The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1888-11-03


rills enemies, ii
1.ll.I have been his friends.
| do not know that his character as a man
when brought to the touch where any innate
honor or total moral obtuseness must be shown
in men, can be better illustrated than by one
incident which has become historic, in the
last days of the campaign of 1884.
This is the man who goes about the country
| slandering others in the language of untruth
and unrighteousness.
| This is the man of false pretenses upon
whom was placed the insignia of the Soldiers
| of the Cross, the plumes of knight, by an in-
| fidel and a scoffer
| A plumed knight indeed A plumed knight
was he who kissed the first ray of sunlight in
the morning, as it glanced from the cross of
his sword hilt over the walls of Acre, praying
that perchance it might rest again in blessing
| upon his country in the West.
| But this man, so far as his public life has
| shown, has had no thought of his country save
as a means to his own ends of pelf ahd power
| He never originated measure for the good of
mankind. His name is connected with no
policy to advance the interests or renown of
America. No high and noble sentiment can
be quoted as having fallen from his lips dur
ing all his public career. True men have been
mentioned by him only to be maligned. He
| eillCEcu Tic ISIS " w DdlllC OHlJ WITCH tuC
/ battle was done; and then only to charge the
| crippled and defenseless, and, like a craven,
to insult the vanquished! A plumed knight,
/ indeed
PRACTICED LOBBYIST.
From the time of his beginning of service in
| the national field as the agent and lobbyist of
the Spencer Rife Company at Washington,
during the first year of the war, through his
record in Congress, through the black Multi
gan history at the close of which he saved
himself from expulsion by audaciously simu.
! lating stroke Of Divine Providence; through
the State Department, when the power of the
Government through him was exerted in the
Landreau jobbery in guano, down to his last
record, he has been the center and the light
of systems of jobbery, corruption, fraud and
fasehood. There was no iobber in Washing
ton but was his friend. No other man when
in the Speakers chair ever intimated 10 or
ever caused statement to be sent to a man
with money scheme before Congress, calling
attention to the money value of the Speaker S
ruling. No other man was ever turned from
the State Department and his entire policy, in
shame, reversed.
l speak from Republican testimony in this
connection regarding tie character of the
man; and as a witness | call the faithful
friend and confident of Roscoe Conkling, for
many years lHO AlcpuDllSdi oCSIGbhAJ VI biC
Senate. the distinguished George c. Gorham,
on whose record of worthiness of the conf
dence of the pure and great statesman from
New York there rests no spot or blemish.
have received the following letter, among
others, on this subject. 1t contains matter
never before made public:
WHAT GoRHAN WROTE OF BLAINE.
Hon. Don NJ. DICKINSON:
DEAR SRI observe in the newspapers that when
Mr. Blaine was at Detroit he conferred upon you The
honorable distinction of personal attack; and
afterwards you quoted as expressing an inten
ton of paying your respects to him later in the sea
son. OF course should not presume to make asug
gestion to you TO the manner of treating anything
he said but there are one or two matters on which
he did not touch to which should like to call your
attention.
know how you honored Roscoe Conkling while
he lived, and how you now respect ms memory i,
valued your friendship. nyou speak again You viii
have the whole nation for an audience, and you
could in a few words make clear to millions ofpeo
pie what many now misunderstood;
During az Of Mr., Copkling's public GareeF aieT
1866, Mr.. Blaine was to him
LIKE widowed ear, blasting his wholesome
brother"
The most malignant calumnies against him were
systematically and industrousy generated and dis
open to Mr.. Blame and, when he chose, edited by
him The cause for this was as follows
Mobilization, "a sliowed himssif % be persuaded BY
Secretary Stanton to prosecute, as an attorney ioI
the United states an S Sg for na cTmes
| with enlstments. The offender was convicted and
compelled to disgorge 500, 900 to the Government
charged the Provost Marshals Bureau at Washing
ton with shielding the culprit, and at the same time
endeayorng to shift his msdeeds over 10 the should
ers of an entirely honest and innocent man named
p b. Crandall When he took his seat in Congress
| he recited these and other kindred facts and the
| motion OF April q. 1856, despite y vehement apd
desperate defense of it by Mr., Blaine. IN which he
used his customary weapons of falsehood, audaoity
and abuse six days after this discontinue, he and
his official in WHOSE bad cause he had thus vainly
| engaged wreaked tNeir vengeance. the latter by
WHITING and the former By causing TO be read in the
House OF Representatives. aSeurrilous attack upon
The House Stamped as wlfnliy false only four mem
bers voting against the report MI aaalne never
made any apology to the House nor TO MI
On May 4, 1sh,. Mr. lonklins, in private letter to
! p Is, Crandal wrote these hlistering words;
-Mr, Blaine is said 70 be too near the recruiting
business at Augusta. Me-, where he lives and where
in conviction and punishment He (Biaine) has
grown suddenly rich out of Government Jobs
advance the cause of truth to publish Mr.. Conklngs
| statement and opinion concerning Mr.. Blaine. The
only reply made to this posthumous excoriation Is
In his argument before the House Committee in 1896
Mr.. conklng rected the proofs Of Crsndals perfect
Integrity and showed that as 10 the $4,000 Of bonds
which he he'd been sHd Is nov again iaseiJ charged
with Carrying away N'hs safely deposited them in q
Ssx aa y onse III tbee has betier rem
utatlon for honesty and truth than z. b. Crandali
Mr. Conkling's services in the Senate nom 1867 to
1881 form an important part of the history OF the
Government during that period His splendid lead
ership of the Republican party under the two ad-
mnistratons Of Grant, and during the Hayes inter
regnum, will ever be conspicuous in the annals OF
] our political history.
In 1881 he left the Senate because majority Of the
Republican members of that body had combined
with President Garfield TO deliver the New York col
lectorship, the most responsible Office, save One III
god R e Jaes g. Bnt IS Rs pce ot
| in the Chicago Convention:
epts Who had spGs lew DAYS betCre praised a him in
writing for his war against Conkling, The hand Of
Blaine was everywhere visible seeking 70 array the
people against conkling as oonsenung 70 lhe awful
The Legislature ofNew York was bought by BlaineH
managers with offices. and money and promises y
Dreading reaction in his behalf, his vigiRI
and enterlrising enemy fed the newspapers
| ing him through the keenest sensibilities by
human nature can be made to suffer For
his great physique gave way under the.
able pressure, and he went home to Utica
feared, to die. From there he wrote me
Foul fiends of high and low degree SCI
| he'd for my destruction These an
strange times" Health returned
work came in. He saw his party
by the nomination of Blaine, and
as it drifted into the whirlpool
convention of 1888 approached
moving the Wtres-Rlaine,
Robertson, and the rest la
| future Of politics does not
Republican" FEB %
them one after anoths
| the party 10 defeate
with him upon tn
| Judge Harlan a
| of last March
q Senator du
sure, and
Ter aside
both froz
was in