Daily Los Angeles herald., 1884-08-01
A Man Of Deeds.

Horace Greeley had decidedly level
head. Like all thorough newspaper men
he could discover the point OF matter
at once, aud "hit the center" every time.
Oatsidc Of his Rspubioanism his iudg.
insot was good. also. In his "Recollec-
tions Of Busy Life" published just be-
fore his death, at tho close OF q chapter
devoted TO discussion Of the great
American Senatorial triumvirate, Clay,
Webster aud Calhoun, with oil OF whom
he was personally acqu ,intod. he says
that In later years no one ut all worthy
to be compared with thcm in ability
arose to take the place OF any OF them.
He then discusses the proposition, 70
often advanced. that the pablo mon Of
America, and our leading characters
generally, have degenarated In the last
thirty or forty years in point Of ability.
Mr.. Greeley says that Us to Senators,
Congressmen and other public officers,
he believes this to be true; but that out.
sido tho walks Of politics th,re has been
NO deterioration. While QUE statesmen
Are not up to the ancient standard, tho
mass Of the people have immeasurably
progressed. Besides this, he says that
our greatest aud deepest minds do not
now seek politics at all. as q field for
their life worx. The great adminlstra.
tive brains Of the present day 20 into
railroad building aud the construction Of
ocean cables AMI the running Of great
lines Of steamships, and tho develop.
inent Of vast financial operations
that affect millions Of people, and give
their projectors aud managers an inhu'
ence and standing they could never at
tain In politics or statesmanship. In
tho early days Of the Republic none OF
thcse avenues were open to tho people.
There were no railroads, teiegraphs or
steamships then. Politics was about
the only way open to a man Of ability TO
make his mark. Now, II has relatively
sunk to low level; and very few really
first.class men seek 1t ss profession in
which to gain fame aud influence.
Besides these conclusions of Mr.. Gree
ley, IL may be added that there is less
speech making in Congress and tho Sen.
ate than there used to be. The occa.
sion for it has departed, Our govern
ment ia great municipal corporation,
andits business Is now wonderfully COM
plex and Of immense volume. The day
of the stalker" has gone, AMI the era
Of the "loer" has come. The hardest
worked and most useful members Of the
National Legislature very seldom essay
to make a set speech. Almost oil the
real work Of session Is done
in the Committees. Like tho work
Of any other great corporation, it 10 done
by suggestion and conversation aud the
mutual interchange Of plans aud propo.
sitions. The man who makes the best
speech generally has the least to pro-
pose at these business meetings. SO, 1t
results that speech.making is below par
thers as elsewhere. The same principle
prevails as Ia the business meetings OF
tho directors Of great railroad aud baak.
ing corporations. Words are nothing
ideas are everything; aud the qaietest
man la the room generally carries his
point. lu this respect the Democratic
nominee has a vast advantage over the
Republican candidate. Gov. Cleveland
10 emphatically man of action. He is
the kind Of man that Horace Greeley
had in his mind when he referred to the
great men in America outside OF politics.
He has been man OF deeds, and not OF
words, all his life. Some Republicans
attempt to sneer at him because he has
been q Sheriff, and during his incum-
bency of that Office Off slated at two OK.
ecutions. 1t may be said with truth,
that there are doubtless many sheriifs in
America who are men OF more abil-
ity than jim Blaine, and whc, If
the occasion demanded. would outstrip
him in great deeds. 1t will be remem.
bered that at the beginning of the late
war, Gen. Grant was an humble tanner
at the little village Of Galena, and that
only three years thereafter he was in
command OF all the armies of the Uni.
fed States, numbering million OF men.
Also. that President Johnson had been a
tailor and Abraham Lincoln u railsplit-
ter. But tLere is no allegation that
Cleveland attempted to shirk the uu'
pleasant dnty above alluded to. When
it became necessary for him, under his
oath, to perform that Office, he coolly
and calmly accomplished it; and we
believe that next November he will as
sist ut the execution of the Republican
. party with equal success and composure.
Notwithstanding the brevity OF Gov.
Clevelaud's official life in very high posi-
tions, we believe it can be successfully
maintained that he has done infinitely
more to aid the cause of reform and
good government iu the earth, during
the past three years, than Blaine ever
has accomplished in his whole lifetime
Of words AMI noisy talk, or would do ii
he attained a greater longevity than