The Dallas daily herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1887, 1882-02-11
THE EX-sECRETARY.


No man in public life since the war fills so
completely the public eye, or has become
so extensively the subject of public criti-
cism, either of reprcach or approval, as Mr..
JAMES g. BLAND; not even TmDEN, after
the result of the elections of 1876, nor
CoNKLING, during and preceding the Albany
contest. The main cause for this celebrity
and the multiplicity of talk of late, is, UNI
doubleday, his diplomatic correspondence
with reference to our foreign relations. This
subject has been sufficiently discussed by
is to take a look at the ex-secretary, him
self As to his policy that was right enough
if the country had been able to
enforce his demands. AS that could not be
done the successor TO his Office and Mn.
ARTHUR, who approved of BLAINE's course,
have virtually apologized therefor and the
world has had another laugh at the United
States. But BLAINE continues to remain
the most famous, feared, alternately abused
and admired man Of the republican party.
The fact is the whole trouble arose simply
because the rusty and dusty old depart
ments at Washington had fallen asleep.
BLAINE put new life into them. He was
not from sense Of duty or by nature
capable of such say-nothing, do-noth-
ing policies as those of HAMIL-
TON FISH and WILLIAM NJ. EvARrs, those
ancients who enjoyed and looked after
nothing as they did good dinner. AS a
consequence the country became alarmed
as it was awakened from its sleep, and
"Rome howled." 1t is all right now, for it
has settled into slumber again after rub
bling its eyes and exclaiming, "Oh my"
and France and Great Britain, Chilli or
Guatemala, or the Sandwich Islands, for
that matter, may proceed in the trilling
process of digging a ditch around us. But
as for the eX-secretary he proposes, as indi-
Gated by his recent conduct and expressions,
country at large has vindicated or &isap-
proved his policy. We admire his pluck,
and think it is indicative of far more
manhood than shat of ARTHUR in
first approving and then upon hearing the
first sound of condemnation apologizing
therefor The one course displays the
strength, boldness and honesty of conyc-
tons of the man, while the other is but the
casting about and hedging in of the politi-
clan. And withal, one reflection of prime
importance of widespread significance rises
above all others, and it is that the individ-
ual is still the moving power in American
politics. The republican party is divided
to day from the democracy because the
democratic leaders are distastelul to it and il
is in its own ranks at last but question of
ARTHUR or BLAINE, 1t shows the latter's
great personality and popularity and his
tremendous magnetism that out of office,
alone, under the loads of abuse from the
first men of both parties he is daily bccom-
ing more prominent ard powerful, ard is
the invariable and universal choice as the
head of the new movement of independent
ism. We think this is Mr.. BLAINE's weak
litsSs hulOnE tut lndcstS VI MS purity lC Is
certainly the choice and idol of the major
ity, and is now additionally clothed with a
mantle of martrydom. 1t is not likely any
thing very practical will come out OF the
new party idea, and if the ex-secretary suf-
fer himself to be drawn to it, he may not
occupy thereafter so great conspicuosness
or so much of popular favor. We cannot
say, of course, how BLAIYE's candidacy
would be received by the south, either us
an independent or republican, but we
can easily see that the constantly widening
breach between the expremicr and the
GIANr.CoNKLING crowd is likely to produce
n political revolution in this country 1t
may give rise to u general breaking up OF
old issues and parties, or II may place the
democracy in power, which is the more
PROBABLE result, but no public man can be
watched for the next two years in the
United States with so much of profit and
interest us EX.SEoRErARy BLAINE.