The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1884-11-15
OUR WASHINGTON LETTER.


From our Regular CorrespoI dent.l
WASHINGTON. d. c., Nov. 10, 1884
The campaign of 1884 has closed
upon the most bitter and caImuniuus
political contest that our country has
ever before experienced. Whatever
may be the result upon the final off
cial count Of the ballots east, the
memory Of this battle of blackguard,
ism will haunt the American people
for many year. 1t cana0t he denied
that the private character of one of
the Presidential candidates was suS
ceptible of just public criticism, any
more than it can he denied that there
were public official acts of the other
candidate that were the subject of
legitimate animadversion. But the
press and stump speakers on both
sides seiznd upon these vulnerable
points in the characters of the canhi.
dates and by RELENTLESS ampiyfying
have succeeded in making the cam
paign the most disgraceful in our
political history.
AS was expected, New York has
become the decisive battle ground of
the Presidential contest of 1884, ami
nothing but the declaration of the
official canvasserS Of the State will
he received by either party a- the final
arbitranent of the issue. The Dem
ocrats have lost some forty " thei,
seventy-six majority in the lower
House of Congress, the XLIXth Con-
gress having I'll Democrats to l54
Republicans.
Much has been said during thi,
campaign about Mr.. Blaine'S mag
netiSn, and Puck has made no small
amount of substantial fun out of Thu
peculiar President running quality
While this personal magnetism may
be ever so potent in drawing as Il So
cial quantity, we have the expert
enceS of more than one politician who
is said to have been endowed with an
exuberance of magnetism that it is Il
poor help in a political way. There
was poor Henry Clay who was Il per-
feet loadstone in the matter of mag
petism, so great a fayOrite with the
American people that he was fairly
ldolized by them. Upon his witt to
Philadelphia, even after inglOrious
defeat for the Presidency, he was
greeted and kissed by ten thousand
Of the ladies of the Quaker City, and
his tour through the Northern States
in 1851. the year proceeding that up
on which he WAS expecting Presi-
dental nomination for a third time.
was Il continued ovation. Hated a.
he was by the anti. Protective Gle
ment in both the WING and Demo.
ncratic parties, there was never in the
country Il public man who could ex-
at SuSu VI CSlCtlIl anu az
soluie personal admiration rs did
Henry Clay from these very hostile
partisans. Rufus ChOate was another
magnet. hut his magnetism only ex.
tended over the jury-box, and that
was "a far rs he desired it to go. Ell
ward Everett's magnetism WAS more
far-reaching, but it WAS coupled with
sort of self-importance in public
position that nullified its effect en-
tirely. If you would search the conn
try over for real magnetic speaker
to-day, outside of the pulpit, do MOI
believe that you can find the equal of
the late Senator Matt Carpenter, who
would always hold you within the
embrace Of his eloquence whether The
subject was one involving dry con-
stitutiOnal questions Of law or a
spread eagle disquisitinn upon the
glorious destiny of our more glorious
country.
JUMPS.