The Valley Virginian. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1865-1895, 1888-04-12
Wise to Elan.

by you, expressing opposition to my views
Oh the unit rule and party organization
have recently appeared. In sc far as you
differ with me Oh these points, | am glad
to have your ideas. You may be right and
| may be wrong. | do not think l am but
il | find am mistaken / am open to con-
yiction, and whether convinced or not, |
stand ready to abide the decision on these
points of fairly constituted and convened
convention OF my party.
1t seems. however, that you, being
asked by Colonel W0ltz to give your "Opin-
ion of the Wise address, whether it means
real fight or not, &c. " have seen fit to go
beyond that request and discuss Wise, and
under the &c" you have chosen to be-
come the interpreter OF my motives, critic
of my intentions, and expounder OF my
temperament and Intellectual traits. All
this was done quite trenchantly and alrlly
by you. Having assumed this censorship,
you will not of course betray surprise and
annoyance if | retort in kind, and now and
then place YOU on the stool of criticism.
or course do not hope to succeed in
this line as we'll as you have done. l ac.
cord TO you fairly won pre-eminence in
your peculiar talent for recklessly tramp
ling, With reckless statement, upon the
feelings of others. and yet doing it with
such boldness and plansibility as to make
your charges pass current with the careless
reader
l wish you had explained how Colonel
Wolff acquired his military title, and why
you felt called upon to furnish this avowed
enemy of our "managel policy" and
free lance cavalier columns of assault
upon member of your party with whom
you have always professed friendly feeling
Neither your medium nor your style
strengthen your professed desire for har.
mony. Still | waive the enquiry.
1t was kind of you to endorse my ear
aestness and say | am generally too much
in earnest Even Colonel WoltZ did not
invite this compliment, but as you have
volunteered it, | regret that | cannot re.
turn the compliment
l have seen you when | thought you
half hearted in your work on more than
one memorable occasion. l remember a
speech you once made nominating me for
governor, after which many of my friends
enquired whether you were in earnest;
and if you had been more III earnest when
you were candidate for Congress in 1856.
and had not advertised in advance your
expectation of defeat you might have been
elected.
Pardon the same freedom of criticism
you bestowed upon me. 1t may not be
pleasant, but you evidently regard it as
profitable.
/ deny your charge that l am kicking
out of the traces 1t is true | am Oppos-
ing the operations of your wheel in a
wheel"
If our party meets and adopts your
views. and then resist its action | may
be Justly called kicker, but until it does
so there are no traces in which cam pull
or out of which | can kick. Your trouble
is old and chronic. You and your asso-
ciates claim the exclusive right to furnish
''ready-made traces" for the party in adj
vance of its action, and are trying to pre-
vent all who disagree with you from being
heard.
You boldly, and | think, rather cheer
fully, announce that my letter means "a
break with the chairman. the organization
and the managerial policy of the party
Your opinion is by no means necessarily
correct l have been the devoted personal
friend of our chairman too long to let you
dash away that attachment with your pen
50 lightly. How far your hope may inspire
your utterance | know not.
| may be cynical, but for long time |
have thought l detected in certain men OF
our paaty more than willingness to drive
off prominent men until they can them
selves become leaders. While L have al
most wept to see man after man of our old
warriors worn out with prlckings from be-
hind, sheath their trusted swords and fall
away from the front rank of our battle. l
kaye often thought | saw and heard the
chuckle of the little fellows. who in these
defectionS see the chance OF their own ad
vancement Your weapons have alWay s
been more powerful as pruning knives
against your friends than as swords
against your enemies. If you and others
keep up your fire as steadily in the future
as in the past, you will all have chances to
be leaders, and, unopposed, be candidates
for the fat offices you describe so lushily
as enough tokeep anybody sleek and happy.
go on. Among the blind the one eyed
are kings" Some men would rather be
big men in a small party than small men
in a big one. Or your rush at me may be
be angry at my smile if | liken the func-
tion you have assumed to yourself in our
party for years past to that of brave but
unreasoning four footed friend. Every
well-regulated farmer keeps collie to
drive the pigs out of the garden. For
years you have faithfully rushed upon and
seized every struggling Republican who
has tried to poach upon the power pre-
serves of the managerial policy" of our
party. You have always done your work
bravely, but not always discreetly. Some
times, when only expected to pull by the
ears or nip at the heel, you have taken
throat-hold and slaughtered. But you
have had great sport and moderate success.
Victim after victim has been bounced
through the fence, you barking and he
squealing, and you have come bounding
back, plucky and bloody, as the uckess
intruder tIotted sullenIy away into the
pasture of oblivion. You have made a
reputation at your business. In fact, it is
your whole stock in trade. But, Mr..
Elan, let me say word to you in all seri-
BUSINESS. Take care that you do not over
''get the wrong pig by the ear"
MY letter means no break with our chair
man, unless, under such bad advice as
yours. he forces it. And even then will
part with him in sorrow. not in anger.
hoping, but doubling, that he will find in
you and your associates as true friend as
I have ever been and am to him.
You state that "there is reason to be-
lieve that his (my) former enemies (Dem-
ocrats and their former allies) had at least
some notice of what he (I was about" be-
fore my recent letter appeared. The i'm
putation is unjust. AS you do not vouch
for this as fact make no issue with you,
but as you state there is such belief and
have taken the pains to give it currency. l
now inform you that whatsoever believes
it is mistaken. and whatsoever circulates
that report hencefOrth will do so Wilfully
and mendaciously.
It was considerable in you to seek to pal
late my hot blooded imprudence in pub
fishing my letter, by the plea that | am
not accustomed to deliberation and reti-
cence. | am always thankful for friendly
criticism. Even when it is harsh or dis
paraging it enables man to exercise in
trospection and amend his defects. 1t is
better than flattery thousand fold. |
know l am not prudent and thoughtful and
reticent like the late editor of the Wing.
l have often felt your superiority over me
in these respects, and resolved to make
some of your calm, deliberative utterances
my study and models for future guidance
In fact, two of your choicest productions
lie before me as demonstration of your
overflow in the qualities wherein | am
lacking. One is the platform written by
you on which was placed when | ran fol
Governor, the other is the paper which
you recently preselt ted to the National
Committee on the subject of kickers
Reading them carefully, can think OF
nothing like them except Browning's
poems, from the perusal Of which one
arises doubling whether it is the writer
the reader, or both, who are ravine
lunaticS.
You are mistaken in supposing acted