Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1884-07-10

The Boston Journal having called Rev.
James Freeman Clarke, now prominent in
dependent. to order for opposing Blaine now
when he had so enthusiastically lauded
Names defeated candidate at a Hayes and
Wheeler ratification meeting in 1876, Mr..
Clarke published letter Of explanation. In
his letter he says "Having secured the NOM
nation of MIR. Hayes, we were naturally
more kindly to the defeated candidate, and in
the meeting referred to | certainly said all |
honestly could in favor of Mr. Blaine's abii
ties and character. | think, however, | could
say as much, or nearly as much, now. | said
that we all admired his splendid abilities |
still admire them, and have never SAID a word
to depre ciate them | spoke of his chivalric
courage, and do not withdraw that express
sion | attributed to him. quoting some
famous lines of Halleck, "a Napoleonc power
of influencing and organizing multitudes of
men But confess that | too readily took
for granted that Mr. Baine's past public
services were of great value. The ground of
my opposition to Mr. Blaine in 1876 was the
same that it is in 1884. It is simply this
That he stands for the bad side of American
politics. His private character is, | doubt
not, honorable and amiable.'
Tuesdays issue of the journal contained a
courteous but vigorous rejOinder to Mr..
Clarke's letter in which his charges against
Blaine were disposed of by statement of the
following facts In 1868, when Mr.. Pendleton
proposed to pay off the bonded debt
of the United States by fresh
issues of greeDbacks, quite a number of
republicans in Maine favored the proposition
IA the head of the party organization Mr..
Blaine denounced il in his speeches and
several pamphlets. In 1867, he and General
Garfield were two of the thirty four members
OF the House who sustained the contraction
policy of Secretary McCulloch. As speaker
of the House, he appointed the committee
which reported the Resumption Act of 1875
and in 1876, when the democrats undertook
to repeal that measure, MIR. Blaine, leading
the republican opposition. made a speech il
January of that year, in which he declared
for resumption and opposed the heresy OF
imitation
During 1873 and 1879, when the imitation
craze swept over the country, Mr.. Blaine
made more than hundred speeches East and
West against the delusion. In regard t.
, silver coinage MIR. Blaine made PROPOSE.
ton to coin a silver dollar equivalent in val.
tie TO the gold dollar 1t was rejected. There
after every vote of his in the Senate was
against silver coinage and the present silver
coinage act Neither the whisky ring nor
the star route thieves were subjects of legis-
lation. and therefore Mr. Blaine could not
be conspicuous opposer of them. In his
Garfield Grafton and in a speech in Septem-
Der, 1882, Mr. Blaine favored change in
the laws which would do away with the
scramble for office, BY extending the terms
of officers and making the tenure certain dur
ing that period.
As to the matter of reducing unnecessary
taxation, Mr.. Blaine has not been in Congress
since March l, 1880, but from 1866 to 1872
Mr. Blaine supported his party in passing
seven bills relative to the internal revenue
and two relative to the tariff, by which taxa
ton to the amount of S320,000,0O per an.
mum was taken from the industries of the
! country As to the anti Chinese law Mr.
! Blaine voted for it when it would have been
more popular to have done otherwise.
| In reply to the charge that "Mr. Blaine's
prominent and most active managers are
those who were connected with the star route
| plumber of the Government and have steadi-
| ly opposed civil service reform and all at.
tempts to reduce excessive taxation" the
| Journal saws: "Mr. Blaine's prominen,
friends at Chicago we're Collector Robertson
of New York; General Arson McCook, OF
the fighting McCook's;' ex-Representative
! Roberts, of New York; VIM. Walter Phelps
Senator Stewart, who led the independent
revolt in Pennsylvania; ex Speaker Grow
of the Keystone State; Senator Miller, o.
New York all early advocates of civil ser
vice reform. Mr.. Clark's letter will do the
/ Blaine cause a double service in setting
forth the most that the opponents of tn,
nominee can bring against him and in draw
ing out such complete refutation of thei
| charges"