The record-union., 1894-06-22

1t was in reply to this letter that Mr..
Coliax wrote the following letter. the
manuscript of which has come into the
possession of the Nal and Express, and
has never before been made public. 1t
reveals the sincerity of his purpose and
motive, his determination TO remain
private citizen, and, withal, pathetic
strain which shows how deeiy the shafts
OF calumny had penetrated to his sensl-
tive soul, and feeling of the emptiness
OF human honors and the ingratltude OF
republics. Here is the letter:
SOUTH BEND Qnd.), July IA. 1888.
My Dear Si1': In my remailed pack
age of to-day, among quite number
ELECTED by my recent letter to the editor
OF the Lockport journal, which had not
expected TO see in print, the most well
come, because the most elaborate and evil
IDENTIFY from your heart as well as your
mind and pen, was yours.
II need scarcely tell you that l appre-
ciate all your personal remarks very
highly. There never was wickeder cal
umny, but like many another falsehood
(the bargain and sale story against
Henry Clay, etc., etc. J, | do not expect TO
live long enough TO see it killed by any
amount OF evidence whatever The
charge can be made in line. II takes a
column to reply. And then, while it is
remembered, people say, 80 much eX-
planation shows there was something of
il" And, when it is forgotten, the old
lie can be set agoing again in another
single sentence. But in spite of the in
satiate and fendish malignity OF the San,
which rehashes it every week or two and
keeps at it tho ten years have elapsed, it
has ceased to hurt my feelings l find, as
you say, such vast mum berS who contlde
in my integrity, and my present life is so
much more enjoyable than my public life
was. that when the heather rage l look
on quite calmly.
81 have read and reread all you write
about returning TO public life, bit no
temptation could induce me to do it. l
have weighed all the considerations you
urge so strongly, but they are far out
weighed by others. l honestly believe
if L mad remained in public life l would
have been dead long ere this, while my
health now is better than when l was
public servant. l was wearing out from
the multitudinous eXactions, and Wor-
reS, and responsibilities of public life,
though | did not realize it then. You
have doubtless forgotten the attack of
twelve years ago, when L was presiding
in the Senate on the treaty of Washing
ton, which settled our difficulties with
utterly it took months TO recuperate.
\ ow [ have an independent life, tour
times as many lecture invitations as can
accept, a round of visits all over the coun-
try for seven or eight months per year,
spending every Sunday with my family,
as l tiX all my dates and arrange all my
routes of travel myself, and talking about
my own times, ETC., etc.
You can't imagine the repugnaDce
,4rith WI / n
the many headed public, with all its tolls,
its innumerable exacJions OF all kinds,
the never-ending work and worry, the
eX plantations about everything which the
public think they have the right to, the
lack of independence as to your golngs
and comings, the misunderstanding, The
envyings, the backbitings, etc. Ii is
comparatively easy to represent single
district and its interests. But you Will
remember that the last ten years was in
public life as Speaker and Vice President
my constituency wldened TO the entire
nation and my entire time by day and
nearly all the nights often were mort
gagged to the public. As l know people
ali over the land by the hundreds of
thousands (literally), IL would take four
to six Secretaries, L should think, to at
tend TO all of the departments business,
the office applications, the correspond
ence on all conceivable subjects that
would come to me If | we're to return TO
public life now. Beside, when in it, |
held all The offices | ever had any ambi-
ton for Why commence again at the
foot Of the ladder when too old now to
climb up again and when have realized
that il is all vanity and vexaJion OF
spirit? Look at the Issues now as COM
pared with the grand and momentus
ones when [ was at the helm IN the TWO
houses of Congress! Important as they
may be, yet what a contrast to the past
~ have reserved in this hurried reply
the one which you have more largely in
your mind to the Naturalization. But,
my dear sir, there is no Yiudication in
elections on partisan nominations by
political majority. The case OF Henry
Clay, to which l have referred, proves
this. But take a later one-General Car
fields. He was smutched with the same
calumny, and felt it keenly. But, know
ing his Innocence, and having district
of 10, 600 Repu blican majority in it to back
him the largest Republican majority in
the l nited States), he determined to fight
it down. He was elected. But the CAL
umny cut his majority down to $500, a
loss of over 1000. Still he was elected,
and The next time he increased this di
minished majority to 5000, and the next
IL was back 10 the old figure. Then the
Legislature, by an unanimous Republi
can VOL6 IN caucus anu III JOINT COIlHlltIee.
elected him United States Senator. But,
after all this, when nominated for Presi-
dent, the old lie sprang into life again and
'S329,' which represented it, was pasted
everywhere, till the Republicans were
actually forced to trample out the lie
which repeated vindications by elections
could not extinguish.
after Maine went back on US in Sep
tember, 1880, and the cause seemed lost,
till Indiana made that wonderful rally in
October and turned the tide of battle,
Garfield suffered torture at the idea that
he might be defeated, and the great ma
tional reverse charged in history to the
Credit Mobllier charge against him, as it
would have been.
81 cannot continue this argument. Suf-
flee it to say / have served the Nation
and my party twenty years faithfully,
and must be excused from further duty
of that kind.
"Excuse this very hurried letter, and
believe me, with siucere acknowledge
ments of your kind letter, very truly
yours, SCHUYLER COLFAX."
A few months later Colfax died sud-
denly and alone while sitting in the rail-
way station at Mankato, Mimi, aw aiting
a train to take him To complete lecture
engagement. A sweeter spirit, a kindlier
or more forgiving nature, more sincere
and upright purpose, never existed than
that which animated the life and beauti-
fed the character of Schuyler Colfax.-
New York Mail and Express.
Lady Morgan's Marriage.