The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1884-08-28
An UngOdly Idol.

I
Gen. Roger a. Pryor is somewhat
IF an eccentric, and W it sounds
strange for him to say of Ben utter
that he is ''the idol of the working
classes and the frish-AmeEicans."
There are several sorts of idols-@ima-
ges representing diyinities, a thing
set up in place of the true and the
real, beng or thing honored to ado
ration. some idoliters worship fright
full representations of divinity.
the Hindocs, the Chinese, snd
some of the African tribes frightful
locking objects may be seen, before
which human beings fall down in
ldolatrous prostration. Artists, hay-
ing hideous conceptions alone of sa-
tanic looking idols, shape things that
ought to freeze, like the head Of Medusa,
the worshiper into stone. Butler looks |
very much like some Of these idols, and |
does Gen. Pryor intend to insist that |
he is the Joss Benjamin of the classes |
referred to? There are some of these |
heather monsf ro5itieS with double
heads and triple and quadruple
faces. How fit it Is, prob
ably, to make him a god
of this sort, representing, as he does
the spirit of vascilation and incon-
siStency, eagerly looking towards every
evil breeze that finds its impetus in
Gepraving humanity, having no fixed
object. except to defeat the blesssG.
ends of humanity, to divert good in
stead of evil, to lead men as an angel
of darkness instead of one of light
Can 1t he that the working men of
this community and the Irish-Ameri-
cans worship such an idol in the per-
son of 3. F. Butler? Certainly this
cannot be; and if it be not true, then
he must be another sort Of idol-some-
thing set up in the place of the true
and the real, a falsity. A careful re-
view of this idols" history very care
fully puts him in that category. The
hard struggles of an early life made
of him the natural opponent of the re-
fined, and he soon became the alleged
friend of the INDECENT, the opponent of
the wealthy. The wealthy people
Of Massachusetts, were wings; he
naturally became a democrat,
not through conviction, but
because of bitter hatred. With his
earliest political history he became a
demagogue. He was slavery
man in Massachusetts,; went to the
Charleston convention of 1860, voted
there for Jeff Davis for the presiden-
cy, was secessionist, opposed Stephen
A. Douglass, and was the jealous sup
porter of Breckenridge. Yet, when
the war began, he was among the
first to advocate coercion, to enter into
the contest against the south, and he
was moving spirit in the blacklist
deviltries of the war, an advocate of
policies which impoverished the south
c1i1A A1fNlO IL NOOOSoGS1 CtA 4OOOhoC
emancipationist, gave life at once to
the theory that southern slaves were
contrabands of war, and as a military
| commander opened his lines to them
At New Orleans he was the
bitter enemy of refined and high
minded people, never failing to humble
and degrade them, and to tantalize
them into open opposition that he
might as satrap wreak vengeance
upon them. The war over he was a
full-pledged republican of the black
est proclivities. As a congressman he
argued the imI eachment and removal
of Andrew Johnson, supported the re-
construction acts and all extreme
measures dreamed of for degrading
southern people and destroying south
ern states, He was an unflinching
supporter OF Grants administration,
but his course was so disgusting to
his supporters at home they soon drop
ped him as q candidate and placed
another man in congress in his stead
Then he became successfully green
hacker, nationalist and anti-monopol.
ist, became repeatedly gubernatorial
candidate, and was as often defeated
Then heappealed to democrats and they
were, since there is no sure protection
against folies even if democrats, fool
ish enough to give him their votes
and make him governor of Massachu-
sets. In 1880 he supported Gen
Hancock for the presidency, giving
his reason therefor, that republicans
had not given that protection to the
negroes of the south which he had
hoped for, md that he believed the
democrats would extend such compe-
tent protection. But look at him now
Here is this idol" of working men
the anti.monopoly candidate for the
presidency, this ex-delegate to the
democratic convention at Chicago,
appealing in the character of falsity
for the votes of laboring men. How
anti-mopolistic he is. He has for long
years been the paid attorney of the
most grinding mammoth monopolies.
He has given his aid in wrecking the
poor in behalf of the rich until he has
grown enormously rich himself off
the distresses of the working classes.
Last year he made his canvass of
Massachusetts, in palice Car supplied
and drawn by the richest of monopo-
lists; he rolled in splendor amid the
poor, who we are to understand look
ed upon their idol, as he passed amid
themwith infinite love, while wives and
children craved bread. He is dema-
gogue, wears the artful face of one, is
a disorganizer, and while he is the
real embodiment of falsity, hopes to
win. A close race between Cleveland
and Blaine, and one or two states car
ried for the idol" might turn this
country over to a destiny shaped by
this image of heathenism.
The October Elections
Much interest is felt in presidential |
years in the result of October cleo
tions: and they have often proved an |