The Indianapolis journal., 1886-08-05

by the Delaware & Hudson Canal Company.
Mr.. Tilden became chairman of the Democratic
State committee in 1866. and was leading mem.
Der Of the constitutional convention Of 1867,
serving with distinction on the finance commit
tee. In 1S69-70 he was active in the organiza-
ton of the Bar Association. In 1872 he
was again elected to the General Assem-
bly,. In 1874 he was elected Governor Of
New York by plurality of 5O,317
votes over Gen. John A. Dix Republican, and
Myron Fl. Clark (Prohibitionl He was inaugu-
rated Jan. l. 1875 and soon after declared war
against the Canal ring" which resulted in the
overthrow of that organization. When the ma
tional Democratic convention assembled at st.
Louis, in June, 1876. Governor Tilden was the
leading candidate for the first place on the
ticket. On the first ballot he received 4O3s
of the 7I3 votes cast When the vote for the
second ballot was finally announced. Governor
Tilden had 535 in whole vote of 738. The NOM
ination was made unanimous, and he was de-
clared the Democratic candidate for the presi-
dency. He accepted the nomination in brief
speech July IL, his formal letter of acceptance
being dated July 81.
The conduct of the campaign of that year will
be remembered by most of the readers of the
Journal. It will be recalled that there were a
number of cypter kilograms traced to the resi-
dence of Mr.. Tilden, g subsequent translation of
which showed that there had been an attempt
made to buy the electoral vote of Oregon, South
Carolina and Florida for Mr.. Tilden. which. for
tunately for the country, failed of success. Mr.
Tilden, as soon as the translation was made pub
lie, declared that he had no knowledge of the
same, and insisted that in the elevation of Gen.
Hayes to the presidency the people of the coun-
try had been cheated out of their votes In the
election it was developed that Mr.. Tilden, ac-
cepting the returns of such States as did not al
low free elections, had popular majority
while General Hayes had majority of one in
the electoral college, so that the commission Sc
lected to adjudicate the matter awarded the
election to the latter. 1t was developed in the
course of the investigation into the merits of the
contest that the nephew of Mr.. Tilden, if not
Mr. Tilden himself, had been party to the at
tempt to buy the votes necessary to elect Mr.
Tilden, which, as has been shown, failed to sue
ceed
In 1880 his name was again suggested for the
nomination for the first place on the Democratic
ticket; but he had written letter partly declin-
ing to accept the same, and advantage was taken
of this to place General Hancock in nomination
on the ticket for the presidency. In the conven-
tlon Mr.. Tilden received thirty-eight votes on
the first ballot, on the second six, and on the
third and last, one. Seven years ago, realizing
that ne was failing in health. he determined to
retire from active life, and bought him place
on the Hudson called ''Greystone." and between
this place and his city home he has passed his
time since then.
At frequent intervals up to the recent past he
has taken occasion to write letters for puhlica-
ton on public topics, the last being only few
weeks ago. urging the necessity of better coast
defenses. He also wrote letters as far back as
1860, in some of which he made it apparent that
he was sympathizer with the cause of seces-
sion, and enrolled himself as copperhead. In
letter TO Mr.. Kent, under date of Oct. 20, 1860.
speaking of what the fathers had done in organ
izing this government he said:
''They, therefore, largely adopted the feder-
ative idea in the mixed system which they estab-
fished, and vesting only the powers appertaining
to our foreign relations and to certain specified
common objects of domestic nature in a feder-
ative agency, they left the great residuary mass
of governmental functions to the several States.
It will be seen from this that it was his inten-
ton to apologize in advance for the secession
that followed the election of Lincoln,
and which was even then threatened rs means
of trying to frighten the loyal North from it's
duty to the country. That this was his meaning
is made plain in another paragraph in this same
letter, which reads:
eff such an organization as the Republican
party should acquire complete possession of the
federal executive government, what sort of a.
system would it be2 To the people OF the fifteen
States it would be a foreign government. 1t
would be erected over them through the form of
their Constitution, but that could not affect its
practical character. None of their citizens would
have concurred in bringing the administration
into existence None of the public opinion would
be represented in that administration"
Seeking still further to strengthen the .tcause"
Republican candidate should be elected, Mr..
Tilden continued:
"a condition Of parties in which the feder-
I'LL
having no affiliations in the Southern States is
impossible to continue Such government
would be out of all relation to those States. 1t
would have neither the nerves of sensation,
which convey intelligence to the intellect of the
body polite, nor the ligaments and muscles
which hold its parts together and move them in
harmony. 1t would be in substance the govern
ment of one people by another people. That
system will not do with our race. The fifteen
organized States to be subjected to it now occupy
region as large as France Italy, the Austrian
Empire, the German States and the British isles
In my judgment such condition Of things could
not become complete in all the departments of
the government before the antagonism of the
minority would throw off the government by
secession from the Union
On the Goth of April, 1861, eight days after the
firing on Fort Sumter, meeting, without re-
gard to party, called to be held in the city of
New York, and Mr. Tiden was asked to allow
his name to be used in the CALL but he refused to
do so. The purpose of that meeting was to
pledge the people in favor of the maintenance of
the Union.
For several years past Mr.. Tilden has been in
failing health, and really suffered stroke of
paralysis. though the exact date of this afiction
is not known to the public as it was kept a se-
c2et for partisan reasons, many of his friends
maintaining that he was sound man until. at
last, such claim could no longer be made.
The latest account of Mr.. Tilden's home life
and habits was given in the New York Star of
Sunday last, and will be of interest now.
Mr.. Tilden usually wakes in the morning
about 4:30. An electric bell at the head of his
bed summons his valet, who gives him his medi-
cine, which he takes as regularly as he does his
food. Afterward he lies still until about o'clock
seemingly doing. though when his valet, think
ing him asleep, approaches the bed, he finds his
bright eyes open and watching him. If he feels
we'll he is assisted down to 9 o'clock breakfast
which usually consists of milk and some rich
broth Owing to an attack Of paralysis Mr.