The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1884-09-17
HoaR ANSWERS sCHURz.
The Massachusetts Senator ON the
Charges Against Blaine,

tor Boar to friend concerning Mr.
Schurz's late speech in criticism o.
Mr.. Blaine's public record
WORCESTER. Aug. u, 1884
My DEAR YOUNG FRIEND:
have received your kind and excel
lent letter. With what you say 0.
the right and duty of every citizen
TO obey the dictates of his individual
conscience and judgment in casting
his vote, | fully agree. You ask NE
if | have read Mr.. Schurz's speech
and what think of it. / have read
it carefully. Mr.. Schurz is a very
able man. His ability consists in
his power Of clear and skillful state
ment. He has never shown his pc.
culiar skill more conspicuously than
in this speech. Mr.. Blaine is TO be
congratulated that his ablest antago-
mist has put together the case
against him where it can be met and
encountered. We NAV take it for
granted that what Mr.. Schurz has
not said in this speech against the
personal honesty of Mr.. Blaine is not
worth saying.
Mr. Blaine was Speaker of the
House OF Representatives six years.
1t il not pretended that he ever
made dishonest ruling, or even an
erroneous ruling. He was member
of House and Senate for eighteen
years. No man brings against him
the charge of a dishonest vote. In
locking back over that record,
crowded with great history and bril-
liant achievement, do you find any
thing for which you or he need
blush? | was q member OF the Ju-
dietary Committee before whom the
famous investigation was held in
1876. That testimony was taken by
subcommittee, of which | was not
one. But questions were several
times brought bafore the full Com
mittee on appeal. / heard Mr..
Blaine's explanation in the House.
and, of course, was familiar with the
whole matter. Mr.. Schurz's adroit
aud skillful speech has failed to
change the opinion ! then formed,
that the case against Mr.. Blaine was
wholly false
The real and substantial charge is
that he had a bad motive in two
things that be said in letters. One
is that when, on the 29th of June, in
seeking TO purchase an interest in q
railroad, he said =" he should not be
deadhead, and saw various ways
in which be could be usefal." Now,
i: seems to me the very essence OF
uncharitableness to attribute to Mr..
Blaine's saying that be should not
be deadhead and saw many ways
in which he might be useful, any
aliusion TO his official character
whatever. He was occupied at
Washington but half the year. He
was one of the ablest and most in
iluential men in the country. He
was Largely acquainted with capital
lists. He actually did aid Mr.. Fisher
in selling the bonds and stock of the
road TO his friends in Maine, and re.
ceived a commission for the service
And it is to be borne in mind that
there isn't the slightest evidence that
at that time any further legislation
which would affect this road was
contemplated by anybody still less
that the mere chance that Mr..
Blaine might help it was anything
for which anybody would sell him a
quantity of the stock at less than its
value. The natural meaning of this
sentence is the honest meaning. So
of his reminding Fisher and Cald-
well that be had done them a favor
iR his ruling which prevented the
coupling with the grant to Arkansas
another distinct proposition which
would have killed it. Everybody
agrees that the ruling was right.
Everybody agrees that, when Mr..
Blaine made it he had not the
slightest connection with the road,
or expectation of any, or the slight
est knowledge of any person connect
ed with it. The question is wheth-
CT, in calling the attention of his
friend Fisher to the fact that he had
once, by good fortune, saved the bill
from destruction, he did it for the
purpose of intimatipg that, if he
were received into the scheme, he
would do it again, or whether he
did, as most men whose public ac-
ton has been beneficial to their
friends do, like to have the person
= benefited know it.
Every other charge of official dis
honesty against Mr.. Blaine is not
only not proved, but is disproved ;
disproyed by the confessions of men
who are his earnest antagonists. 1t
is upon this one thing, the fact that
he reminded Il man with whom he
was negotiating Tor an interest in a
railroad that his action as speaker
had once saved its endowment, that
this whole change of corruption
rests. To elect a man who did this
is blood poisoning for the Repub-
lie. +" Better" says Mr.. Schurz,
violence in the South. another car
nivSl of spoils in the federal offices,
a precipitate disturbance Of our tar
ifi policy" than elect a man presi-
dent who has done this. In other
words. better another Copiah, anoth-
er Collar, another Coushatta, anoth-
er Danvi.le. better let a minority by
murder and fraud seat Grover Cieve-
land in the presidency, better letthe
hundred thousand federal Offices be
used to bribe and corrupt the whole
people, better let disaster overtake
cur manufactures and poverty and
distress invade every workman's
home. than elect 2 man to be presi-
dent who said, in negotiating for an
interest in railway " By the way,
this read which We have been talking
about for six months, is the very
one that ruling of mine, long be-
fore you were connected with it and
the first time | heard of it, saved
from destruction"
But Mr.. Schurz TANKS be finds a
confession Of guilt in Mr.. Blaine's
manner of dealing with MuIiigan
and the letters. Let us see. He
says 4llat when Mr.. Blaine read the
letters to the House he "dexterously