The Portland daily press., 1885-04-28

What n Prominent Portland DemOcrnI
Says of His appointment.


What n Prominent Portland DemOcrnI
Says of His appointment.
portland Correspondence of the Boston Record)
The recognition of the claims of Portland
by the recent appointment OF Capt. o. 81.
Chase as collector of internal revenue, has not
apparently added to the sum total OF human
happiness in this city. The Republicans do
not indOrse the appointment, as has besn duly
set forth. But there is qaite as much ont
spoken dissatisfaction among the Democrats.
Iudeed, some Of them are avowedly indulging
the hope that the captain will fail OF conhrma-
tion at the hands of the Senate. l do not
know how general this feeling may be, but
have good Democratic authority for saying
that it exists. One of the leading men of tho
party in this city expressed his views on the
subject with great freedom this evening. "The
President" said he, "has made great mis-
take in this appointment, though he isn't in
the least to blame. 1t is bad-bad in every
way. In the hrst place, Chase was a leading
spirit in the count out and that is bad
thing to look back on. II 1t had been q sac
cess it would have been all right, as politics
sometimes go; but it wasn't a success-'twas q
failure And it is bad policy TO reward the
engineers of that movement. Now, the DEM
ocrsts OF Portland did not want this man ap-
pointed, you may be sure Of that; and yet his
papers were probably signed by large majOri-
ty of the leaders here, and l will tell You why.
Chase has in his possession letters from these
men in regard to the count-out, which they
wouldn't want brought to light, and which be
is Just the man to publish If things didn't 90
TO suit him. He took pains at the time to get
as many prominent Democrats as possible to
commit themselves in writing as being in IA
vor of that SCENE. He did not rope them all in,
but he did good many. These men didn't
realize what the game really was, when they
lent their Endorsement; they didn't suppose 1t
was wholesale affair, and they merely gave
their sanction to using the old tactics OF the
Republicans. But they got into the box, as
Chase meant that they should, and to GER
| tain extent they are in it now, and consequent
| ly his papers appeared well to the President.
"Oh, the captain doesn't stand on ceremony
| where bis interests are concerned. Last sum
| mer it was an understood thing that the Hon.
| l.. ID. M. Sweat, who, as you know, is one OF
| our most distinguished and best Democrats,
| was to be our delegate to Chicago. Chase was
supposed to be committed to this and be man.
| aged to get letter from Mr.. Sweat in favor Of
his (Chases) appointment as Surveyor Of the
port after president should be nominated and
elected. Well, after everything was supposed
to be settled and Mr. Sweat had gone to WASH
| ington, Chase worked around, packed the con-
| vention and got himself elected as delegate.
| And then, when his course was called by its
right name, he pulled out Swsst's letter OF in
| dorsement. He claims that he was the means
OF ousting Crom veil from the chaiTmanshiP OF
| the State Committee and putting Brown in the
place; put Wnen MS papers went TO Waening-
| ton, CromwelPs name was on them with the
rest. You can judge how much Cromwell
| wanted him appointed. AS matter Of fact,
4 the Democrats of this city, the better class Of
| them at any rate, would have much preferred
| to have Rollins retained in Office. He was q
| good man for the plsee and he was not an
| offensive partisan. He took no part in the
/ campaign, except that ne went to Boston to at
| tend the meeting in honor of Blaine, and as he
| took cold there and was sick for i've or six
l weeks he was punished enough for that.
THE President, il he had only known 1t,
/ would have done better to keep in the Office
| Republican who was qualified and was liked,
1 than to appoint DSAocrat who isn't qualified
| and is the worst kind of an offensive partisan
offensive to his own party as well as to the
i other"
/ Thus spoke Democrat who may or may not
| represent bis party in this matter; but who, so
| far as good service goes, might be considered
l as entitled to speak for it.