untried
one. But as Mr.. Denison was started with
out his seeking the place, we were bound to
push matters as far as we could. When the
convention came at the Junction my friend
went as a lobby member, while was sent as
a delegate, and of course left the regular con.
vention with the boilers. In the regular con.
vention had noticed several parties, whom
1 learned to be grangers, and as the under
standing among us was that the one Mead OF
Denison) who received the majority of votes
should receive the unanimous support of the
convention l was anxious lest Mead should
receive the nomination, for l was so well ac.
quainted with nearly every member that
knew the votes to be very evenly divided be-
tween the two. Consequently, in the boilers
convention, when saw several votes deposit
ed by those not delegates, challenged the
vote, and the vote that followed gave Denisou
twenty and Mead eighteen. My friend and
have often talked it over and concluded tina
we had no reason to brag over the result Of
our maiden political adventure; and las
spring we both resolved, unbeknOwn TO eact
other, that We would this year use our feeble
efforts to re-elect Mr.. Poland, and have don't
so. And we think that both of the towns il
which we live are as firmly fixed for POLAND
in 1882 as they were for Denison in 1874, anC
this has been done spontaneously by the peo
ple from the fact that they believed Nj. Pc
land the best man TO be found in the distrio
for the position. ONE Who KNOWS.