Year: 1872

l


the regular Republican organization. The


movement is gaining ground steadily; and


like all movements of the same sort, eacl


additional success that it achieves only


makes the next one the more easy to oh


tain An avalanche is overwhelming i,


proportion to its distance from the origi


nal starting point


Many of our readers do not understand


the origin and purpose of the Cincinnati


convention as they were originally sug


gested by the authors Of the movement


Some think that it contemplated an inde


pendent organization designed to super


cede the Republican party. Others thinl


Il was personal effort in favor of some


particular individual for the President


Others, again, suppose that it was origin


ated as speculation, gotten up to be solo


out to the Democrats Or the Republicans


according to the terms it could make IL
| behalf of its leaders.


All Of these suggestions are incorrect
| The Cincinnati convention is the growth


of that sentiment which opposes federal


interference in the local politics Of the


community At the election in 1870, Gratz


Brown was nominated by the Republicans


Of Missouri for Governor in opposition to


the desire of the President and his friends.
These latter bolted from the convention,


and nominated Governor McClurg. The
contest was a very bitter one, and what
heightened the excitement was the fact


that the President used all the patron
age Of the general government to defeat
Brown. Senator Schurz took sides with


the nominee of the Republicans, and for
so doing all his friends were turned out of


their places under the government Gratz


Brown was elected by forty thousand ma
jority, and it was well understood during
the canvass, and has been ever since, that
he then engaged to oppose the renomina-
ton of General Grant unless the latter
would expressly declare that henceforth
he would desist from using the power and
patronage Of the general government to
control merely local elections Of the peo-
pie He has stood to this engagement
ever since, without abating a single line
from the salutary reform which be insisted
upon.


Being a Republican, Governor Brown
opened correspondence with prominent
men in different sections of the country
soliciting their adhesion to the reform
which he proposed in the interest Of all
the States. While this correspondence
was being carried on the President inter-
fered in arranging the congressional COM
mittees, securing the displacement ofSena-
tor Sumner in favor of Senator Cameron.
Thousands Of Republicans resented this as
unjustitiable and ungrateful, and they
drifted into the same stream with Gov
ernor Brown. Then, again, at the election
in New York the President renewed his in
reference, and assisted in defeating Mr.
Greeley. This enraged other Republi-
cans, and they fell into the same discon-
tented sentiment that actuated the Missou-
rian. The partisans Of the President, as if
bent on hurting the feelings of the most
prominent leaders of the Republican party
in Congress, assailed Messrs Fenton, Lo-
gan and Trumbull, and ultimately drove
these gentlemen, with their great inhu-
ence, into an attitude of hostility to the
Presidents policy in certain political mat
ters. Here We have the origin of the dis
content that led large number of promi-
nent Republicans to unite in discussing the
best policy to be pursued in maintaining
their own positions and in putting some
restraint upon the abuse Of the patronage
Of the government.


The result was the issuance of call for
a convention of all Republicans who felt
a desire to insist upon exacting from the
party the nomination of a
candidate who would pledge himself to
promote certain reforms in the interest of
the people. 1t was not intended at the
time, nor is it positively intended at pres
ent, that there shall be a candidate
nominated at Cincinnati; but the conven-
ton will wait to see what the Republicans
do at Philadelphia, and then it will act as
may direct. The PROPOSE
ton is that the convention at Cincinnati
shall adopt platform Of principles only,
and then adjourn to meet at New York
after the Republicans have determined
upon their candidate and platform at
If another man than
General Grant is nominated, and the
declaration of principles is satisfactory,
he Reform Republicans will support
he ticket heartily and fully. If General
Grant is nominated, and pledges himself
% abandon the policy which be has
hitherto pursued, the same result may be |
predicted. But if the Republicans at
Philadelphia merely throw up their apsfor |
the administration, and shrink from in
sisting upon the correction Of the abuses
which the Reformers denounce, then the |
Cincinnati convention will reassemble in
New York and put ticket in the field
which will be strong if not a successful
one.


Let this be borne in mind, that the Gin
H'-nati convention is a Republican gather
lLg III every respect. 1t members have
never been anything else but Republicans,