Year: 1871




General Butler. in his present political cam
paign in Massachusetts as volunteer candi-
date for Governor, is raising great commo-
tion among the big fish and the small fry; but
the small fry are giving him plenty of employ
ment. AS we understand his present position,
it is this: He is, by outside pressure, in
stumping the State, working to secure the
nomination for Governor from the approach
ing regular Republican State Convention, and
If defeated in that Convention, as we suspect
he will be, it appears to be his purpose to run
''upon his own hook" His platform, how
ever, is the greatest thing out. 1t is like the
First Napoleon, ''grand, gloomy and peculiar"
and it is like Sam Patch, for it goes upon the
principle that ''some things can be done as
well as others, if not good deal better. !"
The General endorses the present national ed
ministration as honest prudent and good;
but he denounces his present State administra-
tion as dishonest, extravagant and bad. He
likes fair play, but he is down upon the news
papers; he complains of the incessant and
malignant attacks of his enemies while con-
stantly pitching in, right and left, and running
a muck among them, like o bull in China
shop. He admires General Grant, and
goes for him from the rising to the setting of
the sun-and during the night likewise; but
he can't abide Horace Greeley, and thinks, as
some other people think, that what Mr.. Gree
ley knows about farming is ''all my eye and
Betty Martin"


Moreover, as we make him out General
Butler, on the Massachusetts, liquor question,
holds the doctrine that q prohibitory law
which is not enforced ought to be satisfactory
to temperance men because it is the law, and
to liquor men because it is not enforced-a
strong argument on both Sides But the two
main planks of the Generals platform are
labor reform and woman suffrage, or working
mems rights and womens rights. He goes
for labor reform the whole hog, including the
International and the Paris Commune. He is
evidently believer in that beautiful regula-
tion of things between labor aud capital,
under which nobody shall have anything, but
everybody shall have everything, and nothing
to do. In this great work we like his idea of
beginning the war on the consequential aristoc-
racy, the ''bloated bondholders," and ''silk
stocking party" Of Massachusetts,. On woman
suffrage he is simply irresistible. He holds
that women, on the average, are as well
qualified for the ballot as our colored fellow
citizens of African descent; and that Mrs.
Woodruff can expound the constitution good
deal better than ''Uncle Tom" Above all,
he contends that the refining influence of
women at the polls would cure all the evils
of rowdyism which now prevail in our politi-
mental principles of equal rights woman is
entitled TO voice in the laws under which
she is brought into the world, and brought up,
and married and divorced, and taxed and
governed generally.


To sum up, General Butler goes for General
Grant, but is dead against Mr.. Greeley he
goes for the administration at Washington, but
is dead against the administration at Boston;
he goes for the Massachusetts, Liquor law, but
is opposed to its enforcement; he cultivates
newspaper reporters, but is dead against
newspaper editors; he is opposed to a course
of personal warfare against himself, but he
delights in applying the tomahawk and scalp
ing knife to his accusers. He goes about like
a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour,
but he is himself devoured, as he confesses,
at every stopping place, by the ''bloodhounds
let loose upon his trail" He goes for labor
reform and women's rights, out and out, and
he is going to run for Governor anyhow. We
hope he will stick to this resolution, for the
old fogies of the republican party of Massa-
chusetts are getting rusty and lazy, pompous
and imperious, and thorough stirring up will
do them good.