The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1892-12-02
The "Nystery'' About Cleveland.

lue EySt0Ty ADOuO C1efrluuu.
Talking about the precariousness of poll
tics as successful occupation from
financial standpoint, the Salt Lake Tribune
says: ut is true that occasionally by q
trick Of politics and by unparalleled luck q
mau as poor as Grover Cleveland was
when he was elected governor of New
York can succeed in politics. But the
mystery of the for fifty years after MIR.
Cleveland's death will be to understand
why he obtained the hold he did upon the
people of the United States" ontinuing,
our morning contemporary says: LAS q
rule, in nearly every state of the union
where brains are pitted against money for
any high Office, the money wins"
So far as the political success of GROVER
CLEVELAND is concerned there is no mys-
terry at all about it to puzzle the brains of
men. either now or fifty years after his
death. Our contemporary, if it would I'M
derstapd this mystery" should raise
itself to the conception that there is some
thing that wins even in politics besides
''brains" and money" That something
is honesty, or, better still. honor; and that
word honor is the key to GROVER CLEvE-
LANDS success. 1t is admitted that be is O
plain man. He assumes no airs of being
either philosopher or statesman. We can
not say for him that he is an orator,
that is, of the first order, such as WEBSTER,
or CLAY and yet he has powerful
way of saying things in that plain, direct
style of his He is not a brilliant writer,
nor has he tae power to bewilder and
dazzle with those ELUSIVE manners SO
usual in the mere politician. He has been
straightforward aud honorable in mis-
course He has regarded whatever public
Office the people have given him as public
trust to be sacredly discharged. He has
impressed the American people with the
idea that he is an honest man by being
honorable. They believe that of him and
trust him. That is the secret of his sue
cess and all the ''mystery" there is or ever
will be about it.
| In 1887 this man placed the issue of
Tariff reform squarely before the Ameri-
can people by calling attention to the fact
that money was accommodating in the vaults
of tho United States treasury far in ex-
cess of what was necessary for the legiti-
mate expenses of government, and sug-
gested as remedy of the evil reduction
of that taxation which was the cause of
the surplus. 1t was plainly intimated to
the President that such course might
cost him the Presidency in the election the
year following, but he went right on. warn
lngs aud expressed fears to the contrary
Notwithstanding. Perhaps it was that
1, ;ot 1ne n fheo al Loot in h,1t
so, no one ever heard any regrets expressed
| by Elm for doing what he con-
ceived to be his duty in a straight
forward manner II that act cost him
the Presidency in 1888. it did noble service
in restoring it to him IN 1892. For it is
through believing GROVER CLEVELAND ca
pahle of such conduct as this that has en-
shrined him in the hearts of the American
people. They see in him those character
istics which tell them be is worthy of their
con 6dence. and they trust him.
| Moreover, GROVER CLEVELAND believes in
the people, he not only trusts them. but he
respects them. In this particular he re-
sembles the founder OF the Democratic
party, THOMAS JEFFERSON, of whom it is
said and that by not very partial his
torian-" with all his faults JEFFERSON had
very civilized ideas, and was true friend
to the commonality. He believed
| in them he esteemed their Intelligence; he
not only respected their power, but he de-
sired to see them use it, because he was
| firmly convinced that they would use it
we'll" These two men, separated
from each other by three quarters
of a century, resemble each
other in this also: they each
have "a profound and honest faith in his
avowed principles, expecting indeed to
gain by them, but only because he thought
they were fundamentally right and there
fore sure to prevail in time" and SO again
they each differ 'tfrom the time-serving
politician, because he staked his Individual
success upon the success of what he deemed
Iintrinsically right principles"
/ No one need wonder about the success OF
THOMAS JEFFERSON, there is no mystery
connected with the esteem in which be was
held by the people, neither will there be
either wonder at Mr.. CLEyELAND's success