Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1892-06-03
TIMID INSTEAD OF HOPEFUL.
$oath"' Talks About the Republican Party
Of To-Day-Why Blaine Stands Above
Harrison-Interesting Retrospect and
Deductions Tho Sophomore Element

| MINNEAPOLIS, June 2.-The RepuDilca1
party of to-day is consulting its timidity In
stead of its hopes. The Harrison mon here
Invariably ask you if you DO not think tina
Blaine's nomination would result IN tnis o.
that being said, these letters or those letters
being produced, and they end by saying
"We had better be on the safe side." They
are not like their forefathers who wantec
to be on the Union side and to make II
| glorious. Wealth has Injured to the Repub
| lican party. partly because Of the afnnity
| between wealth and the affinity De-
tween wealth and government, but
| mainly because the rash young men ol
30 years ago have become the successful
investors and capitalists of the present
time. These do not like to follow mar
who has been beaten. The popular leader
whose banner has come to the front for q
| years has not, in their eyes, the Iuster which
| attaches to one successful term. In the
hands OF a new quantity 'Harrisons unil
Illuminating Temperament rather seizes upon
what imagination the business class possess.
| They transfer to his Indifference and silence
| their conception of his executive ability
| All the men they ever knew were uncommu
nicative and sci reliant. and never let go, sc
they consider the President should be.
| Harrison Inferior to Blaine.
But Blaine, until the Harrison issue was
produced against him, had recovered among
the business class whatever repute they
denied him in 1884. His admirable eclat is
| admitted by men on the spot such as Sena
tor SpoOner, who said to me that HarrisOn's
standing in the course of the New Orleans
trouble was much inferior to Blaine's grasp
of that situation, which has finally settled
itself, but has left one conclusion, namely,
that some States in this Union do not want
immigrants and especially those who pub.
lish newspapers and take the minority
Wow.
Judge Nlbloels, of Indiana said to mo 10 or
| IL years ago, OF about the time that Gresham
entered Arthur's Cabinet that Gresham had
generally been popular man In Indiana.
but that there was waspishness about
Harrison which took intellectual hostility
to man at a distance and kept it up Us II
| his sting required exercise.
] lr correctly estimate what see here, the
| opposition to Harrison has better temper
than Harrison's friends. That species of
friendship which gets mad" for friend in
stead Of smoothing his way generally has its
origin in the person championed. Roscoe
Conkling was always lofty and mad; so were
his partisans. Blaine was always mollify-
ing and induIgent. and SO are his genial sup
porters, although OF late an element had
| Joined him from necessity which is hardly
yetacclfmated in that conRenfal personality.
Wisdom, however. is abroad here and exer-
cising all tho rights Of the free intellect.
Men adapt thems selves to new situations and
forsake old favorites often from the pre-
servative motives which keep us from being
nation of clans and dynastfc parties.
Book Drudgcry That Injured Blaine.
There are undoubtedly men for Harrison
| at present who are sincere in believing their
loyalty to the situation is as honest as their
former enthusiasm for Blaine was thorough.
The bane OF sickness and almost of prostra-
tton has touched their friends. His success
IA afi nd of tn n Ia
vitality-perhaps from want Of that gener-
GUS warmth and tropical fruitfulness which
have made the helmet and its plume too
heavy for the Plumed Knight. II Mr.. Blaine
had nothing else to do he would write ten
prin ted pages of a book every day for a year
or two under strict mercantile contract
which made him a drudge and harnessed
his intellect like Samson to q grindstone.
Mr.. Elkins told me not long ago, that
writing his book threw Mr.. Blaine in the
gout and dyspepsia which predisposed him
Tor the serious attack he had in Florence,
the latter brought about by his precipitate
graphing with Cleveland's tariff message
on the same day he read 1t. He did always
work with all his might to be transmitted
that night across the ocean. and three days
through his system, and then came the gout
and then what might have followed.
Where the Statesmen Differ.
Those who give away royalty get no
credit at last with those who Rnow how to
keep. Blaine obtained popularity, of
which large part adheres to him, from his
dashing, brilliant and effective frequent per-
formances. Harrison, retiring into his office,
regards himself as an smploye of a system,
and at the end Of for years can throw his
associates and off1ceholders into Minneapo-
lis to display the audacity the power in hand
always has By holding these national con-
ventions yearly the President is left with
nearly whole year OF about one-fourth of
all his term still to dispose of, and this
works particularly upon the Republican
party, W hich has been long in control. The
Democrats meet mouth or two later, and,
excepting inebne instance. have said moth
ing to give, themselves away.
Meantime the valuation of the Federal
situations becomes greater and greater as
we discover that no country outside OF our
selves is worth living in. To be a foreign
Minister for only six months entities man
to go into the cyclopedias of biography and
the official register, and his local wealth is
worth three times as much from the fact
that the newspaper readers recognize him
and his correspondents address him
as "Hon." If the President would
give three months OF each of his
bankers car builders, boiler makers pa tent
medicine men. etc.. he would be comforting
more real distinction than If the Queen, at
the command of her Prime Minister, were
to ennoble hundred tradesmen, that they
might galvanize the House. of Lords into
carrying some bill OR other. The divinity that
doth hedge king is coming very near our
Presidents, and the unfortunate captor of
the popularity who has several times been
beaten in pursuit of the Presidency soon
has that divinity robbed from him which he
had almost attained.
Whit tho Republican Party Lacks.
BY third of a century's possession of
magnificent power and the recital of the
glorious times of the war. the Republican
party is lacking in the sophomore element,
and old, ,case-hardened people, either officials
or disappointed aspirants to be officials,
come to these conventions. Here is Clark
son, an Iowa country editor, who found
John A. Kasson in his way for years, and
took advantage of private sorrow of Kas-
sons to drive him away. The doubly un-
happy man became an official exile for q
time, and is now said to be writing some
thing historical. Those who routed him
from home went to Congress, became pub
lie printer, postmaster, ETC., and, finally,
when Allison's hopes were set nc rest in
1888, Mr.. Clarkson emerged as the repre-
the Christian statesman the higher place,
and set Clarkson beneath him-a little lower
than the angels, but clothed with glory and
honor. In the course of time, by the aid of
running part of the National Committee
for two campaigns, Mr.. Clarkson has become
Warwick. Small office holders tremble at
the mention of his name. He gazes at the
run over by horses, from the distractions
natural to Sultans and Warwfcks.
GEORGE ALFRED TOWNSEND.