Year: 1873

in the thoughts of each of these men, and
of many others. We say second place, because
their first thoughts are for their own nomina-
ton The whole drift of political discussion
is in this direction. To begin with, these
statesmen have a scorn for conventionalities.
Mr. Carpenter the chief, is the only man of
eminence who, seeing in the Credit Mobilier
contract sound business operation, and be-
lieving back pay an honest satisfaction of the
desires of congressman, has dared to make an
elaborate speech in their defence. Mr.. Car
penter is precisely the man to lead move
ment for a denomination. Mr.. Conkling may
enter into q period of Information under
the soft, silken. enervating folds OF
the Chief Justiceship, waiting for the spring
of some future nomination, and we may lack
his leadership. But wherever his hand may
be, in the Senate or in the Court, his heart
will be true. So we might 60 down the list.
In one of Whittier's burning lyrics, which
came upon the deadened sense of the nation
like Luther's grand old Reformation hymn in
earlier days, he exclaims that. when our land
to ruins brink is verging, silence is crime!
The danger which then threatened the land
was slavery, and the predecessors of Carpen-
ter and Chandler and Morton-the Douglas,
the Marcy, the Cass OF that day-were timid
compliant and acquiescent in presence of the
curse and shame of the age. They had no
word to say against slavery, because the slave
holders were all-powerful. They were silent
as the republican leaders are silent in presence
of danger which we deem even greater
than slavery-the danger of Cmsarism as
expressed in the movement for General
Grants denomination to the Presidency, and
as shown in a hundred ways-in the falsehood
and corruption of social and political life. And
sustaining these men, favoring this sentiment
and encouraging silence which is no less q
crime now than when Whittier sang, we have
class in Office who mean to hold Office,
and who worship any Caesar who sends a
paymaster-a class of suddenly rich and vain
people who crave the complaisances and gratif-
cations of more splendid life-who have
money, and, caring only for vanity and deco
ration, seek them in Washington and Long
Branch.


The country is rich and powerful We have
good harvests. The sun shines and corn
grows We make money with ease and spend
it with readiness Our fathers were old fogies
who lived on corn bread and sweet potatoes
and never tasted ices or pates. Our mothers
with gowns that did not come from Paris
But now we have gained wealth in petroleum,
in army contracts, in railway bonds, in
lands, in sugar and cotton, in dividends
of eight hundred per cent from the Credit
Mobilier, in selling unremunerative mining
stocks to English widows and clergymen, in
speculaions out of the whiskey tax, in de-
frauding the revenue-we have made so much
money that we are dying to spend it.
We have laces from Belgium and silks from
Paris, costly stufs and precious stones;
and what remains but o court or
social circle in Washington which will
give us some Of the comforts of court? And
so we drift and are difting into social and po-
litical conditions which naturally enough de-
sire the denomination of Grant and the estab-
lishment of system in Washington which
may not be a dynasty in name, but will be
dynastic in fact, and be the beginning of the
end of the liberties of the United States.


Are we alarmists? Perhaps so. But the
signs we note may be read Of all men. If we
do not read them truly let those who have
more skill give us better explanation.
When the clouds are in the sky
it is well to think of stormy weather.
And when, for the first time in
our history, we find the dominant
members of dominant party silent in pres
ence of danger that threatens the foundation
of our liberties-we mean the danger Of
third nomination to the Presidency-it is fair
to presume that our whole political system is
corrupt and diseased, and can only be re-
formed by slow, radical and painful remedies.