Maryland independent. [volume] (Port Tobacco, Md.) 1874-current, 1883-04-13
THE COLLECTORSIiIP.
CONCLUDED.

Gollectorship in the third district be
cause we thought the issues therein ha,
grown stale But while commenting OF
the matter some weeks ago, setting
forth Mr. Ditty'' position and advcrting
10 the claims of the two chief contestants
VIC seem to have mcrtally off, nded some
friends Of Mr.. Alston in st. Mays and
10 have brought down upon ourself the
wrath Of the s. Htry's Enterprise IT
Now we are sorry for this, for we are
as much a lover Of "fuir play" as the
high flown correspondent of the Enter
prise who cast his "maiden voter" for
the amented Lincoln some nineteen
years ago We are sorry too that our
esteemed cotemporary and his cores
pondent should have used such tremen-
dOus epithets in their efforts to defend
heir champion but then We suppose
they hold the view that words are, after
all. conventional thiRgs. 1t is indeed
true that when one is out Of temper and
writing or speaking hastily he does not
always stop 20 consider the shades of
meaning of which some words or certain
combinations of words are susceptible
We kindly suggcst to our cotemporary
and his correspondent Trench on words
OF some late author on the use Of words
Or. lacking these, some good Dictionary
with chronological references.
But seriously speaking we meant no
oFense to Mr. Alston and we must
deny that we attacked his private
character" The allusion to his affairs
was based on no direct knowledge of
sur own, except that We know he has
not prolp-red Of late, as is the case with
many better man If instead Of writ
ing there seems to be some doubt" we
hal written doubts have been express
ed" we would have been more accurate.
For this is the extent Of the matter
shat we have heard many persons ex-
press doubts as to Mr.. Allston's fitness
for the position of Internal Revenue
Collector on the ground that he is not
good business" man, not man of "af-
fairs" and citing his present depression
~ an illustration We admit that in
these times such an illustration is unfair
sad proves nothing, and if we have
vronged Mr. Ailston by repeating what
has been common talk" we hope he
will believe we did not do so wilfully.
The fact that he desires to get away
from St. Mary's county and rehablitate
himself in the fat officc Of the Collector
Of the third district is commendable, al
though the correspondent aforesaid says
rather inconsistency that he proposes TO
attempt to fill up at home so as not to 60
away altogether empty" we suppose
We must repeat however, that we be-
ficve it demands high order of 'busi-
ness' talent and some executive ability
to manage successfully an Internal Rev
enue Collectors office. Any man who
sinks he can inhabit such an office in a
hap-hazard, g'-as-you-please kind of
way is very much mistaken.
As to our other com ments (they were
very brief) the quotations young,
genial etc, etc, were taken, if our
memory serves us Alright. from some
Washington papc: sent us some weeks
ago, in which was a highly colored letter
urging NJ, Allston's claims to this col
Iectorship. That correspondent went a
little ahead Of Fair Play, although
their styles are somewhat sim lar. His
language implied that Mr.. Sellman was
altogether too old and we don't re-
member what else, (the paper has long
since gone where all old papers go) and
boldly stated in effect. that Mr. Alston
was just the head and front the Rcpub-
lican party in Southern Maryland and
that to hin more than to any other was
due the Republican success in this whole
section last fall We repeat this is rather
rash and although Fair Play" would
put Mr.. Alston ahead of himself and all
the other life long Republicans in St
MarJ's county in influence and i'm
nense following" we confidently assert
that We do not believe he controlled six
Votes in Charles, Calvert, Prince
George and Anne Arundel counties
collectively. We thought everybody I'M
derstood that the large Republican gains
last fall all through Southern Maryland
and elsewhere in the State were due TO a
combination of causes of which Demo
Oratio disafection was one, If any of
the Republican majority be permanent
aequistionit is not due to any one man
in Southern Maryland That there is
any Republican party in Southern Md
at all is due to the efforts of men who
organized and fought when Mr. A. and
such as he were Democrats But,
bless the dear life of the Enterprise and
its correspondent if the Republican
majority in St. Mary's continues to
grow in the same ratio that it has grown
since Mr. Allston cast in his fortunes
with the party, in few years there will
not be a Democratic vote in shat good