The Indianapolis journal., 1884-11-24
A GOVERNMENTAL NOBODY.
Great Democratic Paper Sits Down Upon
Mr.. Hendricks Very Severely. 3D.


Mr.. Hendricks Very Severely.
Chicago Times. IN -.ors.- - M
The person who carries the style of Vicepresi-
dent is a governmental nobody. Speaking arith-
metically, his constitutional value is that of the
cipher, 0, without number either before or be-
hind it, He is the political zero-the point of
absolute nothing in the scale of a political some
thing He is fixture without function-a
blind window" in WALL neither useful for
light, nor ornamental by any canon of good
taste. He is the holder of a sinecure. He dis
charges no office, and has no office to dis
charge Though called Vice president he holds
no relation to the President He is no part or
atom of the presidential or executive establish
ment. He is not of the Presidents advisers his
counsel is solicited and it would he treated
as an unwarranted presumption on his part to
proffer it. Though he may occupy the chair in
the Senate chamber. he is not a senator's not
at liberty to participate in any debate nor to
express an opinion on any subject of public con
cerD. He is in every sense Of the Constitution
a superfuous nothing,
OF course, there is no law of the country to
prevent him from holding opinions, and express
ing them, as any other private citizen may hold
and express opinions. But the fact that he is
styled Vice-president gives them not the least
significance They are the views of an individ-
ual-nothing more. What the Vice president
may think believe. or say is of no more import
think, believe, or say.
1t is well so. Because if it were not so, the
coming government of President Cleveland might
be greatly prejudiced in public opinion by the
foolish gabbe Of Mr.. Thomas A. Hendricks.
1t is probable that on the 10th of next month
Mr. Hendricks will be formally elected TO the
place of public cipher. That as we'll as the
election of Mr.. Cleveland to the presidency, is
what the outcome of the November election
imports But that does not appear to be the
Nv Iria lie ~ Hio aob
at Brooklyn is the deliverance of politician
who appears 10 have been filed, "chock-full," as
it were with the notion that he, instead of Mr.
Cleveland, is the man who is going to be Presi-
dent, to compose administration, to take
the helm of the "destinies of the Nation" etc.
1t is to be said in fairness, that whenever he
had occasion to use the name of Cleveland he
put his own name after it instead of before it.
He said -"I1eveland and Hendricks" not
Hendricks and Cleveland;" and he said
Cleveland" many times for no other visible
reason than that saying Cleveland" made it
convenient for him to say Hendricks" in the
same breath He said, for example, that the
canvass of Cleveland and Hendricks" reminded
him of the story of the traveller that was pur-
sued by pack of wolves; but Cleveland and
Hendricks came out of the battle better than the
traveller In the story, solitary traveller was
the object of the wofsh pursuit and it is rather
plain that in the canvass Mr.. Cleveland was
that traveller whom the sanity wolves, with the
Reverend Ball at the fore, pursued so wolfshly.
Nobody observed that Mr.. Hendricks in the
same sledge. Certainly he was not the man
the wolves wanted, and that he knew it APP
peared from q certain letter that he wrote, man
ifesting no great unwiingness to throw Cleve-
land to the wolves as mode of facilitating his
own escape. But now that the traveller has es-
capped his wolfsh puisuers up jumps his hidden
companion celebrating the marvellous victory of
Cleveland and Hendricks" That is to say:
"Me tool'
The popular voice has decided between Cleve-
land and Blaine in favor of Cleveland for Presi
dent. me tool" cries Mr.. Hendricks That is
the tenor of his Brooklyn speech. As the situa-