Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1883-02-02
The West md senator Ed,nunds.

From the Rutland Herald
We are glad the present earnest expression
for Senator Edmunds as the party standard
bearer in 1884 seems to come from the right
section; that Is the West. Ia 1880 there
was great deal more zeal than discretion
manifested by Senator Elmunds' friends in
starting the drum beat for him in Vermont
it served no good purpose; it only gave the
friends of Blaine and other candidates u
chance to cast discredit on the sincerity of
Mr.. Edmunds' declaration that he was not
candidate by pretending to believe that he
was violently working the waters of his own
"privatc political pool" us they designated
Vermont. There never was any need OF an
Edmunds boom in Vermont, and there was
no sort of use of an Edmunds boom in Yer
mont in 1880 except to place our senator in
position annoying and vcxatious, for, as he
himself well expressed it, the West that is
really the nominating force OF the party,
numerically speaking, was not ready to sur
render the Presidency to any other section,
except in a more desperate emergency than
at that time appeared to exist. The West
believed that the clndidalc of the party
would win the day, no matter who was NOM
mated, 50 it concluded we could afford to
quarrel about Grant Blaine or Sherman
tiercely and finally closed the fight by nomi
mating Garfield, who was taken chiefly be-
cause he was Western man, who was ac-
ccpttd as compromise when Grant, Sherman
and Blaine had fought the convention into Il
dead lock. The result of the canvass proved
that the West had overestmnted the popular
strength of the party, for u change of 10000
votes in New York would have made Han
cock President. The closeness Of the con-
test in 1880 has, we believe, taught the West
that the personal character, intellectual
weight, and acceptabiity of the candidate
to all factions of the party must be made
paramount to all selfshncss of section, aud
the increasing disposition of the Western
press to welcome the name of Senator Ed
munds is n strong sign that the West is
starting Il boom for Senator Edmunds,
because of this spontaneous convic-
ton everywhere within tie party lines that
in 1884 only the "bcst men will win :" that is
men whose strength is an absolute strength
of accomplished performance, rather than OF
those great expectations that arc so often the
fatulcnt promise Of that brilliant gush which
so often proves that all that glitters is not
gold.
Ex-Congrcssman Platt of Virginia, in re.
cent conversation with the writer, Insisted
tLat Edmunds is the par.y's great oppoStNnl-
ty, not SIMPLY because he is \ man of large
and conceded ability, but because TO great
| cNlcul HC cHJDyS.luc COulutuCcbl AL stStiOhs
of the party. He has had frequent SHARP
differences with his colleagues, but not OF
the sort that leave ANY serious sting, because
it has been matter of purely intellectual
dissent rather than personal, interested oppo
sition arising out of envy or rivalry, anc
while his course has never been such as &c
make him the ideal candidate of any factor
Of the party he has never lost the confidence
of any faction, but commands the respect o
all. Mr.. Plat pointed out that while he him
self in 1876 was warm friend of Blaine II,
was glad to note that the ablest friends o.
Blaine and Conkling were a unit to-day il
their belief that Edmunds was the only strong
man of the party who was not paralyzed FOL
the Presidential candidacy by the slrengtl
and virulcnce of factional antagonisms with
in the party. OF course Vermont init
ating boom for Edmunds is about as alb
surd and interesting as the bulletin that TN
Dutch have taken Holland, and we are glat
the drift to Edmunds begins with the west
the section that can make his calling AM
election sure if they are in earnest about 1t