Year: 1876




The campaign against Mr.. Blaine which was
begun some weeks ago and has been kept up
50 vigorously does not seem thus far to have
been brilliantly successful. 1t certainly has
not blown Blaine sky-high," as was expected.
Either Blaine is one of the smartest and luck
lest rogucs in the world, or he is innocent of
the accusations which have been brought
against him. The combination which was
made to defeat him had certain elements of
strength not to be despised The journals en-
gagged in it were admirably located for the
purpose of spreading the reports as they came
out and placing them before large cOnstitu-
encies of readers in different sectiOns the
journalists and others i'll the scheme were
active and in a measure influential they knew
all the gossip and the scandal of politics and
parties all the things that had been whls-
pered and insinuated about public men,
and all the weak points in cyerybOdy'S
armor; and they had extraordinary facili-
ties for gathering and spreading all the
lumors, hints, and suspicious that fioated
about any public man. 1t was
strong combination, well organized of fixed
purpose and stubborn will, and it had blood in
its eve. The "more than forty" who "bound


themselves unucT - CulSc lHiJ tHty "ouu
"neither eat nor drink until they had killed
"Paul,n were not more in earnest than these
gentlemen from the East and the West who
bound themselves to blow Blaine sky-high
We do not by any means question their right
to so combine. We credit the majority OF
them with honest and honorable motives.
They were and are opposed 10 the nomination
of Mr.. Blaine, because they believe the party
and the country can do better. 1t was their
privilege as citizens and journalists to take
such steps as to them seemed best adapted to
make their opposition effective. They have
not always seemed to us to be discreet, per-
haps not always just but we certainly cannot
deny that they have been vigorous, persistent,
and uncOmpromising If Mr.. Blaine has any
character left he owes it either to his own
honesty or his smartness and good luck, GER
tainly not to any feebleness in the attacks that
have been made upon him, or any dis
position on the part of his enemies to show
him mercy. The TRIBUNE has looked on the
spcctacle of attack and defense rs a perfectly
impartial spectator, only occasionally protest
ing against unnecessary brutality, and of course
getting paid for it in bad language. And 1t
seems to us that the whole conspiracy is a
failure. Blaine is stronger to-day in his party
and before the people than ever before.
Doubtless the gentlemen who organized the
attack are more than ever convinced OF his
unftness-the natural effect of their unfortu-
nate crusade would be to embitter them-but
they have been all this time addressing the
cool and intelligent jury of the People in an
endeavor to show why James G. Blaine is unfit
to be President He may be unfit, but not on
account of the things they have alleged
against him. SO far they havo totally failed
to smutch him. The consequence is that he
goes into the Cincinnati Convention the only
candidate who has been already tried In the
furnace and by fire and has come out un-
scathed The bitterness of the opposition to
him has strengthened him.


There are many prominent public men in
the Republican party who would give greater
satisfaction to the party and the country as
Presidential candidate than Mr.. Blaine. THE
TRIBrNE has criticised that gentleman's public
acts with great freedom and sometimes with
severity. He is at all times partisan, and
too much imbued with the prejudices and
habits of partsanship to make an ideal Presi-
dent or an ideal candidate. And it is true too,
as has been once or twice said, that he has
been in a conspicuous and influential position
in Congress for many years, and has not urged
any measure of reform or protested against
bad government and corrupt administration
These are good reasons for opposing his nomi-
nation, but we do not lose sight of the fact
that if the party were to be governed by them