The Ohio Democrat. (Logan, O. [Ohio]) 1886-1906, 1889-03-30
BLAINE'S BAD RECORD.
His appointment to n High Office an I'm
pugnmcnt of National Honesty.

so sun-struck as to stop the investiga.
tion OF his methods OF securing money
while Speake of the House of Repre-.
sentatives, he retired TO Augusta, and
when an attempt was made to resume
the investigation, his physician, DR..
ii. II. Hill, telegraphed: What he
needs Is absolute rest"
To that opinion we hold now With
no malice toward Mr.. Blaine, we must
tell the truth about him as long us he
insists on taking public Office for
which he is unfit. He needs absolute
rest-and repentance.
Mr.. Blaine's record is too long for
review here. 1t fills many pages that
shame the American people with in
disputable evidence of the venality of
a man trusted in many high trusts
and false to them all. Though we can
not review the record in single arti-
Gle, it is our duty when he is given the
helm of National administration by
the party of which he is representa-
tive to revert briefly in protest to
some OF the more salient points of his
career. Initially we extract the fol-
lowing from the New York Tribune,
in which IL appeared editorially on
September %, 1872:
If Speaker Blaine thinks he has efrcctunlly
"squclched" the Credit Mobilier scandal by his
pompous deniDl he may find new exercise for
his peculiar talents in that direction in the
story which we print to-day. In the course of
railway litigation, proofs of Mr.. Blaine's opera.
tiors in railway stocks have come out and are
now in possession of lawyers in this city. We
publish MS much OF this business as MIR. Blaine
will find time to attend TO at once By these
documents the Speaker is proUed TO hare ncsiyed
S2,500 Of dssessa5ts stock o. the Union Pacific
rdit,cap, d. H., and 1000 un0ss sssdbie siarfs of
tie same Why iCds The Speaker Of the House
ddbbting in this business? My receiyinD Stockp
The entries show that 1t was assign ed TO him.
among others, TO secure the ratification of the
Delaware and Pottawatomie treaties and the
passage OF bill in Congress. Mr. Blainc's rec
ord in regard to railway matters grows darker
as II is examined. He has never vet given any
explanation of his conduct in reddling stock in
the Fort Smith s. Little Rock railroad among
his neighbors in Maine. He has now an oppor-
tunity to rise to an explanation of his extensive
operations in Union Pacific, L. D., stock II
my be no60dy's business hOlg he has become a
millionaire on Congressman'S pay; but Il is the
business Of ms constituents and Of the coWnt,'y to
knoU hoW the Speaker Of tie House Of n presenta-
tices came into his rich raitwdy speculation.
Why Mr. Blaine was receiving "32, =
500 of assessable stock of the Union
Pacific railway, E. d., and 1000 unas-
sessable shares of the same" appeared
later on in evidence in similar connec-
tions, leaving no one room to doubt
that he became "a millionaire on "a
Congressman pay by selling him
self taking bribes, bctraying his
trust, perjuring himself.
The Blaine whom Harrison has
called to the highest office in his gift
is the person referred to by the Trib-
une in the above extract; the person
who used his public trust for black
mail; who as Speaker of the House of
Representatives forced the Union Pa
cific and other railroads interested in
pending legislation to bribe him by
buying from him at high prices the al
most valueless securities of the Little
Rock and Fort Smith.
1t is as a detected thief and as con-
victed liar that Mr.. Blaine is called to
the premiership of the Harrison Ad-
ministration and of the Republican
party. The following is from the tes-
timony of Mr.. James Mulligan, con-
fidential secretary of Mr.. Blaine's
friend, Mr.. Warren Fisher. Jr.
Mr.. Blaine said If should publish them they
would ruin him for life and wanted
TO know If would surrender them. told him
and that wOnld give them In
mittee unless IL would turn out it was neces-
sary. After my examination here yesterday
Mr.. Blaine came up to the hotel, and there bad
n conference with Mr.. Adkins, MIR. Fisher and
myself He wanted to see the letters l had. I
declined to let him see them He prayed and
almost went on his knees-I would say on his
knees-and implored me to think OF his six
children and his wife, and that IL the committee
should get hold of this communication 1t would
sink him Immediately and ruin him forever
i retired TO my room and he followed
me up, and went over the same history about
his family and children, and implored me to
give them up to him, and even contemplated
suicide.
On April 16, 1872, Fisher wrote
Blaine:
i have placed you in positions where you
have received large sums of money without u
dollar of expense TO you, and you ought not to
forget the act on my part. OF all the parties
with the Little Rock & Fort Smith
no one has been so fortunate us your
self In obtaining money out of IL. You obtained
subscriptions from your friends in Maine for
the building OF the Little Rock s. Fort Smith
railroad. Out of their subscriptions you cb.
tanned n large amount both OF bonds and money
free of cost to you. i have your own figures
and know the amounts. Owing to your polti-
cal position you were able to work OFF all your
bonds at very high price.
To this Blaine replied on April IS,
1872:
My DEAR FIsHER-I answered yours very
hastily last evening as you said you wished an
immediate reply. The demand you
make on me now is one I am entirely unable
TO comply with. can not do IL. 1t is not in my
power You say that necessity knows no law.
That applies to me as well as TO you, and when
| have reached the point / am now at, /
simply fall back on that law. With
very kind regards to Mrs Fisher am yours
truly.
Was there ever in the world more
pitiable spectacle than of this Plumed
Knight of the Highway, when, after
with sharpers and cooper
ating with them in their plans of
he found himself in their
power? That under Harrison such a
man should take the place just vacated
under Cleveland by Bayard is a re-
proach to the civilization of the
United States-an impugnment of the
honesty of the American people. st.
Louis Republic.
Wanamaker's Phianthropy