News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1890-05-15
Political Rabies.

that it means that we shall pay one
or five or ten dollars, more or less,
therefor. 1t is safe to say under these
circumstances that our promises to
reciprocate favors will be few and far
between.
The able correspondent of the Free
Press, who has evidently come to its
assistance since that paper exhaust
ed its own ammunition, courteously
gives to the public a letter received
by him from c. S. Page, asking him
to estate briefly the drift of public
sentiment in your locality on the
governorship question as between
Lieut.. Gov. Woodbury. and myself. .
The discriminating correspondent
sees in this letter dark designs and
devious methods He can imagine
former distinguished occupants OF
the gubernatorial chair writing
around and begging for support but
cannot conceive of their writing to a
friend and asking for information as
to the drift of public sentiment. This
is too heinous a crime to admit
of conformation. So far Windsor
COunty's comments are laughable in
the extreme but here is something
that appears to be more serious:
Such advances, it seems to me, are as I'M
becoming in a candidate to propose as they
are insulting to the person to whom they are
addressed; for they proceed upon the pre-
sumption that ones vote and support are
alike purchasable.
What does this mean? Mr.. Page
has claimed to be an honest man, a
man of integrity. He has claimed
that while pushing his canvass Wig
orously he was using only honorable
means. Have we detected this sane
titled hypocrite in a piece of political
rascality, in bribing and corruption
From windsor County's righteous
Indignation it would appearso. The
letter under consideration proceeds
1t is greatly to be feared that Mr. Pages
long service upon the State committee has
somewhat demoralized him. in famiiarizng
him with the use of money in elections To
old-iashiOned people it certainly seems that
the employment of questionable expedients
in politics is on the rapid increase in this
country. Obviously, the lesson of the cam
paign of 1888 has not been lost upon Mr..
Page.
Here we have it. The gloomy init
nation that precedes is clinched by
these words money in elections"
This is serious matter to the voters
of Vermont. 1t is a grave charge
against a mans character. 1t is a
charge that shouldnot bemade with
out the most sound evidence. 1t is
ibellous in character and if the writ
er does not sign his own name to it
the paper which publishes itcan alone
De held responsible. The evidence is
given so that a Judgment can easily
De rendered. In the letter Mr.. Page
said:
Conidential)
Dear Sir-I would esteem it a favor which |
will very gladly reciprocate in any proper
way if you will write me briefly as to the
present drift of public sentiment in your To-
atty on the governorship question as be-
ween Lieut.-Gov. Woodbury. and myself |
want facts not fattery Please be candid
With me
Your answer will be treated confdentially
I you so desire, and hope you will so treat
his inquiry.
Very respectfully yours,
C. S. PAGE.
That is all. Mr.. Page writes to a
man, whom he suppOses to be a friend,
asking a question which he had a
perfect right to ask. He begged for
no mans support. He merely asked
or information to guide him to
Judgment as to the prospects of his
Not even the willy casuist
IF the Free Press can twist anything
Use out of it. Mr.. Page also added,
% show appreciation of the courtesy
which he eXpected-supposing I'M
loubtedly that he was addressing a
gentleman-that he would 'recipro-
cate IN any proper way" How long
since that phase has borne any sort
Of corrupt meaning. Would it con-
vey any sort of corrupt meaning to
one whose mind was not diseased?
Ii so the vocabulary of every day
business correspondence must be re-
vised, or the offers that are daily
made to reciprOcate favOrs will be-
come too costly.
This letter in itself was not worth
the space that is given to it but it
was valuable as illustrating the
straits to which the opposition to
MIR. Page is driven. They went back
to his boyhOod to try and find
weak spot in his record; and failed.
They accused him of controlling the
worlds calfskin market; and their
own absurdity killed the argument.
They represented him as a crinoinp
for the Central Vermont's
powerful influence, while his rival
without any instance of his own, was
aiken willingly into Abraham's bos-
pm; and the lie was nailed before the
paper on which it was printed was
Try. Now they have found evidence
Of a boodlecampaign in the fact that
Mr.. Page proposed to show to his
friends ordinary courtesy.
90 to, go to, gentlemen. Elect
our candidate on his own merits or
i've it up. You have carried this
ampaign of malice and recrimina-
ion far enough and every lying ru-
nor and insinuation to which the
Tree Press and Messenger gives pub
city only adds to the shame of it.
On the fourth page of this paper
I'LL be found a very interesting arti-
lie from thepen of Lamoille County !
lwyer on the present and future of
'ermont. 1t is well worth the read |
~.
The Middlebury Registerthus terselv
uts the matter of the fitness of a
lndidate for congress in the first