Salt Lake evening Democrat. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1885-1887, 1885-04-03
Communicated.
THE TRIBUNE AND THE NOMlNA-
TION OF MR.. PHELPS.

mentary retaliation from the DeMocRAT.
Possibly the dignifed silence of the DEM
ocratic press under such unprovoked
taunts will most efectually give the lie to
unworthy aspersions of the blatant Blain-
ite whose bitterness it would be an injus-
tice to ascribe to the spirit actuating the
great mass of Republicans. To crinclse
the article in detail would be waste OF
time. 1t is false in fact as it is abom ma
ble in point of taste. He would have his
readers regard that when they elected
President Cleveland "they contracted to
have such man as Mr.. Lamar in his
Cabinet" as victim of a too solid South;
when, in simple truth, the Republican
party stole the Presidency, they con-
tracted to have just such man as Mr..
Key, Rebel brigadier, in the Cabinet OF
Mr.. Hayes. 1t would be gratifying to
know how the Tribune would reconcile the
illegitimate results of that contract. 1t was
not Childish to bewail the legitimate eff
fects of the change" when Mr. Grant ap-
pointed such men as Guerrilla" Mosbey
and Longstreet as Ministers over the
heads of true patriots as Ward, Black and
Rosecrans. 1t would be an easy task to
recall the appointment of scores OF ut
terly disreputable and dishonest men to
positions in Washington without word
of protest from the Tribune; still,
it has been the duty of that partisan or
gan to approve of all that its party did
and to reprove all that the other party
does. "It may look little strange to
few extreme Northern Radicals to see the
author of the Biglow papers ousted from
his office" 1t is not surprising that a
few extreme northern bigots may ''look
little strange" to see a Republican ousted
from high office since they have accus-
toned themselves to regard the govern
ment as sacred priesthood committed
to them, as the tribe of Levi. They have
seemed to reason that it was they alone
who saved the Union, and to whom it be-
longs, to have and to hold, and to govern
them, their heirs and assigns forever
Sad indeed, but worse when "filled by a
man who thought Abraham Lincoln had
not single qualification of statesman
ship" How often has the Tribune said
the same concerning Cleveland, Bayard
and Morrison? Mr.. Phelps, in giving
utterance to the above assertion, merely
reiterated what had often been asserted
by leading Republicans. 1t is well known,
however, that at one period of the War
Presidents life, Mr. Chase's friends spoke
contemptuously of his abilities, while
Stewards lieutenants regarded him as an
uncouth and vulgar man, with no repu-
tation save that of being an opponent of
Stephen A. Douglas for the Illinois Sena-
atorship And it was in that memorable
campaign that John A. Logan alluded
to Mr.. Lincoln's qualifications as a
statesman in terms not respectable
nevertheless, prior to the late election
the Tribunr'S idea of Logan was, "that
he was above human weaknesses; that
he dwelt on a sort of intellectual Olym-
pus." But since that event the editor
has permitted him to descend from the
heights and sojourn in Egypt The Ttii-
bune should be the last journal to accuse
our new Minister of ingratitude toward
Mr.. Lincoln for simply Understanding
his great ability, after the shameful at
tacks of that organ, not only as to Presi-
dent Cleveland's intellect, but as to his
moral character, in publishing the filthy
and lying stories manufactured by the
Rev. DIR. Ball. Has the Tribune ever
offered an apology, whose labors were
active in the pro-Blaine campaign in that
respect?
1t can not be denied that the "old sneer
of our new Ambassador to the Court of St.
James, the Gettysburg speech of that
man who was imposed upon the peo-
pie, ," was wrong and unjust. Doubtless
Mr.. Lincoln ''is liable, as those tides ebb
and flow, to live long in the thoughts of
men," After all, "there is comfort in
the thought that, Notwithstanding the re-
cent sneer OF our Salt Lake journalist, the
New Jersey speech Of that man who "was
posing before the people as a reformer," is
liable, as those tides ebb and flow, to live
longer in the thoughts of men than that
other editorial of the above journalist,
wherein he wanted to gamble" that Pres
ident Cleveland could not locate puget
Sound" a few years hence some
jealous, patriotic journalist may think
that our new Ambassador and
the Tribune editor, photographed their
respective giants in wrong light" If
so, trust that he will Judge the latter
with some little Christian magnanimitv.
The press of the country is highly pleased
with the appointment OF Mr.. Phelps as
Minister to England. He has never been
in public life. He is not a politician.
But, if the President had searched the
country he could scarcely have discoy-
cred gentleman more. eminentlv fitted
by character, learning and personal ac
complishments for the first diplomatic
mission in Europe. The general feeling
among Republicans may be summed up
in the following remark by prominent
Vermont Republican: "Mr Phelps ap-
| pointment is the best one that could have
been made. He is a thoroughly eul-
tured, courteous. genial gentleman. one