The herald., 1898-06-20
q. o. p.


party of that state illustrates, in GER
tain sense, the old adage, when thieves
fall out, honest men will get their DUE"
The extraordinary energy developed by
the famous Philadelphia merchant in the
political race for office, the number, vigor
and variety of the stump-speeches made
by him, from one end to the other of the
William Penn state, during the canvass,
afford strong evidence Of the sincerity of
his charges against his time Republi-
can colleagues.
Mr.. wanamaker delivered as many as
sixty-seven different campaign speeches
and contrived in every one of them to hold
the mirror up to nature, as far at least
as Republican methods in Pennsylvania
were concerned. Having been associated
all his political lifetime with the G. o. p,
Mr.. Wanamaker ought to have known
and, it is presumed, did know, what he
was talking about. Here is a. sampls of
the Republican ex-postmaster. generals
estimate Of Republic1Iisln in Pennsyl-
vania. At Shlrleyyille he is reported,
among other .,lings, to have said:
The Republican party as at present
constituted is most dangerous political
trust. believe 1t would be bet
ter for a great party to go down than
to permit few thousands OF office
holders, by virtue of patronage control,
to become absolute rulers of 100000
of people who are practically beyond
any power to interfere.
Mr.. Wanamaker openly charged that
Republican congressman have made 1t
custom to sell postmasterships, and that,
despite the state constitutional provision
forbidding the issuance Of free passes,
they, as we'll as the state legislators, not
only travel on such passes, but secure
the same privilege for their influential
constituents. He, even he, John Wana-
maker, the whilom crony of bankers and
the apostle of the questionable methods
by which these favored gentlemen amass
great fortunes, denounced the system of
pet banks and the favoritism displayed
toward them by state treasurers, to the
detriment of the taxpayers, and told his
hearers that at the time the Chestnut
Street National bank and the Peoples
bank of Philadelphia failed they had in
their vaults over ee-quarters of mil
lion dollars.
The Herald has already given editorial
expression to the failure of John Wanna
maker to convince the people of his state
that he was a better man for their SER
vice than Matt Quay. The contest be-
tween these eminent exponents of the
political grab-all theory was sort of
fight-dog fight-bear encounter. 1t is now
ancient history, profitable only in the
wholesale exposure Of party malfeasance
which 1t makes, as significant evidence
of the decadence of once great and pat
riotic political party.
Our Republican friends have frequent
ly found moral delectation in reviewing
the peculiar political ethics Of Tammany
Hall. But that was in the olden time,
ere yet Mr.. Quay's political sleight of
hand outshone the most brilliant legerde-
main Of the Tammany chief. 1t may be
that Wanamakers elaborate elucidation
Of the Quay method of managing the
party machine in Pennsylvania will have
achieved one result not intended by the
cx-postmaster general, to wit: silencing
Republican criticism of Democratic poll
tics on the time-honored ground that peo-
pie residing in glass houses should not
throw stones.