Los Angeles herald., 1908-06-15

sans OF seward, the angry pdTtiSduS VI
Bates, the aristocrats to whom Lin
left the Chicago wigwam in anger to
meet again in harmony at the polling
places. So 1t will be at Chicago this
week. There will be wrangling and
fighting. there will be hate and dis
gust. But the chances are that the
wounds will be healed and the scars
ohliterated before the calends of Mo-
vember. OF course, there have been
bolts from Republican conventions and
defections of great leaders from Re
publican ranks. These things have
happened, will happen again, may
happen this year. But, taken as a
party organization, the Republican
body has always been amenable to
the reason of party expediency That
is the source OF Its great power, the
reason for its continued ascendancy-
and it knows it. Let other parties
cling to the deadwood of waterlogged
issues The Republicans will keep up
with the procession, even IL the pro-
cession countermarches.
The majority, perhaps two-thirds, of
the delegates to the Chicago conven-
ton of 1860 favored the nomination of
William II. Seward of New York for
shared by two-thirds of the Republic
ans of the country. Seward was their
leader in the senate, he was their
champion and their pride. But Seward
had been long in politics. he had de-
clared that there was a "higher law
than the constitution, he had spoken or
the "irrepressible conflict" Worse
even than these, from the STANDPOINT OF
political expediency, he had been al
lied with the Roman Catholic infiu-
ences in politics.
In the convention We're Andrew q.
Curtin of Pennsylvania and Henry y.
Lane of Indiana They were politi-
clans, and good ones, and they accom-
plished Stewards defeat and Lincoin's 8
nomination. AT that time the Ameri-
can parry, the Know Nothings, still
east and) in Indiana. Without their
votes the Republicans could not hope
to win. In Pennsylvania the Repub-
licans were so timid and so sagacious
that they had dropped the name Re
publican" and Curtin was running for
governor as the nominee of the "Peo-
pies Party"
elected governor of New York. 1t was
charged that Archbishop Hughes, an
able Roman Catholic prelate, had ma
terially assisted in Stewards election.
IT was known that Seward had sent
a message to the legislature approving
the plan for division OF the puplc
school funds between Catholics ana
Protestants. In the eyes or Know
Nothing this attitude on the school
question was the one scarlet, unpar-
donable sin. The state elections in IN
diana and Pennsylvania in 1850. were
held in October Curtin and Lane want
ed to be elected, and they wanted to
elect a Republican president. They
knew that If they were beaten IN DC
tober all hope of Republican success in
November would be gone. They had to
have that Know Nothing vote and they
knew the nomination of Seward would
ALLEVIATE 1t.
Stewards political manager was Thur.
low Weed. the Albany editor, one OF
the ablest political manipulators this
country has known. He fought Tor
Seward to the last ditch. He went SO
far as to take drive with Lane and
offer to send enough money into In
diana to insure Lanes election in Oc-
tober il the Hoosier would desert Cur
tin and support Seward. 1t Is to be
doubted if Curtin and Lane could have
succeeded in nominating Lincoln
against Weeds management and sew.
ards great popularity, II II mad NOT
been for Horace Greeley. Greeley had
paved the way for the anti-seward
movement by coming out against sew
ard in the Tribune. Greeley said
Seward was unavailable, but of course
the real reason was not revealed al
that time. The Tribune supported Ed
ward Bates of Missouri. 1t could not
win for Bates, but it had the effect OF
helping to destroy Seward.
When the convention was assembled
everybody saw there was great fight
on The Seward managers made tacti,
cal error in having a great seward
e+raot parade While the Seward peo-