Los Angeles daily herald., 1889-07-02
Typical American Politics of the
Later Days.


what one particularly sanguine might
hope to be the era of the decadence OF
corruption in American politics. But
such sanguine peo pie do not live in this
day and generation. They have perished
in the dull, dead ening and continuous
outpour of sewer politics.
There were 30 many am liable qualities
about the de ad statesman-perhaps the
phrase politician would be more exactly
poised-that there is decided good
,humor in considering his career. The
rigid tenets of morality seldom hold
against good.natured man. And such
Simon Cameron undoubtedly was.
During the period in which Simon
Cameron dominated the politics Of Penn
sylvania without rival, and with only
the lieutenants selected by himself New
York witnessed the struggles OF many
partizan chiefs for ascendancy. They
embraced in the Democratic party such
men as Horatio Seymour, Samuel j..
'Tilden, Daniel Dickinson, John A. Dix,
John Van Buren, and such lesser lights
as William M. Tweed, and at later
date Grover Cleveland and Gov. Hill.
In Pennsylvania there was one uniform,
dead level. Pennsylvania was Cameron,
and it was Cameron Notwithstanding the
fact that from the position of constable
up Simon never ventured to submit his
pretensions to a vote OF his fellow citl-
zens. He was careful never to run for
popular office.
The absolute and unquestioned as
,cendancy of Simon Cameron in Pennsyl-
vania politics for quite thirty years has
cast an imputation upon the intellect OF
the voters of the Keystone State. In
NewEYork, at the same time that the
Democrats we have named contested the
control of the Empire State, such Re
publican statesmen as William Ii.
Seward, Reuben E. Fenton, Roscoe
Conkling and Chester A. Arthur, to Say
nothing of Judge Folger and others OF
lesser magnitude, figured as gladiators
in the political arena. In New York,
you could at least pay your money and
take your choice, in both parties, for the
opportunities of usefulness occasionally
alternated.
From the election of Packer as Cover
nor of Pennsylvania by the Democrats in
1865, following the Inauguration of
Buchapa an in 1857, the Cameron ascend
ancy was unbroken, with the single ex
ception of the election of Governor
Pattison, which resulted from revolt
from Cameron's autocracy. In that year
the Republicans. for the first and last
time, asserted their manhood.
The Cameron dynasty was founded on
s'boodle," pure and simple. Its great
chief always sought his point by outright
bribery. 1t was during his ascendancy
that the Pennsylvania canals, which
had cost the State $40 900, 900, were sold
to the Pennsylvania Railway Company |
for ss 1000, 900, payable in thirty years,
in the sum of 100000 a year, without
interest. The man who conducted that
negotiation, with Cameron's approval
and connivance, was Colcnel Thomas A.
Scott, afterwards the President of the
Pennsylvania Central Railway, then the
confidential agent of that corporation,
and who, on the same day that he paid
q member Of the Legislature 0,000 for
his vote on that proposition, won it back
at poker.
The thirty years during which Cameron
ruled without contest the second great
commonwealth Of the Union, was signal
lied by q perfect ssturnalis Of political
corruption. Men of ability and con-
science declined to participate in politics.
The two great cities of Philadelphia and
Pittsburg were so manipulated as to
oyerslaugh the honest voters OF the in
terror. In nine elections out of ten, the
votes Of those great centers of popula-
ton were withheld until it was found out
Just how much was needed to insure the
States going Republican.
The Cameron lieutenants were for
years Matthew Stanley Quay, who, until
he struck the charmed circle OF corrup-
tion, was the editor of country weekly,
published in Beaver county. Pennsyl-
yania; Rutan, also of Beaver county,
and frequent member of the Pennsyl.
yania Legislature; Bob Msckey,
of Pittsburg, and an occasional "heeler"
from other quarters, who had ap-l