Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1885-04-09
Thompson and Lamar.


Thompson and Lamar.
We read a good deal of excited lan-
guage, in some of the Republican journ-
ais about the act of Mr.. Lamar, Secre-
tAry of the Interior, i'm ordering the
offices of that Departmental in Washing
respect to the memory of Jacob ThOmp-
son, who was Secretary during MIR.
Buchanan's Administration.
Mr.. Thompson resigned bis Office to
become leader in the secession move
ment. He Was an agent of the Con-
federate Government in Canada, and
while there was not only very earnest
and rrsolute in carrying on the civil
war against the United States, but he
is believed to have entertained and ell
courag,d proposals transcendiDy the
ordinary limits of warfare. euch, for
| instance, as the idea of setting fire to
the city of New York, thing which
could be done only by secret agents aud
| treacheruus means.
Yet, after the war was over, Mr..
Thompson. who was II gentleman of
most genial aud estimatable pers NAL
qualities, returned to the United States
and remained here Il peaceful aud rep
uta BILE citizen until h 8 death.
The Republican journals criticiss Mr..
Lamar very sharply, contending that
no honor should br paid by the Federal
Government to u nan SO conspicuous
and so unsparing in his effbrss to de-
s.roy it. Thus they do their best to
revive against Mr.. .Cleveland's Admin
lstra ton the passions and animosities
of the civil war. Mr.. Lamar in his de-
fence replies that the portrait OF Mr..
Thompson has been left hanging in the
Department among those Of the other
secretaries during the whole period OF
Republican rule. By this act, he says,
the Republicans admitted that Mr..
Thompson's character and his admin
istration of the Interior Department
were, after all, not unworthy of respect.
II he had been such a black k-hearted trail
tor as these Republican newspapers rep
resent him. would John P. Usher,
James Harlan, jacob ID. Cox and Zach
Chandler, Secretaries of the Interior
while the hent of the civil war was
still intense, have allowed his portrait
to remain undisturbed on the walls Of
the Department? Why, then, since
they did not treat his image differently
from that of other Secretaries, should
Mr.. Lamar treat his memory different
~ on the occasion Of his death? He
merely followed the ordinary usage of
the Department., which always pays
this last sad compliment to former
Secretary; and he cannot see any rea-
son why he should have departed from
it. There is good deal in this argu-
ment, and Lamar is entitled to the full
benefit of it; but at the same time it
might have been better IL such All hon
or to departed confederate of such
e.minence had been paid by some one
who, like Col. Villas, had been soldier
on the Union side during the civil war.
With us, the recollection Of Mr..
Thompson is indelibly associated with
the last conversation we had with Mr..
Lincoln. 1t was late in the AFTERNOON,
lust before his visit to the theatre where
he was murdered. A despatch had ar
rived from the Provost Marshal OF
Portland. Maine, saying that he hail
received information that jacob Thorn
son would arrive in Portland during
that night, in order to take froni there
the Canadian steamer which was to
sail for Liverpool. "What are the or
Il RS of the department." asked the
Marshal. On reading this despatch To
Mr.. Stanton the latter said, Order him
to be arrested-but no; you had better
take it over to the Pres!dent." We
found Mr.. Lincoln in the inner room Of
his business office at the White House,
with his coat off. washing his hands
preparatory to drive. ''Halloo. "said
he. "what is ito" Listening to the de-
spatch, he asked, "What does Stanton
say?u "He thinks he ought to be ar
rested.n "Well-" continued the Pres
iient, pausing moment to fleet, II
don't think s.. IF you have an ele-
phant on your hands and he wants to
run away, better let him run"
About o'clock the next morning we
were awakened by Adjt.-Gen PelOuzp,
who said, "Mr. Lincoln is dead, and
Mr.. Stanton directs you to order the
arrest Of Jac ID Thompson" The or
der was issued but Thompson was not
arrested. Al he told us some years
after, he had for some reason concluded
not to 20 ty way of Portland but 10y
Halifax.
While we believe that IN the desper-
alton Of the struggle Mr.. Thompson
thought it to b.. his duty to cpmmuni-
cate 10 the Confederate Government at
Richmond projects of damage TO the
United States which certainly went
beyond the regular methods OF warlike :.
we have never been able to
regard him as essentially worse or
wickeder than other leaders of the re-
bellion.-N. Y. Sun.