Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1884-12-08
THE PRESIDENT FOR SENATOR.
Gen. Arthur and His Friends in Consul
tati0n-The President not a Candidate
if there is to be a Scramble.

Gen. Arthur and His Friends in Consul
tatinn-The President not a Candidate
if there is to be a Scramble.
WASHINGTON, Dec. 5.-President Ar
thur has spent part of to-day in earnest
conference with his friends, Gen. George
II. Sharpe, Commissioner Stephen b.
French, and Chairman James D. Warren,
who are all here for the purpose of reach
ing some conclusion as to what ought to
be done at Albany in January about
electing a Senator to succeed Mr.. Lapham.
Mr.. French had come TO the capital on
Thursday with Mr.. 5. B. butcher. pre-
ceding Mr.. Warren and Gen. Sharpe bY
several hours. Mr.. butcher saw the
President yesterday, and whatever
information he sought to obtain,
or such advice as he saw fit to give, was
given then, for he has not to-day called at
the White House. The other three gen.
tlemen are the Presidents guests. The
fact that political conference had been
held i'll New York to consider a plan of
action on the part of the 'EstalWart' wing
of the Republican party has been talked
of great deal, and that several gentle
men hitherto identified with that wing of
the party are here and have been in con-
sultation with the President is also well
Il
versatiOn, and that is about all that is
positively known about the little gather
ing of the Presidents friends, except that
while the Cabinet was in session. between
II and 2:30 O'Clock, Gen. Sharpe and Mr..
Warren called upon Senator Warner
Miller and had a talk with the E'halt-
breed'' leader.
All the visiting gentlemen are extreme
ly reticent about what they said to or
hG0 0Y.df fsor,
undoubtedly true that all of them favor
Gen. Arthur as candidate in preference
to all other persons who have been named.
But they qualify their support of him,
and the character of their qualifications
will only appear in the event of decision
against the adVisability of his running.
They find very friendly feeling in the
capital for Gen. Arthur. An Eastern Sem
ator said to-day, at the door of the White
House, that he hoped the consultation
going on would result in Mr.. Arthur's
candidacy as the friendly choice of the
united Republican strength of the Legis-
lature, while he would be extremely sorry
to see the President induced to assume
the attitude of candidate before a body
In which there was the slightest hostility
toward him.
The President hears all that his friends
nave to say to him, but he has not vet de-
clueu WnaC course to advise them to pur-
sue. He is known to be very positively
opposed 10 going into a scramble for the
Senat0rship. The assurances that he can
depend upon the votes of 40 or 81 or any
other number of the Republicans in the
Legislature short of a large majority do
not shake his determination to avoid a
bitter fight. That a fight is feared is ap-
parent. No assurance has been given by
the Blaine men and the newspapers under
their control that they will not wage a
revengeful war upon Gen. Arthur in case
he should consent to become candidate.
Such war would so disturb the party In
the State as to make it extremely imDrob-
able that i'll the fall of 1885 it could 90 into
the campaign for the GovernOrship with
any reasonable hope of winning, even
with SO lucky candidate as Gen. Joseph
b. Carr, who is already talked of as the
man most available for the nomination.