Year: 1876

altogether too much ability for man like
Tilden to cope With. The result of the
deliberations Of that convention almost
confounded what were known as war
Democrats.


. In Manton Marble apology for Tnden $
action at that important crisis, during the
St. Louis convention. he made Tilden ap-
pear more contemptible by tryingto explain
how hetried to prevent the passage OF the
resolutions by opposing them in the COM
mittee room, but had not that manly and
courageous independence, so indispensable
in completing q character, which alone the
true patriot possessed, to stand up in the
convention and oppose their passage by
denouncing them as they deserved to be
denounced. Tilden had then gone forth
from State of so great magnitude in terri
tory and population as to be known as the
empire, with q constituency to back him
numbering hundreds of thousands, but at
the first demand made upon him by men
whose sentiments and sympathies were more
in accord with treason and rebellion than
loyalty, he was the first to bow his head,
like the trained OK, to his masters yoke.
Again, at a later period in the life of this
Democratic candidate, do we find another
opportunity given him to show the Ameri-
can people whether he is a man of iron or
a man Of putty. His nomination at St.
Louis was not only desired by him, but
generally believed to have been bought
and dearly paid for. But even then this
announcement was too much for a vacillat-
ing mind like his, and almost completelyun-
nerved him. Having been placed at the
head of the column, he had not himself the
courage to take one step towards an onward
movement or announce any plan, SO lndis
pensable in the then esrly stages of cam
paign, if it was to be conducted with any
thing like success.


While his letter was constantly being de-
manded by the press and his party, he
must first consult long with his associate
on the ticket before he dare promulgate his
opinions to his countrymen, and then
yielded to that astute Western politician,
who had required of him to abandon and
denounce the very sentiments on the
questions of currency and finance which
alone had caused him in the past to be
recognized as being entitled to the name of
statesman. While his messages were writ
ten evidence of what his honest opinions
are on the resumption of payments in coin,
he must necessarily repudiate them to
satisfy the demands of an element within
ub;oh 90
fate and expand the circulating medium to
an unlimited degree, and then finally
repudiate both the States and coautry's in
debtedness.


No words have been uttered during this
campaign more true than were those of an
ex-Confederate officer to his comrade, when
trying to persuade him to vote for TIlden:
"Elect him, and we can control him"
What unprejudiced mind is there to-day
who has become familiar with the past
record of Samuel ]. Tilden who would not
acknowledge the danger to the peace and
prosperity of this far reaching domain, with
its noble institutions, if the Democratic
party, struggling for national existence,
should be successful in elevating their
chosen leader to the coveted positions If
the work they have undertaken should be
consummated, how many will discover
when IL is too late to profit by their mistake
that their President is like the soft mate
rial in the hands of the skillful workman,
too many OF which would constantly be
found gathering around him. Place Tilden
in the Presidential Office, and like James
Buchanan, if he discovered one must be
sacrificed, country or party, he would per-
init the former to pass out of existence that
the last might survive.