The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1891-07-25

aAuioSb every ". a. II. nlaa all over the
country. 1t was good paper of its class,
and, although cheap.y printed and Illus
trated, contained the special information
interesting 10 the class he sought Above
all, 1t contained more information about
how to get pensions than any other pub
LEGATION.
10 be sure, it usually suggested Lemon as
the aid the veteran needed. but that was
natural, for was he not prominently the
soldiers friends As soon as he felt that it
had an established circulation and growing
Influence he began to exploit his pension
schemes.
Ia howery language the justiceIand wis
dom OF increasing pensions, according to
his plan, either for all possible pensioners.
or Tor special class, we're commended to
the willing minds of the possible bene-
hciarles. 1t was then suggested that each
e. a. R. man write to his congressman in
favor OF the bill, embodying the particular
project under consideration, and that every
r. A. r. post get up petition In favor Of
1t and send it on to congress. Every G. A.
X. post did not respond, nor every G. A. r.
man, but-a great many did just what was
suggested, and thanked Lemon for the
suggestion. Congress, although it had not
gotten to the precise point where it con-
signs all petitions to the clerks desk unread
and in the House to box fastened to the
by the member without formal and public
presentation to the House, had long since
ceased to give petitions the weight they had
had in the days of y ohm Quincy Adams.
But. indifferent as 1t might be to single
Petitions or to those monster petitions with
thousands OF signatures, which are occas-
lonally brought into the Senate or House in
big basket, with ribbons fluttering from
it, Congress had and mas great respect for
DetitiODs which cOuna HrODuip in ali aaSciOyo
from every state and district, especially
when they are signed by farmer, labor or
soldier organizations or Representatives.
Lemons scheme worked. His plan-the
arrears OF pension bill, for example-was
pressed upon the attention Of the G. A. r.
by his newspaper. It was pressed upon SEN
ators and representatives.
From that day TO this, ever more and
more secure in the affections of the mer-
cenary members of the G. A. R., Lemons
newspaper, locally known by bad pun as
The Lemon SQueeSer," has squeezed what
ever Lemon wanted out of congress, and has
failed signally, outside of congress, with
only one man-President Cleveland.
People outside of Washington did not see
the bitter personal element furnished by
Lemon in President Cleveland's effort to
reform the pension business 1t was really
one long wrestle with Lemon-and Lemon
thinks he won.
To be sure, Cleveland postponed the de-
pendent pension law and the disability law
and probably defeated the service pension
law, but says Lemon, 81 defeated Clevs-
land" And there is great deal in his
boast
From the day Cleveland's first pension
veto was announced Lemons newspaper at
tackled him week after week, until Harri-
son was declared elected, ia gross and VIC
LIANT farms IL ia N no OraAit of ha
@. A. R. that Lemon, knowing his temper
and character so well, thought it wise to
abuse the President of the United States for
doing his sworn duty week by week as out
rageously and untruthfully as he did But
that his defamation was effective must be
admitted. 1t all proceeded upon the theory,
which has always obtained Ia Lemons pa
per, that the war was still on, and would in
fact never cease, and that the G.. A. R.
were the only loyal patriots, all others being
active or passive enemies of their country,
unless they came out strong for more PEN
sion6, in which event they would be toll
Grated as consi stent patriots.
President Cleveland, as the most effective
obstacle Lemons business had ever encoun~
tered, was, of course, the worst enemy the
truly loyal" had, and must be put to death
politically.
Indeed, q Guiteau would have found war
rant for removing" him physically in
many of lemons editorials. l think Lemon
at first hoped to bulldoze Cleveland, for he
took pains to get marked copies of the paper
into Clevelands hands. When Lemon
realized his mistake, he became more and
more virulsnt directing his efforts chiefly
at the g. a. R., however. although he
still sent the paper to the President with
some care.
Cleveland, may say just here. despised
Lemon and his paper, but he was grieved
and panied at the evidence he constantly
had Of lemons bad influence over the G.
A. R.
Well, Lemons four years of vitupera-
ton told-by DINING away on the G. A. r.
with the idea that with Cleveland, the foe
Of patriotism, in the white house, and
Mills,
THE EENEMY OF THE UNION,
at the head of the ways and means commit.
tee, both trying to force the free trade of
the confederate constitution down the
throat of the country instead of pensions.
the rebellion was rampant and must be sup
pressed again.
False and absurd as this seems, it was, l
verify believe, one of the chief causes of
Cleveland's defeat. 1t cost him certainly
many moro votes than his tariff message,
which really won him support in the manu-
featuring cities, where it was predicted it
WOulQ nUFG MIN most. Inc SO~call6Q apathy
Of the farmers, which caused Cleveland to
say after election, 1--WE we're slaughtered by
the very men we most risked our lives for
was largely due to Lemons diatribes and
not TO the message directly
Lemon hated Cleveland He could not
comprehend, with all his cunning, Ceve-
lands courageous honesty, and really be-
lieved, no doubt, in his blindness and bit
terness, much that he wrote, attributing
sinister motives to the President.
Cleveland's course cost Lemon several
hundred thousand dollars, to say nothing of
the big contribution he made to the Harrison
campaign fund. But Lemon was so sure
that he defeated Cleveland that he felt as
rich as ever after election. Having elected
Harrison, l think Lemon has heen disap1
pointed at not having received any special
political or social recognition from him,
he would have taken the secretavyship of
the interior if it had been offered, or even
an invitation TO a state dinner. But, like
Dudley, If he cannot, sit in the cabinet or
dine at the white house, he can, at least.
make hay while the sun shines, and this
he has been doing with great assiduity
and success. The growing criticism Of
pensions, provoked largely by Lemons own
rapaoity. has somewhat clouded his sun
but Lemon hopes it will blow over so that
he may fill his barns. If worst should come
to worst, and the pension bureau should be-
come Improbable, which he does not fear
at all for his lifetime, Lemon would still
have q splendid income, for Washington.
from his paper. and need not abate bit the
luxurious living which we unpatriotic tax
having mansion CritiCs hava tba satisfootior