The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1883-10-27
LITERATURE.
Books.

Co., Chicago. For sale 10y Iiapeman d
Graham, Ottawa. Price 5000.
1t is now nearly twen,y.three years since
James Buchanan retired from public life
winding up career which, though u no
respect brilliant had in the main been
fairly honorable, IN cloud OF obioqny
Was this deserved? Was 1t fitting out
come of nearly fifty years OF Iaboriou'
public service that he should 60 down to
history IA The unhappy "Old pGb. Fonc, -
whose political life had been u failure
Not so thought James Buchanan himself,
for during the eight remaining years OF
his life that succeeded his rc!rAcy from
the presidency he was maihly occupied IN
preparing "vlndiCatlon," not only OF his
administration as president, but Of his en-
tire political career from the days 81 M&di
son down to the inauguration OF President
Lincoln He had no thought ct publish
ing it himself With . firm Christian
faith in CONSCIOUS existence hereafter
his chief concern wa, about ms posthu-
nous fame. Dying he committed his pa
Dcfs and the work Of preparing them Tor
press to William b. Reed OF Philadelphia,
but who was unable to undertake the task,
and so it w0s turned over to Mr. Curtis. 1t
was time somebody took it IN haud, for as
the years rolled on the shadows were only
deepening raat darkcned the eX presidents
fame. Whether the book of Mr.. Curtis has
been able to dlsslpate them the world may
now decide.
The biography presents MI buchanan
IN the three phases of0) his early eiuca-
ton and student life; t2l his career as
legislator, representative ana senator In
congress and foreign minister, and t3) as
president of the United States. The first
is disposed OF in q single chapter and mat
the most pleasing one IN the book. HE
juvenile buchanan was IL good boy, hard
student and an exemplary young man.
Trained for the law, lie entered upon his
profession at al early age, and IN shorter
ltIIpu Nlnl IuIlo w VIC 'DN VA bi''N ''''E
lawyers, had gained lucrative practice
But conscnunE, at the age Of -, 10 be
elected to the legislature, he enters upon
t2J his pre.pre-Identlal political career
To this the greater hail OF the work Is de
voted, and HAD the biography terminated
here, VIC should have had before IS a
rather attractive charaCtcr-a politician Of
sterling honesty and integrity, o. almost
singular purity aid dignity Of lie, and Of
abilities ana parts TO cntitu HIM u the
hOnOrs Of successful craftsmanship. Dur
ing The long years from 1916 20 1886 many
grave questions came before congress and
The country tor discussion and decision.
Nj Curtis has the faculty Of presenting
The points ~ issue IN each with such sin
gulsT clesrueS,, that though copying ubcr
ally from Mr.. Buchenan's papers and
speeches to present his position and views
With the rtmos, inllncss, they caG III most
cases be safely skipped, the reader beng
already IN osscsslen Of the points,
itls when Mr. buchanan is launched on
Als career as President that we first ind
him hating and stumbling. His position
va. difficult ma trying enough. The
country had become fairly crazed on the
slavery question. Whle the democratic
party Of the north had hitherto honorably
ztpnl lu Tim cont, ma int nf
her clear constitutional right to hold
slaves 1t halted and began 20 fall away
when the south made upon it the further
demand of aid for slavery propagandism.
The Kansas Nebraska controversy brought
The matter to head. The most the demo-
Cracy could DO for the south was to pro
pose the submission Of the matter TO the
aTbitrament OF Squa'ter sovereignty. 1t was
most unfortunate proposal. The out
come was that fierce contest between free
dom and border ruflianism that convulsed
the country, II eliminated IN the lie
compton consututiOn-that vile trick by
which it was intended to enforce slavery
upon Kansas against the will of her peo-
pie. Buchanan undertook to support that
fraud, and 1t was his political death knell
Stephen a. Douglass said, 81 will tear that
constitution into shreds,' and the northern
democracy almost to man stood by him.
EyeEts now crowded on with a whlrl, and
the only CLEAN of reason shining out of
MIR. BuChanan's blind and fatuous subser.
viency to the south occurs IN his final mes.
sage to congress, in which he so manfully
sets forth the right of the general govern
ment, not to coerco the states, but the PEG.
pie Of the states, into obedle nee, and his
call upon congress for men and means to
enable the government TO maintain its
authority. But both congress and the
country had learned by this time fully to
dIstrust HIM, and awaited with impotence
his getting out of the way, which happily
occurred on the 18th Of March, 1861.
Whatever may be the ultimate judC-
ment, however, as TO the success Of Mr..