New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1896-06-27
I q hero for It without grave danger to popular

q hero for II WITHOUT grave udhs'i w POf
government. ,,,
Doubtless some will say now as some u''
saw during his lifetime: You are 100 h"'n VI,
MAYNARD. He was an excellent man. III" ",'
mot realize the enormity of his ohchce' 1t
inst that which makes II necessary 10 oe hii"'
Judge MAYNARD was clean, apie lliili'' WIZ
vould have left an unblcmished repu'"''oH
EXCEPT that he stole an election return ll"lh 'io
office of tie Controller and then SAT slen' III
the presence of the State Board OF 'auNasse'S
and saw the improper return counted i'll Sp''
of objections. on the ground that the proper
return had not been received The 1ac' 'ha' Il
man of that high character should III the eager
ness Of n political contest so far lorge' HIS
standards of honesty. his obligation as Il pun
lie officer and his duty as n citizen lha' h'
could do this great wrong without reailHinE
how henous il is eloquent tcstlihoh! ~
the need of education in political morality!
When Governors. Senators and Judges uh'eh
under the spur of partsansllip to DEFEND 'h"'
action and induce the voters to reward 'he
falsIlication of their vote. the necessity oi Draw
Ing clear the boundary line between rght anu
wrong was emphasized. Now when tines" sam"
lenders of men tell what noble public man
MAYNARD was and how uniusily he was mace
70 suffer il will not do to pass the subject over
without calling 10 mind what il was for when
he suffered. and remembering that ii is rs true
now rs when the Duke of Grafton pardoned
MacQurk's crime at an English poll tiaI' he
minister. who by secret corruption lhVades
the freedom Of elections and the rulah' VINO
"bv open violence destroys that freedom are
"embarked in the same bottom
If Judge MAYNARD had admitted that in the
heat of strife he had done wrong the char
acter of which he did not foresee ana II MS
friends had accepted the fact that the ballot
could not he fasihed with mpunity. the offence
might long ago have been buried in oblivion
But when the theft was defended public s'ntl-
ment deiicd and the voters were called upon 10
reward blows aimed AZ their institutions Win
n seat on the bench Of their highest court. II
became a duty 10 call Judge Maynards act bN
its right name And so long men continue
TO defend il. il will be duty To speak OF II
with dsaplroval, even though he is dead. ohc
OF the evils Of society is the tendency of good
men 10 think lightly Of public wrongs ana be
complaisant toward those who commit them
Rv rs much as men are held less strictly 10 ac-
count bv one another for crimes against the
state than for crimes against individuals. by
so much is our public less pure than our prl-
vatc life We know deed is evil aud W" say;
.\ever mind he's a good fellow: IL was poll
tics and he didn't think" So We set th" oX-
ample for others to do the same evil confident
Of the same casy-going verdict. II sometimes
seems hard to draw the line SO strictly for men
are blind and blunder but they blundcr most
because sweet words and tolerance too often
obscure the sense Of right and wrong. Charity
n rpuliitu1p II sins hIlf II must mol
make those sins seem virtues.