New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1884-05-31
MR.. BLAINE'S BOOK.
THE THUNDERER PRAISES TWENTY YEARS
OF CONGRESS-"
A VALUABLE, FAIR, AND MODERATE WORK.

of readers American critics are, no Doubt scall-
ming it carefully to discover no. II may amGJo oS
authors chances as a candidate for the Presidency
of the United States. On this side OF the Atlantic
We are not required to enter into the questions
which will come before the Republican Convention
next month-we have TO deal with Mr.. Blaine as n
historian. not as politician; and he has himSen
made our task in this respect an easy one ills
book is IN no sense party nnt dSni6ed in
STYLE. and remarkably fair and moderate IN tone.
He has expressed decided opinion on az the ISSUES
involved in the Civil War; but he is aDe 10 appIeS
ciate the arguments and respect the motives OF
those whom he holds TO have been most Wldely HIS
taken. ., ,;4 =. -
deliberations of Congress- and he enters fully INTO
the constitutional and financial questions which
had to be argued at Washington while the federai
armies were in the field. He has also traced for
MS the progress of the war ltself-ludeed, the
nature of the subject requires him to DO so, 1or
the relations of parties and the policy OF the Gov
eminent. Through the summer and autumn or
1862 Lincoln had his Monitory Proclamation an
nOuncng the abolition of slavery, ready 10 Issue as
soon as the South showed any symptom OF giving
way. He was waiting for :" something hke "a
victory" to unite and inspirit the Repubilcan
party. After Antietam the President sald,
could not find out till Saturday whether VIC had
won a victory or lost battle. 1t was tnch 700
late to issue II that day, and on SUNDAY hYed IL
mn Ettle and on Monday let them have H."
In the concluding chapter OF this volume MI.
Blaine criticises the conduct of foreign poWers,
and especially of England, during the Clvli war:
of q controversy now hOporably closed. We do not
propose to discuss the charges which he makes
sgast p MS mny viii IND in nom Mr. oh FLAMES
pages, if they study them 1mpartlaly, materials
for a somewhat more lenient judgment than they
are accustomed 10 pass on our actions LGt IT DC
granted for the sake of argument. that England
entirely miSoOk the true character OF The Issues IN
vOlved in the war. Is 1t reasonable 10 blame q
foreign Government for being blind where 50 lew
American citizens saw clearly The war was not
war for the abolition of slavery; to the end there
We're many Republicans who feared that the fTesicc
dents anti-SlaVery policy would he the rum OF
their party. If the doubts and fears OF this section
had prevailed. if slavery had not been abolished,
the maintenance of the Union was hardly 10 be
deSlred North and South would have been nOle
prosperous. more Ueaceable, and better governed
apaIt Long before the war earnest men III the
North who hated slavery. but did not see their way
10 its abolition had spOle of separation n pos
Sibc solution of the difficulties winch beSet them.
All dOubters had been converted by the event no
American party desires to revive the old cOlltT0-
versies: aud most Englishmen agree III think
ing that the maintenance of the Union was ben
eft to the world. Why should not Engislmen be
admitted TO the benefit OF TIE act OF OBLIVION
which American parties have pas ed as between
Turning aside from the march of the great events
which he records, Mr. Blaine has given us a series
of valuable disquistiOns the fiscal and financial
policy of the United States during the period under
review. On the subject of protection he is partic-
nIsrv exnlict stating fairly the case for free trade
but leaving doubt as to the inclination OF his
own sympathies. Protection may be said to
have been one OF the QutSllOnS dl lSSLt DtlNetl
North and south. aud the tariff which came into
force in 1861 had the advantage of being identified
with anti-slavery opinions and due estimate OF
the dignity of free labor. In 1860 Lincoln ri0f-
tied much i'll his canvass by the recent success
of Andrew G. Curtin i'll the contest for the Gov
ernOrship of Pennsy wanna; and Curtin owed his
election Ito his able and persuasive presenia-
ii N of the taI1f question and to his effective APP
peas to the laboring men in the coal and IRON sec
lions of the State" The protective system rs now
well established, and the workngmen are so firmly
convinced Of its advantages to themselves that one
not how 1t is to be shaken As Mr.. Blame says
1.-The ad vOcateS of actual free trade according to
the policy Of England are few in number, and are
principally confined to doctrlnaiTes." The same re-
mark might have been made twenty-five years ago
about the advocates of root branch abolition of
slavery. On all questions relating to currency and
banking Mr. Blaine has written very fully and his
chapters these subjects are Illustrated by tables
which contain mucn statistical lHIoIHdtlou Ill IL
No part of American politics is more bewIldering
TO an outsider than the relations Of parties ana
The significance of party names. On this point the
volume before us may be consulted with prOht by
the English reader. Mr.. Blaine informs us that
the Federalists had quite disappeared by ISL ana
that the only party known at that time was the
party of Jefferson which Republican and
Democratic. Out of this were formed the Demo
cratic party, whose hero was General jackson, and
the National Republican party, who took the name
of Wings and III each of these there was pro-
slavery aud anti slayery section. The pro-
slavery Democrats OF the North were called for a
time Hunkers the anti-saveTy Democrats were
Barnburncrs. In 1913 the Barnburners, the
"Conscience Wings who objected 10 slavery, and
the AbOItiOnistS united TO form the FTee-SOl
party which ran old Van Buren, as an antl-slavery
candidate for the Presidency, TO tie establishment
of mankind. When the slavery question came to
the front few years after, the Wing party was
diving out in the South; only a remnant of II held
on for a time as the KnOwNothlug party, which
seems to have subsisted chiefly on denunciation
of foreigners generally, and the Pope in particular
The Northern Democrats were good deal scattered,
and many of the ant-slavery section OF that party
were absorbed in the new Republican party, which
included also the best of the old Wings and most
of the AbOiti0nists. One effect of the war seems
10 have been TO make party distinctions more i'm
portant than they We're; but there is not the rigid
diaclpline and etiquette in such matters to which
we in England are accustomed. The country Is so
large. its population IS so varied aud the Federal
constitution is so skiIfuIIy put together, that new
formula are constantly required to express new
combinations OF interests and ideas.
We have endeavOred TO indicate the points of pO-
litical Importance III this volume we ought also
to say something Of the judgments which Mr..
Blaine has passed on individual men. in dealing
with the characters of the statesmen Of the past,
and especially with Clay and Calhoun, he is, we
think, particularly happy. In dealing with his own
contemporaries he is, naturally enough hat
TOO uniformly civil and complimentary. But Mi.
Blane's connection with politics Is on the whole an
advantage 10 his book. lie has been an active and
trusted member of the Republican party from its
formation and he has evidently drawn from his
own recollections MANY interesting touches
of description. Among the figures which stand
out most prominently III his historical picture are
Edwin NJ Stanton, the st0u-hearied rough
tongued Democrat, to whom Lincoln mtrusted the
War Departments jealous overbeaIIng man. but
true patriot and indefatigible worker; Ulysses
- Grant most tacItum of military commanders.
and yet most successful in inspiring his men with
his own obstinate determination 10 win and Sher-
man, with bis grim manner and square, impressive
head, out of which II supposed he could con-
stTuct a perfect typographical map Of the United
5; ites at twenty-four hours notice. The times
demanded strong men and they gathered around
the President, who was III respects the strong
est of them all. Lincoln Ms Mr. Blaine describes
him for ms, was a man of the gentlest manners, and
yet a chief who allowed nobody TO take liberties
with him, and made his will felt in every depart
Ineut of public affairs. On great occasions he was
simple aud dignIiicd in ordinary life he expressed
himself III dialect racy Of the soil of llnos-as for
instance when lie warned General Hooker not 10
LET himself be caught with his army divided by the
Rappahannock, like sn.ox half jumped over a
fence liable 10 be torn by dogs behind and before,
without "A fair chance 10 gore one way or kick the