The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1884-08-15
Grave Campaign Blunders.


to the woods of the Adirondacks, and
the whole campaign of his enemies has
been Disconnected He slipped down
to see Tiiden just when a flood of ma
licious personal scandal had struck him,
and the venerable sage Of Greystone
whispered in his cargo and sit down
in the cool shades for a fortnight; your
enemies will elect you,' and Cleveland
dropped his letter of acceptance, gave
the campaign liar the field to himself
and took to the woods, where he is Sc
renely resting until his ill.advised enc
mics shall have fought his battle for
him. And the whole opposition cam.
paign has been thrown into confusion
by Cleveland's quiet rest in the North
ern woods. Butler had announced his
candidacy, and promised his letter of
acceptance and platform to follow
Cleveland's letter but the Massachu-
sets revolutionist has become more
cross-eyed than ever looking in vain
for that Cleveland letter he expected to
have answered some days ago. With
Cleveland resting complacently in the
woods, and the Republicans overloaded
with scandal that has recoiled fear
fully upon them, and Butler bottled up
in his new letter of acceptance that he
can't uncork until Cleveland speaks, the
Blaine and Butler opposition allies find
themselves complicated on all sides
with prodigious campaign blunders.
No graver campaign blunder could
have been conceived than the social
scandal against Cleveland made public
through an obscure paper in Buffalo,
and spread by cowardly innuendo
through most of the party leaders.
Honorable exception must be noted of
the leading Republican journals of
Buffalo, both of which have refused to
soil their columns with the approval of
calumny that is certain to react over
whelmingly in favor OF Grover Cleve-
land in the community where he is
best known. The only responsible
name that the malignat defamers Of
Cleveland had to excuse the use of the
the scandal, has hastened to wash his
hands of it and acquit himself of the
crime. Mr.. William Purcell, person
al and political foe of Governor Cleve-
land, who retired from the editorial
direction of the Rochester Union and
Adcertiser because he could not sup
port the Democratic nominee, was
heralded as the highest Democratic au
thority for the truthfulness of the scan
dal but Mr., Purcell, while not disa
vowing his opposition to Cleveland, ST.
lences the campaign liars by the publ
cation of the following card in his ole
paper of yesterdays date
1.-TWO days after the appearance il
the Buffalo Eoeming Telegraph of tn,
article headed ga Terrible Tale" il
conversation with representative o
the New York San l remarked tina
upon the then existing state of fact
Governor Cleveland must be consider
ed moral leper. The conclusion, with
out the premise, was printed and ha
since been extensively copied. l nov
desire to say that information has com
to me from source in which / plac
implicit confidence materially changing
the state of facts upon which the re
mark was made. Hence in justice +
Governor Cleveland, to myself and t
all others whom it may concern,
withdraw the characterization and rt
quest that hereafter it be not attribute
TO me. WILLIAM PURCELL,
ROCHESTER,, August 0, 1884.
| Campaign scandals are always reat
tionary in their effect. 1t was so whe
General Jackson was assailed as 81
ducer and an adulterer it was so whe
Governor Porter was heralded as a lii
ertine in the Peg Beatty crusade, an
| it will be so in the Presidential elet
tion of 1884 and for all the years I
come which belongs to free govern
ment. The only possible escape til
fool Blaine leaders have from th
Cleveland scandal would be in til
threatened retaliatory scandals againl
Blaine but if Democratic leaders wit
the now clearly visible retractionary r.
suits of the campaign liars in assailin
Cleveland, shall turn the campaig
liars loose on Blaine, they will we'll d
} serve to be defeated and they will pre-
ty surely get their deserts. Of all car
paign blunders, the blunder of the car
paign scandal-monger is the most fat
TO those who employ it.
Another campaign blunder is no
developing into grave proportions al
returns to vex the fool Blaine leader
1t is the idiotic prominence given to