The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1884-12-24
A Washington View.

The Christian Union's Washington
correspondent admits the public to
striking view of the rugged honesty
and answering devotion of Senator
Edmunds to his official duties. His
uncompromising adherence to his con-
victions of right is the sole cause of the
warfare upon him by the lobbyists of
corporations against whose schemes
he stands like rock, as well as by the
" ordinary politicians " in this state
who aspire to rattle round in his sena-
torial position. 1t would be strange
indeed if the very reason which should
fasten the people to Edmunds "with
hooks of steel" should be allowed to
lose to Vermont, in these critical times,
the rank long and brilliantly upheld by
him of leadership in the United States
senate. The disaster to Vermont and
the Nation will never happen so long as
the sturdy senator will submit himself
to the suffrages of his fellow citizens.
Whatever the ordinary politician "
may be contriving, the people have no
thought of deserving Edmunds. Let
Vermonters read and mark the follow
ing from the paper named above, one
of the largest and most influential of
New York's great religious weeklies:
with the thinking men of the country
no two men stand higher than Senators Ed
Nnt fhnxr hafh
ardent partisans. No one ever knew them
ON political questions to vote any other way
than with their party. Edmunds is one of
the old stalwarts He always stood with
Zach Chandler and Conkling. In 1880 he
favored General Grants denomination. A
year later he sympathzed with Conkling in
his quarrel with President Garfield. This
year, though hostile to Mr.. Blaine, he slipped
up to Bennington and voted for him. On
thelr SIDES these two men are uncompromis-
ing partisans, but in the senate they gem
orally move together on all general legisa-
ton The respect given them is because of
the general belief in their honesty. They
are perfectly incorrupt, and in the senate
they kill every year numbers of jobs which
have somehow nearly gone through This
winter Mr. Edmunds is the great bulwark
against the plan of the Central and Union
Pacific railroads to put off the payment of
their debt TO the government, in order that
they may resume payment of dividends. A
number OF the best lawyers in the senate
have been secured to advocate the plan of
the railroads, but their attorneys do not
dare approach Edmunds and Bayard. So
they resort, as usual, through cloud of
lobbyists, stockholders. and men who own
stock in these roads, to denounce the two
as cold-hearted, cruel men, who are trying
to wreck these companies. Even in Wash
ington this clamor is as great as all the eX-
congressman and lobbyists of lower degrees,
who infest the Capitol, can make it. They
are sending into all the papers which cor
poration interests control assaults upon
the motives of Senator Edmunds; but he
pays no attention and goes his way. In my
opinion, the railroads will be unable to pass
any legislation this winter, although their
relations with the government ought to be
finally determined. But the manner in
which they go at it, and the manifest way
in which the interior department and the
attorney-generals office are run in the in
terest of the railroads, has determined the
leading men in congress not to pass any
new laws ON the subject until after these de-
partments are in the hands of men not ac-
cused of being under the influence of the
roads. Garland has stood with Edmunds
and Bayard in their determination that the
roads must be compelled TO pay up, and on
that account am inclined to think that the
democrats will put him in the place now
held by Mr.. Brewster. Judge Poland and
Congressman Stewart, Vermont's two repre-
sentatives in the lower house, both tell me