The Irish standard., 1896-11-28

.ftion with such skill that Van Buren, was
Forced. to SO commit himself that he lost
ESouthern support and with it the snomina
ttionzfor the presidency.
( However, IT. was the often-expr
opinion of William H. Seward that Van
Buren never committed but oce fatal
|error in politics, and that was when, nurs-
ing resentment at his failure to secure the
nomination in 1874, he permitted "a wing Of
his party to nominate him as a hopeless
candidate in 184S, thereby entailing just
what was intended to be entailed,.th de-
featrof the Democratic candidate. Van Bu-
ren's public career ended with the cam
paign of 1848, but he lived for many years
in honored and delightful retirement, dy-
! ing in 1862 at the ripe age Of 79.
That fine old Democrat, Gen. Cass, was
never greater than in the hour of his de-
feat by Gen. Taylor in 1848. He looked
upon himself merely as the representative
of his party, and took his defeat with per-
| feet composure and without resentment. 1t
was the party which was defeated, and not
! Cass; the man, in his opinion, and the sim
pie dignity with which, after having served
| Tor a time In the cabinet of Buchanan, ne
retired from public life to mis- home In
Michigan, was beautiful indication Of the
| mans real greatness. Nor was Gen. Scott
| a less engaging figure after his defeat by
Pierce in 1852. His disappointment was
no doubt keen, but he gave no outward
sign of it. Frank Pierce" said he, when
| he heard the news, "was a good soldier
with me in Mexico and he ought to make
good president" And then ne went qul,
etly about the discharge OF his duties as
commander Of the army, which post ne
continued to hold until short time before
his death in 1862
John p. Hale, the Free Soil candidate
for president in 1852, is now almost for
! gotten, but in his time he played q large
part in public affairs. The venerable
E1alusha A. Grow told me not long ago
that he considered Hale one Of the most
brilliant and useful men who ever served
in the Federal senate "Hale had been
four years in the senate when first took
ny seat in the house. said Mr.. Grow,
| 'an1 there vas no one more feared by the
southern senators thar he A big, 70
tund. good -naturel man, in the ART OF
totally denolishing the long and labored
.!reument of an opponent with timely
anecdote Of jest, he had few equals. a
few years before the appeal of the Mis-
snuri compromise Senator Slidell intro
duced a bill in congress appropriating
some $4,000, coo for the purchase OF
Cuba General Cass made All elaborate
speech supporting the bill, on the grounds
that it was dangerous to have depena-
ency Or q foreign power so near our shores
as Cuba. Hale followed 'Co1lsistency,'
said he, has always been q browning
jewel in the diadem Of the senator from
Michigan He favors the annexation Of
Cuba because its proximity is a constant
menace TO our welfare. when every night
Of his life when he is at none'-Gen.
Cass lived in Detroit from the window
OF the room in which he sleeps you can
throw a stone Into the possessions Of her
I?r-annic majesty Thus in two minutes
he destroyed the effect Of Gen. Cass' three
! hours argument :
Hale knew there was no chance of his
election when he ran for president as the
candidate Of the Free Sellers in 1852,
and nence cherished neither resentment
nor disappointment at his defeat. He
served in the senate for some years and
tben WAS sent as minister to Spain.
He went into retirement in New Hamp-
shire after his return from Spain, and his
death: when it came, SO completely mad
he been forgotten, WAS dismissed ny the
newspapers with paragraph.
No defeated aspirant for the presidency
ever had a more checkered after career
lhan that of John C.. Fremont, Buchan-
ans rival ia 1856. His military career
ended in misfortune and personal chagr1n,
and the Ill viii! which he bore Lincoln led
him in 1854 10; accept nomination Tor
| president rendered by so-ca!led party
which met in convention in Cleve-
land. However, Fremont's good sense
was sltlicient to teach him that his con-
djdacy could only inlperil the union cause
and in September, 1864, he announced
his withdrawal from the field, mot to aid
in The triumph Of Mr.. Lincoln, but to do
my part toward defeating the election Of
the Democratic candidate. After the
war Fremont plunged into business enter:
prises, but he Was not good t1nancler,
and few of the argosies which he put
S1oat ever came back to him He died
in poverty in New York City eight years
ago.
Stewards presidential ambitions van
ished when the nomination which he
coveted went to Lincoln, and E'reckin-
ridge and Douglas were the other wrecks
left on the shore of the political storm
of 1850. During the wAr the former
commanded a confederate regiment in
the field and served for a time in Davis
cabinet, but his heart was never in the
secession movement, and when it was
overthrown he felt that his career was
ended He went back to Kentucky, ex-
pecring to take up the practice of law,
but did not live long after he retired to
private life. Douglas, when the war
opened was prompt and outspoken in
support of the union, and had he lived
he would probably have been one OF Lin
coin Is most valued advisers. But he had
been ailng for more than year, and
the mighty strain Of the canvass of 1850
coupled with grief at the hopeless rupture
of his party, undermined his consti-
tuition. He sank rapidly, and when it
was evident that his day was ending he
sent for mis- sister to come and nurse him
during his last hours. After his death
the manifestations of respect revealed: the
mighty hold which he had upon his party
and the admiration his great opponents
had come to feel for him because of his
splendid stand for the Union. No part
Of Douglas life so well became him as its
close
After the campaign OF 1854 Gen. Mc-
Clellan emerged but once from his self
sought retirement. In 1877 he was non.-
mated for governor by the New Jersey
Democrats and elected. This was the