The Republican journal., 1884-09-25
FOR PRESIDENT,
JAMES C. BLAINE,
OF MAINE.
The Mugwump Manifesto.

The Mugwump Manifesto.
We have not room for the letters laiely given
to the pablo, with the hope that by lying head
lines and false construction of their meaning
they might iulure the Presidential prospects of
James &. Blaine. We should not publish them
/ If we had The space to spare The Story is an old
one. 1t is more than twice or thrice told
tale and was first told by Mr. Blaine himself,
speaking from his seat in the House of Repre-
sentatives to the American people. Neither
the facts of this matter nor the letters now
published reflect in the slightest degree upon
Mr. Blaine's official or private character. All
| the discredit. in the minds of honorable, fair
minded people. rests upon the man who makes
public confidential correspondence with view
TO iniurirg party 10 it,
The letters relate 10 Two subjects, the pur-
chase and sale of stock in the little Rock and
/ Fort Smith Railroad. and. incidental thereto.
the establishment of National Bank at Little
Rock. Mr.. Blaine had invested in the railroad
in question and acting upon his advice Il num-
Der of his Maine friends also invested in the
road. His speculation proved a losing one. and
Mr. Blaine to save his friends took back part
of the securities. These letters show shat Mr.
Blaine had. upon his own notes. raised So 900,
at IA high rate of infereS;. which he advanced to
/ Mr.. Fishers railroad company and that Mr..
Fisher and his associates evaded payment.
Afterwards the courts decided that Mr.. Blaine's
claim for the 80 900 loaned was valid one
against Mr.. Fishers company. These letters
show also that Mr. Blaine was simply trying TO
get his money back and THAI Mr.. Fisher was
/ lrling evade payment. They show that
instead of being a gamer by the investment on
the Little Rock and Fort Smith Railroad Mr..
Blaine was a great loser and was struggling
mantutly tG carey out every obligation and to
keep the railroad company from financial ruin
SO to save from loss friends he had induced
to invest in The enterprise. They show TOO
that Mr. Blaine was not the millionaire his
enemies and detractor> had declared linn to be,
but that he had o borrow the 81. 900 he need
ed and was hard pressed in carrying the
loan to the company which this Mr.. Fisher
di>honorablv refused to repay and which Nv
Blaine was compelled to collect by legal process.
That i, the sum and substance of all the letters
contain except the draft Of one which Mr.
Blaine il 1876, when a candidate for the Pres-
dency, sent to Fisher asking him to sign and
return. At that time MI. Blaine was charged
wickedly aud :nalicou>ly with II corrupt acqui-
sition of lie bonds of The road. Mr. Fisher, as
his friend and business associate. knew that the
charges were false and Were only put forward
to niure Mr. Blaine poll jcay Heuce he sent Il
dealt Of Il c'terwhich be decia e> in Il confidential
noe. SO >a'ifd trip. ho"o, "6tc Ia Inn o.d 10 e.
otd rd >iop tie 0so1t' 81 y0-,'te3e,,y at onrt. Is
stronger evidence needed of he strictly honor
able part which Mr.. Blaiue had taken in the
whole matter. He did not remain silent but
met his accu>ers and called on his profesSed
friend. who knew of the rectitude of Mr..
Blaine'> course 10 vndicate him. Would not
any honest man have taken a similar course
This letter does infinite credit TO Mr.. Blaine and
places his deiamers in a most uuenviable posi-
lion. In a recent speech at Boston EX-Gov.
Long said of these letters:
Did you know, that all these letters were laid
before Democratic committee of the House of
Representatives in 1876: Do YOU know that the
letters which bore most strong " against Blaine
were selected, and those published today were
laid aside, not by the committee but by Multi
gan: The Democratic committee had every
power in its hands, the power to produce per-
sons and papers-even those letters published
today. That committee never made any re-
port, and the Democrats of the Senate four
years afterwards unanimously confirmed Blaine
rs Secretary of State. do not care to 90 into
the matter. / believe the people of this country
DO not believe a case of corruption was made
out against man for so years eminent in pub
lie life under the very headlight of public criti-
clSm. against whom one Democratic committee
made its investigation and made no report but
abandoned the whole matter.
We have said above that Mr. Blaine himself
first told The story The free trade press is seek
ing to use TO his injury. That was eight years
ago To be exact it was June 9TH 1876. that
Mr.. Blaine turned the table on his accusers in
The House of Representatives. The New York
Sun, then as now hostile to Mr.. Blaine and to
the Republican party, gave the following ac-
count of the matter:
He obtained the floor on a question of priv
lege and defended himself in a speech which
ELECTED enthusiastic pauds from his friends
After charging that the committees inquiry
had been turned into an invest CATION of his
personal affairs, he drew from his pocket the
Mui@an letters. Holding them up. he said
that they had been wrongfuIly in Mulligau's
possession, and charged that the committee. in
trying to use them against him. had violated the
{ personal and private rights that belonged to
every American citizen.
Then, holding the package high enough fol
the whole house to see it, he said:
Il thank God Almighty that | am no,
ashamed to show them. Here they are There
is the very original package. With some sense
OF Illumination, with modification which do
not pretend to conceal, with a sense of outrage
which think every man in my position wout
, feel, L invite the confidence of 44.000.000 OF
people, and will read these letters'
As he finished this sentence the Republican
members, who had left their seats and stood
near him. clapped their hands, and the throue
) IN the galleries, who had listened with rapt
attention. applauded and cheered.
Mr. Blaine then read some of the letters and
gave his own explanation of their meaning, anC
then said that they had been picked out of The
most Intimate business correspondence of his
life. Then he faced his Republican colleagues
and said:
Il ask you, gentlemen. if any of you couc
stand closer scrutiny. more rigid invesiga
+ ton OF your CORES pOL uence.'
The Republican members again applauded
and cheers went up from the galleries. Their
: Mr.. Blaine advanced from the aisle and ac, uset
. Proctor Knott of suppres-ing dispatch from
! Josiah Caldwell which eXonerated him ION
> Mulligan's charges. He concluded his remark
able speech by moving that the committee be
compelled TO report whether and why the dis
pa,ch had been suppressed, and then took bi,
seat amid the applause of bis friends
Mr. Baine's suggestion 10 Mr.. Fisher that :
ANd'ioudi odHh COulu NC established at lIItIt
: Rock involves no dscredit to the former
gentleman. 1t was the duty of members d
Congress, when the National Banks were or
granted, to inform the Controller of the Cur
5 rency as to the financial status OF the men who
applied for charters. In no other way coulc
the Government be guarded against the ISSUE
of bank charters to worthless scoundrels who
: professed to have means and responsible asso
ciates. Mr.. Blaine saw an opportunity TO ben
eft friends, then believed by him to be tiuanci
ally sound, by recommending them to the Con
= t-oller. He offered to do So but they did no
undertake the enterprise, as we now know, be-
cause they were not pecuniarly able.
, In publishing this correspondence the indie
pendents have unwittingly done Mr.. Blaine
:: service. They had charged him with suppress
, ing one of the Mulligan letters but this publ
: cation shows the missing document to have
been all along in the possession of Nulgau ant
Fisher. "Thus," says the New York Sun, ''dis
appears the last resource of the journals which
, in their anxiety to paint Mr.. BIaiue black away
' down to his boots have maintained in the face
of the facts that he hammered with the MulIiuar