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1
WALEBR BLAINB
LIFE AND PUBLIC SERVICES
... -- -: ^ ^'.-:: -OF- -..--■.- ' - . v.-'V:-
Hon. JAMES G. BLAINE
"THE PLUMED KNIGHT"
—CONTAINING—
A PULL ACCOUNT OP HIS EARLY LIPB ; HIS EDUCATION
AND CAREER AS A VbACHBR} HIS BRILLIANT SER-
VICES IN CONGRESS AND AS SPEAKER OP
THE HOUSE; HIS ABLE AND PATRI-
OTIC RECORD IN THE SENATE
OP THE UNITED STATES.
-l-INCLUDING—
His Nomination for the Presidency; his Eminent
Services as«8ecretaiy of ^ State; his
Sickhess and. Death.
The Whole formingr a Complete and
Graphic Account of
AMERICA'S MOST DiSTlNGUISHED STATESMAN.
BY HENRY DAVENPORT NORTHROP, D.D.
Aithor of " Story of the New World/' Etc.
EMBELLISHED WITH SUPERB PHOTOTYPE ENGRAVINGS.
JOHN S. BEOWN,
PABIB. ONTABIO, OANABA.
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COPYRIOHT, 1693.
METROPOLITAN
TORONTO
CENTRAL
LIBRARY
Social Sciences
973'?
N 6-9
1 > * -i.^ H.-
APR 15 W6
' ■' /"',''!
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PREFACE.
. For many y^rs the name of James Gillespie Blaine
j^ )^d a remarkable magnietrsm, an4 has awak-
.ehi|<| thi& greatest enthusiasm. No Ame^can states-
m»| eVer iiUed the hearts of die people more com-
pl^My tihan he did.
^{1le martyrdom of JUincoln and Garfield won for
th|in a peculisir veneration, biit Mr. %tne, while liv-
in|^ gahiied thli^higfaest place in publiQ esteem, :He
wa^ admired as Uie most brilliant statesman of his day.
|f| WA^ 1^ for his warm and generous nature ; his
|i^ottsm was so broad and Md that it won*the a^p-
p^^e of Ills pditical ^j)$>onents. He was fofiowed
w^ thie|devdtion and entl^isiasm of the airmy dwt
bdretlie eagle ^^^^^^^ Napoleon mairched Vi
hi$ ^i^Hd^enofrned Vfc^tcur^ and even in defeatlie
was wpt^l^^d as wa» th^ man of d^tiny after Mo>s^
co#aiict|pba;::'.. ■ - ■ ' ;' [ ■ ■."■'^;/-v-/*:' ■•'::"
|iim|^^ and Ifrapliic story of Jils^ marvelous
setyli^!||||aiic^^ of dur country's
mG^^||i^]^B^y% 1^
of llcf^^^jfttil^^ It
to|fiii^^&^^
iisiidwn^ a^ 3^^sniatt W Oiir dnfte.
: llie^ work ^ws hour an Am^rl(in4aii;l;b«>ni and
'■"' '^ ■'■ ■'■■ ' y \ ' :--r- ;^:''€>'y--'MK:.;^
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raised in a country town, secured a godd education
and acquired habits of industry i^nd self-reliance,
which were the ground-work of the great name he
was to make in after life.
How, by diligence, tact and faithfulness to duty, he
gained distinction as- a teacher, and, by masterly abil-
ity and untiring industry, achhsved the highest success
as an editor and leader of public opinion.
How he was elected to the Legislature of his
adopted State, took high rank among his cplleagues^
was chosen to be Speaker of the House, and showed
all the commanding abilities of oratory and statesman-
ship which afterward made him the most majestic
figure in Congress.
How he was elected a Member of Congi^ess, cbi^
tinned fourteen years in this position, and during six
years of the period was Speaker of the H^ua^taktiigf
h^hest rank among the distinguished statesmen who
have occupied the Speaker's (Aair.; , , -' v . ,
How he received the Portfolio of Secretary of State
in President Gajrfieid's Cabinet, and upon ^e death
of the President delivered a maghificeiit eulogy updn
him before both houses of Cdhgress.
How Jie was honored with the hoiniha^dn for th^
Presidency, .became Secretary of State in President
I;brrison's Ca^btiidt^ vigoroiirsly ilefond^ AM&Mn
f^hls in the fisheries disputes. widi Enjg^land, con-
itucM the Pan-American Conferetit^ aiYd isect^^
th^ grand results of Redprc^t^^ and commiercial rela*
tlons with the Soutji Amendmn^liohs.
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CONTENTS.
!;.
. qHAinrER I.
VSm4j Life of the Oreal Amerioan SintemiMi
CHAPTER U.
Yoang Blaine at a tstndent and Teiaoher .
CHAPTER lit
aiid Folltloal Iieader
CHAPTER IV.
Blaine a Member of the State Leffitdatore
CHAPTER V.
Itnit T^rm In CongroM
CHAPTER VI.
^ ^NMid fiatvB^ U\ Copgrest .
; vO CHAPTER VII.
9I1I14 Term In Coiiirretti
CHAFFER Vill.
Ilpeaker of the Boose of AepreMhtatiires
^ CHAPTER IX. >
' ^e Famous BfiiUlgan I«Q|ters . 1 •
• •
.• - ■* .'•
• «••••
54
«9
CHAPTER^ X.
^Pie .F|iimeflJRjD4f ht*^ mid t^^ .
H^K^ In the Vnlfed iMalds S^pitte ,
i ' cfHAFTER;Xl|.
^btiae M Sewetar^ 9f .|H;|i(» . , *. . . . 1,^ ,,;#p
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CONTENTS.
Eiili^ 1^ James- A« CHirftetA ^ • , «
-CHAPTER XIV.
K«i£mal CbmiTeiitioii of 1884 tit <3l|l«aco
.BnOtiMinmr for ||ie «*FiW)Ml Msiglil*^
€HAFriR XVI.
Bialaeiroiid&Ated .
' * CHAPTER*XVa
Accepts the VomlnatUMi ' .
*. '
; CHAFtBR XVm.
l!lie QceM; ewnipaltrii of JM4
CHAPTER XIX*
Again Seeret«ry of StKte . . .
, . Cak^TEI^ XX,
StrlJdnv i^iaiaelMstl4w e^ liie liMft
, CHAPTEk XXI.
James 0. Blatee ' ... « \
CHACTBR XXIt
Blf#ie as a lliin^^^iiong 3f ^ .~ .
CHAPTER XJtllt
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JOHN SHERMAN.
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tffE^ iiND PU^IC SERVKES
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High on ^e frfl of Ati^«Mica'« f^stnond ^t
«iand8 the nagnc of Ja^e« C^fespie Blaihc ■$$. n
^tesinan :hteijfi»wi«(&*iid W«!^^ As ad3^«i^
tewa^ ittagiKtic and g^stt#^ Ji^ a, dtii^a^ he
with hfft linerrlfig: dait^
laQ of hb tiiim, ; ^, ^^?
anioals of puf coti».t^; if^
of fMUdoi^ and Wi^
jan that irhfeh rekteajU
;3i^ Im fidkn: . He ^^^
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Iwlncn^aeivb^ ^^^^^^^
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ra# Ailperba^ people, and hk namn 4
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Uri <» BOK* JAMKS O. ihAM.
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PA.
purdiwi^ supines for &u- amy . and durfncr the
d>e preservation of his troops from i&bJnfeiS?
™^ The 1^ esteem *fth which rCofoiiellkiafe
vraa^ held by Washingttm «nd his cnat ; t^^!
*ei^h«rd^ of iftjfe dispersion ^^ i
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SIMMONS BLAINK
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JAMBS G. BLAmmJR
BLAIKS'S SARLT t^IlS.
21
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goods, and opened a store which he kept for the rest
ofhislife. V
James Blaine's son, "Squire Blaine," as he was
known in the comnuinity, was married- to Miss Gilles-
pie, a devout member of the Roman Catholic Churchy
but their seven children — ^five boys and two girls-^
adhered to the traditional faith of the Blaines. The
eldest of these five sons, James Gillespie Blaine, is
the subject of this volume.
il RELIGIOUS FAITH OF TH^ BLAINE FAMILY.
Concerning the religious faith of his family: and his
own attitude in religious matters, Mr. Blaine wrote
in later life — March i oth, 1 876 — as follows :
My am:estors on my father's side were, as you know,
j always identified with the Presbyterian church, and
they wei^ prominent and honored in the old colony
I of Pennsylvania. But I will never consent to make
any public declaration upon the subject, and for two
irea^oi^: first, because I abhor the introduction of:
an^hingthat looks like a religious test or iqualiftcatioh
for office in a republfe where perfect freedom of con-
^science is the birthright of every citizen ; and, second,
[because m)rmodier was a devoted Catholic. I would
not for a thousand Presidencies speak a disrespectful
woixi of my mother's religioiii and no pressure, will
pdiiw me into^ any avowal of hbstilhy or unfriendliness
to Catiiolics, though ! have never received, and do hot
expect^4ihy political suppok^^
I^e Kennebec y<?«^ Maine), about
"- tmie, said on tiie same iulnect that "Mr. Blaine
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un '^ar nDXi/Mias o. blaivv.
lias b^n for flcttrly:twei^year» acoasbteotmembur
of the OftbcKliox Congregational Church in this, the
kdx?j^ -ofiihia rJiomei ^ Orthodox Congregationalism m
Mhine is precisely the sanie creed as PresbyteridotBin
in Pennsylvania." ■ -j>{t^;if;
.y; BLAINE'S BOiKIOCM).
J Speaking of filaineV boyhood a welMcnown jour-
.oalist thus wrote of a visit to his eaiiy honte in Weiit
JSrownsvflle» Pennsylvania r' ^^ >/ ^. |>w.4
-I i stood beside two old graves to^lay in this vills^»
^that are In the diadow of the littlfe chiireh that so
quickly recalled to ni$ LongfeUow's beautiful lines.
The marble that marlced them was much nearer ^^tan
the ii|ounds and the surroi^ndings impressed inewS^
the thought that a dutiful and reverent son had years
afker»when means and opportunity came iliat were
#anting when deadi called father «nd modier away,
placed a fitting monument to mark the spot whs^
they slept It is a. i4ain» unpretentious stone tliat
marks these graves, and it was the names only tiiat
^al!tracted my attention; They^ii|ii^ those of %liraim
Lv Blaine and Maria Gillespie filitfie^ ' ; i. ^
/ **^AVho were these two people in life?** I asked of
ab-old gentleman, who had wandered along with me
to this quiet city ^here the dead sleeps*
A. I -^Why^ifeey were the fiither and mother of James
G;. Blaine, t knew them bpth^weU* Eph^ Blaine and
iwent^ficlK^Qit^nethdK i^ founders
of ^is town, atid was sl|uire here fot^ liisiny la year.
H^ was elected prbtjkinina^^^^^^^ ia i%'^
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.Md moved to Waaii&^fton, the coi|hty^se»t He mar-
dtd Maria» a daughter of old Neal GHlespie^ the
linuM^bst. man inthts whole section, and from kia
people James Gille^ie Blame deriyes hit middle
name* ■ ■;,'^; '^'%"'"T/
A RlSliAllkABLB FAMILY.
<^The Gillespies wei^ among the most proiiitnent
^ families in the State. The ^eal of nature's nobtlt^ m9s
stamped upon them* one and all. The men werebvave
and stalwart; as^ strong in ch^racteri too, as they were
stout'of limb. The women were very handsome, and
caffiedthmselves as. proudly as though the bipod of
ak hundred wh were coursing through thetr veiils.
The beauty of old Mrs, Blatne» James' mother, passed
:t&to>prov«rb4 Even in her ckicrepit age sli^ pre^
served much of her early attractiveness, and her eye
was likeia hawk's, as dear and flashing, then as in the
days of )i«r budding womanhood, lliis was' a pecu-
Hsaity of her lamt^ and she transmitted it to all her
^c]iiIdren. -"■■' '►■• ..--v >r:,^
'^ The Gillespies were ardenti intense Catholicj^ and
made their religidh the leading feature of their Mv^.
Neal Gillespie owned a good deal of land about here,
and Eph Bl^ne built the brick house you see yonder
on a portion of it, after his marriage with Miss Gilles*
pie. Thei^^eir itrst chBd, Jamesi w^s born in 1830.
' St^ORV OF TRS BOr. ,
^'I rfHQ^mber him very wdl when h^ wasa UA «nd
used to paddle about on the river and make mud
I^is aApcr|f Its banks. Kewas abifghtJad. '
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"I remember one little story about him, which I
otoi heard m those days, and which is intieresttng as
shewing. how truly, in his case, the child was father to
the jnfiA. When he was but a little toddter, so to
speahi some laborers were engaged digging a well on ^
his fa^ier'a premises. The future statesman was
caught one morning peering down into the excavation,
alid Ode of |lie tneui with the idea of frightening him
afid thus preventing him from again putting himself
indftiiger, thrust his shovel toward him, and made all
sorts of ugly faces; iH /^vi^.irv
**}im ran an^y, but only to nurse his anger and
await an opportunity for revenge. Venturing to the
well # day or two after he had been driven away, he
l»uiid the men working away at the bottom^ Im*
pfiovmg the importunity, he seized a dod of earth and
hurM it with all his little might full at the head of his
unsiispecttng enemy, with the consolatory rematic,
^ There, take that' Clod followed clod in fest
sueisession, wi& accompanying expletives, until the
men were fairly beside diemselves with rage and widi
the^fi^it that the desperate child might take it into his
hesid io use some of die stones lying about him as
messengers of wrath more effective than -mere lum|>s '
of e^^.: .. ''■■'■'■•.•'
** Their shouts, however, brought his mother io the
scene, and the Uttle avenger was unceremoniously
h^ed^ff to the house. That was the old blood a^rt-
ing itself. : AGUlespie or a Blaine nevo- turned his
hs^ iipc^^M^ndor^^ -
-*.*
*!'.>
Bujrifi*! liBLT un.
.a
A BOAT WITH A FAMOUS NAME;
<* That's the new packet >^ James G. Blaine* that
runs from, here to Pittsburg. .The two people who
sleep in this graveyard little thought when theydied
that they'd have a son big enough to have a paoket
named for him. They died when Jim was youngs and
they didn't leave anything for him to. start with either. '
" Eph Blaine was a rich man once. His grandihther
left him some fifty thousand dollars, but he ^pettt it
having a good time. He was not a money-^save^; but
believed in enjoying the world as he lived. Hi; ttM
to drive fine horses^and drove 'em tandem, too. -^^Old
Neal Gillespie used to call him ' My-gigsind-fand^rtt
son-tn4aw.' The Gillespi^s wasn't so slow, either;
but Eph Blaine led 'em all in this country. It'ano^
wonder Jini Blaine Is smart. He comes Of good'
stock on both sides. All the Gillespies were skmtt
Neal Gillespie was the biggest^bralned man in i^l this
country."
**Do the Bktnes or any of the relatives own the
oki homestead ? "
*^iio, indeed. It's long since passed into stfange-
hands.^ There was little of either the Blaine or 1^ '
QQespie estate left when the setQement day came;
The children all had to begin new. None of cii^t^>^
finally; live ^ut here now." ^
4 - PROUD OF THE STATESMAN.
There is miich that is 'strange in the story t^iat^^^'^
^d^tnan told m^ and much more |hat is -Inter^sting^^
We Sniped the talk beside the^itibdesi^wai^rs of A#
'y---
^■X'.
-<;;
-'^i
^:r^/M'v.V^^*k%:4«^
LIFE OF HOir. JAMES Q. BLAINE^
I ^* V
Monongahela, near which Mr« Blaine was born, and
his femily lived for years. The little brick house
doesn't stand more than forty rods from the river, and
the old path which leads from the doorway that ^aine
helped to make in childhood is still there. The best
boat on the river now bears his name, and the plain
people love to talk of his having been born in their
'midst - - .■j:jk.:^x ' :
A WILD COUNTRY.
It is a queer section of country in which to have
found the homes of two such ^milies as the Blaines
and the Gillespies. Both strong houses — ^both fond
of die best things of this liife. Both educated and
brainy. The Gillespie faniily was a rich and powerful
femily in the region. The strength of mind and
character for which all die family were noted is still a
proverb in the region. The Monongahela river at
this point separates jhe two counties of Fayette and
Washington. Brownsville is on the Fayette side and
West Brownsville on the Washington side. They
are both quaint M towns, and wear the mark of many
years. I don't suppofe there are 5000 people in both,
and the houses straggl ^ along the banks of the river on
the lowlands, which are jiist high enough to keep them
out of the reach of the overflow.
This country was new — ^I might say wild— ^when
the Blaines and Gillespies came here. The rich
treasures of the Youghiogheny region were floated
down the Ohio river in rude keel boats, and the un^
told wealth in the ragged mountains was then un^*
«aP"
'J*
-/»* ■
blaike's EABLT UFS.
27
Icnown: Albert Gallatin used to live in this country
^en,and his residence was but a few miles up the
river from this point. But mighty -hanges have taken
place since those days, when he left his impress upon
the finances and credit of this country so that it can ^^
never be- effeced. ..^^^''^^^ <-;■'- ^r^^-^-^-^-vW ^cr'-C.;''^./ j:-^
There seems to have been good feeling from the
first between the Blaine and Gillespie families, and
there seems to have been a special care to intermingle
the family names as each son was bom. The old
man whom I encountered in the first part of this
story told me that nearly every son in the Blaine
family, as in the Gillespies, wore the family name or
some part of his autograph.
The Gillespie family seemed to run more to girls
than boys, and it seemed to be their good fortune to
link their fortunes with strong itien. The daughter
who was next in age to Maria, who married Ephraim
A. Blaine, was wedded to the famous Tom Ewing, of
Ohio, when he was a poor lawyer in Lancaster, Pa.
That's how he became an upcle of James G. Blaine,
and the names of Blaine and Ewing became joined,
it made a strong combination. ^
A KENTUCKY SCHOOL TBAClilER.
There is a tradition here that when old Tom Ew-
ing was Secretary of the Interior, Blaine applied to
him tot a clerkship and the old man sent him to Ken-
tucky to earn aa honest living teaching school. This
association of the name of Ewing with that of Blaine
has given rise to the story th»t the Ewing family of
28
LIFt: OF BON. JAMSS Q. BLAIKB.
I f '■ ■'
I
ft;-.
■.v
s
^'
Ohio helped James G. Blaine to an education. I
might as well destroy this fiction by telling the &cts. I ^
A short drive brought me to Washington, the
county-seat of this cOunty, and one of the first men
I met was Major John H. £wing» an old veteran past
fourscore years.
" I married the sister of Ephraim L. Blaine/' he
said. " He and I went to school togeUier over in yon^
der college, and I knew him nearly all his life. He
was. a leader in the mischief of the school, and fond of
all the good things of this life. He was the hand-
somest man I ever saw, and he had a wife that was a
match for him. She was one of the noblest womeii I
ever knew. She inherited all the sterling traits of
character and strength of mind for which the Gilles-
pies were noted.
*' So, you see, Blaine sprang from the best of stock
on both sides. His father was Justice of the Peace
over in West Brownsville for a number of ^ars, and
afterwards Prothonotary of the County, He ivas
elected in 1 842, and came here to live. James G. was
only about twelve years old then; and ahnOst every
middle-aged man you meet on the streets here r^ :
members aU about him." ,
INTERESTING LETTER. V ^HIIi
*. A letter, written upon the occasion of the Washingi.^^^^
ton County Centennial, in September, 1881, revea^ j
Mr. Blaine's deep attachment for the place of his I .r
birth, and his loyal interest and pride in its histoiy^J "
We give the letter entire.
'•,^ '.^'^
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■-■i.; Vj-U' ■ '
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D. W VOORHEES.
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WILLIAM P. FRYE ^
BLAIR'S EARLY LIFE.
29
Washington, D. C, Sept 5, 1881.
John D. McKennan : -
Dear S$r,^-l had anticipated great pleasure in be-
ing present at the centennial celebration of the erec-
tion of Washington County, but the national sorrow
which shadows every household detains me here.
I shall perhaps never again have the opportunity of
seeing so many of the friends of my youth, and so
many of my blood and kindred, and you may well
conceive my disappointment is great.
The strong attachment which I feel for the county,
the pride which I cherish iii its traditions, and the high
estimate which I have always placed on the character
of its people, increase with years and reflection. The
pioneers were strong-hearted, God-fearing, resolute
men, wholly, or almost wholly, of Scotch or Scotch^-
Irish descent They were men who, according to
an inherited maxim, never turned their backs on a
friend or an enemy.
For twenty years, dating from the middle period of
the Revolution, the settlers were composed very largely
of men who had themselves served in the Continentsd
army, many of them as officers, and they imparted an
intense patriotism to die public sentiment.
A FOURTH-OF-JULY CELEBRATION.
It may be among the illusions of memory, but I
think I have nowhere else seen the Fourth of July and
Washington's Birthday celebrated with such zeal and
interest as in the gatherings I there attended. I re-*
call a great meeting of the people on the Fourth of
July, 1840, on die border of the <:ounty, in BroWns-
ville,^ at which a considerable part of the procession
was composed of vehicles filled with Revolutionary
soldiers. I was but ten year9 old, and may possibly
?^_;.*s?*
it\'*'\_
M'^rJ*;
fa*'
K-'V,
fw ■y
1*
m 1
p ■'
i ■•'
h ' "
1 --
! ..
1 '
^
l^jr*. -H
80
LIFE OP HON. rJMS 0. BLAINE.
mistake, but I think there were more than two hun-
dred of the grand old heroes. The modern cant
criticism which we sometimes hear about Washingtotl
not being, after aH, a very great man, would have
been dangerous talk on that day and in that asa^tn*'
blage. ' •'—
CHURCH AT BROWNSVILLE, PA.,
And Cemetery Where Bliu^ae's Puenli are Buried.
These pioneers placed a high vialue on educattofi,
and while they wens still on uie frontier stiiigglfhg
with, its privations they establi^ed two excdtfeip^ Col-
leges, long since prosperously united in ofi^. If^cftild
be impossible to bversjtate the beneficent and wid^
spread influence Which Ws^hln&^on and Jeffersbii Cti)-
l4:es have iex<^rti»d^ bn' Ae <5iiS^
uVtiiJti.
m.KtifT-nii iiti. I nlB.iiMlftJtiMi
BLAINE'S EAMiT UFE.
eft...
%i
country which lies between the Alleghanies and the
Mississippi River. Their graduates have been proiiv-
inent in tne pulpit» at the bar, on the bench» and in the
high stations of public life.. During my service of
eighleen years in Congress, I met a larger number of
the alumni of Washington and Jefferson than of any
other single college in the Union.
GREAT EDUGATIONAL ADVANTAGES. l
I make this statement from memory, but I feel as-
suireid that a close examination of the roll^f the two
HoMses, from 1863 to 1 881, would fully i^tablish its
correctness. Not only were the two colle|r<^s founded
and well sustained, but the entire educational system
of the county, long before the school taX and public
schools^ was comprehensive and tliorougfh. I remem*
ber th^ in my own- boyhood there were ten or eleven
academies or select $chools in the county, where }ads
could bejBtted for college. ■ !
. In neaily every instance the l^resbytenan pastor was
the princ^i^ teacher. ' Mainy who will be present at
your Cent^niiil will recall the succession of well-
drilled todeht$. who came, for sp many years, from
the tuition of Dn M^lusk^, at West Alexander,
from Rev. John Stockton,' at Ci*bss Creeki from Rev*^
John |i^e$pn, of Buf&Io, smd from others of like
^yorth and reputation. •
A FAVORED COUNTY.
It was inevitable that a county thus peopled shou
grow in strength, wisdom and wealth. Its sixty thoU'
sand inhabitants are favored far beyond the average
1<^ of man. They are blest with 4 fertile soil and
with a health-giving climate^ which belongs to the
ch^^ed latitude of the fortieth. p^Lrallel, the middle
of ^ wiie^t^d^n belt q( the conitij(\cot. Bqrond
1^
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^n«Nffi»siM«Hu»«.v
32
LIFE OF HON. JAMBS G. PLAINS.
this they enjoy the happy and ennobling influences of
scenery as gr?.nd and as beautiful as that which lures
tourists thousands of miles beyond the sea.
I have, myself, visited many of the celebrated spots
in Europe and in America, and I have nowhere wit-
nessed a more attractive sight than wa^ familiar to
my eyes, in boyhood, from the old Indian Hill Farm,
where I was born, and where my great-grandfather,
the elder Neal Gillespie, settled before the outbreak
of the Revolution.
The majestic sweep of the Monongahela through
the foot of the Alleghanies, with a chain of mountains,
but twenty miles distant, in full view, gave an impres-
sion of beauty and sublimity which can never be
ef&ced.
I talk thus familiarly of localities and of childhood
incidents becSiuse your assemblage, though composed
of thousands, will, in effect, be a family reunion, where
die only thing in order will be tradition and recollec-
tions, and personal history. Identified as I have been,
for twenty-eight years, with a great and noble people
in another section of the Union, I have never lost apy
of my attachments for my native county and my native
State. The two feelings no more conflict than does
a man's love for his wife and his love for his mother.
Wherever I may be in life, or whatever my fortune,
the County of Washington, as it anciendy was, taking
in all the State south and west of the Monongahela,
will be sacred in my memory. I shall always recall
with pride that my ancestry and kindred wei^t#nd
are, not inconspicuously connected with its InltOiy,
and that on either side of tiie beautiful river, in Prot-
estant and Catholic cemeteries, five generations of
my own blood sleep in honored graves. Very sin-
cerely yours» James Q. JS^umfJ^
BLAINfi*S EARLY LIFE.
33
In the little burying-ground of Brownsville, close to
the church, is a plain granite monument, erected by Mr.
Blaine, over the graves of his father and mother ; the
pedestal bears this inscription :
EPHRAIM LYON BLAINR
Born Feb. 28, 1796.
Died June 28, 1850.
MARIA GILLESPIE,
WIFE OF
EPHRAIM LYON BLAINE.
Born May 22, 1801.
Died May 5, 1871.
Requiescat in Pace.
Below this in large letters is> the word " Blaine."
8
;*^v ]Mi^:iumy^^-:ii-%.,'mH>.M -f, - . , ^<^^^mk>'.
^•j^v/?'v,', ."'^W',':'
l%i. '
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.ix-
if- rn
I?*
^
CHAPTER II.
Young Blaine as a Student and Teacher.
James entered Washington College in 1843, being
then thirteen years of age, and became at once prom*
inent as a scholar among the two or three hundred
other lads from all parts of the country, and because,
of his splendid physique he was also a leader to all
manly athletic sports. He was not a bookworm»or a
burner of midnight oil, but he was a close student, and
possessed the happy faculty of assimilating knowlec^e
from books and tutors far more easily and quickly
than most of his fellows. In debating societies he
held his own well, and was conspicuous by his ability
to control and direct others.
In his classes he was always foremost as a scholar^
mnd personally very popular.. To the new scholars
who entered in succeeding classes he was a hero;—
uniformly kind to them, ready to give assistance and
advice, and eager to make pleasant their path iti col-
lege life. His handsome person and neat attire; his
' ready sympathy and prompt assistance; his frank,
generous Dature, and his brave, manly bearings made
. him the best known, the , best lov-d, and the most
popular boy at college. He w^s the arbiter among
your^r boys in all their disputes^ aindtlieait^Nsil^
kt>'
..^:
C ,;>'■
BtUOBNT AND TKAOBSR.
35
:*?'.
-«";.•
with those of his own age on alt questions. He was
always for the " under dog in the fight" n
GRADUATES WITH HIGH HONOR.
And at the end of the usual four years' course at
college he was graduated, in 1847, ^i^^ ^^^ i^^st dis-
tinguished honors of his class, and went forth ^ into
practical life f/t\l fitted in acquirements and training
to deal with its problems, and bearing as a crown -
of youthful honor the affection and esteem of all his
associates.
Mr. Gow, th^ editor of one of the papers in Waish-
kigton^Pa., who was Blaine's classmate, speaks thus
of his school-days : , ' i -
Yfesj Blaiiie graduated in the class of */^i* whein he
was only seventeen years old. I graduated in the
same class. We were thrown a great deal together,
not only inx^hool, but in society. He was a great
4vorite iil the best social cirdes in the town. He
had the most remarkable memory df any boy in
scfaopliand could commit and retain his lessons with-
out difficulty. He never demonstrated in his youth,
except by his wonderful memory, any of the great
powers as a debater and tliinker that he has since
given evidence of «- .
Wh^ a man has filled so large a^lace in the pu1>-
iife eye as Mr< Blaine has» his early life seems a great
miy oft ^ When you g«5t where Werf other matt you
meeriaiY tyi youpll a^ then you seem to see ir
in m dH^rent Kght, and it leaves a fkr different ifii|3res-
Jbn upon lyouF naind. H#re/what $e^ed to be to
■•*?<
i^f A.%'^
^ i
..'V A-'^y
%■>. 1.,
v^'
36
LIPB OP HON. JAMES 0. BLAIKB.
..;-
:
,9
you, when away, traditions far in the distant past,
appear like the recollections of yesterday. People
cannot only tell you of his father and his grand-
father, but of almost every phase of his life from boy-
hood up.
REMEMBERED IN HIS COUNTRY HOME.
The stories of his early struggles and triumphs are
as vivid as those of his later years, and his name is
closely associated with the lore of the country side.
He left here soon after he graduated, but how little
did he then think that his home would be made in the
Northland, and his fame and fortune won many miles
away from the quaint old town where he grew up. It
is a nice place for peace and rest The people are
contented and happy with their splendid jeducational
institutions, their rich acres, and plenty of money.
He had close alliances here then that were likely to
bring him back to stay.
Almost his first occupation after graduating was as
a teacher in the Pennsylvania Institution for the
Instruction of the Blind. Why before this he went to
Kentucky to teach school has been a question often -
asked but never answered. There is a tradition here
that there is but one being who knows. Like other
boys he had his friendships and his loves, and it would
be strange if he had grown up— for he is said to have
been as handsome a boy as he is a man— without
leaving some Impression upon the hl^arts of the
maidens of the neighborhood.
If there is one i»e|son Kving who' c^n tell» and .^re
Aj^i.k
K-...;/i3^,..
t4
03
D
O
3
n
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o
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iiMiMiS^iSimmifmm0^.i'me.-i*-%s:i'i.vtkK^-^
Wii^
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tA
o
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w
'' >."-
STUDENT AND TEACHER.
87
ist it has been and doubtless will be forever kept as a
sealed 'book, so far as the details are concerned. It
was one of those' youthful misunderstandings that
often come to two people who hope to start out on
the" voyage of life together, and are» separated by an
angry sea before they meet There is not even a sug-
gestion as to which of the two was at fault for the
parting of the ways that led their life's journeys into
different paths.
IMPEDIMENT IN HIS SPEECH.
Mr. H; H. M. Pusey.of Iowa/ classmate, and a late
member of Congress from Iowa, says:
; James Blaine, as 1 remember him, was a pretty wefl-
built boy and a hard student He had an impedi-
ment of speech, however, which at first prevented him
from joining in our debates and declamations, but he
could distance all his classmates in the matter of
studies, and his memory was remarkable.
We had in the college a literary society, of which I
was president, about the time Blaine was sixteen years
old. One day he came to me and said ; /* Bi^Bill, I
woiild like to be p-president of the literary society*
Can you f-f-fix it for me ? " I answered : " Why, what
do you know abput the literary society? You* have
never taken any part in the debates, and have alwayd
preferred to p4y your fine to taking active part. Do
^011 know anything about parliamentary practice?"
He rqjlied: '^No, but I can c-cominit Cushie^s
Manua] to memory laone nighV*
"V^ell, ^e rc$wh ym tH% at the next meeting I
■M^tHjj
,"*/ M».-n^-*M1i,*^' 9 » M t J \m C m m^^ -y
^ m^_.y.tjlL ' jr -n jmrS. ' ».f."|,l ' '. ' )"H|«t^w ' i ' 'r*.<*-y. ' )...i ' ' '^,.,- ^ •'
'»?*
1 - ,
I.-
< ' '
38
UFE OF B9K, JAMES 6. BLAINX.
*' fixed it*' for him, and at the meeting the next wcfek
Blaine was elected president, vice Pusey, term ex-
pired. As he had promised, he committed the entire
contents of Cushin'g's Manual and he proved the^
best president the'literary society of the college ever
had.
STORY OF THE GOOSE. > i
Another story of the same period, told by one of
his old neighbors, is too good to be lost: I remember
* one day his father told him to get up early and go to
the market and buy a turkey. He gave him a dollar^
which was a good deal of money in those day$^
Well, James brought home the bird and handed it to
old Dinah, the colored cook of the Blaine family.
When the elder Blaine came down to breakfast
Dinah greeted him: "Mars Blaine, dat dar turkey
what Mars Jim buyed dis mawnin' am de quarest
turkey I's ever seed. * 'Deed it is, Mars Blaine.'*
"Why, what's the matter with it, Dinah? ain't it big
enough ? ** replied the old gentleman. " It ought to
be, surely; Jim paid a dollar for it" "Oh, yes, Mars
Blaine, de turkey is big 'nufC but it am de funniest
turkey dis yer nigger ever seed." Mars Blaine went
out to the kitchen to look at the " turkey/' and found it
to he a t>:n-year-old goose. He called Jim down and
hauled him over the coals, saying : " Why, Jim, you
ought to be ashamed of yourself. Fifteen years old,'
and can't tell a turkey from a goose t'* Jim hungf his'
head and simply replied : "Why, how's a hdf to tell a
torkey from a. goose when its feathers are t)fF?^
:aM'
STUDEN? AND TBACfiER.
39
A BIG-HEARTED YOUTH.
Hon. Robert E. Williams, of Illinois, a prominent-
lawyer, a college-mate, but not a classmate, bears this
testimony: Young Blaine was a big-heartedr^ wholes
souled, good-natured fellow in his college days. We
both attended Washington College, in Pennsylvaniai *
and were intimate friends. Blaine was a good com-
panion in his school days — strong in physical strength,
foud of out-door sports, ^et in a certain sense loving
seclusion and his boofc^
He was a faithful student, and was regarded by his
coUege^mates as a brilliant and progressive scholar.
He was an aggressive fellow whenever there was any-
thing to be accomplished which he thought would be
productive of good results. From his earliest college
days he seemed to have but one ambition, and that
was to make his mark as a journalist.
He was an industrious writer, and wrote, perhaps,
during his college course, a greater number and a
greater variety of essays and other articles thafl any
member of his cl^ss. He used to remark that a
school-teacher or an editor could accomplish more
good in the world than any one else, and he thought,
after leaving college, he would surely enter the jcur^
naltstic walks of life.
REMARKABLE FEAT OF MEMORY.
Another «ays: Me was a great reader of history,
sMi4 was so methodical in his arrangement of facts that
he could in an instant, present a« array of them that
would overwhelm art opponent An incident illustr^t-
a«i--*-
'^-'H^
W^fTFT^
S^f^^^^Vjr.- '• ■
r '■ '
40
LIFE OF HON. JAMES O. BLAINE.
ing this power is told of him : When a little boy, his
sister challenged him to a contest in naming the
counties of the State of Pennsylvania, She named
them all, and he immediately named them, and every
county-seat besides,
'^Another writes: His most notable trait, perhaps,
was combativeness. H^ ^vas always' at home in an^
argument, and generally invited it. It was the delight
of the Democratic politicians, to engage him in politi-
cal discussions, as he was, even then, well, versed in
political history, ami was an ardent .upholder of the
Whig doctrines to the last. During his course in
1 844, the party lines were drawn unusually close re-
garding soni<e widely discussed questions that led to
the Mexican war, and in all these affairs youn
Blaine's readiness and force in argument was a matter
of general remark.
>] WOULD TALK POLITICS ALL NIGHT.
His ability to give utterance to anything he had to
say, in the most forcible manner, was also noticeable
in his wrangles or political discussions with his fellow-
studeiit^I Flis absolute self-command under ditiiicul-
ties here also exhibited itself distinctly in his character.
He was the most skilful mathematician in his class, and
"friequendy would demonstrate the problem in ^ way
not found in the books. .
A room-mate gives this item, which is very sugges-
tive as showing his strong political bent and power :
t remember, when we were rooming together, that our
room was a debating headquarters, Blaine would sU
..jjj^ir -
■ W
-ET^
■ . ■ ^ '■.i j p » .,^» ) i j w,^ ,yy^^^ ^., n^.^^*yi^^»
if*'
UFE OF HOK. JAMES G. BLAINE.
all night and talk politics if he could get anybody to
^talk back or listen. He preferred an opponent, but
if he couldn't get one, he was content if he had some
one to sit and listen to him.
He had a fashion of sitting sideways at the table,
with his feet cocked up in such a way that he could
swing his right hand around and whack the ^able,
Thr*-e he would sit and talk, and pound that table
until i often thought he would split our ears and that
table-top at the same time. .
He had national. State, and county affairs on his
finger ends, was familiar with men and measures, and
could run over all of them. Many a night I have pleaded
with him to stop, and let me go to sleep, but the only
way to shut him up was to put out the visitors and
the lights at the same time. Then he liad to go to
bed. ; .■...- k: t'..
, HIS POPULARITY.
One further reminiscence, and an interesting one:
. To the new-comers and freshmen Blaine was always
a hero. To them he was uniformly kind, ever ready
to assist and advise them, and to make smooth and
pleasant their initiation into college life. His hand-
some person, his ready sympathy and prompt assist-
ance, his frank and generous aatu re, and hb brave,
manly bearing, made him the best known, the best
loved, and the most popular boy at school. He was
a natural student, excelling pre-eminently in mathe*
'maticsand English branches, showing also good work
in the dead languages of the cia^ici^ Mathiematics,
STUDENT AND TEAGQER.
43
without qiiestipn, were to him a pleasure. He was
always perfect in mathematical recitations, and was
the idol of his teacher, Professor Aid rich.
His intellect early showed vigor, thoroughness, and
discipline. He was not content to follow the books.
A great memory rarely combines with high mathe^
matical or reasoning power, but in Mr. Blaine was
early, seen that most wonderful combination, and to it
his commanding force of intellect is no doubt largely
due. Few men have this union of great retentive and
great reasoning power in any degree, almost none in
so marked a degree as Mr. Blaine. No one could
come in contact with him without being impressed
and almost starried by the tremendous power which
this enabled him to wield. .
A POWERFUL ANTAGONIST.
The man who detects at a glance the weak point or
fallacy of an argument, and remembers unerringly the
ojEie fact in the whole world of facts which exposes
it, the man whose memory never sleeps and whose
logic seldom falters, is a^n antagonist whose lance is
quick to kill and powerful to protect.
Even in college, while he could have memorized a
demonstration in Euclid as readily as Cushing's Man-
ual» he rather sought to reach and establish his prop^
ositton in a fresh way and by original thought. His
vigorous and eager mind would sometimes throw off
resf4ratdts and discard aids, confident, like the athlete,
in the eWMctty and discipline of his strength.
In college, as ill after life, Mr. Blaine was strictly
'\^
44
LIFE OF HON. JAMES O. BLAINE.
t:
temperate in all his habits. He graduated in i847»
sharing, the honors, in a class of thirty-three, with Mr.
John C. Hervey, wiio afterwards became Superin-
tendent of Public Instruction in Wheeling, Va., and
Mr. T. W. Porter, who devoted himself to journalism.
It is noticeable, as showing the tendency of his
thoughts, that his graduating oration was upon "The
Duty of an Educated American." ,
INSTRUCTOR AND FRIEND.
The best results of college training are not always
those which can be measured in marks, or even in
knowledge and discipline. Often it would be found
that the personal influence of some one professor,
more than anything that he or anybody else taught,
^as that which in after life remained longest and bore
the best friiit. In our large colleges such intimacies
are increasingly impossible, but there was a man in
Washington College, in 1847, who did for James Gi
Blaine what (eyr men could have done — threw around
him the influence of a thorough manhood. Mr.
Blaine owed to Professor Murray a debt which could
not be. measured, and which he was proud to own.
With this valued friend and instructor he read
through the Greek Testament, taking a portion every
Sunday.
It would be interesting to recover, if possible, the
Salutatory which James G. Blaine rose timidly to
address to his friends and schoolmates. The subject,
we have seen, was one that would only havje been
qhosen by a youth of some orrginaiity of thoug^ht
WILLIAM MCKINLEY.
r^X-r
J*' ' /»
^
STUDENt ANP TEAOHIB. ^
His class mimbered* thirty-three, of whom seveftteen
entered the Christian ministry.
l^e following is the commencement programme:
ANNUAL COMMENCEMENT
or
WASHINGTON COLLEGE, PA.
m(iiusday» Stfitemitr 29, iS47'
OKA^^UATING CLASS. '
AndNW Btrr, John H. Hampton, Edwifd B. Neely.
Georse Balrd, R- C. Holliday, William M. Onr.
1)uii«s G. Blaine. John G. Jacob, Samuel Power,
jMScCOdpei. Richard H tee, William H.M.Pnsey,
(kMfe IX Curtis, John V. LeMoyne, T. Wilson Porter. ^
Thomas Creixhtoii, La Fayrtte Markle, Huston Quail,
RgColmery, G.H.Miller, Robert Robe,
Cephas Dodd, J. R. Mdoie, J. A. RwWti,
Hugh W. Forbes, William S. Moore, Janiiet H. Smi^h.
A|fe(«nder M . 6uw, RQl»ert J. Munce, ^ JohnH.Storer.
johnCHervef. M. P. Morrison, Alexander Wilson.— 88.
MATJil ALUM SIMVS HONORS
ORDJgR OF EXERCISES.
MkHc — Prayer-^Musit.
}sr Latin 8;»lutatory . . John C. Hervey, Brooke County, Va.
Mmie.
24, English S«Iutatorf and Oratio» .... James G. BWne, West Brownsville, P*.
Mmie. ' ' « " , :i^-
8d. Greek Sdutatory. -T. W. Pwter. Fayette C«»ity, P«.
■ * Mktie. ^ ,.
4lh. Oration— The Sword and the Plough J. G. Jacob, WeUsbotgh, Va.
,-"■''.'"' ' . Afiuu. ' - ■
$th Onttioa^Byion .Huston Quail, Union Vall^, Pio.
JIAuie. *
6th Oration— The Era of Napoleon La Fayette Markle, BTOl Giwe, Pa.
Muif.
7th. A P..em-The Collegian ...CD Cnrtia, Grpye Creek, Va.
• , Mum.
8ih. Otttfbh— Moral Warftre J. R. Moore^1^ells«aie» O.
♦ ."^
. -n
46
Un OF BON. JAIIBd O. BLAINt.
f .
\\i-'
9th. Oration— Poverty UmAiI in the Devdopment of Geaius
R. C. Colmcrjr, Haycsville, O.
Musie.
10th. Ontion— The American Boy E. B. Necly, WMMnglon City, D. C.
Mitsit — Confirring of Digrtn — MtuU.
11th. Valedictory WiUiam M. Orr, Wayne Comty, O.
Mutit.
BENEDICTION.
From his alma mater young Blaine went to Blue
Lick Springs, Kentucky, and became a professor in
the Western Military Institute, in which there were
about 450 boys. A retired officer, who was a student
there at the time, relates that Professor Blaine was a
thin, handsome, earnest young man, with the same
fascinating manners he has now. He was popular
with the boys, who trusted him and made friends with
him from the first. He knew the given names of
every one, and he knew their shortcomings and their
strong points.
He was a man of great personal courage, and
during a 6ght between the faculty of the school and
the owners of the springs, involvirrg some questions
about the removal of the school, he behaved in the
bravest manner, fighting hard but keeping cool.
Revolvers and knives were freely used, but Blaine
only used his well-disciplined muscle. Colonel
Thornton F. Johnson was the principal of the school,
and his wife had a young ladies' school at Millersbui^,
'twenty miles distant. It was at this place that Mr.
Blaine met Miss Stan wood, who belonged to an ex-
cellent faniilyi and she afterwards became hi» wife.
4#*
- ^
STUDENT A1I5 TKACHER.
47
Blaine remained in Kentucky until about the year
1851, when he returned to Pennsylvania. He had
formed the intention of devoting himself to the law
profession, and was anxious to pursue his studies with
this end in view. "The lion knows he is strong,"
and young Blaine, being conscious of his powers and
the influence he could exert over others, naturally de-
sired to follow a pursuit in which he could appear to
advantage.
A LAW STUDENT.
For a time he read law in his native county, and
then removed to Philadelphia, where he would have
larger opportunities for study, and at the same time
might be able to earn a support by teaching. The
fame of the Philadelphia bar is world wide. Connected
with it have been some of the most famoiis lawyers
whose names enrich the annals of the legal profes-
sion.
. Here, the young student felt would be a good train-
ing school, and he could thoroughly equip himself for
the profession which, at this time, he intended to
adopt. Yet he could, not free himself from the
charms of anticipated journalism, and found it hard to
give up his early intention of making this his chosen
pursuit For a time he studied law in the office of
the late Theodore Cuyler, but did not seek admission
to the bar. He never engaged in the practice of law.
although he would doubtless have risen to the front
rank in the legal profession.
"Yesj I remember youilg Jamea C Blaine dis-
%-r
■k' ^.
;i;*i
'WMk^MdS^^^i 1^:<tiA:'^m^^!im^n.^-A',
V /
'''•:>--';•?■■
48
LIffI OF Bdir. JA]t£d d. fiLAIN£.
i
r
It.
tinctly," said William Chapin, the principal of the
Pennsylvania Institution for the Instruction of the
Blind, in Philadelphia. "He was principal teacher
here on the boys' side for two years, and when he
departed he left behind him not only univjersal re-
gret at a serious loss to
the institution, but an im-
pression of his personal
force upon the work and
its methods, which sur-
vives the lapse of twenty
years."
The Pennsylvania In-
stitution for the Instruc-
tion of the Blind,at Twen-
tieth and Race streets, is
the second place in which
Mr. Blaine taught after
his graduation from
Washington College. He
rang the bell at the front
-door of the building one
summer afternoon in
i$53, in answer to an advertisement for a teacher.
. " I'here were thirty or forty other applicants," said
Mr. Chapin, "but his manner was so winning and he
possessed so many manifesdy valuable qualities that I
closed an engagement with him at once, and he became
a teacher in the institution.
'vl|e was n^arried, an4 bis wife and lijttle son Wtl'
BCiAlNE'S ARRIVAL IN PHILADELPHIA,
WHEN HE BECAME A TEACHER
IN THE BLIND ASYLUM.
>'■'?•» I >
V
STUDENT AND TEACHER.
49
ker came here with him. His qualities/ which im-:
pressed me most deeply, were his culture, the
thoroughness of his education and his unfailing self-
possession. He wias also a man of very- decided will,
and was very much disposed to argument. He was
ybung then — only twenty-two— and was-rather impuU
sive, leaping to a conclusion very quickly.
" But he-was always ready to defend his conctusions,
however suddenly he seemed to have reached- them.
We had many a familiar discussion in this v^ry room,
and his arguments always astonished me by tlie
knowledge they displayed of facts in history aii|d
politics. His memory was remarkable, and seem<bd
to retain details which ordinary men would forget
blaijje's first book.
"Now, I will show you, something that ili^strat^te^
how thoroughly Mr. Blaine mastered anything III
took hold of," said Mr. Chapin, as he took frotia a cM^
in the corner of the room a thick quarto mahuscri^
book, bound in dark, brown leather, a:nd l^tiei^d
''Jdurnar' on the corner. "This book Mr. Blaiile
compiled with great labor from the minute books of
the Boa/d of Managers. It gives an historical view
of the institution from the time of its foundation up to
the time of M^r, Blaine's departure. He did alt the
work in his own room, telling no one of it until he left.
Then he presented it, through me, to the Board of
Managers, who were both surprised and gratified. I
believe they made him a p^sent oi: $ioo as a thank-
offering for an invaluable work;"
4 '
■^ *
k*.'"!'^
:-v J
*'if
K*. Si'
•■^ 'i
U
.r-^
-* *>
C# '.i
fc
60
UrE (^ HON. JAMBS a. BLAINE;
Indeed, this book, the first historical work of Mr.
Blaine, is a model of its kind. On the title-page, in
ornamental pen-work, executed at that time by Mr.
Chapin, is the inscription ;
; » ■ t»
, • Journal
a;.i of the
Pennsylvania I^isxiTunoN
for the
INSTRUCTION OF THE BLIND,
from its foundation.
i '- b.
Compiled from official records
by
James G. Blaine,
1854.
The methodical character of the work is most re-
markable. On the firsi, page every abbreviation
used in the book is entered alphabetically. The first
entfy reads : " On this and the four following pages
will be found some notes in regard ta the origin of
the Pennsylvania Institution for the Instruction of the
Blind/ furnished by I. Francis Fisher, Esq." From
this page to the 188th, in which is the. last entry made
by Mr. Blaine, every line is a model of neatness and
accuracy. On every page is a wide margin. At the
top of the margin is the year. In ornamental figures.
Below it is a brief statement of what the text con-
tains opposite tha( portion of the marginal en|qf/
Sl^fi trfe -^A,-i. :i.- t>^J "^ -*■■
' *-.; ^
STUDENT AND TBACa£R.
51
"Every year's record closes with an elaborate table,
giving the attendance of menibers of the board. The
last page? of the book are filled with alphabetical lists
of officers of the institution and statistical tables, com-
piled by the same patient and untiring hand. One
of the lists is that of the * principal teachers.' No. 13
is followed by the signature, *Jas. G. Blaine, from
August 5, 1852^ to —and then^ in another hand, the
record is com pie i i h date November 23, 1 854.
MASTER OF FACTS AND DETAILS.
"I think that the book," remarked Mr. Chapin,
"illustrates the character of the , man in accurate
mastery ot facts and orderly presentation of details.
Aye still use it for reference.
"I recall one incident,'* Mr. Chapin continued, "which
indicates Mr. Blaine's mode of discipline, and shows,
too, that he was in those days somewhat impulsive.
It was one of hts duties to take charge of the boys at
breakfast, and sometimes there would be a few sleepy
kiggards. One morning a whole room full of boys,
five or six of tliem, faifed to appear. Mr. Blaine
qiiietiy walked up-stairs and locked them in. The*
boys had a scre^-driver and they unfastened the loci? ;
bttt bythe time they reached the breakfast-room the
tables had been cleared. * You can have no breaks
fast,' was tlie teacher's announcement. The boys
thereupon declared that they wouldn't go into Mr.
BJaine's classes. He reported theytn to me.
THE REBELLION ENDED. •
" Atthough I thoiight it perhaps a little severe l6
{■■"'•I
s%
•t ■.■*
'■*»"il«i«i»4»si!tf{aai«.w«*i««Mt;i*a - v.
'' i
fV^ip ' t^'
,: ^^
LIFE OF HON. JAMES 6. BLAINE.
deprive them of breakfast, I felt obliged to sustain Mr.
Blaine, and told them to go to their class-rooitis as
usual They still refused, and I suspended theni for
the day. The next morning they rose in time for
breakfast, attended classes, and the little rebellion was
over.
"Mr. Blaine taught mathematics, in which he ex-
celled, and the higher branches. His wife was univer-
sally beloved,' and often read aloud to the pupils.
-When he went away^to become editor o( the Kennel'^^
J^ouma/f we felt that we had lost a man of large parts,
and we have watched his upward* career with great
interest He has called here a numbef of times wheti
he stopped in tlie city on his way to and from Wash-
ington."
A PUPIL S RECOLLECTIONS.
■ t
Mr. Blaine was very popular at the 4nstitution (or
the Instruction of the Blind. A visitor to the Institu-
tion met one of his pupils who said : "Everybody
loved Mr. Blaine and his wife. Both were always
ready 10 do anything for our amusement in leisure
Ibours, and we had a great deal of fun, into which they
entered heartily. I think that Mrs. Blaine read nearly
all of Dickens* works aloud to us, and Mr. .Blaine
used to make us roar with laughter by reading out of
a book entitled ' Charcoal Sketches.' This large rooni
at the right of the main entrance to the building, sep?
arated by folding doors from another room, used .t6
be thrown open, and in the evenings he would sft
there under the gaslight reading aloud to both the
1^
i
«r_i<
I
as
for
for
was
ex-
ver- i
pils.
larts,
jreat
wheti
^ash-
m for
(istitu-
ilways
leisure
:hthey
nearly I
Blaine
out of
•e room I
ng,sepr j
used to I
ould 1^
totli the
J
' ■
' ^,- ■
jfMtSKIm^^^
t^^^^^BKL^F' ^^^^^^^^1
BBt^.
1
■» '* ^^R . a. iri
i : i
Jl
J^^^^^
^fe:*i' '
^,-
r "^
^ '
, ■■->!^Si|
^^-
£ t
*"*-
>
■- ' "*'"
f
ii^
^^■^H
J
1^.
hi^^
■^--..>: ■
%
Hi
■T'
: —
in
^^^^^
.'^
^^^^^^P
Wf" ^^ ' '■
GEORGE F EDMUNDS
.Ob
'^4tmiBk>av^^!lMei>tm
CD
CO
o
B
CO
O
CO
PQ
* 1!
STUDENT AND TEACHER.
: 63
boys and girls. Then we would wind up with a spell-
ing-bee. Sometimes Mr. Blaine would give out the
words^ and sometimes one of the big boys would do
it, while Mr. Blaine stood up among the boys. Then
we would have great fun trying to ' spell the teacher
down.'"
When a celebrated minister in New York was asked
by a young and ambitious pulpiteer how he could get
a call to a large church and a wider field for the ex-
ercise of his gifts, he was told to fill well the place he
then occupied. Promotion would come then in. a
natural way. It was Mr. Blaine's ambition to be use-
ful wherever he was and to " fill the bill." ^ This was
the great secret of his upward career; he stepped
ea$tly from the lower to the higher sphere. :. r- ^
■-:M
'!&vmi^imk^.^f>i;;ssi£m^:
r--
'a£2i.;.iw!vi!'».>Wt.
Tlf "i*"?' r ■' "•"'"'J-— 'f^.v"-^
N?
B^
y::
i^f^"
HAPTER III.
Bditor and Political Leader.
Miss Stanwoop was a native of Maine, and after
her marriage to Mr. Blaine was anxious for him to
make that State his home. This he determined to do,
and in I S5 3 the youhg couple removed to Augusta,
where they made their home.
In the following year Mr. Blaine entered into part-
nership with Joseph Baker, a prominent lawyer of that-
town, and the two purchased The Kennebec JourneUy
of which Mr. Bi^ine at once became the editor. The
JournoL was a weekly paper, one of the organs of the
Whig( party, and exercised considerable political influ-
ence; In 1857 Mr. Blaine disposed of his interest in
this paper, and became editor of The Portland Daily
Adverkser, In the campaign of i860 he returned
temporarily to his old post on The Kennebec youmal
on account of th^ illness of its editor. - ^
His Career In journalism lasted six years, and was ,'
marked throughout by ability and success. It served'
to- give him a good introduction to the world of poli-
tics and ftatesmanship. In ^eryidiing he wrote Mr,
Blaine if«is vigorous and fearless. He contended',
always f^r^principie. ^io amount of adverse opinion
could malc^ Um ^nge bis ecu rse. He was not
lih
ir — w
dation. „^.N,,E THE REPtiBLlCAN PARTV.
, HELPS TO ORGANIC TH ^^ Mr.
When the old Wh g Pf^^ ^„son P. MorriU
Btaine joined »>-^<^-'i?rpa°; - *"^ ^'"^ ""r;
;„ organUing the R^P"~/on the Buchanan Ad-
State. H« '•SOJouSi^' Vef in the ae« organ-
ministration made him a p
zatiop. Klent of Maine, speakirtg ol
The late Governor Ke"t^ -Almost from
Mr. Blaine's career •" ri«^ ^^ ^ of the Ken-
the day of W^«— ^.riJrJe of twenty-three. M-
Blatee' sprang into a p2°^ of ^ .^^ fi,e he was
politics and P°l'«=y°^^J';'"o^,neils of the Repubhcan
a leading power '" *«^°^„den. Hamlin, and the
party, so recogn«ed by Jes^ ^^.„ prominent m
two Morrills. and °*«^ *;",„t^.„i„e he was chosen
- the State. Before he was "f^"^ f the RepuWt-
ctrman of the E-£- f:";S"n from which he
can organiMtion m Mame ^ J ^jitical campaign
-'m
EDITOR AND POLITICAL LEADER.
67
In the South those Whigs who, though still unwilling
to profiess an anti-slavery creed, would not unite with
the Democrats, were reorganized under the name of
the American party, with Humphrey Marshall, Henry
Winter Davis^ Horace Maynard, and men of that
class, for leaders. This party was founded on pro-
scription of foreigners, and with special hostility to
the Roman Catholic Church. It had a fitful and fever-
ish succes's, and in 1854-5, under the name of Know-
nothings, enrolled tens of thousands in secret lodges.
But its creed was narrow, its principles were illiberal,
and its methods of procedure boyish and undignified.
Jhe great body of thinking men in the North saw that
the real contest impending was against slavery and
not against naturalization laws and ecclesiastical
dogmas. Tlie Know-nothings therefore speedily dis-
appeared, and a new party sprang into existence com-
posed of Anti-Slavery Whigs and Anti-Slavery
Democrats.
The latter infused into the ranks of the new organi-
zation a spirit and an energy which Whig traditions
could never inspire.
'■"■''■''- *• INSTANT SUCCESS.
The same name was not at once adopted in all the
free States in 1854, but by the ensuing year there was
a general recognition throughout the North that all
who intended to made a serious fight against the pro*
slavery Democracy would unite imder the flag of the
Republican party. In its fi rst eflbrt, without compact
org^nixationi iKhbout dlscif^ipei. 1| rallied the anth
-\'i
^
•*■"». •*
..■ii-,-
:
68
LIFE OF HON. JAMES G. BLAINE.
P>
I
I ^;
IKi
slavery sentiment so successfully as to carry nearly
all of the free States, and to secure a plurality of the
members of the House of Representatives. The
indignation of the people knew no bounds. Old
political landmarks disappeared, and jparty prejudices
of these generations were swept aside in a day.
With such success in the outset, the Republicans pre-
pared for a vigorous struggle in' the approaching
Presidential election.
REPEAL OF THE MISSOURI COMPROMISE.
The anti-slav.ery development of the North was not
more intense than the pro-slavery development of the
South. Every other issue was merged in the one
absorbing demand by Southern slaveholders for what
they sincerely believed to be their rights in the Terri-
tories. It was not viewed on either side as an ordi-
nary political contest It was felt to be a question, noil
of expediency, but of morality, not of policy, but of
honor. It did not merely enlist men — women took a
large part in the agitation. It did not end with absorb-
ing the laity ; the clergy were as profoundly concerned.
The power of the Church, on both sides of the
dividing line, was used with great effect in shaping
public opinion and directing political action.
The Missouri Compromise was repealed in May.
Before the end of the year a large majority of the
people of the North and a large majority of the pebjpfc
of the South were distinctly arrayed against each
other on a question which touched the interest, the
pn<k| liiQ CQn$cief)ce; and the religfion of sUI who were -
/j
EDITOR AND POLITICAL LEADER.
59
concerned in the controversy; Had either side been
insincere, there would have ^ 'en voluntary yielding
or enforced adjustment. But each felt himself to be
altogether in the right, and its opponent altogether in
the wrong. Thus they stood confronting each other
at the close of the year 1854.
MR. BLAINE'S EDITORIALS.
A few extracts from his editorials will, better than
any words of ours^ show the drift of his opinion in
these stirring days. The following declaration of
principles appeared in the Journal soon after Mr.
Blaine assumed the management of it :
Politically, The Journal will pursue the dame course
it has marked out for the last two months. We shall
cordialty support the Morrill or Republican party, the
substantial principles of which are, as we underst« r?
them, freedom, temperance, river and harbor improve-
ments within Constitutional limits, homesteads for
freemen, and a just administration of the puhl^c lands
of the State and nation. We shall advocate the
cause of popular education as the surest safeguard of
our Republican institutions, and especially the com-
mon schools of the State and city.
BRAVE WORDS.
In December, 1854, the following editorial appeared
on "The Permanency of the Republican Party."
Th^ grest Republican party that has suddenly de-'
yeloped itself on the political theatre, embodying the
antt^slavery sentiment of the country ais its leading
chiM^a^^n9tic, when considered in its natural elements,
'wi
./s-'JCv.
;,jdiiir{^'m-i^'>'-
'imtmmet^r
«^»
60. U« OF HOK. JAMES O. BUINB.
A nro».ess. or in the light of ex-
';r.^ ^'.^-- " '"»•"•"" •"'
progress. J/^rw**-* intimates, foreshadow
It does not. as the ^^^^'^jj^ salvation. The
d,e dissolution of *;^ ""^.^ J.'e the Union. Th.y
slave States «.ll .T „ it Ssemtton. for the arm
We too great a stake m>t»P^^j^^^ ,3ary ,
of the Federa G^""';^'^^^ ^„d massacre by the
tt, keep them from 'n^"^"^"" u„der the accursed
i.mions of j'^V^'/rifuTe^come. must come from
lash. But dissolut on If U ever ^^^ ^^^^^^
the free States, stripped °J *^« ^f^^n for the la?t
ift the government. ^*^y^^ to desperwion^by^
twenty years, «^goadfi^„ ^
cbntinuance and perpetua. y
' «'°"*- , . It V«. saved by arresjing the gigantjc
the Union will *^^J^^„ J^spcJitical supremacy,
■ strides of Aesteve-pow^rtoww^^^J^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
driving if«««V- .'S equal rigte'^*^**^
tag to the North its ju_st "<» «"1"^^ j^^««y. may nOt
V|,, ..ternative^n^-^^^^if^
iB the end resOU from tl^ penn_^ ^^ .
RepubUcan t«rty. we a« not JP^^ ^,„,3t heart
the contrary. it « J^^^f J^ glorious ««>ve««f.
that beati. *« "fT^^Jj "Tee will n^it^,T
: lye live, belieying th»t a coaotry re«ec
ex-
aind
dow
The
h^y
arm
sary
tHe
Lirsed
from '
radcd .
ubya
restqiif-
iutthft
nay n0t
my; 0^
It hea^t
ivem€*^t»
t the in-
cry ** f
wniUAM windom:
■y>rt^kf:^Mimiit^.isniiik'tM>f'^'c^-x-^
THOMAS B. REED.
*-s
^W^^^^^p
ti'^*fe<?>''-'^ ■
■'^•^^
EDITOR AND FOLlTlCAL LEADBU.
61
- ■ M
•■■.■'i
f^hame add cul^e: of slavery, purified and restored to
|,tlie Republicanism of its palmy days/will be the
\ richest legacy we can leave to posterity. Drive rum
jas a beverage from all the avenues of society, place
^ the tide of foreign immigration- that is pouring in upon
j us with such fearful power Under proper restrictions,
I and in a course of education that shall prepare it, as.
;the American citizen is now prepared, for the high
^functions of freedom; strike the fetters from the limb
tof every- slave that breathes in 'all this vast domain, so
ithat, from centre to circumference, only the glad shout
jpf liberty shall be heard.'and the smile of Providence
will bless this land as it never has been blessed, and
th€ glory shall roll on from generation to generation
whik time shall last. •
MR. BLAINE ON THE NEW PARfV. ; >
In Mai:<^ i855f Mr. Blaine wrote enthusiistic^ly
rof the (S&^l(i8ttion of the new party in Maine, and of its
ifirst dooviiition : v.
\ It cart no longer bfe questionecl' that we have in
«Maine a Well-organized and powerful party, which
shares the sympathy and influence of a decided
majority of the piebple. That radical and permaneiit
causes have been operating for years to brirfg about
;the present condition of things, is so well known as to
need no repetition. Ignored and resisted as tliose
causes were by selfish . schemers, personal aims, and
the force of old party watchwords, ttiey increased
yearly in breadth and strength, until they have be-
come one resistless current of public opinion, fed 1: ^
" -isl
;.t; ■, ';;t.K;
¥.-
V
r^"-
I*'
62
LIFE OF HOK. JAMES G. BLAINE.
the various springs of moral and pattibtic feelings,
vrhich are so fresh add healthful in the social soil of
Maine, on which the ship of State is fairly launched,
with the flags of temperance, freedom, and American
eiiterpri^e waving proudly at the masthead.
The Republican party, therefore,' is not the creatioii
of a few individuals; it is the production of moral
ideas whick have' long been asserting their sway in
the consciences and hearts of the people. It is pre-
eminently the child of ideas and of the people. Strong
as these ideas and thdr friends hadsfiown themselves
ill the political efforts of the two or three years past,
old' political organizations had prevented the union
of men of like principles in one well-organized
party.. _ " :_-•..''?' -v-v'-^''
The men were called by different names, yet they
had a coinmon faith and common purposes. Their
principles needed expression in a common pthtforni;
The people desired one political family and Oii$
oro;anization. Right, expediency and necessity called
for a convention. What time more opportune and
appropriate tlian the birthday of Washington ? So
ready were the people for action, so manifest the
necessity, that a long notice wais not required.
The convention of the as^d was one of the most re-
markable and interesting that ever assembled in our
State. The number in attendance w^s very large—
not less than nine or ten hundred. It was composed
of the true and influential portion of the people from
ali ptarts of the State. Its members cawie in due pro-
■f':" '.^:^'
■. .*.
KDITOK A^D PULlTiCAL LEAPEK.
63
IgS,
of
[led,
icaii
nost 1*0-
i in our
large—
>mpose<i
pie from
duei^ro-
portioA frpni allthe former political parties, in names
of Ipng-established reputation and worth, known in
the State and out of it ; in men possessing the. confi-
dence, and representing the convictions of their re-
"spective vicinities, no political assemblage ever held
in the State surpassed the one of last week.
No body of men could be more united in opinion
and resoiutipn. The enthusiasm manifested was not
a sudden and transitory feeling, but was the result of
a calnn yet intense conviction that a new era had ar-
rived in the politics of the State and Nation, that high
and soienm duties are now devolving on our citizens.
TThe resolutions and the speeches indicated the spirjt
and die purpose, the principles and the settled de-
termination of the Republicans of Maine, and, as we
believe, of that great ^d truly national party which is
so rapidly, gathering numbers, strength, and prestige/
which is to march into power in 1856, and bring th*e
country back to the purity and the idea of its founders,
THE -ONLY NATIONAL PARTV. .
yponanpther occasion Mr. Blajne wrote:
The RepubUcan party is the only true national
p^rty. Its platform is *the only ground upon whi^h
the friends of the Union can stand. Its fast gather-
ingr strength is to be the bulwark o( the Union against
the dangers that thicken around its future. It is the
only breakwater against the tide of despptisrh that
threatens to spread over ^e whole country.
It calls on the nation to return to the policy, the
princiglcssi an4 the inaxims of the statesmen wha won
? '>
„S.„.«5.
A.
fC''*
tiFE OF »^^- ^^ ^fr and
ave its fij** J' demands n*'^"?''!!? ^" rty tbat has the
*« ""Tis he only truly «««°"'^^ P"''^
&4-i "
k*>
^m>
a;
" -^"•"''"^nMthesec^^
. ^ the country ^»"f^..„ ^^t now
jt^^
■'^•■^'''■^ :'cM0y
EDITOR A|I0 POLITIGAL LEADER.
65
H. SeAvard, the great Republican leader, in one of his
editorials we find these strong, exultmg words :
The prayer of the freeman is answered. A ques-
tion of the highest importance, the right decision of
which for months has excited the deepest solicitude, -
has been solved to the joy of patriotic Americans,.and
for the welfare of the public. J8y the force of his own
character as a man and a statesman, and of the moral
and political principles which he represents, and which
centre in him, William H. Seward has been re-elected
to the American Senate by the State which in her
earlier days gave the nation a Clinton, a Livingston, a
}ay, a Hamilton, and which now with her population*
•her iresources, antf.strenjgth increased twenty-fold,,
bears upin berartns freedom'^s great lieader against
traitors at home and storms of ^ relentless opposition .
from abroad. » r
The heart of Venation thrpbs at ti[je.^event which,
amid exultationand congratulatiOnsi^li^^ and
steam are announcing to the; true m^^ this whole
continent and ojf the civiliz^ wo4^ t ^he contest
through which he has passed is without parallel in the
history of this country. We have waited until the
clouds of the conflict were passing away and the can-
non of rejoicing had ceased, to express our exultant
gratitude ^t the event to which we have looked for-
ward with the strongest hope.
. Reviewing the field, we saw that nothing but Mr.
Seward's naked strength and the devotion of the peo-
ple of the Empire Sta^e to him and to his princij^es
jz
vl
' ''rS
■ m
* <■!
5.
ft
■'?,-»!;
■Si' '
^i:-
^T^"* ti«p+'
, • '■'*'
«« UW of BOW. .»A'»P»
could rescue htaf^m*e^^.,^ ^^^^ 1^
iude. Four months have p ^ ^^ j^ ^^^,. Th.
wickedness has culm"««J ^ j^^j^ ^i „ow oo-
great American ««*«*?*" ^fo^e his country tnehtto*n
fUs aproudw e^va«^,f I'd .^ghter fu.u« «
ever before, and a serene . ^.
securely his. vivv^Ant of the RepuWic n» -
there been a greater necessior ^^^ ^,U, of
*%ar-seeing -^^t „r SJt caUatich of 8«^
courage that no Creator dang ^,^^^^^^^^^„dr
iu^ to Denize and gutde. V_ ^ ,^6 cause and .
meaning of his tnumph. H^ « „^„i«rtions. H.s
S or defeat of the oWpohucaU^^^^ ^
bitterest and f ^^^^^^j^^Wch belabored f«>« l^ ,
«, belong to the V^r^'J.^ «„,! overthrow. ^
formation to *« ^our o^ fiends and support««
„f his ablest »»d ""X Sio'=««^ ^"^^ \^Z
teve belonged !?*^^J^\ed by that party wh.d. tas
his election has b««'^«^„j .^rength ftom all forH«'
been gathering numbers an ^ ^ young giant^ ^
oreanizations. which has a"*^ • ^.J^^ „d rapi<fly *»■
; -"^ot as the cbamp.on^^,*^jn« »^^^^
solving partyVbut as » gj^' ^^ bfe to^a conge^al
S« of freedom and *« 2^^' wj,a«. F«i«e«^^
f^
^.'V
•A3
BDlTQir AND JPbUtlOiL LEADER. <it
eommon Wood and iiui, who are, by the wiilof God
and the people, to make it historical fact in i860, that
slavery is sectional and^ temporary, that freedom b
fiational and universal.
AN ENEMY TO SLAVERY^
' Mr. Blaine's early and consistent repugnance to
slavery is strongly shown in the columns of the
yournal:
We make it as a sober arid well-considered state-
ment that our country is to-day in greater peril by
elements a]nd agencies within her borders, than at tfie
commencement of the Revolution by the plaiis of the'
British ministiy and the power of British arnlts. if
fiequiresno pt*ophet to decide that the aggrfcsSiops of
the slave power are more dangerous to the freedom
and progress of the American people, than the threat-
ened despotism of England in 1775. Arid what iS
the most melancholy and shameful,* these aggressions
have been invited and vastly strengthened by the
treacliery and cowardi 'le of men living in the free
States.
CHAMPION OF LiBElRTY.
Speaking of the proposition to carry slavery into
free Kansas, he said :
Let not the fatal spirit of compromise induce us to
acquiesde in- past wrongs, because of some promised
advantage and security in the 'future. Compromise
with slavery IS but ano^er phrase for Sacrifice of
Liberty ; and qn the past we have had enough, and -^
more -^n enmigh; of that, .
c
I'M
1 '^-.
i,;*>H I . .' I,
68
LIFE OF aon, JAMES O. BLAINE.
NORTHERN TREASON.
, Of the famous Dred Scott decision, Mr. Blaine
wrote:
Whither do all these things tend ? Are we to be
a permanently subdued people ? We can but regard
them as the last turns to the screws of despotism, that
presage the mighty uprising and triumph of the peo-
ple. Slavery has got to the farthest limits of its
power and aggression. Henceforth it must lose in
the great contest which it is waging against freedom.
The day o.f truce has gone by ; the slaveholders have
left the free men of the nation no other resort but
revolution — a revolution, if slavery wills itc to be ai*
other, only through the peaceful agencies of the pre 3$,
public opinion, of religion, and of the baifot-box.
These aided by time, and die increase of free popula-
tion, at no distant day, will give us every department
of the government, and regain to national freedom
what has been lost by Southern cupidity and Northern
treason.
I
4
■I
sime ^
be
gard
that
peo-
f its
se in
idorn.
have
t but I
ae r»Q
press,
tt*box.
opula-
tment ,
>edo|Vl J
rthern !
<
<
W
PQ
W
a
w
xn
w
fa
p<
w
;• •; .vi-'-i.s;
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fi ■ »-^.t
VJ' VlIvk* «*■**«*.
,■- ' .
o
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c
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>-<
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o
^.
Pi
o
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iz;
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rj- ■
fe.
CHAPTER IV.
! Blaine a Member of the State Legislature.
^, In 1 858, when he was in his twenty-ninth year; Mr.
Blaine was elected to the Legislature. He served
two years on the floor of the Low^r House and two
years in the chair, where he displayed the qualities of
parliamenCary leadership and control that afterward
gave him such renown in the National Legislature at
Washington. It is also worthy of mention that he
took an active part as a public speaker in the Fre-
mont campilign of 1856.
Mr. Blaine was brought into prominence in his
adopted State through his able editorials in the
journals with which he was connected, and through
the active interest he exhibited in all political affairs.
He was public spirited ; his pen and voice were
always ready. It was not surprising that his neigh-
bors and fellow-citizens should, look to one so youitg
for a leader; the young man was much older in wis^
dom and experience than he was in years. His was
an old head on young shoulders.
Jn the campaign of 1856 tlie Kansas question^ In-
volving the introduction of slavery into new territory,
was discussed tumultuou.<ily throughout the country..
Blood ran high ; a new party was rapidly forifiing,
- m
r
■'',i!*„«*U.
.*»A
'j^f^Mt^&mmmmimtRmmtmmmimi^^ mcia^i^-u)^-:.
mi
m"k
^^'^X.'
70
LIFE OF fiON. JAMES 6. BLAnnS.
^y; ■ -i-' q^.'
and there was a stir in the nation as ominous as that
in the forest when the stoim is near. Mr. Blaine fear-
lessly expressed his views on the burning questions
STATE HOUSfi AT AU6USTA, MAINE.
of the hour and his words kindled fire. He became
a leader, an advocate of the great principles underly-
ing the Republican party; a:nd a champion of the new
OMtse.
..,*> t«7- «*>■--";". > v-^
h^ix^t pt^^ ^■^■-'.^'k
t.'
MEMBER OF THE STATE LEGISLATURE.
^■^v, i p.y'' 4jr^y^ff^t"
71
ELECTED TO THE UIGLSLATURE.
The prominent part taken by Mr. Blaine in public
af^irs, particularly in the Fremont campaign, naturally^
drew attention to him as one suitable to represent his
district in the Legislature.
One remarkable characteristic of the man is worth
noting. It wQuld hardly be believed he was at thi^
time extremely timid and diffident, and with great difr
ficulty could be induced to give a public address.
Yet such was the case. His speeches at this time
were written out and committed to memory, and he
seems to have acquired only grradually the full com-
mand of his powers and the ability to respond im-
promptu to the demand of the hour. Returnin|^ from
the National Convention at Philadelphia, in which he
*was one of the delegates who helped to nominate
Fremont for the presidency, he was asked at a ratifica-
tion meeting to make a speech. At first he refused,
but finally yielding to the urgeiit request, he b€g?in in
fstammering fashion, but soon rose to the occasion and
spoke with telling effect.
in the Legi«ilature he exhibited those commanding
qualities and pre-eminent capabilities for leadership
which afterward made him one of the moat remark-
able ai^d successful speakers who ever occupied the
chair of the House of Representatives.
AN IMPORTANT SPEECH.
There was a movement at this tim'e, particularly in
the South, for the purchase of the Island of Cuba. A
bill was introduced into Congress by Mr. Slidell> o^
^M
\^.
72
LIFE OF HON. JAMES 6. BLAINE.
Louisiana/settihg fortH the desirableness of making
such a purchase and providing that the whole amount
to be paid should not be over jjj 125,000,000, and that
$30,000,000 of. this amount should be put into the
hands of the President at once for the purpose of
beginning negotiations.
In the Maine Legislature, Mr. Porter, of Lowell,
introduced a resolution "that our Representatives in
Congress be instructed to exert their influence and
give their votes for any honorable measure that may
be brought forward looking to the early acquisition of
Cuba by the United States." It became widely known
through the newspapers that Mr. Blaine was opposed
to these resolves, and, as he said, they advertised him
for the performance. He did not disappoint public
expectation. In a brilliant and masterly oration he
pointed out the extraordinary character and dangerous
tendency of the Slidell bill ; he showed how it broke
down the constitutional safeguards of our Govern-
ment by giving the whole treaty-making power to the
Executive, and by allowing him, at his discretion, to
aiinex territory, form States, and to resolve on peace
or war.
Then leaving the narrow question of the Slidell billr
he stated his own views on the general subject of the
acquisition of Cuba as follows :
OBJECTIONS TO THE PURCHASE OF CUBA.
In reference to the general subject of the acquisition
of Cuba, which may be considered as in some sense
before . the House, I have a few remarks to ofier, and
rpi
MfiMBER OP TUE STATE LEGISLATURE.
73
I am frank to confess that " a good deal may be said
on one side of that question, and a good deal on the
other." The acquisition of the island would incorpo-
rate into our nation a large number of people differing
radically and essentially from us in race, in language,
in religion, in domestichab its, and in civil institutions.
Even with our enormous powers of deglutition, diges-
tion and absorption, our energies would be taxed to a
dangerous extent by the attempt to make the mixed
and mongrel people of that island homogeneous with
our own.
OTHERS MUST KEEP HANDS OFF.
Its annexation would also increase to an alarming
extent the influence of the slave power in the govern-
ment of this country, and would give them additional
strength and prestige in the Senate of the United
States, which, as every one knows, has always been
their stronghold, both for offense and defense. The
objections to the acquisition of Cuba, which grew out
of these considerations, are most cogent and pressing,
and certainly of sufficient weight to restrain .the ardor
of annexation, which some of our people might be
supposed to cherish when looking at the subject purely
from a commercial standpoint.
On the other hand, there is a very general acqui-
escence in tlie position that our country can never
permit any other power to obtain possession of the
island. Such is the well-known and peculiar Mtuation
with reference to our own country, that we would be
deaf to the plainest dictates of sclt-interest if we should
, t- >'NfeA.-J »ita^-<a»w,i»i!a»iiiW,i?8.MM^, a* .
Jll
V''"'
74
LIFE Of HOK. JAMES 6. BLAINS.
permit it to fall under the dominion of either of our
great rivals in Europe. It may, therefore, be consid-
ered the settled policy of this nation to prevent the
island of Cuba from being transferred to any other
nation, and I think it is equally the settled policy not
to molest Spain in her peaceful and rightful possession
of it.
THE FATE OF CUBA.
Every Statesman in the country who has been called
upon to affirm the position of our Government on this
question, has uniformly taken the ground that we
should not and would not disturb Spain in her owner-,
ship of the island, and that until she was ready to
entertain or propose terms of cession or transfer, it
was not becoming in us to agitate the question. Such
are the expressed and recorded views of John Quincy
Adams, Henry Clay, John C. Calhoun, James Buchanan,
WiUiam L. Marcy, and Edward Everett — six of the
most distinguished gentlemen who have presided ov«ir
,the State Department of this Government.
If I had public documents at hand I could quote the
opinions of each and all these eminent men in support
of the views I have advanced.
I am able, however, at this time, to call the attention
of the House to an extract from but one of the
Numerous State papers to which I have referred, and
that is from the letter of instructions written by Mr.
Buchanan when Secretary of State under Mr. Polk, in
1848, to Mr. Romulus Saunders, of North Carolina,
th^n our minister to Madrid. In th^t letter Mr. Bu-
, * *
MEMBER OF THE STATE LEGISLATURE.
76
chanan, speaking for the Administration, authorized
Mr. Saunders to offer one hundred millions of dollars
to Spain for the island, and he accompanied his. in-
structions with a disclaimer of any design or desire to
coerce Spain into the sale. I quote the following
extract from his remarks:
" The fate of this island must ever be deeply inter-
esting to the people of the United States. We are
content that it shall continue to be a colony of Spain.
Whilst in her possession we have nothing to appre-
hend. Besides, we are bound to her by the ties of
ancient friendship, and we sincerely desire .to render
these perpetual."
Why, then, are we not still content that it shall be a
colony of Spain ? Do v.'e not know, of a verity, that
•'whilst in her possession we have nothing to appre-
hend?" I commend Mr. Buchanan's words in 1848
to his adherents in 1859, and knowing as they do, that
Spain was never so reluctant to part with Cuba as
now — indeed, never so fully determined to hold it as
at this moment — what, I ask, can be the object of
agitation on this subject?
TROUBLED TIMES.
The foregoing utterances show that the people of
Maine had found a true and patriotic kader. An
instant response came from a multitude 01 hearts to
the warm words that fell from the lips of the young
legislator.
Meanwhile the commotion in the nation continued,
and the waves of popular strife rose higher and higher.
■X',
..S&'«!»i«S
>:<;■* 'S^,
.%.-/:,.
4-'
,"--. 1.'-; .
tO« OF aOK. "MIS O. BlilNS.
national elec loa o^ ^ 860 appr ^^g^ussion ran
deep and strong.
The great ad*
^vocate bf popu-
lar sovereignty
was Senator
Stephen ^
Douglas, of ttlM
nois. One of
the towering pil-
lars of the Re-
publican party
was Abraham
Lincoln, of the
same State.
These two great
tribunes met
each other in pub-
lic debate, and
A A^^ ronsoicuous abiwty,
here Mr. ^'-°'" ^^^jt^o^ sUtesmansWp wWch;
*^ ^'f r-lTuf 2 t f -"popular leader of M,
pointed Vim out a^
V^^^' t. ^ onrl described, as a newspaper
STEPKB" A. DOUGLAS.
I
nator
tn A.
of ttli^
3ne o(
ring pi^
the Re-
party;
Vbraham^'
of the
State.
wo gres^^
nes tn®t
lerinpub-
jate, and
us abnity,
^ip which:
der of M$
newspaper
8VO f^&tnark-
: '^^^^^*mmmtm»*-iim^
r
■■V
I
'
^
ni
.-^^
^i
y
o/. cy^. A^^^--^^
MEMBER OF THE STATE LEGISLATURE.
77
abje men. He has' sketched the combatants with a
master hand. With a few bold strokes he has out-
lined -the giants in their gladiatorial combat. No
reader can fail to be interested in the following
graphic description, which is among the most brilliant
productions from Mr. Blaine's facile and graceful pen :
'A GIGANTIC TASK.
The contest that ensued was memorable. Douglas
had a herculean task before him. The Republican
party was strong, united, conscious of its power,
popiular, growing.
The Democratic party was rent with faction, and the
Administration was irrevocably opposed to the rt turn
of Douglas to the Senate. He entered the field,
therefore, with a powerful opponent in front, and with
defection and betrayal in the rear. He was every-
where known as a debater of singular skill. His mind
was fertile in resources. He was master of logic.
No man perceived more quickly than he the strength
or weakness of an argument, and no one excelled him
in the use of sophistry and fallacy.
Where he could not elucidate a point to his own'
advantage, he would fatally becloud it for his opponent.
In that peculiar style of debate which, in its intensity,
resembles a physical combat, he had no equal. He
spoke with extraordinary readiness. There was no
halting, in his phrase. He used good English, terse,
vigorous, pointed. He disregarded the adornments
of rhetoric — rarely used a simile, and was master of
the sledge-hammer style of debate.
-*S
UTE OF HOS. JAHES O. BIAIOT.
t
:- ^ i
78
appreciation of v.tt. "^ ; f American polices.
cedents, except from *« » ^,, comprei^ensive.
Inside that field l^^J^-tt learning «as limited^
minute, cnttcal. BfV""*^ recreations ivpre not m
He was not a reader. "'* • f ^^^ voluminary
literature. In j'- *'Scrd^e to find a line of
speaking it would be d« e.d.e ^^ ^^^ ^^
poetry or a classical «""» °" j^t^ter. He could
L orator, and by ^ong P-'^^^ ,,, ^^n conclusions,
lead a crowd almost ,rres,st,W> ^^ ^^^^^^^^^
He could, if he wished, mote a
't: was in short, an able, audaciou. almost uncon-
,„^:«: Opponent in 9^X^:2^ -V -" 1
It would have been ^"^-^ ^'\^fo,e the people of
the same type able '°«^J^.^ ^^^ probably have
Illinois. W^'-^^'^'St enco""''^- But the man
been destroyed m *« ^'^^^^ challenged h>m to
Scarcely could two men be more ^.^^^^
and mental const.tut.on. than Ab« ^^^ ^,_^ ^^^
Stephen A. Doug as. Mr. Lmco ^^^^.^ ^^^
philosophic. He loved the «^* .,^,^ „ ^ de-
He would not argue from a t=a P ^^^ ^„d„rion.
ceived himself or deceive others oy
MEMBER OF THK STATE LEGISLATURE.
79
He had pondered deeply on the issue which aroused
him to action. He had given anxious thought to the
problems of free government and to the destir f
the Republic. He had for himself marked out a path
of duty, and he walked in it fearlessly. His mental
processes were slower but more profound than those
of Douglas. He did not seek to say merely the
thing which was best for that day's debate, but the
thing which would stand the test of time and square
itself with eternal justice. He wished nothing to ap-
pear white unless it was white. His logic was severe
and faultless. He did not resort to fallacy, and could
detect it in his opponent, and expose it with merciless
directness.
He had an abounding sense of humor, and always
employed it in the illustration of his argument —
never for the mere sake of provoking merriment.
In this respect he had the wonderful aptness of Frank-
lin. •
He often taught a great truth with the felicitous
brevity of an iEsop Fable. His words did not fall
in an impetuous torrent as did those of Douglas, but
they were always well chosen, deliberate, and con-
clusive. . '
Thus fitted for the contest, these men proceeded to
a discussior: which at the time was so interesting as to
enchain the attention of the Nation — in its immediate
effect so striking as to affect the organization of parties,
in its subsequent effect so powerful as to change the
fate of millions.
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80
LIFE OF HON. lAVES 6. BLAIKp.
A TRUE PROPHET. > . V
The nomination of Lincoln in i860 came about a$
Mr. Blaine hacl prophesied, and after the election the
relations between the two ftien became close and inti?
mate, and so continued. . '
On the 7th of February, 1862, an exciting question
camef up for discussion in the Maine Legislature*
Resolutions had been sen!: down from the senate to
the house for concurrence, endorsingtheadmrnistrattoh '
of President Lincoln, and stating "that It is the duty
of Congress to provide for the confiscation of the
estates of the rebels and the liberation of their slaves^
and for accepting the services of all able-bodied men*,
of whatever status, as military necessity may require."
These resolutions found an opponent in Mr. Gould,
of Thomaston, who made ah elaborate argument
against them. To him Blaine replied. He discussed
the question -in two phases — ^first^ as to the power of
Congress to adopt such measures ; secondly, as to
the expediency of adopting them. He denied that the
war power in this Government is lodged wholly in the
President; he held with Hamilton, and all constitu-
tional lawyers, from Marshall to Webster, that Con-
gress had no limitation on its authority to provide for
the common defence in any manner.
POWER OF CONGRESS.
At the origin of our Government, Mr. Chairman,
the people were jealous of their liberties ; they gave
power guardeclly and grudgingly to their rulers ; thej^
were hostile, alx>ve all thiogs, to what is termed the
J7.^,.
>"tf '>ii .
••«- 'j.js's,<^^''?*1,t'--"vS''
MEMBER OF THE STATE LEaiSLAT&RE.
81
'4
oce-man power, and you cannot but observe, with
what peculiar care they provided against the abuse
of the war power. For after giving Congress the
power "to declare war, and to raise and support*
armies," they added in the Constitution these remark-
able and emphatic words, "but no appropriation of
money to that use shall be for a longer term than two
years," which is precisely the period for which the
Representatives in the popular branch are chosen.
Thus, sir, this power was not given to Congress sim-
ply, but in effect it was given to the House of Repre-
sentatives ; the people placing it where they could lay
their hands di reedy upon it at every biennial election,
and say " yes " or " no " to the principles or policy Of
any war.
In all that I am thus maintaining in regard to the
supreme war power of Congress, I make no conflict
between that and the Executive power, which in war,
as well as in all matters of civil administration, belongs
to the. President. The question at issue between the
gendeman from Thomaston and myself is not whether
the President has power of great magnitude in the
conduct of a war, for that I readily admit, or rather J
stoutly affirm ; but the point at issue is, which is
superior in authority, Congress or the President? I
think I h^ve shown that tfte Constitution vests the
supreme unlimited power in Congress, and that the
President must obey the direction of Congress, as the
chief executive officer of the nation, and at the sa^ne
time he must be held accountable for th^ npiode iq
&!&&
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LIFB OF HON. JAMES G.rBLAiVS.
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whidi his subordinate ojBlicers execute fhe trust con-
fided to them. ■..:-■: >^'.... ■;f,:;:--'i-.~^'..;./--i;v-''::.v...;" ''
A BOLD, REJOINDER.
• Mr. Gould had denied the existence of a civil war,
and that the rebels had, therefore, full right to the
(protection of property, guaranteed by the Constitu-
tion, and could only be deprived of it by d^e process
of law. Blaine scornfully rejoins I
To assume the ground of the gentleman from
Thom^ston, with its legitimate sequences, is practically .
to give up the contest For he tells you, and he cer-
tainly repeated it a score of times, that you cannot
deprive these rebels of their property except "by due
process of law," and at the same time he confesses
that within the rebel territory it is impossible to serve
any precept or enforce any verdict Heat the same
time declares that we have not belligerent rights
because the contest is not a civil war. Prayi what
kind of a war is it? The gendeman acknowIedge$
that the rebels are traitors, and if so they must be
engaged in some kind of war, because the ConstitU'^ '
^on declares that " treason against the United States
shall consist only in levying war against them."
it is, therefore, war on their side. It must also be'
war on ours, and if so, what kind of war ? ^v
Mr. Gould rose and^d that he would dd^ne it as
damisHe ynz-T, ^^
Mr, Blaine:^ ^ V
Dbifientic war f that's it! Wdl, Mr. Chiln^M^, we*
^H kam something befcre dite disciisnon is ovf»r»
3^
>l
Ilbmt^ic war ! I have heki-d <of domes^c wotAens,
eiotnesiu sheetings, aLndjdemes^ felicity, but a "domes-
tic war" is something entirely new under the sun.
ifl^i the writers of international kw that I have ever
read speak of two kinds of war, foreign and civil
Vattel will, I suppose, have a new edition with annota-
tions by Gould, in which " domestic war " will be de-
fined and illustrated ks a contest not quite foreign,
iJOt quite civil, but one in which the rebellious party
hav^ at one and the same time all the rights of peace-
ful citizens and all the immunities of alien enemies—
for that is precisely what the gentleman by his argu-
frient claims for the Southern secessionists.
WRONG PREMISES.
The gentleman strove elaborately to prove that this
Governmcfnt, this Nation, this great American people
fiavc no right to do anything not distinctly warranted
In the Federal Constitution. Sir, no positidrt could
be ttiorc radically erroneous, and that false premise is
die corner-stone of error on which the gentleman has,
reared such a superstructure of wrdng deductions
and condusions.
I affirm, sir, in opposition to this assumption, that
the American people have rights which are anterior
to and wholly independent of the Constitution ; and
I alfifilri, moreover, that while that precious instrument
will continue to be, God grant for these manygenerai-
dons, the rule of our civil administration, yet that oyer
it ind onder it and outdide of it and above it there is
cfigravei^ q^ th^ \mms of tiiis people Mt Gbd^yen
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84
Liras Of HON. JAMES O. Al*AtNB.
4
that great precept of nature, '^SaVff
And I maintain, sir, that ti\e great law of $«p4;itipes^^
vatton which in the individural knows n^ Itniit l]Qit
necessity, is even stronger in a nation, by as muciL as
the Interests and importance of a natioR transcc^
those^f an individual. .K^^ ' V
In the magnificent paragraph which I quote frotil
Mr. Mamilton, this self-evident truth is thus tersely
enunciated: "The circumstances that endanger tjjl^
safety of nations ar^ infinite; and for thta resM^Ul^ll^^
consHtuHonal shackles can be wisely impost on the
power to which the care of it is committed," I have
now, sir, at somewhat greater length tiian I destgne<$
when I rose, discussed the question of coii8titutt0fia|-
power, so far as it is brought into Tssue by the pend-
ing resolves. ■,.....:,-•.-..,::,::■■ >-:..,.• ;Vr'': 'V, •■ ■^;:-7:/ '■'.■.
lilOllTS iyi THE GOVERNMENT. '• f
I have endeavored to establish as essentia] to the
maintenance of my position two proposMoni t Ftr^V
that ^he war power of this Government is lodged ^
Congress ; and second, that under every princtple ai$4
every f>recedent of international law the Govermi^li^
of the Uriited States, whil^ sovereign over aH;1l^a^
$0 long as the rebellion endures, all the rights of |«s^
against those who in arnied "force are seekii^tlmj}|i||
of the nation. The first resolve, endorsing tile i^^':
ministration in general terms, is, I be^ev^ not olne^ill:'
to in 2uiy quarter, and is not in dis^te betwn^enm
gentleman from Thomaston and myself ^ . - ;
The tmly objecti<ihi I have to it, is ^ It Is ^MiixA'
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4 s^itfi^ fennal, whbfeas to i^flettmy^ feeling^ itshoutd
I j6e jn^riQ and cordial and unreserved^ I <wn for the
i^^i^tmnibtratlion through and ^r6ugh-r>l>eing an early
- ai|d tinflinchtng believer in the ability, the honesty and
patnottsm ot^A Lincoln, I didin my hunible
V^^pbere, both with pen and tongue, all I could to pro-
:'m6t%!^ his election. ,
% ^ NEGROES IN THE ARMY^ '
i^ ' Then passing- to the third resolution, respecting the
: VfiiHitary eitiploynient of negroes, Mr. Blaine said:'
The're$o>lution must be taken and judged by i^elf^
ll& Own words. . It simply declares thar the servi<ies
; 0f all men should be accepted— this iniplies that the;
servio^ is previously offered, and expressly negatives*
>^eid^pf ca^^ negroes "to rise," Itfui^/
mr slays, that these men should be employed as
!* ihititat^ necessity and the safety of the Republic may
demandi** 1 do not anticipate that any necessity wiU
ar^ for^^i'niing the slaves, and as at presentadvi$e4
I wcMild not vote for a resolution recominending that
jt0p.: But there are a thousand things which tiiiie
^^^pesT may^ do, which would gready ligji^feii tjie
lira of pur brave brethren in the ianl|cs o^ ifi^^^^
[attons^ army. They may dig trenches, thro^iifr
^4^^lu^|H»nts, la^ on fortification SrStid in train^p»ort-
lo^gs^c^ and inake themsel^s-" generally usefiiL**:
\^ ^ gentleman ; should infer dmt I ^rii>k
Ih^^lbgteiJ j^ some ||ro{)0sition3:
^ hi^^i^ doinm 49 ld^ 1 tell hlin:
ihat^ if^liift pf th^ nattoji $ecnif5i ^^iniand
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86
Ura 0? BON. MMS8 Q; BLAUOL
the violation of the Constitution, I would violate- it,
and in taking this ground I am but repeating the ex«
pression of President Lincoln in his mes^^age, when he
declared that "it were better to violate one provision
than that all should perish." And I will gfive a higher
and more venerable authority than President Lincoln,,
for the same doctrine.
No les^ a personage than Thomas Jeflferson wrote
the following sentiments in a letter to J. R. Calvin,
from his retirement at Monticello, ' September 22,
1 8 10: "The question you propose, whether circum-
stances do not sometimes occur, which mak^ it a duty,
in officers of high trust, to assume authorities beyond
the law, is easy *o€ solution in principle, but some-
times embarrassing in practice. A strict observance
of the written laws is doubdess one of the high duties
of a good citizen; but it is not the highest. The
laWs of necessity, of self-preservation, of saving our
country when in danger, are of higher obligation.
To lose our country by a scrupulous adherence to
written law would be to lose the law itself, with life,
liberty, property, aAd all those v^o are enjoying th^m
with us ; thus absurdly sacrificing the end to the
means."' ■ ._- .,.';_
This doctrine cuts right athwart, and scatters to th<^
four winds of heaven the whole argument' of the
gentleman. He sticks to forma ; I go for subsuince.
He saqrifices the end to the means ; I stand 'ready to
use the means essential ta the end. I stand wt^, or-
father follow after, Jdferson and Lincoln; 1» ass^mei
..K :<
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KBIIBBR Of TBB STATU LMISUtTOTtB.
87
a ground which both of tho?e statesmen have
denounced and execrated. i * j ??
I read in the President's Message something more
than a great proposition for compensated emancipa-
tion, i read in it a declaration as plain as language
can make it, that resolute measures may be deemed
necessary to crush out the rebellion speedily and
eflfectually, will be unhesitatingly adopted.
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CHAPTER V.
First Term in Congress.
In 1862 Mr. Blaine was nominated for Congress in
the Kennebec District, and was elected by a majority
of 3»Ooo votes. To this position he was successively
elected, in each succeeding Congress, until his promo*
tionr'to the United States Senate.
During the first term of his long career as Repre*
sentative he had for colleagues such men as Elihu B.
Washburne,Owen Lovejby, George W. Julian, Godlove
S. Orth, Schuyler CoUaacrjatnes F. Wilson, William B.
AUisonv John A. Kasson^ Alexatnder H. Rice, Henry* L.
Daw^ William Windom, F. P. Blair, Jr., James Brpol^s,
Etii^ttS Coining, Reuben £. Fentoii,. Francis Kernan,
George H. PentUeton, Rol>ert C. Schenck, James A.
Garfield, Samuel J. Randall, William D. Kelley, Thad.
deus Stevens, G. W. Schofield; and many other distin^
guished men. Among these he soon was recognized
as a man whose influence was sure to be felt and to
increase with time. .
, His first reputation in the Lower House of Con^
gress was that of an exceedingly industrious Cpmmit*
, teeman. He was a inember trf 0m Post XWiqe aywJ
- Military Committees, aiid of the CommiiHtees on ^-
' iMToprialions ami Rules. I^^idcb tot^
i2iShi.i?2?si®iJ
,=■<■-■ ■
nitST TERM IN OONOBISS.
99
*
business of the committees, and took an active part in
the debates of the House, manifesting practical ability
and g;enius for details.
THRILLING SPEECH.
The first remarkable speech which he made in
Congress was on the subject of the assumption by the
General Government of
the war debts of the
States, in the course of
which he urged that the
North was abundantly
able to carry on the war
to a successful issue.
This vigorous speech
attracted so much at-
tention that 200,000
copies of Jt were 'circu-
lated in 1864 as a cam-
paign document by the
Republican party.
In January, 1868, he
introduced a resolution
in relation to Cohgres- ^' »• washburne.
sional representation, which was referred to the Re^
construction Committee, and was subsequently made
the basils of the Fourteenth Amendment. I^ Decem-
ber, 1867, he made an elaborate speech on the
financed, in which he analyzed Mr; Pendleton's green-
back-theory. ^ The remedy for our financial trouble^'
^d he, "will not bei found in a superabundaiice of
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LIFE or BOM. MMB8 .^. BU^Unt.
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depreciated paper currency. *It lies in the qipostte
direction* and the sooner the Nation finds itself on a
specie basis the sooner will the public treasury be
freed from embarrassment and private business be re*
lieved from discouragenxent. Instead, therefore, of
entering upon a reckless and boundless issue of
legal-tenders, with their
constant depreciation,
if not destruction, . of
value, let u^ set res*
olutely to. work wad'
make those already in.
circulation equal to so
many gold dollars/'
ELECTED SPEAKER OF
THE HOUSE. ,
At the opening of the
first session of the 41st
Congress the Republi-
can caucus nominate
Mr. Blaine for Speaker
by acclamation,. and he
was elected by a vote
of 136 to 57 for Mr. Kerr. He was re-elected,
without opposition in his own party, Speaker of the
42d and 43d Coiigresses. In that position his quick-
nes& of perception decision of manner, thorough
knowledge of parliamentary law and usages, and
impartial and judicial mind, added to hfs deaf voice
and impressive preisence, i^ade Uok a truly gr(^t
SCHUYLER COLFAX.
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ram tesk nt f$m3sxsi&.
n^
{^residing ofiBcer. No persoirwho has occupied die
Speaker's Chair has ever filled it more acceptably. -
The Democratic " tidal wave " of 1874 returned a
Democratic majority to the House, and Mf. Blaine
returned to the floor. There his parliamentary skill
and self-possession', together with his audacity of
madner and versatilit)'
of talent, made him one
of the most adroit and
aggressive leaders ever
enjo^jetd by a political
party. ■
During Mr.' Blaine's
first term in Congress
there were many excit-
ing debates. The war
\^s In progress, and it
often required all the
courage and tactics of
those who believed in
pushing it to a conclu*
sipn to silence the fre-
quent clamor for peace. **• ^- P^wes.
Mr. Blaine did not believe in peace at the cost of a
nation, r
_ , DISCUSSION OF FREE TRADE.
llieni as ever afterward, Mr. Blaine was an ardent;
l^rotecttonisjt. He believed the country would thrive
under ^^rotectssd industries, and he was a a>rdial
supporter of all government measures for cafrytbg
n
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£ Of «0y. MME^ O. BLAINE.
out this policy. A: speech by Mr. S. S. Cox in favOI*
of free trade^ in which he sneeringly referred to ;^
New England States as "protected States," catted
forth from Mr. Blaine a gallant defense of his own
State of Maine. He spoke as follows:. ; - f
it has grown to be a habit in this house, Mt
Chairman, to speak ci
New England as a unfit,
and in assailing the New
England States to d^
them ,tog<ether, as Uui
been done to-<Jay,- 1|j^
the gentleman' frci ill
Ohio {M)^i Cox ^,
throDghotft ' hfei entire
speedi.; Ill rie^fise ^
such Mtacks^ £adi pi^
ticular Representative
from a Ne«r Eng^liid
State might l«:lcaft^
upon to defefid t^:^
Si^uEL J. RAN0ALL. whofe section. ^
For myselC sir, I take a different view. I hay€[ j^f
honors to represent in part /wi^ State, the State ||
Maine, and I have no more to do with the Idcal^ifli
particular interests of the rest of New England
with any other State in the Union. The p^r
Enjgfkfid States ^re ably reprie^ented on the Aocrr, ai||
it would be officious and arrogant in me to speak J^ ,.
tjhema Biit when the gentleman from Oht%|Mre8uiii^
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SAMUEL J RANDALL
..fo
SHELBY M. GOLLUM.
CO
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■^1
FIRST TERM IN CONGRESS.
93
td charge here that the State I represent receives from
Federal legislation any undue protection to her local
interests, he either ignorantly or wilfully misrepresents
the case so grossly, that for ten minutes I will occupy
die attention of this House in correcting him,
! Sir, I am tired of such
talk as ' the gendeman
from Ohio has indulged
iatOrday,and in so far
as it includes my own
State as being a pen-
^pn^r upon the Gen-
eral Government, or
dependet^t upon the
bounty of any other
^tate, V I liorl , back the
diarg^ with scorn. If
there be a State in this
Union that can say with
laiith that her Federal
qbnnection confers no
»^^cial benefit of a ma-
lieri^ character, that State is Maine. -^
i ^nd y6t, sir, no State is more attached to the Fed-
eral Union than Maine. Her affection and her pnde
are centred in the Union, and God knows she has
contributed of her best . blood and treasure without
i^int in supporting die war for the Union ; and she
wiil do so to the end. But she resents, and I, speak-*
ing for her, resent the insinuation that she. derives
s. s. cox.
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91
UFB OP RON. JAMBS O. BLAIKX.
any undue advantage from Federal legislation, or
that she gets a single dollar she does not pay t^i^.
This much, sir, I have felt called upon to say in re-
sponse to the elaborate and carefully prepared speech
of the gentleman from Ohio. I have spoken in vindi-
cation of a State that is as independent and as proud
as any within the limits
of the .Union. I have
spoken for a people as
high-toned and as hon^
orable as can be found
in the wide world. I
have spoken for a par-
ticular class— many of^
them my constituents-*-
who are as manly and sis:
1>rave as ever faced the
ocean's storm. And so
long, sir, as I h^ve a
seat on this, floor, the
State of Maine shall ndt^
be slandereid by
Ji A, KASSON* -
gehdeman from Ohio, or by gendemen from any
other ' States. .' "'■•J-- '■'^'■■"- C:
DEFENCE OF NEGRO SOLDIERS. "
Blaine advocated the enlistment of the slaves iiilli
<»uf armies. Mr; Mallpry, of Kentuckyraccilsied d^
negro troops of cowardice, " My friend from Maine,"
be said, ** who seems to be listening so attentively^ Kved
in Kentucky ^fice, aihI know? |he n^ro and his at^
m<
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■*■-
■/■■»
^ rW$T TERM pr OOMTGIJ^p, : l>6
tributes, and he knows, if he wiir teH you what h^
know^ that they won't fight" ^
Mr. Blaine made this incisive reply : , -, f ;
From a residence of five years in Kentucky I came
to the conclusion from what I saw of the negroes that
there was a great » i> > !; ^ -
deal of fight in
them. I have
entire faith-^and
if I had not, I
Would oever vote
a dollar of appro-
priation for these
n^gro troops-^
that well-trained
dnd. disciplined
negroes will
make good
troops., I do not
believe they will
make as good
troops as white
men,and I do not
value any white
man's opinion
who does think so. Now I ask the gentleman
ffpm Kentucky if he believes that a thousand white
men, of the Kentucky race— and I believe that no more
gallant race than the Kentuckians ever lived^un-
armed ^nd iindrilled, would ha^e stood any better be-
ABRAHAM LINCOLN,
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LUTE OF HOH. JAKES O. BLAINB.
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V
m :t
fore the rebel musketry than the negroes themselves
did.
ARDENT SUPPORTER OF LINCOLN.
As might have been expected. Mr. Blaine lent all
his powerful influence to the support of President
Lincoln and his administration. In respect to his re-
lations with the President, Mr. Ward H. Lamon, who
was Marshal of the District of Columbia and on terms
of special intimacy with Mr. Lincoln, makes the follow-
ing staten^ent:
"I knew those who were Mr. Lincoln's friends and
those who were plotting against him, and I am sure
that there was no one among the younger members
of Congress on more intimate, cordial and confidential
terms with him than Mr. Blaine, nor was there any
one more implicitly trusted by Mr. IJncoln. When
the movement was made against Mr. Lincoln in the
winter preceding the campaign of 1864, Mr. Blatne
:Was the person with whom Mr. Lincoln constantly
coiiferred about Maine, and I was present at aeon-,
ference between the two when Mr. Lir\coIn requested
Mr. Blaine to proceed to Maine and see if there was
any^ adverse movement there.
^^H^Mr. Lincoln became acquainted with Mi^ Blaine
in niihots during his memorable campaign with
Douglas in 1 858. Mr. Blaine w&s corresponding frpm
the scene of contest w!.th his paper in Mainer^nd in
one of his letters he predicted that Lincoln would be
defeiated for Senator by Douglas; but would l>eat
Douglas for President in i«8^. This letter wi^ qop^d
-PTfT"
riRSt T^Bitt IN POKOEESS.
97
p.
in several illtnois papers, and Mr. Lincoln cut it out
and carried it in his small memorandum book until
loog after he was inaugurated as President. It natur-
ally laid the foundation for cordial friendship between
the two," ,
; VIEWS ON THE DRAJT.
The unswerving patriotism of Mr. Blaine was never
questioned, and no warmer words in support of the
war-policy of the Government were spoken than those
whiph fell from his lips.' He admitted the necessity
of keeping the army up to the required size, yet he
was Opposed to the extreme measures advocated by
some persons for bringing men into the field. Upon
ihese measures he had tills to say;
A conscription is a hard thing at best, Mr. Speaker,
but the people of this country are patriotically willing
to submit to one in this great crisis for the great
causie at stake. There is no necessity, however; for
making it absolutely merciless and sweeping. I say,
in my judgment, there is no necessity for making it so,
even if there were no antecedent questions as to the
expediency and practicability of the measure. I be-
lieve the law as it stands, allowing commutation and
substitution, is sufficientfy effective, if judieibusly en-,
forced. It will raise a large number of men l>y
Its direct operation, and it will secure a very large
amount of ftioney with which to pay bounties to vol-
unteers.
I Cannot refrain from asking gentlem^en around me
Aether in^ their judgment the pending' measure, if
7 , '
rfi
Ma
.V
'-"■
^^•i.;^^
f.'C
t*
.n *
98 UFB or BOM. JA1II8 O^ BLAINE.
t • • ,
submitted to the popular vote) would teceive the sup-
port of even a respectable minority in aiiy district in
the loyal States ? Just let it be understood that who-
ever the lot falls on must go, regardless of ail business
considerations, all private interests, all personal en-
gagements, all family obltgationst that the draft is to
be sharp, decisive, final and inexorable, without com-
< mutation and without substitution, and my word for it-
you will create consternation in all the loyal Stai^. ^
Such a conscription was never resorted to but oncie,
even in the French Empire under the absolutism of
the first Napoleon, and for the Congress of the United
States to attempt its enforcement upon their (ionstitu-
eDts is to ignore the first principles of Republican and
Representative Government.
; . ELOQUfilfT PLEA FOR THE SOLDIERS.
On an occasion near the close of the war, in a
speech on the Enrolment Bill, in February, 1865,
he spoke as follows in behalf of 'the soldiers in tl^
field:
Nothing so discourages and disheartens i3m brave
men at the front as the belief that proper measures
are not adopted at home for re-enforcing and suscaiiv
ing them^ Even a lukewarmness or a backwardness^
in that respect is enough ; but when you add to tbat
the suspicion that unfair devices have been resorted
toby those charged with Ming ijuotas, you naturally
influence the prejudices and passions of our veterant
in the field, in a manner calculated to lessen thetfpeip^
$onid ^al^and weaken the^se^ili^ armj^.
> ■
•r'-tV
•fj'*'. ,,,; T*
•-. I'l
FIBST TERM 11^ 00NGBId3.
M
^ftcr four year« 6C such patriotic arid heroic dfort
Hor ; National u nity a» , the world has never witnessMQjt^
b^ifbret: we cannot iiow afford to have the great caiite
4njured^ or its fair fame darkened by a single unworthy
tnddent connected With it. TTie improper practices
of individuals cannot disgrjp,oe or degrade the Natktn;
but after, these practices are brought to the attention
tof Congress, we shall assuredly be disgraced and 6^
graded if we fail to apply the requisite remedy when
tiiat remedy is in our pow^r. Let us, then, in this
hour of triumph to the National arms, do our duty
"here, our duty to the troops in the field, our duty to
our constituents at home, and our duty above all, to
our country;, whose existence has been in siich peril in
tfie pifst,. but whose future of greatness and g\6ty
^secms now so a,ssured and so radiant
iXWAL MEN IN SECEDED STATES. \N
. Gbncerning the duties of the Federal Government
toward the loyal citizens in rebellious States, Mr.
Blame said: ;
Among the most solemn duties of a sovereign gov- -
emment is the protection of those citizens who, under
great temptattons and amid great perils, maintain
:their foidi and their loyalty. The obligation mAe
Fcd-^I Government to protect the loyalists of the
South is supreme, and they must take all needful
naeans lo assure that protection. Among the most
needfiil i* the gifi of free suffrage, and that mtist be
guaranteed.- *. ^ -,
tb&Tfi is no prot^tion you ctn ex^nd to a man so
'1*4 \
''if
:1
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, X C-.
c^%:
'S^
!>i iT irl- ,
■;.•«■
7S
i yw assure permanency to the 8«»«?"5?^ J*. J.
Wowal of suBraee is not merely the .«»«*'«« f^^ '
. Si:ilS2toward*0sewho«^^
bu"it is the «ost far^igl^ted ?«•;•«•" *8'*"*.S
Si^. the s„«st guar«tce ^^
arid public justice.
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i^i
CHAPTER VI.
Second Term in Congress.
Mr. Blaine's services in the House of Representa-
tives were able and efficient. Not merely did he draw
attention to himself at Washington as the future leader
of the great Republican party, but throughout the
country his name became familiar and his popularity
Was assured.
Naturally he was the pride of his own State. "The,
Man from Maine " was becoming widely known ; hi^^
strojig personality was felt in Congress, and his manly
bearing, fairness in debate, and loyalty to the Union^
were distioguishing traits of tne rising leader. His,
first term in Congress was the natural antecedent to
a second term^ and when his^ district made its nomina-
jtion in 1864 he -was selected as the Republican can-
didate. . .-■""■■■■,/■ ■•' '" P'
The letter of acceptance he wrote on this occasion
IS of special interest, and we take pleasure in laying
It before the reader : '
Augusta, Aug. 20, 1864.
Gen, J. R. Bachelder:
Diar Sir: I am in receipt of your favor advising
me that on the 10th ihst., the Union Convention of the
Third'District iinanimouslyjiominated me for re^lec^
'■ - , * ^" -, ,1 *:f:'^?v-.' ., ■\V,.;.\:, •/--;:;:', .(101)
' "'^^ ' " y^-ii
t'ifii'-'.
&a;;
It-
A...-.?, .,
102
UKE i)^H(^ JAMES 6/ BLAIKB.
tion as Representative in Congress. For this generous
action/ aBw^itrasifortlie coridial inaoner attending it,
and the very complimentary phrase in which it is
conveyed, I am under profound obligations. It is far
Easier for me to tind {he inspiring cause of such favor
and such unanimity In the personal partiality of friends^
than in any merits gr services which I may justly. claim
as my own. , ^ :-
In noininatihg me as the Union candidate, and
pledging me to no other platform, you place me on
the precise ground I desire to occupy. The controlling
and absorbing issue before the American people is
whether the Federal Union shall be saved or lost. In
comparison with that, all other issues and controversies
> are subordinate, and entitled. to consideration just in
the degree that they may i^nfluence fhe end which \
Washington declarea to be ** the primary object of
patriotic desire." To maintain tJie Un^ a gigantic .
war has been carried on, now in the fourth year of its ,
duration, and the resources of the country, both in men
andftfiioney, have been freely expended in. support of
it. The. war was not a matter of choice with the
Government, unless it was prepared to surrender its
power over one-half of its territory aiid'inc^ur all the
hazards of anarchy throughout the other half. It was
begun by those who sought to overthrow the Federal
authority. It should be ended the very day tha(
authorityjs recognized and re-established throughout
Its ^r^tful- domain.- - • ; .■'^- - 1:^>' ''^'^i'l '^
The desire for peace after the sufferings and tnats
of the past three years is natural- Springing froni
the very instincts of humanity it is irrepressible. The
danger to be avoided is tiiat in aiming to attain peac^i
we shall be deceiared by the shadow and thus ml! ^,
secure the substan^^ Peace on the basis of disiini^ *
.h:? '•■ - ■ -■
■^d,-
^^1
(108)
.^■^
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i
,
%,^
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*
104
tJFE 0P HOK4 JAKQBS ^< BliAINB.
is A delysioii. It is no peace at all. It is but t^e
beginoirig of war-— more wasteful, tnore destructive,
more cruel than we have thus far experienced Those
who ^ly for the ** immediate cessation of the war/' are
the best advocates of its endless continuance. They
mean peace by the recognition of Rebel Independence,
and Rebel independ*
ence is absolut^y in^
compatible with peace.
Among the cherished
errors of those who are
willing to acknowledge
the S)uthern Confed-
eracy as.' the »basis Qi
peace, the most fatal is
that'whi^ assumes. the
continued u nion, hart
niony, and power of
the loyal States. This
cannot be. Contentions
and strifes without num*
ber would at . once
spring up. The border
States would ,be con-
vulsed with , a .fierce
contest as to wl^ich sec^
tion they ivould adhere to. The Pacific slope, to
escape the dangers and constant embroilments which
it could neither control nor avoid, would naturallj/r
seek for independence; and the i^brthwest, if it
did not l^tlow the example, would demand sucb i'
reconstruction of the government 0|f the remaining
States^ as WQuld make our further connection there-
wi|h undesirable, if not absolutely intolerable. In
^hort, disunion uj^on the line of the ^revoked States
W.P. FRYE.
t>. ,
'.•'' -^'4
'i'-
SM)lft> fftfiM I!^ OONt^RBSS.
t05
would inVoMistlietoUFiAd speedy disintegration of
the Federal Gk>vefnnlentj and we would find ourselve;^
launched on ^*a sea of troubles," with no pilot capable
of holding the helm, and no chart'to guide us on out
perilous voyage. • v* ;; / ^^ i
There fs indeed but one path of safety, and that 'is
likewise the path of honor and of interest We muit
preserve the 'Union. Differ as we may as to the meas-
ures necessary to that end, there shall be no diir<brence
among loyal men as to the end itself. No sacrifk^we.
cap make in our efforts to save the Union is comjoar-.
able with that we should all make in losing, it ^^HeJs
the eneniy to both sections and tO the comition datuse
of humanity and civilization, who is willing to coildude
the war by surrendering the Union; aiid' the most
alarming development of the times is the disposition^
manifested by leading journals, bypublic men, and by^
' politital conventions in the loyal S^tes to accept this
conclusion. For myself, in the limited sphere of my
influence I ^hall never consent to such a detusive
setdement of our troubles. Neither at tlie polls as.
art American citizen, nor iiL Congress as a Repjrfsent-
ative (should I again be chosen), will I ever mye a;
vote admitting even the possibility of ultimate failure
in this great struggle for Nationality. ; v
Very respectfully your obd't servant,
J. G. Blaine.
*«
AGAIN IN WASHINGTON*
^ To nominate Mr. Blaine for any ofHce in Maine wa?
equivalent to electing him. The will of the people
was that he should serve a second term in Congress,
and should corttinue to ^^ a prominent part in
Natiprtal legislation During ^ his first term he had
aMKWWBSajfc-': /JTi^ji
hit t-r
.x.\
loe
unm^^jjjLim^
>'i
i^
been a member of th<§ Committee OQ Military 'Af&irSi
which was second in importance to no other com^,
mittee at this time* Upon his re-election as represent-
ative he r^stim^d his position on this committee, and.
was ako appointed on the CoTnmittee on War Debts
of Loyal States.
^' "In both these positions Mr. Blaine was active. He
took the ground that the loyal States ought to be re?
imbursed by the Gov-
ernment for their war
.expenses,and brought
forvi'ard a proposition
to that effect Never
half-hearted in any^
thing he ; undertook^
he was very earnesjt
and persistent in f h|^
a d V o c acy of t h i s^
measu re, summoning
all his elo(|uence, re-
sources, and igreat
qualities of leader$h|p
in carrying it to a^uf-
cessful issue^- fp fact^
VriLLiAM R. MORRISON. his achievement was
so brilliant that from this time he was regarded 3s tbe
foremost leader of his party. Buch a couragieoiis, ni^se,
dashing, magnetic man was needed to bring tog^^h^r
and hold in inviiicibie unity the yaripusoelenients pf
the gr^at Union pal15^ anil lead it ^ vicjtor^^J^^
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^^^^^J^^if&^^M^^^^M^^^^
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iM
great ^
»rsbip , ^
a suc-
n fact,
t W?kS
as the
5, wise,
•gether .
sntsof
t.'
■ >
SkCOm TBBM IN CONCUIBSS.
X&f
t)Jatipn*8 caf^itol as magnificent as it had achieved on
the field of battle. ■ ' ' i "
* ~ • A MEMORABLE SPEECH.
The measure for reimbursing the loyal States for
their war expensels was advocated by Mr. Blaine in a
masterly and Convincing speech. The proposition
i^ine up in a Committee of the Whole House on
?April 12, 1864, on a special order to reimburse the
State of Pennsylvania for its expenses in dalling out
the militia during the invasion of thai; State by the Con-
federate armies.. Mr. Blaine moved to substitute for-
the bill introduced by Mr. Stevens, of Fennsylvinia, a'
brll to reimburse all the loyal States for the d^arges
Ith^ had incurred^ . /;^
H4 hJMi in the preceding January called the atten-
tion of the House' to this subject by submittiilg a res-
0}ution,^ahd now he desired the a^Uoii of the House
on the bill proposed. TTiere had been, he urged, a
r lejgitimate expenditure in aU the Stetes/fp| the:^ pur-
pose of suppressing the lebellion ; these expenditures
were necessary and made ja good faith for the defence
and preservation pf the nation^ life, and slipuld be
refunded by the National Government. Such Veiip-
bursemefit was ju$t and expedient, and ought to come
trom tlm National Treasury. In the course 0/ liis re-
marks Mr. Blaine said :
. If ^e twenty-four loyal Statesj now striving, with
patriotic rivali^, to outdo each other in defending and
rescuing tiie nation from its per^were hereafter to
A^lpj^ie ^ entire Union, there might be notiiing^
'\'if^i
1 <'
' j^
ii"^ V*
-3'_ 'Ms-
^^'i llJaS-^lilite' .>-i* *■'■
■••
m
Utt of llOif. JAllES G. BLAttre. .
gained and nothing lost to any one of them, by consoU
idating their respective war debts into one common
charge Upton the aggregate resources of the nation.
■ Under such circumstances' each State would be freed
from an individual tax only to incur a burden of
similar magnitude in meeting its component part of
the total national debt. -
THE UNION SURE TO BE RESTORED.
But the actual case, presented for our consideration
and decision, is far different from this. We are en-
^gagedin a struggle which must inevitably resultin re-
storing to loyalty, and to duty, eleven States now i^i';
rebellion against the authority of the National Go^
ernment. And beyond that, as a consequence of a r^
stored Union, and of the boundless prosperity whi^h
awaits the auspicious^ event, our vast Western>donnaii^
will be peopled with. a rapidity exceeding all preG#
dent, and States without number almost will spring
into existence, to add to the strength and insure' tlt^
perpetuity of our Government. - y- \
Well-considered estimates based on past progre^
and the established ratio of our advance in Wealth anq
"population, assure us that within less than a centurjr
(torn this time we shall have added forty new States
to our Union, making, with the number now compo^'i
ing it, a grand total of seventy-five prosperous Com-
monwealths. Were it not for the blood s6 fVecfe
. poured out^ and the treasureso lavishly expended 1:^
the twenty-four loyal States represented ofi this flo^
the eleven States now in revolt would not be saved ^
\K- : •
';:^>. . *■'".--.:.
.:;r5-^. ''•'"•. 4.
■•i.>
i-S:.*!
ROSCOE CONKLING.
- '"i."''
GEORGE S. BOUTWELL
fo
m
th
•^'1
'X-i'-T."
•■.'•'/"y
• -H'
fSECONP TERM IN CONGRESS.
109
firom self-destructibn, and the forty States so speedily
to grow up in the Mississippi valley and onjthe Pacific
slope would never come into existence.
WHERE. tHE BURDEN FALLS.
^^ Of the immense natiqnal debt' which we are incur-
ring, jn this struggle, each State will, of course, have
to bear a share ; but it is quite manifest that for twa
generations to come,
owing to our established
system of taxation, the
present loyal States will
have to endure vastly
the larger proportion of
the total burd/sn. k it
fair or just, that in addi-
tion to this they shall
each be called upon to
' * Isear, unaided, a large
lo<:al debt, necessarily,
ind yet generously, in-
curred in aid of the one
common object of pre-
S<^rving the life of the
#hole nation? w. l. holman. ;
j T^ question which I present, therefore, is not one
fo^ dispute or difference between any of the States
' h^e repriesented, for they all have a common interest
m adopting the proposed nveasure. The financial is-
H^i^rs^ther between the twenty-four loyal States, oi^
tifie one handt and the deveiv revolted States together
., )■
"■y?* "
.10 ura OF HOW. iA*tt <J. BIAIM.
«;«t;i on the Other. We have it
with all future new States °" ' ^j,^ matter upon
in our power t<>day to determm ^^^ ^^
?""f ^eret K'-^s"^- who are bearing
for the interest oi »■?« > -.-at contest
the heat and burden of the g«at c ^^^ ^^
The war closing m J«>y- '^"S.^'^ thirty-three mil-
condition: a nation r"'''?S^,f thousand millions
lions of people, ownmg over ^^^^'"J^^^^^jfi,^ hun.
of property. a«d carrymg. a debt ^ J^ ^^.^;
AreA pillions of do^^/!-- . ]^*i V same that it
d^bt and property w.ll ^J^^ ^^^^ ^ n,tio of
was when the ""'f J^Sanced productiveness
our advance and the larg«y= commercial puP-
of agricultural. "^^'^^^'^^^^Z^n advantage that
suits, gives the present f^^^^^^, at the very
renders the debt fer less nu ^ . , , .
°-"'='' ^\.a^ ^^;:;L!rSrvery brief '
And if the revolutionary debt be«.me«^^^^
period so light »i '^ ,*^ "rtf„,^gress. assume a .
with a vastly accelerated «tto otp g ^^^ ^^
similar auspicious resuln^* r^r^^^^ ^^,,„^ i„
are now contracting ? were ^ Q^^
weaUhandpopulationtobenomo««p ^^ ^^ ^^
Britain's has been «»«' '^^S^^JfJ of forty-five .
of the present «»7^^^*aSnting to fifty thou,
.million soub. ""^^P^PS^^uponthis ratio of prog-
sand millioHs of dollars. ^^*"^tobefelta«a;bW.
den. But upon the increase 01 PP
...?».
>^^^j4gj
r» "
m
.* '.f
SB60N0 TERM IN 0ONORKS8.
Ill
opment of wealth to be so assuredly anticipated, the
debt would be so small, in comparison with the total
resources of the nation, as to become absolutely incon-
siderable. ' .
To' those who may be disposed to doubt the future
progress of our country according to the ratio as-
sumed, a few familiar considerations in respect to our
resources may be recalled with advantage. We oc-
cupy a territory at least three million square miles in
extent ; within a fraction as large as the whole of
Europe. Our habitable and cultivable area is indeed
• larger than that of all Europe, to say nothing of the
superior fertility and general productiveness of our
soil.
So vast is our extent that though we may glibly re-
peat its numerical measure, we find it most difficult to
form any just conception of it. The State of Texas
alone is equal in area to the empire of France and
the kingdom of Portugal united ; and yet these two
monarchies support a population of forty millions,
while Texas has but six hundred thousand inhabitants.
, OUR GREAT STATES.
Or, if we wish for a comparative measure nearer
,home, let me state that the area of Texas is greater
than that of the six New England States, together with
New York and New Jersey and Pennsylvania and
Ohio and Indiana all combined. California, the second
Stiate in size, is equal in extent to the kingdom of
Spain and the kingdom of Belgium together. Spain
and Belgium have twenty millions of people, while
■ L
'\.
■^r
:*."
f*
^
„-
,"-r-^
,''■
112
LIFE Of HON. JAMES O. BLAINE.
California has not half a million. And we might
pursue this species of comparison almost indefinitely,
clearly showing that in capacity, and assured destiny
our individual States, if peaceful and united, are to
CHARLES SUMl^ER.
become as wealthy, as populous, and as. powerful as
the separate great nations of Europe. - *^^
Mere territorial extent does not, of course, imply
future greatness, though it is one great requisite to it
And in our case Jt is so vast an element that we niay
be pardoned for dwelling on it with emphasis attd
b(
wl
la
thi
c<
ai
ml
ml
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V,.
vr
>iifc-!e«K3«ill«!
r»
■■ " ■ IW i't' ■
ight
tely,
itiny
e to
I.
irful as
tetdit
we may
SECOND TERM IN CQIfGBESS.
113
iteration. The land that is still in the hands of our
Government, not sold nor even pre-empted, amounts
to a thousand millbns of acres— an extent of territory
thirteen times as large as Great Britain, and equal in
area to all the kingdoms of Europe, with Russia and
Turkey alone excepted.
THE nation's. WEALTH.
Combined with this almost limitless expanse of
territory we have facilities- for the acquisition and
consolidation of wealth — ^varied, magnificent, and im-
measurable. Our agricultural resources, bounteous
and boundless by nature, are, by the application of
mechanical skill and labor-saving machinery, receiving
a development each decade, which a century in the
past would have failed to secure, and which a ^entu ry
•in the future will place beyond all present power of
computationr-giving us so far the lead in th^ produc-
tion of those staple articles essential to life snd civili-
zation that we become the arbiter of the world's
desdny without aiming at the world's empire.
The single State of Illinois, cultivated to its capacity,
can produce as large a crop of cereals as has ever
been grown within the limits of the United States j
while Texas, if peopled but half as densely as Mary-
land even, could give an annual return of cotton larger
than, the largest that has ever been grown in all the
cotton States together. Our facilities for.commferce
and exchange, both domestic and foreign—who shall
. measure them ? 0"^ oceans, our vast inland seas, our
marvelous and unlimited i^o^ ^f n^yigaUe streaniS|
-^'k
"^'^ J,
r*#*-
i'w>i ii i i "»L ' t7i <»
■vt-. -■ :. '.
"■if<'W.
i f -m
114
LIFE OF HON. JAlOBS 6. BLAUnBl
our canals, our network of railroads more than tKifty
thousand miles in^ extent, greater than the railroads
of all Europe and all the vvorld besides — ^se give us
avenues of trade and channels of communication, both
natural and artificial, such as no other nation has ever
, enjoyed, and which tend to the production of wealth
with a rapidity not to be measured by any standard
of the past.
The enormous field for manufacturing industry in-
all its complex and endless variety — with our raw
material, our wonderful motive-power both by water
and steam, our healthful climate, our cheap carriage,
our home consumption, our foreign demand— fore-
shadows a traffic whose magnitude and whose profit
will in no long period surpass the gigantic industrial
system of Great Britain, where -to-day the cunning'
hands of ten million artisans accomplish, with mechan-
ical aid, the work of six hundred millions of men t
OUR IMMENSE RESOURCES. .
Our mines of gold and silver and iron and copper
and lead and coal,wirh their untold and unimaginable
wealth, spread over millions of acres of territory, in
the Valley^ on the mountain-side, along rivers, yielding
already a rich harvest, are destined yet to increase a
thousar.d-fold, yntil their every-day treasures,
" familiar growii, -*
Shall realise Orient's fabled wealth."
- TTiese are the great elements of material progress ;
and they comprehend the entire. circle of human enter-
prise— agriculture, commerce, maoufacmrei$, niiniRg^
j; -
^^
SBOOND 'i*ERM IN CONORESS.
115
They assure to us a growth in propesty and popula-
tion that will surpass the most sanguine deductions
of our censuff tables, framed as those tablfes are upon
the. ratios and relations of our progress in the past.
They give into our hands, under the blessing of
Almighty God, the power to command our fate as a
Nation. They hold out to us the grandest future
reserved for any people ; and with this promise they
teach us the lesson of patience, and make confidence
and fortitude a diity. With such amplitude and afHu-
ence of resources, and with such avast stake at issue,
weshotild be unworthy of our lineage and our inlieri-
tance if we for one moment distrusted our ability to
maintain ourselves a united people, with "one country,
one constitution, one destiny."
GRAPPLING WITH HARD PROBLEMS,
The foregoing tribute to the loyal States is as just
as it is eloquent. It reveals the masterly thought of
tii^ statesman and the Wisdom df the financier^^It
rtoks^moiig the great deliverances oiT thi iSopt of
Congress iand is worthy 6f Henry Cliy in his fitnniiest
days.' ••:'.-.-;'.;^-^;._
Mt. Blaine discussed in the same able manner other
questions which came before Congress. He had evi-
dently made a study of each, and his speeches, instead
Qf being so much Wind and tongue, threw light on the
subjects he handled. He had some othier end in view
tha^ tci d^W the attention of his constituents to the
fk$ ihat he was making harangues in Congress; and
■r'i
W-
I wr
Ik:
»^i.
!■■?;../■
?:■■ .-.i."
ft:
116
LIFE OF HON. JAMES 6. BL:UNB.
represented. , He did not speak for effect ; he was not
constantly shouting " Mr. Speaker," in order to figure
in newspaper reports. To him the floor of Congress
wa^ not a place for empty speech-making, but a tri*
bunal where the questions profoundly agitating the
Nation w6re to be tried and settled according to
enlightened statesmanship, and in keeping with th^'
grsivity of the interests at stake.
PROPOSITION TO TAH EXPORTS. |
. Looking to the sources whence the nation c<)!ol^
derive the immense revenue needed fbr its war-d^i|
Mr. Blaine proposed to levy a tax on exports. y^W^
^as :somethtng new, and coming from any 6rdni|Ei
man would have been considered audacioii6| if m
absurd. He threw around it such charms of eloqueiie^
gavl; suc^ co£fc»i^t' reasons for its adoption, aiid li?(|$
so ^powerful in ^u^tainiiig his novel views that -^1^8
meiliiife i^tracted* universal attention, and w^s^^
^ci)ti|^' throughout ^>the country. '^ 'v^^r^y^^-i-'.-'--^^l:.^M'
t^kJpi|i|e urg^d th^ a tax was now nei^^
^^i)^ntiiin^nance of our National credit" *Wl|J^
the^^ his speech followed Mr. Madisitf^
argument; who demanded export dutie$ for :!th^ *'^
^^ei>fenc(Hiraging domestic manufacturers ^it4^l
cuting Equitable treaties of commerce with ^
ns^tio^/' He spoke nextof di&8ul!Ject&liabfeli|
.tiu^ttlon-i '' " -"^V. ■^--v:'^;•;:v^■^--^v;■^ .;v ';■;■
The general and obvious (Ss^iii^oi^is^ to tax su#i
And such^dfily as have nacdmpettag product in foreign
paitSf or ft ^li ^Y^nts so^h weak cotn^tition ^ wsQ
*<^
flQt
jure
ress
the
g to
I the
coal4
-dcbi
ThU
Hna^
if not
uenc^
d was
at W»
as d^
needed
idiso^^
leW
^nd|>|^
taxsujE^
I foreign
n as win
BOy^E OF REPRESENTATIVES, WASHINGTON, D. C.
UNITED STATES SENATE, WASHINGTON, D. C.
■ ; ; ■■■'.-■ '"''■■:
f^.- v'-fj^gt.it-:.*-,^?:,
, "«
SECO50 T£Rlt m C0N$^RE8S.
117
^i-!!
give as the command of the market aftel* the pom^
modity has paid its export dues in this country.
EXPORTS OP COTTON.
As an ibustratio)), take cotton, which is out leading
export iif time of peace. It is believed with confidence
jthat the Aitierican product can pay an export t^ix of
.jBve. cents per pound, and yet with ease maintain its
ll^re^sminence in the m arkets of England atid the
IjEUropean continent. '"'"" '
r export in a single
has reached three
tbfilion two hundred
y t}i6tisand bates of five
. Jiundfed pounds ^ch,
i^iind it would rapidljr run
^h&fipind that figure after
i^^ce is restore^ and
;^e competition of fifee
U'abor is applied. to its
Suction^ But if it
lid never go beyond
iej^uantity nknied, an
Report ta* of five cents
pound would yield thos. a. HENDRtCKS.
ir^yenue of -eighty Mi&iian dollars from this single
fe as any oiie wll %?e b^^^
%»
L-'-'X
Tobacco smd naval stores also afford a large mar-
gin for an export ^x^ owing to the superior quality aad
quantity of the American 'pr<MiMction of each article.
*> .i
^
JQ^7.t'tl
I":
**<.''
I
I
118
tiFE OF HON. JAMES O. BLAIKE.
5^'
•*;
.■*■£*■:■■ ■
TOE LUXURY OF TOBACCO.
In' the case of tobacco, might we not, at all events,
share with foreign nations the advantage of the
enormous tax which this article of luxury will bear,
making them pay a moiety into our coffers instead ot^
monopolizing it all for their own ? Should petroleum
continue to be developed :.n such immense quantities,
without being found elsewhere, it, too, will in due time
bear a very considerable export tax, as, indeed, will all
articles (without attempting their specific enumeration)
whose production is peculiar to this country, or whose
quality may be greatly superior to products of similar
kind in other countries, or, in the comprehensive phrase
of Mr. Madison, "articles in which America is not
rivaled in* foreign markets."
*'^^e fear that has often been expressed, that the
Congressional power to tax e^eports might be used to
oppress certain sections, and to dfscrinfinate against
particular commodities/is manifestly grroundles$. It
i$ sdways safe to trust to self-interest in a nation as
weU as in an individual. The highest National in<>
terestjo the matter we are discussing is to encourage
exports in every honorable and practicable yfay ; and
the moment that an export tax should tend to check
or decrease exportation, that .moment it would be
abolished or reduced. w
. Of course, there must be^exportation before revemiie
can be deri^'^d from an export ta:^, and bem^ i rep^t
#kat; the interest \/hich underlies the whole design
affords the most absolute ^gjiaran^ against any op;^
'^*ii-v4^,.;'
V ■ •
"'MM
SEdbND'TERM IN CONGRESS.
119
pressive attempt to discnminate against any section
or any particular commodity.
:' i -EXPENSE OF COLLECTION.
, Not the least advantage, Mr. Speaker, in this mode
of collecting the tax, is the cheapness with which it
can be done. The points of shipment of cotton are
so few that you may count them on your fingers; and
the tendency, owing to the converging of water-courses
and railroad lines, is against any increase in the num-
ber of these ports. The same ofificers of customs,
that are already there, to collect your tariff duties, can
perform the labor of collecting the export duties, with-
out a dollar's additional expense, beyond the salaries
of clerics tliat the increase of business might demand.
Compare with this the vast expense of sending an
army of excisemen throughout all the cotton and
tobacco plantations, and you will find that the system
of export duties would effect a saving of millions to
the Government, simply in the mode of collection.
And, sir, you could invent no more offensive system
of taxation than would be involved in sending your
Government agents to every rural home in the plant>
ing regions, to interrogate the farmer as to the num-
, ber-of bales in his cotton crop, or how many pounds
of tobacco he had raised. . The officials, who should
perambulate tlie country 6n such errands, would ac-
quire, in popular opinion, as bad a reputation as - Dr.
Johnson, in his, Dictionary, fastened on the English ex-
ctsetnan," an odious ^wretch, employed to collect an
unjust tax. "/
^ ■ -
Xl
v-^ -^^
Wf'-—^
■^^^:nrjs^^,^im
WBWiT'*,'"H|f'''
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I- - "
<
f|«r*>
i '
i'v- '
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•
cMaWer vil
• * ■
lliird Term in Congress.
Mr. Blaine was in Congress to remain. He would
have been compelled to fight his way out if he had
wished to retire. Having become the most command-
ing figure in the council of the Natidn, he was, ex-
pected to remain and continue his career.^ He was
by this time a thoroughly qualified legislator; his
▼alue to his party and the ^oiintry was* gratefully rec-
bghized; in every position, assigned him he had
proved his conspicuous ability and efficient service,
and his rehomination in 1868 'came as a matter of
course. It was felt, not merely by the people of the
district he represented, but by his party throughout
tiie country, that he was needed at Washington, and
his retirement froni office would be a public calamity.
The question of the hour related to the national
currency. Mr. Blaine had long studied this perplex-
ing subject, and was outs'poken in the expression oif
his views. He believed in afi "honest dollar." Thadr
d^'s Stevens, of PehniylvaLni^, introduced his cele-
brated Gold Bill,, and Mr. Blaine moved to lay it on
the table.' In doing i^ he gave* one of bis inimitable
thrusts which stabbed ,^e Creetiback falUcy to the
!^^t^-^
,-^->
-1*«
'■?
'•■'./"■?»' >->.'ii
r i r i . i i'iUli
tHIRD TERM IN C^NORESd.
121
quick. " The bill," he said, " aims at what is impossi-
ble. You cannot make a gold dollar worth less than
it is, or a paper dollar, worth more than it is, by a
Congressional declaration."
He also made a powerful speech in favor of an
"honest dollar," which was one of the most important
contributions made in Conjgress to the discussion of
the vexed question upon which there was a great
variety of opinion. He resolutely opppsed the vievvs
expressed by G. H. Pendleton, of Ohio, and Benjamin
F. Buder, of Massachusetts.
SPEECH ON THE CURRENCY.
The position of these gentlemen I understand to be
simply this : That the principal of the United States
bonds, known as the Five-twenties, may be fairly and
legally paid in paper currency by the Government
after the expiration of five years from the date of issue.
A brief review of the origin of the Five-twen^
bonds will'demonstrate,.! think, that this position is in
contravention of the honor and . good faith of the
National Government; that it is hostile to the spirit
and the letter of the law; that it contemptuously ig-
nores the common understanding between borrowef
and lender at the time the loan was negotiated; and
that finally, even if such mode of payment were
honorable and practicable, it would prove disastrous
to the financial interests of the Government and the
genesral prosperity of the country.
Now, Mr, Speaker, suppose, for the sake of argu-
ment, we admit t|iat the Government may fairly and
'.4
H.-^,-* ^ m ii m it k l^
r-^. .JNl -X^MMA -f-d'.- in
122
UFS or fiOK. JAJtES 0. dLAlNE.
■»!
li;
fif?
^ tv^;-^
legally pay the Five*twenty bonds in paper currency,
what then ? I ask the gentleman from Massachusetts'
to tell us, what then ? It is easy, I know, to issue as
many greenbacks as will pay the maturing bonds, re-
gardless of the effect upon the inflation of prices, and
the general derangement of business. Five hundred
millions of the Five-twenties are now payable, and ac-
cording to the easy mode suggested, all we have to do
is to set the printing-presses in motion, and " so long
as rags and lampblack hold out " we need have .
no embarrassment about paying our National Debt.
ABSURD INFLATION.
But the ugly question recurs, whsit are yoit going
to do with the greenbacks thus put afloat? Five
hundred millions thi^ year, and eleven hundred mil-
lions more on this theory of payment by the year
1872; so that within the period of four or five years
we would only have added to our paper money the
trifling inflation of sixteen hundred millions of dollars.
We should all have splendid times doubtless ! Wheat,
under the new dispensation, ought to bring twenty
dollars a bushel, and boots would not be worth more
than two hundred dollars a pair, and the farmers of
our country would be as well off as Santa Anna's
rabble pf Mexican soldiers, who were allowed ten dol-
lars a' day for their services and charged eleven for
their rations and clothing.
The sixteen hundred millions of greenbacks adaed
to the amount already issuedr would give 11s some
twenty-three htto^t^ed millions of paper money, and I
Aj:
THIKO TEfill m OONCRISS.
m
suppose the theory of the new doctrine would leave
this mass permanently in circulation, for it would
hardly be consistent to advocate the redemption
of the greenbacks in gold after having repudiated and
foresworn our obligation on the bonds.
But if it be intended to redeem the legal tenders in
gold/ what will have been the net gain to the Govern-
ment in the whole
transaction? If any
gentleman will tell me,
I shall be glad to learn
how it would be easier
to pay sixteen hundred
millions in gold in the
redenfption of green-
backs, than to pay the
same amount in the
redemption of Five*
twenty bonds ? The
policy advocated, it
seems to me, has only
two alternatives— ^the benjamin f. butler.
one to ruinously inflate the currency and leave it so,
reckless of results ; the other to ruinously inflate the
currency at the outset, only to render redemption in
gold far more burdensome in the end. v^
THE TRUE REMEDY.
The remedy for our financial troubles, Mr. Speaker,
vHU not be found in a superabundance of depreciated
p^pfir currency. It Ues in the opposite direction^
*~i
i^^ifeV..
» j«
-♦^« -j''ii'^'^
;.0'"* '
si^
it*-' '
■y,.
>
f
'i^;'
m
, tlflS OF fiOK. JAMES 6. BLAmS^
--- ' ." .■■■ ■'.■■■• ^ .' - * • . ■■■ .■■■■■.'
and the ^oner the nation finds itself on a specie
basis, the sooner will the public treasury be freed iirom^
embarrassment, and private business relieved ftofm
discouragement. Instead, therefore, of entering uptmi
a reckless and boundless issue of legal tenders, iyi^
their consequent depression if not deBtrucdqn df^;
value, let us set resolutely to work and make ^os€i
already in circulation equal to as many gold dol-|
lars. T;:' ^'^ •■.■:--'/'-■> ■"• '■ .,v '-'^ "■-■;■;-''• 'v|
Discarding all such schemes so at once unwortl^]
and unprofitable, let us direct our policy steadily, btitj
not rashly, towards the resumption of specie payment,^
and when we have attained that end--easily'attainable
at no distant day if the proper policy be putsiied— ^w^
can alL unite on some honorable plan for the redeit^-i
tton of the Five-twenty bonds^ and the issuing insteadl
0)ereof a new series of bonds which can be iii<»ii^
favorably placed at a lower rate of interest Wiiei|
we sliall have reached the specie basis, the vllluf;x>r
ilJiiited States securities will be so high iii the moii^y;
inaJ^t of the world, that we can command pu^v^^
: * ^iOHESt MONEY FOR AN HONEST DEpT. v ,^
: W^^biii then cair ih our Five4W€!ntJbfii<^^
^die^jirt^ of the bond, aada^^^^
;4e^l6ait diat will be eagerly sought for by caplia**^*^^
e^4 w^il vbe free frdm those ekm^nls of <ysc6fiteiii
in iBOiite m«»M^ »iitoufid 4iie existing^ fitacli^f
;o( ^!^.-couRtry.^^'" •' -^yj-:- ;'.:;;:."'::/''. ■:;^-':i-^-^ r^.
And this, Mr. Speaker, we shall do/ ^Cbtr, National
i^»S,
.':t'...'.>e.
i^fli-wjrtsaiiiasMRtmaiiJt':*
' * "'' '..<■ %
WM. a ALtlSON.
■^M
;:iii!SUim1kl*V''i3aiitJfci«.ii«««B,!ii>;-^rw ■■11''^-
1
£iUaSN£ HALSl
■rP,:'^ >u:«^v« M«>»>A't:s>«««a!IMB<*W;KS«£v
i>- I
■" *i'^
THIBD TEBH IN CONGRESS.
126
honor demands it; our National interest equally de-
mands it We have vindicated our claim to the highest
heroism on a hundred bloody battle-fields, and have
stopped at no sacrifice of life needful to the mainte-
nance of our National integrity. I am sure that in
the peace which our arms have conquered, we shall
not dishonor ourselves by withholding from any public
; creditor a dolUr 'i^t we promised to pay him, nor
seek by cunning > truction and clever afterthought,
to evade or escape the full responsibility of our Na-
tional indebtedness. It will doubtiess cost us a vast
sum to pay that indebtedness — but it would cost us
incalculably more not to pay it.
•A MAN OF MANY AFFAIRS.
Such were Mr. Blaine's views upon the currency.
The majority of his countrymen received them as just
and sound; the average common sense approved them.
A man who cannot talk common sense had better not
talk at all ; Mr. Blaine demonstrated his right to talk
by talking sense.
He was extremely active during this term in- Con-
gress. He had already proved his efficiency as a good
comniittee-man, and many committees wanted him.
He iiras the leading spirit in the House, and in all the
multifarious affairs of legislation his advice was sought
aad his co-operation was heartily welcomed. From
^ appointment of a restaurant-keeper for the Capitol
up tol the drafting of a foreign treaty his voice was
ini; fii!^ seemed to combine a good part of Copgre^s^
llilswn person,
^i
\i
mwjBj'fi
f
l^i:
p..
126
LIFE OF HON. JAlfES O. BLAINE.
iik^'^--
'.,■■>"
^'^-Jl..
::'"■■■*-■■■"
■ ,
P*:^
.^
S*-' .:;,
B^
IS4
One of. the subjects much debated it this time wais
the basis of representation in Congress: It was main-
tained by some persons tnat the basis should be the
numjjer of voters ; others argued that the only correct
basis is the number of population. Mr. Blaine held
to the latter view, and was opposed by so powerful a
leader, iand parliamentarian as' Roscoe Conklihjg;
Blaine described Conkling as " presenting the spec-
tacle of the waterman in the PUgrinCs Progress, vvho
got his living by rowing in one direction while looking
in another." He then proceeded with his speech as
follows:
BASIS or REPWISENTATION IN CQNGRESS,
Since the beginning of the. present session, Mn
Chairman, we have had several propositions to amend
the Federal Constitution with respect to the basis of
representation in Congress. These propositions have
differed somewhat in phrase, but they all e-nbrace
substantially the one idea of making suffrage instead
of population the basis of apportioning Representa-
tives ; or, in other words, to give the States in future
a representation proportioned to their voters instead
pf their inhabitants.
. The effect contemplated and intended by this change
is perfecdy well understood, and on all hands frankly
avowed. It is to deprive the lately rebellious States
of the unfair advantage of a large representation in
this House, based on their colored population, so long
as that population shall be denied political rights by
the legislation of those St^^tes, Tlie progOsed coiisti.
'>:<,
.-».k!jMBM(ai«e»»'5'-*'.'itii
l-I't^Wf' I; >.--.■
.■,>■'■-
^i^.
THIRD TERM IK CONGRESS.
127
-tuttonal amendment would simply say to those States,
while you refuse to enfranchise, your black population,
you shall have no rep-
resentation based on
, their numbers; but ac--
niit them to civil and
political rights, and they
shaU at once be counted
to your advantage "in
the apportionment of
-Representatives.
The direct object
thus aimed at, as it re-*
spects the rebellious
States, has been so
generally approved that
little thought seems to
have been given to the
incidental evils which roscoe conkling.
the proposed constitutional amendment would inflict-
-on a large portion of the loyal States— evils, in my
judgment, so serious and alarming as to lead me to
oppose the amendment in any form in which it has
yet been presented.
NON-VOTERS TO BE CONSIDERED; m
As ah abstract proposition, no one will deny that,
population is the true basis of representation; for
Women, children, and other non- voting classes may
Haire as vital an interest in the legislation of td^e
cou^ifay as tliQseiyHo actually deposit the ballot, In-:
'\ '^1
'
^
;>l!l
&f■^:-^;^■ir
^^t^'
•^r--
128
tm OF BON. jAMis a BEtAmS.
,dee4 the very amendment we are discussing implies
that population is the true basis, inasmuch as th^
exclusion of th« black people of the South from polit-
ical rights has suggested this indirectly coercive mode
, of -securing them those rights. Were the negroes to
be enfranchised thrpughotit the South to-day, no on&
would insist on the adoption of this amendment ; and
yet if the amendment shall lie incorporated in the
Federal Constitution, its incidental evUs will abide in
the loyal States long after the direct evil which it aims
to cure may haV^ , be^n^ erait^feated iii.the Southernr
/States^ , ■•:■.;,,:■,':■ /v..; ~ ■ .,. .
Basing representation on voteili unless 'Congress
should be empowered to define their qualifi<^1»on,
would tend to cheapen suffrage everywhere. There
woul^ \>6 an unseen^Iy :scrati9ble in ^l the States
durihg each decade, to increase^ by every meaiis, the
number of voters, and all conseiVative resttfcttons,
such aR%e rj^irement of reading ao^dl^i^rii^ng^
en^rc^ in iomeof the Statesi wotild be strick^^ do^n ^
an a wh and redkiess effort to procure an ^larged
represen^ion iti the National councHs. ^re%ners
would be'tnyited to vote cm u inere prdiiiMiiaiy ^^jdeq.^
laration of intefitiipn. -'
tt has long been a puzzle to many reflecting persons
^t a country like ours ^tdd have no distinctively
Ameiican tommerce. Other countries are mistresses
of the seas. Mr. Blaine had some plain iK^^irds to
$;|»eak on this subject: He ^^noi^nced the ^ranttng^^
"".>''
■'d'^
*?'!?;
R-l''r »^^
lies
the
olit-
ode
B to
one-
and ^
the "
iein
aiitis
Lhernr
gress
^^on,
Sphere
States
is,^e
Gl»^ns,
idovm
signers
sj « deo.
persond
nc^vely
stresses
eords td
granting
ANDREW JPHHSOR
t2
w
I- v^J
Wise
B/r
f>^
130
LIFE OF HON. JAMES O. BLAtNB.
of new America"* registers to ships transferred to
foreign owners during the war, and upon the subject
of ship-building said u
One word more, Mr. Speaker. The whole tone of
the speeches we hs^ve had from both the gentlei^ien
from Ohio (Mr. Spaulding and Mr. Garfield) was for
free trade. They urge that we shall buy our ships
wherever we can get them cheapest, and that all
restrictions as to registry should be abolished. Well,
sir, if we are prepared to reduce this free trade theory
to practice, why not have it in everything ? There is
no branch of American industry that is, to-day, so little
protected and so much oppressed by our reven^e la]iys
as ship-building. It is taxed at all points, and nearly
ta^ed to death ; and I submit to these new advocates
of free trade that it would be better to begin with
some interest that is essentially protected by our laws
to-day.
If wc are going to have free trade, let us have it
equally and impartially applied to all the industrial
interests of the land ; but for myself, I am opposed to
it altogether. In theor)' and in practice I am for pro-
tecting American industry in all its forms, and to this
end we must encourage American manufactures, and
we must equally encourage American commerce.
AN HONOKABLE CAREER.
It would be impossible within the limits of a single
volume t6 detail all the varied and eminent services
rendered by Mr. Blaine in Congress. He stood in the
e>e of the Nation. His course was marked by wise
*
»"«•«
I "■ J'
TBIBD T£R]C IN CONGRESS.
131
to
)J€Ct
measures, patriotic impulses, commanding oratory and
far-sighted statesmanship. One had arisen who was
a worthy successor of the Nation's most illustrious
sons ; he was looked upon as a great leader, a sturdy
defender of all rightful legislation, and a benefactor
of his country by the measures he advocated iti the
interest of all her citizens.
When he received his nomination in 1866, an influ-
entjal Democratic journal thus expressed its satisfac*
tion in view of his prospective election : "As a ready
and forcible debater, a clear reasoner, a sound legis-
lator, fearless advocate, and true supporter of the
principles and organization of the party of Union and
Right, he has made a mark in the annals of Congress
of which he and those who elected him maybe proud.'*
'■J
r«T"'
Ki „
fc^'
Ki'
CHAPTER VIIL
i leaker of the House of Represenltttivas.
fihu Blaine was elected Speaker of the House of
]^;|9fesentatiyes on March 4, 1869. He was devate^: I
t^,j|bJa.pOsiti6ni for the reason that no other member i
o||i^ House was so well qualified to4>reside over, its
4^|NeiatloRS. Even when in college* as we have seeiii
hlflkral it skUled parliamentarian, and at that time wai
a||| to guide a deliberative body through all the tittri- (
ci||i|« of motions, counter motions, amendments^ i^pt^sl
apl 4^sions^ He was even then, without knowing 1
i|||!§;!^fing the training which afterwardwa^ to^veH
*' 'l;eii$ctencyand distinction in the Speaket^t ehair at \
career in Congress naturally marked j)im.^|^
||e; highest distinction^ Hi^ abiHty, firmrie$s|^^
f$es8ton, bad been proved many ttme^'ai^|^
j^i)£lversally cotnceded ihat he would gvici^
:h had been occupied with pffe-emtfi|^
i^ Banks, and x^ther great leadei^ anct
:imd c^^ty to theb^li poi^bt^.
ifi|r j^r h^ %Ne^ Ai^
place among ^e presiding officers of the House of
^^i
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k^' V''i
SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE.
133
Pi
o
o
X'
Representatives, and he will be remembered \%
Speaker Blaine, a title that will distinguish him mere
than any other he ever bore.
Having received the nomination for Speaker in the
Republican caucus, he was elected by one hundred
and twenty-five votes against fifty-seven for the Demo-
cratic candidate, Hon. Michael C. Kerr, of Indiana.
Mr. Kerr was an able» popular and active Represent-
ative, aiid in the changes of party precedent and power
became at length one of Mr. Blaine's successors.
SPEECH ON TAKING THE CHAIR.
Gentlemen of the House of Representatives: I
thank you profoundly for the great honor which you
have just conferred upon me. The gratification which
this signal mark of your confidence brings to nr.r"indB
its only drawback in the diffidence with which I as-
sume the weighty duties devolved upon me Succeed-
ing to a chair made illustrious by the pe«:vyces of such
.e^nent statesmen and skilled parliamentarians as
Clayi arid Stevenson, and Polk, and Winthrop, and
BiM>ks, and Grow, and' Colfax, I may well distrust my
ability to meet the just expectations of those who
^have shown me such marked partiality. But relying,
^Ipeiiitlemcn, on my honest purpose to perform all my
^duties ^ithfiilly and fearlessly, and trusting in a large
itieasure to. the indulgence which I am sure you^ill
alw^s extend to ine,I shall hope to retain, as I have
^i^eiired your confidence, your kindly rc;gard' and your
* generous support:
Tlie Forty-first Congress assembles at an auspicious
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134
LIFE OF HON. JAMES O. BLAINE.
period in the history of our Government. The splen-
did and impressive ceremonial which We have just
witnessed in another part of the Capitol appropriately
l^iK.
i"-
IC^*:
iSi%*
ULYSSES S. GRANT.
symbolizes the triumphs ofjHp pa$t and the hopes of
the Aiture. * ;
TRIBUTE TO GENERAL GRANT.
A great chieftain, whose sword at the head <^
gallant and victorious armies saved the Republic from
dismemberment and ruin» has been fidy called to Umi
highest ci>^c honor which a grateful peopk^an b^
^i?;:;-.
y
of
of
>m
he
SPEAKER or THE HOUSE.
136
Stow. Sustained by a Congress th^t so ably repre»
sents tlie loyalty, the patriotism, and the personal
.worth of the nation, the President this day inaugurated
will assure to the country an administration of purity,
fidelity, and prosperity; an era of liberty regulated
by law, and of law thoroughly inspired with liberty.
Congratulating you, gentlemen, upon the happy
auguries of the day, and invoking the gracious bless-
ing of Almighty God on the arduous and responsible
labors before you, I am now ready to take the oath of
office and enter upon the discharge of the duties to
which you have called me.
TAKING THE OATH.
The Hon; Elihu B. Washburne, of Illinois, senior
' metnber of the House, then administered the oath of
office. .^ ' - *
Mr. Blaine proved at once his fitness for the
Speakership. He could not be entangled in the
meshes of parliamentary tactics ; his coolness was
conspicuous on gll occasions; his impartiality was
evident; his quick decisions stood the test of parlia-
mentary law. In the wild storm of debate his calm
demeanor and guiding hand were felt. One word
from him would cut the tangle that a moment before
appeared to be hopeless. He was impatient of delaysr
and expedited business by his prompt and ready
' rulings.
^* His quickness,'^ wrote a well-informed Washington
cor^respondeht, "his thorough knowledge of parlia-
meRt^ la>^ and of the irules, his firmness, clear voite,
■•■♦■;
"fe
*li<
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136
UFS OF EOS. JAMES 0. BLAINE.
^^•^
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and impressive ihanner, his ready comprehension o
subjects and situations, and his dash and briIH;^ncy
have been widely recognized, and really made him a
great presiding officer." He was soon celebrated for
his dispatch of business, '
He waS' described as adverse to red tape, and hav-
ing an admirable iaculty for cutting corners and
knocking away obstruc-
tions so that the House
could go by the most
direct way to the end it
was seeking.
No man since Qay
presided with such jan
absolute knowledge of
the rules of the House
and with so great a
mastery in the rapid,
intelligent, and faithful
discharge of business.
His knowledge of parlia-
mentary law was in-
stinctive and complete,
, HANNIBAL HAMLIN.^ and his administration
of itlso fair that both sides of the House united at the
close of each Congress in cordial thanks for his im-
psirtiallty.
- VOTE OF THANKS.
Oil the 3d of March, 1871, Blaine's first term as
Speaker came to an end, Mr, S/S. Cox, of N6it
;:?. ■■•:>v::r^5'
..;, K^
^i^
SnBA&£9J)F THE HOUSE.
w
York, his old opponent, a consistent and courageous
Democrat, moved a resolution of thanks to Mr. Blatne
for his conduct in the Chair. It was in the following
terms: '
Resolved, In view of the difficulties involved in the
performance of the du-
ties of the presiding
officer of this House,
and of the able, cour-
teous, dignified, and im-
partial discharge of
those duties by Hon.
J. G. Blaine during the
present Congress, it is
emineftdy becoming
that our thanks be and
they are hereby ten-
diered to the Speaker
thereof!.
The resolution was
^reed to unanimously,
and the retiring george s. BOUTWEtt,
Speaker, in adjourning the Hou?e at noon, pronounced
the valedictory of the Forty-first Congress :
Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
Our labors are at an end ; but I delay the final ad-
JQurniiHjnt long enough to returri my most profound
and respectml thanks. for the commendation which vou'
have bee,h pleased to bestow upon my official cg irse
aitd conduct '
f i.i
\ -I
3*i
138
LIFE OF HON. JAMES 6. BLAINE.
/
"■i
GRATEFUL ACKNOWLEDGMENT.
In a deliberative body of this character a predding
ofificer is fortunate if he retains the confidence and
steady support of his political, associates. Beyond
that you give me the assurance that I have earned the
respect and good-will of those from whom I am sepa-
rated by party lines, Your expressions are most
grateful to me, and are ifkost gratefully acknowledged.
The Congress whose existence closes with this hour
enjoys a memorable distinction. It is the first in which
all the States have been represented on this floor
since tlie, baleful winter that preceded our late bloody
war. Ten years have passed since then — years of
trial and of triumph; years of wild destruction and
years of careful rebuilding ; and after all, i^nd as the
result of all, the National Government is here to-day,
united, strong, proud, defiant, and just, with a t?erri»
torial area vasdy expanded, and with threeTdddlMpnal
States represented on the folds of its flag^ For tl^ese
prosperous fruits of our grea| struggle let us humbly
give thanks to the God of battles and to the Prince
of Peace.
And now, gentlemen, with one more expression of
the obligation I feel for the considerate kindness withr
which you have always sustained me, I perform the
only reroairiir^ duty of my ofBce, in declaring, as J
now do, that the House of Representatives of the
Forty-first Congress is adjourned without day.
RE-ELECTED SPEAKER.
The Forty-second Congress met on 'the foUowitig^
^ rV'-^- -s'" - .■■■ '
J*
*.^>*'i?^
SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE.
day. It was a foregone conclusion that the popular
Speaker of the House would be honored again by his
associates. He received 1 26 votes, and the opposing
WILLIAM A. WHEELER.
cahdi<f2Cte, G. W. Morgan, of Ohio, received 92 votes,
Mf. Blaine spoke as follows :
Gentlemen: The Speakership of the American
House of Representettives has always been esteemed
as an enviable honor. A re-election to the position
carries with it peculiar gratification, in that it implies
art ijj^val of past: bflficial bearing* For this great
V J
*Rl
*^e
*.3
P^^^^fii^mp;-
140
UFE OF BON. JAXES O. BLAINB.
y .
mark of your confidence I can but return to you-. m^
sincerest thanks, with the assurance of my utmost
devotion to the duties which you csdl upon me to di$-
chai^. " ■■■w''." "j.
Chosen by the party representing the political
majority in this House, the Speaker owes a faithfifl
allegiance to the principles and the policy of that part^.
But he will fall far below the honorable reqiuremfenijs
of his station if he fails to give to the minority the^r
full rights under the rules which' he is called upon t^,
administer* The successful working of our grai
system of government depends largely upon the vi|
lance of party organizations, and the most wholesomji
legislation which this House prckluces and perfed^ is
that which- results from opposing forces mutually
eager, watchful and welUnigh balanced in nuniter$.
^ A PROSPEROUS LANa ' |
The Forty-second Congress ass^mbles^ at a peHbd
of genend content, happiness, and prosperity througlio
out the l^nd. Under the wise administration of this
Rational Government, peace reigns in all otilr border^
and the only serious misunderstanding with^y forqgii;
power is, we may hope, &'t thi^ moment in processor
honorable, coridial, and lasting adjustment. We ^
fortunate in meeting at such a tinier in represientiQ|^
such constituencies, in legislating for such a count^.
Trusting, gentlemen, that our offkial iritercouTsp
fHay be free from aH personal asperity^ believing Akik
all our labors will eventuate for die publto ' good^'^anll
craving the bl^esing of Him without whose aid we
» J ^SK
.i« .I'Jf
WILLIAM R. MORRISON.
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SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE.
141
*A
labor in vain, I am now ready to proceed with the
further organization of the House ; and, as the first
step thereto, I will myself take the oath prescribed by
the Constitution and laws.
*• ABLE, PROMPT AND IMPARTIAL."
: Mr. Dawes, of Massachusetts, who had served the
longest continuously in the House, then administered
the oath. -
Again, at the close of the second session of the
Forty-second Congress, a vote of thanks was ihoved
by Mr. Samuel J. Randall, of his native State of Penn-
sylvania, " for the able, prompt, and impartial manner
in which he has discharged the duties of his office,"
during the second session, and on the final dissolution
on the 3d of March, 1873, Mr. Dan. Voorhees, of In-
diana, addressing the temporary chairman, Mr, W. A.
Wheeler, of New Y irk, said :
! I rise to .present a matter to the House in which I
airti sure every member will concur. In doing. so I
perform the most pleasant duty of my entire senrice
on this floor. I offer the following resolution. It has
the sincere sanction of my head and of my heart I
niove its adoption.
: Then, amid the silence of tlie crowded hall, the
Clerk of the House read as follows :
Resolved, That the thanks of this House are due,
and are hereby tendered, to Hon. James G. Blaine, for
the distinguished ability and impartiality with which
he has discharged the duty of Speaker of the House
of Representatives of the Forty-secohd iCongress.
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142
LIFE OF HON. JAMtlS 6. BLAINfi.
The resolution was adopted unanimously.
FOUR YEARS OF SERVICE.
On the same day, in adjourning the House sine die^
Mr. Blaine spoke as follows :
Gentlemen: For the forty-second time since the
Federal Government was organized, its great repre-
sentative body stands on the eve of dissolution. The
final word which separates us is suspended for a
moment that I may return my sincere thanks for the
kind expressions respecting my official conduct, which,
without division of party, you have caused to be en-
tered on your journal.
At the close of four years' service in this responsi-
ble and often trying position, it is a source of honor-
able pride that Ihave so administered my trust as to
secure the confidence and approbation of both sides
of the House. It would not be strange if, in the
necessarily rapid discharge of the daily business, I
should have erred in some of the decisions made dn
poinrts, and often without precedent to guide me. It
has been my good fortune, however, to be always sus-
tained by the House, and in no single instance to^have
had a ruling reversed. I advert to this gratifying fact,
to quote the language of the most eloquent of my
predecessors, "in no spirit of exaltation, but as fur-
nishing a powerful motive for undissembled gratitude."
And now, gentlemen, with a hearty God bless you
all, I discharge my only remaining duty in decIarTng
that the House of Representatives fbr the Forty-second
Congress is adjourned without day.
'Wi!sm'-
St>£AKER OP THE HOUSE.
14a
THIRD ELECTION.
For the third time, James G. Blaine, of Maine, was
elected Speaker of the United States House of Rep-
resentatives on December 2, 1873. He was con-
ducted to the chair by Mr. Maynard, of Tennessee,
and Mr. Wood, of New York, and spoke as follows :
Gentlemen of the House of Representatives:
The vote this moment
a mounced by the Clerk
is such an expression of
your confidence as calls
for my sincerest thanks,
To be chosen Speaker
of the American House
of Representatives is
always an honorable
distinction; to be
chosen a third time
enhances tiie honor
more than tiree-fold;
to be chosea by the
largest body that ever
assembled in the Capi-
tol imposes a burden f. t. frelinghuysen.
of respon'-i'bility which only your indulgent kindness
could embolden me to assume.
The first occupant of this chair presided over a
House of sixty-five members, representing a popula-
tion far below the present aggregate of the State of
New York. At that time in the whole United States
1^
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.144
UFE OP HON. JAMES O. BLAINE.
there were not fifty thousand civilized inhabitants to
be found one hundred miles distant from the flow of
the Atlantic tide.
MARVELLOUS GROWTH.
To-day, gentlemen, a large body of you come from
beyond that limit, and represent districts then peopled
only by the Indian and adventurous frontiersman. The
National Government is not yet as old as many of its
citizens ; but in this brief span of. time, less than one
lengthened life, it has, under God's providente, ex-
tended its power until a continent is the field of its
empire, and attests the majesty of its law.
With the growth of new States and the resultant
changes in the centres of population, new interests
are developed, rival to the old, but by no means hos-
tile, diverse, but not antagonistic. Nay, rather are
all these interests in harmony ; and the true science
of just government is to give to each its full and fair
play, oppressing none by undue exaction, favoring
none by undue privilege. It is this great lesson which
our daily experience is teaching us, binding us together
more closely, making our mutual dependence more
manifest, and causing us to feel, whether we live in
the North or in the South, in the East or in the West,
that we have indeed but " one country, one Constitu-
tion, one destiny."
VALEDICTORY ADDRESS.
At the close of the session, March 3, 1875, Mr.
Blaine addressed tlie House in a very impressive man-
ned. He took farewell of the expiring Congress ^nd
- *'4l^aiffji:
h -.■i
SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE.
146
of his own office as Speaker. After the customary
vote of thanks he spoke as follows :
Gentlemen : I close with this hour a six years' ser-
vice as Speaker of the House of Representatives — a
period surpassed in length by but two of my predeces-
sors, and equaled by only two others. The rapid
mutations of personal and 'political fortunes in this
country have limited the great majority of those who
have occupied this Chair to shorter terms of office.
It would be the gravest, insensibility to the honors
and responsibilities of life, not to be deeply touched
by so signal a mark of public esteem as that which
I have thrice received at the hands of my political as-
sociates. I desire in this last moment to renew to
A POST OF DIGNITY AND RESPONSIBILITY.
them, one and all, my thanks and my gratitude.
To those from whom I differ in my party relations
—the minority of this House — I tender my acknowl-
edgments for the generous courtesy with which they
have treated me. By one of those sudden and. de-
cisive changes which distinguish popular institutions,
and which conspicuously mark a ■ free people, that
minority is transformed in the ensuing Congress to
the governing power of the House. However it
might possibly have been under other circumstances,
that event renders th^se words my farewell to the
Chair.
The Speakership of the American House of Repre-
sentatives is a post of honor, of dignity, of power, of
responsibility. Its duties are at once complex and
.*- .» '
- A-^ '' .». > •. >,-•
146
LIFE QF HON. JAMES 6. BLAINE.
continuous ; they are both onerous and delicate ; they
are performed in the broad light of day» under the eye
of the whok people, subject at all times to the closest
observation, and always attended with the sharpest
criticism. I think no other official is held to such in-
stant and such rigid accountability. Parliamentary
rulings in their very nature are peremptory ; almost
absolute in authority and instantaneous in effect.
They cannot always^be enforced in such a way as to
win applause or secure popularity ; but I am sure that
no man of any party who, is worthy to fill this Chair
will ever see a dividing line between duty and
policy.
Thanking you once more, and thanking you most
cordially for the honorable testimonial you have placed
on record to my credit, I perform my only remaining
duty in declaring that the Fort^/ -third Congress has
reached its constitutional limit, and that the House of
Representatives stands adjourned without day.
SHARP SKIRMISH WITH BEN BUTLER.
The retiring Speaker's words thrilled the immense
assemblage. Cheers and shouts of approval attested
his popularity. Says an eye-witness : " Never before
was witnessed such a scene at the close of Congress."
The attack upon him by B. F. Butler Will have a
special interest to the reader. Qn the 1 6th of March,
1871, when the House was debating a resolution pro-
viding for an investigation into alleged outrages upon
loyal citizens of the South, Mr. Butler bitterly assailed
Mr. Blaine, and censured him for being the author
SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE.
147
of the resolution and securing its adoption by a Re-
publican caucus. The following sharp discussion en-
sued :
»
Mr.. Blaine— I nominated Mr. Butler chairman of
the committee, because I knew that if I omitted the
appointment of the gentleman, it would be heralded
throughout the length and breadth of the country, by
the clacqueurs who have so industriously distributed
this letter this morning, that the Speaker had packed
the committee, as the gentleman said he would, with
" weak-kneed Republicans," who would not go into an
investigation vigorously, as he would. That was the
reason. So that the Chair laid the responsibility upon
the gentleman of declining die appointment.
Mr. Butler^- 1 knew that was the trick of the Chair.
Mr. Blaine — Ah, the " trick ! " We now know what
the gentleman meant by the word " trick." I am very
glad to know that the " trick " was successful.
Mr. Butler — No doubt.
Mr. Blaine — It is this " trick '^ which places the
gentleman from Massachusetts on his responsibility
before tie country.
Then he defied Mr. Butler to name any members
who had voted under coercion ; and on his refusal to
do so, on the plea that he could not violate private
conversations, the Speaker exclaimed :
Oh, no; but you will distribute throughout the entire
country unfounded calumnies purporting to rest upon
assertions made in private conversations, whii.li, when
called for, cannot be verified.
^1
148
LIFE OF HON. JAMES O. BLAINE.
Mr. Butler — Pardon me, sir. I said there was a
caucus^
Mr. Blaine — ^I hope God will pardon you ; but you
ought not to ask me to do it!
f^ Mr. Butler— I will ask God, and not you.
Mr. Blaine — I am glad the gentleman will.
Mr. Butler — I have no favors to ask of the devil.
THE PARTY CAUCUS.
Mr. Blaine had some plain words to speak concern-
ing the binding power of the party caucus. He jibed
Butler for being a weather-vane in pplitics, changing
from one party to another. He defended his own
right to take part in the proceedings of the House.
These were his words :
Why, even in the worst' days of the Democracy,
when the gentleman himself was in the front rank of
the worst wing of it, when was it ever attempted to
say that a majority of a party caucus could bind men
upon measures that involved questions of constitu^-
tional law, of personal honor, of religious scruple?
The gentleman asked what would have been done —
he asked my colleaorue (Mr. Peters) what would have
been done in case of members of a party voting against
the caucus nominee for Speaker. I understand that
was intended as a thrust at myself Caucus nomina-
tions of officers have always been held as binding.
But, just here, let me say, that if a minority did not
vote against the decision of the caucus that nominated
me for Speaker, in my judgment, it was not the fault
of the gentleman from Massachusetts. If the requisite
1
dfi^i--'-
ROBERT T. LINCOLN.
r
^^vs^^^SV.-^sv-^sssS^^^^jj^^
CHAUNCEY M. DEPEVV.
dPEAKER OF THE HOUSS.
149
number could have been found to have gone over to
the despised Nazarenes on the opposite side, that
gentleman would have led them as gallantly as he did
the forces in the Charleston Convention.
Mr. Speaker, in old times it was the ordinary habit
of the Speaker of the
House of Representa-
tives to take part in de-
bate. The custom has
faUen into disuse. For
one, I am very glad that
it has. For one, I ap-
prove of the conclusion
that forbids it. The
Speaker shoulr!, with
consistent fidelity to his
own party, be the im-
partial administrator of
the rules of the House,
and a constant par-
ticipation in the discus-
sions of members would simon gameron.
tqJke from him that appearance of impartiality which it
lifcso important to maintain in the rulings of the Chair.
THE HEIGHT OF INSOjVENCE.
But at the same time I despise and denounce the
insolence of the gentleman from Massachusetts, when
he attempts to say that the Representative from the
Third District of the State of Maine has no right to
frame a resolution; has no right to seek that under
150
LIFE OF HON. JAMES 6. BLAINE.
the rules that resolution shall be adopted; has noright
to ask the judgmenr of the House upon that resolution.
Why, even the insolence of the gentleman himself
never resdw.u t .at sublime height before.
Now, Ih:, S^.^eaker, nrbody regrets more sincerely
than I dc any occurrence which calls me to take the
floor. On questions of propriety, I appeal to members
on both sides of the
House, and they will
bear me witness, that
the circulation of this
letter in the morning
prints; its distribution
throughout the land by
tiilegraph ; the laying it
upon the desks of mem-
bers, was intended to be
by the gentleman from
Massachusetts, not
openly and boldly, but
covertly— I will not use
a stronger phrase — an
insult to the Speaker
WILLIALl D. KELLEY. of this HoUSe. As SUch
I resent it. I denounce it in all its essential state-
ments, and in all its misstatements, and in all its
meaner in( srences and meaner innuendoes. I denounce
this letter as groundless without justification; and the
gentlcm 1 himself, I trust, will live to see the day
when ht will be ashamed of having written it.
•-■i'--.-^^ip<*l[^>»7"^'
SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE.
161
CREDIT MOBILIER SCANDAL.
At the second session of the 42d Congress, begin-
ning December 2, 1872, Speaker Blaine on the first
day called attention to the charges made by Demo-
cratic orators and newspapers during the Presidential
campaign just closed, that the Vice-President (Colfax),
and the Vice-President elect (Wilson), the Secretary
of the Treasury, several Senators, the Speaker of the
House, and a large number of Representatives, includ-
ing James A. Garfield, H. L. Dawes an^ William D.
Kelley, had been bribed during the years 1867 and
1868, by Oakes Ames, a member of the House from
Massachusetts ; that he and his agents had given them
presents of stock in a corporation known as the Credit
Mobilier, to influence their legislative action for the
benefit of the Union Pacific Railroad company.
Upon Speaker Blaine's motion, a committee of in-
vestigation was appointed by Hon. S. S. Cox, of New
York, a noted Democrat temporarily called to the
Chair. •
After the close of the campaign (as was remarked
by the Republic Magazine at the time) the dominant
party might well have claimed, and would have insisted
had they been opposed to a thorough investigation and
a full exposure 'of corruption, that the verdict of the
people in the late canvass was sufficient answer to
these charges ; but the Republican party not merely
granted all the investigations sought, but summoned
on the leading committee a majority of its political foes
to conduct tli€ inquest
J52
LIFE OF HON. JAMES G. BLAINE.
In moving his resolution for the appointment of a
committee-to investigate the charge Mr. Blaine said:
A charge of bribery of members is the gravest that
can be made in a legislative body. It seems to me,
sir, that this charge demands prompt, thorough and
impartial investigation,, and I have taken the floor for
the purpose of moving that investigation. Unwilling,
of course, to appoint any committee of investigation
to examine into a charge in which I was myself in-
cluded, I have called you, sir, to the Chair, an honored
member of the House, honored here and honored in
the country ; and when on Saturday last I called upon
you and advised you of this service, I placed upon you
no other restriction in the appointment of a committee
than that it should not contain a majority of my politi-
cal friends.
REFUSES INCREASED SALARY.
In the strict discharge of his functions Mr. Blaine
had been in favor of economy, and refused to accept
the increased salary assigned to the Speaker by the
notorious Salary Bill. During the consideration of
the bill, on the last day of January, 1873, he addressed
the House as Speaker, and made the following re-
marks:
The Chair now desires to make a statement per-
sonal to himself. In reading the bill the Chair pre-
sumes the language of this amendment would make
the Speaker's salary $10,000 for this Congress. The
salary of the Speaker, the last time the question of
pay was under consideration, was adjuste4 to that of
I
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.'«E.
SPEAHEB OF THE HOUSE.
153
I
the Vice-President and members of the Cabinet. The
Chair thinks that adjustment should not be disturbed,
and the question which he now raises does not affect
the pay of other members of the House. He asks
unanimous consent to put in the word " hereafter," to
follow the words " shall receive." This will affect who-
ever shall be Speaker of the House of Representa-
tives hereafter, and does not affect the Speaker of this
House, but leaves him upon the same plane with the
Vice-President . and Cabinet officers, upon the salary
as before adjusted.
Mr. Blaine's course was approved by the Nation,
and his refusal to accept increased salary was proof
that his main idea was not to grab the loaves and
fishes. When the repeal of the* bill was under con-
sideration he cast the deciding vote, as Speaker, which
kept the matter before the House.
1,-5™" .f."*"
'^■j^dn
CHAPTER IX.
The Famous Mulligan Letters.
After the war the Republicans had a majority in
Congress up to 1874. During this year, which was,
to some extent, a period of revolution in politics, the
Democrats obtained a majority of Congressmen, and
during the ensuing session they endeavored to make
the most of their power.
They assumed that the Republican rule at Wash*
ington had been attfended by wholesale corruption and
fraud. They began to pry and investigate. Commit-
tee after committee was appointed, the object being
to fasten charges upon the party that had ruled so
long in Congress. Every stone was to be overturned
to see what was concealed under it ; every bush was
to be beaten to discover what g^me might be lurking
within it ; every man's pockets were to be turned in-
side out to ascertain whether there was any lucre there
which had been dishonestly obtained. There was a
xraze for investigation. The bloodhounds were to be
put upon the track. Congress was to play the detect-
ive, and r^Jce the gutters for evidences of underhanded
dealings.
Unquestionably there were opportunity and neces-
sity for investigation. No political party was ever-ih
THE FAMOUS JtfULLIGAN LETTERS.
^ w «v
loo
I
power for a whole generation without drawing to it
some men whose patriotism burned to obtai* e loaves
and fishes, whose highest ambition was to serve their
country for what they could make out of it. The in-
vestigating committees did start some game ; with an
immense whoop and shout they chased and bagged it.
It was the right thing to do, and no man who is not a
thief will enter a single word of protest.
ATTACK ON MR. BLAINE.
Of course, a mark so conspicuous as the late Speaker
of the House could not escape this mania for investi-
gation. His political opponents were eager to cripple
his power. and limit his influence. They foresaw that
under his leadership his party would likely maintain
it^ prestige, and would continue to legislate for the
country. Eyes were opened and ears were listening
for something that might prove damaging to his repu-
tation. There he stood in all his integrity, his whole
life open as the sunlight, his course consistent and
honorable from the beginning, his name a tower of
strength in the councils of the Nation ; he was a mark
for envy, as every man is who, by his own genius and
- brilliancy, rises above his fellows and is carried upon
the wave of a nation's applause.
The question therefore was whether any charge
could be brought against Mr. Blaine concerning his
conduct of public affairs, or his private transactions
outside of his political life. The movetnent against
him did not begin in Congress* A western newspaper,
for from being a lesiding journal, made an attack upon
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156
LIFE OF HON. JAMJSS G. BLAINE,
him which at first awakened very little Atteirtiofi, but
which was repeated, and each time with greater bolf^
ness and de^niteness of detail. This was a fine oilt
for his enemies to crack ; this was somet^trig. dieyha4
been eager to obtain ; this gave them the opporttini^
their malice had been seeking. It was not claimed
that he was. a murderer, that he was a horse-thief^ that
he was a pickpocket, that he had cheated his-waslleif|
woman, but it was asserted that as Speaker of thi
Hoiise he had used his vast influence infayor of cisrtam
western railroads, and that he had been amply iobi^
pensated for his services. In short; he had ta(ki||
money which would not have come to him/ if he haci
not favored the corporations from which the guilty^
spoils were received. He had obtained stock frdtni
these railroad companies on t^rms exceedingly favoi^
able, and his honesty as a man and statesman wisl
called in question.
AN INVESTIGATION APPOINTED.
At this time the Hon. Michael C. Kerr, of IndianaQ;
was Speaker of the House, and one of the most con-
spicuous members was Hon. Proctor Knott, of Kdn*;
tucky. The matter of Mr. Blaine's dreadful condM#^
having been brought to the attention of the Houses Jj
committee of investigation was appointed with Mjt*^
Knott as chairman, a man who would not be likely evef^
to incur the charge of whitewashing any than opposed
to his own political principles.
On April 24, 1876, Mr. Blaine mads an eloqtiteiil
and convincing speech in the House In answer t^ III
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THE FAMOUS MULUOAN LETTERS.
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charges, and by his frank statement carried conviction
to many niinds which before had been somewhati
suspicious. And here it must be said, that in all this
unhappy affair by which he was placed as a culprit
before Congress and the country, his bearing was tfiat
of an innocent, high-minded, noble, brave man, who
courted investigation instead of seeking to evade it
>In answer to the grave charge that he had received a
considerable sum of money from the Union Pacific
.Railroad Company for ofificial influence, and another
sum from an Arkansas railroad, he made the^ollowing
comprehensive and straightforward speech :
A SERIOUS ACCUSATION REFUTED.
Mr. speaker, with the leave of the House so kindly
granted, I shall proceed to submit certain facts and |
correct certain errors personal to myself. Xhe dates '
of the -correspondence embraced in my statement will i
show that it was impossible for me to make it earlier.
• i shall be as brief as the circumstances will permit
For some months past a charge against me has been ^
circulating in private — and was recently made public— ,
designing to. show that I had in some indirect mannet; J,
received the large sum of $64,ocx> from the .Union v
Pacific Railroad Company in 1^71, for what services ,
or for what purpose has never been stated,
The alleged proofs of the serious accusation were
based, according to the original story, upon the author- 1
ship of E. H. Rollins, treasurer of the Union Pacific
Company, who, it is averred, had full knowledge that ^
I got the money, and also upon theauthority of MottQin^^
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THE FAMOUS MULLIOAIT LETTfeBS.
1Q9
Bliss -& Company, bankers, of New York, through
whom the draft for ^64,000 was said to have been
negotiated for my benefit, as they confidently knew.
Hearfngt of this charge sotne weeks in advance of *its
publication, I *procu red the following statement from
the two principal witnesses, who were quoted as having
sudi definite knowledge against me:
fe;^y : Union . Pacific Railroad Company.
te Boston, March 31, 1876;
feSf^SV.* — In response to your inquiry, I beg leave
to state that I have been treasurer of the Union Pacific
Railroad Company since April 8, 1871, and have
necessarily known of all disoursements made since
that date. During the entire period up to the present
' timf} I laiiii sure that no money has been paid in any
way or to any person by the company in which ^ou
were interested In aay manner whatever. I make the
stajtement in justice to the company, to you, and to
myself. ; Very respectfully yours,
E. H. Rollins.
Bon. James G. Blaine.
' New York, April 6, 1876.
lifear Sir .'-^In answer jto your inquiry, we beg to
say that no draft, note, or check, ^r other evidence of
value has passed through our boots in which you were
known or supposed to have any interest of any kind,
direct or indirect.
We Hmaift, very Respectfully, your obedient ser-
.yants,:::J'' ■•'V:^■^^-:^■" ^ -y'v:, ^ ■.... .
/ _ Mqrton, Bliss & Co.
Hon. jA^ffis G. Blaine, Washington, D. C. V^ ^ ^
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160
tlFI OP HON. JAJIBS O. PLAIIIl.
V' ';'■ '
Some persons on reading the letters of Morton,
Bliss & Company said that its denial seemed to be
confined to any payment that had passed through their
books, whereas they might have paid a draft in which I
was interested and yet no entry made of it on their
books. On the criticism being made kaown to the firm,
they at once addressed me the following letter:
New York, April 13, 1876.
Dear Sir: — It has been suggested to us that oar
letter of the 6th instant was not sufficiently inclusive
or exclusive. In that letter we stated " that no draft,
note, or check, or other evidence of valus. has ever
passed through our books in which you were known
or supposed to have any interest, direct or indirect"
It may be proper for us to add th^ nothing* has been
paid to us in any form, or if. any time, to any person
or any corporation m which you were known^ believed,
or supposed to hav^ any interest whatever.
We remain, very respectfully, your obedient; ser-
vants,. .•■V ';■":; '--■', ■ '.r^';^'
Morton, Buss & Co.
iloN. James G. Blaine, Washington, O. C.
The two witnessjes quoted for the original charge
having thus effectually disposed of it, the charge itself
reappeared in another form to this effect, namely:
That a certain draft was negotiated at the house of
Morton, Bliss & Company in 1871, through Thomas
A. Scott, then president of the Union Pacific Railroad
Company^ (or the sum of 164,000, and that $75,000 of
the bonds of the lijttle Rock and Fort Smith Rating
Company were pledged as collateral ; th^ the Uoion
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TttS FAMOUS tfOLUGAK UBTVBBS.
lei
Pacific Company paid tht draft and took up the Cot-
tateral ; that the cash proceeds of it went to < me, and
that I had furnished, or sold, or in some way conveyed
or transferred to Thomas A. Scott, these Little Rock
and Fort Smith bonds which had been \ised as col-
lateral ; that the bonds in reality had belonged to me
or some friend or constituent of mine for whom I was
acting. I endeavor to
state the charge in its
boldest form and in all
its phases.
THE WHOLE STORY
FALSE.
I desire here and now
to declare that all and
every part of this story
that connects my name
with it, is absolutely un-
true, without a particle
of foundation in fact,
and without a tittle of
evidence to substantiate
it; I never had any
transaction of any kind !• s. morrill. ^--
with Thomas A. Scott concerning bonds of the Lttde
Rock and Fort Smith Road, or the bonds of any other
railroad, or any business in an^^ way connected with
railroadji, directly or indirecd]^, imniiediately or re-
moteiy^ •I never had any business transactions whls^
ever wUJi the UtiioR Pacific Raikoaid Company^ ^ any.
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Um 07 HON. JAMES 6. BLAIKX.
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of its officers or agents or representatives, and never»
in any. manner, received from that Company, directly^
or indirectly, a single dollar in money, or stocks, or
bonds, or any other form of value.
And as to the particular transaction referred to, I
never so much as heard of it until nearly two years
after its alleged occurrence, when it was talked of, at
- the time of the Credit Mobilier investigation, in 1873.
But while my denial ought to be conclusive, I should
gready regret to be compelled to leave the matter
there. I am fortunately able to sustain my own dec-
laration by the most conclusive evidence that the case-
admits of, or that human testimony can supply. If
any person or persons know the truth or falsity of
these charges, it must be the officers of the Union
Pacific Railroad Company.
CONVINCING LETTERS. '
I accordingly addressed a note to the president of
that company, a gentleman who has been a director
of the compamy from its organization, I believe, .who
has a more thorough acquaintance With its business:
transactions, probably, than any other man. The cor-
respondence, which I here submit, will explain itself,
and leave nothing to be said. I will read these letters
in their proper order. They need no comment.
Washington, p. C, April 13, 1876.
DearSir.'r^You have doubdess observed the scandal
now in circulation in regard to my having been tn«
^ terested in certain bonch of the Little Rock *md Fori <
' .Smith Road, alleged to have been purchased by your-
*s<-.
f ? "J.
"■'''id
%"■■■.•■,
ftH FAMOUS MtLLIOAK LETTERS.
163
company in 187 1. It is due to me, I think, that some
statement in regard to the subject should be made
by yourself, as the official head of the Union Pacific .
Railroad Company.
Very respectfully,
. ' ' ■ J. G. Blaine.
Sidney Pillon, Esq., President Union Pacific Rail-
road Company.
OrncE Union Pacific Railroad Company,
::ys-i.i New York, April 15, 1876.
Dear Sir: — I have your favor of the 13th instant,
and in reply desire to say that I have this day written
Colonel Thomas A. Scott, who was president of the
Union Pacific Company at the time of the transaction
referred to, a lettfer, of which I send a copy herewith.
On receipt of his reply, I will enclose it to you.
* ' Very respectfully,
SiDi^EY Dillon, President.
Hon. James G. Blaine, Washington, D. C.
Office of the Union Pacific Railroad Co.,
New York, April 15, 1876.
Dear Sir : — ^The press of the country are making
allegations that certain bonds of the Little Rock and
Fort Smith Railroad Company, in 1 87 1 , were obtained
from Hon. James G. Blaine, of Maine, or that the avails,
in some form, went to his benefit, and that the knowl-
edge of those facts rests with the officers of the com-
pany and with yourself. These statements are imuri-
ou^ both to Mr. Blaine and to the Union Pacific Rail-
road Company. There were never any facts to warrant
them, imd I think that a statement to the public Js due
both froni you and myself. I desire, as president of
. *■-
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>Ti*
164
LIFE OF BON. JAMES O. BLAINli
:/'
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the company, to repel any such inference in the most
emphatic manner, and would be glad to hear from you
on the subject
Very respectfully,
Sidney Dillon, President
Col. Thomas A. Scott, Philadelphia, Pa.
Office Union Pacific Railroad Company,
New York, April 22, 1876.
Dear Sir:— r-As I advised you some days ago, I
wrote Colonel Thomas A. Scott, and begged leave to
enclose you his reply. I desire further to say that I
was a director of the company and a member of the
executive committee in 1871, and to add my testimony
to that o£ Colonel Scott in verification of all that he
has stated in the enclosed letter.
Truly yours, ' .
Sidney Dillon, President.
Hon. James G. Blaine, Washington, D. C.
Phi£adelphia, April 21, 1876.
My Dear Sir: — I have your letter under date New
York, April 15, 1876, stating that the press of the
Country are making allegations that certain bonds of
the Little Rock and Fort Smith Railroad, purchased
" by the Union Pacific Railroad Company in 1 871, were
obtained from Hon. James G. Blaine, of Maine, or
' that the avails in some form went to his benefit; that
there never were any facts to warrant them ; that it is
your desire as president of the company to repel any
. such inference in the most emphatic manner, and ask-
ing me to make a statement in regard to the matter.
In reply, I beg leave to say that much as I disiike
the idea of entermg into any of the controversies that
at-e before the public iii these days odT ^scandal frbni
-■f^^ '?;it'=/^--^:'
,^'tk.
C,-Y ,'
tHE FAMOUS MULLIGAN LETTEBS.
165
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at
III
which but few men in public life seem to be exempt, I
feel it my duty to state :
That the Little Rock and Fort Smith bonds pur-
chased by the Union Pacific Railroad Company in
187 1 were not purchased or received from Mr. Blaine,
directly or indirectly, and that of the money paid by
the Union Pacific Railroad Company, or of the avails
of said bonds, not one dollar went to Mr. Blaine or to
any person for him, or for his benefit in any form.
All statements to the effect that Mr. Blaine ever
had any transactions with me, directly or indirectly,
involving money or valuables of any kind, are abso-
lutely without foundation in fact.
I take j)leasure in niaking this statement to you, and
you may use it in any manner you deem best for the
mterest of the Union Pacific Railroad Company.
Very truly yours,
Thomas A. Scottt.
Sidney Dillon, Esq., President,
Union Pacific Rliilroad Company, New York.
THE CASE IN A NUTSHELL.
Let me now, Mr. Speaker, briefly summarize what
I presented: First, that the story of my receiving
$64,000 or any other sum of money, or anything of
value, from the Union Pacific Railroad Company, di-
rectly or indirectly, or in any form, is absolutely dis-
proved by the most conclusive testimony. Second,
that no bond of mine was ever sold to the Atlantic
and Pacific, or the Missouri, Kansas and Texas R^il-
roa4 Company, and tliat not a single dollar of inoney
from either of these companies ever went to my profit
or benefit. Third, th^t instead of receiving bonds of
rf^t*.
mm'
w:
J66
LIFE OF HON. JAMES G. BLAINE.
:, '
the Little Rock and Fort Smith Road as a gratuity, I
never had one except at the regular market price ;
and instead of making a large fortune off that com-
pany, I have incurred a severe pecuniary loss from my
investment in its securities, which I still retain; aiid
out of such affairs as these grows the popular gossip
of large fortunes
amassed in Con-
gress.
I can hardly
expect, Mr.
Speaker, that any
statement from
me will stop. the
work of those
who have so in-
dustriously circu-
lated these calum-.
nies. For months
past the effort
has been ener-
getic and contin-
uous to spread
JOSEPH R. HAWLEY. these stoHcs in
private circles. Emissaries of slander have visited
editorial rooms of leading Republican papers from*
Boston to Omaha, and whispered of revelations to
'come that were too terrible even to be spoken in
loud tones, and at last the revelations have been
made. I am now^.Mr. Speaker, in the fourteenth
^*'>-
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SVA
^-^
M-
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TBB FAMOUS MULLIGAN LETTERS.
167
year of a not inactive service in this hall; I have
taken and given blows; I have no doubt said many
things in trie heat of debate that I would gladly re-
call ; I have no doubt given votes which in fuller
light I would gladly change ; but I have never done
anything in my public career for which I could be put
to the faintest blush in any presence, or for which I
cannot answer to my constituents, my conscience, and
the Great Searcher of Hearts.
FANNING THE FLAHIE OF SCANDAL.
The foregoing statement of Mr. Blaine was final
and convincing except to those who were not willing
to be convinced by any denial or any array of evi-
dence. The effect was to increase the coiiBdence his
friends and his party had reposed in him ; but there
were members of Congress and newspapers quite
ready to renew the attack. The time for holding the
Republican National Convention was not far distant,
and it was understood that Mr. Blaine was a promi-
nent candidate for the presidential nomination. The
favorite political game was played, and an attempt
was made to smirch Mr. Blaine's reputation and kill
his chances in the convention.
On the first of May it was stated with a great flour-
ish in one of the leading newspapers of New York
that Mr. Blaine had received as a gi(t certain shares
of the Kansas Pacific Railroad, and it was said that
positive proof was at hand of his then being engaged
in a lawsuit regarding these shares. It was shown
.that John E. Blaine, brother of James G., was the one
w. '.'f
If* "
>1'A
168
UFB OF RON. JAMBS O. BLAINfi.
Iff".-
interested in the lawsuit in a Kansas court ; it was
also proved by the lawyers and newspaper correspond-
ents that Mr. Blaine was not in any way interested
or concerned in the transaction. He concluded his
explanation as follows :
OPPOSED TO A FLEA-HUNT.
Having now noticed the two charges that have been
SO extensively circulated, I shall refrain from calling
the attention of the House to any others that may be
invented. To quote the language of another, " I do
not propose to make my public life a perpetual and
uncomfortable flea-hunt, in the vain efforts to run down
stories which have no basis in truth, which are usually
anonymous, and whose total refutation brings no pun-
ishment to those who have been guilty of originating
them.''
It was plain that Mr. Blaine was master of the situ-
ation, and was not likely to suffer from the attacks of
It
his enemies. He was strong in his defence ; he boldly
met every charge and it fell before him; his popu-
larity, instead of diminishing, had increased, and the
weapons hurled at him had only struck his impenetra-
ble armor and fallen harmlessly at his feet.
But he was not to be allowed to rest Acquitted
by the great tribunal of public opinion, he had still to
encounter the political venom of his accusers in Con-
gress. On the 2d of May Mr. Tarbcj:, of Massa-
chusetts, introduceld into the House a resolution call-
ing for an investigation of an alleged purchase by the
Union Pacific Railroad Company of certain bonds of
...
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THE FAMOtTS MULU6AN LETTERS.
169
the Little Rock and Fort Smith Railroad Cotn^itdiriy. It
was 'Claimed that the price paid was much greater than
the real value of the bonds.
OBJECT OF THE RESOLUTION.
The* statement of Mr. Tarbox in introducing hfe.
proposition was, that the investigation was not aimed
at Mr. Blaine, and was not to be directed to his busi-
ness transactions. As this was supposed to be a
truthful statement no objection was made, and the
inquiry was ordered.
At once it appeared that the object was directly the
opposite to what had been stated. It was another
. covert attack on Mr. Blaine. Upder the guise of an
investigation of ,a railroad transaction, he and his pri-
vate affairs were to be dragged before the nation. He
was just as ready to meet this attack as he had been
to repel others.
Ife demanded a prompt investigation, for he was
hot willing to remain a moment under suspicion. ' H^
wished to meet at once all charges brought against
him. There was no haste on the part of his enemies ;
delay was what they courted, for it would damage
Mr. Blaine's chances in the National Convention.
NEW AND STARTLING FEATURE.
Suddenly it was announced that some of Mr.
Blaine's private correspondence would be produced in
evidence* A confidential clerk, named Mulligan, had
come from Boston to Washington to testify that he
had abstracted some of Mr. Blaine's letters, showing
his transactions with certain Railroad Companies, and
■^"^^
jS*
Aw'cJ;*".
170
LIFE OF HON; J^^MES 6. BLAINE..
,4 f
these would show conclusively the crookedness of his,
dealings. With almost equal suddenness it w^rs an-,
nounced tliat Mr. Blaine had obtained possession of
his own letters, and they would not appear in evidence.
The affair was the talk of the country. Mr. Blaine's
enemies more than insinuated that he had secured
the letters in order to suppress them and stifle their
damaging disclosures. His friends were restless and
nervous, and hardly knew what to think of his actipi^^
In fact, he took the letters, not to suppress them, but
to make them public, to put the truthful construction
upon them, and not allow a misinformed investigating
committee to put an interpretation upon them which
was utterly false.
A BOLD MOVE.
Nothing could show more conclusively Mr. Blaine's
consummate generalship than his'production of this
correspondence on the floor of Congress. His ene-
mies were struck with astonishment ; his friends ex-
pressed their admiration and delight. In an instant
the whole situation had changed. There was nothing
in the letters he was ashamed of, and although Mulli-
gan could produce letters he hfd no rightwhatever to
make public, he could .not furnish any criminating evi-,
dence. The two witnesses from Boston, Fisher and
Mulligan, only gave him the opportunity to clear away
the whole mass of innuendoes, charges, whisperings,
and base -insinuations which had been industriously
gathered about his name. The investigation commit-
tee tried to obtain these letters. Mr. Blaine refused
T
£"'
tat FAMOUS lltTLUOAN LfitTEfiS.
m
to yield them up, claimed his right to hold and use
them, and in support of it brought forward the opin-
ions of ex-Judge Black, a good Democrat, and Mat-
*th6w H. Carpenter, the
distinguished Senator
from Wisconsin*
, His refusal was at-
ttibuted by many to
fear of revealing the
contents of the letters.
Judge then of their
astonishment when in
the course of his mem-
orable defence before
the House of Repre-
sentatives he held up
the parcel of letters,
and with a voice that
thrilled his auditors,
exclaimed: **l invite a. h. garland.
the confidence of 44,000,000 of my countrymen wliile
I read those letters from the desk."
^r/-i
THE GLADIATOR FACES HIS FOES.
Oil the 5th of June Mr. Blaine quietly arose in th6
Hoiise of Representatives, and said : " Mr. Speaker,
if the morning hour has expired^ I desire to speak on
a question of privilege." Whereupon Mr. Blaine
proceeded as follows :
Mr. Speaker, on the second day of May this^reso*
ludoti was passed by the House: .
J' -
172
LIFE OP HON. JAMES G. BLAINE.
il
" Whereas, it is publicly alleged, and is not denied
by the officers of the Union Pacific Railroad Company,
that that corporation did, in the year 1871 or 1872,
become the owner of certain bonds of the Little Rock .
and Fort Smith Railroad Company, for which bonds
the said Union Pacific Railroad Company paid a con-
sideration largely in excess of their market or actual
value, and that the board of directors of. said Union
Pacific Railroad Company, though urged, have ne-
glected to investigate said transaction ; therefore,
"^e iV resolved^ That the Committee on the Judici-
ary be instructed to inquire if any such transaction
took place, and, if so, what were the circumstances or
inducements thereto, from what person or persons
said bonds were obtained and upon what considera-
tion, and whether, the transaction was from corrupt
dfspjgn or in furtherante of any corrupt object; and
that the committee have power to send for p^soQS
and papers.''
AIMED AT HIMSELF.
That resolution on its face, and in its fair intent,
was obviously designed to find out whether any im-
proper thing had been done by the Union Pacific Rail-
road Company ; and of course, incidientally thereto,
to find out with whom the transaction was made.
No sooner was the sub-committee designated than
it became entirely obvious that the resolution was
solely and only aimed at me. I think there had not
been three questions asked until it was evident, that
the investigation was to be a personal one upoii me>
THE FAMOUS HULLIOAN LETTERS.
i73
and that the Union Pacific Railroad, or any other in-
tident of the transaction, was secondary, insignificant
^nd unimportant I do not complain of that; I do
not say that I had any reason to complain of it. I^
the investigation w^s to be made in that personal
sense, I was ready to meet it.
The gentleman on whose statement the accusation
rested was first called. He stated what he kn6^ from
rumor. Then there were called Mr. Rollins, Mr.
Morton, and Mr. Millard, from Omaha, a Government
director of the Union Pacific Road, and finally Thomas
A. Scott
'■■ \ THE CHARGE DISPROVED.
' The testimony was completely and conclusively in
disproof of the charge that there was any possibility
that I could have had anything to do with the transac-
tion: When the famous witness Mulligan came here
loaded with information in regard to the Fort Smith
Road, the gentleman from Virginia drew out what he
knew had no reference whatever to the question of
investigation. He then and there insisted on all my
private memoranda being allowed to be exhibited by
that man in reference to business that had no more
connection, no more relation, no more to do with that
investigation than with the North Pole.
And the gentleman tried his best also, though I be-
lieve that has been abandoned, to capture and use and
control my private correspondence^ This man has se-
liecteVf, but of correspondence running over a great
many years, letters ^ich he thought would be pecii-
%*■•
s a^^ ^
XJi
174
LIFE Of nolf: IAmes g. blaine.
t'f/^-
1'/-
liarly damaging to me. He came here loaded with
them. He came here for a sensation. He came
here primed. He came here on that particular errand.
I was advised of it, and I obtained those letters under
circumstances which havie been notoriously scattered
ove'r the United States, and are known to everybody.
I have them. I claim that I have the entire right to
those Fetters, not only by natural right, but by all the
principles and precedents of law, as the man who held
those letters in possession held them wrongfully.
VIOLATION OF PRIVATE RIGHTS.
The committee that attempted to .take those letters
from that man for use against me proceeded wrong-
fully. It proceeded in all boldness to a most defiant
violation- of the ordinary private and .personal rights
which belong to every American citizen. I wanted
the gentleman from Kentucky and the gentlenian
from Virginia to introduce that question upon this
floor, but they did not do it.
I stood up and declined, not only on the conclusions
of my own mind, but by eminent legal advice. I was
standing behind the rights which belong to every
American citizen, and if they w£tnted to treat the ques-
tion in my person anywhere in the legislative halls or
.judicial halls, I was read.y. Then there went forth
everywhere the idea and impression, that because I
would not permit that man, or any man whom I could
"prevent, from holding as a menace over my head itiy
private correspondence, there must be in it somethifig
deadly and destructive to my reputation. - -r*^ '^c
ri-lMf- .«^^Hi-^X^#fi^|^^iA ^<^'r-^AV
THE FAMOUS MULU6AN LETTEHS.
176
!r
I would like any gentleman to stand up here and
tell me that he is willing and ready to have his private
correspondence scanned over and made public for the
last eight or ten years. I would like any gentleman
to say that Does it imply guilt ? Does it imply
wrong-doing ? Does it imply any sense of weakness
that a man will protect his private correspondence ?
No, sir ; it is the first mstinct to do it, and it is the
last outrage upon any man to violate it
PRODUCES THE LETTERS.
Now, Mr. Speaker, I say that I have defied the
power. of the House to compel me to produce these
letters. I speak with^ all respect to this House. I
know its powers, and I trust I respect them. Biit I
say that this House has no more power to order what
shall be done or not done with my private corre-
spondence, than it has with what I shall do in the nur^n
ture and education of my children, not a particle.
The right is as sacred in the one case as it is in the
other. But, sir, having vindicated that right, standing
by it, ready to make any sacrifice in defence of it, here
and now, if any gentleman wants to take issue with
me on behalf of this House, I am ready for anyjexf
tremity of contest or conflict in l^ehalf of so sacred a
right And while I am so, I am not afraid to show
the letters. Thank God Almighty, I am not ashamed
to show them. There they are (holding up a package
of letters). There is the very original package. And
with some sense of humiliation, with a mortification I
do not attempt to conceal, with a sense of the outi:age
. *>i
i?f
^J'
176
UFE OF BON. JAMES O. BLAINI.
which I think any man in my position would feel, I in-
vite the confidence of forty-four millions of my country-
men, while I read those letters from this desk. (Ap-
plause.)
« • * * « • 41
This is the letter m which Mulligan says, and puts
down in his abstract, that I admitted the sixty-four
thousand dollar sale of bonds :
Washington, D. C, April iS, 1872.
My dear Mr. Fisher : — I answered you very hastily
last evening, as you said you wished for an immediate
reply, and perhaps in my hurry I did not make myself
fully understood. You have been, for some time, la-
boring under a totally erroneous impression in regard
to my results in the Fort Smith matter. The sales of
bonds which you spoke of my making, and which you
seem to have thought were for my own benefit, were
entirely otherwise. I:did not have the money in my
possession forty-eight hours, but paid it over direcdy
to the parties whom I tried, by every means in my
power, to protect from loss. I am very sure that ypu
have little idea of the labors, the losses, the efforts and
the sacrifices I have made within the past year to save
those innocent persons, who invested on my request,
from personal loss. .
And I say to you to-night, that I am immeasurably
worse off than if I had never touched the Fort Sitiith
matter. The demand you make upon me now is one
which I am entirely unable to comply with. I cannot
do it. It is not in my power. You say that "necessity
knows rio law." That applies to me as well as to yoO^
and when I have reached the point I am now at, I
simply fall back on that law. You are as well aware
\:m
■'*i'W
'\:^T*-^
THE FAMOUS MULLIGAN LETTERS.
177
^ ,
>•'.«
as I am, that the bonds are due me under the contract.
Could I have them, I could adjust many matters not
now in my power, and as long as this and other matters
remain unadjusted between us, I do not recognize the
equity, or the lawfulness, of your calling on me for a
partial settlement. I am ready at any moment to make
a full, fair, comprehensive settlement with you, on the
most liberal terms. I will not be exacting or captious
or critical, but am ready and eager to make a broad
and generous adjustment with you, and if we can't
agree ourselves, we can select a mutual friend who can
easily compromise all points of difference between us.
You will, I trust, see that I am disposed to meet you
in a spirit of friendly cordiality, and yet with a sense of
self-defence that impels me to be frank and expose to
you my pecuniary weakness.
Witn very kind regards to Mrs. Fisher, I am yours
truly,
, J. G. Blaine.
W, Fisher, Jr., Esq.
ARKANSAS LAND GRANT.
I now pass to a letter dated Augusta, Me., October
4, 1869, but I read these letters now somewhat in their
order. Now to this letter I ask the attention of the
House. In the March session of 1869, the first one at
which I was Speaker, the extra session of the Forty-
first Congress, a land grant in the State of Arkansas
to the Little Rock Road was reported. I never remem-
ber to have heard of the road, until at the last night
of t|ie session, when it was up here for consideration.
The gendeinan in Boston with whom I had relatioyis
did not have anything to do with that road for nearly
''^1
'.'i;
;i;'
178
LITE OF HON. JAMES O. BLAIITI,
■v-.
C-
three or four months after that time. It is in the light
of that statement that I desire that letter read.
In the autumn, six or eight months afterward, I was
looking over the Globe, probably with some curiosity,
if not pride, to see the decisions I had m*ade the first
five weeks I was speaker. I had not until then recalled
this decision of mine, and when I came across it, all the
facts came back to me fresh, and I wrote this letter :
(Personal.) ,
Augusta, Me., October 4. 1869.
My Dear Sir:-^ spoke to you a siiort time ago
about a point of interest to your railroad company that
occurred at the last session of the Congress.
It was on the last night of the session, when the bill
renewing the land grant to the State of Arkansas for
the Litde Rock Road was reached, and Julian, of In-
diana, chairman of the Public Lands Committee, and,
by right, entitled to the floor, attempted to put on the
bill as an amendment, the Fremont El Paso scheme — a
scheme probably well known to Mr. Caldwell. The
House was thin, and the lobby in the Fremont interest
had the thing all set up, and Julian's amendment was
likely to prevail if brought to a vote. Roots, and the
other members from Arkansas, who were doing their
best for their own bill (to which there seemed to be no
objection), were in despair, for it was well known that
the Senate was hostile to the Fremont scheme, atnd if
the Arkansas bill had gone back to the Senate with
Julian's amendments, the whole thing could have gone
on the table and slept the skep of aeadi.
In this dilemma, Roots came to me to know what oh
earth he could do under the rules : for he said it was
vital to his constituents that the bill should |)a8s. \xxAA
»♦&-
^.?^...
TBE FAMOUS HULUGAN LETTERS.
170
him that Julian's amendment was entirely out of order,
because not germane ; but he had not sufficient confi-
dence in his o^n knowledge of the rules to make the
point, but he said General Logan was opposed to the
Fremont scheme and would probably make the point.
I sent my page to General Logan with the suggestion,
and he at once made the point. I could not do other-
wise than sustain it, and so the bill was freed from the
mischievous amendment moved by Julian, and at once
passed withput objection.
At that time I had never seen Mr. Caldwell, but you
can tell him that without knowing it, I did him a great
favor. Sincerely yours, '
J. G. Blaine.
W. Fisher, Jr., Esq., 24 India Street, Boston.
• •• ■
The amendment referred to in that letter will be
found in The Congressional Globe of the First Session
of the Forty-first Congress, page 702. That was before
the Boston persons had ever touched the road.
"THOSE BONDS WERE NOT MINE."
There is mentioned in another letter j^6,ooo of land-
grant bonds of the Union Pacific Railroad for which I
stood as only part owner; these were only in part mine.
As I have started to make a personal explanation, I
want to make a full explanation in regard to^this mat-
ter. Those bonds were not mine except in this sense :
In 1869, a lady who is a member of my family and
whose financial affairs I have looked after for many
years-^many gentlemen will know to whom I refer
without my being more explicit— bought, on the rec-
plhmendatioii of Mr, Hooper, $6,000 in land-grant
5
r J'-,*
180
LIFE OF HON. JAMES 6. BLAINE.
■■.-i
^■^>.
bonds of the Union Pacific Railroad as they were
issued in 1869. She got them on what. was called the
stockholder's basis ; I ^hink it was a very favorable
basis on which they distributed the bonds. These
$6,000 of land-grant bonds were obtained in that way.
In 1 871 the Union Pacific Railroad Company broke
down, and these bonds fell so that they were worth
about forty cents on the dollar. She was anxious to
make herself safe, and I had so much confidence in
thie Fort Smith land bonds, that I proposed to her to
make an exchange. The six bonds were in my pos-
session, and I had previously advanced money to her
for certain purposes, and held a part of these bonds
as a security for that advance. The bonds, in that
sense and in that sense only, were mine — that they
were security for the loan which I had made. They
were all literally hers ; they were all sold finally for
her account — not one of them for me. I make this
statement in order to be perfectly fair.
WHAT "SOMEBODY ELSE" SAID.
I do not wish to detain the House, but I have one
or two more observations to make. The specific
charge that went to the committee, as it affects me, is
whether I was a party in interest to the $64^000 trans-
action ; and I submit that up to this time there has not
been one particle of proof before the committee, sus-
taining that charge. Gentlemen have said that they
heard somebody else say, and generally, when that
somebody else was brought on the stand, it appeared
that he did not say it at all. Colonel Thomas A.
THE FAMOUS MULU6AN LETTERS.
181
Scott swore very positively and distinctly, under the
most rigid cross-examination, all about it. Let me
call attention to that letter of mine which Mulligan
si*/s refers to that I ask your attention, gentlemen,
as closely as if you were a jury, while I show the ab-
surdity of that statement.
It is in evidence that, with the exception of a small
fraction, the bonds which were sold to parties in Maine
were first mortgage bonds. It is in evidence, over and
over again, that the bonds which went to the Union
Pacific Road were land-grant bonds. Therefore it is a
moral impossibility that the bonds taken up to Maine
should have gone to the Union Pacific Railroad. They
were of different series, different kinds, different colors,
everything different, as different as if not issued within
a thousand miles of each other. So, on its face, it is
shown that it could not be so.
A GREAT DEAL OF HEARSAY.
There has not been, I say, one positive piece of tes-
timony in any direction. They sent to Arkansas to
get some hearsay about bonds. They sent to Boston
to get some hearsay. Mulligan was contradicted by
Fisher, and Atkins and Scott swore directly against
him. Morton, of Morton, Bliss & Co., never heard my
name in the matter. Carnegee, who negotiated the
note, never heard my name in that connection. Rol-
lins said it was one of the intangible rumors he spoke
of as floating in the air. Gendemen who have lived any
time in Washington, need not be told that intangible
rumors get very considerable circulation here ; and if
,-,fs
182
LIFE OF HON. JAMES 6. BLAINE.
a man is to be held accountable in public opinion for
intangible rumors, who in the House will stand ?
Now, gentlemen, those letters I have read were
picked out of correspondence extending over fifteen
years. The man did his worst, the very worst he
could, out of the most intimate business correspond-
ence of my life. I ask, gendemen, if any of you, and
I ask it with some feeling, can stand a severer scrutiny
of, or more rigid investigation into, your private cor-
respondence ? That was the worst he could do.
THAT CABLE DESPATCH.
There is one piece of testimony wanting. There is
but one thing to close the complete circle of evidence^
There is but one witness whom I could not have, to
whom the Judiciary Committee, taking into account
the great and intimate coni\ection he had with the
transaction, was asked to send a cable despatch, and
I ask the gentleman from Kentucky if that cable de-
spatch was sent to him ?
Mr. Frye. Who?
Mr. Blaine. To Josiah Caldwell.
Mr. Knott. I will reply to the gentleman that
Judge Hamton and myself have both endeavored to
get Mr. Caldwell's address, and have not yet got it.
Mr. Blaine. Has the genrieman from Kentucky re-
ceived a despatch from Mr. Caldwell ?
Mr. Knott. I will explain that directly.
Mr. Blaine. I want a categorical answer.
Mr. Knott. I have received a despatch purporting
to be from Mr. Caldwell.
-4-
?».-
m:\-it
J ■>'::; :^. i\'?-'
,-^:-
'•'"II'^?'
JIBE FAMOUS MULUGAX LKTtfiHS.
183
e
n
:o
It
le
id
It
;o
K
Mr. Blaine. You. did?
Mr. Knott. How did you know I got it ?
Mr. Blaine. When did you get it? I want the
gentleman from Kentucky to answer when he got it.
Mr. Knott. Answer my, question first.
Mr. Blaine. I never heard of it until yesterday.
Mr. Knott. How did you hear it ?
Mr. Blaine. I heard that you got a despatch last
Thursday morning, at eight o'clock, from Josiah Cald-
well, completely and absolutely exonerating me from
this charge, and you have suppressed it. (Protracted
applause upon the floor and in the galleries.) I want
the gentleman to answer. (After a pause.) Does
the gentleman from Kentucky decline to answer ?.
A BOLD CHARGE. .
The gendeman from Kentucky in responding prob-
ably, I think, from what he said, intended to convey^
the idea that I had some illegitimate knowledge of
how that despatch was obtained. I have had no com-
munication with Josiah Caldwell. I have had no
means of-knowing from the telegraph office whether
the despatch was received. But I tell the gentleman
from Kentucky that murder will out, and secrets will
leak. And I tell the gentleman now, and I am pre-
pared- to state to this House, that at eight o'clock on
last Thursday morning, or thereabouts, the gentleman
from Kentucky received and receipted for a message
addressed to him from Josiah Caldwell, in London, en-
tirely corroborating and substantiating the statements
of Thomas A. Scott, which he had just read in the
-i^^
'*-':■
'■^
184
LIFE OF HON. JAMES G. BLAINE.
r\-
New York papers, and entirely exculpating me from
the charge which I. am bound to believe, from the
suppression of that report, that the gentleman is
anxious to fasten upon me. (Protracted applause
from the floor and galleries.)
MR. BLAINE THE VICTOR. *
All accounts agree in representing the scene in the
House during this speech as one unparalleled. The
grand bearing, the acute reasoning, the eloquent
periods and triumphant vindication of the accused,
made a profound impression upon those who were
present on that memorable day. Equally telling was
the effect upon the country at large. The man Mulli-
gan had done his worst; he had picked a number of
letters from a correspondence extending over many
years, had separated them from their connection, and
with infernal ingenuity had twisted their meaning to
his own contemptible purposes. Suc;< rascality de-
served the red-hot condemnation it received.
The scene was one of moral sublimity when Mr.
Blaine turned to his abashed accusers, and with all the
magnetic, overwhelming force of which he was capable,
roared out in thunder tones: "You have received
from Josiah Caldwell a despatch completely and ab-
) solutely exonerating mef, and you have suppressed
it ! ** The day on which Mr. Blaine made complete
his vindication was a historic day in Congress, one
that can never be forgotten by any who were wit-
nesses of the extraordinary scene.
If
^'"Si
. i^r*':~-J
h
CHAPTER X.;
<<The Plumed Knight" and the Presidency.
The desire of Mr. Blaine's friends to secure for
him the nomination for the presidency took definite
shape in 1876. No one supposed his name could be
kept out of the Convention, for his long and brilliant
public career pointed him put as one most worthy to
receive the honor of a nomination. It was not certain,
however, that he could overcome the various prefer^
ences which always appear in^a national convention,
and gain a majority of the delegates.
There was a widespread feeling in the Republican
party.that too many reproaches gathered about Presi-
dent Grant's last administration to admit of his re-nom-
ination. The breath of scandal mingled with the winds
that floated the Nation's flag. There was the scandal
of the Whisky Ring; another of the Department of the
Interior ; another of the War Department, and many
whisperings and insinuations of widespread corruption
in high places.
Any man who went boldly into the den and dragged
out hidden frauds or dishonesties was popular with the
people. The Attorney-General, Mr. Bristow, had done.
this, and by reason of having uncovered the whisky
frauds was quite the man of the hour. But he had
(I8B)
186
LIFE OF HON. JAMES O. BLAINE.
powerful rivals in Senator Conkling, of New York, and
ex-Governor Morton,- of Indiana.
ALL HOSTILE TO MR. BLAINE.
Superadded to Mr. Conkling's pre-eminent ability,
which not even his political opponents ever disputed,
and the commanding position he held in the Senate,
he had the support of the administration. " Washing-
ton " was hurrahing for
him, and all that h
meant by that term was
enlisted in his behalf.
Mr. Morton had been
the " war-governor " of
Indiana, had made him-
self famous by a . bril-
liant record, was a rank
foe to the solid South,
and was making the
most of his past ser-
vices to influence the
Convention in his favor.
Unfr; h'^nately on the
Sunday morning pre-
ceding the Convention
at Cincinnati, Mr. Blaine met with a partial sunstroke.
In company with Mrs. Blaine he was on his way to
church when, being overcome by the heat, he was
compelled to sit down, and afterward to request that
he might be carried home. This untoward event
had some effect upon his prospects in the Convention,
EUGENE HALE.
BLAINE AND THE PRESIDENOT.
137
'
yet his friends exerted themselves to the utmost, and
did their best to hold his forces in line of battle.
The report was industriously circulated at Cincinnati
that he had been stricken with apoplexy and his illness
was quite too serious to admit of his undergoing the
strain of a presidential campaign.
AN ENCOURAGING TELEGRAM.
Th.e anxiety of Mr. Blaine's friends was allayed by a
telegram received from him by Congressman Eugene
Hale, of Maine, which read as follows:
I am entirely convalescent, suffering only from phys-
ical weakness. Impress upon my friends the great
depth of gratitude I feel for the unparalleled stead-
fastness with which they have adhered to me in my
hour of trial. J. G. Blaine.
The decisive hour in the Convention was awaited
with breathless suspense. The excitement was intense,
not only at Cincinnati but in all parts of the country;
excited crowds stood impatiently before bulletin-boards
to obtain the news, and the public fever plainly indi-
cated that great interest was felt in the result.
At length the time came for launching Mr. Blaine's
name before the Convention^.and Colonel Robert G.
Ingersbll, of Illinois, ascended the platform. His ap-
pearance was the signal for an outburst of enthusiasm
which shook the immense building, and seemed to roll
its waves to the Atlantic on the one side and the
Pacific on the other. He rose to the dignity of the
occasion and delivered an address which has been
famous since the hour that gave it birth.
T7T„
I&\
;^v..'-iv.
188
LIFE OF HON. JAKES O. BLAINE.
b.^'
It was in this celebrated speech that Mr. Blaine was
first called " The Plumed Knight," an inspiring name
ever after designating his heroic spirit, his courageous
bearing and manly characteristics, all of which united
to make him the most magnetic political leader of his
time.
SPEECH OF ROBERT G. INGERSOl L.
Massachusetts may be satisfied with the loyalty of
Benjamin H. Bristow ;
so am I; but if any
man nominated by this
convention cannot
carry the State of
Massachusetts, I am not
satisfied with the loyalty
of that State. If the
nominee of this conven-
tion cannot carry the
grand old Common-
wealth of MasssTchusetts
by seventy-five thousand
majority, I would advise
them to sell out Faneuil
Hall as a ■ Democratic
headquarters. I would
advise them to take from Bunker Hill that old monu-
ment of glory.
The Republicans of the United States demand as
their leader in the great contest of 1876 a man of in:
tdligence, a man of integrity, a man of well-known
ROBERT G. INGERSOLL.
:U,
BLAINE AND THE PRESlbENOT.
189
and approved political opinions. They demand a re-
former after as well as before the election. They de-
mand a politician in the highest, broadest and best
"• sense — a man of superb moral courage. They de-
mand a man acquainted with public affairs, with the
wants of the people ; with not only the requirements
of the hour, but with the demands of the future.
They demand a man broad enough to comprehend the ^
relations of this government to the other nations of
the earth. They demand a man well versed in the
powers, duties, and prerogatives of eacli and every
department of this Government.
They demand a man who will sacredly preserve the
financial honor of the United States; one who knows
enough to know that the national debt must be paid
through the prosperity of this people ; one who knows
enough to know that all the financial theories in the
~ world cannot redeem a single dollar; one who knows
enough, to know that all the money must be made, not
by 4aw, but by labor ; one who knows enough to know
that the people of the United States have the industry
to make the money and the honor to pay it over just
as fast as they make it.
The Republicans of the United States demand a man
who knows that prosperity and resumption, when they
come, must come together ; that when they come, they
will come hand in hand through the golden harvest
fields ; hand in hand by the whirling 'spindles and the
turning wheels ; hand jn hand past the open furnace,
doors; hand in hand by the flaming forges; hand in
■ '•■m
•J ^1
»• *,
1. ■H,'J^'%. ■-vt •'*'^
190
LIFE OF HON. JAMES O. BLAINli.
fire — greeted
hand by the chimneys filled with eag(
and grasped by the countless sons of toil.
This money has to be dug out of the earth. You
cannot make it by passing resolution:: in a political
convention.
The Republicans of the United States want a nr.an
who knows that the government should protect every
citizen, at home and abroad ; who knows that any
government that will not defend its defenders, and
protect its protectors, is a disgrace to the map of the
world. They demand a man who believes in the eter-
nal separation and divorcement of Church and School.
They demand a man whose political reputation is
spotless as a star ; but they do not demand that their
candidate shall have a certificate of moral character
signed by a Confederate Congress. The man who
has, in full, heaped and rounded measure, all these
splendid qualifications, is the present grand and gal-
lant leader of the Republican party — ^James G. Blaine.
Our country, crowned with the vast and marvelous
achievements of its first century, asks for a man wor-
thy of the past and prophetic of her future ; asks for
a man who has the audacity of genius ; asks for a man
who is the grandest combination of heart, conscience
and brain beneath her flag. Such a man is James
G. Blaine.
For the Republican host, led by this intrepid man»
there can be no defeat.
This is a grand year — a year filled with the recol-
lections of the Revolution ; filled with proud and ten^
BLAINE AND THE FRESIDENOT.
191
der memories of the past ; with the sacred legends of
liberty ; a year in which the sons of freedom will drink
from the fountains of enthusiasm ; a year in which the
people call for a man who has preserved in Congress
what our soldiers won upon the field ; a year in which
they call for the man who has torn from the throat of
treason the tongue of slander ; for the man who has
snatched the mask of Democracy from the hideous
face of rebellion ; for the man who, like an intellectual
athlete, has stood iii the arena of debate and chal-
lenged all comers, and who is still a total strange^r to
defeat.
Like an armed warrior, like a plumed knight, James
G. Blaine marched down the halls of the American
Congress, and threw his shining lance full and fair
against the brazen foreheads of the defamers of his
country and the maligners of his honor.
For the Republican party to desert this gallant
leader now, is as though an army should desert their
general upon the field of battle.
James G. Blaine is now and has been for years the
bearer of the sacred standard of the Republican party.
I call it sacred, because no human being can stand be-
neath its folds without becoming and without remain-
ing free.
Gentlemen of the convention, in the name of the
great Republic, the only Republic that ever existed
upon the earth ; in the name of all her defenders and
of all her supporters ; in the name of all her soldiers
living; in the name of all h^r soldier's dead upon the
.■<•
9*
[»*-
^ m
1.1 i;' « TwTLn >}?
192
LIFE OF HON. JAMES 0. BLAINB.
field of battle, and in the liame of those who
in the skeleton .clutch of famine at Andersonville aiid i
ILibby, whose sufferings he so vividly remembers, lilttti-.
ois — Illinois nominates for the next President of this
country, that prince of parliamentarians-^that leadef^
of leaders — ^James G. Blaine.
Maine sent us to this magnificent Convention mUk
a memory of her own salvation from impending pCfiil .
fresh upon her. To you representatives of 50,ooo^QiNS»
of the American people who have met here to eounif#^
how the Republic can be saved, she says, '■**.Kpps^9^il0
atives of the people, take the man, the tnte niiiii^^i^^^
staunch man, for your leader, who has just- saved ia(|,
and he will bring you to safety and certain victory*^'
RESULT OF THE BALLOTING^
Early in Mr. Blaine's career it becamei an undife^i
stood thing that whenever his name was mentioified HI '
a popular assembly it would be attended with demci^'
strations of the wildest excitement and most ^ntlui7^
siastic approval. It was so on this occasion. AU tblif
has ever been said or Written concerning the gn»t
uprising of thousands of people in a national coiiigli*
tion when the name of some favorite candidate was
mentioned, would £3ul to give an adequate descrif^on
of the unparalleled scene when the " Plumed Knight'^
was placed in nomination.
The first ballot gave Mr. Blaine 285 Votes. The
wl&ole number of votes in the convention was 756, and
379 were necessary to a diciice. After the Jf^M^&J^
had ended all compliments to " favorite sons " the real
,;i4^''
led' '•>■•;:■
HI- . ..
rltb
mi
I',
-Si:
HI
was
The
, aiid
real
RUTHERFORD B. HAYES.
U
aw)
i j «ii ll) Mf ii iiii'i i uj ' j
194
LIFE OF HON. JAMES O. BLAINE.
■.:£■
< ^vl
tW-nJK, j
.'i.^'
'^r.
Ki^-
•f ;
contest began. After several ballots which m^^de It
evident that neither Conkling, Morton, Bristow nor
Hartranft could be nominated, the inevitable " dark
horse" was trotted out, and the popular candidates
were defeated. On the seventh ballot Rutherford B.
Hayes, of Ohio, received 384 votes and Mr. Blaint^
35 1 . This was an unex-
pected outcome of the
contest, but when it be-
came evident that none
of Mr. Blaine's rivals
could be nominated
they united to compass
his defeat. Like a solid
phalanx his frienda and
supporters stood by him
to the end.
HE HEARS THE NEWS.
The telegraph flashed
the result of the ballot-
ing across the continent
With his accustomed
BENJAMIN H. HILL. coolness and self-pos-
session Mr. Blaine was awaiting the news in Washing-
ton. A gentleman who was with him gives the (bllow-
ing account of what transpired at Mr. Blaine's rest-
dence.
"I happened to be in his library In Washingtoai^ften
the balloting was going on in Cincinna^ on that hot
July day in 1&76. A telegraph inslmment «vt» on his
BLAINE ANI> THE ^R^SID^NCY.
J-1
'IBS
U
1 ( ifft d^eft operator, was mahtpulatintg its key. Dt^j>2ttches
^'"J «ame from dozens of friends giving the last votes; Wliich
^'♦%ttljr lacked a few of a nomination, and everybody pre-
•^i ^tit^d the success of Blaine on the next ballot* 0nly
tmfc^f persons beside Mr. Sherman were in the r66m.
.xft^was a moment cf great excitement- /The next vote
^f^Wsis quieriy ticked over the wire, and ||^ the next
'i*knn6irnced the nomination <)^|i{Ir/ Hayes, ;-^
!)no;Mt^r^ Blaine was the o^ly cool person iriij^lpart-
^ '^itf^nt It was such a reversal of all anticip^^ill and
^>'^kssU lances that self-poss^sion was out of the^|it^t|on
^'^^xCept With Mr. Blaine. life had -ji^left his-^^^er
[»1 two days of unconsciousness with sunstrok^^|>£t ihe
L'^a^ as self-possessed as the portraits on the^|p. He
i^»-i:tierely gave a murniur of suirprise, and before|inybody
had recovered f^om the surprise, he had wr^ten, in a
.;^nn, fluent hand, three despatches^— nOiS^ in jjny pos-
*> 'Session— one to Mr. Hayes of congratulatioffcii-..
jj^«;;ro Gov. R. B. Haves; C5c^inb«s,Qf#;^^^^^v^^^;^^^ ,
T; ]***]' offer you my sincer^it cpngratoiatiOns Ofi y
'^^oijiihation. It will be alike my highest pleasure &s
;^^j^dl as rtiy first political duty to do the utmost in my
ppower t:o prortote your election. The earliest moments
• of my returning and confirmed health will be devoted
to ^curing you as large a vote in Maine as' she would
have given for myself. J. G. Blain%'
^ "Anotftfef despatch \«iik sent to the Maiit^ dfetegates
^t tl^emking them for their devotion, and artOthef to^ii-
gi.ig^e Hlile and Mf- Fiye, asking them to go pei^bhklly
..^[WWUK^^/ttU'/hkWcJ V JM^4ir»ta^
ir.'.
\
I.
1«6
UFB OF HON. lAMES O. BLAIKE.
to Mr.^Hayes, at G>lumbus, and present his good-^!t»
with promises of hearty aid in the campaign. 'Hie
occasion affected him no more dian the ne>ws of a
servant quitting his employ would have done. Half
an hour afterward he was out with Secretary Fi^h in
an open carriage, receiving the cheers of the thousand's
of people who were gathered about the telegraph
bulletins."
. ON THE STUMP%
Although Mr. Blaine had been defeated in the
Convention he did not "sulk in his tent" He was
too loyal to his party and country to allow his interest
in political issues tQ cool. He did not measure his
ditty to the nation by his own successes .or defeats.
The nation is greal;er than any man or any party ; he
was a patriot, not a pretender. Men come and "go;
principles and ideas abide ; he was enlisted in behalf
of the principle, the idea, and not for the man. The
man, at best, was but a rej^esentativ^ of the thoughts
and measures of the hour; not himself, but what he
stood for— this was the matter of gravest concern.
AcGfrdingly Mr.. Blaine was found ardently sup'^
porting the nominees and platform of the Repobti-
ean Convention. He threw his whole soul into the
campaign.. Immense and enthusiastrc throngs ati
tended his triumphal progress through twelve Stated
in which he spoke, and never did king or conqueror
receive a more hearty ovation than that wlitch greeted
him at every step. His audiences in some iniitan<eiis
reached 39,000 persons; his nilit<e Ji£Ki po^trait^^reiM^
IC^'."-
■ .','. ■'''-i,-
■y> '^■
BLAINE AND THE PBBSIDENCT.
IW
Kiftrrteid In bannered processions; his coming was
everywhere the signal for a popular uprising, and dny
•one not acquainted with the circumstances would
have supposed he, and not another, was the preisi-
dential nominee, and everybody was going to vote ^cm*
xic|i;iQ SQUIRE brown's HORSE.
Hon. Allen G. Thurman, of Ohio, tells an an<6cddt^
of Mr, Blaine which
showis one secret of his
unbounded popularity.
Ili illustrates his mar-
\feUous memory, and his
personal power ov«r
men. He had a way of
maktag theot feel he
was specially interested
\m them ; 1^ could re^
member names and
faoiost and recall them
after long perlock of
time. Judge Thurmaa's
aoecdoke is as foUows :
AU the peo{de of
both parties turned put
to hear Blatne^v^l'have among my clients a pfbmi>^
asflft old &rmer» who is one of the wealthiest men
Ik thA" county. He was a good Republican and
i^tsor J^me got tlMrough speaking, and was shaking
ll«wls:w& e^ici^faod^ my old <:lieiit ki the
. •«' '
ALLEN G. THURMAN.
--«
~»'^*^
■I
r .
X
i^^
/
J s •
tr6wd ld6ldng^on at the orator of the day tz^it^^W'^
f said to him, "Squire Brown" (that iW libtW'^
naitt^; but it will do here), "would yoa like to fctioi*^^^
Mr. Blaine?" *ri^jf( ni ifjriftn:Hb^ ync I0'
Of course he said he would ; so I took him to the
Maine state^^man and introduced him, at the same
time telling Blaine who he was. Blaine's eye was in-
stantly caught by the handsome appearance and style
of his trotters. One of them particularly pleased
him^ and he said to my client that the colt should
be trained, as it would .make a very superior trot-
ter. Well, after a five minutes' talk, Blaine went
away. •
Iii 1880 he came into Ohio again 'and to my town.
He spoke to an immense audience as usual. In the
crowd was my old Republican dient, Squire Brown.
He was waiting in the outskirts of the audience, won-
dering if Mr. Blaine would remember him if he went
to speak to him. All at once Blaine caught sight of
the old man. He went straight up to him, called his
name, and after a few words said :
" Squire Brown, did you ever train the near colt
of that team you were driving when I was here four
years ago ? I have often thought «of that colt, and I
believe he would make a great horse if trained."
" Now," said Judge Thurman, " here was a man
who had made a canvass for the Presidency, and
had a nation's labor almost on his shoulders, and
yet so wonderful wsts his memory that the least in-
\
1
t
to
BMJMfi AND Tail PREStOEKCr.
199
Cideiit6xed itself there and was never forgottenv I
have never known any one in my day with a memory
like that» and now I begin to understand why it is
that Blaine's popularity is so much greater than that
of any other man in his party." - :
»<
■■*■.■■ n .
:A,-Jt::
■^i^-r^i
-f -;», ^ *>**
1%
CHAPTER XI.
Blaine in the United States Senate^
Mr. Blaine was appointed by the Governor of
Maine, July 19, 1^76, to be United States Senator to
fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of Senator
Morrill, who then, became Secretary of the Treasury,
and took his seat in that august body at the opening
of its session in December, 1876. <
Many regretted that the able Speaker of the House,
the dashing and brilliant debater in Committee of the
Whole, should, as they expressed it, be shelved in the
Senate. Four years passed, and it would be hard to
nanie a man who had been less securely shelvedi-ii
Senator who moved so promptly to the fronti Thfe
Senate contained a large number of able men and
some skillful debaters, but in logical, off-hand discus*
sion, in quick perception and full command of every
resource, it never contained a man superior to Mr.
Blaine.
His career in the Senate was as active*as that in
the House. He took a promineht part in every ifflK
portant debate, and though not fearing to differ frbm*
Siis party, was always a strongs party man, &!>d one of
the recdgnized leaders on the R^publldinside. : ^ "
'
1
■v-::|
- I
i
I
K«^,
?Tr^^Wn.
i
'
1
fiLAtNt m tBE UKlt^D StAf£S SKKATE. 261
ADDRESS TO HIS CONSTITUENTS.
He was subsequently elected for the unexpired
l^rm and for th6 ensuing term expiring in 1883. On
Mis appointment he wrote to the people of his Con-
gressional District a farewell address, in which he said:
Beginning with 186.2 you have by continuous elec-
tions sti]^n;^as your representative to the Congress
of the United States. For such marked confidence I
have endeavored to return the most zealous and de-
>^ted service in my power, and it is certainly not
uril^ut a feeling of pain tliat I now surrender a trust
%{ which I have always felt so signally honored.
:>: It has been my boast in public and in private that
i^ inan on the floor of Congress ever represented lat
constituency mofe dbtioiguished for inteUigence» for
plktriotism^ for public and personal virtue. The cor-
dial si^port you have so uniformly given me through
ihc^sf^ fourteen^ eventful years is the chief bono* of my
Ut(^ los closing the intimate t'slatlons I have so long
^Id widi tlie people of this district it is agreat satis-
^^tlon^. to^ me -IQ k^w that with returning health I
^Hall enter upoix a field of duty in which I can still
serve thenn in qommon with the larger constituency oC
#iic|i they foirm a part , i'
A GLOWING TRIBUTE.
n TM Kmn^ 7ourm^ of Ws Slate,^ well ifepresent-
^ the ^flitimfeni of the public in the State, said : -
M -^f F^Mrl»eifc yeae^ af^y staofdi^g in tfee conventbn
at which he wft» first nominated, Mr* Blaioc pledged
'•v^l
■-■''i
„' 4 ■
203
LIFK OF HON. JAMBS &, BLAINK
support to the best of his ability the policy of Abra^
ham Lincoln to subdue the rebellion, and then aiid
there expressed plainly the idea that Slavery must and'
ought to be abolished to save the Union. That he-
has kept his pledge faithfully his constituents know
and feel, and the records of Congress attest \mi^-io,:-
" To this district his abilities were freely given, ^^n^
as he rose in honor in the House and in the public es»
timation he reflected honor and gave strength to the
constituency that supported hinn. £very step he made >
in advance was a gain for them. It was a grand things
for this district to have as its Representative in Coiu
gress for six years the Speaker of the House, fillin^xj
the place next in importance to that of President of; c .
the Unite4 .S^tes witfi matchless ability/ h 'm rflnb -
' TAKES UP NEW DUTIES. ' '
"It was a grander thing when he took the lead of
the minority in the House last December, routed the^
Democratic majority, and drove back in dismay the,
ex-Confederates who were intending and expecttngr
through the advantage they had already gained ta
grasp the supreme power in the Nation and wield it
in the interest of the cause of secession and rebellion
revived. For what he has done as their representa? :
tivein Qongress, never will thisllld. district of Maine ^
forget to honor the name of James G. Blaine. It will '
live in the hearts of this people even as the name of
Henry Clay is still loved by the people of his old d^«Kl
trict in JKentucky^^V t^fJV^r^t nt
•*,■;■ t;?;-w.
-\ ■
I ^--^r t-j " 5 .
Ifi:
BLAINS IK THS tTKTniD StATBS 'S£NATE. 20d
duJtifl^^, and hhi, prestige in the House and his great
pibpularity 'with the people made him a prominent
fi|giire in his new position. His progressive nature
had little regard for the tradition of that body, which
expects new members to listen to their elders instead
of pushing forward in debates. He could not reriiain
sllo3t on questions upon which he was well informed,
and so he at once became a debater in the Senate.
Me made a strong speech in favor of restricdnjg
Giinese immigration, which was much censured and
much praised, according to the point of view of his
critics. He voted against the Electoral Commission
bi^HiHe opposed the Bland silver bill in a vigorous
speeth, and lavored the coinage of an honest silver
dollar. The question of the restoration of the Amer-
ican carrying trade upon the seas received a great deal
of atitention from him, and his speeches and letters on
this subject attracted much attention. One of these
speeches wias made at a New York Chamber of Com-
mterc&dtnner, and was accepted as a masterly presen-
tation of the subject
■i'i ' A PLOT FRUSTRATEa
Mr. Blaine's sagacity, coolness and wisdom as a
party leader were conspicuous demonstrated in the
measoifes he took to circumvent the Democratic plot
forstealing the State Government of Maine in 1879^ by
fraudulendy counting out Republican members of the
L^iftlature. All the advantages, save that of being
in the right, were with his opponents at the stait. His
suj^^rs \(rere e^^f^ to j^iort to( arms as the ortly^
'S~^'-''
w;
W.J1 ."♦i*'l|i i''V'
^ •■,,'■ ■•'■'■
1 ^ ,1, Mil' ' ii j - ' ■ '/ i i jam^' i ij w . ''i.fLiV< >i '^' ■ i*t i >i n«'M?i'f7 ' r' NiM
204
Lt»t or flOK. JAMSS 6. BLAIIIB.
L»
means of obtaining justice, but they were restrained*
by him.
His plan was first to arouse public sentiment by ex*^
posing the enormity of the plot, next to tangle up his
antagonists in a web of contradictions, and then, after
obtaining the judgment of the Supreme Court, to seize
and hold the legislative halls. It was completely suc^'
cessiul, and the conspiracy became impotent and
ridiculous.
His position on the Chinese question was the resuft
of a thorough investigation of the subject in all its'
bearings, and when a conclusion had teen reached, he
threw all the force of his genius and ability in opposi"
tion to an unlimited immigration of those people to
this country. Thb action made him the most popular
statesman on the Pacific coast, and the people of those
States gave him the most (tecided manifestations of
their esteem and confidence. His independence of
a^tioh made him friends and enemies, but apparently
indifff^rent to personal interests or popular clamor, he
boldly proclaimed and defended hia convictions. He
was no time-serving politician.
A STRONG PROTECnomST.
He never waited to ascertain the current of public
opinion and then drift with k. On the contrary he was
a born leader, who made pubHc opinion, and his' ad-
vanced ideas led him to the front, while his magnetism
brought a host of follower He possessed those quaU
i|:tes which make a military comntandef great;; « di))lo«-
nuit effective^ '>iid a stat^ihaft popt^ar; Hii pmMm
ol
'^Wj>y*/ c
' JSli,
BLAINE IN THE UNITED STATES SENATE.
206
on the tariff question wad in strict harmony with his
party, and ever since he entered the halls of legislat^n
he advocated the doctrine of protection to labor.
In the Senate, as in the House, Mr. Blaine was a
staqnch advocate of a protective tariff.
On the 2 2d of April, 1878, he offered the following
resolutions:
[.Resolved^ That any radical change in our present
tariff laws, would in the judgment of the Senate, be
inopportune, would needlessly derange the business
interests of the country, and would seriously retard
that return to prosperity for which all should earnestly
co-operate.
.JResolvedt Thait in the judgment of the Senate, it
should be the fixed policy of this government to so
maintain our tariff for revenue as to afford adequate
protection to American labor.
On the 1st of May, 1878, Mr. Blaine called up his
resolutions and urged their passage in a stormy speech,
which, however, was ineffectual at the time.
HIS VIEWS ON PUBLIC QUESTIONS.
In the Senate Mr. Blaine was as firm an advocate
of the principles and measures of his party as he had
. been in the House of Representatives. There was
no wavering. The old classic saying that they do not
chs^nge their characters who change their skies applied
to him ; and he was the same man under the roof of
the Senate Chamber that he was before taking his
seat in that'august body.
Jiir: ]^e miiin he supportea the policy of Pi^esident
Im^-^Wk^:^^''^^^''
i);Tli)iiiilji'iun.':«rM''VM i ' »
U "W
»«l-A'MS««MIBa<..'
206
LIFE OP BOK. JAMBS 0. BLAINl4^
! ..
.1.
Hayes, but did not approve of the President's ao^n
in recognizing the Democratic goyemment ih SDme
? States of the South. His views were broad ; hisiange
of vision took in the whole country. WhateVerwas
American in the highest sense of the term, whateycr
would advance the welfare and prosperity of the whole
country, found in him an earnest advocate. Moreover,
he boldly proclaimed his belief in popular rights, tlie
rights of the whole people; these were not to be
trampled down by any false theory of State sover-
eignty. iltmrK; hui //
SPEECH ON CHINESE IMMIGRATION.. Tf. morf)
Mr. Blaine's speech on the Chinese question- ^at-
tracted wide attention. A bill had been introduced
restricting the number of Chinamen on incoming ves-
sels to fifteen, and otherwise placing obstructionsr' in
the way of a wholesalev introduction of this class of
foreigners i nto the U ntted States. It was one of i?he
important questions of th^ hour, as it is sdll. ' Mr.
Blaine heartily $u|»portedtIiis bill. His speedi^Mas
so masterly and eompreh^e^sive, tliat it is here repro-
duced nearly entire : toci ^o «^nbQ.
As I said, the Chinese question is not hew. .rWe
have had it here very often, and proceeding some-
what to the second branch, I lay doiiirn this principle,
that, so far as my vote is concerned, I will not admit
a man to immigration to this country that I aiii not
willing to place on the, basis of a citizen^ Let ine' Re-
peat that We ought notto admit to this dduntryiof
;, universal suffrage th^ immigmtion. of >a great7pefl|de,
M..
^€tSf:MJ; ^\'i!4ki''*<ti;
BLAINB IK THE UNITED STATES SENATE.
207
>me
nge
hole
^i die
o be
Divcr-
' / i
00
>n' tat-
ducecl
grycs-
}nrin
iss <of
ff fiMr.
di"Was
rcpto-
' some-
rinctple,
t admit
ani not
>tpe0|de,
great in numbers, whom we ouilselves declare to be
utterly unfit to become citizens. •>."\Jii" *i-
What do you say on that point? In the Senate of
the United States, on the fourth of July, 1870, a
fMitriotic day, we were amending the naturalization
laws. We had made all the negroes of the United
States voters practically ; at least we had said they
should not be deprived
of suffrage by rea-
son of race or color.
We had admitted
them all, and we then
amended the naturali-
zation laws so that the
gentleman frum Africa
himself could become
a citizen of the
•
United States ; and an
immigrant from
Africa to-morrow,
from the coast of
Guinea or Senegam-
bia, can be natursdized
and QMuie an Ameri-
THOMAS F. BAYARD.
tan citizen. The Senator Trumbull moved to add:
'*^Or persons born in the Chmese empire;''
:\ He said: '^Ihave offered this amendment so as to
bring the distinct question before the Senate, whether
they will vote to naturalize persons from Africa, and
voteto refuse to naturalize those who come from
■-:g5.Sa^-3Jfe%ii**ti.-5«.w»^^M»i - V
r
air?
■ 'irii^
iU
i;^i^gp~ jfv^^ ^e^j^g yg3jj and h^Nbfe^Wy 4i^ita*^
ment"
/ ^ WHO THEY WERE;
Tlie yeas and nays were as foUoWs on^tli^
ticn of whether we would ever admit a China^W'
to be come an American citizen. The yeas weireV
Messrs Fenton, Fowler, McDonald; Porteroy, Ulce,
Robertson, Sphigii«f,'
Sumner, and Truttibulf
The nays werfe:
Messrs. Bayiird, BbV^-
nian, Chartdler, Cdrtk^
lii^, Corbett 'Cra^tt;
Drake, Gilbert; Halftilt
ton, of Marylkhd, Haife
lirt, Hariaii, Hbwib;^
McCreery, Mbf rill; (tf
Vermont, Morton, N^^
Osborn, Ramsdy, Sauls-
bury, Sawyer, Sc6tt,
Stewart, Stbcktdls;
JAMES^4^ WILSON. Thayer, Thurrtijin, Tfp-
ton,Vickers, Warner, Wiley, Williams, and Wilson— -3if.
My friend from Rhode Island [Mr. Anthpny] and
the honorable Chairman of the Judifciary Cbhnmittee^
£Mr. Edmunds} are put among the absent, but l%t^'r€'
was a vote of 31 against 9 in ft Satiate three^fourtht^
Republican, declaring thftt the China^aii fiiEfverbttjg^
to be made a ci^^n. I think that settles the wH^li'
if
■'if
^
-fr-^'^
■"- 'iW^^j^-^rf^'-'i^.^^c
4||i[fj^{tiipjPr.iC tivs^t W9^^ a eorre<:|,vote,?^)^use yftM cannot
in our system of government as it is to-day, with sa£el^^
to all permit a large immigration of people who are
hot to be made citizens and take part in the gove^'n-
i^qiit. The Senator from California tells us that
aift^y the mafe adult Chinese in California are morjB
ni|ni^oi|s than the white voters. I take 4iim as sl%
amliority from his own State, and I should expect him
to t^ke rny statement about my own State. 4 ,
.THE DILEMMA. ■'..■ ^ .';■'--'"'■ V'-'*^?
It fteem's to mc that if we adopt as a permah<|pt
p^cy the ftee immigi:ation of those vrho, hf ^^r
wh^mlng votes in both branchifes of Congress, we s^
s^l forever remain political and $ocMp^nahs||%
gf^t free government, we have introduced an ^fimeht
tHat we cannot handle. You cannot stop wp^ *we
arj?,; you aire compelled to do one of two ^rtgs —
either exclude the immigration of Chinese or Include
th^m in the great family of ci^zensr^ • v
W^H, what about the question of numbers ? Did#
ey^r occur to my honorable friend feom Ohio that ^
vast myriads'of millions almost, as you might caU tfiem,
ti^ incalculable hordes in China, are much nearer to
thft Pacific coast of the United States, in point of money
' aiid passage, in point of expense of reaching it, than
tb^ people of Kansas ? A man in Shanghai or Hong^
Kci^g can be delivered at San Francisco more cheaply
tj^n a fixan in Qmaha now. I do not speak of the
Atlantic coast, where the population is still more
1; but you Hilly take the Missiisi^ippi valley, Illinois*
*^t?i/l^
i ''^
« > qnk
,•
.r"^.
> ^
.KI».V->'iIf*r5*i*'Mi.ai
-Vi.ii7'-''J7JBV?
■*-'.>iVJ ..; '*^ -
U\
It
m
U^E mmom^ MMBS CK BLAINI^,
Iow9) N«to$ka, Kansas^ Missouri, all the great Coifi^*-
Qipr^wealths of that valley, and they are, in point of
epcpense, further oif from the Pacific slope than thf
vast hordes in China and Japan. - ;^^ ^^-t ; Hr ^q^^nr
CHEAP TRANSPORTATION. ^^ '^
I am told by those who are familiar with the com-
ipercial af£iirs of the Pacific side that a person cad be
sent from any of the great Chinese ports to San Fratf^
Cisco for something over $30. I suppose in an emtgyaiii
train over the Pacific Railroad ftx>m Omaha, not to
sipeak of the expense of reaching Omaha, but from
llia( point aloTie, it would cost $$0 per head; and thaU
would be cheap railroad fare as ^ings go in tJiis
country. So that in point of practicability*^!!! poii^
of getting there — the Chinaman to-day has an advan-
tage over an American laborer in any part of ^
country, except in the case of those who are already
on the Pacific: coast
Ought we to exclude them ? The question lies 1^
my mind thus: either the' Anglo-Saxon race will As-
sess the Pacific slope or the Mongolians will pocuMsss
it. You give them the start to-day wifh the k^eii
thrust of necessity behind them, and with the eas^ of
transportation before them, with the inducements /to
come, while we are filling up the other portions of the
xontinent,^ and it is entirely inevitable, if not di^otl*
strabl^ that they m^U occupy that great space of countrjr
between the Sierras and die Pacific coast They afe
themselves to-day establishing steamship )ine»^' €h%
ajre thetn^elyes to4ay pfoviding the means of tmni^ ^
■^1
BUUIfE? lir (THE 1JMlTEi>> Sif AtfcS - SBllATE. ^
ffe^nijRllcpthier countries, where do ydiiliM ehb ^ll^te^
pKralle^^ And?in a Repoblic espedsilly, ik Mtiy. ^V^rW^
ment that maintains itselG the unit" dfordeirwAddf
administration is in the family^ (m
.idTshe immlgrartts that come tk) us from^ all jK»rtibnS
Qfithe ;BHttsh Isles, from Germany, from Nor\Vayj fr6lrr4
^)Wift<je,i from Spain, from Italy^ come here w^h th^
t4epi3©f the fciwilyas much engraven on th^V nllhdi
fttt^Hnithejur custOnrs and in their habits as we haWlT.
^e !j^a^icicaii>n0t: go on with our popUlatfOii Wi^
fn^e.a homogeaeous element The idea of cofti^i*l%
^itr<9Pfan yimmigration with an imiftigration tha%-'lfa*
ilQ;'ii?t5g«Ed. lo ^ family, that does not recogriize tSife iefe^
*t<in )of hasband and wife, that does not observe the^
fl4iafem5»ndtbild, that does not liave iir the slightest
degree the ennobling and the civilizing influ^nc^fei^f
llie^^torthstone and the fireside, why, when getilMrien
Mlh timely about emigration from European ■ states' a*
^»i>t*a^ted with that^ they ceruinly are forgetting hisi.
.^igft and fbr^tting themselves. V ^^
If » Therehas not been from the outset any immi^tle^il
t«)fQhinese ill the sense in. which immfgratib«n 6om^
i&ym^ fromt Europe; It has ail been sunder <jOfitrtf<jr^
4ndrt%oiigh ageddes, and if not in every respect bPthfe
fl^^lie^typeptteB entire immigration fi^om China hdri Md
^ woi(^t andmost demoralizing features of Cooliei^m.
y)li8 Qtif^ofganse t0ei^ specially ^^^repfr^batedahy otheSr
4ili^^tie$ttir0fy whmiary iminigi^tiOh/' ttnd yfet fi^oih
t \ 5
*,M
." '<-^'5i^t^*««iL^«^^'''.'**''* ' -^~'
212
LIFE 07 HQK. JAMES 6. BLAINS.
the first Ghinaman that came, in 1848, to the last one
that landed in San Francisco, it is safe to say that hot
h
one in one hundred came in an "entirely voluntary
manner. ,
THEIR NUMBERS. JOll :
yp to October, 1876, the records of the San Fran-
cisco Custom-House show that 233,136 Chinese hAd
arrived in this country, and that 93,273 had returned
to China. The immigration since has been quite iargj<fe,
and .allowing for returns and deaths, the best statistics
I can procure show that about 100,000 Chinese are in
California and from 20,000 to 25,000 in the adjacent
Pacific States and Territories.
Of this large population fully nine-tenths are adult
males. The women have not in all numbered over
seven thousand, and, according to all accounts, they
are impure and lewd far beyond the Anglo-Saxon
conception of impurity and lewdness. One of the best-
informed Californians I ever met says that not ohe
score of decent and pure women could ever have been
found in the whole Chinese immigration.
It is only in the imagined, rather I hope the unnii-
agtned, feculence and foulness of Sodom and Gomor-
rah that any parallel can be found to the atrocious
nastiness of the Chinese quarter of San Francisco. I
speak of this from abounding testimony — largely from
those who have had personal opportunity to study Uie
subject in its revolting details. • ^ *
In the entire Chinese population of theFadnc<^st
isqirceiy one ^mily is to be found ; ho hekr^toi^e^^
•iM
^r,
■j^WTyS' \[\Tf
?^5^i«»!«V3*
BLAINV W TBB UIHtED STATES SENATE.
213
.^omiQit, lid fireside of joy ; no father nor mother, nor
brother nor sister ; no child reared by parents ; no
ddmestic and enpobJing influences ; no ties of affec-
tion. The relation of wife is degraded beyond all
de^^ption, the females holding and dishonoring ^hat
sacred name being sold and transferred from one man
j to. another, without shame and without fear; one
woman being: at the same time the wife to s^veraJ
men.
NOT FIT TO BE ADMriTED. ^ ^
Miny <>r came to San Francisco und^r
written contracts for prostitution, openly and shafne-
Jessly entered into. I have myself read the transla-
. tipn of some of these' abominable documents. If as a
Tiatjon we have the right to keep out infectious df^-
;^aseS| if we have the right to exclude the criminal
classes from coming to us, we surely possess th^ right
to exclude that immigration which reeks with, impurity,
and which cannot come to us without plentepusly spr-
ing the seeds of moral and physical disease, destitu-
tion and death.
The Chinese immigration to California began with
the American imm'^ration in 1848. The two ractes
have been side by side for more than thirty years,
nearly an entire generation, and not one step toward
j^$$imilation has been taken. The Chinese bccupy
tlieir own peculiar quarter in the city, adhere to their
,<^Kidires8, ^eak theirbwn language, worship in their
Vown teatfeen temples, and, inside the municipal law
and tpdepeadeoyt of iti administer a code among th^ih-
-'''J
4-^
"'"t <.""*.-' Jp-iS'^i^ ife'^ J •>"'i' 4
t ->, ■ ^ ■ >ir ■" ! ^ ; * V iJ!(?,>'> -^
; C-^'^S'X^
214
'! f
'tiri WMiW;'iiias W'^BtMi;'-'''
tiH:i »Uv/5|- i.^:.-i;,'- .:?i:.;. ;.., < .- ■'.:. .-'^'^Sn'* V> S^yfiSO ^tltib
is t^ref6 lor W ^ear only, of for ifwio^ or fiv^/^
•*^li ^t^ti years, it might be claimed tliat mfbrt' iti
M4 h^6(^ed for domestication and ^ssimilatidh "; Mi
th'l^ has bfeen going on for an entire generatibti,'- a'fid
0- ■i5i^/>'^ i;
fhe Chinkmari tb-dsty
a])proaches no h^f ^
tc» pur civilizatSori^tnan
he did wh^ the'Gdkfeti
Gate first reeeived lliitti
In sworn tesdriibhj^ fciS?-
fore an i nvestigattYi|:
committfee of Congi^e^
Drl -Meaiis, ^hi^ iiealffi
Offider of Sah FiM-
Cisco, described as "a
ciireful and' learned
man," testified that thi6
condition of the Chi-
nese quarter is "hd^it
ble, inconceivably^ fidh-
—'He sbted that the Chinese as a rule " live !h lik^e
ieftement houses, large nutnbers crowded into indivi<|-
ti^^t .rooms, without proper Vefitilation, with bad ^rd^:
sige, and uhifergrouiid, with i great deail^ of filth; "^
odors from which are horrible/' He des^rib<icf thtJr
^ modfe i^ tikin|f a room^t^h-feet Mj^ aftd ^fiftj^ a
.-■JTff
feEORGF. F. JfcDMUNDS:
'-^Ha-^^
. v.r. i.v»'¥;-
^■'■"i
BLAINE IK THE Vmtm STATES SENATE.
SIW
fllp^ripg half-wdy to the ceiling, both floors being
crowded at nijht with sleepers. la these crowded
dens cases of small-pox were concealed from the
police." "They live underground in bui/ks. The to-
pography of that portion of Chinadom is, such that
you enter a house sometimes and think that it is^
Q^je-story house, and you will find two or three stories
do^'n below on the side of the hill, where they live in
great filth.'*
Another close and accurate obiserver, a resiclent of
California» says : " The only wqnder is that de^l' ting
pestilences haye^ not ensued.!^ JN^Q^x ha^ ofteni
been epidemic, and could alwa^s^be tfiaced tb^ Chinese
origin. The Chinese quarter was otic^ occupied b^
shops, churches, and dwellings-^of Americans. Now
these are as thoroughly Mon^iiaiti as any pari of Oin'^
ton. All other races flee from the contact;'^^ ^
A HIDEO^ ItAi^LE.
Dr. Hears further testi£^ a^ gave irtdi^y rev<^tt^g
details in proof that the Chm#e " are ^el and ludif-
iferent to their sick." He described cai^' of Chtoese
lepers at the city hospital: " Their feet lilropped o^ by
dry gangrene and their hands were wasted and atten^
uated. Their finger-nails dropped off." He said the
Chinese were gradually working eastward, and would
by-suidrby crowd into Eastern cities, where the con-
(^Ojtis under which they live in San Francisco would
furpduqe^ in the absence of its cliniatic advantages, de-
structive pestilence. T-i rr
Perhaps a Chinese qt^rter in Boston, with forty
'JX'is
■:r
' ■< • .Vf^\^r
216
U?£ . or MOV. fAMtS Oi BtAINB.
Wr
w
Si
thousand Mongolians located somewhere between thie
soMth end and the north end of the city and se{>araitng
ti\e two would give Mr. Garrison some new views' as
to the power and right of a nation to exclude mood
and physical pestilence from its borders. la Sao
Francisco there is no hot weather, the thermometer
rarely rising above 65^ One of the most intelHgttnt
physicians in the United States says that the Ghinese
quarter of San Francisco transferred to Saint Louis,
Chicago, Cincinnati, or any Eastern city, would in^ i
hot summer breed a plague equal to the "black death'?
that is now alarming the civilized world.
; <;;f A UBEL ON WHITE PEOPLE.
When Mr. Garrison says that the inlmigration of
Englishmen, Irishmen, Scotchmen, Frenchmen, Ger»>
mans, and Scandinavians, must be put on the same
fpoting as the Chinese CooUes, he confounds all dis*
tinctions, and, of course without intending it, libels
almost the entire white population whose blood is
inherited from the race3 he names. AH the immigrat-»
tipn from Europe to-day assimilates at once with tte
oyjfrii blood on this soil, and to plaoe the Chinese
Coolies on the same footing is to shut one's eye$ to
^1 the instincts of human nature and all the teadiitigs
of history. !ii:> j: -
£5 it not inevitable that a class of men Eving in thtsi
4egjq|ded and filthy conditbu, and on the podr^itr^i
^ojodt can woi;|c for l^ess thain th^ Ameifican lidMitt^ kf
^ntided to receive for his daily toil? iButv^t^tm
<4a^qf of labor side by side, and the ^heap^fenytkr^
I •
*<<*',
i'.iU-. Jl ■'-/,\'
■^''^4%
■ 4rt'5
Buiiiis iir TUB mnTEi> spates senate.
^1
Mbor pulls down the more manly toil to its level. The
fm& white laborer n^ver could compete with slave
labor of the South. In the Chinaman the white laborer
^nds only another form of servile competition— in
, some aspects more revolting and corrupting than
African slavery. Whoever contends for the. unre-
stricted immigration of Chinese Coolies contends for
that system of toil which blights the prospects Of the
,white laborer — dooming him to starvation wajgfes,
killing his ambition by rendering his struggle hope-
tess, and ending in a plodding and pitiless poverty.
IMMINENT danger;
Nor is it a truthful answer to say that this danger
tii remote. Remote it may be for Mr. Garrison, for
Boston, for 'New England, but it is instant and pressing
on the Pacific slope. Already theChinese male adults
on that toast are well-nigh as numerous as the white
Fbters of California, and it is conceded that a Chinese
emigrant can be placed in San Francisco for one-half
' the amount required to transport'a man from the
Mississippi valie}^ to the Pacific coast, and for one^
tiiird' what it requires for a New Yorker or a N6s»
Englander to reach California or Oregon.
hjThelate Caleb Cushing, who had carefully studied
the Chinese question, ever since his mission to Bekin
ianji842i maintained that, unless insisted by the
Uiiit9ed€tates, the firat general faimihe in ChniaivouM
be fc>8owckl i^>ah i«nmti^tidn to Calilbmta that ^otM
swamp the white rate^ I^ observe that a'Nevir Eng^iai^
i»h¥S|)ap9r'^l specinlfy regret th^at such ignorancie
1:
ft
'n^s
hf'li
ais
,Ai
1^^ OS ,f <?K. JAW ^u »I*^^
'^/
'•it
should be shown in New England—^says it is pnly ^§'
strip" on the Pacific that the Chinaman seeks for f^<
home. The Chinep'3 are already scattered in thr^
States and two adjacent Territories, whose are^ .^
lar^fer than the original thirteen Colonies. Califoi^ifi;
alone is larger than New England, New York, Pepi^-
sylvania, and Ohio, and is capable of maintaining a
vast population of Anglo-Saxon freemen, if we da iiot
surrender it to Chinese Coolies.
. , . . • V ■-.li-
: jlutm LEGIONS OF THEM. , "io mft
Before the same committee of investigation froijii
wliose report I have already quoted, Mr.T. W. Jackson,
a man qf high character, who had traveled extensively
in the East, testified that his strong belief was "that jJT
the Chinese felt that they were safe and had a firq^.
foodng in California, they would come in enormous
numbers, because the population of China is practicaUy.
inexhaustible." Such, indeed, is the unbroken testi-
n^>niy of all who are entitled to express an opinioi^. ~
The decision of Congress on this matter, therefpr^p,
becomes of the very last importance. Had it been tr^
favor of Chiniese immigration, with the encouragement
and protection which th^t would have iniplied, it re-
quires no vivid imagination to foresee th? ., the grea^t
slope betw&en the Sjierras and the P^ific would be-
come thee immigrating ground for the Chinese empir/^iJ
So that I do not at all exaggerate when I say th^t on
the adoption or rejection of the policy passed upon by
Congress {i^pgs, the fate of the Pacific slope-r^fiefher
its labor shall be that of American freentei) or ^Jtyi^
c6\
Wi
' #•
SjMvSS^ .liiMs
.'■' •"■■■ ■--■'' ■ ■ '■'-'-• > ■
■.-■^Q-^.
V -' -.;-^^>>f»'^. >'vr' ^fi,'^,^''-!,'
BLAIN^ tk' TBi tMttD BfikTlS SENATE. 219
l^on^Bllslh^/ If Mr. Gsirrisbn thinks the interests of
l^s^bvrh'cbtintrymen, his own government, and, in a
sitlf latter sense, the interests of humanity and civili-
;^,ti6n, will Be promoted by giving up the Pacifit to
'KUdnjgfblian labori I beg respectfully but firmly to differ
fi^hirtij^V'^'''^^''' .t-nHi:.-,f 7^
*' .i" > ^''f^X^^iXw fitlGHER THAN CHARITY.'
^* There is n6 gfround on which we are bound to
receive them to our own detriment Charity is the
first of Christian graces. But Mr. Garrison would not
fSl^r obliged to receive into his family a person that
WHM^ 'physically contaminate or morally corrupt 'his
childn^irl As With a family, so with a nation ; the same
i/ilsifdd: 6f iself-preservation exists, the same right to
^^6iei^ th^ interests of our own people, the same duty
tb ekcliide that which is corrupting and dangerous to
tlie Republic. '^«*MUii;
^^Hie outcry that We are violating our treaty obliga^
tioriS 11^' without atiy foundation. The article on emi-
^i¥tion in the treaty has not been observed by China
ibr a single hour since it was made. All the testL*
fiKohy'taiken on the subject --and it has been full and
d6^ibu5— shows conclusively that the entire emigration
i^S':** tindfer contraict •* ; that the Coolies had beenf
gfiihfei^ed^together for export, and gathered as agerits
ih^^diif Western States would gadier live-stock for
Shi|Htiynt;'- ^■-^'■-.- ■--•
"iMj^W ,-^<^<| ^tnk ^ htGH-BINDERS.'"
.iJh i/fi
^"^ A Ve^ry iioftpe^en witness in California, speafiilng
^mm
i
i^Jjtl
■i\,f
?*..'
.'. <*
fe:
220
UFE OP BON. JAMBS 0. BLAINB.
" On the arrival of the Chinese in California they
are consigned like hogs to the different Chinese com-
panies, their contracts are vis^d, and the Coolie com-
mences to pay to the companies fees to insure caire if
he is taken sick and his return home dead or alive*.
His return is prevented until after his contract has
been entirely fulfilled. If he breaks his contract t^he
spies of the six companies hunt him to prevent his re:^
turning to China, by arrangement with the steamship
company or their agents in the steamship employ ti^
prevent his getting a ticket. The agents of the steam-
ship companies testified to this same fact. If a ticket
is obtained for him by others he is forcibly stopped on
the day of sailing by employees of the six companies,
called 'high-binders/ who can always be seen guarding
the Coolies."
-, . , Y .• -.'1
Mr. Joseph J. Ray, a Philadelphia merchant, long
resident in China, and a close observer of its emigra-
tion, says ** that ^^^^ of the Chinese who have reached
our shoresr were not free agents in their coming. Files
of the Hong-Kong newspapers from i86i would sup-
ply information regarding the 'barracoons' at that
port, and when the system had become too great a
scandal, their removal to Macao (a Portuguese colony,
forty miles distant), in which ' barracoons ' the Chinese,
every sense prisoners, were retained until thetf
eiit to San Francisco, Callao, Havaiia,^^et4
These, called by courtesy emigrants, were cbllectea
JPrpm within a radius of two or ^ree hundred mues
from Canton; aiid consisted ot tlie ibjectly ^o6rr#Ho,
in
It
■M ' • ,
BLAINB IN THE UNITED STATES SENATE.
221
iw-
willing or not, were sold to obtain food for their fami-
I s;or for gambling debti (the Chinese, as you are
aware, being inveterate g?imblers), or the scapegraces
of the country, fleeing to avoid punishment"
A BROKEN TREATY.
It is, of course, a mere misuse of ttrms to call this
ai^ "entirely voluntary emigraiv ji," and yj none
other was permissible under th^ burlingame treaty.
. Our Government would be clearly justified in disre-
garding the treaty on the single ground that the
Chinese Government had never respected its provis-
ions. But without any reference to that, our Goveri;!? i
ment possesses the right to abrogate the treaty it it
judges that its continuance is "pernicious to the
State." Indeed, the two pending propositions in the
' Senate differed not in r g ird to our own right to abro-
gate the treaty, but simply as to whether we should
da it in July, 1879, by the exercise of our power with-
out further notice 10 China, or whether we should do
it tn January, 1880, after notifying China that we had
made up our minds to do it.
ISJearly a year ago Congress by joint resolution ex-
pressed its discontent with the existing treaty, aqd
thus clearly gave notice to the civilized world— if notice
>^ere needful-— of the desire and intention of out peo-
' •jple. In the late action of Congress the opposing
prc^posiidon-*moved as a substitute for the bill to which
j[ gay^ iny suppoit-*-requested the President to hotify
the j^i^p<^or of C^ Chinese immigratlpi^i is
^ jjjsaJ§s^u?t^ a^ jA, efect if he
,.*i>.
•>
.1 I
■K
:-V.
frU
'^^
222:
hpm or Bo»' UME% a» BMOHSk'/ 1;;
would not modify the treaty lis we 4ei9irp4 ^ileQrHybife
President ^ould notify the Emperor that- afte^ijnny«nri
I, 1B80, the United States will 'Mre^t tlie obnos^ouai
stipulations asat an end;" -.<\^!^.->;'H;-t^^'i>^^\V;i\<^
AMERICAN RIGHTS. 'Mc bf)}iriM fjftf
Both propositions — the bill that We passed afi^ ^
substitute that we rejected — assumed alike rth^ ftilit
right to abrogate the treaty. Whether it wc^ be^tei:.
to abrogate it after last year's joint t^solutiofi^ps^^ to
inform the Emperor of China direcdy that if he^hvdiM
not consent to the change "we would make I it any^
how/' must be relegated for decision to the seh^oisof
taste and etiquette. The first proposition res^g otn
our clear constitutional power seemed to 11^ a betteb
mode of proceeding than to ask the Emperor oliGbioa
to consent to a modffication, and informing him«a|t this
same time that» whether he consented or hot,wewotd4
on next New Year's day treat " the obnoxious- sltptilav
tions as at an end." As to the power <lf^Congres8;t0
do just what has been done, no one wUl enteltaifi^ra
doubt who examines the whole question^ -AniaclmiH
able summary of the right and power is found in an
opinbn delivered by that eminent jtHrist; Bibnjamttil'R.
Curtis, when he was a judge of the Unij^d Statc^«StH
preme' Court. u-;,:^ .; ■ ^•■'' ..■...' ■■':■:! ^r/aiw jii^^^nifQ
Judg^ Curtis said : ** It cannot be admitted dttjklhe
ily method of escape from a treaty is by:^ coMsiefif
' the other party to it or a declaration pfwaffri{bdr&
se to ekeeute a treaty for ^easonfe-wfaicirapliniiini
:U,. i.-
• ■■*■
ti^'£'J^"^^Aj:^~^<^^^ ^^^ii5
yi
VII
^?J4_
';^'
BLAIKt IN THB UKITED STiiTSS SENATE.
223:
i
^fi^i^Wtd 0ie consctenttous judgment of dnalton'
ifiai mstter of the utmost graivityy dulJAe power todosd
h^^pnrpgaU^ ofwhichnonatim can be depfivedwitk-
out deeply affecting its independence. That the people of
the United States have deprived their government of
this power I do not beljeve. That it must reside some-
#h6re; and be appliGable to all cases^ I am conviriced»
and f/edito doubt tfutt it belongs to Congress'* ■ * ^ ' '4
A great deal has been said about the danger to our
trade if China should resort to some form of retalia^^
^ifm, -The natural and pertinent retaliation is to re^
^rict American immigration to China. Against that
we wiH^ enter no protest, and should have no right to
do so. The talk about China closing her ports to our
tvaii^ is made only by those who do not understand'
the question. Last year the total amount of our ex^
ports ta all Chinese ports outside of Hong-Kongv
wsis about $693,000.' I have called Hong-kong a
Chinese port, but every child knows it is under British
eotitroV and if we were at war with China to-day
Ji^g-kohg would be as open to us as Liverpool
-.V ■■■ 'Kuil^^" • 'xn EMiTY THREAT.-- cmt^-^^Uz
^To speak of China punishing us by suspending trade
\m ^vfy the suggestion of dense ignorance: We pay
China an inimense balance in coin, and probably: we
always shall do it But if the trade question had tlie
inipetrtance^hidi some have erroneously attributed Jto
it^ I would not seek its continuance by permitting 9
"(nctoUs immilpra^on of Chinese Coolies. ; The Brisrd
inerehfMits cried out that> commerce would be ruined
.!t.
"A
V*
^r
224
14IK Oi fiOHw jr^MES Ck iBL4aNm^ll
■•sJ-^i.
■ W-.
C?ik
fi ~
if England persisted in de^t^oying the :$laye #ad(ii^l
But histary -does not recoil that £i^and «atariiifie%
her honor by yielding to the cry^^ trfe^?i5:jn? lo>:b:Bnd5^
The enlightened religious $entimeat of the BaN^O^i
coast views with profound alarm the tendency and ef-
fect of unrestricted Chinese immigration^ Thj?-*^ pas-
tors and delegates of the Congi'egadonal churches ^Ii
California" a year since expressed their •'convictipsfad
that "the Burlingame treaty ougfit to be so modififti^'j
by the General Government. 2& to restrict GWfieseiiitifiii
migration," .i^ijsi <«i ifi;^{;x;3
:,>=^.: •- PORTENTOUS EVILS* ^M:'--,^i^r^^tm^-
Rev. S. V. Blakeslee, editor of thfi^ioldest rel^P^ftls
paper on the Pacific coast, . spoke ^us in ftf^ OfBdial i
address: ' t ns i>3m*ju
"Moreover, wealthy English and American jcom^i^ :
nies have organized great money-making plans : lor t:
bringing millions — it is true — even milltons-r-of the9d '
Chines i into our State, andinto all parts. of t^eUotCMi ^il
and they have sent out emissaries into China tb iodild^
the people, by every true and false storyi to n^gtal^ i
here. Already two hundred and fifty thousand- hsivmA
come, of whom^v^ hundred thousand pemain. w i\M\&-
" The tendency of all this is tremendously tcw# f4#
evil; toward vice and abomination; toward all op^^
posed to the true spirit of Americanism, and is versr^b
dangerous to our morality, to our stability, amd tf» our/u
success as a people and a nation. Millions more 19I'
these Chinese must come if not prevented by atiy ll^jiskr
or moral, or mpbocratic restraint, iijicreasing iciclkliii^
l-V*!^ .
■vi i.Ji:w?««ii.'^«s^»Jif«®fe:w,';<''fe
BLAINB IK THB. UNITXD STATES SBK4TE.
2U
fj
I'd
lablj^ by numberii the evils already existing, while a
sfilrit of race prejudices and clanship jealousies and a
conflict of interests must be developed, portending
posisible evil beyond all description."
CHINESE HEATHENISM.
lit regard to the process of converting and Ghris-
tia^nieing this people, a missionary who has been in the
fieH since 1849 testifies that not one in a thousand has
even nominally professed a change from heathenism^
and that of this small number nearly one-half had been
taught in missionary schools in China. The same mis-
sionary says : "As they come in still larger numbers
they will ijiore effectually support each other in their
national peculiarities and vices^ become still more con-
firmed in heathen immoralities, with an influence in
every respect incalculably bad." Under what possible
sense of duty any American can feel tot he promotes
Christkimty by the process of handing California over
to headieQism is moi'e than I am able to discover.
i have heard a good deal about* their cheap labor.
I do not myself believe in cheap labor. Ido not be-
lieve cheap labor should be an object of legislation»^^
and it will not be in a republic. You cannot have the
wealthy classes in a republic where suffrage is univer-
sal ;legidate for cheap labor. I undertake to repeat
thiftt I say that you cannot have the wealthy class^
ina^repiibKc where Suffrage is universal legislate in
wltat k( called the interest of cheap labor. Labor
sh^«^ not be cheapo an^' tt should not be dear 1 it
should have its share, a.: i it will have its share.
vff
1.
-'^1
s^M
'■i ■
'^iU
ti'
Va-
UFE <»■ HON. JAMES O. BLAINE.
^■■f ■fS^'^'
There is not a laborer on the Pacific coastto-4^y^l|5Sy
that to my honorable colleague—whose whole life has
been consistent and uniform in defense and advocacy
of the interests of the laboring classes — there is not a
laboring man on the Pacific coast torday who does not
ieel wounded and grieved and crushed by the competi-
tion that comes from this source. 1 boi^
CHEAP LABOR. R :^5?^oH^
: mT^ answer is: "Well, are not Americafi
laborers equal to Chinese laborers?" I answer diat
question by asking another. Were not free ivhite
laborers equal to African slaves in the South ? When
you^tell me that Uie Chinaman driving out.the &ee
American labor only proves the superiority of the
Chinaman, I ask you. Did the African slave hhc^
driving out the free white labor from the South prove
the superiority of slave labor? The conditions lire
not unlike; the parallel is not complete, and yet it isli
pairalle]. - ' ):^'--w-*i^iip:2^iW&s
It is servile labor ; it is net h^e labor such as we in-
tend to develop and encourage and build up in this
country^ It is labor that cornes here under a mortgages.
It. is labor that comes here' to subsist on what fh6
American laborer cannot subsist on. You cannot work
a.n^an who must have beef and bread, and woftrld
prefer beer, alongside of a man who can live on sicti.
It cannot be done. In all such conflicts and in all such
struggles the result is not to bring up the man tvho
lives on ric^ to ^e beef-and-bread standard, but^^ is.lo
bringdown the'beef-and-bread man to the rice standac«l
»>i ji^i
*'-! 'Tl.
X\<
SUiXSt iXf THE trKITED dTAiTES SENATE.
337
-itj
j'n*>^
Slate labor degraded free labor; it took out i£s re-
stpectabitity ; h put an odious cast upon it.
^' THE CAUSE OF HONEST TOIL;
5'^ It throttled the prosperity of a fine and fair portion
of the United States; and a worse than slaVe labor
#111 throttle and impair the prosperity of a stilt finer
and fairer section of the United States. We can
choose here to-day whether our legislation shall be in
the interest of the American free laborer or for the
servile laborer from China. '■ - ■■ ■■'-'^^: ,
1 feel and know that I am pleading the cause of th^
free American laborer and of his children and of hik
dtildren^s children. It has been well said that it is the
cause of "the house against the hovel; of the c6m-
forts of the freeman against the squalor of the slave.**
If has been charged that my position would arniig^
labor-saving machinery and condemn it. This answer
is liot only superfidal; it is also absurd. Labor--
saving machinery has multiplied the power to pay^ has
developed new wants, and has continually enlarged the
area of laboriand constandy advanced the wages of
the laborer. But servile toil has always dragged free
labor to its lowest level, and has stripped it of bn^
fnunitnent after another until it was helpless and ht>^
I^ss. Whenever that condition comes to the free
kborer^ of America, the - Republic of equal rigfhts is
gone^ and we shall live under the worst of oligarchies
'^AAN^iat of mere wealth, whose profit only measures
^e wretohediiess of the unpaid toilsmeti that produce
lVSi2
■r'H.'*^-'' ■■■'■- 'T^ ,'
I*;'-'
>»•■■■.<■
I-*'
>int
LIFE OF BOir. lAttfiS 6. fiJtlAlKE.
HIS VIEWS ON tHE SILVER BILL.
r. Blaine's views on the coinage of silver were
equally pronounced, and were expressed with ^imil^r
force and clearness.
When the Senate considered the bill authoris
the free coinage of the standard silver dollar, aiid to
restore its legal tender character, he offered a substi-
tute for the bill, containing three propositions, ash^
states in these words : : aiai
1. That the dollar shall' contain four hundred and
twenty-five grains of standard silver, shall have unlim-
ited coinage, and be an unlimited legal tender." ^ '^^^ *
2. That all profits of coinage shall go to the govern-
ment, and not to the operator in silver bullion. . "
3. That silver dollars or silver bullion, assayed ilM
mint-stamped, may be deposited with the assistant
treasurerof New York, for which coin certificates maijl
be issued, the same in denomination as United States
notes, not below ten dollars, and that these shall be
redeemable on demand in coin or bullion; thus fur-
nishing a paper circulation based on an actual deposit
of precious metal, giving us notes as valuable as those
of the Banic of England, and doing away at once with
the dreaded inconvenience of silver on account of bu}k
and weight. .
r < >^^^ EXCESSIVE PAPER MONEY.
Mr. Blaine presented his views oh the ^Iver 0ui&
tion in a rather lengthy arid very able speechj oh tll^
day^ he offered his substitute, which wa6 F^ruirjr 7,
l«78. The concluding pbrtiort of his is^^eieidi r^tSW i
h • ^tsKsii
BLAINI IN THE UNITED STATES SENATE.
229
St
f '^
The effect of paying the labor of this country in
3ily^r coin of full value, as compared with the irre-
deemable paper, or as compared even with silver of
inferior value, will make itself felt in a single genera^-
|ipn to the extent of tens of millions, perhaps hundreds
"of millions, in the aggregate savings which represent
consolidated capital. It is the instinct of man, from
the savage to the scholar — developed in childhood and
remaining with age — to value the metals which in all
tongues are called precious. Excessive paper money
leads to extravagance, to waste, and to want, as we
painfully witness on all sides to-day. And in the midst
of.the proof of its demoralizing and destructive effect,
we hear it proclaimed in the halls of Congress that
1*, the people demand cheap money." I deny it. I de-
clare such a phrase to be a total misapprehension-^s^
total misinterpretation of the popular wish.
a I SILVER ALWAYS CUIIRENT.
The people do not demand cheap money. They
demand an al^undance of good money, which is an
entirely different jthing. They do not want a single
gold standard, that will exclude silver and benefit
those already rich. They do not want an inferior silver
$;^ndard, that will drive out gold and not help those
already poor. They want both metals, in full value,
in equal honor, in whatever abundance the bountiful
earth will yield them to the searching eye of science
and to the hard hand of labor.
The two metals have existed, side by side, in ha^-
mo^iQus,. hpnoraU^ companionship as money, ever
%tf^i.nr^
p.
h\
w.
i*
s;
230
LIFE OP HON. JAMBS G. BLAIME;
since intelligent trade was known among men. Iris
weH-nigh forty centuries since "Abraham weighed to <
Ephron four hundred shekels of silver— ^current money*
with the merchant*' Since that time nations have
risen and fallen, races have disappeared, dialects and
languages have been forgotten, arts have been lostj
treasures have perished, continents have been dtscoV)>
ered, islands have been sunk in the sea, and through
all these ages and through all these changes silver;
and gold have reigned supreme as the representation
q| value, as the n.iedia of exchange. The dethrone<^«
ment of each has been attempted jn turn, and some-
times the dethronement of both ; but always in vain I
And we are here to^ay, ddiberating anew over die
proUem which comes down ta us from Abraham'iit;
time~>//^ weight of the silver that shall be " currehti
money with the merchant"
STOOD UP FOR AMERICA.
It was a prominent part of the policy of Mr. Blaine^'
if) public life, to stand armed against the undue domi*.
nation of foreign states in the affairs of America^He^
consistently and persistently denied the right of any
foreign state to exercise a control over questtonsv
purely' American. Whenever a measure was sprung/
totiching the strict independence of the country, Blaine
was found with drawn sword ready to repel the auisault;
This policy led him, not infrequendy, to take the'
arena in opposition to measures wMch he deemed^
Hkety to affect unfairly the high rank of die Amedcim^
HepitbUe. vif
:?yr»*<M
' ^:;
if
BLAINE IK THE UNITBD STATES SBN.^.TE.
281
• >
'i
'%i'
'J
/It? was' this principle of' action which brought him
intolpromirience during the debate in the Senate on
the Halifax Fishery Award, in 1878. He was one of
the most indignant of all at what he deemed the
theachery and overreaching of Great Britain in that
matter. Finally consenting to accept the report of
the Committee on Foreign Relations, he nevertheless
left on record a ringing protest against some, of the
principles and facts involved in the controversy. On
the first of June he delivered an address in the Senate^
the spirit of which may be inferred from the following
extract: - ^••r^■^:V^•v■M,-
A ONE-iSIDED TREATY.
Mrw President, I shall support the report made by
the Committee on Foreign Relations, although I wish
that some amendments could be made to it. But I do
not concur in what was implied in the remarks of- the
Senator from Ohio, on this subject, that Great Britain
had discharged her duties under this treaty with
exemplary fidelity, and that we were in danger of not
following a good example.
I maintain that from the first, throughout the whole
of the treaty — and I know I am taking what has not
been heretofore a popular side^ or the generally ac-:
cepted version^t has been a treaty of a singularly,
one-p^sided character, .in which, as I shall show/ the en^
ttre advantage was gained by Great Britain^ and iii
tlu^ parts that she has not esteemed it to be her int^r*
eat'to ful6l it, she has^ declined to fulfil tt Up to
this day' one of the most important parts Of lAm
.■*s*3
,'%!
ll
^fi
.M*»>--.'.^ (,,■, — .
232
LIFB OE HON. JAMES 0. »LAIN9,j
treaty has been evaded, and its fulfilment refused "by
Great Britain.
Let me explain. When the Joint High Commis-
sion came to consider what were known as' the. Ala-
bama Claims, they agreed upon three rules, which
Great Britain diplomatically disavowed through her
commissioners to have been accepted rul<*s of inter-
national law at the time, but said tha'£ they wOuld
agree to thjem as the basis of a settlement, anr. they
might go before the tribunal as if they had been in
force as principles of international law at the time of
their alleged infractioii. Then Great Britain and the
United States, in binding themselves to -the observ-
ance of these ruU'3 in future, assumed another, mMtual
obligation in this clause of the treaty: .r v . i;,
"And the high contracting parties agree to observe
these rules betwee'n themselves in future, and to bring
them to the knowledge of the other maritime powers
and to invite them to accede to them." :^ yxiui
Unless I am entirely misinformed, and I think I am
A BRITISH REFUSAL.
correctly informed. Great Britain has refused up to this
time, and it has been seven years this month since the
treaty was perfected, to join with die United Stat^ in
asking the other maritime powers to agree to th(3f8e
rules. .... I
I have ground for believing this statement to Jbe
substantially, if not literally, true, and if the $eiHite
^iU support me in a resolution which I ^hall 0ff^-
we sh^l find out, authentioalty,^ that |4r^ fSsbt U^y
bi
IV.
"I ■
- s
_> .
• 4-r
BUUKB IN TBB tfHrtBD STATES SXKATS.
388
4
i
I
a (
'<Secreliry of State, advised Great Britain that, refus-
ing to join with the United States in proposing these
"rules for other maritime powers, the United States
would be justified in treating them as a nullity. I do
'not pretend at all to be inside of the secrets and aimq
'^and purposes of British diplomacy, but I do know that
having got those three rules which bind us very tightly
^ Which n^ake us keep a very sharp police on fifteea
{thousand miles of ocean front that encircle our own'
<< dominions, and hold us accountable for any priva-
teers or depredators or " Alabamas," or any sort of
'bruisers that may get out in case Great Britain goes
^ war with Russia, as is now possible if not prob-
''able (I hope not even probable), and makes us ac-
countable in damages afterward for any losses thus
resulting to her subjects — that while she holds us
^ thus closely under the three rules, she. has not asked
another nation in all Europe to be bound by those
rules ; she has refused to join the United States in
'ssking the maritime powers to accept them and be
bound by them. I do not believe in having one part
idl the treaty quoted on us to the letter " which kill-
eth," and then to have the part which does not exactly
'tomport with the interest of Great Britain, absolutely
'slulred over and denied.
I repeat, I do not pretend to see any further through
s^ct%tatid hidden motives than anybody else, and I
-Ifef 'Hot pretend to know, much less do I pretend to
l^fe,'^Kat the nlc^tive of Great Britain is, althougli I
/iiii^ heafd>it, indl have heard ft was because the
■^*.
284
tifB or wont, Jkw» o. BLAnnk
7
Ft. ,
'ft''
1«*
i'.'
gbvernment of the German Empire objected to'theiir
rules being made generalin Europe.
SOME THINGS WE OUGHT TO KNOW.
At all events it is known* and we ought to know
here authentically — and it would be some advantage
to know it before we pass on the measure — we ought
to know authentically what has transpired betweeit
this government and the government of Great Britain
with regard to these three rules, which were so finely
chiseled and so closely drawn and so narrowly con*
^tructed that when we got into the tribunal, at Geneva,
we were practically powerless. When confeaisedly the'
aid and support of Great Britain to the rebellion had;
been hundreds of millions of dollars of damage td
this country; when they swept our mercantile marine^;
two^thtrds of it, out of existence; when their aid and
countenance to. the Confederacy had destroyed one of -
^e great leading interests of the United States, we
consented to such a narrow construction of these thre^
rules as absolutely cut us down to fifteen and a half
million dollars for damages, and Great Britain at pfitie
gets seven and a half millions of that back-^twp mik
lions on the Washington Claims Commissioit, of 1871^
7*2, and now five and a half millions mof^ on thi»
fishery award. jou- .■:«M
So, when the Senator from Ohio holds up the^ex^
aiiiple of Great Britain to us to imitate in this m^er^i
beg him to observe what Great Britain's course bas
been in regard to this part of '^ treaty, (t-was Coieat
Bntain'^ highest int^reist toCf^ the Jj^ievft Awxrdf
•>
BLAINir Iir TH]B« UKISM) fnJLTEB SBHATI.
2a0
She never paid fifteen million dollars in her life that
was so good an investment as that was under the
circumstances.
wn?r:4 ENGLAND GETS MORE THAN SHE GIVES.
'Whether we can lind anybody, under the narrow
rules that were laid down, that is a lawful claimant for
the money awarded us at Geneva, is quite another
thing; that is for us to determine ; but Great Britain
hjdpself gained the incalculable advantage of making
us a practical ally to her, willing or unwilling, in all her
contests with European powers. The Russians are
watched by every form of observatbn if they land on
the coast of Maine, or if they buy a vessel in New
York or Philadelphia; and the moment there is a dec-
laration of war, instead of Great Britain doing tt)e
watching, we shall be compelled, under the three rules,
to do it ourselves.
ivWe shall be forced on the anxious-seat, and if a
Russian vessel should escape from our coast, and
Great Britain could show that we have not used due
diligence, we are to be. responsible in the amounts of
titoaey that may result from her depredations on
British ^commeroe. Great Britain "gets all the^e va^
advantages out of us, and then refuses, as I say, fpi^
some reason, and continues to refuse, up to this tim^,
to agree that other maritime nations, in whose adop-
tion of these three rules we might have very great in-
teiests^ shall act on them<-^refuses even to submit them,
as lli6 treaty bound her to do-^-and she has permitted
^nfidtyearalogo by withc^t so much as uniting wt|lt
•
336
UFE OF BON. JAlfES fi, BLAINE.
1)$ in asking a single European power to accept
them. j!
A HISTORIC REVIEW.
,Now, let US go back a little, inasmuch as weare di^
cussing this subject generally, as the Senator from
Ohio has introduced it. When the war broke out, in
i36ir Mr. Seward, through our minister at the Court
of St. James, Mr. Adams, immediately proposed that
the United States should become a party to the treaty
of Paris, to which there had been forty-six or fortyr
seven nations of the earth already parties, to suppress
privateering. Lord John Russell, recendy decea^d,
apparently received the proposition with the utmost
complaisance, and agreed to it; and after the agree-
ment v/as made, and we thought the treaty was about
tq become a regular convention between the two
governments, he put in a condition that it should not
at all affect the existing relations between Great
Britain and the Confederate States, or that the ques-
tion should not in the least degree be affected by the
relations of any internal dissensions in the United
States ; in other words, that if we lived to survive the
Rebellion in the United States, the very time when we
should not need the advantage of this treaty, we might
enjoy it ; but that, pending that, we should not have
any advantage from it at all.
WHAT SEWARD SAID.
And the British Government would not agree, on
the other hand» ths^t if any disturbance should take
plac^ In any part of th« British Empire, we should ijiQti
My-i'^t-
if T,
BLAIKE IN THt: tJl^TED ^l*Am SEKATEli
m
1^ si/nilarly bound as England was then. Let me
read just what Mr. Seward said on that point :
"The proposed declaration is inadmissible, among
other reasons, because it is not mutual. It proposes
a special rule by which her majesty's obligations shall
h6 meliorated in their bearing upon internal difficulties
now prevailing in the United States, while the obliga^
tions to be assumed by the United States shall not be
sinnilarly meliorated, or at all affected in their bearing
on internal differences that may now be prevailing or
may hereafter arise and prevail in Great Britain." ^
The whole of it was one-sided. And now I will give
the honorable Senator from Ohio a very substantial
reason why the government of the United States ought
to proceed to the payment of the fishery award in a
different manner from that, which the government of
Great Britain adopted with reference to the Geneva
award.
I'be struggles between the Dominion of Canada,
or that which now constitutes the Dominion of Canada,
t!ie British- American provinces, and the United States,
for reciprocal relations of trade and commerce, have
been troublesome questions for eighty years, and
every time we have attempted to adjust them, the fish^
eries have been put forward as the slimibling-block in
the way of a fair agreement; and the payment of the
five and a h^lf millions settles the question for only
twelve years, and then it is all open again.
' 'But, on the other hand, the fifteen and a lialf mil-
lions, paid in pursuance of the Geneva award, closed
^1
'•■f.V ''• ■
238
LIFE OF HON. JAUflS Q. Blikltm^
that account for all time ; 6r, if it left it bfieh at aUt'it
left it open with the three rules operating^ inr Grealt
Britain's favor. But let us pay this five and a. half
millions, as the honorable Senator from Ohio invites
us to do ; let us walk up without saying one rword^and
pay this five and a half millions of dollars to Great
Britain, and what is the result? It is inevitably ac-
cepted by the government of Great Britain as a con-
cession on the part of the government of the United
States, as a just measure of value of those fishery priv-
ileges, and any subsequent notice that we might give,
six or eight years hence, would be treated as an after-
thought.
don't go too fast.
If we do not make that point at this time, we lose
all the advantage of making it at all ; and if we now
pay that money without in some form emphatically
entering our dissent from it as a just measure of the
value of the fisheries, we are estopped from ever plead-
ing it hereafter, and we shall have committed ourselves
to the conclusion that those fisheries, in reciprocal ar-
rangements for trade between the Dominion of Canada
and the United States, are to be reckoned as of the
value of a half million dollars per 2inn\im donus from
the United States, in addition to the admission of
Canadian fish free of duty to our markets.
This question, Mr. President, has soqie sectional
and local relation, I know. We are much more af-
fected by it where I come from than are the people
whei^e the Senator from Ohio comes from. It is a
J
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■//■
,
fc
M^^.\
BLAINE IN TBE ITNItED STATES SENATE.
23d
ma^er of daily, very pressing interest with us, and we
know very well that if we sit still here and consent to
this award being accepted publicly as a just measure
of value, we. can never have the trade between the Do-
minion of Canada and the United States regulated
thereafter upon any fair, equitable, amicable basis.
w?-
rl
P4.
CHAPTER XII.
Blaine as Secretary of State.
In 1880 Mr. Blaine was a candidate for the nomi-
nation for the Presidency. The movement to make
him the nominee of his party v/as not manufactured,
not in any sense "worked up/' but was spontaneous
throughout the country. The* general voice qf his
party named him for the high honor. He did not
have io creep and crawl to obtain stipporters. When
the public eye swept around the hdrizon in sear<:h of
a great leader in the approachuig campaign, his com-
manding figure towered up in stately proportions and
caught the gaze of the multitude.
The National Convention was held at Chicago on
June 2d. A strong minority of the delegates favored
General Grant for a third term ; the leaders were
Senators Conkling, Cameron and Logan. These as-
tute chieftains used all the arts of persuasion and
diplomacy i^^. favor of their choice. Like a solid
wall the Grant men stood, without break or waver-
ing, until the final vote was declared.
John Sherman, of Ohio, was another candidate, and
a very rei^ectable number of the delegates gave him
their votes. The third candidate was Mr. Blaine,
(240)
f'
:^^mmn
' - 'SB
■ ;
BLAINE AS SECRETARY OF STATE.
241
Whose supporters were extremely aggressive and en«
thusiastic. These three names were borne to the
front amidst a contest seldom equalled for courage
-fffj''
JAMES A. GARFIELD.
asd generalship. The, country waited with intense
interest for the decision to be declared.
Mr. Biaine was nominated by James F. Joy, of
Michigan, and the nomination was seconded by Will^
iam P. Frye, of Maine, in a telling speech, which moved
^ the convention to tumultuous applause.
16
4 J
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-r*;V, > -'
t^y.'
■■' ;v' 'i';'
242
LIFE OF HON. JAMES 6. BLAINE.
, H .
THE HERO AT THE HELM.
Mr..Frye said: I once saw a storm at sea in the
night-time; an old ship battlino- for its life with the
1 •■•'*? "r .,
. Jijtw
":,.;i'
MRS. LUCRETIA -^ GARFIELJ).
fury of the tempest; darkness everywhere ; the
winds raging and howling; the huge waves beating
- •*?*
■'■\.\
BLAINB AS SSORETABT OF STATE.
243
on the sides of the ship, and maiking her shiver irom
stem to stern. The lightning was flashing, the thun- ,
ders rolling ; there was danger everywhere. I saw at
the helm a bold, courageou.\ immovable, commanding
man. In the tempest, calm ; in the commotion, quiet ;
in the danger, hopeful. I saw him take the old ship
and bring her into her harbor, into still waters, into
safety. That man was a hero.
I saw the good old ship of State, the State* of
Maine, within the last year, fighting her way through
the same waves, against the dangers. She was freighted
with all that is precious in the principles of our Re-
public ; with the rights of the American citizenship,
with all that is guaranteed to the American citizen
by our Constitution. The eyes of the whole nation
were on her, and intense anxiety filled every Amer-
ican heart lest the grand old ship, the "State of
Maine," might go down beneath the waves forever,
carr^g her precious freight with her. But there
was a man at the helm, calm, deliberatte, comiliand-
ing^ sagacious ; he made even the foolish man wise ;
courageous, he inspir^^d the timid with courage fjleope-
ful, he gave heart to the dismayed, and lie brought
that good old ship safely into harbor, into safety; and
she floats to-day greater, purer, stronger for her bap-
tism of danger. That man, too^ was heroic^ and his
name was James G. Blaine.
GARFIELD NOMINATED.
As none of the leading candidates could obtain a
majority, a Gompr:>mtse was effected and James A.
244
UFE OF HOKt JAMESt 0^ BLAIKK.
<urarfield received the nomination. In the folbwing
November he was elected. Soon after the election. he
decided upon a visit to Washington.
Mr. Blaine was in Bangor, Maine, where he received
a note from General Garfield appointing an interviev/
in Washington about November 34. He reached the
capital on the 26th, and on tile afternoon of that day
called upon the President-elect at the latter's private
residence. For two hours they were closeted without
interruption from sL single person. At this conference,
General Garfield, without reservation, tendered the
State Department to ^r* Blaine.
When Mr. Blaine had recovered from his surprise
he replied: "General, I was hardt)r prepared for this
tender on your part. I do not Imowiiow to make
answer. I would like som^ l^t for ruction and
consultation, and in the meantime I wiU^ advtso you."
General Garfield theti and there urged Mf* Blaine to
accept, but he made no bindjng ahiiWer at the time.
Subsequendy Mr. Blaine had a conference with his
closest friends, and the weight of their testimony was
that he should accept the place. Said he: ^'Gende-
men, I am inclined to accept General GarBeld's offer ;
but meanwhile, I will for a very short period still fur-
ther hold it under advisement."
BECOMES SECRETARY OF STATE.
After thi^ conference with his friends the &ct (hat
General Garfield had offered the Senator the Secre-
taryship of State was communicated to one or two ef
Blaine^s <!onfidential frtends, and he said: *^If the sea-
tin
Gs
BLAINE AS »BORETA&T OF STATE.
246
timent of the country endorses the selection General
Garfield has made, I will accept the office. Otherwise
WILLIAM H. HUNT.
iMbtr'* Early in December the announcement was made
In one or two newspapers, directly and ab'^olutely, that
^Semtop Blaine had been invited by Gener&l Garfield
to take the Slate Department It soon becam^^ ac-
246
LIFE OF HON. JAMES 0. BLAIKI.
tepted as a fact. The universal expression of news-
paper opinion was that the selection was a good one.
Thereupon Senator Blaine wrote the following letter
of acceptance : iii
Washington, December 20, 1880.
My Dear Garfield: — Your generous invitation to
enter your Cabinet as Secretary of State has been
under consideration for more than three weeks. The
thought had really never occurred to my mind until at
our late conference you presented it with such cogent
arguments in its favor, and with such warmth of per*
sonal friendship in aid of your kind offer.
I know that an 'early answer is desirable, and I have
"waited only long enough to consider the subject in all
its bearings, and to make up my mind definitely and
conclusively. I now say to you, in the same cordial
spirit in which you have invited me, that I accept the
position.
^i/It is no affectation for me to add that I make this
decision, not for the honor of the promotion it gives
me in the public service, but because I think I can be
useful to the country and to the part}' ; useful to )^tt
as the responsible leader of the party and the great
head of the government.
I am influenced somewhat, perhaps, by the shower
of letters I have received urging me to accept, written
to me in consequence of the mere unauthorized news-
paper report that you had been pleased to offer me
the place. While I have received these letters from
all sections of the Union I have been especially pleased
and even surprised at the cordial and widely extended
feeling in my favor throughout New England* where
r had ^expected to encounter local jealousy and |ter-
haps rival aspiration.
a
SI
a
ti
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e
n
d
e
fa
ti
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in
e
<
1
*■ i«>.
BLAIKB AS SECRETABT OF STATE.
247
In our new^ relatioii I shall c^ive all that I am and
aU: that I can hope to be, freely and loyally, to your
service. You need pledge of my loyalty in heart
and act I should be false to myself did I not prove
true both to the great trust you confide to me and to
your own personal and political fortunes in the pres-
ent and in the future. Your administration must be
made brilliandy successful and strong in the confi-
dence and pride of the people, not at all directing its
energies for re-election, and yet compelling that result
by the logic of events and by the imperious necessi-
ties of the situation.
To that most desirable consummation I feel that,
next to yourself, I can possibly contribute as much
influence as any other one man. I say this not from
egotism or vainglory; but merely as a deduction from
a plain analysis of the political forces which have been
at work in the country for five years past, and which
have been significantly shown in two great National
Conventions. I accept it as one of the happiest- cir-
cumstances connected with this affair that in allying
my political fortunes with yours^-or rather for the
time merging mine in yours — my heart goes with my
head, and that I carry to you not only political sup-
port but personal and devoted friendship. I can but
regard it as somewhat remarkable that two men of
the same age, entering Congress at the same time,
influenced by the same aims and cherishing the same
ambitions, should never, for a single moment in
eighteen years of close intimacy, have had a misun-
derstanding or coolness, and that our friendship has
steadily grown with ow: growth and strengthened
witii our strength. ^ >
3 It is this fact which has led me to the conclusion
Embodied in this letter; for however much, my dear
. -t-
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IMAGE EVALUATION
TEST TARGET (MT-S)
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:not e^teiv^pr cs^itiet if I did>|^|<j^^
man an(i,]p^^ as a iriend.-^ „,^.:::«,.,^,^ .f^c^aR «ffing«o' -
'; ^ ': Always faithfully your^i !-'r , «v. .
Mr. Blaine quaMed as Secretary of State Maln^ SI^^K
i 88 1 r t^Q days following^ the inaugtirati<^rof th^Presk^^ ^^IHp
\ dent«reind immediatdy assumed the du^ of the offi^.^^^^^^-'^
- PRESIDENT OAkFIELD'S-CAJBINEt^^';^':^^'^ ^-^^1^^^^
^ President Garfield's Cabinet was as fo^ws : m-^-piioq:.
Secretary of State» James G. Blaine» of MaMe^^'^t
Secretary of the Treasury, William Windom, of Ilitfii'^H'
nesota; Secretary of the Navy, William H. Hunt, of
Louisiana^ Secretary of War,^ Robekt TJ*Lineolfi, of i
, Illinois ; Secretary of the Iiiterior, Samuel J. >Ktrk\i^di>fv
of l0wa rAttorney^Generdi Wayne Mc¥ea^h^4>f Pt^nn^ i^ ''
sylvania^. Postmaster-Generad^ Thomat I'. ;|am^^#^^ p
New York. -3i
.,^-
« i
MrS^:
'.i'.V.Ji.
■i^:S '. i'.^ 4
Thfetforeign policy announced^by Preitdeit ^feiipfel*^*^
was : . First, to bring about peac^ a;jd prevent fiitufe ; •
wars in North and South America; aiid, isecondly, ti>' ^^^''
cultivate siK:h friendly commercial relatrbhswftli i^ vi
American countries as would lead to a ki^e iiidreaws^'']
in the ex|>ort trade of the United Started. Iti^^^fa^i^ ^
-the ^purpose of promoting peace oen the W<»t«fii>'
Hemlsi^Mre^diat k wa8> determined to invJte-jdi tti#
tn^Lipendent governments of North and Sou^ Amefka
i%)etiiia peace conference lit Wlish
<'Si-
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.■■?.T>P
vimmm'^voasftmt <$f 4Tim
240^'
- ■ ■ , ■ ■ ■ " a ■- ■ ,v .
AmbHiaki^indf had k been carried oat» would hxv^
rais«di^ ^standfttxl bf dvUikktion; and possiBl)^ • by
openiag South American thaHt^ to out mariufac-^
tures, would haHfis wiped but jii2,ocx),CKX> balance of
trade which Spanish America brings against us every
year^ ^vBhe/i invitations to this^ important conference'
wer4'SUbseqiiendyjsent out by President Arthur, but
in la ^hort time they were recalled, after some of ^e'
countries had actually accepted them. It was a pacific
policy and was wholly in accord with the Monroe Doc-
trin^iiaNEKtlhd characteristic traditions of American dr- ^
plomg^. W
•^EivwAMA Canal.
President .Garfield in his inaugural address had re- *
peated.thei declaration of his predecessor that it was
** theri^feand duty 6f the United States to assert and
maintaiek: ssuch supervisioft and authority over any in-
teroceanic csmal across the. isthmus that connects
Noi^lloand South America as will protect our Na-
tional? intieres^." Tliis policy, which had received the
direct approval of Congress, was vigorously upheld
by $«^i^^^y Blaine^ The Colombian kepuWic had
propoied to the European Powers to join in a guar-
antQ« tol^ neutrsdtty of the proposed t^anama Catisd^
On^iof JPreaident Garfield's first acts under the ad-
vi<»x#f SecrelaryBldine was to remind the Enropisaii
Goieet^ittAtftjfftfieexdusive rights which ^^^
Stat^ihid $ecitred whh the country to be traversed
by the intetoceanic* waterway. Ttiese exclusive rigte
' mi^iclrei ^6:j>iior gudrantec <of the United Stales
-'ii
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u^rwmom
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Gdveinmtiit' iildittpeiitiabUs, sad: ^/BofWttw weMiiiK)
ibftitted^lhit any fbrpign guarantee #<Mld' lia liot^iiDiyt
^ an bnnjeceissaiy lmtili9fnendl]^aciL u-ijud- Aanm
^*i;^r^6Uti^d States had inadei!tnjth^;€la3tt6n*
Balweir Trea^ of 18^50 a special agreefnent vwt^i
Gi^at Brttiain on this subject, Seoretaiy Blatne^isi^pss
fitein^tedius memorandum to the Powersjhy a.focimil
f^mposat for the abrogatioif of all provisions o£ duifc
convention which were not in accord with' the^ guai^
antdes and privileges covenanted for ia^ the compact
with the Cobmbian fiepul>Ii& ;^*i life iKn^ UimhBmni
In his State paper, the most elaborate of ihei^ricii
recdving bi^ signature as Secretary of States J hhi
' . Blaine contended that the operation^ of the lOairtoi^
Bulwer X^eaty pracMcaHy conceded to Qreat Britainr
the control of any canal which nught be conatirt»ted
ins the isthmus, as that Power was requli«d l^ itsibfe
^ iular <fositioni and colonisd fiHOs^essionsi to msAatiiamc^
naval: establishment with iifhich the Umted dStfltl^
could not compete. As the American Govenmiedt
hid bound itself by its ei^gements in the €la^feon-
^ Bidwer Ireaty not to Jght in th^ isthnuts^ tior^te^lb^
«xf^ the mouths of Any ira^ervmy l^ati^ beicliilf
structed, the Secrietaiy a^ued diat if any stmi^^iim
the^ contr<^ of the caiml wer» to a^ise Enghmd^iibuld
lunre an vadvantage:^^^e cutset whicfe ^mtdijbMfii
. ♦. A BASE SURRENDER. ^^Vr/jaifnt
'^^^jp^jcealyy'' h#.ireni$i>fee4 ^^cmniiiftii&I^SF'Cbv^
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'wom^^u^smaMm mafskm
m
igUsi
eflliiitnlr tmvtdi}M^ ajaingUsi segimiafti of troof^ rtO'
|!^;{«lteet»k»ii^tbl%s|8 ia^conne^ion with t^e iateroceanl^
cahal/but to surrender t^te tcan^t to the guardianahtp
and control ^CitheBriti?)!^^^ Navy."
n^ell^gklToffthibipaperWaa unanswerable from an
Ainertisnipoin^ of view. If the Monroe Doctrine; be
aii^thingitttofeithan^ a tradition^ the control of the
Bananna Qinaimiist^ not. be fallowed to passi out of
AliEeIkalih^ul^;^iiKi: since the scountry ha\dng ilie
fnos|; pb%editl navy is the real guardian of the &ee«
doii|i«iattfiiteroc«aanic canal under any system of in^
ternational guarantees, orinthe absence of treaty law*
tfor Bifisign^ CansUi as Mn Blaine 8ai4 under the day-
tdM^Bulwer Treaty would besurrendered, if not i» fornix
yetiiii^ifileci; ta the control of Great firitaim
l:^I»Sisor6iai^ Blaine's iii^i^i^^ JaniesRus^
sillsIi^efiiMiiiisterto England^ is die following sum*
ma»y^ the tfanges b the G^ treaty of
. i^iEj^^cteaai^ to meet the viewsof the United Stat^
-«««^iS'^Bv^|«»W(^#^ treaty whk^t Ibrbids^e
limited States fortifying the canaV and hoMing the
po^idd t36fjX^rQh^ i( in conjunction widi the coiintry
iil^^i^di k is located, 1» be cancelled.
I >ii»iS^ww4 ; :Eyery larfc of Ae treaty in which Great
B^taiii'iand^ tie United Stales agree to make no ac;
quisition df territory in CentraV America to remain in
fulilbrce/' . •
^^^idaiil^i and fotdble chain of reasoning by
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which Mn Blafne led to thes«? conclusions forced the
J^Ksh newspapers to admit that he had made p^t a
gOOdease upon British precedents, and that the nght
' T' ^; > !
1 -. I ,^
!'/;
SAMUEL J. KIRKWOOD.
Of riieUnited Sta^s^ t<» «>ntrol ^e Panama Ca^al j^gs
,stw)ngenand the necessiQr of such ccm^g
K^lbsm Ae right and necessity of England to control j||c
vv-
r S^ ^4,.
Sh
\
BtAiNK A» &Sbtanxnr or statb.
266
-i^fii r i - ■ ■• . .■■■■■, y,>
WHAT THE ADMINISTRATION PR0MI9EI>/^ '
^ 'the brief administratidh df FresideDt Garfield waft
reltiarkable for its promise of broad statesmanships
For many years Congress and the entire government .
had been busy in tjQiaiHing wair^' so;, restori peace and
in paying the inf)ii|ien^ war debt It was all the United
States could^ do to preserve the H^ion, and other na-
trons were pfofitjng by the neglect ^f this country to
properly cultivate its foretj^ ri^atiKiitis. England had
absorbed our cpmmme^^ S^ dire0t<^ into her own
coffers the trade of the South Aineri^n countries.
And now» under the auspice^ ^ t^HB French Repub-
licr Ufider the diree^n of a 'atizen Of France, and
backed by continental capitalists^ active preparations
ihad been made to (x>pstruct ai): InteroceaniCcanal
aeross the Isthiiius of j^^ thef Clay-
t^n^Biil wer |)^a^ of 1^50, ^ j!^!ii|c4 States ^
piac^tcsaili0|>^^ the- pro-
,r, >^V -^ " ' ■ ■■^ V-r ■ HOME- POU^r'. ^.:V-; 'X% '
mi^^^te^^^ at hon^ ^ii^ii^^ So^ih"
trn^f^^^^^^jW^ pt<h
mote th^ inat^i^ South, here-
tofore neglected ^r the ^afce of ^ political recon-*
struction. -r '
The Southern policy of the Administration would"
hal^ve been to cultivate cordial relations between the
4M^rent sections of the country, and^ by thus promot-
1%|hefbwi^thward of Northern capiiaVto assist
the development of the Southern States. Mr; Blaine'
''f'
^
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Liri or RON; ^xambs ck BLAnm^
h^d great faith in the future of the South* ^OwSnh
occasion he said : Je^il s^Hl ;ai if>vH
In reconstructing the South we made' the same miB4
btjjdw » ^ f or jq ac fl
ode
3W
take llie Brhish Covermn^iit is maki^ i)Hli the li*i|te
If we had made a governmjent donatbn 6($^<ijb&^/jm
for tfaeipurpose.of cofistruc^ngf i t$^mf ^mi^dl^atAiS^
tm^^tiie southern end of-^HbfUl^ ^^ij^l^l^
t
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Bhuxm ▲& SBOsirAinr 4>F state.
m
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dollar 3df it between Charleston and th« Mississfpfff
river in the first three years following the war, the
pt^lemof reconstruction would have solved itself;
the people would have bad business interests, instead
of politics, to occupy tlieiril^^lpn. I believe that
widiin ten years the material iiiiclelf^in the Southern
States, east of t|ie Mississippi, will i^(i|), if it does not
surpass, that ol the Northwestern Stales, west of the
Mississippi. I -^^ 'u^'^^'^:/-- '''■'}■J\'■'■
As to the pc^cy of di^ Garfield administration and
its course-of action dui|tiig the war between Chili and
Peru, a short and su^c^iit presentation of the facts
should be given hiMre ihsfcSdRUGh bs Mr. Blaine was con-
sidered the or^i^-faator of &e projected action on die
part of the Unit^ States. The ^flowing carefully
pr<^red artMe t^ives Siucji a cb^r eschiiHt of the
^^jndjirluc)! ippe^fp,^i^m ir^^ Tribune,
■igjl^^v^'j^'^dil rlsttte%^t^_ facti as they.ex-
li^lincl w^<ii ^e publ^ alojn^ wiili Kti". Btai^e'& state-
The war between ChtlbriS Peru had virtually ended
with the capture of Lima cll^anuary 1 7, 1 88 1 . Pierda,
the president^ had succeeded in rallying a few followers
in the north, and Calderon, assuming the provisional
Presidency, had conV6ked a Cohg'ress in the vicinity
ottjina.^^ : llie S^te PepafTtinent inade ittenuft^^ e^-
^^ti^ns t^Mngabpul i^ of an early peace
bj|^fien)€bU{' s^ lltf lW0pr0$traleSrate& which have
t^ cfiAfb^in wain > Sb^ i^ Govem*^
Vfl
r
266
Ln^ OF BON. JAMES O. BLAlUB. #
ment was brought to bear upon victorious Chili in
the interest of peace and magnanimity; but owing
to an unfortunate misapprehension of Mr, Blaine's
instructions, the United States Ministers did not pro-
mote the ends of peace.
THE PEACE CONGRESS.
Special envoys were accordingly sent to South
America accredited to the three Governments with
general instructions which should enable them ' to
bring those belligerent Powers into friendly relations.
These envoys were Mr. Trescot and Mr. Walker
Blaine, and their mission was to perform a most ddi-
cate and important diplomatic duty in the interest of
peace. After they had set out front New York Mr.
Blaine resigned, and Mr. Frelinghuysen reversed the
diplomatic policy with ^uch predpitate haste that the
envoys on arriving at their destination were infonii^
by the Chilian Minister of Foreign Afiairs that thfttr
instructions had been countermanded and that their
mission was an idle farce.
By this extraordinary reversal of diplomatic meth-
ods and purposes the influence of the United States
GoA^emment on the South American coast w^ ire-
duced to so low a point as to become insignificant
Mr. Blaine's policy had been at once strong and fKidlic.
It was followed by a period of no-policy which enabled
Chili to make a conqueror's terms with ttie con<ini§l^ed
and to seize as much territory as pleased its rapKpiclous
generals!. ■ '" \ /'"' '•/"^^■:J>-;;v':' ■■>'-■■ ^ ^
Tlie most tonspidiotis act pf i^ Blii&ie% l^d^^
1 - '
Hi In
»wing
line's
t pro-
South
with
m' to
Ltions.
-
ralker
tddi-
estof
kMr. :
ed the
„
mt Ae
bnhed
'
t their
t dieir
meth-
States
wis re-
itficatnt
■
inatiled
qu^iW
>act6u8
;
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BLAINK AS.^!^^3^4;^1^ or. SdSATl. W
jtrf^^n pf the State Departrterifw^ his<invita|ion.to
. ,l;|HP, Pe^^ee Congress. This plan had been ^eci^ed
'i|P9i^, ^before the assassination of President Garfield.
, ,'l^he .proposition was to invite all the independent
Governments of North and South America to, n^eet
the Peace Congress at Washington on March 15,
j^^^Sfl. The representatives of all the minor Govern-
^ ! ^ent^ on this continent were to agree, if possible, upon
..sojpj^ comprehensive plan for averting war by means
^p^j^bitratipn and for resisting the intrigues of Euro-
, .pej^n diplomacy. Invitations were sent on November
af(,yfith |he limitations and restrictions originally de-
.!. signed, Mr« Frelinghuysen lost np time in upd^r-
fliiGring; t^iis Diplomatic Congress and the meeting
{r^eyer.took pla^e* It cannot be doubted that the pro-
v,,f q^ Congress would have had a most importf^nt
«,^ff^, not only in promoting the ends of peace, b\)tin
f^^^nwlating American trade with the Spanish-Ameriqan
P Sl^t^. ^tjw^sa^J^filliant conception-^ most useful
project. ; ,
,; • THE PRESERVATION OF PEACE.
,.Mi^r. Blaine has described the Congress as an im-
.portant^^a^ inipressive step on the part of theUniled
jfj§^e% toward closeri^elatipnship with our continental
,.||^^t)to^s. In no ey^nt could harm have resulted in
1^5^ assembling of the,|*eace Congress. F^lure was
j^ impossible* Suo:ess might be regarded as
,1,1
-VMX
The s
/ 11
^z.
discussed was peace, and ho;w it
peD^^ently pfc^sefyed »» J^P*^ f^ §011^
•' 'M
.•»..i„^ a*
ii>''-
868
UFI OF HON. JAMBS O. BI<AIKB.
America. The labors of the Congress would have
probably ended in a well-digested system of arbitration,
under which all troubles between American States
could be quickly, effectually and satisfactorily adjusted.
Such a consummation would have been worth a great
struggle and a great sacrifice. It could have been
reached without any struggle and would have involved
no sacrifice. It was within our grasp. It was ours
for the asking. It would have been a signal victory
of philanthropy over the selfishness of human ambi-
tion ; a complete triumph of Christian principles as
applied to the afiairs of Nations. It would have
reflected enduring honor oti our new country, and
would have imparted a new spirit and a new brother-
hood to all America.
Nor would its influence beyond the sea have beert
sniall. The example of seventeen independent Na^
tions solemnly agreeing to abolish the arbitrament of
the sword, and to settle every dispute by peaceful
methods of adjudication, would have exerted an' influ-
ence to the utmost confines of civilization, and upon
the generations of men yet to come.
MR. BLAINE*S STATEMENT.
Shortly after Mr. Blaine retired from the Cabinet,
and after President Arthur had modified the foreign
policy laid down by his predecessor, he wrote the fol«
lowing letter to a paper in Chicago, in explanatioii of^
lus position. . , ,
As there is a desire to re>rea<i it, the entire letter
'tsgivcnr*. ^ / ; , - . . /, ^.5
.5<
d ^
Y^'^^Z -l?^/'*r
_ „ - — JLUj\
BLAiHi AS smiBBTMtt df ftifAn.
SS9
Augusta, Maine, Sept. ist, 1883.
The foreign policy of President Garfield's admini^
tration had two principal objects in view : First, to
bring about peace, and prevent future wars in North
and South America ; second, to cultivate such friendly
commercial relations with all American countries as
would lead to a large increase in the export trade of
the United States, by supplying those fabrics in which
we are abundantly able to compete with the manufac-
turing nations of Europe.
To attain the second object the first must be ac-
complished. It would be idle to attempt the develop-
ment and enlargement of our trade with the countries
of North and South America if that trade were liable
at any unforeseen moment to be violently interrupted
by such wars as that which for three years has en-
grossed and almost engulfed Chili, Peru, and Bolivia;
as that which was barely averted by the friendly of-
fiices of the United States between Chili and the Ar-
gentine Republic; as that which has been postponed
by the same good oflfices, but not decisively aban-
doned, between Mexico and Guatemala; asthatwhifeh
is threatened between Brazil and Uruguay; as that
whicJi IS even now foreshadowed between Brazil and
the Argentine States.
- ^ THE war spirit.
' l*eace is essential to commerce, is the very lite of ^
honest trade, id the solid basis of internatioifial pr<»-
ferity; sirid yet there is no part of the worid^here a
resorttotarntB is so prdmpt as in the Spanish-America^n
•■' '«*
MifJiiW^^Mi^
Z-iii
^ it ' i
; ■.•■ y^
260
LIFE OP HON. JAMES 6. &LAINB.
Republics. Those Republics have grown out of the
old Colonial divisions, formed from capriciouis gt^hts
to favorites by Royal charter, and their boundaries are
in many cases not clearly defined, and con'sequently
alfTprd the basis of continual disputes, breaking forth
too often in open war. To induce the Spanish-Ameri-
can States to adopt some peaceful mode of adjusting
their frequently recurring contentions was regarded
by the late President as one of -the inost honorable
and useful ends to which the diplomacy of the United
States could con tribute--~usefur especially to those
States by securing permanent peace within all their
borders, and useful to our own country by affording
a coveted opp6rtunity for extending its commerce and
securing enlarged fields f6r our products and manu-
fecturcs. , V
• THE MOTIVE FOR CALLING A PEACE CONGRESS.
V Ii*5tea4 of frien intervention here and there,
^^0Mt^ up a treaty b^ ween two couhtries to-d^.
ie^ttrtng a truce between two others to-morrow, it was
atpparent to the President that a more compr^ensive
|:|iUi should be adopted if war was to cease in the
Western Hemisphere. It was evident that certain
European Powers had in the past been interested in
promoting strife between the Spanish American coun*
tries, and might be so interested in the future, while the
interest of the United States was wholly and always;
oh the side of peace with all our American neig^boVs,-
and peace between them all.
It was therefore the pre8rdent'3 belief that mere lii-
e
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BLAINE AS SEGRETART OF STATE.
m
cidental and partial adjustments failed to attain the
desired end, and that a common agreement of peace,
pennanent in its character and continental in its extent,
lould, if possible, be secured. To effect this end it
had been resolved, before the fatal shot of July a, to,
ifiyite r^ll the indepetident governments of KortKand
South America to meet in a Pe^ce Congress at Wash^
•'Vw
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f:i%l^;
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232
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ington. The date to be assigned was the 1 5th of
March, 1S82, and the invitations would have been is-
sued directly after the New England tour, which the
President was not permitted to make. Nearly six
months later, on November 22, President Garfield's
successor issued the invitations for the Peace Congress
in the same spirit and scope and with the same limita-
tions and restrictions that had been originally de-
sijg^ed.
SOUTH AMERICA APPROVES.
As soon as the project was understood in South
America it received a most cordial approval, and «ome
of the countries, not following' the leisurely routine of
diplomatic correspondence, made haste to accept the
invitation. There can be no doubt that within a brief
period ^11 the nations invited would have formally sig-
nified theit readiness to attend the Congress ; but in
six weeks after the invitations had gone to the several
countries, President Arthur caused them to be i^called,
or at least suspended.
The subject was afterward referred to Congress in a
special message, in which the President ably vin-
dicated his constitutional right to assemble the Peace
Ccmgress, but expressed a desire that the legislative
department of the Government should give an opinion
u^n the expediency of the step before the Congfress
should be allowed to convene/^- ? * ; \ r t^^
Meanwhile the nations that received the invitatiofis
were in an embarrassing situation ; for after they were
asked l^ the President to come, they found thait the
» '■■ , '' '.
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;•%■
3v%
BLAIKE^ AS SBCBSTABY Of STATi.
26d
matter had been reconsidered and referred to another
department of the Government Hiis change was
universally accepted as a practical though indirect
abandonment of the project, for it was not from the
first probable that Congress would take any action
whatever upon the> subject . r^ '
THE PROJECT DEFEATED. ^ *
The good will and welcome of the invitation would
be destroyed by a long debate in the Senate and
House, in which the question would necessarily become
intermixed with personal and party politics, and the
project would be ultimately wrecked from' the same
cause and by the same process that destroyed the use*
fulness of the Panama Congress more than fifty yean
ago, when Mr. Clay was Secretary of State. The time
for Congressional action would have been after the
Peace Conference had closed its labors.
The conference could not agree upon anything^that
would be binding upon the United States, unless as<
sented to as a treaty by the Senate, or enacted into a
law by both branches. The assembling of the Peace
Conference, as President Arthur so well demonstrated,
was not in derogation of any right or prerogative of
the Senate or House. The money necessary for the
expenses of the conference-^which would not have ex<
ceededJiiAooo-— could not, with reason pr propriety,
have been refused by Congress. If it had been re*
fused, patriotism and philanthropy would have promptly
supplied it -
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264 haw OF BON. JAXES G. BLAI
^^^ , THE NEGISSITV OF FRIENDLY INTERVENTION.
^9^^ The Spanish American States are in sp^ial need of
the help which the Peace Congress would afford them.
They require external pressure to keep them from
war. When at war they require external pressure to
bring them to peace. Their outbreaks are not only
frequent, ' but are sanguinary and sometimes cruel.
The inhabitants of those countries are a brave people,
tM^Ionging to a race that have always been brave,
descended of men that have always been proud. They
are of hot temper, quick to take affront, ready to
avtfnge a wrong, whether real or fancied. They* are
at the same time generous and chivalrous, and though
tending for years to past estrangement and alienation
• from us, they would promptly respond to anyadvante
made by the Great Republic of the North, as diey
have for two generations termed our Government
The moral influence upon the Spanish American
(^ople of such an international assembly as the Peace
Congress, called by the invitation and meeting under
die auspices of theAJnited States, would have proved
beneficent and far-reaching. . It would have raised the
standard Qf their civilizatioi). It would have turned
tiieii* attention to the things of peace; and the con*T.
tment^ whose undeveloped wealth amazed Humboldt,
migiM have had a new life given to it, a new and
^endid career opened to its inhabitants. ^^*r
Such friendly interventions as the propo^d Peace
Congress, and as the attempt to restore peace between^
Chili and Pieru, fdl w^n iA^e line pi botb^ duty, jpnd
'■*
VpV'
BLAINE AS SBOftBTART 01* STATE.
^5
interest on the part of the United States. Nations
like individuals often require the aid of a common
friend to restore relations of amity. Peru and Chili
are in deplorable need of a wise and powerfbl mediar
tor. Though exhausted by war, they are unable to
make peace, and, unless they shall be aided by the in-
tervention of a friend, political anarchy and social dis-
order will come to the conquered, and evil scarcely less
serious to the conqueror. Our own Governnient cail-
npt take the ground that it will not offer friendly in-
tervention to settle troubles between American coun-
tries, unless at the same time it freely concedes to
European governments the right of such intervention,
and thus con3ents to a practical destruction of th^
Monroe doctrine and an unlimited increase of Eurd-
pean and monarchical influence on this continent
>:^: ; MEDIATION DEMANDED.
The late special envoy to Peru and Chili, Mr.Trescot,
gives it as his deliberate and published conclusion that
if the instructions under which he set out upon his
mission had not been revoked, peace between those
angry belligerents would have been established as die'
result of his labors-^necessarily to the great benefit
of the United States. If our Government does hot
resume its efforts to secure peace in South Ameriot,
some European government will be forced to peribrm
that friendly office.
^^'^^^ v^ United States cannbt play between nations ^e .
fjttii: of die dog in the ma^ We mustpeffiwmdie^
du^ of humane intervention duriselves bi* give Way^
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toforeign governments that are willing to accept the
re9ponmbility of the great trust and secure the
enhanced influence and numberless advantages result^
ing from such a philanthropic and beneficent course.
ITS COMMERCIAL VALUE.
A most significant and important result would have
followed the assembling of the Peace Congress. A
friendship and an intimacy would have been estab-
lished between the Statea of North and South Amer-
ica, which would have demanded and enforced a closer
commercial connection. A movement in the near
future, as the legitimate outgrowth of assured peace,
would in all probability have been a great commerdal
conference at the city of Mexico or Rio Janeiro, whose
deliberations would be directed to a better system of
trade on the two continents.
• To such a conference the Dominion of Canada
qould properly be asked to send representatives, as
that government is allowed by Great Britain a very
large liberty in regulatingits commercial relations. In
the Peace Congress, to be composed of independent
governments, the Dominion could not have taken any
part, and was consequently not invited. From this
trade conference of the two continents the United
Statepjcould hardly have failed to gain great advan-
tages. ■ At present the commercial relations of this
country with the Spanish American countries, bdth
qoii^ttt^^) and insular, are unsatis&ctory and unprof*
i^e-^ipeieedrJihose relations are absolutely oppres-
jd«e to theliBanciai intt^rests of^the Government atfid^
d
b
a
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s
c
a
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.
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BLAINB AS SBOEfiTAEt €ff StAtl.
267
people of the United States. In our current ex^
changes it rdquires about $120,000,000 to pay the
balances which Spanish America brings against us
every year.
This amount is 50 per cent more than the average
annual product of the gold and silver mines of the
United States during the past five years. This vast
sum does not of course go to Spanish America in
coin, but it goes across the ocean in coin or its equiv-
alent, to pay European countries for manufactured
articles which they furnish to Spanish America— a
large proportion of which should be furnished by the
manufacturers of'the United States.
THE TARIFF AND SOUTH AMERICAN TRADE.
At this point of the argument the free trader ap-
pears and declares .that our protective tariff destroys
our power of competition with European countries,
and that if we will abolish protection, we shall soon
have South American trade. The answer is not sufH-
qient, for to-day there are many, articles which we can
send to South America, and sell as cheaply as Euro-
pean manufacturers can furnish them. It is idle, of
course, to make this statement to the genuine apostle
of free trade and the implacable enemy of protection,
for the great postulate of his argument, die foundation
of his creed, is that nothing can be made a^ cheaply in
America as in Europe. * -
Nevertheless factsiare stubborn, and the hard figures
of aritlimetic cannot be satisfactoi^y Answered by airy
%^es of speech. The trutli remains that the coarser
/
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lil^ of' BO^. ^AMES 0. BLAINE.
descriptions of cottons and cotton prints, boots ai\d
shoes, ordinaty- household furniture, harness for draft
animals, agricultural implements of all kinds, doors,
sashes and blinds, locks, bolts and hinges, silverware,
plated ware, wooden ware, ordinary paper and paper-
hangings, common vehicles, ordinary window-glass and
glassware, rubber goods, coal oils, lard oils, kerosenes,
white lead, lead pipe, and articles in which lead is a
chief component, can be, and are produced as cheaply
in the United States as in any other part of the
World.
The list of such articles might be lengthened by the
addition of those classed as " notions ;" but enough
only are given to show that this country would, with
proper commercial arrangements, export much more
largely than it now does to Spanish America. ^
BRITISH MONOPOLY.
In the trade relations of the world, it does not follow
that mere ability to produce as cheaply as another
nation insures a division of an established market, or,
ihdeed, any paftictpation in it. France manufactures
many articles as cheaply as England — ^some articles at
even less cost. Portugal lies nearer to France than to
England, and the expense of transporting the French
fabric to the Portuguese market is therefore less than
the transportation of English &bric.
And yet Great Britain has almost a monopoly in
^e tradie of Portugal. The sanie condition applies,
tbough in a less degree, in the trade of Turkey^ Slyp^
and Egypt, which England holds to a tnuch gr^atir
'r'i
"'^■rr
BLAINE AS SEOBETART OF STATE.
268
extent than any of the other European nations that
are able to produce the same fabric as cheaply. ,
If it be said in answer, that England has special
trade-relations by treaty ivith Portugal and special
obligations binding the other countries, the ready
answer is, that she has no more favorable position
with regard to those countries than can be readily
and easily acquired by the United States with respect
to all the countries of America. That end will be
reached whenever the United States desires it, and
wills it, and is ready to take the steps necessary to
secure it.
THE OMINOUS ADVERSE BALANCE.
At present the trade with Spanish America runs so
strongly in channels adverse to us, that, besides our
inability to furnish manufactured articles, we do not
get the profit on our own raw products that are
shipped there. Our petroleum reaches most of the
Spanish^American ports after twice crossing the At*
lantic, paying often a better profit to the European
middle man, who handles it, than it does to the pro-
ducer of the oil in the northwestern counties of Penn-
sylvania. Flour and pork from the West reach Cuba
by way of Spain, and though we buy and consume
ninety per cent, -of the total products of Cjiba, almost
that proportion of her purchases are made in Europe
-—made, of course^ with money furnished directly from
bur pockets.
As our exports jto Spanish America grow less, as
-Burbpean imports epnstantly grow large, the bi^ance
■^m
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270
Un OP HON. 3 AMES 6. BLAINB.
lll^inst US wlU show an annual increase, and will con-
tinue to exhaust our supply of die precious metals.
We arc increasing our imports from South America,
and the millions we annually pay for coffee, wool, hides,
]guano, cinchona, caoutchouc, cabinet woods, dye woods
and odier articles, go for the ultimate benefit of Euro-
pean manufacturers who take the gold from us and
send their fabrics to Spanish America.
If we could send our fabrics, our gold would stay at
home and our general prosperity would be sensibly
increased. But so long as we repel Spanish America,
so long as we leave her to cultivate intimate relations
with Europe alone, so long our trade relations will
remain unsatisfactory and even embarrassing. Those
countries sell to iis very heavy. They buy from us
ligiidy.
OUR EXPORTS.
And the amount they bring us in debt each year is
larger than the heaviest aggregate balance of trade
we ever have against us in the worst of times. The
average balance against us in the whole world in the
five most adverse years we ever experienced, was
about one hundred millions of dollars. This plainly
shows that in our European exchanges there is always
a baknce in our favor and that out chief deficiency
arises from our mal-adjusted commercial relations,
with Spanish America.
It follows that if our Spanish America trade were
plsmd on a b<itter and more eqi^itable foundation, it
*,y^i
^^y^^*^frP'l'7^< Wjw^
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>x. ■ .-
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272
UnS or HON, JAMIS 0. BLAINS.
would be almost impossible even in years most unfe-
vorable to us, to bring us in debt to the world, v^ ,,
With such heavy purchases as we are compelled to
make from Spanish America, it could hardly be ex-
pected that we should be able to adjust the entire
account by exports. But the balance against us of
one hundred and twenty millions in gold coin is far
too large, and in time of stringency is a standing
menace of final disaster. It should not be forgotten
that every million dollars of products or fabrics that
we sell in Spanish America is a million dollars in gold
saved to our own country. The immediate profit is
to the producer and exporter, but the entire country
realizes a gain in the ease and affluence of the money
market which is insured by keeping our gold at home
The question involved is so large, thfe object to be
achieved is so great, that no effort on the part of the
Goyernment to accomplish it could be too earnest or
too long continued.
eOMPACT OF NATIONS.
It is only claimed for the Peace Congress, designed
under the administration of Garfield, that it was an
important and impressive step on the part of the
United States toward closer relationship with our con-
tinental neighbors. The present tendency in those
ipountries is toward Europe, and it is a lamentable fact
that their people are not ^o near to us in feeling as
they were sixty years^o when diey threw off the yoke,
of Spanish tyranny.
%e were then a w^ak republic of terj miUions, lm$
f ' . -I j, '-k^^J^I
'^iH''^^'
-t,'1
BLAINE AS SEORETART OF STATE.
273
we did not hesitate to recognize the independence of
the new governments, even at the risk of war with
Spain. Our foreign policy at that time was specially
designed to extend our influence in the Western
Hemisphere, and the statesmen of that era — the era
of DeWitt Clinton and the younger Adams, of Clay
and of Crawford, of Webster and Calhoun, of Van
Buren and Benton, of Jackson and of Edward Living-
ston — were always courageous in the inspiring meas-
ures which they advocated for the expansion of our
commercial dominion.
THE PERIL TO BE AVOIDED BY THE UNION.
Three-score years have passed. The power of the
Republic in many directions has grown beyond all
anticipation, but we have relatively lost ground in
some great fields' of enterprise. We have^added
thousands of miles to our ocean front, but our com-
merce has fallen off, and from ardent friendship with
Spanish America we have drifted into indifference if
not into coldness. It is but one step further to reach
a condition of positive unfriendlmess, which may end
in what would be equivalent to a commercial alliance
against us. Already one of the most dangerous of
movements^— that of a European guarantee and guar-
dianship of the Interoceanic Canal — is suggested and
urged upon the Great Foreign Powers by representa-
tives of a South American country. If these tenden-
cies are to be averted, if Spanish-American friendship
is to be regained, if the coihmercial empire that legiti-
fii^tely lelOngs to us is io be ours, we must not be
.Ai
.JT 1 '
SI>&^dlawk:4iiSiV;i».4aw:: :*»■ ^ ,j;. l.;,: .rtuc«»«i^-i
274
^
1
!•.-
h.
LIFE OF HON. JAMES O. BLAINE.
idle apd witness its transfer to others. If we would
reconquer it, a great first step is to be taken.- It is
the first step that costs. It is also the first step that
counts. Can there be suggested a wiser step than
the Peace Congress of the two Americas, that was
devised under Garfield, and had the weight of his
great name? v
A SPECTACLE MORALLY SUBLIME.
In no event could harm have resulted in the assem-
bling of the Peace Congress ; failure was next to im-
possible. Success might be regarded as certain. The
subject to be discussed was peace, and how it can be
permanently preserved in North and South America.
The labors of the 'Congress would have probably
ended iii a well-digested system of arbitration, under
which all troubles between American States could be
quickly^ effectually and satisfactorily adjusted. Such
a consummation would have been worth a great
struggle and a great sacrifice. It could have been
reached without any struggle and would have in-
volved no sacrifice. It was within our grasp. It was
ours for the asking.
It would have been a signal victory of philanthropy
over the selfishness of human ambition ; a complete
triumph of Christian principles as applied to the af-
fairs of Nations. It would have reflected enduring
honor on our new country, and would have imparted
a new spirit and a new brotherhood to all America.
Nor would its influence bevond the sea have been
,, ,. •
9ma\U. The example of seventeen independent Nar
my
',^■. "
t' r
276
LIFE OF HON. JAMES O. BLAINE.
tions solemnly agreeing to abolish the arbitrament of
die sword, and to settle every dispute by peaceful
methods of abjudication, woiild have exerted an in-
fluence to the utmost confines of civilization, and
upon generations of men yet to come.
". V James G. Blaine.
But whatever might have been the ultimate rfesult
of his foreign policy, and whatever he might haVeac*
complished to render the administration to which he
was attached popular and prosperous, was prevented
by the assassination of the President, just four months
from the day of his inauguration. His policy had
been formulated and its details duly specified, dnd no
doubt the President and his first officer were an tid-
pating additional prosperity for the people."
fHE assassination OF PRESIDENT GARFIELD.
On the bright Saturday morning of July 2d, the
President prepared to leave the National Capital for?
New York, and thence to New England to join in the .
reunion of his classmates at the Commencemeni of
Williams College, Secretary Blaine accompanied him
to the station and observed the almost boyish delight
with which he anticipated this meeting with his fellow-
students of former days. Passing into the ^ta^^ti:
through thei ladies' waiting-room, they were about to
plass to the train, when that fiend in human form, -
Guiteau, fired the fatal shot which finally after W(|eks
and months of suffering, and during which iiot oiity:
our nation b^| the wqr1d^waj:ched by his be^
^>.;v:,
;■*«
278
LIFE OF BON. JAMES Q. BLAINE.
side, ended in his death. The people of the country
will not forget the noble devotion shown by Mr. Blaine
to his dying superior oflficer-T-how he watched^at his
bedside, and amidst. his and his Nation*s sorrows dis-
charged all the responsible duties of his position.
f'- • ^ ■'" OARFIELD'S DEATH. '
• Gifi September 6 the President was removed from
Washington to Elberon, whither he was followed the
same day by Mr. Blaine and the rest of the Cabinet.
The apparent improvement in the President's condition
warranted the belief that he would continue togatn,
aind Mr. Blaine went for a short rest to his home in
Augusta. He was on his way back to Elberon on
the nineteenth day of September when the fatal mo-
ment came and reached there the next morning. It
Ts the universal testimOn; of press and people that,,
during tlie weary weeks which intervened between
the President's injury and death, Mr. Blaine's every
action and constant demeanor were absolutely fault-
less. -
.-■iO'
|y
e
IS
s-
m
fie
et.
on
in,
in
on
lO-
It
lat^
sen
ery
ult-
U-' ., -
CHAPTER XIII. .
fiuldgy of James A. Garfield.
Chr the twenty-seventh day of February, 1882, a&
pillory was delivered before boUi Houses of Con&Tess,
by. ue Hon. James G. Bkine, Secretary of stote
during the admmistration of Mr. Gkrfield, on the
murdered President The scene at the Capitol was
a very impressive one, and will li^iser long in the
memory of those who witnessed it. The bright morn-
ing sunshine brought forth thousands, who flocked
Capitolward long before the hour announced for the
opening of the door& There were a number of Gouf
gressmen early on the ground, actively engaged in plao?
ing their ladies and other friends. At half-past 10 the
galleries were literally packed, and those who came
afterwards had to be content with occasiCnal nnsatis?
factory glimpses through the open doors. It appeared
that the seating capacity had been greatly over-esti-
mated. Notwithstanding the reiterated announcements
of the press that none without tickets would be ad-
mitted to the Capitol buildings, there were hundreds
there merely to be turned away.
^he scene within was inspiriting, yet of a sombre
tinge. Four-fifths of the immense audience were ladies
and these were mostly dressed in black or sober colors.
Only here and there a flower on a bonnet, a single
ribbon or bow at a feminine throat made an obtrusive
show of color. This universal black made the thou-
sands of white faces stand out in bold relief with iui
effect which was startling. The array of fur-Uned
circulars and other yraps that were hung o^er the
eomioe^.and dangled in front, contrary to the rules of
«7»
»*'■
-t1
tf^¥
,- , *■•■»"
'^f^-v't^rr^^-i
BLAUm^ EUIX)aT OF GARFIELD.
thd House, made a ludicrous picture. In the Diplo-
matic ^alleiy, clad in purple and black velvets and
other nch but sober fabrics, was a distinguished assem-
|)>lage of ladies. The Countess Lewenhaupt, wife of
the Swedish Minister; Mrs. and Miss Preston> wife
and; daughter of the Haytian Minister; ViscounteoB
*!PaB ^ogueiros, wife of the Minister from Portugal;
Senora Don Francisco Barca, Spain; l^nor Dom Simon
Oamaoho, Venezuela, and others, were specially notable.
In the President's gallery sat Mrs. Blaine, the wife of
tiie distinguished orator of the day and the cynosure
of all eyes. She had scarcely got seated when a page
entered and presented her with a bouquet of beautiful
flowers; Mrs. Blaine was attired in rich black velvet
and circular lined with leopard skin, which was allowed
to fall over the gallery rul. She was accompanied by
Mrs. Matthews and Miss Dodge and Mrs. Justice Field.
Jirs. David Dudley Field, Mrs. Bradley, Mrs. Brewster,
Mrs. Frelihghuysen and Mrs. G. W. Curtis were near
her. While these galleries wefe being filled the Marine
Band> stationed in the lobby back of the Speaker's
desk, poured, forth the sweetest airs, the partial con*
eealment giving the music the charm of coming from
some vast music box.
On the floor about h&lf the members of the Houce
bad gathered by eleven o'clock. Most of them ap-
peared to be Contemplating the great painting of Oar-
field that hung above the- Speaker^s chair, while the
lest ogled the ladies in tlie galleries and joined in con^^
veesaMon. Aloud buzz of subdued voices from two or
thiee thousand persons Med the chamber. Three
figureii^ occupied conspicuous places on the front seats
l£d these were the venerable dgure of Washin^on's
«Bat Q^ab, W» W. Ooreorani, the Isan figure of Cyrus
« tt9M and/l^e shrivellldrUp figure of the li^riao«
Qeoiisc^ Bammftr They oaoie in early and si^ them
-' /.'^r
'f.
^r:-^:-:f
d82
fiLAIKE S EULOOT OF OARHELD.
;-^
alone. Immediately back of them, on both sides the
mdiii aisle, the desks had been removed and the vacant
chairs awaited the arrival of the Senators and other
dignitaries. The General of the Army came in first
by the main door and he and stubby Phil Sheridan
made a funny pair to come down the aisle together.
•They were followed by the princely General Hancock,
"The Superb," and Generals Howard and Meigs.^ AH
were in full uniform. They attracted a storm of eyes
and were :made the immediate . focus of a thousand
opera^glasses. Not very long, however, for that body
which always claims priority in attractiveness very soon
entered from the Speaker's lobby< The full diplomatic
corps, in all its royal spleiidor of gold lace and its
coUrtly decorations, filed in and took the second row
of seats in the semicircle. The foreign gentlemen
alw|ays form a picturesque group, but never, so much as
•when clustered together among thousands of people in
solemn conventional black. The red fez and gold em-
broidery of the Turks were in curious contrast with
the loose, plain purple robes of the Chinese.. The
re{>resentatives of the Japanese Government appeared
in American full dreSs, swallow-tails, white ties and
gloves, like the ordinary American gentleman and
ordinary American waiter. . The members of the Piplo^
matic Corps wore the regulation costumes of their
respective countries and were marsBaled by Mr. Allen,
the Hawaiian Minister, who is now known as the dean
since the departure of Sir Edward Thornton. While
everybody was picking out the prettiest uniform in
came ikxstor Miss, walking down the main dsle alone, :
his presence recalling the painful cause of this august
gathenng. The doctor seemed conscious of the g^eral
cisHdsitf and hastily passed down and slipped ipt<^.-j%^.
ad's seat^ just baok of the Diplomatic Corps. SkoriXy,^
afkent^m^ Judge Cox,. Judge, fiagtier, Judge Wiley ax!^
" JH^"
BLAINE^S EULOOr OF OARflELD.
dad
vl.'
Marshal Henry came in and sat near him. Before in-
terest had ceased in these reminders of Garfield and
his assassin Admiral Porter and Bear Admirals Bogers
and Worden were escorted to corresponding seats on
the opposite side, sitting immediatolv behind the great
generals. They were also resplenoent in the showy
uniform of the American navy that is to be.
When the House was called to order at noon the
seats set aside for the Senate, Cabinet and others were
still vacant, though every other seat was occupied, and
the space outside the rail was crowded with ex-Con-
gressmen and the lesser dignitaries. The House Clerk,
however, had scarcely read the resolutions which ap-
pointed the occasion before the Senate was announced.
President Davis waddled upon the stand and reached
out for the gavel in his business-like way, the House
remaining standing until the Senators were seated.
The Supreme Court, in full black robes, quickly fol-
lowed the Senate, and then the President and his
Cabinet were announced. The President came in
leaning on the arm of Senator Sherman, who was,
with McKinley, of the House, acting for the joint
committee. The announcement of the President of
the United States was greeted by general applause.
He was seated at the corner of the aisle on the first
row of seats to the Speaker's right and next to Cyrus
W. ¥*ield. Arthur didn't seem to know just what to
do with his hat for half a second. Field o£fercd to
take it, but the President finally found relief in placing
it under his seat. Frelinghuysen sat opposite the
President across the aisle, next him Secretarv Folger,
who sat bolt upright in his straight-backed chair, and
next sat Secretary Robert Lincoln, who rested on the
smtdt of his back in a very ungraceful but comfortable
wav,- while beyond Lincoln were Attorney-General
ISbrirsterj Hunt, I^M^tmAster^eneral Howe and Sem^.
''a.
\
..v:
_^rl-
■>-''
.V •'.s
284
BLAINE S EULOGT OP GARFIELD.
L^"
tary Kirkwood. The President wore a Prince Albert
coat, with a low-cut rolling collar, a high vest, showing
only his black scarf, surmounted by a black pin. His
gloves were black, undresft(^d kid and his shoes were
topped by black cloth gaiters. . Attorney-General
Brewster wore a bright blue scarf and carried a crush
hat. Secretary Kirkwood also carried a crush hat,
known in Iowa as, a slouch, the only slouch visible in
the Cabinet.
Soon after thx^ President was seated and last of all
came James G. Blaine, the orator of the day. The
announcement of his name was followed by a storm of
applause which, by the side of that which greeted the
President, seemed like a whirlwind of enthusiasm.
Blaine came down the aisle escorted on either iside by
Senator Sherman and Eepresentative McKinley. He
was followed by William £. Chandler, Emmons Blaine
and the ex-Premier's private secretary, who bore in his
Tight hand a huge white envelope containing the great
address. Mr. Blaine advanced to the rostrum, where -
he was warmly greeted by Vice-President Davis, and
then took his seat at the middle of the Clerk's desk.
On the left of the orator .sat Representative McKinley
and Clerk McPherson, representing the authority and
dignity of the House of Representatives. On the right
sat Senator Sherman and Secretary Shober, represent-
ing the authority and dignity of the Senate. On the
desk in front of the orator was a glass of water, on hiis
left a silver pitcher and a brace of gold-lined goblets
The address was preceded by a brief prayer ;f|npm
Chaplain Power, nearly everybody on. the floor risiog
to their feet and this example being followed to son^
extent in the galleries. When Mr. Blaine began, this
vast assemblage was almost deathly qjuiet^ for 1^
speaker^s voice was low and not very cleat. As he j^
Wanned up, however^ in redtno^ the inilitaiy and aillp
^..IJ.
::"-^ "kK: ' '-' -i^'-^^w'.^iit^^kjsh^
BLAINB^S EULOOT OF OARnSLD.
2d5
honors of his late beloved chief his voice came out,
round and full, with its old power. The attention of
the audience was captured at the start. Nobody got
up, nobody wearied, nobody did aught but listen to
catch the orator's every word.
When Mr. Blaine reached that portion of his speech
in which he alluded to the causes which led to the
shooting of Garfield there was a visible straining to
cat<;h the full import of his words. It was a very
delicate subject and the orator, with rare tact and
judgment, trod daintily on the ground. It was notice-
able that at this point the President leaned slightly
forward, shifted his feet about and fumbled his watch-
chain ai)d his glasses in an abstracted way, fully bound
up in his intentness on the language of the orator.
The intensity of feeling in the entire audience was un-
consciously illustrated in the long breath of relief that
swept over the human sea when Mr. Blaine turned,
ftom the subject to treat of the religious character of
the illustrious deceased. Every one straightened up
and looked at his neighbor, as much as to say: ''Well,
Fm glad that is over."
At the close, instead of the brilliant rhetoric of the
plumed knight, as nearly everybody had anticipated,
there was the simplest and most touching appeal for
human sympathy for the poor sufferer by the soa.
The speaker's eyes were suffused with tears as he
recited the simple story. In fact he almost broke
down. The svmpathetic eyes of President Arthur
filled, his mouth twitched, and he thought it not un-
manly to dash away a tear with a sweep of his hand.
There were a good many other eyes wet in that vast
audience and many women in the galleries sobbed
oiiirijgl&t. When tne final sentence was spoken and
th<» c^ator sat down, round after rou^d of applause
'^ .:i.
'ki'^Sfe
•5ii*j«&Ai«ite,i*ia<ff*w*W)t-.*.. itu^iuvu^-m
'r v'T^
286
Blaine's euloot of oarfuld.
r
Ui
1^.
I--
THE EULOOY IN FULL.'
Ei*8eeratai7 BlidncPs Elaquent and Dignified Tribute to the Memorj of hit
Dead Chief.
Mr. President: For the second time in this genera*
tion the great departments of the Grovernment of the
United States are assembled in the Hall of Represent*
atives to do honor to the memory of a murdered
President. Lincoln fell at the close of a mighty strug*
gle in which the passions of men had been deeply
stirred. The tragical termination of his great life
added but another to the lengthened succession of
horrors which had marked so many lintels with the
blood of the first bom. Garfield was slain in a day of
peace, when brother had been reconciled to brother
and when anger and hate had been banished firom the
land. '' Whoever shall hereafter draw the portrait of
.murder, if he will show it as it has been exhibited
where such example was last to have been looked for,
let him not give it the grim visage of Moloch, the
brow knitted by revenge, the face black with settled
hate. Let him draw, rather, a decorous, smooth-faced,
bloodless demon; not so much an example of human
nature in its depravity and in its paroxysms of crime
as an infernal being, a fiend in the ordinary display
and development of his character."
From the landing of the Pilgrims at Plymouth till
the uprising against Charles First about twenty thou-
sand emigrtMits came f)rom old England to New Eng-
land. As they came in pursuit of intellectual freedom
and ecclesiastical independence rather than for worldly
honor and profit, the emigration naturally ceased when
file contest Ibr reUgious libert3r began in earnest at
home. The man who struck bis most effective bldw
Ibr fireedo^ bfoonseienoe by s&iling for the Oolonieiin
1620 wouM have been aocounted a ^jesertor to fe^ve
^-
BLAINE S EULUOT OF OARFIELDw
287
after 1640. The opportunity had then come on th«
Boil of England for that great contest which established
the authority of Parliament, gave religious freedom to
the people, sent Charles to the block and committed
to the hands of Oliver Cromwell the supreme executive
authority of England. The English emigration was
never renewed, and from these twenty thousand men,
with a small emigration from Scotland and from
France, are descended the vast numbers who have
New England blood in iheir veins.
In 1685 the revocation of the edict of Nantes by
Louis XIV. scattered to other countries four hundred
thousand Protestants, who were among the most in-
telligent and enterprising of French subjects — ^mer-
chants of capital, skilled manufacturers and handi-
craftsmen, superior at the time to all others in
Europe. A considerable number of these Huguenot
French came to America ; a few landed in New. Eng-
land and became honorably prominent in its history.
Their names have in large part become anglicized or
have disappeared, but their blood is traceable in many
of the most reputable families, and their fame is
perpetuated in honorable memorials and useful
institutions.
From these two sources, the Eng;|ish Puritan and
the French Huguenot, came the late President — his
fiither, Abram Garfield, being descended from the one,
and his mother, Eliza Ballou, from the other.
It was good stock on both sides — none better, none
braver, none truer. There was in it an inheritance of
courage, of manliness, of imperishable love of liberty,
of undying adherence to principle. Garfield was
proud pi his blood; and, with as much satisfaction as
if! he wera a- British nobleman reading bis stately
ancestral record in Qurke's Peerage, he spoke; of hiin-
^ nJli^ m
V--^^
k"^
288
Blaine's eulogy of garfield.
end^ l]N^ c^pressioii of the Stuarts and seventh i^
d^poelib HC^& the brave French Protestants who refusel
t(kM^t to't^i^ii^ even fiom the Grrand Mon|H^|^.;
pi^nc^ (krfi^ thes^tiii^
aM diu'mg his cfnlj visit to jlng^and he busied hi#
8^- i^ dj^ppverii^ every trace of his forefathers
plitth tegisMes and^ o^ army rolls. Siti
\^tK I fHe^d in the gallery of the House «)f Comiisii
op' night after a long di^*s labor in this fiild^ oi
r#eai€h^he ssdd, with evident elation, that in ^^T
\(^4f Ih #liieii for three centuries patriots of £i|^#
btpod had H^^ sturdy blows for constttiitv^fifll
government and hdmah liberty his family had >bee&
represented. They were it Marstoti Moor,^ ai Nisebf
and at jPieston; they wei^ at Bunker Hill, at Sari^togit
a|;id at Monmbuth, and in his own person had battled
fdr the saine great caufiie in the war which preseiNred
the Union cif the States. :'|
Losing his &ther before he was two years old, ^
early life of (larfield was one of ptivation, but |tf}
{Hjfverty has been made nidelicately and iitjustly pr6ra«
ixient. Thousands of readers have ima^ned him i|f
the ragged, starving child whose reidity too often g^ree^
the eye in the sqii^alid sections of Our large citieii
General Garfield's infiMHin^' and youtli had none p|
tli^ir destitution, none of tb^ir pitiftd' features iipii9iy[4
ii% |o the tender heaH and to the open haiid of!
charity. He was H poor boy in the same sense it^
w|^ich Henry Cli^ liras a poor bcjr j in which Andrewj
Jfiekson was a ; ^opr boy ; in wh Webste^
wi^ a poor boy I in the.sQiise in which a large majority(
ofpbe iBflitn^t ttMOst <^^ all generations hikvo,
hf^fbqr^iki^ nnil^^e of ni^> in al
p4i|i^0^h, i&:^$p6^^ this t^&nony i " ]
^#3^iU]i'bi^^ be bor£t lit a lo|; cal^^
bat mjr eld<ar brorae» and abtera wiere b<»n m a log
*»!l'ii
sre?
ivBt
Ids of
ngUA
ition4
.' beeft
T»ebi
battled
ssetved
Ad, f e
but Ito
him ^
Qinreeti
} citietti
aone o|
kaiia of
jense ii<
Audrewl
Weteteii
ma;
[>XIS
Of;
imalog
200
Blaine's eulogt of GAUfiELD.
S'.-
If; % ,_
Ik
■ ' '
cabin raised amid the snow drifts of New. Hampshire,
at a period so early that when the smoke rose first
from its' rude chimney and curled over the frozen
hills there was no similar evidence of a white mf^n's
habitation between it and the • settlements on i^e
rivers of Canada. Its remains still exist. I make to
it an tinnual visit. I carry my children. to it to teach
them the hardships endured by the generations which
have gone before them. I love to dwell on the tender
recollections, the kindred ties, the early affections and
the touching narratives and incidents whicH mingle
with all I know of this primitive family abode.", t.>.
With the requisite change of scene the same words
would aptly portray the early days of Garfield. The
poverty of the frontier, where all are . engaged in a
common struggle and where a common sympi^thy and
hearty cooperation lighten the burdens of each^ is a
very different poverty — different in kind, different in .
influence and effect— from that conscious and humili-
ating indigence yrhich is every day forced to contrast
itself with neighboring wealthy on which it feels a
sense of grinding dependence. The poverty of the
frontier is indeed no poverty. It is but the beginning
of wealth, and has the boundless possibilities of the
future always opening before it. No man ever grew
up in "the agricultural regions of the West, where a
house-raising, or even a cOm-husking, is a matter of
common interest and helpfulness, with any other feel-
ing than that of broad-minded, generous independence.
This honorable independence marked the youth of
Garfield fus it marks the youth of millions of ^e4>est
blood ahd biuin now training for the future citizenship
and future, government of the Republic. Garfield was
born heir to land, to the title of n^holder which kpi
been the patent and passport of self^reapoct with i, the
4i^^Siueon race ever niiice Hengist and Borsa l^q^
Pd' Jk
%.*" >-"'
jL^'Jf^^^yh^&a^}i^''y^
BLAINE S EULOGY OP GARFIELD.
291
on the shores of England. Hrs adventure on the
canal— ^an alternative between that and the deck.of a
Lake Erie schooner — was a farmer boy's device for
earning money, just as the New England lad begins a
possibly great career by sailing before the mast on a
coasting vessel or on a inercliantraan bound to the
farther India or to the China Seas. .; iu:
No manly man feels anything of shame in loioking
back to early struggles with adverse circufTistances,
and no man feels a worthier pride than when he has
conqaered the obstacles to his progress. But no one
of noble mould desires to be looked upOn as having
occupied a menial position, as having been repressed
by a feeling of inferiority, or as having suffered the
evils of poverty until relief was found at the hand of
charity. General Garfield's youth presented no hard-
ships which family love and family energy did not
overcome, subjected him to no privations which he
did not cheerfully accept, and left no memories save
those which were recalled with delight and transmitted
with profit and with pride.
Garfield's early opportunities for securing e^, educft'
tion were extremely limited, and yet were sufficient to
develop in him an intense desire to learn. He could
read at three years of age, and each winter he had the
advantage of the district school. He read all the
books to be found within the circle of his acquaintance:
some of them he got by heart. While yet in chlid-
hood he was a constant student of the Bible arid bo
oamd familiar with its literature. The dignity and
earnestness of hjs speech in his maturer life gave evi-
dence of this^eai'ly training. At eighteen years of age
-he wiw able to teadh school, and thenceforward his
Ambiidon:ws to obtain a college education. To this
t*ii(d -he bent all his effi>rts, v*orking in the harvest ifidd,
i&t ^ eiMlii^if^r^s^ tMUbh, md, in the winter seoacH^
i-h.m
- «>:?-«
■■ '■ ''*''i.''''.Vf* '^ :' . T,' .'■■'" '■'''W-r"-^''
f"
f ■^
St-'
*f'4
• '■■'
■■V
292
Blaine's eulogt of GABFiEtD.
teactmg the common schools of the neighborhood.
"While thus laboriously occupied he found time to
prosecute his studies, and was so successful that at
twenty-two years of age he was able to enter the junior
class at Williams College, then under the presideney
or the venerable and honored Mark Hopkins, whoy in
thj fullness of his powers, survives the eminent pupil
\o whom he was of inestimable service.
»'^-; The history of Garfield's life to this period presents
no novel features. He had undoubtedly shown per»p-
verance. self-reliance, 'self-sacrifice and ambition^^
qualities which, be it said for the honor of our counk'y,
are everywhere to be found among the young men of
America. But from his graduation at Williams onward
to the hour of his tragical death Garfield's career was
eminent and exceptional. Slowly working throi%h
his educational period, receiving his diploma when
twenty-four years of age, he seemed atone bound -4o
0pring into conspicuous and brilliant success. Within
BIX years he was successively president of a college,^
State Senator of Ohio, Major General in the Army of
the United States and Representative-elect to the
National Congress. A combination of honors so varied, *
so elevated, within a period so brief and to a m8A<so
young, is without precedent or parallel in the history
of the country, ^ ^ ^ • . i
Garfield's army life was begun with no other miHtfiry
knowledge than such as he had ha&tily gained from
books in the few months preceding his march to t^e
field. Stepping from civil life to the^ bead of a rai-
ment, the first order he received when ready to onMis
the; Ohio was to assume command of a brigaro and' to
^rate as an independent force in Easlerii K^ntiteky.
Hiif immediate duty was to dl^ek the advanceCof
Humj^i^y Marshall^ who was-tjaar4^hing dbwii t^ Pg
SoQii^Witii thd i&tentiim^ 110^
■->y."-v
«i5r *■'«*!'■
iii-'ts','^'
^"""^^i
BLAIKE S EULOGY OF GARFIEUX
293
Jnrith other Confederate forces the entire territory. Qf •
Kentucky and of precipitating the State in ta secession.
This was at the close of the year 1861. Seldom, if
ever, has a young college professor heen thrown into a
more embarrassing and discouraging position. He
knew just enough of military science, as he expressed
it himself, to measure the extent of his ignorance, and
with a handful of men he was marching in rough win-
ter weather into a strange country among a hostile
population to confront a largely superior force under
the command of a distinguished graduate of West
Point, who had seen Active and important service in
two preceding wars. ';,>,-,;;^;-,
The result of the campaign is matter of hlstdry.
The skill, the endurance, the extraordinary ehergy
e^wn by Garfield, the courage he imparted to his
tmen, raw and untried as himself, the measures he
adopted to increase his force and to create in the
etiiemy's mind exaggerated estimates of his numbers,
borei perfect fruit in the routing of Marshall, the capture
of his xsamp, the dispersion of his forc9 and the eman-
jdpaUon of an important territory from the control of
the rebellion. Coming at the close of a long series of
disaflters to the Union arms, Garfield's victory had an
uausiiial and extraneous importance and in the popular
judgment elevated the young commander to the rank
of? a military hero. With less than two thousand men
in his entire command, with a mobilized force of ottly
^even hundred, without cannon, he had met an armv
i offive thousand and defeated them— driving Marshall s
forces successively from two strongholds of their ^ytw
isekctiini^ fortified with abundant attilleyy. Major
/Cbaetal Buell, commandii^ the Depiartment of the
. ; i^io|; aftrexperienced and able soldier of the re^W
iJiirii^ piili^hed and con^atidi^^n
n^inJK^dihflr'^lu^ttmt feeult ^ the. Big Sandy cantpf^^u.
■:f^^
-i* ;■■
: t.
h
W'-
iv
294
BLAINE'S EULOGY OF OARFIELD^
whicli would have turned the head of a less cool and
eensible man than Garfield. Buell dechired that his
services had called into action the highest qualities of
a soldier, and President* Lincoln supplemented these
words of praise by the more substantial reward of a
brigadier general's commission, to bear date from the
day of his decisive victory over Marshall.
The subsequent military career of Garfield fully sus- ,
tained its brilliant beginning. With his new commis-
sion he was assigned to the command of a brigade in
the Army of the Ohio, and took part in the second and
decisive day's fight in the great battle of Shiloh. The
remainder of the year 1862 was not ♦^specially eventful^
to Garfield, as it was not to the armies with which he
was serving. His practical sense was cnlled into exer-
cise in completing the ta^k, assigned hin^ ' by General
Buell, of reconstructing bridges and re-establishing
lines of railway communication for the army. Hia '
occupation in this useful but not brilliant field was
varied by service on courts-martial of importance, ill
which department of duty he won a valuable repnta^
tion,\ attracting the notice and securing the appioval
of the able and eminent Judge Advocate General of .
the Army. That of itself was warrant to honorable
fame; for among the great ipen who in those trying >
days gave themselves, with entire devotion^ to the ser-
vice of their country, one who brought to that service
the ripest learnings the most fervid eloquence, the most
varied attainments, who labored with modesty and .
shiinned applause, who in the day of triumph sat re-
served and silent and grateful-^as Francis Deak in this
hour of Hungary's deliverance^was Joseph Holt, of >
Kentucky, who in his honorable retirement enjoys the
reepeet and veneration of all. who love the UniOit df •
th^:^ate8. " ' ^ .. -'xm. '-):;. Uis.Q>x_^.x:t^^^^^^^^^
Mxtilyin I86a Garfield was WghRBdib'yife^^^^
'f- ».
ikl.'-j^lvi.r.j
^^^-::^
''■ ■ '■ i
Blaine's eulogt op garpield, 295 \
important and responsible post of chief of .staff to
General Bosecrans, then at the head of the Army oi'
the Cumberland, Perhaps in a great military cam-
paign no subordinate officer requires sounder judgment
and quicker knowledge of men than the chief of staff
to the commanding general. An indiscreet man in'
such a position can sow more discord, breed more
jealousy and disseminate more strife than any other
officer in the entire organization. When General Gar-
field assumed his new duties he found various troubles
already well developed and seriously affecting the valu6
and efficiency of the Army of the Cumberland. The
energy, the impartiality and the tact with which he
sought to allay these dissensions and to discharge the
duties of his new and trying position will always re-
main one of the most striking proofs of his great ver-
satility. His military duties closed on the memorable
field of Chiokamauga, a field which, however disastrous;
to the Union arms, gavr; to, him the occasion of winning
imperishable laurels. The very rare distinction was
accorded him of a great promotion for his bravery on
a field that was lost. President Lincoln appointed him
a major-general in the army of the United States for
gallant and meritorious conduct in the battle of Chicka-
mauga. ■■->u^-:-v-/^:a:^;:i^-u- ■
The Army of th^ Cumberland was reorganized under
th6 command of General Thomas, who promptly of-
fered Garfield one of its divisions. He was extremely
desirous to accept the position, but was embarrassed by
tfa^ fact that he had a year before been elected to Con-
gress, and the time when he must take his seat was
drawing near. He m^eferred to remain in the military
service fl^nd had within bis own breast the largest con-
fidence pt'success in the wider field which his. new
rank opened to Him. Balancing the arguments on tho
iv$sl^jim fi>^ t^Q ot^er, anxious to determine jt^hat if as
- 'y:J
> -it
"ij^S
-II
\.
•-.^.iiA'
296
BLAIN^S EtJLOGT OP- GARFIELD.
'r
h i"
i^
>
'^:
for the best, desirous above all things to do his patriotic
duty» he was decisively influenced by the advice of
President Lincoln and ^cretary Stanton, both of whom
assured him that he could at that time be of especial
value in the House of Representatives. He resigned
his commission of major-general on the 5th day of
December, 1863, and took his seat in the House of
Bepresentatives on the 7th. He had served two years
and four months in the army and had just completed
his thirty-second year. «
The Thirty-eighth Congress is pre-eminently entitled
in history to the designation of the War Congress. It
was elected while the war was flagrant and every
member was chosen upon the issues involved in the
continuance of the struggle. .The Thirty-seventh Con-
gress had, indeed, legislated to a large extent on war
measures, but it was chosen before any one believed
that secession of the States would be actually at-
tempted. The magnitude of the work which fell upon
its successor was unprecedented, both in respect to the
vast sums of money raised for the support of the aroiy
md navy, and of the new and extraordinary powers of
legislation which it was forced to exercise. Only
twenty-four States were represented, and one hundred
and eighty-two members were upon its joll. Among
these were man^ distinguished part^ leaders on both
sides^ -veterans m the public service, with established
reputations for ability and with that skill which comes
OiUy from parliamentary experience. Into this fis^
semblage of men Garfield entered without special prep
aration, and it might almost be said unexpectedly. This
qoestion of taking command of a division of troops un-
oer General Thomas or taking his seat in Gongressm^as
kept open till the last moment-^so late, indeed^ tfaatjifai
rengnatioa of his military commission and hid fiij^iX^
IMH^ in jyhe Bbtiae were fklmoi^ (kmt^potiiiid0i»^^ 1^^^^
t-.-n^'^i
•i
»
BLAINE S EULOGY OP GARFIELD.
297
wore the uniform of a fnajor-general of the United
States Army on Saturday, and on Monday, in civilian*^
dreas, he answered to the roll-call as a Representative
lin Congress from the State of Ohio.
, He was especially fortunate in the constituency which
elected him. Descended almost entirely from New
England stock, the men of the Ashtahula district were
intensely radical on^ all questions relating to human
rights. Well educated, thrifty, thoroughly intelligent
in affairs, acutely discerning of character, not quick to
bestow confidence and slow to withdraw it, they were
at once the most helpful and most exacting of sup-
porters. Their tenacious trust in men in whom they
have once confided is illustrated by the unparalleled
lact' that Elisha Whittlesey, Joshua E. Giddings and
James A. Garfield represented the district for fifty-fotir
years. ;
,< There is no test of a man's ability in an;r depart;-
ment of public life more severe than service in the
House of Representatives ; there is no place where so
little deference is paid to reputation previously ac-
quired, or to eminence won outside ; no jplace where 60
little consideration is shown to the feelings or the Ml-
' ^res of beginners. What a man gains in the House h6
gains by sheer force of his own character, atid if h^
loses and falls back, he must expect no mercy and will
receive no sympathy. It is a field in which the sup-
yiyal of the strong st is the recognized rule, and wh^re
. no pretence can deceive and no glamour can mislead.
The real man is discovered, his worth is impartially
"mfeighed, his rank is irreversibly decreed.
" .With possibly a single exception, Garfield was the
youngest member in the House when he entered ' and
was but seven years from his. college graduation, "^i
h^.h^!^not}mxtmMiieeid siscty-days belbre his sA/A*
ij^jwas ise^pgnized and 1^ plac^ conceded. He step^^
■Af^
- A.J» .,
"t
^:r'rt%
»A^i?-S.
' I'M
29d
BLAINE'S EULOGr OF OAUFIELD.
to the front with the confidence of one who belonged
there. The House was crowded with strong men of
both parties; nineteen of them have since been trans-
ferred to the Senate and many of them have served
with distinction in the Gubernatorial chairs of their re-
spective. States and on foreign missions of great conse-
quence; but among them all none grew so rapidly,
none so firmly, as Garfield. As is said by Trevelyan
of his parliamentary hero, Garfield succeeded ** becaiise^
all the world in concert could not have kept him.in tn^.
background, and because when once in the front he
played his part with a prompt intrepidity and a com-
manding ease that were but the outward symptoms of
the immense reserves of energy on which it was in his
power to draw." Indeed, the apparently reserved force
which Garfield possessed was one of his great charac*
teristics. He never did so well but that it seemed he
could easily, have done better. He never expended so
much strength. but that he seemed to he holding addi-
tional power at call. This is one of the happiest and
rarest distinctions of an effective debater, and often
counts for as much in persuading an assen^bly as the
eloquent and elaborate argument.
The great measure of Garfield's fame was filled by
his service in the House of Representatives. His mil-
itary life, illustrated by honorable performance and
ridh in promise, was, as he himself felt, prematurely
terminated and necessarily incomplete. Speculation as
to what he might have done in a field where the great
prices are so few cannot be profitable. It is sufficient
to say that as a soldiei he did his duty bravely; he did
it intelligently ; he won an enviable fame, and he re-
tii^ from the service without blot or breath against
hitn. 'As a lawyer, though admirably equipped for the
prdfeflsion, he can scarcely be said to have entered oil;
its ]^iU)Uoe The £^ir e£for^ he made at the 1^
'M
BLAINE S EULOGT OF GARFIELD.
299
geo
of
were distinguished by the same high order of talent
which he exhibited on every field where he was put to
the test, and if a man may be accepted ns a competent
judge of his own capacities and adaptations, the law
was the profession to which Garfield should have de-
voted himself. But fate ordained otherwise, and liis
reputation in history will rest largely upon his service
in the House of Representatives. That service was
exceptionally long. He was nine times consecutively
chosen to the House, an honor enjoyed by not more
than six other Representatives of the more than five
thousand who have been elected from the organization
of the government to this hour.
As a parliamentary orator, as a debater on an issue
squarely joined, where the ' position had been chosen
and the. ground laid out, Garfield must be assigned a
very high rank. More, perhaps, than any man with
whom he was associated in public life, he gave careful
and systematic study to public questions, and he came
to every discussion in which he took part with elabor-
ate and complete preparation. He was a steady and
indefatigable worker. Those who imagine that talent
or genius can supply the place or achieve the results
of Uabor will find no encouragement in Garfield's life.
In preliminary work he was apt, rapid and skilful. He
possessed in a high degree the power of readily absorb-
ing ideas and facts, and, like Dr. Johnson, had the art
of getting from a book all that was of value in it by a
reading apparently so quick and cursory that it seemed
like a mere glance at the table of contents. He was a pre-
eminently fair and candid man in debate, took no pet^y
advantage, stooped to no unworthy methods, avoided
personal alluaions, rarely appealed to prejudice, did not
seek to inflame passion. He had a quicker eye for the
strong point of his adversary than for his weak pointy
and oa Mb ctw& side he so marshaled his weighty axgOf
■■.■.«\i
3
300
BLAINE S EULOGY OF GARFIEUX
t'
i-4-
%*r-
mentfl as to make his hearers forget any possible lack
in the complete strength of his position. He had a
habit of stating his opponent's side with such amplitude
of fairness and such liberality of concession that his
followers often complained that he was giving his case
away. But never in his prolonged participation in the
proceedings of the House did he give his case away or
fail in the judgment of competent and impartial listen-
ers to gain the mastery.
These characteristics, which marked Garfield as a
great debater, did not, however, n>ake him a great par-
liamentary leader. A parliamentary leader, as that
t!erm is understood wherever free represent^itive gov-
ernment exists, is necessarily and very strictly the ojr-
gan of his party. An ardent American define4 the
instinctive warmth of patriotism when he offered the
toast : '^ Our country, always right, but right or wrong,
our country." The parliamentary leader who has a
body of followers that will do and dare and die for the
cauJ9e is one who believes his party always right, hut
right or wrong, is for his party. No more importaifit
or exacting duty devolves upon him than the selection
of the field and the time for contest. He must kno^
not merely how to strike, but where to strike and whfn
to strike. He often skilfully avoids the strength of his
opponent's position, and scatters confusion in his raiiks
by attacking an exposed point when really the rigl^t*
eousness of the cause and the strength of logical in-
trenchment are against him. He conquers often boih
against the right and the heavy battalions; as wh?n
yc^ving Charles Fox, in the days of his toryism, ciurried
the House of Commons against justice, against it»iin-.
memorial rights, against his own convictions, if ii|d^
at that period Fox had convictions^ and* in tl)<i Wt^at
of a corrupt administratioti^ inobedien<^ to^iyifil^^
jk>veieigB, drove Wilkes &omthe>$e|^
1=^1
t-?s.*i
BLAINE S EULOGY OF GARFIELD.
301
electoni of Middlesex had chosen him, and installed
Luttrell in defiance, not merely of law, but of public
decency. For an achievement of that kind Garfield
was disqualified— disqualified by the texture of his
mind, by the honesty of his heart, by his conscience,
and by every instinct and aspiration of his nature.
The three most distinguished parliamentary leaders
hitherto developed in this country are Mi*. Clay, Mr.
Douglas and Mr. Thaddeus Stevens. Each was a man
of consummate ability, of great earnestness, of intense
personality, differing widely each from the others, and
yet with a single trait in common — the power to com-
mand. In the give and take of daily discussion ; in
fi^l the art of controlling and consolidating reluctant and
refractory followers; in the skill to overcome all forms
of oppojsition and to meet with competency and courage
the varying phases of unlooked-for assault or unsus-
pected defection, it would be difficult to rank with these
a fourth name in all our Congressional history. But
of these Mr. Clay was the greatest. It would, perhaps,
be impossible to find in the parliamentary annals of the
world a parallel to Mr. Clay in 1841, when at sixty-
four years of age he took the control of the Whig party
from the President who had received their suffrages,
«^funst the power of Webster in the Cabinet, against
ihe -eloquence of Choate in the Senate, against the
herculean efforts of Caleb Cushing and Henry A. Wise
in the House. In unshared leadership, in the pride
atkd plenitude of power, he hurled against John Tyler
i' with deepest scorn the mass of that conquering column
^iHoh had' swept over the land in 1840 and drove his
^ ieUlndtiistration to seek shelter behind the lines! of his
fk^i^cftl foes. Mr. Douglas achieved a victory scarcely
^; IM Iroticlei^l when, in 1854^ against the secret desires
''i^^a^tiojig adtn'^iiisti^ticm^ against the wise counsel dT
^^'Ihfil'Ql^r c&ifi^^ against ^eoonservative instincts ancl
- *- If ^^
. ^,.
1 ■-* 'J
4 ri
^Ma.
V
r4 ^
sod
Blaine's eitlooy of oarfi^lD.
even the moral sense of the country, ti6 ^rce^ a ircflud-
tant Congress into a repeal of the Missouri compromise.
Mr. Thaddeus Stevens, in his contests from 1865 to
1%68, aeto<y advanced his parliamentary leadership
until Congress tied the hands of the President and
governed the country by its own will, leaving only
perfunctory duties to be discharged by the Executive.
With two hundred millions of patronage in his hnnd^
at the opening of the contest, aided by the active force
of Sewiird in the Cabinet and the moral power of
Chase on the bench, Andrew Johnson could not com-
mand the support of one-third in either house against
the Parliamentary uprising of which Thaddeus Steven's
was the animating spirit and the unquestioned leadisr.
From these three great men Garfield differed radi-
eally, differed in the quality of his mind, in tempera^
juen^ in the form and phase of ambition. He cotild
not do what they did^ but he could do what they could
not, and in the breadth of his Congressional work h^
left that, which will longer exert a potential influenoe
among nien, and which> measured by the severe test of
posthumous criticism, will secure a more enduring and
more enviable fame.
Those unfamiliar with Garfield's industry and ign^'
runt of the details -of his work may in some degree
measure them by the annals of Congress. No one of
'the generation of public men to which h)e belonged hiais
eontributed so much that will be valuable for future
reietence. His speeches are numerous, many of them;
biilliant, all of them well studied, carefully phrased
and exhaustive of the subject ander consideration.
Collected from the scattiered pages of ninety toy al
octavo volumes of the Chngreaeional Becord they would
preset an invaluable compendium of th^ |)oUtical
mstmyoi the most important era throudi which thd
Bi^linud jgoveroment hyM evisjc parsed. :Wh»n the bi«>
j^.'^.m
>.-^;'
f-:.
.■^h
BLAINES EUtiOGY OF GABFI£U».
M
tory of this period Bhfi,U. be impartially written, when
war legislation, measures of reconstruction, protection
of human^ rights, amendments to the Constitatidh,
maintenance of public credit, steps toward specie re-
sumption, true theories of revenue may be reviewed,
ynsurrounded by prejudice and disconnected from paf-
tisanism, the speeches of Garfield will be estimated at
their true value, and will be found to comprise a vast
magazine of fact and argument, of clear analysis and
spur\d conclusion. Indeed, if no other authority were
accessible, his speechejs in the House of Representatives
from ; December, 1863, to June, 1880, would give ft
well-connected history and complete defense of the im- .
portant legislation of the seventeen eventful yeats that
constitute his parliamentary life. Far beyond that,
his speeches would be found to forecast many great
measures, yet to be completed — ^measures which he
knew were beyond the public opinion of the hour, but
which he confidently bielieved would secure popular
(approval within the period of his own lifetime and by
the aid of his own efforts.
Di£tering, as Garfield does, from the brilliant parlia-
mentary leaders, it is not easy to find his counterpart
anywhere in the record of American public life. He
perhaps more clearly resembles Mr. Seward in his
supreme faith in the all-conquering power of a principle.
He had the love of learning and the patient industry
of investigation to which John Quincy Adams owes his
prominence and his Presidency. He had some of those
ponderous elements of mind which distinguished Mr.
Mtebster and which, indeed, in all our public life have
left the great Massachusetts Senator without an intel-
lectual peer.
Vf Jn Koglish parliamentoiy history, as in cur own, thnet
l^fiders va the Hou^e of Commons present points o»f
eiNfiegitiid cUiference Ihom QarfiehL But some ol^
i,4>*'
-?->!
%*-
It
*k?*
>.t,^'
304
BLAINE S EULOGY Of GARyiELD.
meiiiods recall the best features in tHe strox^) iDd9-
p^endent ' courfle of Sir Robert ^ Peel, and strikua^ re-
semblances are discernible in that most pnmiising pf
modem Conservatives, who died too early for his coun*
try and his fame, the Lord George Bentinck. He had
all of Burke's love for the sublime and the beautiful,
with possibly something t)f his superabundance, and
in his faith and his magnanimity, in his power of state-
ment, in his subtle analysis^in his faultless in Tn;his
loVe of literature, in his wealth and world o r * strar
tioti, one is reininded of that great Englisii statesman
of to-day, who, confronted with obstacles that lyquli)
daunt any but the dauntless, reviled by those who^.b!?
would relieve as bitterly as by those ^hose 8a{>l)0s<^
tigh|s he is forced to invade, still labors with serene;
cbiirici^ for the amelioration of Ireland and for the
honor of the English name. •
Garfield's tiominatipn' to the Presidency,, while qq^.
predictt^d or anticipated, was not a si^rprise to tlie
country/ His prominence ip Congress, his solid ^ualir
ties, his wide reputation, strengthened by his t^n
receht election as 'Senator from Ohio, kept Jiini m tli^
piip)ic eye as a mah the very highest- rfuk
ambtig those entitled^ to be called statesmen. It ^^)
i>6t jmere chance that brought him this high hppor..
^'IjiTe iptist," says Mr. Emerson, "reckon success i^' i6oa-
stit^tiohal* tr^t. If Eric is in xobust. health aud baif
^|it well and is at the top of his condition and thirty
yeM old lit his departure from Greenland he will a^fi^
we)9t aiid jiis shi()S will reach New Foundland^ Bm
^e Em oi|t and put in a si^ro^ger and bolder nian.^^
liilp jbhibs will sail six liuii^red, one thousiiiidy w^
^fidiii^ milbs farther and reaql^ Xi^rador fpd M&W:
Ebtfliiirkl. 'Wifere is' no ehance in results." ^M^na
-. ^.
::;:»■
-^^y
J^
'k^ r,-
SLAldns*s tcuoar of garfield.
305
iHetjr Infttlr bf his noihiiiation, Jmd it continued wkd in-
(^aJBm^ volume and momentiiiQ until the clost^<^ 1||«.
^oibHotts campaign : , ,
iir'
'Namight nor greatness in luortality :
Can ensure 'scape; back-wounding calnmny
The whitest virtue strikes. What kings so strong
' Can tie the gall up in the slanderous tongue.
tliider it all he was calm and sttong and con^dent^
liieiver lost his self-possession, did no unwise act, spol^f ^ *
rio hasty or ill-considered word. Indeed nothing in 'hts
Whole fife is more remarkable or more creditable than .
his bearing through those £ve full months of vituperft-
ildn— -a prolonged agony of trial to a sensitive n^an, a
<^stiint aiid cruel draft upon the powers of moral en-
durance. Th^ great mass of these unjust imputations
passed vnnoticed and, with the general debris of the
ciimpkign, fell ihto oblivion. But in a few instances
i^ iron entered his soul and he died with the injuiry
uiifoirgotten if not unforgiveu.
One aspecf of Garfteld's candidacy Was unprecedented^
N^er befor^^ in the history of partisan contests in, th|s
c^hti;3r, had a successful Pi^sidential candidi^t^Bpoken
Meiy on passing events and current issues. To at-
.tefndpt anything of the kind seemed novel, rasn and
even desperate. The older class of voters recalled the
unfortunate Alabama letter, in which Mr. C^ay wus
supposed to have signed his political death warrant.
.» Th^y r^iiiiembered also the hot-tempered eAiisicn by
which General l^ott lost a large share of his popularity
iMbie M» nomination, and tl^e unfortunate speeches «
i^llcjK^liajpldljr 'consumed th^ remainder. The younger
ydi«^ hfid seen Mr. Greeley in a series of vigoro^s and.
oriffhial addresses, preparing the pathway fpr hfs own
d^it Uwenirtdftil of t^^ose warmnra, unhe«iin^ *b|^
lifHok W'44^df, iG(%F|bld sjpokift to targft cv^m^m im^i
r^*' *
'v"»^•i^
p't.
i^-r'
■ ■..*'.;
306
«iAIK£S EULbOT orQAfonvuk
i-.
feir^ii^ii
jounfeyed to and from New York in Augu8|iy to a fS^fe^
multitude in that city, to delegations and depqtatlPi^
of every kind that called at Mentor during the a^D;i>
mer and autumn. With innumerable critics/ wajtch-
ful and eager to catch a phrase that might/be turr^d
into odium or ridicule, or a sentence thai inigltt be
distorted to his own or his party's injury, Gai^eld did
not trip or halt in any one of hia seventy 8pee(^e6.
This seems all the more remarkable when it is re-
jneqibered that he did not write what he said^ and
yet spoke with, such logical consecutiveness of thpug^t
and such admirable precision of phrase as to defy the
accident of misreport and the itaalignity of misrepi^
sentation. ''i>(%
In the beginning of hia Presidential life,. Gar^el^s
experience did not yield him pleasure or satisfactlcfn.
The duties that engross so large a portion of the Pfeifi-
debt's time were distasteful to him, and were unf^or-
ably contrasted with his legislative work. >' ][ ba^e
been dealing all thepe years with ideas," he impatiently
exclaimed one day, ''and here I am dealing only wi^h
l^ersoiis. I have been heretotbre tr^rating of the fan^>
mental principles of government, and her«i X am eoir-
aidering all day whether A or B shall be appoin^^d -io
this or that office.- He was earnestly seeking som^.
practical way of correcting the evils arising iii^ma the
distribution of overgrown and unwieldy patronagerrH
iievils alii^ays appreciated and often discussed by^m^
buir whose magnitude had been more deeply tppre^ped
tipOQ his mind since his aocessicn to the« JP|>e«rdiGiti|i^^
*ilad he lived, a comprehensiiire i^rpveioent itt/^
. iiic>de of appointment and itf the tenure ^ i^cejvroi^
jbayebeen proposed by bim^and with the aid'df (kni-
^l^reis ho doubfi' perfected. j^
^ . But while meny <^ the JQxfo^'tiyif du^ w€m»^^
^^pmlel^tQf him, 1^ was assidupus and Q0B8#en%ipiJ^
,^
/*i
..fijil^i:
BLAIKe'S EULOGt Ot< OABFIELt).
S07
%^ (^icfiii^. FrcMn ttid vei7 outset he exhibited
dditiiriifftrative talerit of ft high order. He gr^isped tiie
K^iii of ofiSce with the- hand of a master. In this re-
spe^ti iflijeed, he constantly fiurprised tnany who were
^dst intimately associated with him in the govern-
ftient, and especiaHy those "who had feared that he
•hiight be lacking in the executive faculty^ His di^pOr
Si<lon of business was orderly and rapid. His power
()f analysis and his skill in classification enabled Mta
to dispatch a Vast mass of detail with singular
prbtnjitness and ease. His Cabinet meetings were ittJ- *
tiiirably conducteid. His clear presentation of OffieiUfl
IhifbjeotSf his well-considered Buggestion of topics ^c^
which discussion was invited, his quick decision '#hen .
all had been heard, combined to show a thoroughness
dfiJi^tal trainings as rare as his natural ability^attd[fhl» ,
fkelle Maptation to a new and enteged field of labor J
^ With perfect comprehension of all the inhetitan^s
of the war, with a cool calculation of the obstacle!? iii
life Way, impelled always by a generous enthusiaemi,
(jrarfieid ooncei ved that much might bo done by hie
Mtnintfttration towards rdstoring harmony between the
di^re^t seotlons of the Union. He Was anxiout to go
^Soiltlh^l^Jp6iBkk to the people. As eariy as April he
1^ inefifefetually endeavored t^ arhuige fof a trip to
^ash%^ik«*. whither he jiad been fcordially invited, and
he Waa s^in disappo^ a few wejekjs later to fitid
thdt he eould not go to Son th Carolina to attbnd the
^isiif^ttttial celebration of the victory of the €owpfen«.
Bdt for the autilmn he definitely counted on being
H^^fMht at three fnemorablo^ aitoomblie^ in the Souths
Hli^'Oeleblffttion at.Yorktown, the opening of the Cotton
ISkpostt^^at Atlanta, and the meeting (k the Ai
of the Cumberland at Chattanooga. He was all
'itthl£l(# (mrr it! ht& mind h!sM|res0 for ea6h ocei
^1
L'' ■^i
%
s*
'"■V-
^/
308
BLAINE*S EULOOr OF 6ARFISLD.
U
him the ex^t scope and verge which he needed; ' Ai
iTorkiown he would have before him the associatibnd
of a hundred years that bound the Sputh ati^ ihe
North in the sacred memory oif a common dangcir and
a copimon victory. At Atlanta he would present ifee
material interests and the industrial developm^nV
.which appealed to the thrift and indepiendence of ^Wrjr
household, and which should unite the two sections by
the instinct of self-interest and self-defense. At Cliiit-
tanooga he would revive memories of the war only to
show that after all its disaster and all its su0ering the
eoijritry was stronger and greater, the Union rendered
jiidissoluble, and the future, through the agoi^y and
bl(Jod of one generation, made brighter and better for
Garfield's ambition for the success of bis adix^inistri-
tion was bigh. With strong caution and conservatism
in his nature, he was in no dauger of attempting ra^
experiments or of resorting to the empiricism of states-'
maqship. But he believed that renewed and closer |iit-
tantion should he given to questions affecting th^ niiv-
iefial interests and commercial prosi^ects of fifty
miiiions of people. • He believed that our con tin6n%|l
relations^ extensive and undeveloped as they are,^iii-
yolved responsibility, and could be cultivated uifo
^ppfitable friendship or be abandoned to harmful indif-
j^rence or lasting enmity. He believed with e^ual
cdn^ence that ifti essential forerunner to a new era of
bationfil progress must' be a feeling of contentmi^nl In
Htvevv fiecthn of the Union, and a generous belief 'tfaitt
tiie P^ij^fits and burdens of government would be bom-
moQ to ^li. Himself a conspb^ous illustration of wli^t
^^bility and ambitioii may do under Tepu^iican iMtltu-
ttons^ be loved, his country with a passion of p^trto^
devQtifin, ^nd every waking tiiiou^kt was dv^t^'to ji^r
ndvaiit^eiit. ;He w^s an Americifm in m his at^m^
I*-".* '
'■•*■
BLAIKB's EUL0G7 OF OARt'Jl^LP.
309 •
^^^8,^and he looked to the destiny and influence of th^
j[Xpit^ States, with the philosophic composure of jefi^ei^-
son and the demonstrative t^onfidence of John Adams.
, . ^b<e political events which disturbed the President's
MpBXiity for many weeks before that fateful, day in July
^aa important chapter in his career, and, in his
QW^n judginent, involved. questions of principle and of
!ifigflxi which are vitally essential io the constitutiona.!
^i^qdinistration of the Federal Government. It would
be out of place here and now to speak the language of
controversy; but. the events referred to, however thiey
,^ay continue to be source of contention with others,
||ifiye become^ so far as Garfield is co.icemed, as mucti
4 n^f^ilei; qf history as his heroism at Chickaniattga or
his illustrious sei^vice in the House., Detail is iiot
«li9^,dfuV and personal antagonism shall not b^' rekindled
w 'atny word uttered to-day. The niotives of thoke ojp-
jposihg him ate hot to be here adverseW interpretBdi^r
tl^ir course harshly characterized. But of the dead
jj^resident this is to be said, and said because his own
jlp^ch is forever silenced, and he can be no liiote
'I^^HWrd except through the fidelity and the love of survi-
i^^g friends : From the beginning to the end of the coii-
|rdve^ipy heisb much deplored, the President was neyer-
^ J? one moment actuated by any motive of gain to hitfi-
If or of loss to others. Least of all men did he har-
rreyehgey rarely did he even show resentment,^ ^ild
jnwiioe was not in his" nature. He was congenially
empl(>yed 0v\y inihe exchange of good ^ffipes atld the
yjDE^re w not tth hour, from the beginning of the
trouble till the fatal shot entered his bbdy,7wben the
^H^^tljt would not gladljr, for the sake of reBloAjig.
iartn^y, biive retrac^ any step he had taken if sui^
l^acing had merrily involved' consequences per^nk) to
* ^ [«ttl . l!he pdd<| of c<^sisten<^ or |iny iftippo»eid
Kg
'f.i.
fe-»' •;
■■A.
1
It—'
1;^
m '
sense 'bfbumilicitioti that might i^esultfiom silrrender^
ing his position had not a feather's weight with Ikin]/
Nd man was ever less subject to snch influenoes from
within or fVom without. But after most anxious de*
liberation and the coolest survey of «11 the ciroum^
stances, he solemnly believed that the true preroga-
tives of the Executive were involved in the issue Which
had been raised, and that he would be unfaithful to his
supreme obligation if he failed to maintain, in all their
vigor, the constitutional rights and dignities of 'hii
gtekt office. He believed this in all the convictions of
conscience when in sound and vigorous healthy and he
believed it in his sufibring and prostration in the lacit
dbnscK»u8 thought which his weiaried mind bestowedon
the transitoty struggles of life. 'i '}ii'^'^i--mU(fy
,' More- than this need not be said. Le89 than tfai*
isouldnot be saidi . Justice to the dend, the highest ob^
ligation that devolves upon the living, demands the
d^laration that in all the bearings of the subject,
abttiai or possible, the President was content in ^is
mind^ jusliified in his conscience, immovable in bis con-
clusions.
Ifhe religious element iii Garfield's character was
.tl^p and earnest. In his early youth he espoiluefl the
faith of the Disciples; a sect of that great Baptist Gom^
miihion ^hich' in different ecclesiastical estaDlishments
is^ so numerotis and so influential throughout all parts
Of ih6 United Statesi BUt the broadening tendency
(^ hk mind and his active spirit of inquiry were eftrly
Apj^atenl and carried him beyond the dogmas of setit
and the ifestraints of association; In selecting a.coHege
In wbioh to continue his educc^ion, he rejected Be^*
d^y, though ptceided over by Alexander Campbell 1^
f deftest" l^aohe]^ dT hia ehuitlt' lii» reasoninweie
tharfficteri^tid: ^teif tbftt Betbftny leaned tooshevlily
toward ilavery ; and^ second^ -l&at being^ hil»8e^.««B|»^
^-^^
(-■
'A:
BJJJXfWfi EULOGF OF GARFIBLIX
3U
mi-
ciple and the son of Diseipte parents, he had little ao-
quaintanee with people of other beliefs, and he thought
iti wo^ld make him more liberal, quoting his own
w!Ords, both in his religious and general views, to go
into Ik new circle and be under new influences.
1 The liberal tendency which he anticipated as the
ie»VL\t of wider culture Was fully realized. He was
emancipated from mere sectarian belief, and with eager
interest pushed his investigations in the direction of
modern progressive thought. He followed with quick-
ening step in the paths of. exploration and speculation
so fearlessly trodden b^ Darwin, by Huxley, by
Tyndall and by other living scientists cf the radicfU
and advanced type, tiis* own churcli, binding its disr
ciples by no formulated creed, but accepting the Old
«tid'New Testi&ments as the word of God with unbiaped
.liberality of private • interpretation, favored, if.it did
not stimulate, the spirit of investigation. Its mem-
^ bers profess with sincerity, and profess only to be of .
one mind .and one failh with those who immediately
followed the Master, and who were first called Chris^
tians at Antioch. ■ / liP;^^
Biit however high Garfield reasoned of fixed ifotej'
free-will, foreknowledge absolute," he was never sepai^
ated firom the Church of the Disciples in his affections
and in his associations. For him it held the ark of the
covenuit. To him it was the gate of heaven. The
world of r)eli^ou8 belief id full of solecisms and contra-
dictions. A philosophic observer decla|res that men by
the thousand will die in defence of a creed whose doc-
jpi^ they do not.jcjomprehend, and whose tenets they
baMtUftlly violate. It is equally tlrue that men by the
thoiisand will cling to church drganizi^tions with in-'
^B^RiQtive and uiKlying fideiity when their belief in m9r
"^Hxrer yeare is, raaioaUy d^retnt. from that whioh^ h^
iifpirQcl ith0mf A» iM^y tes.
;:'^-*
• 'ys
> -
i <*
ftsV
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312
BLAINE S EULOGY OF OABTIILL
But after ibis range of speculation and thi* latitude
of doubt, Garfield came back always with freBbness and
delight to the simpler instincts of religious faith, which)'
earliest implanted, longest survive. Not many weeksl
before his assassination, walking on the banks of the
Potomac with a friend, and conversing on those topids
of personal religion concerning which noble naturesi'
have an unconquerable reserve, he said that he'fou^d
the Lord's Prayer and the simple petitions learned iti
infancy infinitely restful to him, not merely in their
stated repetition, but in their casual and frequent re^ '
call as he went about the daily duties of life. Certaiit
texts of Scripture had a very strong hold on his mcm^'
qry and his heart He heard, while in Edinburgh
some years ago, an eminent Scotch preacher who pre^
faced nis sermon with reading the eighth chapter of the '
Epistle to the Romans, which book had beep the sub- J
jectof careful study with Garfield during all his re^
Hgious Ufe. He was greatly impressed by the elocution ,
of the preacher, and declared that it had imparted a
new and deeper meaning to the majestic utterances K^;
St. Paul. He referred often in after years to tbilt
memorable service, and dwelt with exaltation of feel^
ing upon the radiant promise and the assured hope '
with which the gi^eat Apostle of the Gentiles was
'' persuaded that neither death, nor life, nor angels, tkOt
principalities, nor powers, nor things^ present, nor
things to come, nor heightj nor depth, ilor any other
creature, shall l^e able to separate us from Uie love of
God/ which is in Christ Jesus our Lord." ^^
/The crowning tsbaracteristic Of General Garfield's rii-
Hgious opinions, as, indeed, of all his opinions, was^k
llSenilit^. In all things W had charity. Toleratide-
W8i <i^ ma natureJ He respected In others the qnal^es '
ndiiieh be posiesBed himself'^^ncenty c^ convlctidtt^iiuti^
JNalmess ei expnissioii. With him i^ iiiqd%j^r#aaf - -
p'i.t"(
LA^^^JM^'
'fr?>*
blaikb's eulogy of oabfiild.
313
d6
nd
- no^ ip much what a mun believes, but does hp believe
itliThe lines, of his friendship and his confidence en-*
circled men df every creed and nien of no creed, and to
the end of his life on his ever-lengthening list of friends
were to be found the names of a pious Catholic priesi
and of an honest-minded and generous-hearted free-
tliinker.
^ ' On the morning of Saturday, July second, the Pres-
i^Mit Was a' contented and happy man^-not in an ordi^
nary- degree, but joyfully, almost boyishly happy. On
his way to the railroad station, to which he drove
slowly, in conscious enjoyment of the beautiful moiiir
ing, with an unwonted sense of leisure and a keen an-
ticipation of pleasure, his t^lk was all iu the grateful,
and gratulatory vein. He felt that a,fter four months,
of trial his administration was strong in its grasp of a^
fairs, strong in popuW favor and destined to grow
stronger; that grave difficulties confronting him at* bis
inauguration had been /safely passed ; that trouble lay
behind him, and not before him ; chat he was soon' to
meet the wife whom he loved, now recovering from an
illiAi^ wiiieh had but lately disquieted and at tiines
almost unnerved him; that he was going to his alma
mater to renew the most cherished associations of his
yoUng inanhood, and to exchange greetings with those
whose deepening interest had followed every step of his
upward progress from the day he entered upon his coK
lege course until h§ had attained the loftiest elevation
in fthegiH of his countrymen,
$urely, if happiness can ever come from the honors
or triumphs of this world, on that quiet July morning
James A. Qarfield may well have been a happy man,
Nok^^ireboding of- evil haunted him; noslrghtest pre-
mi^|Cl09 of danger clouded his sky^. His terrible fate
w|ik |ip09 him iiEi an instant. Qne moiiLe^t be stood
^)|^^ 8^x«ai^, confident in'the yea^ stretehiag.
• m
'.'■fj-m
314
BLAINE 8 EULOGY OF GABFIILa
fully out before him. The next he lay w^cmded,^
bleeding, helpless, doomed to weary weeks of torturei
to siletioe and the grave. *
Great in life, he was surpassingly great in death:
For no cause, in the very frenzy of wantonness Und
wickedness, by the red hand of murder, he was thrust
from the full tide of this world's interest, from its
hopes, its aspirations, its victories, into the visible
presence of death — and he did not quail. * Not alofie
for the one short moment in which, stunned and dazied;
he could give up life, hardly ^ware of its relinqui8h<.
ment, but through days of deadly languor, through
weeks of agony, tliat was not Ic;^ agony because si*
lently borne, with clear sight and calm courage h^
looked into his open grave. What blight and ruin
met his anguished eyes whose, lips may tell — what
brilliftttt, broken plans, what baffled, high ambitions,
wbAt iBundering of strong, warm manhood's friendships,
what bitter rending of sweet household ties! Behind
biiR a proud, expectant nation, a great host of sustain^
ilig friends, a ^ih^rished and happy mother, wearing this
Ui% rich honors of her early toil and tears ; the wife of
his youth, whose whole life lay in bis; the Httle h6ya
not yet emerged from childhood's day of frolic; tM
ftir^ young daughter; the sturdy sons julst springing
into closest companionship, claiming every day and
every day rewarding a father's love and care; and in
his heart the eager, rejoicing pow.er to meet all de-
mands. Beforei him, desolation and 'great darkness I
And his soul was not shaken. His countrymen were
thrilled with instant, profound and universal sympathy.
Masterful in his mortal weakness, he became the centre
of a nation'js love, enshnned in the prayers pf a. world.
But all the love and all the sympathy could mi sharer
witti him his sufferings He trod the wine^pvess slcme.
Wltk imfalteriag i^mt bfi, face^ death. ^|th va^
. ■:■.<-■
»%^-H
BUUMB'S eulogy Of GARFIELD*
816
xng tendernepfl he took: tei^ve of life. Above the de«
[nomw hiss ot the aBsaimirH bullet he heard the voic0
of God. Wita sknple resignation he bowed to the
Divine decreo.
! Ab the end drew n ir, his earl; craving for the sea
retttrned. The stately manr hn oH power hAd been to
l^im Uie wearisome hospii u of pain, and he begged to
be taken from its \-i>-on walls, :om its oppressive,
stifliif^ air, from its ho. lelessness and its hopelessness.
Qentiy, silently, the love of a great i:>:ojjle bore the
p^le sufferer to the longed-for healing, of the sea, to live
. OP to die, as-God should will, within sight of ite
heaving billows, wi^bin sound of its manifold voices*
With wan, fevered face tenderly lifted to the cooling
breeze, he looked ou'; wistfully U|Kjn ' the ooean'tf
changing wonders; ok its far sails, whitening in the
morning light; on its restless waves, rolling shoreward
to break u t^ die beneath the noonday sua; on the r^
elouds^f evening, arching low to the horizon; oH the
serene and shining pathway of the stars. Let us think
thftt hh dying eyes read a mystic meaning which ojtily.
the lO-pt and parting soul may know. Let us believe
that in the silence of^ the receding world he heard the
gr^at waves breaking on a further shore, and feltol-
reii4y upon his wasted brow the breath of the eteniiU
fiwning.
<> 1 4
^:
Ji.*S»-
L"^
fF '-
Hfif'
CHAPTER XIV.
Waltibnai Convention bf 1884 at
•,?t..'t.!
'5?^
■rtf^t .
> A CLOUDLESS eky, bright sunlight, and m lai^m
&orn the lake, welcomed the delegates to the fii^ltt
da/s session of the national convention. BefoiB
weight o'clock tl)e hotel l&hbies were^ cvofrded to
stil^ftiionrand gnerts had to WaH^fer places at the
breakfast tables. An hour before nooii^ th& Unie
set foe 1ii& meeting of the oonveniiony the s^waUss
leading to the Exposition Building wem erdm4«ld,
bands of music pla^^ec^ peddlers of Blame, AiilHtt,
and Logan badges hawked thdr waits, and ^coil-
sionally an enthusiaslac friend of ono of the ean-
didates addressed on the street oorners «^jthroflg of
■jeuriousidlers« '.■' - ^'*' ■■ :.^' ■■• ■" - :'■'•■ bm) .
The Bspositton Building, m^ which the oonveli-
tion was held, fronts on Michigan aveiiue. : Inf4fts
i«ar : are ^ tracks of the Baltimore and 1 0hb
Railroady^ built upon the shores (^ the lake* Tile
rbuiidbig itself resembles more than any thhij^ else
rakuge machine-shop without smokepipes. Sfielie
lis II central building, two loiig glass-roofedextecf^
M^ons running North and South, and two. hi^
wings^ each i^nting €>n tiie ^nucr ll^hetbuHiSng
k ^ bfk»k, ^paNed a[ sombre, ^gieen ec^b^^irUib
>«3S£r
''A,
i*.,*j^i^
'^..
'mmff-t
THE GONYEKTION OF 1884.
317
'W
Over the main entrance was hung a long linen
banner, upon which, painted in blue letters, edged
with red, were the wpMs, <i Bepublican National
Convention," A profusion of btg flags decorated
tl^j^a|i)le4 iircljjj^ of t^e i»^^ streamers
ana smalf banners floated from the poles along the
awio^^ and heavy sltlc flags crackled in the wind
ilStbtii'the main staff on the central dome of the
^huilding and its projecting wings.
(U At^>faa]l^p«si eleven, o'clock, the pedestrians on
^^dams 8^?eei were halted by a procession marching
^'^xt^Q the Exposition Burlding. An eiccell^it
^ bbUict phiye^ » lively march and it was followed by
4lieYoong Men's RepublioiiinGlub. Every mem-
. bei^ Wi0 attired in a light spring sail of dlothes, a
hi^ white bat and a fancy cane. The dub marched .
with Ibe regularity and precision of veterans. The
ladies smiled as the hancbame lellowa passed hy,
and they passed into the building with an evident
determination to hoiyl the loudest for their favorite
:^C^jate. : ' ■.'^.:M\'y-y-- _^ : /^'-^l :.;:,■ -friir^v;,: •
^iU'$he different delegations straggled into the h.aU;
'MCweett ijeven and twelve o'clock. Some marched
^ logger; others straggled along by twos and
it^iie^, keeping the ushers busy to find them
^{telit:'> A^ en^ of patent
tijprediclnd had'tsbak^red a brass band and a huge
^^i^^ ^n #4 Btdesefwhiek were posters calling n^
ilm^nW^ the dodger
';«i^Mau9^«4|^fe«^ ^ the^ where it aiv
i • ,--- l£i
«■
^^,.
%^
818
., THE CONVENTION OF 1884.
319
Ai
a,
I tracted the ttttention of every passer. The ap-
t proaches to the innin floor and the different galler-
- ies were indicated by signs, so that there was no
I delay in seating the holders of tickets Helmeted
policemen and doorkeepers decorated with blue
badges guarded the approaches atid rigidly excluded
every intruder. -
The huge, unwieldy machine for grinding out
/presidential candidates settled to its Wo^k wi|th a
^uzz of talk and handshaking. r^\
fv The distant bahd hummed I'ather th^Q^ playili
I airs from "Patience," and at last Chifciirmaii Sabin,
Iwlth his broad, sallow lace and OurVing li^ioustache,
stepped forward and put his hand on the starting
nSkr^ picking up a little mallet, sadly out of place in
a situation which needed a beetle to deal a con-
trotting blow. A slim cljergyman, With a whitie
Ihaiid* and a small moustachfe, made an p|o<)iienP
pray^, which drew subjplpQd applause ^om p^le
wl^ mktobk f he perpniliioh not unnaturally for a
' ^ii^bh,; and the big^ broal^^ Kansan Mar*
i tin,^ho acts as Secretary of the^^oual Commit-
. tee, re^ an inaudible cill.
A-ltitld stir, a sort Of dressing of ranks and Sar
bin's speech ended Kith the nomination for tempo-
Irtti^cbaiitriaii of Powell Clajton, . a tall, sallow,
irouli^headed, 0rop-haired ' Arkansan, with an
\etf^0^ ski^e^an^ tho expression of a Southwest
[eri^ -r.<^pge^ j<^ .Massachusetts, a crisp-haired^
, tlNrownr-y^^^ti^^oung i^llow) dimbs a chmrin the
-^s,
'-f?
yr¥''^?'fa»wT'^ifi'iilfr'*''"^-hi'i'*1i
•i. .W
Wm^^m^m^^^^^
9^
L^.'
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.fe''
320
THE CJONYENTION OP
Massachusetts delegation and puts up ^<^!in R.
Lypch. , One great yell goes up— ttf sjbrill crj^ il"-
Southern delegates^as a dozen negroes Junip^iu
their seats, camp-meeting fashion. A sturd^^^ s£o^
sidjB-whiskered drover-like looking, man, fiuiicnery
of New York, seconds the nomination, meeting t||e
Edmunds move half way with an Arthur welcome.
Gravity follbws in every Blaine State, while the
Arthur States bubble and boil over into the aii^e.
Frank Hatton, slim and earnest, watches the hat-
tie on one side, and Sha^pe, with l^isWlldogiJfa^,
fkirly looks pleasant. Chris Magee^ a^ tail|;'pne-
looking man, seeks a side aisle, while his alteriiate
slips into his seat, and Tom Cooper looks an^ipUBlv
from a high stage seat. _ ^ ^, ^
Speech-making begins j George Williain Cturtip
on One side, suave, courtly, with a vdice of woiicJer-
fully sympathetic quality and face all sou serenity^
s^akst his vo.^e rising and faUing from one tren|B-
linj| cadenc^ to another, and ^tewaribn^t^e ot^^^
iide, with sharp, strident voice ^hd clear^dar^^
and features >flth a straight^ strong prbmV/puii^
the Blaine side in a great sUtand aiiriiig ana
rustle. - , ■■■• '''■ ,,.*;'' ■■•■■ "'l'"
There are other speechee. Carj^ of TOIMi, |
big, round fellow, with a crackling, e2q;»losive voice
rided'the buzz triumphantly, Boose^ >^^
'efiE>rt is. drowned lis it. Hoar, a.bi^, brolMrcbeiteil
fltirinimer in this sek of matiilpld- sduiid^ )|i^l«yik
jelitre&t^for a^wmotne^ts^ vnA,0ei''kj^atij^^
a\^.?*,;-n-(iit^*^
THB OONYENTIOir OF 1884.
321
■ •
i>ltM
wrangle over the method of voting, the slow roll is
called. It takes two hours, man after man, lean-
ing against the reading desk and shouting his share
of 820 names into space, wearies of the work.
By relays it goes on. A name is called ; up rises
a distant man, and shouts the syllabic reply,
I'owell Clayton or John B. Lynch. The tally goes
on. The cheering is short and small. The inter-
est lies below the names. Illinois starts off for
Clayton and when the votes change to Lynch a
shout goes up. Connecticut shrewdly divides. Mc-
kinley leads off in Ohio, with a big purple badge
m his breast. New Jersey runs by commentless,
but in New York every vote is watched until the
fiiU Blaine strength is registered of twenty-nine.
In Pennsylvania HcManes leads off for Lynch.
Grow raisea his gray head to vote, and Stewart
steps forward with hat and note-book tally in his
h^nd, as the roll runs through Republican districts
winch vote for Clayton. Once there is a cheer over
Tom Piatt, and when Virginia is reached and a
thin, weazened, long-haired figure, Mahone, rises,
the cheering rises and falls lijke the pulse of a
storm, the vote is known before it is announced,
and a tall Mississippian jumps in a chair and
waves the square yard of blue silk on which the
State Is marked.
, Yell, cheer and shout, hand-clapping a.nd stamp-
ui^,,ai)^d at last John JEt. Lynch, a mulatto of the
a^e, faoUe type of ability in many directioniir
.. -81 ■;■■■
322
7BE CONYSlfTlpN QF
mi
%.
'*r»*^,^.- __
takes the gavel of a National Gonveution in ,lps
hand, the rest is routine, and after an; empty
iitttiiipHspeech, the great barrel of a hall etbpties,
and surmise and speculation over the v6te of 4^1
for Lynch and 387 for Olfiytbn spreadci ovet the
FBOGESDINGS IN DETAIL. c^^,
The full proceedings of this most importaliicdh-
pvention in detail iviU be found below. On the
first day'of tho session, Tuesday, June 3d, the ocjin-
f entipn was called to order at 12.35 by Ui^ed
States Senator Sabin, of lliunesota, as follows : t.
. Gentlemep of the Eighth Bepublican Niitibnal
<^ttvention : The hour having i^tived ap^nti|d
fot the meeting of this convention^ it Will tibw ^
3Aed With tffayer by Bbv. Frank Bristol, til
1[!he praye^r was then ofifered by Mr. Bristol as
fiillows:
''God of our fathers, we adore and worship j^D^ee,
i|ild to Thee, by whose grace and providence inpe
are what we are, as a na^oii, we would iUfl* o¥ir
hearts iu retidering thanksgiving and everliifi^
''We thank Thee for our glorioiuiiiatioual h|^-
^g^f for this magnifieent land of wealth/ hiilB "p^
;^Tme plains, and for the laws ci^d ; Jiif Utp^lJ^
which make it a land of progress and fijb^j. v ; j
<' We thank T%e# f^ our Chris6|itn ^r«i, toi?|p
of fi^doni and of Qod, ^i^ of eqil^ci^oQ and^^
«<^"'
'. 'tr^i
$S}^^x
txiJi ocormtooir OF 1864.
323
inenioiTjr of Y^hosd deeds I0 an InspiriEitibti'to
{ heioism and paiiiotio pride. .
^^i^:We thank Thee for Plymouth Rock, for Y<«k-
rtpwn, iSsr Appomattoxy footsteps to mark the pro-
gress of righteouBness and the higher law.
*^Mte thank Thee for the Declaration of Iiide-
pendence, the Constitution of the United States>
the Emancipation Proclamation/ bur blood-hought
c^hartetr of freedom.
y**Me thank Thee for the Republican p^^rty and
i^r its spljsndid history, i^nd its still more splendid
^pj^bnttiies. And now, as this great convention
^iiN^i^ on a work which will invdve the niost pipe-
ciousiiiterests of millions of people, and, in al^irge
Sf^ps^, the.pteipesta of fire^^institution^ we deyoptly
jli^iii^yi ^imestly f u^ the blessing of A^
)fwpl|l?|^jb(i Bless the members of thi% body, the
^l^omeff, tiie S(»t^ ^e pftri» of the nation wl^
they represent. May the ambitioh of patrioti^iB,
the wisdom of statesmanship and the righteousness
^of Gbristiati conscioiisness IkMisesB ev^ l^alit and
control every action. And may the result of ^is
a>ny€»atioh be in harmony with tjie will of God
b^cetmn^ us, and bb roceived with joy by the
%Mei of tlie whole land. And granl^ AWu^h^y
tJod, that the comihg political campaigii viaiv m
ii^btmUcted with that intelligence, patmtism, ^^
dignity of temper that becomes a great and Ifitell-
;|^t P^ple. Continue Thy me^cjf to us. Bless
otir lebnntiy with peace, prosperity andiiniver^l
'^!%h|;enmeni May we neve^d?^
our llith^rs. May we never cease to be a temper-
i^iA fiiee, axi in4ustH6u^ a Sabbath-keeping^ |i
"^ *"*" plqg and a Christian peopl^Wessed^
tii^tunieiBwhi(^6a»lteth4na^ Jixxm^'
'^ii
'•1%
■Wf.
■»rr
!t;.'.
T?v.<f
ft 5.
^r;
5;
'^.
824
fHIS CONYEVTION 0? 1884.
., , The Ghaiv— The Seoretfiiy of the Naiionul Com-
mittee will now read the call for the convention.
The secretary then read the calT.
When he had finished Mr. Sahin addressed th»
convention as follows : "
"Oentlenien of the Oonveniion :'-On behalf bftbe
Kational Republican Committee, permit me to
welcome you to Chicago. As chairman of that
committee it is both my. duty and pleasure to oa}l
you to order as a National Kepublican Cpnyentioii.
This city, already known as the * City of Coiiveii-
tions/ is among the most cherished of all the spots
of our country sacred to the memories of a B^e-
publican. It is the birth place of Republican^ vic-
tory. On these fields of labor gathered ' the ear)^
fathers of purpoliticaV faith and plimned tl^e g)^A^
battle for the preservation of the Union.
W
" Here they chose ttiat Immqirtat chief %^% led
us on to victory— Abraliam Lincoln. [Apptaiise?)
Here were gathered in counsel those men >^o
secured the fruits of that long trouble by elevatiiig
to the first place in the Ration the foremost cfiie^
ta?n of that great contest-^General Grant. HU^W^
applause.] Here was afterwards Witnessed i^t
signal triumph, . which anticipated the wish ^f |i|(e
nation, by npminating, as cotor-bearer of the^at>|]||y
that honored solllie^ ^hat shining citizen^ jkl(a|
r^reseiitative Amencan- — «rames A* Garfitt^.
[u>ud applause.] ^ very ddlibe^tiop of J^c^j^^
can forces on this historic gpfo^unji has. ^eni^^
by signal vict<»y, and every <K>n^i>ttQQQ)^/^u
sp(it&i^fMli^t^
t'y*-
^3v'i^ :•« ;.^'S?T¥^?**'' '■"''•'■^v^- ) . *^-^F^.£-^F?^|?^-^
tfijB ooMrEKnoK OP 18S4.
325
«•.
day our forces overlook every position of the
enemy.;
''Indeed, so secure now is the integrity of the
.Union, so firmly imbedded in the Constitution and
laws of the land are the safeguards of individual
liberty, so fairly and fully achieved, that, by gen-
eral consent, the time has now arrived for the new
disposition of party forces in contemplation of new
lin^S of operation. Having compassed the defeat
of our opponents on all former occasions, the party
fs about to set its house in order, and take counsel
ad to thf direction and the management of its
ibitdre coursel
^In the comparative lull of party strife,' which
distihguishies the present ccadition of national
politics^ there is discernible an increasing disposi-
tion toi look after the men who are to execute, and
the methods that are to guide them in the execu-
tibn of tie powers committed to them for the man-
agement of the affairs of the Eepublic. As a result
of the rule adopted in the last National Republican
Convention, this convention finds itself constituted
of a large majority of gentlemen who have been
idlothed* with the delegated powers of the conven-
tion in their several congressional districts. On
tliis consideration maybe grounded a hope that
it(B voice of the people [applau&e] will, beyond
recent precedent, bfe felt in moulding the work you
are liss^mtiled to i^rform, sp that its results may
'%$ such as to win the unhesitating and undivided
Support of every lover of those principles by which
0e party has heretbfone triumphed and yet will
tHttmjrfi. |Af)plau8e;J^^^^^
V^When'we co^sW the past so
iiltltjMely hmuikeMA. with tliis city, and even vnik
' -^
K.
■^:».-'
■y-^t?*'*
."<•
'•"T^
d2e
TQB OOmrBNTIQK OF 1884*
I k
f
Ir-'
>• T
I K
this edifice, which the people of Clhief^;o have 8o
generously placed at your disposal; when we ptr
fleet upon the deep-seated concern among all peqplc^,
in the result of your deliberations, and the various;
incentives to the abandonment of personal ambi-
tions in the interest of the party welfare, you-oai^
not wonder that the OommittAe. nnd beyori it that
great Republican masses, extend you a most heatity «
welcome to this scene of labor, in the constant hope
that your efforts will result in such an expositipn
of Republican doctrihe and disclose such a just
appreciation of Republican men in the choice of
your nominees as to rejoice the hearts of your icon*
stitueii^^ and keep victory on the side of your
ever victorious banner. In conclusion, at Uie ,re^
qitiest of the National Republican Convention, I.
h,f^ye Jtp propose to you as. temporary chairman of ;
this Convention the Hon. Powell Clayton, of Ar-^
kinsas. [Loud applausOr]
The remaining preliminaries were such. as must
always be arranged in a National Convention; A-
t^porary organisation was effected, the c' >denr
tials of delegates from the various States attd-
Territories were examined, committees were ap-
pomted, incidentally speeches were made, the.
leading eq^irits of the Convention be^ran to jget tHeuD
^fiFOrk in, the favorites were received with applausir
\Hi^ they made their a|>pearance, and through .itv
all the buzi& of electioneering, for the 4iffi9reati
c^didates went on* Inhere was suppressed exeite«>
meat which was only waiting its opportniatfutdi
keak out aad^go criixy over some '^iSGiYorite^tou'' ^
fc
A'^ .-J
TBB GONTBITTION OF 1884.
327
The first day was consumed in getting the huge
body into shape and readiness for the serious busi-
ness on hand. The Convention comprised a fine
body of men — men who were intelligent, quick
of japprehensipn, evidently bent on business, earnest
in spirit and able as statesmen and as political
leaders.
The feature of the second day-of the Convention
was the enthusiasm over Blaine, during which an
ui^precedented scene was witnessed. When the
committee on permanent organization was ready
to report, Smalls, the colored delegate from South
Carolina, and one or two others, questioned the
p^firiety of making the permanent organization
befpr^ the credentials committee had reported as
to the title of contested delegates, but these few
objec tors were quietly overruled, as they were in
1880^ and the chairman of the committee, George
Williams, of Indiana, presented the report.
It advised the election .of ex-Senator John B.
Benderson, of Missouri, as permanent chairman
of -the Convention, together with a bng list of viee-
pvesidents and secretaries, too numerous even to be
read to the Convention. There were not half a
doien dissenting votes to the adoption of the
odmmittee report. Some of the Blaine leaders had
been advised to oppose the election of Henderson
byf moving to snbstitiite Oalusba A. Grow, of
P^^nnaylvania, but tjiia they refused to do. Sey-
e^^j^^^aip pne^of the 1i^ prominent of ibe
.".WhI
-.^^
teh^"''* '
.1^'
■^f.
■*4
328
TBS CONVENTIOK OF 18S4.
R-*.'^
f^*^''
^4
Blaine managers publicly avowed that the eleotiM
of General Henderson as permanent president 6f
the Convention would be acceptable, and aoon^
afterward General Henderson publicly deolalfe^iA
that he would not present President Arthur's name
to the Convention. , '^
Knowing General Henderson's choice to be Ar^
tUur, the Blaine managers were perfectly willing
to give him a solid vote for permanent chairman.
As soon as the election was announced, Mr. Lynch
appointed Mr. Grow, Mr. Hoar, of Massachusetts,
and Mr. Williams^ of Indiana, a committee to
escoirt Mr. Henderson to the chair. The tempdnii'y
chairman then placed his soft black felt hat on tlii^
desk before him, stuffed a few pamphlets in hia
pocket, and prepared to vacate a seat to Which ht
the first time in the history of the party a man of
his color has been elected.
Loud cheering greeted Henderson as, flanked
on either side by this distinguished escort, he^
asQonded the platform and advanced to the desk.
The presiding officer of the Convention is a talt,
slender, well-proportioned man, who does not look
to be over forty-five years of age, but is cbnsidei^''
ably older. He has regular features, blue eyeil,^^
thin, brown hair, a bald spot on the back of fns^
skull, carefully-trimmed brown chin- whiskers, fiiid, -
with gold-bowed glasses astVide his nose, looks; the*
j^ture of mi active, prosperous lawyer. - ^ * ^*'
|*^m the outside pocket of Mr. Be^etiscM^'^
J'r
,.^
TBS ooMVENTfcw or 1884.
820
9Q4^if TQtraded the end of a package of manuscript
cf^ti^oiDg his address to the Convention. He laid
thMi|,>pi^r on the desk and took the handle of the
B^an^ gayel, trimmed with ribbons, in his hand, and
al^ftiply , rapped the body to silence. A bustling
usher advanced* and pinned a huge white silk, gold-
tiisseled badge upon the lapel of Mr. Henderson's
coa^ ai^dy with a prefatory cough, he began to
r^slilsspeechi
Tbo Convention listened quietly until the Chair-
xnfpiy. with questionable taste, called attention to
QQpie of the more prominent men upon whom it
opill4 ^^tiy bestow the honor of the nomination,
lil^ithout mentioning names, Mr. Henderson, in
unmistakable, terms, brought out singly the differ-
ent oai^idates who are most prominently dis*
cussed^ Pirst on his list was Arthur, and, as he
complimented the 'Administration, a cheer, loud,
bn^,; axid by no means enthusiastic, was given by
the ^sident*s followers.
Pi iie;xt relerence was to Vermont's candidate,
aii^jtheefew Edmunds men in the hall made all
tlie-noise tiiey: could. The reference to John
Shec^oan brought forth shrieks of delight from
half the, Qhio delegation and a few. men in the
gD!jy^mes,M tiogftn waa next on the list, and he
ref^ye^ t))ie loudest and heartiest applause of any
Qlijlie^ geotlemenr before mentioned. His friends
in the Conventkm. und among the spectators— they
vi|^||jM^iutr^duted:ttt the top' of Hieir lungs
for the Senator from Illiaois^
fefc&i^^'^'i^i^l*4"''*4J
*Ad
> Almott before tbe echo of. the lai»t oh^iet hiici
died ftvay the ClhaimiaD daid ! *' Maine tiae^ber
honored favorite, whose Bplendid ayiM6d and pei^^
iBonal qualities have endeared him to the 1ieaH# of
ki» friends, and the briliiancy of whos^' ' geni^
challenges the admiration of all.*' • ' ' * •"
j .^Biefore the ViOids were faii^ly out of' the ChliM
man's mouth the Pennsylvanians on the front roW
began to cheer. The faint opening applause eit^
tended and swelled until, from the rettr of the
stage to the end of the hall^ a hoarse reVerbera^iig
roar - arose and echoed from end to eiid of the
building and outside, until the noise was aullble
abovo the bustle of street ttuffio two blocks diwi^^^
The iirstwild burst of enthusiasm dnly added
fuel to the flame, and a second greats -spontaiieous;
full-heiirted c^eer rose from the floor to ^e rasters
and fidrly shook the structure. Then foiloiv^ a
spene seldom witnessed in any public body; and
never equalled in National Conventions of AaM
years. The delegates, alternates and spe^atoM
rose to their feet as by a common impulse, aind
testified their admiration of the people's candidate.
Cheers^ shouts, sharp screams and animated howt-
ings bcoke upon the Convention with ap|iiaUiiig
force; :.iii.>iii ; -"..;., ii_
Men tossed their hats in ih^ air, waved pocl^'
handkercMefii, shook their cftneSi moahtiBd U
leipeiibaek iind forth in the idsleSi jalii AislfNl
m^dtoeii. The New ^ork delegation, excepting a
sAksl'-.
>^v
^ ■* V .
"■j.!.
,'"''^f
TOB CONTBI^ISON OP 1884;
331
^m Kilftundfi m9ii, ivaa xm its feet» screaming as
Iqtfjdly as t^ Pennsylvanlans, wtiile Ohio and lUi-
nplji ^Qpjbxibttted liberally to the racket.
•\ !fh9 tremendous burst of enthusiasm carried
dpa^ thje colored brethren, and they screamed
with true Methodistic ca^ip^meeting fervor. Ex-
bO^usted at last, the noise abated only to be again
x^^ivied with fresh force. Four times the Con-
y^tion rose to its feet, and four times did the vast
aif^mblage exhaust itself in noise. A little knot
el. I^ew England people only kept their seats, and
wep^mot budged by the excitement
: /pb^ display of public sentiment in Blaine's
beb*lf was not unexpected, but it overwhelmed
Ih^se gentlemen wbo^lbr three days past, had been
working by hook or crook to defeat the people's
l^bok^ It revealed to them, as by the flash of an
^ectric ii^it, the vapt and irresistible force demand-
ing his nomiitation for the Presidency. It showed
thetn the weakness of their own cause in a manner
not^ susceptible oi argument, and threw a wet
btoket upon their burning hopes of bringing forth
t|^rdftrll^iM>rsc winner. At last the excitement
aibated> imd the president rea^uated his glasses,
preparatory to resuming his speech. He had
hardly opened his mouth when a voice high up in
tbe> gfiUeiiy^ over the stage in a shrill tone ex-
^aimsd ^^fiit *eni agin!*' and for the last time a
y^ lEopr oC applause went through the vast hall.
■4
^•■'
CHAPTER XV.
Enthusiasm for the Plumed Knight.
' 'The third day of the Convention was of -much
more importance than the preceding, and two
sessions were held. In the morning legislation for
the party was discussed and adopted and the
national platform was agreed upon.
The proposition of a minority of the Committee
'on Bules, changing the basis of represpncation in
the National Convention from the present electoral
system to that of the voting strength of the party
on an apportionment, after each presidential elec-
tion^ commended itself to the conservative senti-*
ment of the Convention, bat it hed the misfortune
to be considered before i.he nominations were made.
The consequence was that it was unmercifully
handled. The Southern delegate resented it with
some heat as an attempt to curtail his rights, and
at this particular time the friends of no candidate
were desirous of treading on the toes of the Southern
delegate.
Martin I. Townsend, representing Arthur, and
Judge West, of Ohio, representing Blaine, came to
his rescue. Everybody seemed to have Bomething
to jay a^^ainst tbd proposition, and even Maisa-
THE CONTENTION OF 1884.
333
chusetts, where it originated, finally put forward
General Long with a motion to. bury it in the Na-
tional Committee room. Decent burial, however,
was considered too decent for it with the South-
erners holding the balance of power between candi-
dates, and so it was ignominiously voted down.
The report of the Committee on Resolutions
caused no debate. Everybody was equally sur-
prised at its length and breadth and thickness.
"Very strong and very Blamey," was one comment,
and Murat Halstead said Blaine's tracks ran ail
over it like the track of a buzz saw. ^
The call of States for the appointment of mem-
bers of the National Committee brought the Con-
vention to the dinner recess. These appointments
were not so easily made as heretofore, for the rea-^
son that a rule passed in the morning disqualified
for membership the office-holding class, of which
the committee has been heretofore in the main
composed. ;«a %* ,
In view of the confusion caused by this new dieal
a good many States were not prepared, and begged
to be excused when their names were called. It
was a little disappointing that the Convention did
not begin the work of nomination before dinner ;
but neither side seemed quite ready, and so there
was a skip of the whole afternoon in fixing the
hour of recess.
The few hours of dalay seemed to feed instead
of wasting the enthusiasm of the Blaine qolumna.
' '^
Ce?iiiii?^'ikM?t*;afi>ii.i^
S* ':-''\i;i-^SA^'2
334
tBM ooNYBMnoir or IBM.
m
Their headquarters were in the posaeflBion of a
shouting mob. In the irotunda, on anothet^ floot of
the hotel, a glee club, hired by the Arthur inaxi-
agers at (50 a day to go exound and sing popular
songs with the name of the Prendent ingenioucly
interwoven therein, tried to make a diyersien, iMit
without avail. The audience good-naturedly ap^
plauded the singing, but filled every pause with
three cheers for Blaine.
The climax of excitement seemed reached when
a band came marching into the hotel playing,
''Bally around the flag, boys," and followed by an
impromptu {wocession of tibout 1,000 men, beariiig
alofi' a portnut of Blaine^ wearing Blaine badges
and hoarse with Blaine cheers.
The crowd turned in behind and, marching out
of the hotel, moved in a body, with oontinui^ rein-
forcements, towards the Convention hall, and when
it arrived there it was almost a mob. It was
through this phalanx of Blaine's followers and in
this Blaine atmosphere that the exercises of the
evening began.
The scene at the night seasion was one <^ the
most impressive ever known in American polittcal
history, and is thus described by an eye witness in
a peculiarly graphic manner: J
/'A thousand gleaming gas-lighte, 10,000 eagei*
faces, long rows of brilliant banners and Wavifig
flags, and the flashing ooats-of-arms of the 8UM»
folded a dazding picture in Ixpoiiitba Hai^ 1i^
tfett jymvvmm ^ 1884.
'ym
335
|U|^t^ < 1?he businSBS of the evening wias the noM-
I^^^On^af^ndidatea for President, and the session,
' ' "'e laokiQg the excitement of balloting for choice,
lai tnife most entertaining of the Convention.
^libng before the delegates took their seats
^^mr ihWiX allotted to spectators was filled. The
JMnaBome toilettes of the ladies fotmed a rich back-
^t|nd to the dark outline of the men. Two
l^ki^ pf humanity, one piled up to the roof in the
rear of the stage, and the other heaped in ascend-
ing tiers to a height of fifty feet at the rear of the
hidl/fSlced each other. On the two raised plat-
foms sjtretehing the whole length of the vast audi-
itoriiimoii.dther side were packed like sandwiches
TOWS of faycHred spectators. First come first served
19 the rule in the management of the Convention,
aud this rule applies to the seats improperly sup-
Itosed to have been reserved for the press as well
«0 those assigned to the public.
'^Outside the building, at the hour of ineeting,
fiilly dyOOO people stood patiently in line waiting
an opportunity to enter. Stupid doorkeepers, in<
fiolent watchmen and consequential ushers did all
in their power to annoy and harass the people.
Half an hour before the Convention met, the dele-
gates began to enter the hall, the band played with
Moewed vigor, and the peddlers of fans did a lively
hui^ess.
" The atmosphere of the hall was hot and op-
pressive. Hardly a breath of air, passed through
the open window in the roof, and the heat of the
^pis and th^ warmth ^ the crowd raised the tem-
jierature to an uncomfortable degree. As one
ft^^ another of the most prominent delepites
^cafi^' they were faintly cheered by their friends
"M
336
THB ooMYENiioir or 1884*
in the audience, but there was none of ilie liotly
expressed admiration for individuals that wasr a
marked feature of the Convention of 188(K -ilA >*?;
''As a matter of fact there has been but littk
marked personal leadership on the floor of the
Convention for any of the candidates, and the local
favorites are not numerous. Mr. Hoar is almost
ceriain to receive a tender welcome. He is re-
membered as the presiding officer of the Convene
tion four years ago. Chairman Henderson, Secret
tary McPherson, young Boo^^velt and Lodge,
ex-Congressman Lynch, Galusha A. Grow, Greorge
William Curtis, Senator Mahone and General Carr,^
of Illinois, are among the best known men in tho
hall.
'* The most striking feature at night is the ffKses
of the people. The gas-lights are so arranged thai
they seem to throw a peculiar ghastly pallor upon
the countenances of those beneath, making them
appear almost waxen in color. This array of up^
turneil; animated faces, seen from the stage eleva^
tion, possesses a fascination for the on-looker thai
rivals the interest felt in the proceedings.
'^At 7.30 o'clock the gavel of Chairman Hender?
son fell sharply upon the desk, and instantly a
hush fell upon the great assembly. Hardly had
the echo of the hammer died away when the sharp
vbice of Mr. Dutcher, of New York, was heard
moving the adoptimi of a resolution to issue 500
additional tickets of admission to the already over»
crowded hall. The resolution was adopted. Bayne^
of Pennsyl ■■niHf moved that the call of tho menbr
bers of the National Committee, announced this
afternoon, be reread, but hi| rsq^uest wm gsmt^A
with hisses.
ras oostsmtim or 1884;
337
" These seemed to be asuspioion thftt Colonel
Ba(^iie desired delay, and there was loud applause
as Auguslns Brandegee stepped from a seat in the
seltf of the chairman and advanced to the front of
the stage, Connecticut being first in the list of
States called for the nomination of candidates.
Brandegee presented the name of General Hawley.
A thick, broad-shouldered, heavy-set man, under
medinm size, somewhat resembling Secretary
Bristow in personal appearance, his face adorned
with a heavy, short^srojiped, grayr moustache and
a tuft of gray whiskers, is Brandegee. He iis not
an accomplished orator, but an excellent rough-
and-teady talker.
" The nomination of General Logan was seconded
by General Prentiss, of Missouri, a venerable, gra^jr-
haired, gray-bearded man, somewhat resemUing m
appearance a Methodist parson^ and in the tremb-
ling tones of his voice the oratory of a Baptist
clB>a»4eader. Mr. Prentiss made a speech of such
\tm0h that the imp&tient Convention cheered and
MiM him down. Indiana was called d xt, but
did not, as was expected, present the name of Har-
rison. Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, were
ido#ly oaUed by the Clerk, with no response.
f'^Maine,' he shouted, and sank back into his
sieat,^ knowing full well the response that would
follow. There was an instant, clear, loud, wild
httrst of applause that seemed to come from the
throat of every man in the hall. To describe, in
its Ibllness of enthusiasm, in its spontaneity of
sentiment, in its fervor of devotion, the soene that
l^lowed — a scene such as was never before wit>
nesse^ in a NaUonal Convention— is well-nigh
impossible.
28
t"i
338
TBI bONYBNTION OF 1884.
'' First came the cheer rattling through the hall
like a volley of infantry f then deepening, aa it
grew in force, like the roar of cannon, and swelling
as it progressed like the crash of a thunderbolt
across the skies. From the stage to the v>nd of the
hall, a distance of the eighth of a mile, tiio cheer-
ing, rolling in dense waves of sound, hoarse and
shrill, sharp and clear, commingling in a wild
tumult of applause, which, in the minds of aU who
heard it, and of those who witnessed the great
scene, meant the nomination of James G. Blaine.
'^ With common impulse the audience, delegates
and spectators, jumped to their feet Staid old
politicians on the platform, venerable senators and
representatives, long tried in Congress; new dele-
gateSj who were never before in a National Con-
vention, were drawn into the whirlpool of excite-
ment as straws are sucked into the eddies of a
river. Every delegate, save a bane patch here and
th^re on the floor^ where the friends of Arthur and
of Edmunds sat, mounted his chair and took part
in the demonstration.
'* Looking over the human sea from the stage to
the balconies, there was a surging mob of men and
women waving hats, umbrellas, parasols and flaps.
Against the dark background a thousand white
handkerchief swung over the heads of the excited
audience, dotted the hall with specks of white, like
the caps of the breakers on a stormy sea. Men put
their hats on the tops of canes and waved them high
over their heads. Women tore their bright fichus
and laces fh>m around their snowy necks, and lean-
ing far forward over the galleries, frantusly swimg
them to and fro to give emi^asis to their shrill
Mnreamsof joy.
THE OONYBNtlON GT 1884;
339
Hi
^* From otitside tlie glaM windows under the
dc^e of the hall, where an adventurous crowd <^
^ilnen and boys had gathered to witness the jiro-
ceddihgs, loud cat-calls and dcreams were heard
' ahoye the roar beneath. Men hung dangerotiil^y
;6ver the front of the galleries and waved the ends
Of banners that had been fastened there as deoort^
'tjohstothehall.. -^vn^«
' '■ "The Arthur delegates from New York and the
'Edmunds delegates, who had at first refuseid to
' leave their seats, were com|)elIed by natural im-
pulse and curiosity to mount their chairs, and soon
'ittany a well-known anti-Blaine delegate was seen
\!travmg his hat and cheering as loudly as any isup-
jaorter of the Plumed Knight.
'' « Wheuj tired with cheering and lung-exhausted,
the din ceased iii one part of the hall, it wOuld be
' takei^ up in another part, and the tumult renewed.
^Senator Warner Miller, usually impressive and
never flustered, advanced from a seat in the roar
of the chairmi^n to the front of the stage, and,
waving his arms wildly over his head, shouted his
, loudest, and then, as if realizing the undignified char-
' acter of his deportment, beckoned a messenger and
cMrected him to hurry Judge West to the platform.
"Mr. Henderson vainly pounded his gavel for
' order. Its dull beats upon the hollow desk Were
lid more audible to the wild crowd in the hall
than were the strains of the band in the rear to
the cheering spectators on tl^ platform. The i^
^pfaQse echoed blocks away along the streets lead-
ing to the Exposition BuUdiag, and the engineers
,^ the locomotives on thf; Baltimore and Ohio
kilrbad, in th^ r^ar of the hall, added to the din
by loud shrieks from the whistles of thmr engine^.
a
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S^
TBI OONYEKTION OF 1884.
At last, exhausted, the tumult ceased, not on the
instant, but by degrees, fitful cheers being given
long after Judge West reached the platfj^i^ ,and
was escorted to his seat. ^^ * '
'^ The man selected to present Blaine's name to
the Convention is blind. He was helped to the
platform by two sturdy young men, who carefully
guarded his progress up the steep steps and along
the tortuous aisles to the seat provided for him on
the left of the presiding officers chair.
'^ Judge West seems to be uearing the ^al of '
three-score and ten. His silver gray hair was
smoothly brushed away from a noble forehead.
Time had implanted deep wrinkles and .furroiyB
around the sharp features of an intelligent face.
White chin whiskers and a white, doeencut mous-
tache hid his mouth and resolute square-cut chin.
A prominent nose and bushy eyebrows give charac-
ter if they do not add beauty to his countenance.
Dressed plainly in black, wearing no ornament save
a blue Blaine badge on the lapel of his coat and
a small watch-chain, the old man leaned back in
his arm-chair and faced the sux^ging mob, as, though
blind, he felt himself its master.
''For the last time the applause rolled through
the hall and ended in a wild roar as the Oh>o
orator rose to hi» feet and, lifting his right k$x^
above his head, hy gesture compelled silence. Ten
minutes of uproar and storm were followed by stiU-
ness in which a whisper could be heard as toe first
clear, distinct, sharp tones of the speaker ^fled
through the^ building. The cleiin • cut sentei^b^,
brilliant delivery and confident mann^ 6i the
speikker captivated the crowdi They were J^
sympathy wjith him from the start^an^ he retained
his grasp upon their feeUng^ to due finish. ;
-ij*-
\,M
rs>i-*'i .-■■
TBI CONVtVTlOK 6F 1884.
341
M
W . ■ «;v
**A 'id made point after point in the opening
of hib speech, roar after roar of applause echoed
through the hall. 'Shall the Bepublican party
triumph again ? ' exclaimed the orator, after allud-
ing to its victories in the past. 'Yes, with James
G. Blaine,' yelled one of the delegates in the front
row, and the audience again leaped forward and
gave a tremendous cheer.
** 'Who shall be our candidate ? ' shouted Judge
West as leaning back in the chair from which he
delivered the greatest part of his speech, he brought
a big palm leaf fan high above his head and seem-
ingly awaited a reply. 'Blaine ! * ' Blaine ! * ' Blaine ! '
was the stentorian reply, and another burst of ap-
plause put a temporary end to Judge West's speech.
^'The bold orator in a single sentence denounced
the candidacy of Arthur, characterizing him as
the candidate of Wall Sf>reet and the bankers, and
he predicted if nominated that the resurrection-
ists could not fathom the depth of his grave next
November.
^'At last the supreme moment came. When
Judge West formally put Blaine in nomination a
scene .followed of a de^ription never equalled and
iittefl}^ indescribable. Compared to the first out-
I)dr8^ the second ovation to Blaine was as the full
iHiibt of a storm after the grumblings of early
thunder have passed. ■'
'* Uiie audieiice rose to its feet, impelled by an
Iriesifitibie impulse to testify their admiration fbrthe
W^Bkt B^'jbiican candidate. Grave meii acted a^
QiiO^h inad. N^w^papers were torn into bits, and
^ii^tte^redlii^m the air,active boys clambered along
ihit |il|h |^er» <yvet t|ie hall and, detaching the
'' Iht^m dfrsm to men in the^j^
111
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■r^ff^^-^'/zr':^
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TaS (MfyENTION'oF
•fi' -
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t^e gaujenes, who waved tbem irantiQ^II^ O^er vj^
heads of those below, and the bands three 'i^v^es jfusg
sayed to drown the noise , by playing theb iG^est
air., tti'ii ' ■' '• ■' " '- u'l' ''■■ '■f-v
" t| was fufile. Men Iclrew off their
shpoli them in the air. Umbrellas were h,i
a^id waved oyer the heads of their owners. A^g^
handkerchiefs were brought forth, and swu^^ f^;
and fro like snowflakes in a hurricane, .tthc^i^
tired to shout gave shrill whistles, iind iMuid^!
monium universal and all-pervading- seemed <^
have broken forth. n s r
:V*'The most delightful picture of the eveniiig^
and one observed by few, occurred on the stage
when Mr. Elkins, Blaine's life-long frieiid a)i]i|^
chief manager, and Senator Tom C!ooper, of Benh-
svtyauia, embraced, each trying to out-tire ihe^
c^her in their mutual contributions to the commo^!
din. The California delegation, which has ^
flppie of Blaine's best work here, was, on its fee^
cheering as loudly as Rocky Mountain ttiroat^
ooiiid swell. Congressman Tom Bayne, of pe|^|-!
sylyania, another of the Blaine manfigers, formed
one of the loudest crowds of shouters.
'' George William Curtis sat in his seat at ii^e
hefid of the New York delegation, blushin|| fj^pd
]jlkling by turns, astounded by the demonstraii<?i|^,
aud Enable to quell it. A faint sipile oyerspreaq*
^i« ge^hial countenance as the uproar coatii^ue^i
hilt, 1^ was not a smile of satiuactipn. Tpt)ii|f
Itpo^eyel^ of New Tprjc, i^nd Lodg^, of J^ass^r^
o|i^|^8, rat, in their daces uneasy $Dd dl/scc^ii^T^
t^le. ^^ot so Senator Hoar. The exoitemeiijt Wi^
tQNo much f^ him, and belmounlt^ ; hi» i^i^^, lu^
looked over the ihoiisiEkiiiis of pio^e w^ wm
:^>^
fc.'. -^
^/^"^':v_"^^f.?
■'^•^■iS^'^S^y-^'MiWi'S'
TBB CONVENTION OP 1884,
343
,r.i»; -;i*
shouting and screaming like madmen. The ner
grOe^ from the South joined in tbe furore, and
we^re the noisiest of the delegates.
^ ^^ When at last there seemed a prospect that the
oheering would end, some enthusiastic friend of
Blaine Drought into the hall/before the Chairman's
de^kj a huge American flag, and placed upon the
top of the staff a helmet of flowers, surmounted hy
a long white plume, the helmet of Navarre. Again
did the audience cheer, until it seemed as though
th6 throats of men would burst. The flag and
helmet were raised to the stage, and again a
deeper, longer, louder cheer arose. Ladies took
lowers froth their belts and threw them in th^ air.
The atmosphere was fanned by the waving of in-
numerable banners.
"The decorations were stripped from the waiU
by the excited audience, and shook madly in the
air. Full fifteen minutes were consumealn this
unprecedented demonstration.
"James G. Blaine," closed Judge West, and
pother great roar went up like the noise of many
waters, sweeping the great waves of sound around
the hall; and the crowd without, by this time
aware of what was under way, answered in a
muffled roar, which echoed within. The old man
ceased, with the echo of his eloquence still filling
all the air, ten thousand people swaying like reeds
in the wind under his voice, and feebly groped to
l(§ave the platform. A friend was at his side in
ah instant, and Edward McPherson laid about the
old hian^s shoulders his long blue, old-fashioned
cloak, and, drawing it closer to him, its folds fall-
i|Ag straight, the speaker took a seat t^hind. By
o^trast with the wild tempest of sound just before.
■'ii -
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344
TBB OCOFVENTIOK 01P 1884^
tbe rustling movement and stir and talk which fill
this great house, of sounds with perpetual muiw
murs, seemed silence itself as Governor Davis^ of'
Minnesota, a full, round man with a bulging fi^k-
coat, stropg face and a black mousta&e, aros0.
For once and for the first time in the three times^
in which James G. Blaine has been put befi!>re «>
National Conventioa in nomination the work hai»
been well and skillfully planned, and performed as
well. The voice of Governor Davis is none of the
best by contrast with the resonaiit tones With
which Judge West had filled the great house of
sounds.
'^Governor Davis seemed feeble, but, oatebing
after a sentence or two the attention of the Con*
veUtion, he recalled, in a few well-turned sentences,
the recent political past of James G. Blaine, which
had led him heartily to snpport after two conven-
tions the candidates who had defeated him. la <
five minutes he was done^ but again^ at every
reference, near or remote, to the great candidate
beioite the Convention, there came the old swelHng
echo of sound. State followed State, and seetbn
section in the presentation of Blaine's name. €as*^
silts M. Goodloe spoke next for the Sodth and £»-
Kentucky. Himself built and raised after the
Kentucky model, large, tall, strjught and iSiapely,
and with a voice like a trumpet, his say was short
and straight. He claimed for Southern Bepabi*
lionfiis Uie right and readiness to support the
Northern choice.
'^There was a pause of an instant, that was
silence by the side of uproar, and Thomas €. Pli^
of New ^Qtk, stood by the Chairman: with' his
short ^guiDe and /9l$>ping| smooth^^^c^ioid^ la iim
i
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'^'e^^u
•■-ik
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^0'
THE COmrENTIOK OF 1SS4.
^45
siiiiienoeB he {hedged New York, and, ednce he,
too^had the privilege to speak the name of Blaine
befoFe th6 Convention, was rewarded with such a
hiirBt of applause as few speakers gain in a lifetime,
applause which was out and scarred by hisses fVom
the benches where the New York ' boys * sat. He
dosed, and Grow, with his courtly presence,
stepped on his chair, and in his turn pledged the
leading Republican State of the Union, PennsylU
vttttii, in fluent, .efibctive speech.
< 5^ It is one of the misfortunes of this great gather-
ing that no man is fafrly treated unless he drowns
all sound with a torrent of voice, and it was not
unlil'i Grow took the platform, and an Ohio dele-
gate pleinded for fair play, that Grow was heard
through^ and then another shout, a swaying tem-
pest of hats 4nd canes, and Blaine's welcome was
over. It had been Of a character and volume, of
anintennity of enthusiasm which seemed there and
then to settle the nomination of Blaine and detet-
mine the choice of the (convention by its own act.
'f Arthur's welcome followed hard on in shout^
volume and enthusiasm, a worthy second. 'Ne-
braska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey/
the gray-ooated secretary, in his colorliess voiciB
waft saying, as he read the list of States — < New
York.' It was liko match to powder, like the
flash and reflection of light from a turning mirror.
Up^went half of the New York delegation with a
shout) tip went the Southern States by squads and
platoons ; up went the corporal's* guard in Pehn-
syivaniii,;^meh hitter furnished Arthur a second
abteHiriiiaa his original nominate.
^< The OonventiOft was flooded again with sound
andnpibar in'sooh down-pour as aoly thiei human
IH
. f>.^ kc
t^A'vt
i«»y"-'".
346
TBB (X>NyENnON OF 1884.
Niagara can match or equal. Delegates, altematei,
banks of spectators, galleries, the stage, were all
one wild Babel of yell, shout and cheers, one sway-
ing mass of delirious men and women, one long,
broad sea of soui^dj whic^ auf^iii^d swung from
wall to wall. ' V-
"It was lessjii y4»?B^L|hf^^jWeMne'8 welcome,
for through the dm could be faiiiUy heard the
band, which the earlier uproar had utterly drownpd
ancl extinguished as the sea sucks up' thi6 rfv^eVs;
but next td that outburst stood this wild rbkif. Biif '
by bit out of mere noise thete came putpose and;
plan. .' ■ - . • ..< •,;■.;>
" The welcome to Blaine had left ih» fiagci ip ,the^^>
galleries in the hanijlsof his friends^ and, af^r mor%
than one friendly battle for the siw^ard, tliese
began to wave aloiig all the front of the gkll0ri(§£-
TWo flags were torn fVom the wall, foUttdi£eir1«^y''
to Texas and Tennessee, waved tibero lUid their
were passed to New York, where lh^*were wa^edi^
fi)r an instant over the delegation and then b^gon,
^eir march down the aisle. , _'
'^All this in a great roar, in which man coul^
shout to man ten feet pfT and be uiih^at^. 'i£
rugged-faced Western journali$t puthi8h4nds to
his lips ftnd sound^ a> 0<»iian'cne whoops ai(id a
Western delegate re-echoed it, a,nd this ' Wii3^^
w^h, wah-o-o-o* cut through the nois^. Nothttig
else did. Minute by mibluiw the ^gteyr ; niliiil^
^ tninqte through fl](te|ti M^^
h^0. The human voii^ at its loudf utiJeniiibi^
0Qftt9 liiid hat» ill the ain tiliibl^llas cWO[iA|| WMi
mi ro^K|d»^i»t^^
'"'"'" -■ ' ■ > . ■ . ^ ^ .•,,'..-.*'■)' ^
r
m^
^^^^mP^^-f^^p^riiR XVL
Blaine Nominated.
morning of June 6th, 1884, is probably one
of j|he iQoat memorable in the history of politicar
cimirention^ in the United States. Never waa!
there a more patriotic, enthusiastic mass of men
gaith^ifed together ihui there was in the Chicago
£i:{)^t}bii building on that day. The work wais
fyyerj jiill tliat remained was to have that work
t^ted. It was tested, and the voice of the people
was .heeded. James G. Blaine, the Maine states*,
ihan, was nominated as the candidate of the Be*
piiblif^ masses. The scene in that great hall
f^a^ one that beggars description. A prominent
!^gli|^ journalist thus gives his impression of it:
., ^ I| has be^n my fi>rtune to see some of the most
gOi;gpou8 and remarkable spectacles that have
^k;^ phice in the Old World during the last fif-
t^liyiears, jbut I have ^een none more remai^able
ma^ the B^ubli<Mili Convention which has just
(M^B^|]| the nomination of James 0. Blaine for
^^^dent of tlie tJnited States. Three successive
viiberoyi^ and gpyenu^general t have seen arrive
in Bomb^lor^ die 250,000,000 6f India in the
IMune of QueeA Victoria. When Lord Mayo
847
•fc^: -ik'Si
mmM
•Hy^
^'
>■♦■:■•!,. "V
m
THE OOMVJfiJUtlOM OF 1884*
reached the western shore of India he was
ceived bv thousands of white and dark sotdiers, a
crowd of gorgeous officials, salvos of artillery, and
plenty of flags flying, all a sad enough contrast
with the way in which, not long after his assassin-
ation by a Mohammedan convict in the Andaman
Islands, his body was borne on board a British
man-of-war in Bombay harbor, and carried bade
to England.
^' *' I saw Lord Northbrook, the next yiceroy,
travel in triumphal state through many of the
native states, where rajahs and maharajahs came
forth to do him homage with troops of elephants
covered with brocades of gold and silver, dancing
girls, whose tithe, dusky bodies shone in silks and
gems; scndars, followed by their picturesque and
fiiwarthy warriors, Rajpoors, Mahrattas, Bengalese,
stalwart Sikhs and olive Madrasees. I have seen
Lord Lytton parading the length and breadth of
HindOBtan, smoking innumerable cigarettes, and
behaving with the childish antics of an excited
Frenchman, amid surroundings of human and
architectural Oriental magnificence of tiie most
marvellous description.
«< Beneath the soarred and battered walls d
Delhi I saw the Prince of Wales received b^ aU
the chiefii of Northern India and the Punjaub,
accompanied by ^ve hundred splendidly bedizened
elephants, three thousand horeies oovered with
cloth of gold, and twenty thousand native aiid
European troops. I followed him into Oashmereb
wh^re the Maharajah Bui^eet received him ni hl4
idtiter o^>ital ^perched among the Him^la^jtt
ns. Buddhist Llamas danced jgtowMk
c^Vgtiised in the bonis iuid !^des:of wM
i
lI'^S^tri3^i'JkiJ»4j^^^^L^^
TBI oomrKNTiolr or 1884.
848
, beasts; dancing px)By the flash of whose black
eyes emulated the splendor of their jewels, and
with frontlets of golden coins that descended from
beneath abundant tresses of shining jet, clapped
their bangled hands and whirled their feet to the
musio bf lascivious dances; elephants, horses, and
jaks from Thibet swelled the procession that swept
up the hiUs in the purple light of a ruby and opal
sunset, and troops of soldiers arrayed in scarlet,
blue, and green, kept guard among the* forests of
pines and rhododendrons.
'* I have seen Victoria open her Parliament, the
marriage of not a few of her progeny, and the re-
view of more than eighty thousand of her British
and Hindoo troops. I have seen her Mi^esty pro-
olfumed as Empress on the plains of Delhi, from a
splendid pavilion surrounded by the silken canch
pies of hundreds of princes and nobles, whose t^r*-
- oestorp wero famous, splendid, and civilized, when
hers were wandering savages amid the forests of
JSurope and Great Britain. Certainly all these
spectacles wero gorgeous, worthy to leave an indel-
ible impression upon the least susceptible of minda
But, shall I tell you ? not one of them impressed
me nearly so much as the Convention which has
just culnunated in the nomination of Blaine.
Jf What is the reason ? It is this. Many of the
scenes I have mentioned were more splendid^ more
capable of pleasing the senses, but they were all
characterised by a certain want of soul, and had
none of that deep, powerful, electrifying enth^isiasm
^ which I h%ve just witnessed as the acoompani^
ineili8<^ a United States Bepublican nomination*
When I recall those marvellous bursts of cheerin|
nrhtch gieet«4 the mere mentioa of the name el
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350
iBM ooNyiNnoN or 1884.
Blaine; that IraAtio, long^*continued shouting o£ a
vast and earnest multitude ; that wild hat^waviijg,
banner-waving, and hanjkerohief-waving ; tiiat
rolling thundefing of the feet like the sbnomhis
boom of a ponderous surf upon a steep, oriental
shore; that great hall radiant with the gaudy^x)!-
ored symbols of federated Statei^ that fluttered,
agitated by the mighty storm of applause, ahoTie
the heads of 10,000 soulnstirred men< — I am bound
to confess that I never saw such a scene, and do
not believe that such an one could be possible ih
any country on earth where the people have not
their government in their own hands.
'* The scene to me was like the embodied, tumul-
tuously earnest soul of a great free nation* The
millions of Hindostan, which England hold^ dowpn
by the sword and the cannon, her subjects in 0|[i^^t
Britain may be pleased with a royal pf^atit at a
coronation or a wedding ; her colonies in Can^hla
may be tickled and delighted with the c^reindBles
attending the arrival of a viceroy, thrust upon Ibem
without their wishes being consulted ; but neither
in Hindostan, the British Isles, nor in her depeni^-
encies can she ever hope to see sucK a gath^tiQg
under her constitution, for constitutional purposes,
as the Republicans of the United States nav& ji^t
presented in Chicago. England or any othet 411^
narchial nation on earth must be like ByronV cel^
brated desf^riptionfof Greece; it ma^ lie fa|r,;ibut
you are bound to start because soul is alifsei^t. , j
^< The intense enthusiasm of the Bepi^btjijSim
Convention is, to mymind, a proof tliat no^haff^fl,
as a nation, can possess a heart so warm itndki^ii|,
a soul so earnest, detei^inihed and so gkiilA9fW%
w\^ibemmlvmi pdssess the coc^Mefpoii-
t ■=<,->.-
fH» COMTIVTIOK OF 1884.
351
«rti of their own governmetit, and the election Of
tfaeir own chief officers to carry^on that govern-
vient for the good of the dtizens at home and
bi^I feel still the thrill of indescribable enthusi-
astie tumult which swept James G. Blaine onwards
to the forefront of the nation, and it would have
been well for every monarch-ridden man in the
worM if he, too, could have been present in the
Exposition Building to feel it, and ponder on its
lessons of the rights and glory of absolute freedom."
"rtUMEl) KNiGHt's** VICTORY.
U.nv
THE
- "Ht did not tak^ later than fhe hour of meeting
JR^ jthe anti-Blaihe men to find out that the Blaine
ii|ifthagers had not fought off a ballot the night be-
fore . Ibecause they feared It. Another recess bad
beeia .spent in hopeless attempts to make' a winning
ioombination, and morning found Arthur making
no < headway, £dmunds supported by a forlorn
hope,,'Sherman surely shrinking, and nobody else
Within the longest range of the nominating light-
iiijig. .^he inevitable ballot was approached by the
BlaiQ^ipienh^fQiyij^ifM^ by the ooposition sul-
Wnly^'iUJT-rM ■■r4i1 ■Hi'] ''i'ffi ,i .
'It was a surprise in ^at it showed Blaine to
have a liu^r first ballot siren^h than his inana-
fS^' hact qlalmed, and Arthur less than anybody,
'0|^i|^ ^ic^.^|itb^^^ oC his opponents, Ha4
^ni0pi^t^ f b9 nureiakQess of the itdministr^tiop
'^«Mife^>]Hi^ thui^iexpoiBc^ the 11^ Blaise
ity
''n
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jst-l-w ^.
•'-IC'C*^; '>''<afelw./.r#.-i-ii.i. iXt, '*.<■, ' ^
352 TBI (x>iryKiiTiOK or 1884.
,1 .'
t> ■
r
r
jnight have been eflected without further delay,
but the OonYention resolved itself into a mob/ and
the Edmunds and Arthur people made up in noise
what they lacked in numbers, so that it was really
economic of time to stick to the prearranged Blaine
schedule of four ballots.
The Convention was called to order at 11.19 A. M.
by Chairman Henderson, who said :
** The Convention this morning will be opened
by prayer by the Bev. Henry Martyn Scudder, of
Chicago."
Mr. Scudder, pastor of Plymouth Church, Chi-
cago, offered the following prayer :
''Almighty and ever blessed God, we worship
Thee as tihe author of our being, as ihe creator of
our mortal bodies and of our immortal spirits, and
we adore Thee as the inexhaustible personal source
of all light and love and truth and liberty and
peace and gladness, and we do glorify Thee as
the Supreme Law-giver and as the only rightful
sovereign of all hei^ and all consciences, and we
do thank Thee with reverence and gratitude for
the bemgnant providence which, from Uie very
beginning, has watched, over our beloved country.
We thank Thee for its manifold deliverances m
times of national peril, for its grand victory over
slavery^ for its symmetric development under Thy
protecting care, and for its present advancement
among the natipns of the earth, and we do also
bie^Thee for p)ir just laws and liberal institutions,
for our civil and ieligioi^B liberty^ for biir fertife
laacb^iHsd aboiidaal resouioe^ for omr §^»«fc eiiitt
and ^ur happy iiomes. v -'
:.^»"
TBI OONYINTION OP 1884.
353
. ,1,
^ We bless Thee, Lord God of truth and graoe^
for the greiit faith and for our Ghristian churohea*
and for our educational privilegea, and for the
privileges that Thou dost continually grant to our
people for their growth in the knowledge, virtue
ana power that constitute genuine, rational hu-
manity ; and we ask Tliee to pronounce Thy bene-
dicUon upon this Convention, and grant it to^ay
Thy invaluable support, and that what is done
l^re may be done in righteousness and truth, and
in the spirit of patriotism ; and may every man in
this Convention be endowed with the true inspira-
tion of loyalty and truth and fidelity to the hignest
interests of our great Republic; and now, finally.
Great and Holy God, we pray Thee that this Con-
vention may be led with unanimity to select for
nomination to the Presidency of these United States
the right man, and when he is selected by thii^
Convention ma^ he be elected by the American
people to the chief magistracy of this country^ and
afber he has been elected, if that be Thy willj
miay his life be precious in Thy sight, and may he
be so endowed with every gift that he may give
the country an administration that shall be an
honor to this Convention, to the Republican party,
and the whole American people, and a lesson to
miuikind; an administration which shall be ac-
ceptable in Thy sight, oh Lord of Hosts, Thou,
who art the Lord God, and we ask it in the ntiime
of our Lord and Redeemer, Jesus Christ. Amen."
The Chair— Gentlemen of the Convention, the
Si^t^iaxy will call Uie roll of the States and Ter-
l^calettth^t have not yet j^ven in the names ot.
2^ ■
M
ito^ ' "fik^W'^ ■^'
•iif''
364
TflES CONYSNTION OF 1884.
^V
f^
: ^
the memben of the National Committee, and
which were passed yesterday.
A delegate from GaKfomiar— I desire to o£fer a
resolution without comment.
Mr. Davis, of Illinois — I demand the regular
order ; I object to this resolution.
The Secretary then proceeded to call the roU ofv
the States for National Committeemen, as folldws:
CaUfomia, Horace Davis ; Colorado (a delegate;
from Colorado : ^* Pass Colorado for the present ") |
Florida (a delegate from Florida : ** Pass Flori^a"),^
New Hampshire, Edwin H. Fallett; Tennessee/
W. D. Brownlow.; District of Columbia, Mr. Qaxr
son : *' We have not agreed yet, and I am satisfied
we will not agree." New Mexico, Colonel Wil-
liam H. Ryners.
A delegate from California^-I desire to with-
draw the resolution I had in mind. I do so at
the request of the members of my delegation.
The Chairs-Gentlemen of the Convention, there
is now nothing in order except to call the roll for
the nomination of a candidate for the Presidency.
Mr. Turner of Alabama— Mr. President, is that
call of the roll for balloting ? \^
The Chair—- For balloting---the nomination of'
the candidate.
The Secretary then proceeded to call the roll of
States for the vote on a candidate for the VreAt
dency, the first ballot resulting as fi)llow)s ; 1/
>1\tf
THE OONVBNTIOir OP
1884.
356
-"^i><j-t.i^O ^
■■•■/.:
■8t«tM.
Alab«ma#
ao I
Arkansas,
'i I
California,
i6 1 6
Colorado,
6 6
Connectic«)t,* ^
xa
Delaware,
•6 5
Ftorida,
8 1
Georgia,
a4
IlUnois,
44 3
Indiana, '
30 18
Iowa,
a6 a6
Kansas,*
18 X3
Kfinfacky,t
a6 5}
Louisiana,
16 a
Maine,
la la
Maryland,
16 i<
Massachusetts
aS 1
Michigan,
26 i«
Minnesota,
14. •
Mississippi,
i«
Missouri,
3a
Nebraska,
10
Nevada,
'6
New Hampshire,
8 .
New Jersey ,tt
New York.t
18
7a a
North Carolina,
aa
Ohio,
46 a
Oregon,
6
Ptonnsylvania,
66 A
Rhode Island,
8
South Carolina,
x8
Tennessee,^
.a4: H-
Texas, .
a6 1
Vermont,
8
Virginia,
44
>^ Virginiar
13
Vnsconsin,
22
.Arizona,
a
Dakota^
a
Idaho, _
s
THE FIRST BALLOT.
Total TOte. BMm. Arthiur. Ed<iiun«a. Logan.
17 ' . . I
4 3
Sher-
man.
8
47
13
la
10
X
7
34
X
16
xo
17
10
3<
19
II
17
XI
ai
A^
n
4
13
8
8
40
- • •
a
»>^
xo
«S
t'-'
■^-.v.f.j*,;*'
V
^
t^,''
366 THE CONVENTION OF 1884. ^^a^^^
Sutes. Total vote. Blaine. Arthur. Edmunds. Lc^n. Sher-
man.
Montana, a i . . i ....
New Mexico, a . . a . . . . . .
Utah, a.. a .... <.
Washington, a a . . . . . . , .
Wyoming, a .. a .. . , , .j V"
District of Columbia, a i i .. .. ..
Totals, 820 334^ 278 93 63J4 30
* Hawley, 12 and i. f Lincoln, i and 2. J W. T. Sher-
man, 2. ,':.Vvit: '''
During the roll-call there were numerous calls
for a poll of the delegates, which necessitated the
calling by* the Secretary of the names of thd in-
dividual delegates in- the States from which these
calls proceeded. This caused great delay in bal-
loting. After the announcement of the vote by
the Secretary, the Chair said;
"A ballot for a candidate for the Presidency
having been had without securing a nomination,
according to the rules, the Convention will now
proceed to another vote. The Secretary will call
the roll."
THE SECOND BALLOT.
The Secretary called the roll of States for the
second ballot, which resulted as follows :
States. Total vote. Blaine. Arthur. Edmunds. Loiaii. Sher^
■un.
Alabama, , 30 2 17 , . ' i . .
Arkansas, 14 n 3 ..,..,.
California, 16 j6 . . . . ....
Colorado, 6 6 ■ • . • • . • • .
Connecticut,'" 12 . . , . .
Delaware, <5 S ' • • . ^ • . .
Georgia, a^sps: ,j^ ^ ^ 04 ' . . .'. ; ^ .
t
)n'*jh.\ *>'iv<'r ♦
-
THB COKYENTION OF 1884.
367
State*.
Total YOte. Blaine. Arthur. Edmunds. Logw. Sher-
nwn.
Indiana,
30
x8
9
I
•
2
Iowa,
26
26
• ■
• • •
•
* *
Kansas,*
18
'3
2
2
• •
Kentucky,t
26
S
17
2
I
Louisiana,
16
4
9
• • •
2
• •
Maine,
12
13
• •
■ •
Maryland,
16
12
4
• •
Massachusetts,
28
I
3
24
• •
Michigan,!
26
«S
4
5
• •
Minnesota,
14
7
I
6
• •
Mississippi,
18
1
17
». • 1
• •
Missouri,
3a
7
xp.
5
8
I
Nebraska,
10
8
2
• . • 1
• •
Nevada,
6
6
• •
• • 1
• •
New Hampshire
8
• •
5
3
• •
New Jersey,!
18
9
• •
6
J
NewYork,t
72
28
31
12
■ * ■'
North Carolina,
22
s 3
x8
• «
Ohio,
46
23
• •
23
Oregon,
6
6
• •
•- •'
Pennsylvania,
60
47
II
I
X
« •
Rhode Island,
8
• •
• •
8
• «
South Carolina,
x8
I
17
• ^
Tennessee,
24
7
16
I
• •'
Texas,
26
13
II
2
'• •
Vermont, .
8
• •
• • ^
8
B •
, • •
Virginia,
24
2
21
X
• •
We$t Virginia,
12
12
• •
* »
Wisconsin,
22
IX
6
5
a.
Arizona,
2
.2
• •'
• •
Dakota,
2
2
• •
•_•
District of Columbia,
2
X
X
• f
Idaho,
2
• •
2
• •
Montana,
2
X
• •
I
'-• •
New Mexico,
2
• «
2
• •
ytab.
2
• •
2
« •
Washington,
. 2
2
• •
• •
Wyoming,
?
• •
2
•
• •
Totals,
820 349 276 . 85
61
28
♦Hawley, 12 and x. f Lincoln, i, 2 and i. JW. T.
Sherman, 2.
vjf, ,
■m
'.»;•.»
i**.-^:^*^
^^ y.'T4.-j-.-.~;
jr.-- i- ....
?£j. a«t«'T -p;-^^
[if"-
K'
.>:1* '
When the annoanoemedt was made ijf the fefiuU
of the second ballot, owing to the gain shown hy
the Blaine column, there was wild cheering^ which
did not subside for several minutes. Upon the
partial subsidence of the noise, some delegates
shouted for the regular order.
The Chair — No nomination having been made,
•the Convention will now proceed to the third baU
lot, and the Secretary will call the roll of States
and Territories.
THB THIRD BALLOT.
The Secretary called the roll for'the third bal-
lot, which resulted as follows :
* Stale*. Total vott. Blaine. Arthur. Edmnnde. Logan. Bk»-
Alabama, ^ ao s 17 . • i .^^
Arkansas, 14 ti 3 , , , . .
Califofnia, 16 16 . . .......
Colorado, 6 6 . .
Connecticut,* , la .. * '^
Iitbwaie, 6 51 .. .. "*"*""
Florida, 8 i 7
GtoTfpA, 34 94 .. .. .«
IlUnois,^ 44* 3 I . . 40 .^i^
Indiana^ . 30 18 10 .. .. a
^'Ibwa,-' i6 . i6 .... - 4.«.^";, , .
Kansas,* >8 15 ^ . . ... ar
Kentucky,f a6 6 * 16 . . a i
Lotiiaiaha, 16' 4 9 :*^^Hp>
'Maine, - . la la . .- : \'^^^» . .
Maryland, 16 ta 4 .... . .
Massachusetts, a8 y 3 S4
Miclrigan,^ 96 ift 4 3 .. 1^
Ilii^MMoU, 14 7 a 5 ....
MfasiHippift 18 I 16
Miaftoon, 3a la 11 4 4 ..
:.1
?/
^'
m
H'*.
'. »t™Tv''v •■ ■'■ ■" .
^«
'"m^
ST"
ft
'^'*
B O*.'"
.•"<
3
1
1
■ «
Tiltr OONTBKttOK GT 1884^
^m
jlJjSiM*' Total yotf. BWMkArlliur. Edmund*. LofK^
Nevada, ^
New Hampshir
New Jersf y,t
New York,
North Carolina,
Ohio,
Oregon,
Pehnsylvatiia,
Rhode Island,
South Carolina,
Tennessee,
Texas,
Vermont,
Virginia,
West Virginia,
Wisconsin,!
Arizona,
Dakota,
Idaho,
A^ntana,
New Mexico,
Utah,
Washington,
Wyoming,
Dist. of Columbia,
Totals, 8ao 375 274 69 53 as
*Hawley, la and x. f Lincoln, x, x and 6. |W. Xy
Sherman, X and X.
While the roll was being called for the third
ballot the count in Kentucky and MassachusettB
was challenged, but upon dissatisfaction being ex-
pressed each of the gentlemen challenging with^
drew the challen^. When eighteen votes weie
annoaiiced for James G. Blaine from the State of
Michigan there was tremendous cheering. Wh^
Nebraska was readied.Mr. Thurston arose and said:
'tfl'XQ.
10.
• •
'-■m
6
6
• •
• • • • • . •
8
• •
5
•3 * * * *
'■y^s
18
XX
xi-
t«fo4j«ii:i:.^ ■.:•
■■■'I
72
38
3»
xa . .
'•. ?i
33
4
18
'■ ' ■■'^
46
as
• •
.... ax
6
6
• •
• • ■ • • .. • •
'■'%
60
50
8
X . X. . .
■< 1
8
• •
• •
. Z ■■rMij^:
■ "-::;1
x8
a
x6
.Cji» .'.j,f->v!^vs> ' -l*-^. '-
^ :,, .-J
34
7
17-
36
14
XX
.',• ■•■ ■ t -' '-'V'*!*..
8
• • -
• •
.;'■-■»'
• . » .
id
34
4
30
..'■its
xa
X3
• •
* * * WK^' '
■' '^*'>«
23
XX
xo
. . . • • ■i'^T^Sj^':"'
" 4'^^
3' ;
• *
jjli'.ifis
•a ^
• •
« • » 'f^^^^l
Wm
a ,
X
mi
8
• •
' ^i^^H
3
• •
3
a
• •
a
3
' .3
• •
* '^
• 3
• •
a
. • »•■•'■ • »
'$
3
X
X
. . ^ ";^^UiJj't v^
vX 4?.
r v';_^_3#:
360.
TBE bONYENnON OF 1884.
'* Mr. Cbairmah : Nebraska, with her fifty thou-
sand Republicans — **
\
Here again a profound hostility appeared to pre-
vail among the audience against further oratory,
and it was manifested in the most vociferous man-
ner. The Chairman finally succeeded in getting
order, and Mr. Thurston continued — *^ casts ten
votes for James G. Blaine," and sat down amid
tremendous noise.
While the roll was proceeding and after the
State of Nevada had been called, delegates were
seen rushing through the aisles in various direc-
tions. When North Carolina was reached there
was a great deal of uproar and the Chair said :
" The getitlemen in the aisles will please take their
seats and the Sergeant^at-Arms will please see Uiat
they do so." Aa assistant Sergeant-at-Arms rushed
around at a terrific pace insisting with vehemence
that the order applied with peculiar force and
especially to the reporters.
When the result of the third ballot was an-
nounced there was another scene of wild confiision
and cheering. When opportunity ofiered, Judge
Foraker, of Ohio, was recognized by the Chair.
Judge Foraker — I move that we take a recess
until half-past 7 o'clock this evening.
Mr. Dutcher, of New York~^I second the motion
foramsess.
On Uie question of adjournment these were many
{
THE CONVENTION OF 1884.
361
I
i
delays, occasioned by the demand from certain of
the States for a polling of the vote. The result on
the vote was yeas, 364 ; nays, 450. This an-
nouncement produced another season of wild cheer-
ing, during which Mr. Foraker, of Ohio, again arose
in his seat.
Mr. Foraker, of Ohio — I move that the rules of
this Convention be suspended, and that James G.
Blaine be nominated by acclamation. [Loud ap-
plause and great contusion.]
Mr. Roosevelt, of New York— -It cannot be done.
[Loud cries of " Boll-call, roll-call/' and continued
confusion.]
Mr. Winston, of North Carolina — I move that
we proceed with the order of business — ^proceed to
call the roll for another ballot. [Loud cries of
'^ Call the roll, call the roll," and great confusion.]
Mr. Houck, of Tennessee — I desire to inquire
how Mr. Cassel, of Tennessee, is recorded? [Con-
tinued confusion, and cries of ^' Too late, too late,^'
and " Roll-call, roll-call."]
Mr. Foraker — My motion is that the rules of
this Convention be suspended, and that James G.
Blaine be nominated by acclamation. [Loud and
long-continued cheers and great confusion.]
Mr. Roosevelt, of New York — I ask for roll-call.
Mr. Burrowsj of Michigan — I demand the regular
order and a call of the roll. [Loud cheers.]
Mr. Roosevelt, of New York— On behalf of New
York I ask for a call of the roll. [Great oonftision
-IT
.-^rJ'^-i
'> V
M':'
3d2
TBt octtnrsNTioN OF 1B84.
Mr. Burrows, of Michigan — I demand a call of
the roll and I move that we proceed to ballot.
[Continued confusion and commotion in the
hall.]
Mr. Foraker, of Ohior— In order that the time of
this Convention may be saved, at the request of
several members, I withdraw the motion I made.
The Chairman directed the Clerk to call the roll
q£ States for the fourth ballot.
THE FOUBTH BALLOT.
Tb6 Secretary called the roll of the States for
the fourth and last ballot as follows :
LV .
Ststn.
Alabama,
Arkansas,
California,
Colorado,
Connecticut,*
Delaware,
Florida,
Georgia,
Illinois,
Indiana,
Iowa,
Kansas,
kentucky,f
Lonisiana,
Maine,
Maryland,
Mitaisachusetts,
Michigan,
Minnesota.
Misstssippij
Missouri,
^bnmka,
Hevada,
Total vote. Blaino. Arthur. Edmundi. Logan! Sher-
90
«4
i6
6
la'
-6
8
a4
44
30
a6
18
36
16
12
16
38
36
M
x8
3a
IP
6
8
II
16
6
5
• •
34
30
U
18
9
9
13
15
3
36
M
3
3a
.10
6
3
I
S
a4
3
15
7
• •
I
1
x6
• • • •
18
6
• t • • • •
A-
THE OOl^yBNTION OF 1884.
363
Total vote. Blaine. Arthitr. Edmund*. Logan. . Shar*
New Hampshire,
8
3
New Jersey,
x8
n
New York,*')-
72
29
North Carolina,*
22
8
Ohio,
46
46
Oregon,
6
6
Pennsylvania,
6o
51
Rhode Island,
8
7
South Carolina,
i8
a
Tennessee,
24
II
Texas,
26
15
Vermont, .
8
• •
.Virginia,
24
4
West Virginia,
13
12
Wisconsin,
22
22
Arizona,
a
2
Dakota,
2
2
District of Columbia,
2
I
Idaho,
a
2
Montana,
2
2
New Mexico,
2
• •
Utah,
a
2
Washington,
a
2
Wyoming,
a
2
a 3
I
30 9
12
• • • • <
8 X
I
'5 .«
12
8
8
20
> • • •
• • • » *
I ." .
• • . • • 1
• • • • 4
a
• • • • -
• • • •
:: ^
> • • •
Totals, 820 541 207 41 7' ..
*Hawley, 12, 2 and x. f Lincoln, i and i.
During the ballot, when the State of Arkansas
was called, Mr. Burrows, of Michigan, arose tudd
said:
** I rise to a question of order. It is utterly im-
possible to hear a word unless order is restored.
Unless that order is restored I shall move that this
Convention adjourn to a hall by itself to finish
these proceedings.*' [Great applause, confusion
and laughter.] $
The Vote of Florida was polled on the fourth
7
ik
t'iVi' **i
36^ THE CONVENTION OF 1884.
ballot. When • the name of Joseph £. Lee, of
Florida, was called, he said : *^ The old guard dies,
but never surrenders — Chester A. Arthur." [Ap-
plause.] When Georgia was called, the chairman
of the delegation, Mr. Buck, said : ^* Before coming
into this Convention the delegation of Georgia
agreed to act as a unit. A majority of the dele-
gation are still for Chester A. Arthur, and unless a
vote is called I shall announce twenty-four votes
for Arthur.'* [Loud applause and cries of " Good !
good!"]
The Chair — Is there any contest in Georgia?
[Loud cries of " No, no."]
The Chair — Georgia then casts her twenty-four
votes for Chester A. Arthur. [Loud applause.] .
When Illinois was called the chairman of the
delegation, Mr. S. M. CuUom, said : " I ask leaVe
of this Convention to read a dispatch which I re-
ceived a few moments ago from General John A.
Logan, addressed to the Illinois delegation. [Loud
cries of "Regular order, regular order," "We
object," " Call the roll," and great confusion.]
Mr. CuUom — To the RepuHicans [loud cries of
"Order! Call the roll! Regular order!"] — I am
directed by General Logan to read it to this Con-
vention, and shall send the dispatch to the desk to
be read. {Loud cries of " No ! no ! 'V and great
confusion.]
Mr. Burrows, of Michigan—-! make the point of
order that the reading of, the dispatch is^ not ip
,vV -•
THE OONVBNTION OF 1884.
365
tfs^vtf and nothing but the announcement of the
vote is in order. [Loud applause.]
The Chair — The Chair sustains the point of
order. [Loud applause.]
Mr. Cullom — ^The Illinois delegation then with-
draws the name of General Logan, and gives for
Blaine 84 votes, for Logan 7, and for Arthur 8.
[Loud applause and loud cheers.]
When the State of Ohio was called, Judge For-
aker arose and said : ''For what I suppose to be
the best interests of this party, I presented the
name of John Sherman to this Convention. Also
supposing it to be for the best interests of the
party, we have until now favorably and most
cordially supported him. Now, also, in the in%
terests of the party, we withdraw him and cast for
James G. Blaine forty-six votes." [Tremendou
outburst of applause.]
The Secretary then announced the result of the
fourth ballot for Ihresident as follows: Whole
number of delegates, 820 ; whole number of votes
cast, 816 ; necessary to a choice, 411 ; of which
Robert T. Lincoln received 2, Johii A. Logan 7,
Joseph B. Hawley 15, George F. Edmunds 41,
Chester A. Arthur 207, and James G. Blaine 544.
The Secretary's announcement of the vote for
James G. Blaine got no further than the hundreds,
for his voice was lost in the whirlwind of ap-
plause that followed the announcement of the fact
^ Blaine's nomination, which had been a certainty
it
trl
\
360
TBI CONYIMTION OF 1884.
367
ever sinoe Shelby M. GuUom had tried to read his
telegram from John A. Logan. Every person in
the audience, delegates and visitors alike, rose to
their feet simultaneously, and all being Blaine men,
shouted and sang their delight at the success of
the man fh>m Maine with demonstrations of joy
such as had not been seen before in the Convention.
It took nearly thirty minutes to get to business.
The Chair— Gentlemen of the Convention [the
ushers making diligent efforts to restore quiet].
Order ! [At this point the b wming of the cannon
was heard, which caused rent>wed cheering. The
Convention at length becoming comparatively
quiet the Chairman resumed.] James G. Blaine,
of Maine, having received the votes of a m(\}ority
of all the delegates elected to the Convention—
[the Chairman at this point finding himself unable
to make his voice heard in the confusion that p!^
vailed handed the written announcement to the
Secretary, who read it as follows :]
James G. Blaine having received the votes of a
minority of all the delegates elected to this Con-
vention, the question now before the Convention
is, shall the nomination of Mr. Blaine be made
unanimous. [Cries of << Yes.**] On that motion
the Chrir recognilsed Mr. Burleigh, of New York.
Mr. Burleigh having taken the platform, said :
Mr. Presidentr-In behalf of the Pi^esidetot of
the United States, and at his request, I move to
'i .'■ ■
THE CONVENTION OF 188*-
„ake the nomination of Ja«e^<>»^ p^.^^^^^
TX and I P'«'XaS loyal SJ the polls, and tor
and I promise you a» "■ jnee, and vrill snow
for the ticket and &' *« ^"^^w York is a Bepub-
^„ i„ November nef *\«*^et A. Garfield and it
Sn State. » J'tJin^^^Mame. [Applanse.]
^11 elect James Or. Biau. ,
..eChair-The gentleman ^.Minne^ta has
*^rsahln. of Minnesota,having the floor, said:
;« this very ball,
Mr Chairman, «»« /TtSl Itepuhlican Con-
andL. a delegate to the f^X^^vl ^^hur and
TlTo.,l^^ oPI^XSi hfthen associated
Tthe elemen\^*jnalled, under the m^*
Since then he ^as '^"fin the first pla^e in the
trying circumstances, to mi ^ go well, so
Jt of the people of this coun^ ^^^ ^4
Tn^nounced succeBS, *^*^^!^^^^Che8teT A.
.„. — / 1 ^'tfXnrrhU, I no less
i;4har TApplause.] As a tnena , ^„ that
ttU ^verell=n,°Sa^es G._BU«ie.
■ ^;«a1^J«»i'
:; ■g^-v'.'itwTH':'i>'"'
'-■f
THE CONVENTION OP 1884.
369
before the country in November will produce that
same spontaneous enthusiasm which will make him
President of the United States on the 4th of
March next. [Loud
Cries of Curtis.]
an- prolonged applause.
Mr. Plumb, of Kansas— Mr. Chairman, this
Convention has discharged two of its most impor-
tant trusts, and is now, notwithstanding the length
of time it has been in session and the exciting
scenes through which it has passed, in thorough
good humor, and I believe we are ready to go on
and conclude the business which brought us all
here. [No, no.]
Mr. Houck, of Nebraska — ^There is a motion to
make the nomination unanimous. That is the
question before the Convention, and I call for the
regular order.
Mr. Plumb, of Kansas — Before proceeding with
that I desire to respond to the sentiment which
pervades the entire Convention. I move that this
nomination be made unanimous, and I hope there
will not be a dissenting voice in all this vast as-
semblage.
The Chair — I have been requested to read to the
Convention the following telegraphic despatch :
The President has sent the following despatch
to Mr. Blaine :
The Hon. James G. Blaine, Augusta, Maine —
As the candidate of the Republican party you will
have my earnest, cordial support. -
24
.iisay^s-^??
-«s^«****B£l*
XHB ooNVifiNTioN or 1884:.
„-0 ****' —
J.' ^ *n. make the nom-
that will Bay »y«J** ^tude clearly demonstrated
Convention do now a*^i"
SLing. The-^on^-'-^tmed until eight
The ConvenUon tuen a^j
o^clock in the evening ^^^^^^ ^ ^^U of
There was a very large » g^eidng session,
delegates as of specUto«, at^ *^^^--;,|^ ,,
The galleries r« ^r^^y't^t there w«. a -naAf
of the preceding '^^!;^^* ^^an one of ««P^e
absence of •"^^^^^/f ^U -ben the Ch««-
curiosity. It 7« ,°-^° .. „ Convention to order.
n^'s gavelfdl. c^^-|^J\J::,tes of nonunation
The resolution l*""™^ "L derk proceeded to
call the roll of S«»*es lo ^^ ^^i,,^^
Bponse was re^^ed ^f^ ^4 that it was
when Senator Plumb, of Kansas, ^^
but a matter of J""* «^t" the Cnton, that a
of the ^Wiers o^the^J« J-J,,„„,d ^ ^,^
representative ftom thew nu ^^ ^^ ^
Jthe second name on the ttc ^^ ^^
Army of the B«f ^^j^f J^who latoly w«e
>? i
T&B oomrsNTiON OF 1884.
371
k
II-
lis
lis
of
the Speaker would mention a man fitted in every
way for the first place; a man who would add
strength to the ticket, and justify the hopes and
expectations of the party. That man was General
John A. Logan. The speaker did not present him
on hehalf of Illinois, or of any other State, but of
the whole United States. He belonged no more
to Illinois than to Kansas, where 75,000 soldiers
would receive the news of his nomination with
shouts of gladness. The speaker was commis-
sioned by the State of Kansas to make this nomi-
nation.
The nomination was seconded by Judge Houck,
of Tennessee; Hon. J. M. Thurston, of Nebraska;
Senator Joseph W. Lee, of Pennsylvania; Con-
gressman Horr, of Michigan ; John 0. Dancy, col-
ored, and delegates from Georgia and Kentucky.
A motion was made to nominate Logan by ac-
clamation. This method was tried bilt did not
prove satisfactory, and, after several speeches were
made. Congressman Davis, of Illinois, demanded a
call of the roll on the nominations. This was
ordered. When New York was reached, George
William Curtis announced that his delegation was
not quite ready, and asked that time be given to
make the count. The request was granted, and
the call proceeded.
The roll being completed, New York was again
called, and Mr. Curtis announced the vote of that
State as one vote for Foraker, of Ohio; six votes
mm^^sf*^'H*!t
:ai0tt:^m
TOE coisnnBNTioN OF 1884.
^^ A «i-Ktv votes for
for areshan., of I-t-:;^^^* *« «' '
I^„. The vote was unM. ' ^^ lean's
ception of *eBe ^veuj^n Ne^^^^^ ^^^,,„
total vote being 779.
niade unanimous. . ,^,e detwled
"^ It would be impossible m tee^^^ ^^^^^.
aescription of the proceedm^ to tell^ ^^ ^^^
t«,«s e''*«s.asm that preva ^^^^ ^^ ^^^^.
Convention began until ^^^^^ ^^ ^
tlemaa who .wrote me ^^^.
The description is a most grap
« James G. Blaine j? "°!^''**^itaation, once in
■ ..Twice defeated f"' ** "^ ^f New England
1876 by the J«»'°«7Xo ^nd the South and once
and the opposition "f ^^^"^^"ijoioe of BepublioMi
to 1880 by^e ™«!?^'f ' * „ hw become at test
aates and B?P£XpuStan party. YeB^rday
the choice of Ae ^P" .;„„ V challenge the
evening leR ^»"?"?*vSTe Convention. He
position he «=«"P^* f^verwhelming P urahty.
Va» the first «l»°«'*/„^°:° of an equally over-
^^«, the .second *°>^,™ndidate could equal
whelming m^ority. . ^o »ne ^^ ^ combination
his strength on the *«* {^i'°„'n,i,er of those who
^candidates could^ual the" ^.^^^ feri^
ji^Vam^et^y o*er man within ihe
P^hese thing, were pW- 'SS.t^r^nt'^
?^:^v^/i^.
THE CONTENTION OF 1884.
373
day showed that neither could accomplish its pur-
pose. He was nominated. The steady march of
Republican desires, begun long ago in villa{^
primaries and the county caucus, had to-day its
long drawn triumph and crowning sufirage. Step
by step the work in the Convention went on.
<<The roll-call for the first ballot is over at .last.
Then clerks bend over the tally sheets, innumer-
able pencils pass up and down, and, as Henderson
rises to give the result, there is a wild sway and
raid of telegraph boys about the correspondent's
desk. All over the land men are putting up before
listening thousands the tally : Blaine, 3341 ; Ar-
thur, 278; Edmunds, 93; Logan, 63i; .John
Sherman, 30; Hawley, 13; Lincoln, 3; General
Sherman, 2. The first ballot ends in a Blaine
storm checked as the second bdlot opens.
^^ Changes begin. Arkansas adds tnree votes to
Blaine. A dozen States pass, and the vote stands
unchanged. The second ballot goes on and Blaine
is gaining. Every vote is watched with breathless
interest followed by tumults of applause. The
Blaine men feel that they are gaining ground.
The Arthur men know that they are losing. The
Edmunds men are disconsolate. The ballot ends,
*and Blaine is further to the front.
<< With Blaine at 349 and Arthur at 276, how-
ever, the gap was widened past repair between the
candidates, and it was plain when order came
again, such order as this restless mob gives, that
the next ballot must make or mar all the plans of
the past or assure all the hopes of the future.
<'In the midst of it, his lips vainly forming sen-
tence after sentence, stands Foniker) slender, well-
built, his face shining with the effort and his voice
ij»*i*^''*^
THE dONVBNWOK OF 188*'
^-. THE wr^T.
«, • « «•!« Minute by
the bare possibiUty that n^ - . ^hom five
fte opposing forces >>»y«. 1?^*, the fi«t time «
^d the battle ^-tt^for Blaine his cause has
.he frequent popular «*^e*"j».- Convention, to'
£^Pd«anWnttefo^^^^^^^
f nh^ f i^trstre* -d ^J^^^^^
fn the forefront needed. ^^". ' J. but, given
these condiUon8,.by sucn
and^onitww. .,^ Wng enacted
WhUe these stirring '^'"f J^te home in Au-
i„ Chicago, Mr. Blrine w«at his ^ ^^^ ^^
"^ Maine, ^i* ^ ["^^ ^ ^lot
THE CONTENTION OF 1884.
376
U n
Mn. Blaine and two of her daughters. Miss Stan-
wood (Mrs. Blaine's sister), Miss Dodge (''Gail
Hamilton"), Mr. and Mrs. Homan, Miss Manly
and Miss Johnson.
His demeanor of quiet composure was in nowise
disturbed from what it has been all through the
past week.
'^ I did not cfxpect a definite result so soon/' said
Mr. Blaine, addressing one of the group, '' but the
anxiety in regard to the nominaticm question is
over at least."
NOMINATED BT THE POPULAR WILL.
To Mr. Sprague, editor of his home paper, who
at this moment put in his appearance, he said :
** Well, the biggest liar in the country cannot say I
schemed, or dictated, or traded, or had anything to
do with the nomination or Convention. I have
asked no delegate to vote for me; have written
to no man, not even to Mr. Manly or Mr. John A.
Stevens, or Mr. Bigelow, or my friend Homan here.
To no one have I said one word in any way,
manner or shape that can in any way be construed
to be a bid or move towai^d this nomination."
At this instant the report of the old cannon on
the Wharf at Hallowell, said to be one that was
used on the '' Boxer" during her fight with the ** En-
terprise," gave the first boom for Blaine that was
sounded in the State of Maine.
^' Isn't this glorious ! " cried Miss Dodge to some
irr^sl
,agp8tfi«fl»)ia^«ftf*f
r^TT
rat ooHTiamoM or 1884.
''* ' .^ •,<.„«» The first oongMt*
l.di«iwboh.d J-^t*";?" "V Bl«ne «« from
U.u.ry deBp»|«b«^-d 2c^»*^, ,„ «.nt before
General ColUB, of New »
ttie final vote w» token.
aotim.9 or KWOioiNG.
. ^ hiB entire family seemed ju* <»
Mr. BlMne and !»«««»« ^,^^ ;„ the crowd
auiet and u"'*"**"**? 2^ greets around began
^f friends m«r** "liT' folks, shouting th«r
to be crowded wrth vdU^e fo ^ ^^^ ^^ ^
buzxasand P«*»8 '^.^ the children began to
happy party 0" *® la'™' /" „ jjiss Dodg<
K'^8- "^*:?r:trchWrs as they began
caught the sound o^^^f^^ ^ .hrfeks of steam
to ring, and th« ''»« f ^^^Jteamers on the nver.
thistles firom f^tone^J^ ^^ ^1^ the sevew
rSr^lS^raV^dthevo^ces
lere raised -^^^^f^^^ .bouts of joy as the
■ '^' "' """Jit Iftbe streets. The bells
throngs grew t^*^^^ ^a Gardiner, twa and
and guns from HdloweU .^ ^^^^ ^^^^ 4^.
d^ miles down the «*^^' J°\^ to make their
Newspaper co'^P^^^^^'orthe lawn, and Mr.
«ay along to the P^^y »« ^gj^j^ „f the
BlLe himself ^e^ »° j'',^ ,«.^d grew larger
t^"**"*""- * •:S^ in volume. U seemed as
and the noise iBoreaaea
THE CONVENTION OP 1884.
377
thoagh every workshop and store had emptied
itself into the streets, and everybody was excited
and jubilant.
The Democrats caught the excitement, and were
inclined to feel that the selection of an Augusta resi-
dent was at least an honor to good citizens, and they
were willing to join in the glad celebration going on.
Congratulatory despatches kept coming in as fast
as the facilities of the telegraph office could receive
them. Extra operators and a large force of mes-
sengers were put on. The local train from Gar-
diner and Hallowell brought in all that could
stand upon it. The 8 o'clock train also brought
crowds. At 8.30 a procession was formed in the
square down town. Headed by a brass band, they
marched over the city and to Mr. Blaine's house,
where they began the celebration that will be kept
up the remainder of the campaign.
When the procession reached Mr. Blaine's resi-
dence on Commercial street it halted, and the
spokesman of the party cried : " Three cheers for
the next President of the United States." A
storm of cheers followed. In response, Mr. Blaine
appeared at the doorway and surveyed the assem-
bled multitude for a moment. All demonstration
was quickly hushed, and Mr. Blaine spoke as fol-
lows :
** My friends and my neighbors — I thank you
most sincerely for the honor of this call. There
18 na spot in the world where good news comes to
■T.'"i
TBS CONVENTION OE 1884.
378 **""
tie people with -hom I haje ^^^^ ^^.^^^^^
MendBhip and «t«««^^;' ^^ ^^o know me.
-people whom ^^ ^"''L hewtinese of the corn-
Thanking you againfor the he"
pUment, I bid you fff^^ ^i^^ ^jght in the
Therewaeahap^l^benn^/^^^^^g^^^
Blaine manwon. lX)ng w ^^ ^^^^j
h.d retired, Mr- and M«. »««> ^t P^^^^^^^.,
''*«'^* *« Clrw« P-"d ««* happy, proud •
work. M». Blame was Pro jj-^j ^4
rf her noble bu.ba«d «d h« g^ ^^^^^^^
bappy becau^ the pege ^^ - ^^^, ^o lead
and called him to be their rtan ^^^^
themont«victory»t*epo^^ » ^^ ^i.
no excitement wha^v^^^- «;;„„, „,,^^^
koted, and after ta'>'«''8 ™ ji,„„ ^ he had not
to bed and '^ >" ^""^^iXi^ for the people'*
pegged through weekB of waiting
decision.
CHAPTER XVn. *
Mr. Blaine Accepts the Nomination.
Never was a presidential nomination more sponta-
neous than that which placed the banner of his great
party in the hands of the " Plumed Knight." He had
received over 7,000 letters urging him to be a candi-
date, but had not answered one. When the news
came from Chicago he received it with calm satisfac-
tion, and said he received the nomination with greater
pleasure from the fact that it was entirely unsolicited^
His friends and neighbors soon crowded about him
to extend their congratulations. The telegraph wires
were burdened with messages of good-will. The first
came from President Arthur. In any other man the
generosity and promptness of the pledge, might have
excited surprise; in Chester A. Arthur it was only
natural.
To the Hon. yames G, Blaine, Augusta^ Maine :
As the candidate of the Republican party, you will
have my earnest and cordial support.
Chester A. Arthur.
Another brought the benediction of a bereaved
home, and there came with it a voice from beyond the
grave.
(879)
-i&>MMMiMW<aiMiiBi#jBti^^^ '«•-■'* —
380
Uri OF BON. JAMIS O. BLAINI.
Cleveland, O,, June 7.
To Hon. James G, Blaine:
Our household joins in one great thanksgiving.
From the quiet of our home we send our most earnest
wish that through the turbulent months to follow, and
in the day of victory, you may be guarded and kept.
LucRETiA R. Garfield.
In Augusta the good news was hafled whh great
rejoicing by the fellow-citizens of the honored candi-
date. Bells were rung and cannon fired. Far into
the night the streets were thronged with people filling
the air with their lusty cheers for the^ " Man from
Maine."
Early in the evening a crowd gathered about Mr.
Blaine's house, and in response to the cheering, he
appeared at the door and briefly addressed them :
My Friends and my Neighbors : I thank you most
sincerely for the honor of this call. There is no spot
in the world where good news comes to me so grate-
fully as here at my own home ; among the people with
whom I have been on terms of friendship and intimacy
for more than thirty years, people whom I know and
who know me. Thanking you again for the heartiness
of the compliment, I bid you good-night
INFORMED OF HIS NOMINATION.
The committee appointed to inform Mr. Blaine of
his nomination performed that duty at Augusta, June
21. The ceremony took place on the lawn near the
house. Representatives of every State and Territory
were there. Mr. Henderson, as chairman of the
lest
land
:ept.
andi-
into
iliing
from
t Mr.
|ng, be
n:
Limost
lo spot
grate-
1e with
itimacy
)w and
irlaness
aine of
a, June
ear the
srritory
of the
(881)
u« or HON. JMOSS G. »»-"■"•
Committee and on J>«*«^ff Jeered to Mr. Blaine the
ien^osen words formajy tender ^^ p^^y
::LationoftheRepubW«y^^ ^^^^^ of the
of the United States, ^folded arms, the central
chairmanMr. Blaine ^^^J^JJJJe group. And then
figure of a brilliant and V^^'^l^ "sent honor and
Xh a becoming '«?g/''"^"i°' rfce' and with a hope-
accepting the nomination: ^^ Natiohaj.
Mr. Chairman and <^^''^^^^. deep sensibility your
Committee: 1 receive ""t.^'^^^l^ational Conven-
oS notice of *« »^- t^J^iedge through the
tion already brought w my fo„„dly than I
. puMic press. I ,»PP^*^"?^l^s implied in a nomma-
Lnexpress Aehonc^'J'^J^J^^^^^^^^^ p,rty of the
tion for the P'e^**^"'^ , Vthe authoriutive voice of
nation-speakmg A^^l* *^^^ , elected as a cand.-
duly accredited ^-'^f '^ ■ ^ from the list of emment
daw by such an "^^^^/p^sented. fills me with
statesmen whose """"^^X ^'s my gratitude for
embarrassment. ^ «" °"^^Lest desire to prove
so signal an h°»°;' *"ttT«.osed in me. .
wordiy of the great trust rep ^^ j ^m tm-
*°iri;:cepting the n^-^"^^^^^^^^ .ith a sense of
pressed. 1 might ^^«^'^'^J°Zy attach tomy posmoo.
^X^rSSSLweve^by^e-stso^
BLAINE A(X3£FTS THE NOMINATION.
383
earnest men who support my candidacy, many of
whom add — as does your honorable committee — the
cheer of personal friendship to the pledge of political
fealty, ^^^ff-
A more formal acceptance will naturally be ex-
pected, and will in due season be communicated. It
may, however, not be inappropriate at this time to say
that I have already made careful study of the principles
announced by the National Convention, and that in
the whole and in detail they have my heartiest sympa-
thy, and meet my unqualified approval. --^j^i^
Apart from your ofificial errand, gentlemen) I am
extremely happy to welcome you all to my home.
With many of you I have already shared the duties of
public service, and have enjoyed the most cordial
friendship. I trust your journey from all parts of the
great Republic has been agreeable, and that during
your stay in Maine you will feel that you are not
among strangers, but with friends. Invoking the
blessing of God upon the great cause which we jointly
represent, let us turn to the future without fear and
with manly hearts.
LETTER OF ACCEPTANCE.
Having accepted the nomination informally, Mr.
Blaine afterward forwarded to the National Republi-
can Committee the following letter in which his views
on public questions and the leading issues of the
campaign were clearly stated, and which was con-
sidered to be an admirable presentation of the great
principles of the party :
Uft Of HOK. JAHBS O. BLAlNB-
The Hon. John B. Henderson and Others
Committee, etc.. etc. ^j^^^on for the
Gentimen.-lr^ T'C the National T.epuWican
Presidencytenderedmeby the N ^^^^^ ^^ ^^,
Conv.ention, 1 beg^to expres. ^"^ ^ich is.m-
honor «hich is conferred^ oi ^ ^^^^^^ ,„
^^"^ ' accompany the accept-
ance with some obser-
vations upon the ques-
tions involved in the
contest-questions
whose settlement may
affect the future of the
Nation favorably or
unfavorably for a fong
series of years. _
In enumeratmg the
issues upon which the
i Republican party ap-
1 peals for popular sup-
, v;.- 53^22!:^^ „„rt the Convention
'—^^i^o.v... P^feUous. It has
^. been -g^l-^^XV^" ^° *^ 'T^^
properly given the l«*^'"8j: j by the tariff on im-
Eests of the «"»"y ^^^f ^^o poUtical parties are
ports. On that question Aet;^ P ^^ „j ,be Re. .
Ucally in ^^^''^^^ .f'So power in i86..^ the
tsi^orr;s5eo?p-c.—
i^^^i^^d^
BLAINF; ACCEPTS THE NOMINATION.
385
he
:jues-
the
ons
t may
3f the
ly or
a long '
ng the
ch the
•ty ap-
ir sup-
vention
It has
dustrial
'i on im-
ties are
the Re-
,wasAe
Amcr.
ican laoor and to American capital. This principle the
Republican party has ever since steadily maintained,
while on the other hand the Democratic party in Con-
gress has for fifty years persistently warred upon it.
Twice within that period our opponents have destroyed
tariffs arranged for protection, and since the close of
the Civil War, whenever they have controlled the
House of Representatives, hostile legislation has been
attempted — never more conspicuously than in their
principal measure at the late session of Congress.
TARIFF REVISION.
Revenue laws are in their very nature subject to ,
frequent revision in order that they may be adapted
to changes and modifications of trade. The Republi-,
can partyis not contending for the permanency of any
particular statute. The issue between the two parties
does not have reference to a specific law. It is far
broader and far deeper. It involves a principle of
wide application and beneficent influence, against a
theory which we believe to be unsound in conception
and inevitably hurtful in practice.
In the many tariff revisions which have been neces-
sary for the past twenty-three years, or which may
hereafter become necessary, the Republican party has
main&ined and will maintain the policy of protection
to American industry, while our opponents insist upon
a revision which practically destroys that policy. The
issue is thus distinct, well defined, and unavoidable.
The pending election may determine the fate of
protection >(6t a generation. The overthrow of the
«6 _
. . .^ -,-',> ■
>»,
,.^.,»sw,<***^^^— «*«'''^*'
UFE OF HOlf. JAMES G. BLMNE.
S^W
M+
^'' ™l
M
^'
^K
EflB^^
HMef-^MJ
tt>'
^S^*****
|s|v».
' , onpnt reduction m the
policy means -^-^^^^^^tbCr^^^^^^^^ . •
^ages of the American laborer .^^^^^^^ ^^
los! of vast -"--^^^^^^""Cva^ of the present
n^anufacturing -^^[^^'^^^^^^ of the United States is
revenue system to the pepp ^^ argument
not a matter of f eory, and I shalU^^ ^^ ^^^^^.^
to sustain it. I only uwiteatten^^ ^^^.^^ ^^^^^^
which seem to con-
stitute a demonstra-
tion.
HOW RICH IS OUR
. , 3JATI0N?
In the census of
1850, an effort was
made for the first
time in our history to
obtain a valuation of
all the property m
the United States.
The attempt was in a
-lSSJTi:^A«. large degree unsuc-
incomplete and un^«^fec^°;y^j„^,^^^
for purposes of ''^^^!f!"^"^irAe property,
from a complete exhA^t of ^l^*e p ?^^y^ ^^
In &e ceiisus of i860, however. «.
BLAINE ACCEPTS THE ' NOMINATION.
m
:he
the
in •
ent
s is
lent
acts
lord
con-
strar
of
was
first
:ory to
ion of
irty in
States,
'as in a
unsuc-
preju-
is fore-
is -were
as done
e States
i widely
ras doiiQ
with great thoroughness — the distinction between
"assessed" value and "true "value being carefully
observed. The grand result was that the "true value"
of all the property in the States and Territories (ex-
cluding slaves) amounted to fourteen thousand millions
of dollars (1^14,000,000,000). This aggregate was the
net result of the labor and the savings of all the people
within the area of the United States, from the time the
first British colonists landed in 1607, down to the year
i860. It represented the fruit of the toil of two hun-
dred and fifty years.
VAST INCREASE OF WEALTH.
After i860 the business of the country was encour-
aged and developed by a protective tariff. At the end
of twenty years, the total property of the United States,
as returned by the census of 1880, amounted to the
enormous aggregate of forty-four thousand millions of
dollars (1^44,000,000,000). This great result was at-
tained^ notwithstanding the fact that countless millions
had, in the interval, been wasted in the progress of a
bloody war. It thus appears, that while our population
between i860 and 1880 increased sixty per cent, the
aggregate property increased two hundred and four-
teen per cent., showing a vastly enhanced wealth per
capita zmong the people. Thirty thousand millions of
dollars ($30,000,000,000) had been added during these
twenty years to the permanent wealth of the Nation.
These results are regarded by the older nations of
'the world as phenomenal. That our country should
surmotint the peril and the cost of a gigantic war, and
>«■»<
ias^>^»»»K>#*^*'«*'***2*''
333 -o'--'^"""";\„;,erage
for an entire period of -^>'^^_':r^„tb. surpasses
L experience of all other nai ^^^^^^ do
party to ppwer. ^^^^ ^^^ ^^^^
• The period between ,860 and ta^day^ ^^^ ._^ ^^
one of material F^^T, has thefe been such prog-
ress to the moral and P*"»»"^' P seminaries and
S Writable insritu«onv^hool^^^^^^^
'colleges have been ^-^^^^^ time in our h^tory^
generously than at '"'V f ^^ ^^ ^as been extended to
flreater and more vanedretef^^^^^^^
human suffering, and theen««P 8 .^^^ by a
in wealth ^-f^vSTo- National character as
broadening and devaxio
a people. . -,. that our revenue system
^Our opponents ft"^ J"J J^^ould not forget that
produces a surplus. » J f J^ to which all of the
Aelawhas g^v- a sp^^f.^^^^^^^^^ ^^^"^^'TJ^
surplus is profitably ana consequent reUeJ
■ Auction of the public debt and ^^^ ^^^^
BLAINE ACCEPTS THE NOMINATION.
389
the highest forip of justice in the recognition- and
payment of a sacred debt. When reduction of taxa-
tion is to be made, the. Republican party can be
CHESTER A. ARTHUR.
■ ti
trusted to accomplish it in such a form as will most
effectively aid the industries of the Nation.
A RADICAL ERROR.
A frequent accusation by our opponents is that the
,-.»:,'-H[«»e»r^t'««i^''»«»»'»"'~*»-'-w '
390
LIFE OF HON. JAMES 6. BLAINE.
foreign commerce of the country has steadily decayed
under the influence of the protective tariff. In this way
they seek to array the importing interests against the
Republican party. It is a common and yet radical
error to confound the commerce of the country with
its carrying trade — an error often committed inno-
cently and sometimes designedly — but an error so
gross that it does not distinguish between the ship and
the cargo. Foreign commerce represents the exports
and imports of a country, regardless of the nationality
of the vessel that may carry the commodities of ex-
change. Our carrying trade has, from some obvious
causes, suffered many discouragements since i860, but
our foreign commerce has in the same period steadily
and prodigiously increased — increased, indeed, at a
rate and to an amount which absolutely dwarf all pre-
vious developments of our trade beyond the sea.
IMMENSE EXPORT TRADE. "
From i860 to the present time, the foreign com-
merce of the United States (divided with approximate
equality between exports and imports) reached the
astounding aggregate of twenty-four thousand mil-
lions of dollars ($24,000,000,000). The balance in
this. vast commerce inclined in our favor, but it would
have been much larger if our trade with the countries
of America — elsewhere referred to — had been more
wisely adjusted.
It is diflicidt even to appreciate the magnitude of
our export trade since i860, and we can gain a cQr<t
rect conception of it only by comparison with preced-
^•^1
BLAINE AGGEPTS THE NOMINATION.
391
ing results in the same field. The total exports from the
United States from the Declaration of Independence
in 1776 down to the day of Lincoln's election in i860,
added to all that had previously been exported from
the American colonies from their original settlement,
amounted to less than nine thousand millions of
dollars ($9,000,000,000). On the other hand, our .
exports from i860 to the close of the last fiscal
year exceeded twelve thousand millions of dollars
($12,000,000,000) — the whole of it being the product
of American labor. Evidently a protective tariff has
not injured our export trade, when, under its influence,
we exported in twenty-four years 40 per cent, more .
than the total amount that had been exported in the
entire previous history of American commerce. All
the details when analyzed, correspond with this gigan^
tic result.
THE FARMER LEADS.
The commercial cities of the Union never had such
growth as they have enjoyed since i860. Our chief
emporium, the city of New York, with its dependen-
cies, has, within that period, doubled her population
and increased her wealth fivefold. During the same
period, the imports and exports which have entered
and l^ft her harbor are more than double, in bulk ai.d
value, the whole amount imported and exported by
her between the settlement of the first Dutch colony
on the Island of Manhattan and the outbreak of the
Civil War in i860.
The agricultural interest is by far the largest in the
'I', 9 •.-
■~i
..'5«":**i*riS..»>» TOiWwwr***,
392
LIFE OF HON. JAMES O. BLAINE.
Nation, and is entitled, in every adjustment of revenue
laws, to the first consideration. Any policy hostile to^
the fullest development of agriculture in the United
States must be abandoned. Realizing this fact, the
opponents of the present system v of revenue have
labored very earnestly to persuade the farmers of the
United States that they are robbed by a protective
tariff, and the effort is thus made to consolidate their
vast influence in favor of free trade. But, happily,
the farmers of America are intelligent, and cannot be
misled by sophistry when conclusive facts are before
them. They see plainly that, during the past twenty-
four years, wealth has not been acquired in one sec-
tion or by one interest at the expense of another sec-
tion or another interest They see that the agricul-
tural States have made even more rapid progress
than the manufacturing States.
AGRICULTURE PAYS.
The farmers see that in i860 Massachusetts and
Illinois had about the same wealth — between $800,-
c)oo,ocx> and j900,ooo,cxx) each — and that in 1880
Massachusetts had advanced to $2,600,000,000, while
Illinois had advanced to $3,200,000,000. They see
that New Jersey and Iowa were just equal in popula-
tion in i860, and that in twenty years the wealth of
New Jersey was increased by the sum of $850,000,000,
while the wealth of Iowa was increased by the sum of
$1,500,000,000. ' '
^JThey see that the nine leading agricultural States
pf the West had grown so rapidly i.i prosperity that
BLAINE ACCEPTS THE NOMINATION.
393
e
o-
the aggregate addition to their wealth since i860 is
almost as great as the weahh of the entire country in
that year. They see that the South, which is almost
exclusively agricultural, has shared in the general
prosperity, and that, having recovered from the loss
and devastation of war, it has gained so rapidly that
its total wealth is at least the double of that which it
possessed in i860, exclusive of slaves.
THE GREAT HOME MARKET.
In these extraordinary developments the farmers
see the helpful impulse of a home market, and they
see that the financial and revenue system, enacted
since the Republican party came into power, has es-
tablished and constantly expanded the home market.
They see that even in the case of wheat, which is our
chief cereal export, they have sold, in the average of
the years since the close of the war, three bushels at
home to one they have sold abroad, and that in the
case of corn, the only other cereal which we export to
any extent, one hundred bushels have been used at
home to three and a half bushels exported.
In some years the disparity has been so great that
for every peck of corn exported one hundred bushels
have been consumed in the home market. The far-
mers see that, in the increasing competition from the
grain fields of Russia and from the distant plains of
India, the growth of the home market becomes daily
of greater concern to them, and that its impairment
would depreciate the value of every acre of tillable
land in the Union,
394
LIFE OF HON. JAMES O. BLAINE.
k:-
INTERNAL FREE TRADE.
^ Such facts as these, touching the growth and con-
sumption of cereaU at home, give us some slight con-
ception of the vastness- of the internal commerce
of the United States. They suggest also, that in ad-
dition to the advantages which the American people
enjoy from protection against foreign competition, they
enjoy the advantages of absolute free trade over a
larger area and with a greater population than any.
other nation. The internal commerce of our thirty-
eight States and nine Territories is carried on without
let or hindrance, without tax, detention, or govern-
mental interference of any kind whatever. It spreads
freely over an area of three and a half million square
miles — almost equal in extent to the whole continent
of Europe. Its profits are enjoyed to-day by 56,cxx),-
ocx> of American freemen and from this enjoyment no
monopoly is created..
DOMESTIC COMMERCE.
According to Alexander Hamilton, when he 'dis-
cussed the same subject in 1 790, " the internal compe-
tition which takes place, does away with everything
like monopoly, and by degrees reduces the prices of
articles to the minimum of a reasonable profit on the
capital employed." It is impossible to point to a single
monopoly in the United States that has been created
or fostered by the industrial system which is upheld by
the Republican party.
Compared with our foreign commerce, these do-
mestic exchanges are inconceivably great in amount-^
%;...;
\/-^..
BLAINE ACCEPTS THE NOMINATION.
396
requiring merely as one instrumentality as large a
mileage of railway as exists to-day in all the other
nations of the world combined. These internal ex-
changes are estimated by the Statistical Bureau of the
Treasury Department to be annually twenty times as
great in amount as our foreign commerce. It is into
this vast field of home trade — at once the creation and
the heritage of the American people — that foreign
nations are striving by every device to enter. It is
into this field that the opponents of our present rev-
enue system would freely admit the countries of
Europe — countries into whose internal trade we could
not reciprocally enter, countries to which we should
be surrendering every advantage of trade ; from which
we should be gaining nothing in return.
LABOR AND CAPITAL.
A policy of this kind would be disastrous to the
mechanics and workingmen of the United States.
Wages are unjustly reduced when an industrious man
is not able by his earnings to live in comfort, educate
his children, and lay by a sufficient amount for the ne-
cessities of age. The reduction of wages inevitably
consequent upon throwing our home market open to
the world would deprive them of the power to do this.
It would prove a great calamity to our country. It
would produce a conflict between the poor and the
rich, and in the sorrowful degradation of labor would
plant the seeds of public danger.
The Republican party has steadily aimed to main-
tain just relations between labor and capital, guarding
3S6
UFE OF HON. JAMES G« BLAINE.
with care the rights of each. A conflict between the
two has always led in the past and will always lead in
the future to the injury of both. Labor is indispen-
sable to the creation and profitable use of capital, and
capital increases the efificiency and value of labor.
Whoever arrays the one against the other is an enemy
of both. That policy is wisest and best which har-
monizes the two on the basis of absolute justice. The
Republican party has protected the free labor of
America so that its compensation is larger than is real-
ized in any other country. It has guarded our people
against the unfair competition of contract labor from
China, and may be called upon to prohibit the growth
of a similar evil from Europe. It is obviously unfair
to permit capitalists to make contracts for cheap labor
In foreign countries to the hurt and disparagement of
the labor of American citizens. Such a policy (like that
which would leave the time and other conditions of home
labor exclusively in the control of the employer) is
injurious to all parties — not the least so to the unhappy
persons who are made the subjects of the contract.
AN INTELLIGENT AND VIRTUOUS PEOPLE.
The institutions of the United States rest upon the
intelligence and virtue of all the people. . Suffrage is
made universal as a just weapon of self-protection to
every citizen. It is not the interest of the Republic
that any economic system should be adopted which
involves the reduction of wages to the hard standard
prevailing elsewhere. The Republican party aims to
elevate and dignify Iabc*r — not to degrade it.
*
iftsl
BLAINE ACCEPTS THE NOMINATION.
397
I the
in
As a substitute for the industrial system which,
under Republican administration, has developed such
extraordinary prosperity^ our opponents offer a policy
which is but a series of experiments upon our system
of revenue — a policy whose end must be harm to our
manufactures and greater haVm to our labor. Experi-
ment in the industrial and financial system is the
country's greatest dread, as stability is its greatest
boon. Even the uncertainty resulting from the recent
tariff agitation in Congress has hurtfully affected the
business of the entire country.
Who can measure the harm to our shops and our
homes, to our farms and our commerce, if the uncer-
tainty of perpetual tariff agitation is to be inflicted
upon the country ? We are in the midst of an abun-
dant harvest ; we are on the eve of a revival of general
prosperity. Nothing stands in our way but the dread
of a change in the industrial system which has wrought
such wonders m the last twenty years, and which, with
the power of increased capital, will work still -greater
marvels of prosperity in the twenty years to come.
OUR FOREIGN RELATIONS.
Our foreign relations favor our domestic develop-
ment. We are at peace with the world — at peace upon
a so'und basis, with no unsettled questions of sufficient
magnitude to embarrass or distract us. Happily re-
moved by our geographical position from participation
or interest in those questions of dynasty or boundary
which so frequently disturb the peace of Europe, we
are left to cultivate friendly relations with all, and are
.'"^
■N'i
■.>.v-:,
ll
898 UFK OFHOK. JAMES O. BtAIS.. ^
,.e .o. possible ^^^^^^^tJ^lf-
any. The United States has n ^^^ ^^
to attack the United Sta^^'^^^^^.n Hemisphere «e
With the nations "^ "^^ •• .„a for our common
• should cultivate closer ^f """J'^^^ia i„vite them all
prosperity and '^^^^-^'X:::^^ for the future.
to join with us m =^n f ^'^^"^^^h or South America
,U international troubles m Norm. ^^^
shall be adjusted by '"'I^^^'^^^^^i.e fixed policy of
arms. This project ''-^£ ° „„, ^^d it should^
President Garfield's ^^■"'««^°^;,,pj;,i,,„e„t^^
„y3udgment.be renewed It^^^ ^^^^
continent would fe^°«'''y contribute at nr d.sUnt
t :r;hfurrs^n-p-« of *« ^^^'^"^
- SchSiaTprincipleofarbitrafo.^
The effect even of suggestrng J for P^ .^_
American Stat- ^^^ ''-^.r^eS^^^^^ our friendly
creased the confidence of *°^^ Pg ^^^t^^y of State, in
disposition. It fett to -^ '"'J^f^ ^ the Republic of
lune, .881. to qmet ''PP'^^^"'^ ^^ official despateh.
- i^exlco by giving tbe assu«nce m^^ .^ ^^ ^^^^
that-there ^^ "°\*^J2ri.uthoftheRioGr,nd^
StatesforterritonaUxtens.0^^^^^^^ ^^^^ b-
The boundaries of the ^^ "^ P^ jurisdictional mter-
■'•j.-v' ^. . •
BLAINE ACCEPTS THE NOMINATION.
399
■^^1
Ire
^e
res
conventional. It is more. It separates a Spanish-
American people from a Saxon- American people. It
divides one great nation from another -with distinct
and natural finality." ,
We seek the conquests of peace. We desire to
extend our commerce, and in an especial degree with
our friends and neighbors on this continent. We have
not imprcv. 1 cur relations with Spanish-America as
wisely anr sistently as we might have done. For
more than a ^^t^neration the sympathy of those coun-
tries has been allowed to drift away from us.
We should now make every effort to
fnendship.__jOui:--tfade-'ivilh~tE^^ large.
During the last year our exchanges in the Western
Hemisphere amounted to j&35o,ooo,ocx>-- nearly one- •
fourth of our entire foreign commerce. To those who
may be disposed to underrate the value of our trade
with the countries of North and South America, it may
be well to state that their population is nearly or quite
50,000,000, and that, in proportion to aggregate num-
bers, we import nearly double as much from them as
we do from Europe.
UNSATISFACTORY TRADE.
But the result of the whole American trade is in a
high degree unsatisfactory. The imports during the
past year exceeded $225,000,000, while the exports
were less than $125,000,000 — showing a balance
against us of more than $100,000,000. But the money
does not go to Spanish-America. We send large sums
to Europe in coin or its equivalent to pay European
.■T.-1
"'^■^'i^ ^*!?«iSSa
400
LIFE OF HON.* JAMES O. BLAINE.
I
manufacturers for the goods which they send to Span-
ish America. We are but paymasters for this enor-
mous amount annually to European factors — an
amount which is a serious draft, in every financial
depression, upon <^ Mr rf'^^'irm nf nprrir
Cannot this condition of trade in great part be
changed ? Cannot the market for our products be
greatly enlarged? We have made a beginning in
our eiifort to improve our trade relations with Mexico,
and we should not be content until similar and mutually
advantageous arrangements have been successively
made with every nation of North and South America.
While the great Powers of Europe are steadily en-
larging their colonial domination in Asia and Africa,
it is the especial province of this country to improve
and expand its trade with the nations of America.
No field promises so much. No field has been culti-
vated so little. Our foreign policy should be an
American policy in its broadest and most compre-
hensive sense — a policy of peace, of friendship, of
commercial enlargement.
A PATRIOTIC NAME.
The name of America, which belongs to us in our
National capacity, must always exalt the just pride of
patriotism. Citizenship of the Republic must be the'
panoply and safeguard of him who wears it. The
American citizen, rich Or poor, native or naturalized,
white or colored, must everywhere walk secure in
his personal and civil rights. The Republic should
never accept a lesser duty, it can neve/ assume a
i*x ;.;. -Aft* . V
BLAINE ACCEPTS THE NOMINATION.
401
Ir-
m
lal
nobler one, than the protection of the humblest man
who owes it loyaUy— protection at home, and protec-
tion which shall follow him abroad into whateve
land he may go uj
recognize, not without regret, <^he necessity for
speaking of two sections of our common country. But
the regret diminishes when I see that the elements
which separated them are fast disappearing. Pre-
judices have yielded and are yielding, while a growing
cordiality warms the Southern and the Northern heart
alike. Can any one doubt that between the sections
confidence and esteem are to-day more marked than
at any period in the sixty years preceding the election
of President Lincoln ? This is the result in part of
time, and irt part of Republican principles applied
under the favorable condition of uniformity.
PEACE AND PROSPERITY.
It would be a great calamity to change these influ-
ences under which Southern Commonwealths are
learning to vindicate civil rights, and adapting them-
selves to the conditions of political tranquillity and
industrial progress. If there be occasional and
violent^putbreaks in the South against this peaceful
progress, the public opinion of the country regards
them as exceptional, and hopefully trusts that each
will prove the last.
The South needs capital and occupation, not con-
troversy. As much as any part of the North, the
South needs the full protection of the revenue laws
which the Republican party ofifers. Some of the
2«
■^3
i-
Jti ^
402 u« OF HON: iA«8 U. BLAU...
southed Sutes Have^-^C^^tr^- ^^^
that grow out of *e m^mo'.es o^ .^ ^^^ ^^^^
monthe Northern S«tes'°Xir inspiration in the
of thatNationaVjty whKhjas the.^^ J^ ^j^^^ld
civil struggle. And ^^^^ ^development wiU be
be united in a common 'nd"^^'^*;^ fc party shows
^ted in hurtful strife. Th« De"^^ ^IwaVs invoking
Uself a foe to Southern po^«njy.^^.„„ ^^^^
and urging Sp«thern poUt^'^ ^^^^,^ ;„ the
policy quenches f "-"^^"^ ^^I^ives and stimulates
Urtof the Southern you^^^^ ^^ barbaric venge-
Sl^^e^^tSTace. Progress and harmony.
CIVIL SERVICE KEFO^M ^^^ ^j ^^
The general <='--^^;„°ldS„Srations. has been
United States, under »" ^^"^ the collection
honorable. In the one ^upreme^^ ^^ ^^^j.^
and disbursement of '?7";7* Nation. With the
hL never been -rp-sed - ^^V N ^^^ ^^.,
almost fabulous -'»^J„'"*:: integrity was the pre-
during the late «ar. ^""P"'° t Aat trying penod
of battle.
ft •
.•■;>-; 1
BLAINE ACCEPTS THE NOMINATION.
403
I'^a.-;
The growth of the country has continually and ne-
cessarily enlarged the Civil Service, until now it in-
cludes a vast body of officers. Rules and methods of
appointment which prevailed when the number was
smaller, have been found insufficient and impracticable,
and earnest efforts have been made to separate the
great mass of ministerial officers from partisan influ-
ence and personal control. Impartiality in the mode
of appointment to be based on qualification, and
security of tenure to be based on faithful discharge of
duty, are the two ends to be accomplished. The pub-
lic business will be aided by separating the legislative
branch of the government from all control of appoint-
ments, and the Executive Department will be relieved
by subjecting appointments to fixed rules, and ^ thus
removing them from the caprice of favoritism. But
there should be right observance of the law which
gives, in all cases of equal competency, the preference
to the soldiers who risked their lives in defence of
the Union.
REMOVALS FROM OFFICE.
i entered Congress in 1863, and in a somewhat pro-
longed service I never found it expedient to request
or recommend the removal of a civil officer, except in
four instances, and then for non-political reasons which
were instantly conclusive with the appointing power.
The officers in the district, appointed by Mr. Lincoln
in i86rupon the recommendation of my predecessor,
served, as a rule, until death or resignation. I adopted
at the beginning of niy service the test of competitive
. jf'
' ^'T»-
w:' *
404
LIFE OF HON. JAMES 0. EiLAINE.
examination for appointments to West Point, and
maintained it so long as I had the right by law to
nominate a cadet. In the case of many officers I found
that the present law, which arbitrarily limits the term
of the commission, offered a constant temptation to
changes for mere political reasons. I. have publicly
expressed the belief that the essential modification of
that law would be in many respects advantageous.
** COMMERCIAL SENTINELS."
My observation in the Department of State con-
firmed the conclusion of my legislative experience,
and impressed me with the conviction that the rule of
impartial appointment might with advantage be car-
ried beyond any existing provision of the civil service
law. It should be applied to appointments in the con-
sular service. Consuls should be commercial senti-
nels-encircling the globe with watchfulness for their
country's interests. Their intelligence and compe-
tency become, therefore, matters of great public con-
cern. No man should be appointed to an American
consulate who is not well instructed in the history and
resources of his own country, and in the requirements
and language of commerce in the country to which he
is sent The same rule should be applied even more
rigidly to secretaries of legation in our diplomatic ser-
vice. The people have the right to the most efficient
agents in the discharge of public business, and the ap-
pointing power should regard this as the prior sind
ulterior consideration. . s y^
Religious liberty is the right of evf^r^ citizen of the
■•'.;!.•■".■
BLAINE ACCEPTS TQE NOMINATION.
405
J to
nd
Irm
to
fcly
of
Republic. Congress is forbidden by the Constitution
to make any law ** respecting the establishment of
religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof."
For a century, under this guarantee. Protestant and
Catholic,. Jew and Gentile, have worshiped God ac-
cording to the dictates of conscience. But religious
liberty must not be perverted to the justification of
offences against the law.
TREASONABLE POLYGAMY.
A religious sect, strongly entrenched in one of the
Territories of the Union, and spreading rapidly into
four other Territories, claims the ri^*ht to destroy the
great safeguard and muniment of social order, and to
practise as a religious privilege that which is a crime
punished with severe penalty in every State of the
Union. The sacredness and unity of the family must
be preserved as the foundation of all civil govern-
ment, as the source of orderly administration, as the
surest guarantee of moral purity.
The claim of the Mormons that they are divinely
authorized to practise polygamy should no more be
admitted than the claim of certain heathen tribes, if
they should come among us, to continue the right of
human sacrifice. The law does not interfere with
what a man .believes; it takes cognizance only of
what he does. As citizens, the Mormons are entitled
to the same civil rights as others, and to these they
must be confined. Polygamy can never receive
National sanction or toleration by admitting the com*
rhiinity that upholds it as a State in the Union, Like
: j^
v-im' ^m^fV v;i1*^T'
406
LIFE OF HON. JAMES O. BLAINE.
Others, the Mormons must learn that the liberty of the
individual ceases where the rights of society begin.
'Hie people of the United States, though often
urged and tempted, have never seriously contemplated
the recognition of any other money than gold and
silver— and currency directly convertible into them.
They have not done so, they will not do so, under any
necessity less pressing than that of desperate war.
The one special requisite for the completion of our
monetary system is the fixing of the relative values of
silver and gold.
THE SILVER QUESTION.
The large use of silver as the money of account
among Asiatic nations, taken in connection with
the increasing commerce of the world, gives the
weightiest reasons for an international agreement in
the premises. Our Government should not cease to
urge this measure until a common standard of value
shall be reached and established — a standard that
shall enable the United States to use the silver from
its mines as an auxiliary to gold in settling the
balances of commercial exchange.
The strengrth of the Republic is increased by the
multiplication of land-holders. Our laws should look
to the judicuios encouragement of actual settlers on
the public domain, which should henceforth be held as
a sacred trust for the benefit of those seeking homes.
The tendency to consolidate large tracts of land in
the ownership of individuals or corporations should^
yfyk proper regard to vested rights, be idiscqumgedf
BLAINE ACCEPTS THE NOMINATION.
407
"^A
One hundred thousand acres of land in the hands
of one man is far less profitable to the Nation in
every way than when its ownership is divided among
one thousand men. The evil of permitting large
tracts of the National domain to be consolidated and
controlled by the few against the many, is enhanced
when the persons controlling it are aliens.
DISPOSITION OF -PUBLIC LANDS.
It is but fair that the public land should be disposed
of only to actual settlers, and to those who are
citizens of the Republic, or willing to become so.
Among our National interests, one languishes — the
foreign carrying trade. It was very seriously crippled
in our Civil War, and another blow was given to it jn
the general substitution of steam for sail in ocean
traffic. With a frontage on the two great oceans,
with a freightage larger than that of any other nation,
we have every inducement to restore our navigation.
Yet the Government has hitherto refused its help. A
small share of the encouragement given by the
Government to railways and to manufactures, and a
small share of the capital and the zeal given by our
citizens to those enterprises, would have carried our
ships to every sea and to every port. A law just en-
acted removes some of the burdens upon our naviga-
tion, 'and inspires hope that this great interest may at
last receive its due share of attention. All efforts in
this direction should receive encouragement.
This survey of our condition as a Nation reminds
us that material prosperity is but a mockery if it does
-'" )l
•'A
- -^"ifeiL
J^ '^
*<> ' .
408
UFE OF HON. JAMES Q. BLAINE.
not tend to preserve the liberty of the people. A free
ballot is the safeguard of Republican institutions, with-
out which no national welfare is assured. 'A popular
election, honestly conducted, embodies the very ma-
jesty of true government. Ten millions of voters
desire to take part in the pending contest' The
safety of the Republic rests upon the integrity of the
ballot, upon the security of suffrage to the citizens.
To deposit a fraudulent vote is no worse a crime
against constitutional liberty than to obstruct the de-
posit of an honest vote. He who corrupts suffrage
strikes at the very root of free government. He is
the arch-enemy of the Republic. He forgets that in
trampling upon the rights of others he fatally imperils
his own rights. " It is a good land which the Lord
our God doth givQ us," but we can maintain our heri-
tage only by guarding with vigilance the source of
popular power. I am, with great respect, your obedi-
ent servant, James G. Blaine.
•a
: i ' J- '
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CHAPTER XVIII.
The Great Campaign of 1884.
The political battle whith followed Mr. Blaine's
nomination for the Presidency at Chicago has never
been surpassed in this country for unscrupulous
means employed to defeat a popular candidate. The
bitterest assaults were made upon him, the most out-
rageous falsehoods were circulated by his enemies,
and, as the time for the election drew near, it was
universally felt that the result was invoh ' in grave
doubt.
A very large number of Republicans, headed by
several newspapers which had al ^viiys heretofore fol-
lowed the party dictates, bolted the nominations and
actively supported Mr. Cleveland, the Democratic
candidate.
All sorts of extraneous matters were dragged into
the party warfare, some of the assaults on the Repub-
lican nominee being of a particularly aggravating
character. Most of these were allowed to pass by
unnoticed, but one of them was of such a nature that
Mr. Blaine brought a suit for libel against a newsf
paper in Indiana. After ^ year or two this ca^e w^9
discontinued,
^J
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'i-^^y-^^s^i't^vitf'^
410
LIFE OF HON. JAMES G. BLAINE.
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Feeling most acutely the hazardous situation in
which he was placed, Blaine went into the canvass
with even more than his ordinary energry. He trav-
elled over Ohio, Indiana, New York, and some other
States, addressing large meetings and giving counsel
to his party leaders. In his speeches he made the
doctrine of protection the main issue, thus for the first
time in more than a third of a century bringing it to
the foremost placq in a Presidential campaign.
GREETED WITH ENTHUSIASM.
Immense crowds at all points assembled to get a
sight of the " Plumed Knight ' ' and hear his^ soul-stir-
ring speeches. In public hails, in the open air, from
the steps of his railway train, his clarion voice thrilled
the multitudes and aroused them to unwonted enthu-
siasm. His tour was a triumphal progress. Ever
ready to. discuss the issues of the hour, quick in his
p'erceptions of the exigencies of the occasion, rising
always in princely fashion to the demands of the
moment, he pushed on his vigorous campaign, and
infused life and courage into the great party whose
standard had been placed in his hands.
The contest was drawing to a close, and a large
number of prominent citizens of the city of New York
felt that it would be a just tribute to Mr. Blaine's
devoted labors in the contest to offer him a public
banquet. The invitation was sent, and he replied
from Evansville, appointing Wednesday eveningf^
October 29th, as the date most convenient to htm.
The company that gathered on that occasion waa
'■*" ^
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<'.'.
1^&SLa^£ A
THE CAMPAIGN OF 1884.
411
one 'of the most distinguished ever assembled in the
Metropolis. Hon. William M. Evarts presided, Mr.
Blaine sitting at his right hand, and Hon. L. P. Mor-
ton, United States Minister to France, at his left.
Other guests at this table were Noah Davis, Presiding
Justice of the Supreme Court of New York ; ex-Gov-
ernor Cornell, of New
York ; Governor Hoyt,
of Pennsylvania; Cyrus
W. Field, the construc-
tor of the Atlantic ca-
ble; and Charles £.
Coon, Assistant Secre-
tary- of the Treasury.
At the other tables
were many of the most
eminent and respected
men of New York City,
representing all the
learned professions and
all branches of trade
and industry. Various
addresses were made, william m. evarts.
but the chief interest of the evening centred upon that
of Mr. Blaine himself, which was as follows :
SPEECH AT THE BANQUET.
It is a great reversal of positions, Mr. President
(addressing Mn Evarts), that makes me hear you
ascril^e leadership to me. (Applause.) For it has
been iifiy duty and my pleasure in these long years to
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412
LIFE OF HON. JAMES G. BLAINE.
Wk
follow you (applause and cheers) ; to learn from you
wisdom in public affairs, and join with my countrymen
in ascribing to you, not merely the g^eat merit of
leadership in the noblest of professions, but to yield
Ovtr admiration for the singular success which has
given to you the opportunity to lead in the three most
important cases ever pleaded by a member of the
American bar. (Applause.) First, in resisting your
own party in what you deemed the impolicy, if not
the madness, of impeaching a President (cries of
'" Good ! Good I" and cheers) ; second, in maintaining-
before the greatest international tribunal that has ever
assembled in modern times the rights of your country
and obtaining redress for wrongs to her that grew out
of the Civil War (applause) ; and third, in perhaps
averting another civil war by pleading before an Elec-
toral Commission a peaceful settlement of the angriest
political discussion that ever arose between the parties
in the United States. (Applause and cheers.)
I turn now from your President to thank you, mer-
chants, professional men, leaders in the great and
complex society of New York — ^to thank you for
receiving me, not merely at this festal board, but also
in that far more impressive reception which the close
of this rainy day witnesses in your broad and beauti-
ful avenue. I could not, I am sure, by any possible
stretch of vanity take this large and generous demon-
stration to myself. It is given to me only for the time
as the representative of the principles which you and
I hole} in common, toyching those great interests which
i
r
THE CAMPAIGN OF 1884.
413
i '
underlie, as we belreve, the prosperity of the Nation.
(Applause.) And it is fitting that the commercial
metropolis of the continent should lead; it is fitting
that the financial centre of the continent should lead ;
it is fitting that this great city, second only in the
world, should give an expression to the continent of;
its views and its judgment on the important questions
to be decided Tuesday next by the American people.
(Cheers.) .:
And I venture— not that I know it so well as you,
but that I am spokesman for the present — I venture
to remind you, men of New York, with your wealth
and your just influence and your magnificent prestige,
that seventy per cent, of the entire property of this
city has been acquired since Abraham Lincoln was
inaugurated, the 4th of March, i86t. I should not
mention here a fact of percentage and of statistics if
it did not carry with it an argument and a moral.
The common apprehension in regard to New York is
that it is simply a great commercial city — so great
that its exports and imports represent largely^ the
major part of all that is exported from or imported
into the United States. That we all know.
But we are often prone to forget that New York is
the largest manufacturing city in the world, with per-
haps a single exception ; that of the $6,cxdo,cxx>,cxx> of
manufactures annually produced in the United States,
this great Empire State furnishes one-fifth — ^|^i,2po^-
cxx),ooo — of which this great Empire City produces
$500,cx)o,ooo. And from these facts comes that great
■i^r
414
Lift OP HON. JAMES G. BLAINE.
sympathy, that identity of interest which has moved
the previously existing conflicts between what have
been known as the manufacturing and the commercial
interests, and has taught us that there can be no true
prosperity in the country unless the three great inter-
ests comprehended by agriculture, manufactures, and
commerce are acting in harmony, the one with the
other, and joining together for a common end and for
the common good. (Cheers.)
It is usually thought that a change of Government
means'but little ; that we come together with our votes
a given day and count them as the sun goes down,
and one party goes out and another comes in. But,
gentlemen, it is worth while to remember that the
United States is proceeding to-day upon a given basis
of public policy — I might say upon a given series of
public policies. We have a great financial system;
we have a great currency system ; we have an impor-
tant National credit ; we have a levying of duties, as
has been so well described by your distinguish '•' ;
President of the evening, so adjusted that the indus-
tries of the country are fostered and encouraged
thereby; we have three important constitutional,
amendments that grew out of the war, upon which>
at this hour and in the hours, and the days, and* the
weeks, and the years to follow, great issues hang in
this country.
Are we — if we should be invited to step down and
out and our opponents to step up and in (applause)
— ^are we to understand that these policies are to be
•; •
"**,s^lj
THE CAMPAIGN OF 1884.
415
reversed ? (Cries of" Yes ! Yes I ") Then if we are -
to understand that they are to be reversed we should,
one and all, prepare for a grand disaster. (" Hear !
Hear ! " and cheers.) For a single illustration, let me ,
recall to your minds that the repeal often lines in the
, National Banking Act would restore to vitality and
vigor the old State-bank system from which we had
happily escaped, as we thought, for all the remainder
of our lives. (Applause.)
If these policies are to be reversed, you will have
to recast your accounts and review your ledgers and
prepare for a new, and I may say, a dangerous depar-
ture ; and if these policies are not to be reversed, they
will certainly be better maintained by the great party
which originated them and has thus far sustained them
with vigor and success. (Applause.)
As I have already said, we speak of New York as
. the great exporting and importing city, and from
that perhaps we often give an exaggerated importance,
relatively speaking, to our foreign trade, because this
magnificent metropolis never would have attained- its
grandeur and its wealth upon the foreign trade alone. ,
We should never forget, important as that trade is,
representing the enormous sum of $i,5oo,ooo,ocx> an-
nually, that it sinks into insignificance and is dwarfed .
t)ut of sight when we think of those vast domestic
exchanges pf which New York is the admitted centre
and which annually exceed $2,cxx),ooo,ooo. (Applause.)
"Our foreign trade naturally brings to our cohsidera^ ;
tion the foreign relations of this country, so well de^
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416
LIFE OF BOK. JAMES 6. BLAINE.
if-
scribed by my distinguished friend as always simple
and sincere. It is the safeguard of Republics th^t ^
they are not adapted to war. (Cheers.) I mean gg- '
gressive war. (Cheers.) And it is the safeguard of
this Republic that in a defensive war we can defy the
world. (Loud cheering.) This Nation to-day is in
profound peace with the world. (Cheers.) But, in
my judgment, it has before it a great duty which will
not only make that profound peace permanent, but'
shall set such an example as will absolutely abolish^
war on this continent, and by a great example and a'-
lofty moral precedent shall ultimately abolish it in
other continents. (Great and long-continued cheering.) '
I am justified in saying that every one of the seven-
teen independent Powers of North and South Americat^
is not only willing but ready — is not only ready but
eager — to enter into a solemn compact in a congresi'
that may be called in the name of peace to ^gree that'
if, unhappily, differences shall arise — as differenced'
will arise between men and nations — they shall b^
settled upon the peaceful and Christian basis of arbi-'
tration. (Great cheering.) '
And, as I have often said before, I am glad to-
repeat in this great centre of civilization and powet*
that in my judgment no National spectacle, no inteir-
,national spectacle, no continental spectacle, could be
more grand than that tfce Republics oC the Western
World should meet together and solemnly agree that
neither the soil of North nor that of South America
THE CAMPAIGN OF 1884.
417
m
shall be hereafter stained by brothers* blood. (Pro-
longed cheering.)
The Republican party, gentlemeh, cannot be said
to be on trial. (Cheers.) To be on trial implies
something to be tried for. ('• Right ! " " Thafs so ! "
and cheers.) The Republican party in its twenty-
three years of rulership has advanced the interests of
this country far beyond that of any of its predecessors
in power. It has elevated the standard of America —
it has increased its wealth in a ratio never before
realized, and, I may add, never before dreamed of.
(Great cheering.)
Statistics, I know, are dry; and I have dwelt so
much upon them in the last six weeks that they might
be supposed to be especially dry to me. And yet I
never can forget the eloquence of the figures which
tell us that the wealth of this great Empire State when
the Republican party took the reins of government
was estimated at $i,8oo,ooo,ocx^, and that twenty
years afterward, under the influence of an industrial
and financial system for which that party is proudly
responsible (great applause), under the influence of
that industrial and financial system, the same tests
which gave you $i,8cx),ooo,ooo of property in i860
gave you $6,300,000,000 in 1880. (Loud and long
continued cheering.) There has never been in all the
history of financial progress — there has never been in
all the history of the world — any parallel to- this ; and
I am sure, genriemen, that the Republican party is not
arrogant nor over-confident when it claims to itself the
418
LIFE OF HOy. JAMES O. BLAINE.
<i !
credit of organizing and maintaining the industrial
system which gave to you and your associates in en-
terprise the equa,l and just laws which enable you to,
made this marvelous progress. (Great cheering.) ;;^
As I have said, that party is not on trial. If it has
made mistakes, they have been merged and forgotten
in the greater success which has corrected them,
(Cheers.) If it has had internal differences, they are
laid aside. (Cheers.) If it has had factional strife, I
am sure that has ceased. (Renewed cheering.) And ,
I am equally sure that, looking to the history of the
past and looking to that great future which we are
justified in prophesying, this Imperial State car^not^
afford to reverse, and therefore will not reverse, tho^e^ t
great policies upon which it has grown and advanced
from glory to glory. (Enthusiastic cheering.)
I thank you, gentlemen ; I thank that laicger number
with whom I have already had the pleasure of ex-
changing greetings to-day, r thank the ministers, the ^
merchants, the lawyers, the professional men, the
mechanics, the laboring men of New York (applause),
for a cordial reception, an oyer-generous welcome, /
which in all the mutations of my future life will be to.
me among the proudest and most gr^dpus oi.^y^
memories. ^ ?- .
THE FAMOUS BURCHARD INCIDENT. ,
. ■ .■',: 'i.-;^ jJi
The foregoing remarlcable speech was made at the .
banquet in the evening. At ten o'clock in the mora-? -
ing of that day a large number of clergymen of all de
nominations called on Mr. Blaine at the Fifth AvepU^
:•.,: t.'-
THE CAMPAIGN OF 1884.
419
Hotel to present a series of resolutions and assure
him of their respect arid loyalty. The clergymen-
went into the main corridor of the hotel, and soon Mr.
Blaine appeared, accompanied by the committee of
clergymen who had been appointed to receive him,
several members of his family, and Hon. Levi. P.
Morton.
Rev. S. D. Burchard, D. D., a well-known and hon-
ored minister of the Presbyterian Church, was called
upon a few minutes before the appearance of Mr.
Blaine to deliver the address, the one who had been
chosen for this purpose being unexpectedly absent.
Dr. Burchard was a warm admirer of Mr. Blaine, and,
those who knew him will acquit him of any but the
best of -intentions in the part he acted on this now
celebrated occasion. His error was one of judgment,
and doubtless due to the fact that he was suddenly
called upon to deliver the address. He stepped to
the side of Mr. Blaine, and spoke as follows :
DR.. BURCHARD's speech.
" We are very happy to welcome you to this city.
You see here a representation of all denominations
of this city. You see the large number that are rep-
resented. We are your friends, Mr. Blaine, and, not*
withstanding all the calumnies that have been urged
in the papers against you, we stand by your side.
(Shouts of "Amen.") We expect to vote for you next
Tuesday. We have higher expectations, which are
that you will be the President of the United States*
and that you will do honor to your name, to the
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420
LIFE OF BON. JAMEd 0. BLAINE.
'■v
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is
United States, and to the high ohice you will occupy.
We are Republicans, and don't propose to leave our
party and identify ourselves with the party whose
antecedents have been Rum, Romanism and Rebellion.
We are loyal to our flag. We are loyal to you."
The unfortunal2 expression, " Rum, Romanism and
Rebellion," produced instantly a perceptible impres-
sion on Mr. Blaine,
His expression was one
of surprise and painful
anxiety. His quick per-
ception saw at once
that these words, ap-
plied to his politidal
opponents, would be
resented by them, and
might alienaite from
him many whcr had in-
tended to break from
party lines, and give
him their support at
the polls. Heinadeino
reference to them at
REV. s. D. BURCHARD the time, however, and
his reply to the cordial welcome of the clergymen \iras
one of his happiest efforts.
HE REFERS TO THE BURCHARD SPEECH.
On reJtching New Haven, on November ist, Mr.
Blaine made the following address refiprring to Dr.
Burchard's expression : - '
THE CAMPAIGN OF 1884.
421
; There has been placed in my hands since my arrival
in New Haven an address from the clergymen of this
city expressing their respect and confidence, and,
through the person who delivered it, the assurance
that in matters of public right and in matters of public
participation under the laws and Constitution of the
United States they know no sect; they know no Prot-
estant; no Catholic, no Hebrew, but the equality of
all. (" Good ! " and cheers.) J i the city of Hartford
i had a letter put into my hands asking me why I
charged the Democratic party with being inspired by
rum, Romanism and rebellion. (A voice, " You never
said that.") My answer, in the first place, is that they
put in my mouth an unfortunate expression of another
man ; and, in the next place, it gives me an opportu-
nity to say, at the close of the campaign, that in public
speeches which I have made I have refrained carefully
and instinctively from making any disrespectful allu-
sion to the Democratic party.
I differ from that party profoundly on matters of .
principle, \ ut I have too much respect for the millions '
of my countrymen whom it embraces to assail it with
epithets or abuse. (" Good ! Good ! " and cheers.)
In the next place, I am sure that I am the last man in
the United States who would make a disrespectful
allust. *i to another man's religion. The United States-
guarantees freedom of religious opinion, and before
J the law and under the Constitution the Protestant and
i^he Catholic and the Hebrew stand entitled to abso-
lutely the same recognition and the same protection
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422
UFE OP HOir. JAMIS O. BLAINE.
(loud oheering) ; and if disrespectful allusion is here
to be made against the religion of any man, as I have
said, I am the last man to make it ; though Protestant
by conviction and connected with a Protestant church,
I should esteem myself of all men the most degraded
if, under any pressure or under any temptation, I could
in any presence make a disrespectful allusion to that
ancient faith in which my mother lived and died.
(Enthusiastic and long-continued cheering.)
THE RESULT OF THE ELECTION.
Mr. Blaine returned to his home at Augusta, re-
ceiving an imposing reception at Boston on the way.
The election occurred on November 4th. The result
turned upon the vote of New York Stsite, and for some
days that was in doubt. After an inexplicable delay
on the part of the Democratic officers of election, a
delay during which grave suspicions arose that the
returns were being tampered with and falsified, it was
announced that Mr. Cleveland had carried the State
by a narrow margin of i ,047 votes.
In the electoral college Mr. Blaine received 182
votes and Mr. Cleveland 219. Not only was Mr.
Blaine sprely disappointed at the result of the election,
but his party yielded to defeat with a sorrow that was
painfully evident. Millions of his countrymen had
hoped to see him elevated to the highest position in
the gift of the people. After the first shock of disap*
pointment he returned to his literary pursuits, and
continued his work on his " Twenty Years of Con-
gress,'' a masterpiece of political history which exhibits
:/y^\
THE CAMPAIGN OF 1884.
423
the fruits of his long experience in our national affairs,
his consummate analytical power, and his marvellous
intellectual ability. This work will stand as one of his
proudest monuments, and will be immortal in the
annals of the Republic
U
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CHAPTER XIX.
Again Secretary of State.
The events in Mr. Blaine's later career, extending
through the closing years of his life^^are prominent'
and well marked. He Jived in the eye of the public.^
No other man in the nation was accorded so muclv
attention and comment it\ the public journals which
make it their business to record transactions of uni«;
versa! interest. iiio;/
The Washington Correspondent of one of our lead*
ing journals published the following reminiscences,
which properly ; form a part of the history of Mn
Bliiine in connection with the presidency and his^
second appointment as Secretary of State :
In the spring of 1884, long before the two cpnvec«-
tions had met, I called at Mr. Blaine's house for the %
purpose of talking to him about the possible outcome
of the Republican Convention to be held at Chicago.
Mr. Blaine was then the leading candidate. GeqerM
Grant was in Washington. It was just before the
Grant-Ward failure, and^ a number of enthusia&tic ;
friends of General Grant thought that he might receiver
the nomination. Mr. Blaine at^ that time $ho wed r
singular indifference. . Delegation after delegation^
m
\''-c'^
SECKBTARl OF STATE.
425
(1
U'
IT'
came to see him at his house, but without eliciting any
response. No one who went to see him at- that time
received the impression that he desired the nomination.
During the special call which I made for the purpose
of finding out if possible his personal views Mr. Blaine
said, "I am afraid I am going to be nominated."
This was such a peculiar expression that I asked Mr.
Blaine what he meant by it. He replied that the
4rift was clearly going
his way, and that unless
he took active steps to
counteract it by an ab-
solute refusal to permit
bis name to be used he
would receive the nom-
ination.
He foresaw the whole
situation with remarka-
ble clearness. He esti-
mated very justly the
strength of the other
candidates. The reason
why he feared the nom-
ination was his profound
belief that the Republi- benjamin Harrison.
can party could not win in the coming campaign. His
re&sons for that were given with great exactness.
There was great distress throughout the country.
Times were hard and all the dissatisfaction that had
beai accumulating during years of Republican admin-
w "■
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426
LIFE OF HON. JAMES G. BLAINE.
ft;
Ki
istration he believed would culrfiinate in that year.
Nearly everything that he predicted at that time, even
to the character of the contests in th^ various States,
proved to be true.
WHY HE DECLINED TO RUN AGAIN.
Mr. Blaine's feelings even then made him shrink
from the possible dangers of the situation. For many
years he had a pro-
found ambition to be
the President of the
United States. Yet in
every contest he had
encountered great trials
and even dangers. In
1876 the extraordinary
attack made upon him
in the House of Repre-
sentatives came near
causing his death. The
sunstroke during the
Cincinnati Convention
was indirectly one of
the results of the enor-
j-^> LEVI P. MORTON. mous Strain he had
undergone prior to that time. His enemies then said
that the illness was a sham to create sympathy.
Mr. Blaine's personal pride was hurt by the result
of the campaign of 1884. He was deeply wounded
by the attitude of some of the Republican leaders.
He believed that if there had been perfect harmony
SECRETARY OF STATE.
427
in the State of New York* he could have been elected.
He felt that if the votes had been honesdy counted
he would have been elected. The result of that elec-
tion made him resolve that he would never go through
another campaign except under conditions, which, from
the nature of things, would be impossible.
What he dreaded more than anything else was that
he should be regarded as posing before the American
public as a perpetual candidate. He knew that if he
had remained in this country during the year preced-
ing the campaign of 1888 his position would be mis-
represented, and so he went to Europe in the early
summer of 1887 for the sgle purpose of avoiding
every possible political complication.
Only on one condition would Mr. Blaine have
consented to again become a candidate. This was
divulged in a conversation I had with him in Paris,
just after he had written the letter of November, 1887,
to Mr. B. F. Jones, announcing that he would not be
a candidate under any circumstances. Mr. Blaine
said then, in the course of a private conversation, that
he had been elected to the proud position as the chief
of the Republican party by his nomination at Chicago
in 1884. That was a position which, after having led
his party to defeat, he could feel justified in retaining
only by the unanimous consent of every other possible
candidate. He said that he would have consented to
run again if no one of prominence in the party had
opposed his renomination.
428
LIFE OF HON. JAUES G. BLAINE.
m
HIS PARIS lETTER.
But when he saw that candidate after candidate was
announced for the next Chicago Convention he re-
solved to write the letter to Mr. Jones. This letter
was written without any second thought. It was an ir-
revocable determination based upon a feeling of intense
personal pride. Only those who knew Mr. Blaine
well can appreciate how intense was this personal feel-
ing. He felt that he could not be brought to occupy
a more undignified position after having been elected
leader than to be obliged to appear before the public
contesting with others for the right to hold the position
of leader.
After writing the Paris letter lyir. Blaine determined
to escape from all persecution, and to enjoy, if possible,
a visit to some of the more interesting parts of Europe
without having his footsteps dogged. He took great
care to disclose to no one his intention to leave, and
departed for Vienna. He went from Vienna on toBuda-
Pesth and remained there for some time, completely
eluding 'his pursuers. No representative of any
American newspaper crossed his path for several
weeks. Public attention was diverted to other chan-
nels in America. The contentions of candidates oc-
cupied the public mind. Mr. Bkine's v/ithdrawal was
accepted as having been made in good faith.
So great, however, was the disappointment over his
withdrawal and so difificult did it become tO' concen-
trate partisan enthusiasm upon any one of the numer-
SECRETARY OF STATE.
429
ous Republican candidates that the thoughts of the
leaders began to turn again to Mr. Blaine.
The result was that Benjamin Harijjson was nom-
inatedand subsequently elected President of the United
States. To make him President no one helped more
than Mr. Blaine. In his old time fashion he stumped
the country, delivering most brilliant and telling
speeches on the tariff, which was then the one great
point at issue.
AGAIN IN THE CABINET.
He was called by President Harrison to the position
of Secretary of State, which he filled with ability.
His policy was marked by the revival of his old project
of a Spanish-American Congress for the furtherance
of trade with the South and. by the calling of an intei^-
national marine conference, which met in Washington
and formulated important rules for the protection of
life and safety of property at sea. Although a protec-
tionist he did not hesitate to denounce some pf the
provisions of the McKinley Tariff bill.
Mr. Blaine as Secretary of State initiated -a spirited
foreign policy that was characterized by the vigor and
earnestness with which he upheld American interests.
What that policy was he described, as we have already
seen, in a letter published September i, 1882, in which
he said :
"The foreign policy of President Garfield's adminis-
tration had two principal objects in view. First, to
bring about peace and prevent future wars in North
and South America ; second, to cultivate such friendly
430
LIFE OF HON. JAMES O. BLAINE.
commercial reialbns with all American countries as
would lead to ti large increase in the export trade of
the Un* -d Sta' .s by supplying those fabrics in which
we are abu'idantly able to compete with the manu-
facturing; r«atir.r>s of Europe."
Mr. L giine projected an international peace congress
to be held at Washington for the furtherajice of these
plans, which idea was not carried out owing to the
death of President Garfield, but which was revived
later on during the administration of President Harri-
son.
In Mr. Blaine's " Twenty Years of Congress " he
further expounds his viev/s upon the relations of
foreign countries to the United States in the following
paragraph :
OUR 1 OREIGN RELATIONS.
"This brief history of the r.pirit rather than the
events which characteri<.ca the foreign relations of the
United States during the Civil War has been under-
taken with no desire to revive the feelings of burning
indignation which they provoked, or to prolong the
discussion of the angry questions to which they gave
rise. T!xe relations of nations are not and should not
be governed by sentiment. The interest and ambition
of States, like those of men, will disturb the moral
sense ' .nd incline to one side or the other the strict
balaiiK e of impartial justice. New days bring new
issur , and old passions are unsafe counsfMors.
Twv ity years have gone by. England has paid the
cof>' of her mistake. The Republic of Mexico has
'iiMHuggmM
vw
SECRETART OF STATE.
481
seen the fame and the fortunes of the emperors who
sought her conquest sink suddenly — as into the pits
which they themselves had digged for their victims —
and the Republic of the United States has come out
of her long and bitter struggle so strong that never
again will she afford the temptation of the opportunity
for unfriendly governments to strike at her national
life. Let the past be the past, but l*et it be the past
with all the instruction and warning of its experience.
" The future safety of these continents rests upon the
strength and maintenance of the Union ; for, had dis-
solution been possible, events have shown with what
small regard the interests or the honor of either of the
belligerents would have been treated. It has been
taught to the smaller republics that if this strength be
shattered they will be the spoil of foreign arms and
the dependent provinces again of foreign monarchs.
When this contest was over the day of immaturity had
passed and the United States stood before the world
a great and permanent Power. That Power can
afford to bury all resentments. Tranquil at home,
developing its inexhaustible resources with a rapidity
and success unknown in history, bound in sincere
friendship and beyond the possibility of hostile rivalry
with other republics of the continent, standing mid-
way between Asia and Europe, a power on the Pacific
as well as on the Atlantic, with no temptations to in-
termeddle in the questions which disturb the Old
World, the Republic of the United States desires to
live in -imicable relations with all peoples, demanding
432
UFE OF HON. JAMES 6. BLAINB.
only the abstinence of foreign intervention in the
development of that policy which her political creed,
her territorial extent and the close and cordial neigh-
borhood of kindred governments have made the
essential rule of her national life."
A FIRM BUT PACIFIC POLICY.
Mr. Blaine's policy was pacific, and was wholly in
accord with the Monroe'
doctrine and the chs«*-
acteristic traditions of
American diplomacy.
President Garfield, in
his inaugural address,
had repeated the dec-
laration of his prede-
cessor that it was " the
right and duty of the
United States to assert
and maintain such superr^
vision andauthorityovef.
any interoceanic cana)
across the isthmus that
connects North and
JOHN w. FOSTER. South America as will
protect our national interests." This policy, which
had received the direct approval of Congress, was
vigorously upheld by Secretary Blaine. The Colombian
Republic had proposed to the European Powers to
join in a guarantee of the neutrality of the proposed
Panama Canal.
SECRETARY OF STATE.
433
One of President Garfield's first acts, under the ad-
vice of Secretary Blaine, was to remind the European .
governments of the. exclusive rights which the United
States had secured with the country to be traversed
by the ihteroceanic waterway. These exclusive rights
rendered the prior guarantee of the United States
government indispensable, and the Powers were
informed that any foreign guarantee would be not only
an unnecessary but an unfriendly act. As the United
States had made in the Clayton-Bulwer treaty of 1850
a special agreement with Great Britain on this subject,
Secretary Blaine supplemented his memorandum to
the Powers by a formal proposal for the abrogation of
all provisions of that convention which were not in
accord with the guarantees and privileges covenanted
for in the compact with the Colombian Republic.
AN IMPORTANT TREATY.
In this State paper, the most elaborate of the series,
receiving his signature as Secretary of State, Mr.
Blaine contended that the operation of the Clayton-
Bulwer treaty practically conceded to Great Britain
the control of any canal which might be constructed
on the Isthmus, as that Power was required by its
insular position and colonial possessions to maintain
a naval establishment with which the United States
could not compete. As the American government
had bound itself by its engagements in the Clayton-
Bulwer treaty not to fight in the Isthmus, nor to fortify
the mouths of any waterway that might be constructed,
Mr. Blaine argued that if any struggle for the cpntrpb
28
•^%..rj^;\i^,*
Un. or BON. JAMES O. BUWE.
• T?nMand would have an
of the canal were to anse- J,tould ,^,..,..,e, a
advantage at the o»««~,„as this government
"The treaty." he s"*!' Jf""*;^ „oops to protect its
not to use a single -^f ^ ^^ ^ inLoceanic canal .
interests in connection " » J ji^„,v,ip and
but to surrender the trans.t to Ae g ^^ ^^^ ^^^^^
control of the British navy. Jhe .^^ ^.^^ .
was unanswerable fr"""^^" ^^^."'.aons to bring about
Mr. Blaine made BtrenuO" «er ^^^^.
the conclusion of ^^^/^^fy J jrernment was brought
Peru, and the influence of Ae go ^^^^^^ ^^
to bear upon v ctonousCJ^h m ^^ ^^^
and m»g»»"''"7;,,^BuS„structions. the United
apprehension of Mr. f^^^'^^,^ ,^^ ends of peace.
States Ministers d;J."^' P^^"^%,e.cot and Walker '
Special envoy^Wi^am H. ^^^^^ ^ th
aUe-were =^«°^'5'y S^ d enable them to br ng
general instructions «f ''°"' .j relations. After
• fhe belligerent powers into fnendly ,^i„e
they set out on ^^^^^'^'^ICZ-rsed the diplo-
Jgned and Mr^Frehnghuysenje ^^^^^ ^^^^
„alc policy with - J JXSation were informed
envoys on arriving »* ^^^^^^^.j „ Affairs that their
by the Chilian M""^^"*: ° „je/manded and that their
- instructions had been counterma ^^^ ^^^^^^,5
. mission was an id e farce. y ^^^ j„fl„.
.eversalof diploma«cmeJodsand p ^P^^^ ^^^^^^^^^^
•^■"^^ ^U':ed'^"cS^o - ^^^ a point as to become
coast was reducea '^^
r':iETART OF STATl.
435
insignificant. Mr. Blaine's policy had been at once
strong and pacific.
ANXIOUS TO COMPLETE HIS WORK.
Mr. Blaine re-entered public life with disuact pur-
poses in view. He wished to complete the work that
was interrupted in 1 88i by the death of Garfield. More
intimate political and economic relations with the
nations of Central and South America had been his
dream for years, and he devoted the three years of
his Secretaryship of State to working for the good
of the three Americas and the United States in par-
ticular.
So industriously did Mr. Blaine work that not a year
of President Harrison's administration had elapsed
before the Peace Congress, conceived by Mr. Blaine
just before his entrance to Garfield's cabinet, materi-
alized. Representatives gathered in Washington from
eighteen different independent nations on this hemis-
phere. Mrt Blaine was the presiding officer. There
were no immediate results. None were expected. But
the Congress soon bore fruit in that it opened the
way for the reciprocity treaties which were the strik-
ing and brilliant creation of the Secretary of State.
HE CREATES RECIPROCITY,
When the McKinley bill was being considered by
the Ways and Means Confimittee, Mr. Blaine urged
the incorporation of reciprocity clauses. H e proposed
that the President should have power to open the ports
of the United States to any or all of the products of
the other American nations and colonies, whenever
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436
UTB pF BON. JAMES O. BLAINE.
itff-.
?'>*r
and for as long as they should admit to their ports,
duty free or at reduced rates, an equivalent amontit
of the natural and manufactured products of the United
States. The suggestion was renewed in the Senate,
artd it found more favor than it did before the Ways
and Means Gommittd^
It was the most daring
proposition of recent
years. -■ ., t'SnJ'rrfjfi^
An amendment td
the bill was finally
adopted. It was not
Mr. Blaine's sugges-
tion, but it was directly
due to it. It provides
th a t certain articles
shall be placed upon
the free list,' but that
after a given time duty
should be reduced upon
goods imported from
wiLUAH mqKinlev. countries that decided
rto make equivalent concessions. Under the new liMvi,
reciprocity treaties were made with Brazil and seVi^
eral other South American countries, beside Spain and
other European nations. 'The wisdom of Mr. Blaine's
proposition is shown by the fact that since the execu-
ik>n of the 6rst of these treaties- of trade there fate
Ibeen an extension of the foreign trade of the Ujiited
,V"'
'ii
to
tally
m^
*,fHP?
'*^W
WW
'M
.'■'• ' •
A J^
»
SEOBETARY OP STATE. v^^
States amoUntiog to 1^75,000,006, while taxation hats
been reduced to the extent of|i80iOo6,ooo.
'^s^r^-f'ri '-?':' MUCH SklLL^L DIPLOBCACY. -^^
: To accomplish this great commercial cdup was Mr.
Blniiie's chief modve for entering the C^lnnet, but his
lldministration ofihe other affairs of St^ti^l^ye been
marked with singular success. > There have b|en few
administrations in the count^s history whr^^ have
had to face so many subtle ^International queltions,
]^t the results reached were tnvaillMy to the 'credit
of the United States.
^ As Secretary of State in President Hardson*s
(pabinet Mr. Blaine was able to take up again some
of the great policies which the:assassination of Pres*^
tdent Garfield and the political €onsequenceb> of his
death had interrupted. JLe^sIatioft having p^$f^|d
the way for a meeting of ji F^t^-AineHdm G^
in October, 1889, Secretary Blaine iiiAdeilte^^^^
address of welcome and prestddl over tlie si^sions,
which were prolonged for nearly five months. It was
lie who had devised this project four years before, and
Jus* was the master mind that directed the deliberations
-of this impressive assembly, which brought about a
ifrank exchange of views on all questions relating to
cChewdfare of the American continent. : >
r>4>The most important results of this Congress were
tih^ adoption of a report favoring the negotiation of
Ipttit&d treaties of reciprocity, the authorization oli^
surveys for a railroad system on north and south lines»
'%i
■■\;M
Its'* ■ t r^ ">■
' *?
438
UfB OK BON. fkUMB 0. BtJUNS.
.--., ,,^
^
i^nd the passage of a resolution in favor of com^ttl-
sory arbitration as^an expedient for averting war.
BRILUANt ACHIEVEMENTS. ; j
Mr. Blaine acted promptly upon the advice of tHe
Pan-American Congress. As soon as the TarifiT
act had been enacted with its reciprocity provisions
' inserted at his suggestion, he negotiated a treaty ji^tth
Brazil highly favorable to the American export tnai<ie.
This was followed by the treaty with Spain in relatk>n
to Cuba, by iVhich nearly one-half the imported su^r
supply was regulated to mutual advantage. Sul^e-.
qtiendy treaties were made with Germany, Austria-
Hungary, France, San Domingo, the five coffee Repub-
lics of Central America^ British Guiana and all the Brit-
ish West Indies except the Bahamas. Experience^as
fully vindicated Mr. Blsiine's judgment of ltecipro<4ity
is a. great business policy for the United States; sfnd
a British Prime Minister's direct tribute to its su^^sd
leaves nothing wanting to complete Mr. Blaine's
diplomatic reputation. /v • f
Mr. Blaine was called upon to deal with a tpitge
number pf complex questions during his second ti^
in the State Department He upheld with infldcNble
^firmness Atnerican rights and the course of home fide
jn Samoa, until a treaty of peace excluding the ku-
prema<^ of any foreign Government was negotli^.
Wf^ equal courage and splendid argumentative jfij^ce
lie festinted the menaces of It^y after the lyn^i^gt
in New^dea^ibuta^ sooh ast^ anitu()e of i^ftil-
itjr Wsn£8daim#ihe State^N^^
;^
g I
ml-
the
iriff
life'.;
'^\
« t
* t
440
LIFB pr^MO^* lAMES 0. BIAIKB.
tf'-
lit "*
fir
w^'
if., ».
a sense of justice which had received instant e^^e^^
. sion sftwc the bloody work of the mob had beebaitcoilicj^
pljshed, made repan^tion in the form of an indeninttyv{^
EXTRADITION TREATY WITH GREAT: BRlTAIlTr ''* ^^^
With Oreat Britain a much-needed ektraditlotl'^!
treaty was negotiated, by which Canada wafi> dos«d aa^^
a retreat for American embezzlers. At the same time
a resolute but nof unconciliatory stand was takeii wfth
reference to American rights in Behring Sea^ ^^tth''^
shewed the way to an adjustment of this controvefs)^^^
by a iribuoal whickis about to assembleai^i j^naujrnsjf^tl
tn the Chilian complications Mr. Blaine c6-dp^tc^<>s
wit|]k the President in upholding the dignity and hdiikMr^^^
of ^e country under conditions of exceptiomd-^diill^>>
quiQr. An attitude of strict neutrality was maiatliiied''^ I
during the civil war in that country. Politlliid ^^'
refiigees under the American flag were not s^xundon^
fai tlic|ir extremity ; the Itata was pursued fof' vidlatiOfi :^
\Qf po^ 9lid neutrality laws, and tlio wanton €ondtK*i -l
of j^e police and public authorities of Vdpahit86in^^^^
theassault upon tlie Baltimore's men was so re8«it«d^
as tp^ ccimmattd universal respect and to procure iirditi'<^>^
Ch|i a reparation adequate to the ofifence. ^ * ij^ ; » f'^^^^
Quring this brilliant administration of fonfeign af&lli^'
. af^ the unjust and grievous restrictions agiifmttb^'^ '
importatioji of American pork into European coif ntrits^^^^^ ^^
^leen removed, to ^e great irnddoubtlesatfier-'C^^
advantage of Attiericaniproduceirs; ; V%«|W^^^^
\ Blaine's controversial work was with Getfxmifi ^'^''
t^<ir«l^ Pritain 9nd Chilli and id^tenhiini^di ifti^^^
Vyf
JM
h%
;■ -'w-is
^'■^'m
W^
I
en'SBUSBXthXi ^ StATX.
441
hHdoifeiice of American rights in th« Batrriindisi atfi^tr '
and orii all ^ciccasions, his ichief glory is that of coti-
dii^liilg Hue most successful business administration
of the State Department ever known, and of promot-
ing, jihe ends of peace by putting in operation as far
at>pci^bte the policy of arbitration. :^-
:> » ? :'n fcAST APPEARANCE IN THE SENATE.
JlCr^^ Blaine's last appearance in a public capacity at
th0 Capitol %a8 made before the Commerce Comniif- '
teo^^^^the Senate. His powers of mind and body had
been failing then, and the fact had been remarked by
so^jOf hb friends, but on this occasion he seemed to
fe4:^e life and fire of youth^ and his address to the
coiasnittee was- characterized by the clearness of-
thought,^ penetration, energy, and vigor of the Blaine
of ^
'^be Subject before the committee was a bill to jg^iit
ft Bren<ih com{^ny authority to lay a table from 'h^ ^
Ui^ed States to San Domingo. The Governinent of
BrajltLhftd given to this company the monopoly of die
rigiit'lolay a cable through Brazilran territory to the
Went ImUesi where it was to connect with, a cabte
from France. Attached to the Brazilian grant was
a Ci^ition that the oible company should secure
eabii c^nnectton with the United States, Brazil beSn|:
ai^i|i9tll :to have direct communication widi this coun-
try^^ tin <H<der to comply with this con4ition a new ai^>
auxiil^iy forporation to the original French compat^J
%a% v^wgenlsftd. Tt canie to the Gohremment of thej
llniNfiA Stees^ for i^ermission^ to lay a cable froni'
-^1
> J*
An?
im^^
lij'
Ht*'
"%•■■■
it*:-'
(449
A. j-V
r^..
^^
■:'^^'
'.
8E0RBTART OP STATK.
443
^ .;> V Mf 4
\i^,
>/
^^^JCharle^ton or Port Royal to San domingo, where it
was to connect with the cable from Brazil. Mr. Blaipe,
a$ Secretary of State, declined, in the name of the
President, to grant the privilege requested unless the
company would agree to waive its monopoly rights in
frazil in favor of any American company which might
wish to lay a cable.
HE CARRIES HIS POINT.
The company claimed that it was impossible to agree
to such a thing ; that it only wanted to lay a cable to
San Domingo and had no control over the other com-
pany, whose line ran to Brazil. Mr. Blaine considered
this to be a subterfuge, and insisted that no catje
should be laid until the Brazilian Government shotild
grant permission to any cable company the same rights
as were accorded the Fr..:.'^h company.
An attempt was then made to get from Congress
what Mr. Blaine had denied, and a bill granting the
necessary permission to lay a cable in territory^ of the
United States was introduced. When the bill eame
up for a hearing before the Committee on Comnierce,
of which Senator Frye was chairman, Mr. Jeff Chai^
ier appeared in behalf of the company. Mr. Blaiiiie
replied and astonished the committee by the animation
he displayed. He carried his point, andby a iinatki-
mous vote the committee coincided with the position
irfccn by Mr. Blaine. • .- .-...,. ,,^ -. d ~
HE USAVES THE CABINET, T
the term of President Harrison wore on, aticl agaii
a R^ublican Nattonal Convention approached dBie;
V^-^4
."telS-
<6.J'.
-*'1
^
'f.^'-
'■;»'>,-f;'
444
un or uojx, jamu o, vun(%
Sit •
I**"
pame of Blaine was .still one with iidiich to €on|Are,
and the Secretary, though indifferent personally^ HittS
|itit forward by several leaders of die party for the
nomination.
Led by advisers he resigned the Secretaryship <Df
State, on Saturday, June 4, 1 892. This action created
great exciterinent, for it put Mr. Blaine once more }n
the lists. I)e9pite hjs resignation from Harrison's
Cabi^ he dedared repeatedly that his name would
not 1^ before the convention. But the presenttitibiit
of 1^^» Blaine's name and the nomination of Harrison
on #eSl)tt ballot by a very decided majority are easily
rec|^e<l by ^11 ^i** ^is^e's health would not peVmit
p( ips ei^ring Actively into the campaign; but h^
jUenttfied Iwmself with the work in various ways, ism^
was ati!ira|» ini S3rmpaithy with the younger aiid iikofit
active of the piifty l^ders. Mr. Blaine pais^d ih^
sum|iir ikii^Mi^t at Bfl^H^rbor; and after a few weielrii
yii§||||i|gp^ he returned witlrliS^
fiu1^P^^^ii|a^ winter; enieiinjr Hi^
rei^diiife! m Sl«hk^ heated. ^ - > ^^^
DpFEATED IN THE CONVENTION OF
Chauncey M^ Depew gave a detatiled aCcoibiof th^
ctreumstances tinder which he took the leader^hi^'bf
the Harrison forces and th« x>pp<»ition to Jaitlte^ ^1
IBNne's aupportersat die MinneiKpblis t0hVtn^'^
^e, ^S^a. At that trnie Mn D(^>e# only staM 1^
.^.was not in^vor of Mr. Bbt^^ ndmtnitioiiibde^^
l^oomii bad no righi to^se lib. Btaioe^t laqtt j?^
t.^ *}
i-Ji^yL"
^n„ ..
OBQIirABT Or 8TATB.
445
since he had so distinctly stated in his letter to Gen-
^r^CIarkson that'he must be considered out of llie
..IjBut in spite of this many people have not been able
to understand how Mr. Depew could assume a position
leemfn^ly of aggressive hostility to his old time^riend.
iA r^^rler therefore called on Mr. Depew and asked
'A h^ would not now
give an explanation.
Mr. Depew thought for
i^ moment* then leaned
ihack in his big office
^haijr, and said:
iuiiYou ask me a ques-
tion which has often
jbeen put to me: How
4pouId you as.a Blaine
j^n of , twenty-five
yi^j^i liave.so cordially
^KE(d strenuously sup^
fMMted 1^ nomination
of General Harrison
at Minneapolis? I pre-
jllinii I have received . John wanamakbr.
;i|,|H^hei pf letters on that subject, most of them very
^|bye« They charge ingratitude, unfaithfulness and
^ipiU^ crimes. I have been on terms of the dosesi
|&[ieii#^ip wi|h Mr. BUine /or a quarter of a centuiy^
Ij|(^^^pprted htm without cegauxl to personal ocmse^
^l^^twld^ilfc he iKaa a candidate, and hadnev^
'*P. - '. ' c
■*^-
H ,*
M^^lk^^i^j^^^^iii^^MM^Siil^^i
44e
UFB OF BON. lAinS 0, VUdXIE.
hy^
asked or expected any return from him. . I believed la
the man, in his unequalled capacity for public affairs^
in his leadership, in his genius for things American,
and felt that his administration, if he should become
President, would be phenomenally beneficial to the
country, and brilliant.
During the dominance of Mr. Conkling in this
State, this persistent
and consistent support
of Mr. Blame led to
very unpleasant conse-
quences for me. Mr.
Conkling broke rela-
tions which had been
very cordial and inti-
mate, and whenever I
appeared at State or
national conventions, it
was in the minority and
opposition.
Blaine's positive
declination.
This enthusiasm and
THOMAS REED, support of Mr. Blatnei
for the Chief Magistracy had in it no element of opposi-
tion or enmity to anybody else or to anybody else's
ambitions. It was simply a desire to have James O.
Blaine President of the United States. Whetr Mr.
V'S
4* '
to a^ertaiii if that meant that he would not take t^
^:'
*-t^i
,i;';,- :,
',«'
.;>•■« n
^■^ V
■ '•«&•
SBOBITABT or STATE.
447
V'. ■
18
It
ncKnlosftion if tendered him. I sent the late Gener9l
Husted down to Washington on this mission. Mr.
Blaine said to the General : " Say to Chauncey Depew
for me that he is entitled, if any man is, to know ex-
acdy what my intentions are. I am not a candidate
and will not accept the nomination and he must, there-
fore, act as he thinks best, without regard to me, in
selecting the candidate whom he will support.''
I saw Mr. Blaine a few days before I went to the
convention, Mr. Depew continued, and I had a con-
ference with him of an hour and a half. It was the
moftt delightful of all the many charming interviews I
have had with him. Our discussion was mainly of^e
convention and the party. The talk about candidates
was particularly free, and Mr. Blaine was especially
clear in his discussion of the probabilities of succ^i$^
HE PREDICTED DEFEAT. '
He said that no Republican^^ho could be nomina|l;ed
— ^ot even himself — would be 4ti<;cessful in th^ c^ftmii^
canvass. He indicated the forces which bad beeilac^
cumulating ever since the war for a chstnge%c^l|i^
policy of the government, and he betieved th^.ttnie
had come when they would be too strong for the
Republican party, fie said several times, " I see no
prospect of success in this canvass. The people are
determined to try another policy*"
r {je was fully alive to and very emphatic on the
merits of the Republican policy and its benefits to the
coimtry. Out he was equally clear t^at ali kinds of
dep^til^ant^g^nistk^to each other were in unison
■ •■»fi
■<i<«
* «
"ff'^s'
Pvij^^^'^l^^^^
«is?^:.'.T«
M»
LIFE m HOK. JAUSS O, BLAINS.
for a trial of their theories of government^ hoping thaif
in the common success to which th^ were pledged
eaich one would have an opportunity of having its
views trie4 in practical legislation. .
HARRISON DESERVED WELL.
. Durii^ the conversation he asked me whom I was
fyr and I told him I was for General Harrison. He
said that General Har^
rison's administration
had deserved the sup-,
port of the country, but
that no President would
ever again be re-elected
to succeed himself. He
might after an interval
be re-elected. The chid^
reason Mr. Blaine gave
was that the patronage
was so large that there
would be enough dis-
appointed oi)ice>seekers
to defeat the re-election i
of any President wha
7^^. T'^y^^ ^^^^' ^ might be renominated; ^
As I was leaving I asked Mr. Blaine if in the con«;
tifig^ncies which always happen in a convention his
noiittnatiofi seemed ^he only way out, would he accepti
iflK^in^edi He laughingly said, " I caa*t be elected^"
but gave no other reason, t then said to htm, f* K you.
^9K(.i|i)y€ithfr answer to give my address is th^ Wist
m^
r'<i'<
n^Vii^'i
8BCRXVART 6t ^fSklX,
440
its
■was
He
[ar^
Hotfel, Mtnneapolts/' but at Minneapolis I heard noth-<
iiig: from him, directly or indirectly.
A member of the present House of Represents^
tives,one of the most intimate friends of Mr. Blaine,
told me recently that he had in his pocket a letter
from Mr. Blaine to be read in case he was nominated,
po^tively declining the nomination. The friends of
Mr. Blaine who saw most of him and were nearest to
hhn and understood best his physical condition felt
what I am certain he believed, that the cared and
anxieties of the canvass would have killed him be^re
it was half over.
'■■'■■ AT OPHIR FAkM.
When he was at Mr. Whitelaw Reid's house, at
C^hir Farm, a few months ago, he request^sd me to
cbme^ up there because he said> that he did not want '
to speak unless I would speak also. There wei^ sur- ,
rounding him there a company of men who had been !
hk devoted admirers and steadfast friends alwayk
His mind was as clear as ever, but the &tal weakness
which has just ended in his de^th was so appgiheiit
t^t the meeting was a very sad one. Mr. Blaine
would hot trust himself — as in the old days he always
did— -to extemporaneous talk, but he read his speech
from type'written sKps.
'He bade us all individually an afTectionate, rather
lAore than usually tender good-night, and went to bed
early. He was not up when we left in the morning
and none of us have ever seen him since.
^-TNere are no mourners f^r his death more sincere
m
' '^^
i."S-
^^J^2k&h^ie^£^'^'i»^^^.^±^lkM^^
5-SJI5vK*<«*'
!.ni
^1
■ F
460
LIFEtlif ^ON. MMSS O. BLAINE.
aiid no men who will cherish his memory more gen^
erously and lovingly than his old-time friends who^ at
Minneapolis, believed that he was not a candidate,
that he would not take the nomination if nominated,
and that it would kill him if he entered the canvass.
■5 ^r.'''"?^'''.
vat
late,
ited,
s.
■>'■
B'-f-:;
CHAPTER XX.
Striking Characteristics of the Man.
Mr. Blaine's most marked characteristic was his
manliness. He was a noble specimen ^( American
independence, energy and virility. He was an unduly
grown man. He was constantly reproducing himself.
Mentally and physically he was a forced man, and his
years should have been eighty instead of but sixty-
two. His head was extremely narrow over the eyes,
and his brain seemed to be hung back of hi^ ears.
This gave him a curious power for quick judgment
from facts real, or apparent, and forced htm to quick
conclusions on every question.
The ease with which he met questions- is due to this
fact Persons not well acquainted with him looked
upon his iquick judgment as surface capacity. 'He
was born with a woman's power of quick judgment,
which his experience increased and made almost in-
fallible. In the last twenty years of his life he proba-
bly did not read one book entirely through. ^ He had
a habit of securing the meat of a book with what
s^med hurried glances^ but he Was so familiar witl^
ail topics thathe could quickly pick the new from the
pld, whj(?h mi^de study easy to him, He was born a
'"'•(4
J
- />.
'J%
'*1
r,"?^2
.-' . t
rl^Ay.
'f .
^I^
liOni OlNBOVi JAHBB O. BLAIKB.
1>lidii^Bab nmn, but his virtltty and vigor, €ta«tp)efll with
the i^cuhy of speech, made the excttemenfe And fla?i|dr
^ politics more acceptable than slow, plodding Ihisi-
neSS. '-^:./r^ ;?;, ■■ ' -. .••/ ■ :->
He was a newsgatherer, a keen observer^ and soilie-
^ng of a gossip. These combined to make htm the
rarest of companions. His stock of anecdotes and
experiences illustrated his conversation^ of which his
listeners never tired. a -^ *"
PEERLESS POLITICAL ORATOR.
On the Stump he was unequalled. His ideas were
arrayed in picturesque language, which, coupled with
hte logic and force of statement, carried ^nvlction.
On the stump Mr. Blaine made votes, a l^g few
^torators do, and votes from the other side. As a
wrilter he has stood the test both in a liiteraiyand
historic sense* In literary work he never used
a stenographer, but sat bolt upright in a stra^^
backed chair at a small table, writing rapidly, in one
of the best hands ever written by a public man. He
was untiring, and all his work showed thought
Whife Mr. Blaine was thought by some to be spec-
tacular and was accused of posing, the reverse is true.
He never tried for effects, and was impervtous to pub-
lic opinion when he knew that public opinion was
partisan or biased. His aim in life was to know the
American government, and in this he succeeded betr
fer, with, perhaps, the exception of General Boiler,
Ihaii mny man of fa[is time. There was: no^n|^ Jia-
matic in Mr. Blaine's nature; there Waiiiit^ effisct
Uv^ji
■V''-
CntAUlOTEBISIlGS OP VHI VAK.
-'<-; '<t
18
ilf fall fmbltt but hev^ In his nci;^f%V
Had he fatten elevated to the Presidency in i884f^)H^
would hftve seriously disappointed the calamity shriek-
ers who poisoned the air with their howls against htfn*
His pride would have given him the faest Cabinet
pdssible, and he would have said : " I think you anfe
best fitted for this position, and you for that;" aiid
fvom die moment of his inauguration his administra-
tion would have been Conducted with vigor, (irm^e^
and progress, and an eye to the good of the whole
''people- ■ "■ - ■ .!-c::':WrT ' /
■^ INTENSELY AMERICAN* .
^<'^Mr. Blaine's life» character, surroundings and haHpiMit^
'^ were intensely American He considered the IJni^il
'^Stsites a government the result of all the ages^|>re-
-ceding; and his hope was t^ see the whole CoiitMI«int
gavemed under the same principles as the Mmied
^iStates. There was no evidence of smaUi;^ess or
fi^anness in his character. His political opponents^—
and he always preferred a Democrat to an indepen*
dent-'-were fair friends. He believed there was ropm
tn this country for two parties, and they, bei^g based
on ideas of perpetual liberty, it was immaterial, in die
jMnse of the country's security, which paity pir^vsujied.
a He was a Whig and a Republican by choice^
His i^igion was as broad^as his political prijQciples.
He wa» almost puritanical in his faith, and wsUked
eaeb day widi the belief of certain reward or punisfa-
^nieiit After cteatlii He waa aiecdonate to all, and:Wds
'tx^m^ eiQpeeU fily<i»te wkk^ildr^n^ ; \y^hen he.:^e
^4
<«,
■*.• / v^
*AS
1^
7i;»^lL!^^7£l'ir^-««'^I^»i^^
i4
464
s.^-
LIFE or HOK. JAM^Q O. BLAIIfB*
through the streets of Augusta the little childreiigcame
running to the fences and gates with "i^elloK Mr.
Blaine»" and even the dogs of the Jitde city all-seemed
to know him, and would come out and wag their tails.
HIS DOMESTIC LIFE.
As to his domestic life, while there has been a mass
of false information and common assertion made, no
man ever walked out of
life purer in person or
with more love for his
family. All of his polit-
ical reverses seemed to
soften him toward men,
and the excessive ami-
ability of his character
prevented him from met-
ing out the punislmient
that the cut-throats thai
dogged his steps de<^
served. He never used
profanity, he never drank
whisky, wine arid very
seldom used tobacco,
and while never asser^
tng it, he was a strict moralist. He knew every
puHic man's history, and, as for that, many private
ones, and he wa& a walking encyclopaedia of family
Mstory. He^was a little too fond of wealthy m^n,
hat caring Utj^efQ^' money himself, his )ȣ)ine^ l9V^
SHELBY M. CULLOM.
•r':'^-
Ar.
I
5>'
*f^
»%2
_.(V^t-.
■s>
V.
t ».'
-4?
OHAliAQTCBliSTlCIS 09 TBK ITAK.
46&
[' iiiehts wefe for the bendii of his family or friends,
with' many aids to charicy.
While Speaker of the House he was phenomenal
*in the dispatch of business and his faculty of control.
This arose from his business qualifications. With all
his political activity and public usefulness he found
time to innprove himself, and to look out for and care ^
for his friends, and to discharge the duties of an
American citizen. He was the fhost cbmrnja^iiling
figure on the eivil side of the events following the ^ar
after Thaddeus Stevens, and he loses nothing-^^
coftiparison with any of the great civic charaeti^cs lOf
America. < ~.
NOT TO BE JUDGED NOW.
«^ No adequate judgment of this man caii be foHaf^
in the present century. His personal character, "las
shown by die knowledge of his friends, hii^il^MiG
record, and the experience of his daily life wilt all
enter into a fair judgment as to hi$ position as o^ef^if
Ani^riea's leading men. The yictim of heated pai^^salf^
ondaught, now is not the time— ^ncTr tn this centtrty'^^
to do justice to the most striking ftgiire iji the past
twenty-five years of the nation's histbry.^^^ -^^ ^-
If any one wants proof of Mr. Blaine's greatness as
a Ij^adert let him observe his course in Maine since^
1863; Look at his position for all this time, as k
leader of his parQr in Maine, a State second to none
in eulture and nien df capacity and brains. His re^
tension of the leadership is pretty good evidence of
his Gftpacity and ability* His following in Americaiii
M
i^*.':
V«
if
fe*^J
^^>«
iS6
LIFE or UOV, IMMW& Qi BtAIMK.
'i'
3V:
politics was the most unique in American history^ •
Friends fell out, but the ranks were always filled, and
sthere were never vacancies. He held men with hooks
of steel. He was sometimes indifferent— the result *
of business or political duties — but he never forgot a
oame or a face. And he never forgot an injury. He
was as sensitive as a child at unjust criticism, but he
had the curious fault of forgivfng his enemies without
-beu^ asked to.
BLAINE AT HIS BEST.
At the best period of his life, which was about 1876,
Mr. Blaine was close to six feet in height and weighed
190 pounds. He had large feet, large hands, brown
hair, blue-gray eyes, a very large nose, thick at the
end with open nostrils, a not too large mouth, droop-
ing at one corner, a ^e long but square, a narrow
head with what might be called a high dome. He
ivore a fiiU beard and moustache. He was very quidk
in talking and in his bodily movements. His manner
.was quick and sharp and his voice was penetrating,
with a very peculiar cadence and easily heard by laii^e
laidiences. After 1876 his voice became rather thick,
but until his last illness it remained as distinct as a
:yiL }m:j--.!^'.u :■-:■■ ■■ ■ ■,■■■>
v^ He alwa)^ dressed in black, wearing a Print^
Altlert coa;t, and for mftny years a high silk hat. He
ifsldom, ifever, wore any jewelry. He may hai^ had
#jratch, but I never noticed it His personal expei^es
vweise nothing a day^ He was very absteiMoiip £n
fdynkio|^ jeatfng^ and sleeping. Me wa^ a . mais of
t,? V;
• 5 1
J,'
C^^^Mti
tnd
loks
Isultt
>ta
He
he
lOUt
,,'- ' V
;/*'.1
/CBARAOTEBiSnOS or TBI HAN.
^m7
nervous energy^ and pdittcs was but an outo iMid
served to preserve his health.
The highest earthly hdndrs could nothsUw compen-
sated for the death of his children and friends; Sel-
dom is it that any statesman of any country in the
decline of his life has met so hard a fate in the matter
of grief as Mr. Blaine met The sympathy of the
whole nation went to him during his afflictions of ^the
last three years, but throughout all he bore it wi^sh-^e
patience an(^dignity of a good citizen and God-fearing
man. There is a difference between character and
reputation, and to th<^ few who knew Mr. Blainelln
truth the estimation made of the man by hb political
Opponents reach the dignity of burlesque, and witenmfy
the love and affections of those who knew^him.> bn'' :
HIS PART IN LEGISLATION^
The criticism has been made that Mr. Blaine, iii his
congressional career, originated na particular laws.
This may be true in a measure, but as the leaider of
his party in Congress no great party politics couM
have succeeded without his aid or have become laws
without his consent. Essentially a man of action^ he
aided any and every wise measure proposed by mem-
be^S of his party. His plan of reciprocity embodi^
In the McKinley bill, and after a. fierce fig^ was
essentially a further step growing out of a home pbliey
of protection, and was patent to him and believed-l^
him to be necessary to the future wbl£aure ofvthe
Republic. This opinion was the result of his many
years of ejcperience in public life» and was aniither
' ■*!•
.i^
[, V "a
l-%-
fe'^
46li
ufi^^ jm l^wia^ il! I^LAtiik
evidieitfe dfliis ikti^dinf on his feet whenever !^ jufMfied
' in 4 |k>Ift}ca! thovem^ht
He iii^s the be^ a!I*aHound politician in Ameridi.
He skMhed thie newspapers each mornings lind
wattdi^ th^ ehanges of public opinion widi the eager-
ness of ^a |>racticed editor. He was always abreast
of or slightly in advance of the foremost men of thtS'
Republic. His motto was undying principle with
ev^'HaslSng energy. Self-made, self-icbntainedy self*
reliaitl^ he stands out as the best produc|^of American
maiihbbd in the last three decades. In all political '^
moves hi£ kept in cToSe touch wjlth his friends in evety
pailf of' the Republic. When interested, his influence
at diuie became apparent and felt
UNDESERVED ABUSE.
In his relations with public- men he was often the
subject of criticism and personal abuse, which was as
un^lelel^ved as it was ungenerous. In his long career
no iiicBivMual act of meanness can be charged against
hinri^' 'Hte Was not as unique or as picturesque as
Buder, biit he was infinitely more useful. He pos^
sessed the kast vanity of any public man in the Unit^i
Sta^l Ffaitery was useless as ah approach tohN
fiityor,; and ivhen in cbnversadon he would pump yoilii-
dryi'ii^tttftg the inibrmation he desired^nd liltering^t
awiy in the storehouses of his brain and keeping it
6)1*^^11^ day for use/ His natural iability was dev^^
dp^ Educated, 'and completed by his contact irltli
nscll;r:^^litfMi^'lif^ and nature wa^ a bobic ivhidi^ 1^
fmsS^ rciB^ fie profitdd by experiences, lier 4^^
:i
}i
lO
.til
to
>i*i
^^^
l-ViJ-.^'i i'-a
;>
■^'i
fer- ■ ■ ■
tost '"
■ii
I '
X-*'
CBARACmiBf !<;» or ftt UAH.
'» i
450
thf 4t^(Pft ; unsuspecting of men* and while you apparr
ently received his confidence, he never told you half
he .knew or felt Reticent when necessary, he was
talkative to an extreme when in the society of pleas-
ant coinpanions, and no one else in a company desired
anybody to speak except Mr. Blaine ; not because it
was 31aine» but on account of the manner of the man
an^^tbe sti^ngth of his talk.
Brilliant is a commonplace word when applied to
his, inarvelous Acuity of entertaining. He was^ espec**
ial^ fond of young men, he was courteous to womeni
he iva9 deferential to old men. He was essentially a
kind>^^arted and affectiohate man. He was a uni^
in which none of the parts were dwarfed. He was
great in all he did, in the manner of it, doing of it, and
its results.
HOW NEW ENGLAND VIEWED HIM;
It is a curious feature of politics that widi theeao-
ception of Maine he was weak politically in New*£og-
land. This was probaUy due largely to the fo^that
New England Js tenacious of birtliright,and he was ao
emigrant to New England. And yet, with the excep-
tion of Daniel Webster, no man in New England ever
equaled him in ability, and in his morals, public and
priii^te life, he represented New England's moral sen-
.tini^iit better than any man of his day. But he, had
to battle in his political ambitions wi$h the puritaoism
of ^^ew Igf^land^^^xcepr M^^ The great hea^ of
the loya} i^SM^can^ pe^le reaehisd out to and loved
and. believed in. him* IfiaineV magnetism was not^r
»,j
-v^.4
i^.'Si
.Mi
■j'im
H
ic'
400
lira o# aoir. lAini «. Btiitfl.
•S-t
m
»^
ing but the reftlitttion of mafthddd. BMitHydt^fii
Germany, Gladstone in England, Btaine in AiA«iieii<^
the world's three greatest civic men ofthe totql^rter
century. , * ^^^'^'^ '■ ^
HIS FRIENDSHIP FOR RANbAUUlini«>ii/nii)£
A warm and lasting friendship sprang up betw^
Mr. Blaine and the late Speaker Samuel J. Randall
which wail
never buokeii.
iie made th^
great Peii iisyl-
vania D«iiN^
crat hii Itlly lA
fight tfgaitti^
the Force Ml
and in mafiy
other ways
demonstrated
his confidence
inhifh^ Ifihls
library, -hafii^-
ing aiiivo^i^t
difecdy o^
JOHN G. CARLISLE. the dcsk "Qfi6h
which he worked in Augusta, was a ftdl bdst oietiifie
c^ the late Mr. Randall. He observed a frteftid^lcR^-
itijgr at it intendy and said, ^nting to^f **^el3e48
one of die truest an4 most folftieful Aiherfeftni^i|lK>
•-ji-' ■ ' -' "■ '■ ■ ■ '■■■ ■ ■■ ■■■■ ■ ' •^v^".;';/fc^^-lM. ■
J.-
Mi
*•
•. ^^ril'J.
f||4l|4C191Uin€« or THt MAN.
461
^!ii
itlMl
;||a%^ver livfd. • H^ it a man to be relied upon in any
emeigfAcy/'
•^> :13;^e^oipipipet between himself and the man he was
eulogizing which defeated the Force bill made Grant's
administratioii Blaine's enemy. From that ho\ir the
whole power of the Federal Government was turned
IKgaiost him. To revive the animosities of former
y/ears his old combatant, Senator Conkling, was chosen
by the Grant forces as its candidate, and thus the bit-^
lier fight went on.
{* l^w (ampus tilt with Ben Butler in 1871 is often re-
ified by old,G>ngressmeti. The Massachusetts states-
jiumhit hiin some pretty Ikrd blows with words while
.criticising him for being the author of the resolution
for investigating the illegal outrages in the South.
JMaine left the chair, and in deifending himself made it
fOVoeedingly interesting for the hero of Fort Fisher.
^/' HIS FAME Al^ A DI^ATER.
}/« It was not un^ i8^74t however, that Mr. Blaine
shone at his best as i debi^er. Tlie Democrats con-
Ht>Hed the House, alHd the Maine statesman was the
leader of the minority. It was a stormy seision, and
jBen Mill, of Georgia ; Blackburn, of Kentucky, and
iHher Southern orators took the criticism of Mr.
iBIilne into their own hands, and some of the most
racrimooipus and brilliant discussions ever heard in
-Coiigress took place between the "Plumed Knight"
^od ttli^ men who were resisting the reconstruction
jJitaauvei of the day. It was' during this time th^t
Mr, Blackburn used ^e famous sentence in bolstering
'M
■M'^'^^jiAT.
462
tin Of HOK. JAinBs 6. blaine.
lip Northern Democrats, which has been so often re-
jpeated: " He who dallies is a dastard, and he who
doubts is damned." " ■ . ' '
While the discussion on the general amnesty bill
was going on to remove the political disabilities of the
participants in the rebellion Blaine moved to amend
by making an exception of Jefferson Davis. Hill's
retort was exceedingly severe, and Mr. Blaine's re-
-marks in reply were equally incisive. He cited a
resolution, introduced by Hill in the Confederate
Senate, providing that every Union soldier found on
Confederate soil should be presumed to come with in-
tent to incite insurrection and should suffer the death
penalty.
SOME BITTER DISCUSSION. ^/^
This was the firebrand which started a new burning,
and the discussion upon the pending legislation was
intensely bitter and at times so intense that it seemed
as though personal encounters could hardly be averted.
They could not have been, had not the afflictions of
war softened the angry tempest over sectional ques*
ttons which was aroused by this debate. A spirit was
manifest that could not have been quelled before th^
sword had done its work and taught its useful lessons.
7 it is a study worthy of the eflfort of the present gen-
eration to go back to the records of that era and read
.lem carefully. They are among the most conspicu-
dus ^camples of what years may bring to a nation that
can be found in the annals of any land. They are
(Jdubly tnteresdngf now^ bepaps^ pi> the highest fence
ivV
re-
who
C9AKA0TEHISTICS QF THE 1$k^,
463
■*f
corner of the close of that debate will be found the
cross roads where Republican Presidential aspirants
parted in a hunt for the White House.
There were plenty of dogs and guns on all sides.
Mr. Blaine's signboard was the biggest of them all,
and the hand pointing for him in the direction of the
presidency seemed steadier than any of the others.
It was the first real opportunity that he had had to
assert and announce himself as the Republican Ajax
defying the political lightning. The figure was heroic,
the attitude good, and the feet well set on the pedes-
tal which this controversy built. All the years behind
this hour for him had simply been preparation for the
announcement. Here it was, and the uneven fight
began.
HAtLED AS A CHIEF, • ^
It was less than two yeai$ from this leaving behind
all the customs and by-play of preparation for the
national crown before he was to face all comers on
the open field. The months after the notable contro-
versy between Mr. Hill, of Georgia, and Blackbuirn,
of Kentucky, were to Mn Blaine full of the fervor of
adulation by those who hailed him with the same spirit
that had greeted " Harry of the West" years before.
Then hQ became the target of ambitious rivals in his
own party, but the legitimate prey of , the Democracy,
who desired a less popular candidate to meet in battle,
vfbere all the chances were against them. Games
were put up to disconcert him by all thip antagonistic
element3, and not even Henry Cl?iy faced more for*
.tt<
H.
. ■■*?,
'':'■?*•■-
!-/■-
Ie4
lirifi dF^H^k. JAMES 6. BLAU^E.
midable intrigues and bitter opposition than "Blaine
jbf Mairte," as he was now familiarly called. He was
Constantly in the spur of the onset on the floor of the
House and in manoeuvres of inside manipulation. In
private, surrounded with the comfort and eulogy of a
vast majority of his party, he nriade a picture that cdn^
nfevtr be forgotten for its finish.
A GREAT LEADER.
Perhaps no man ever so completely dominated the
'lahk and file of a great political organization as did
Mr. Blaine during the two years after the Anger-board
from a political discussion pointed him toward the
White House. The shifts and hustles in General
Grant's a:dministration during the last two years of its
existence were many. The effort to break it down
and destroy its influence in pending issues were next
to irresistible. The Mugwump tender to the Democ-
riacy which made itself felt in the nomination of Hor-
atfe Greeley gathered rather than lost force by the
fact that the Democracy would not tolerate the ambi-
tions of the great editor. This was a subde rather
than a msinly force, and in its hiimmings about lit upon
Secretary Bristow as its candidate. This gentleman
had been brought from Kentucky by General Grant,
from a district attorney's office, and put into the
Treasury Department. The whiskey ring trials offered
a perch for his Presidential aspirations, and the virtu-
bus element of the Republican party made use of him
as a fence a^inst Mr Blaine*
- V^' i.
K.-i-
•-■<;•
OHARACTERISTIGS OF THE XAK.
m.
A STAR OF THE FIRST MAGNITUDE.
It is said that on November 8, 1572, the astronomer
Tycho Brahe saw a star in the constellation of Cassio-
peia break into sudden splendor, a splendor so bril-
liant that it could be seen even at noonday. The
observer watched the unusual spectacle night after
night, and found to his dismay that its brilliancy was
gradually diminishing. For many months this light
in the northern sky burned more and more dimly,
until at last it went out altogether. A star had become
extinct.
James G. Blaine had sturdy friends and unrelenting
enemies, but friends and enemies alike agree that he
occupied a conspicuous position in the constell^on
of American statesmen. History will vindicate his
right to that most honorable distinction^ for it would
be impossible to recite the events whicti threw this
nation into chaos in the earlier sixties, or to name the
men who moulded public opinion during the five years
when the country summoned a super4iuman courage
and rebuilt the Union on the graves of a million
heroes, or to review the slow processes which, like a
hot fire, have since welded the States into a harmo-
nious whole, without referring to James G. Blaine ^s
one of the foremost in the group of giants whose work
is recorded in that strange chapter of our history.
It would be futile to place his character in the even
balances, for. his life and methods so freq[uently ran
counter to the judgment of many» and he so often
interfered with their prejudices, that to be jusdy criti*
30
466
LIFE OF HON. JAMiSS G. BLAINE.
r *
cal or wholly impartial is not possible. That task,
whidi wilt not prove an ungrateful -one^ we may safely
leave to the new generation.' We are all agreed,
however, in this — that by Mr. Blaine*^s death a bril-
liant star in our political firmament, whose fading
flames were watched from every hilltop and valley of
the land, became extinct.
A TYPICAL AMERICAN.
And this also we may
venture upon without
being accused of reck-
less ness-^that Mr.
Blaine was a typical
American. With no
unusual advantages in
his youth, but with that
lofty aspiration which
our frc^ institutions
cherish, he used the
opportunities of his day
to such good purpose
that fame as well as
wealth crowned his per-
sistent efforts. He was
J. J. INGALLS. a close student of
human nature, was gifted with intuitions as quick as
^lightning's flash, saw an advantage as soon as. it
^rose:^to the ^r&ce) detected the weak point in the
^attack of an enemyi won in debate by ridicule as we)l
.^, ;-,
^^^^^^i^^^i^^^'i^'.
Characteristics of the man.
467
as' logic, was master of himself at all times, and thus
generally master of the situation. -*-:;
The eminence he reached was the reward of con-
tinuous toil. His career was made up of shocks,
cataclysms, anxieties and ambitions. So freely did he
spend himself, however, that he has been a sufferer
from physical ailments during his last ten years, and
when death besieged him at sixty-three, when he
should have been on the hither side of his prime, he
surrendered the citadel and fell prisoner to fate.
Perhaps no man of our time has done harder woi'k, or
<lone it with more intensity of feeling.
We may furthermore venture upon this---that Mr.
Blaine in all the policies of his publk life created
unbounded enthusiasm. If he was hated by sc>me,
even hatred admitted his sovereignty over the ;multi-
tude. He had a burning eloquence which swayed his
audience as the whirlwind the field of grain, and not
the common people merely, but his peers in the House
of Representatives and the Senate. He has moi^e
than once killed a foe with aii efitgram, and his sarcaiin
in debate was like a succession pf relentless thunder-
bolts.
HIS matchless triumphs.
The golden period of his life was passed in Con-
gress. He was there his best, his largest self. As
Speaker of the House he was admirably equipped,
and by his tact and diplomacy, as well as by his couj^,
age. he earned the laurel. In the old reconstruction
days he was not as hot headed as many of his party,
ii^-i'
"¥:•
468
UFE OF HON. JAMES G. BLAINE.
and threw his influence in the direction of a quick
reconciliation of our sectional difficulties.
The Presidency was denied him, but he could wdl
aflbrd to forego that triumph in the consciousness of
so many others. The leader of his party during the
stormiest period of the Republic, he enjoyed honors
enough to satisfy all reasonable hopes, and now that
he ha^ gone it will not be easy to find another wkh
such versatility of gifts and such widespread influence.
He has passed into history ; he has begun the journey
to that bourne from which no traveller returns. Like
the star which Tycho Brahe saw in the hea^ye|]|s» ^e
fires of his great career have gone Qp|^ i ^ ? .
^:-:s
y-t^nf,:
^51. W J
ck
CHAPTER XXI.
James G. Blaine^
^flis Floee in Modem PoUtio*— His I^eadenhip and ClMr-
' r^n^fii f^^'te'^'^ EstUnate liy John BumoU Young.
T^frrpifg death of Blaine conies as an incident rather
than an event It has been expected for a long^ time.
'Hour by hour the flame of life was known to be flick-
ering to the end. Unlike Hayes and Buder, Bishop
Brooks and Judge Lamar, who, as it were, bear him
company to the eternities, he was denied the grace
of a sudden death. For days He had been unconr
scious, or at least spOke no word. To him long
watching hours were appointed, even as to his beloved
friend Garfleld. He was to die on the theatre of hfs;
fame. That was fitting. Around him were the re-
membrances of great men who had ruled the republic.
His deathbed was within the shadow of the Whita
House. Every association recalled ambition, elo-
quence, statesmanship and endeavor. He was a young
man. In the course of nature many years were due
him. England is ruled by a statemsan old enough
to be his father, and those who loved and followed
Blaine had reason to anticipate another generation of
his leadership.
Blaine was among tiie last of that group of bril-
.'"^
;v-
470
UfB OP BON. JAMSS 0. BLAIIOB.
liant young men who, coming at the close of the war,
were in their intellectual achievements to be regarded
as. its fruit and flower. In times of stress, as in se-
cession days, history teaches us that youth finds oppor-
tupty. The young men of France governed the Rev»
okition — the young men of the Colonies achieve4
independence. The statesmen contemporary of Mr.
Blaine were a memorable company. Conkling, Mor-
ton, Allison, Garfield, Marshall Jewell, Harrison, Ar-
thur, Edmunds, Windom, and Wilson of Iowa, were
among, the number.
The legislation after the war shows character and
power. They had the intrepidity, perhaps the thought-
lessness of youth, or they would never have dared
impeachment. With the exception of Garfield, with
his old head on young shoulders, they believed in that
experiment. Blaine, as I remember, formally ex-
pressed in his memoirs a regret for his precipitancy.
Impeachment we must regard as a war system — the
consequences of war. A party governed by young
men was the party to make it come true.
COMES TO THE FRONT.
Blaine soon became the unquestioned leader of the
Republican party. His rival for a time was the late ^
Mr. Colfax, who was, however, to go down under di;^
tressing circumstances. Since the time of Henry Clay
no young men held, at so early an age, a party lead-
ership. By the ordinary progress of events Blaine
should have gained the Presidency. But at the outset
of his career he came in coIKsion with the military
"• '..
' ''' "''[j^*il){SM&S&*i^^^.4tl
BIS LKADCRSHIP.
471
le-
V
f>restige of Grant. History shows how this antago-
nism affected his fortunes, but it would be an interest-
ing study to weigh its Effects upon the country. If
Blaine had been in hearty accord with Grant recoQ^
struction would have assumed a new phase, an<l4^'
might not now be mourning the ravished electoM
votes which established Southern supremacy. Blaine
instinctively, as became a man of peace, shrank from
the military methods. He probably felt in his heart
toward Grant as the English statesmen did to Marl-
borough and Wellington — a conviction thai a military
career was incompatible with statesmanship. At all
events the silent antagonism between the civilian and
the soldier prevented reconstruction "and destroyed
Blaine's hopes for the Presidency.
The strength of Blaine's leadership lay in hiscom-
mon sense. He was learned in the occult, capricious
laws of human nature. He knew that two and two
make four, and that even the strongest minds will
have a craving for cakes and ale. He believed in the
nation's growth. Independent and at times .lawless
in his convictions in his political methods, without fear
or regrets, his heart went out to the newer States..
The loyal support ever given to Blaine by the great
Western Commonwealths was because he was in sym-
pathy with the builders of empires. His own modest
life of adventure, the floating as a ischoolmaster be-
tween the States of Kentucky, Pennsylvania and
Maine, had given him an appreciation of the adven-
turers who were presslog Republican domination lo
%M
% t
it
.t ^,
472
LIFE OF BON. SAlOa O. BLAINE.
*•>■.
the Rocky Mountains and the Pacific Ocean. Thi^
done, and the chain of States welded together, not
alone by the political tie of union, but by rail and
steam, and Blaine looked toward what the fancy of
Dickens calls '* the golden South America/'
ENTHUSIASTIC FOR RECIPROCITY.
Blaine had the imperial dream of reciprocity. There
were statesmen when Garfield came into power who
regretted that our American policy did not embrace
the Pacific. This had been thf^ urgent wish of Grants
which, in a measure^ he had inherited from Burlin-
game. During the brief, tragic Garfield episode, and
subsequendy under Harrison, this Asiatic policy was .
pressed upon Blaine. It was pointed out that Amer-
ican influence should dominate Asia as far as Singa-
pofip, that the great Asiatic nations were craving our
commercial alliance, that the growth and endurance
(^the Pacific commonwealths were involved in a gen-
erous policy toward Asia. Grant, like Burlingame,
had formed these conclusions by study Of the East
To Blaine, however, the East was little more than
a romance or a poem. He had neither seen nor felt
it His conceptions of Chinese civilization were based
upon the police reports of San Francisco and the note
books of hurried travellers like the late Bayard Tay-
lor. Lord John Russell said it took Parliament seven
years to pass a bill. Blaine believed that an adminis- '
tration could do but one thing in four years. To at-
tempt t«|^otbii^s meant a failure in bodi. " 1 mean,-'
he said to the writer two years ago, " to completely
Li*..,i^rr.^*.-
^f'(*'\'"'-
aifl uahbrship.
478
11^
ot
/^
work of reciprocity, which will be as much as Harris
son can do. That done, we can think about Asia/' >
BROTHERHOOD OF NATIONS.
There were those of us who were impatient withe* .j^,
this resolution, but we must needs admire the splen^
dor of the conception of reciprocity. A federation
of commonwealths over the whole American conti-
nent! What a superb way we opened to the twen-
tieth century I Why waste time picking up coral
islands in the Pacific or jabbering with African kingd
over flannel and beads, when we had the roads to des-
tiny . spreading toward Greenland and Patagonia !
Seward had made Alaska a pawn in the fiaiscinating
game. Grant had tried San Domingo as a second,
move, to be defeated by purblind jealousy. Blaine
would make a royal move and advance the queen be*
yond the Andes and to the Amazon.
As I have said, it was an imperial dream, recalling
what Henry Clay believed possible as an outcome of
his Panama Congress. With what success it is too
soon to say. It may be the unfinished window in the
tower as we read in the "Arabian Nights." Even as •
these high purposes came within his reach, when at
last standing as it were on the steps of the throne he
was enabled to mould the throne's decrees, there came
upon him, as upon no public man in my time, the*
inscrutable hand of God. His children were to die.-
Disease was to strike him even unto death. Every
promise, joy and hope was to sink into cloud and"
n%ht No sadder mystery in the ways of God as wet
■ v\
'1xi
■*■*}
, ■■f.-^
:;^--
V, '
J
474
UFfi Of> fiOK. iAmtS 0. BLAINC.
>
see them among man than this of Blaine. And I can
well believe that out of it all there came at times the
feeling that death was a benediction, and that in the
end alone was peace.
A KING AMONG MEN.
It will be difficult to assign Blaine a place in our
history. This, however, is the work of another gener-
ation. I knew him for many years on terms of intimacy,
more especially while he was a member of .the House
and before political differences brought rifts into the
party. I have worked with him for hours in Wash-
ington, and had his companionship at my fireside.
I found him always an original, sincere, intrepid man,
amiable, sympathetic, with a Napoleonic instinct for
the kernel of a subject In a flippant way he has been
called "magnetic." Thi^ meaningless word seems
especially so when applied to Blaine. He had that
peifect courtesy which is shown in absolute respect
for the feelings of those around him. Sovereign or
serf had equal kindness at his hands. He had no fear,
no resentments, and friencfs were often impatient at
his forgiveness of enemies.
It is difficult also to estimate his intellectual standard.
He was not a supreme orator like Conkling. He
wanted Morton's lucidity of expression. He was not
learned in the books like Garfield. He had no<?
ei^jO/yftd the legal training of Edmunds. He missed
the cogent, rifle ball aptness of Harrison as a speaker.
But he had a quality in which he surpassed any man
of' his tt«ne« It 4s hard : to describe it, but I presufiQle
HIS LIADBRSBIP.
475
'■" t
it should be called the genius of leadership. He
would be a brave man or one with a gnarled, rugged
nature, who could come within the gleam of that*
magnificent eye, or under the spell of that persuasive
voice and not be prone to follow. And in this leader-
ship was the arrogance of genius. Blaine, like Grant,
never called a council of War to fight his political
batdes. It was go and he goeth, or come and he
Cometh, to his followers, as I have heard many an
eminent statesman say when speaking of service with
the "Plumed Knight" of Maine.
LIKELY TO BE UNDERRATED.*
Id the way of mere achievements, that is to say,
speeches, legislation or the development of high
policies, the life of Blaine may be regarded as a
disappointment. Critics may ask us to study him as
we do some of those stupendous ruins which show
what it was in the mind of man to attempt, but not in
the heart of man to do. He will be called a Coleridge
among statesmen — his life strewn with the wrecks of
magnificent opportunities. This, however, would be
an unfair criticism. Blaine dies in what would be the
youth of a public man. . The time to do his work was
denied him. He had more sorrows than are common.
He had battles to fight such as devolved upon no
American statesman. There was the mighty personal-
ity of Grant, the haughty personality of Conkling, the
majestic personality of Edmunds. There was the
uncompromising hostility of the critical conservative
RepubUci|msiii----|heori8ts and dreamers, especially of
^1
.^M
476
LIFE OF HON. JAMES 6. BLAINE.
the New England school. There was the South.
Alone he fought them, and in every battle he was
triumphant. No political antagonist ever beat him
down. ' "
My heart was not with him in some of th^se coD'^
tests, but I never ceased to admire the fertility of his
genius/ his courage and his will He was ever a
knight in the terror of his blows, in the swift amplitude
of his forgiveness. I think of it all now, that he lies
in his cofifin, and, recalling of Blaine so many yealrs of
admiration and friendship, his loyalty to his party, his
chivalry to woman, his gendeness to children^ liis
haughty Americanism and supreme pbwer of intellect
which made him almost an object of worship, to^so
many millions of his countrymen, give him my sorrow-
ing farewell. A great man has jgc)|j^^ {Ui|i^j||^|^
inpurns an untimely £9y|<f.;t '^ - .;!
J'-r,
.qfOJ53^
r4'^
-!<:!,•* ..vi; v>».'
» : f'. X-
al)
W
j-&a.*f ..
sl:H ,iM n;
t& 5d?
,r t
% -:;
mth.
was
him
con*
»f his
taso
-♦Tt
1
':!tJ*Ai
no:
'• Si
r
,» -^ ,
CHAPTER XXII.
ajs a Man Among Other Men.
. The eminent journalist, £. J. Gibson, who was inti-
thateiy acquainted with Mr. Blaine, furnishes the fol-
lowing interesting sketch :
Although Mr. Blaine was so highly regarded because
' df his rare ability* and brilliant attainments, yet his so-
*^°Ba]l^ magnetic manner gave him much of his popu-
larity. He rarely forgot a face or name, and he had
' the faculty of giving every person with whom he came
% (Contact the impression that he was really glad to
see him, something which can be said of very few men
in public life. My own experience with Mr. Blaine
was probably similar to that of a multitude of others.
-When a reporter on a New York newspaper, doing
some campaign work in Philadelphia, I happened to.
be in the city on the afternoon that Mr. Blaine was .to
deliver a campaign address in the Academy of Music
in the Fall of 1878. Wishing to meet him personally
I sent up my card to him at the Contiviental Hotel. I
was invited up at once, and much to m^ surprise was
taken into his room, where many of the leading Re-
publicans of the city were gathered, and taking me by
the arm Mr. Blaine introduced me to every man pres-
ent ' I had never been treated so well by a puUtc
X^r-lJ^r.
.'■Ir^
«VV„-^>;
478
LIFE OF HOK. JAMES 6. BLAINE.
L* ~
man, and I certainly went away entertaining a feeling
of the highest regard personally for Mr. Blaine.
Some years afterward when he was nominated for
President, I went to Maine to represent the same
newspaper and remained with Mr. Blaine during the
entire campaign. I then had an opportunity to be-
come thoroughly well acquainted with him, and this
acquaintance was renewed by a similar experience for
six weeks during the State campaign in Maine in
1886, and afterward in Washington. During a good
deal of the time I was in Maine and in the country in
1884 I traveled with Mr. Blaine alone and we went
into every nook and comer of Maine that could be
reached by railroad.
HE KNEW ALMOST EVERYBODY.
We never entered a town that Mr. Blaine did not
recognize apparendy the majority of the inhabitants.
Hie seemed to know everybody in the State, and he
never went into a town or city elsewhere in the
country, within my knowledge, without meeting some
one that he knew, so extensive was his acquaintance*
I never knew but one other man who had a like
iisiciilty of remembering persons whom he had met
before, and that was Vice-President Hamlin, of the
same State. Mr. Hamlin accompanied us on a trip
at one time to Presque hie, a village in the extreme
northeastern part of Maine. The Vice-President had
liot been in the same town for seventeen years, but
when he got off from the train he shook hands wilih
thfee persons whom he had met in the same plaee od
M.
Af*^
A KAN AMONG MEN.
m
[ling
for
(ame
the
be-
this
for
u
his visit there seventeen years before and called each,
one by name, although he had never seen them bqt
once, Mr. Blaine at the same time recognized per-
sonally a large number of the citizens whom he had
met only once, and that a good many years before,,,
At a reception given by Governor Smith at. his
house in New Hampshire, I stood a few feet away
from Mr. Blaine- and heard him personally greet by
name 200 or 300 persons, many of whom hq had
never met but once. One man, after shaking hands
with Mr. Blaine, remarked: "I suppose you do not
remember me, Mr. Blaine, as it is twelve years ago
since I saw you." Mr. Blaine quickly replied ; " Oh,
yes, I remember you well. You were at Mr, Blank's
house when I was there in 1872.'' I afterward asked
Mr. Blaine in regard to that particular person and he
said that he met him at a reception in another city
twelve years before, which illustrates his wonderful
niemory of faces. ^ ,,
. QUICK TO SEE A POINTi
One of the most notable things in regard to ^Ar;.
Blaine's skill as a party leader was his alertness in
seizing upon a position on difficult or exciting public
questions that would be likely to receive the support
of his party and to be popular in the country. A mis-
take by an opponent would be seen by Mr. Blainq
almost immediately, and he was not slow to take ad-
vantage of it. perhaps thi$ could not be lll^stiatfid
better than in his celebrated statement on the t^nlT
question sent from Europe in reply to I^r. Cleveland s
n.
■'i}
- T..,M
.•£« >a4
^•M
^'J.S-J
:?:i.^
480
LIFE OF HON. JAMES 6. BLAINE.
message in 1887.' Mr. Blaine gave the keynote of
the atmpaign to his party in that message.
In the hundreds of speeches which I have he^rd
him deliver he always made an effort to bring out one
central point that would fix the attention of his
hearers. He did not like to deliver long speeches.
He preferred, as he told me himiself, to handle on^
topic in sucn a way as to make an impression and ,
leave to others the work of entertaining the audience.
For that purpose he generally took with him a speaker
who could put an audience in good humor, and Mr.
Blaine would confine himself to one or two of the cen-
tral issues of the campaign. Many of his speeches
were delivered with a view of reaching the entire
country, rather than the audience to which he was
speaking. He had a clear voice and a direct, simple
manner of stating questions that always made it easy
for the people to understand him. -^r?: ?f{*f
Mr. Blaine rarely wrote out a speech. I remember
only one speech in the campaign of 1884 that he wrote
out in advance, and then he had been grossly misrejf:^
resented, and he desired to put himself right in such
a way that thefe would be no excuse for continuing
the misstatements. The speech I refer to was deliv-
ered in the State Fair grounds at Manchester, New
Hampshire, and I held die manuscript in my hands
while Mr. Blaine spoke, arid I found that he did nbt
(fevlate hardly a word from what he had written,
although he did not write the speech more than an
hour before it was delivered, and had had no oppor-
l?^*r:
MAN AX0N6 KEN.
481
tunity to do more than read it after he had compieted
the manuscripts.
HIS LITERARY STYLE. .
i. Mr. Blaine's literary style has been criticised by
some of the men who posed as critics on such mat-
ters, but most of the people generally will agree witli
Senator Hoar in the statement that the dead leader
had ** a marvelous literary instinct*' His style was
free from exaggeration and excess, and the little poses
of phrase so often affected by writers. Mr. Blaine
was a splendid Latin student, and yet none would
ever be aware of the fact so far as the use of Latin
phrases in his speeches and writings are concerned. ..
I asked him once if he thought it wasr worth while
for a boy to spend his time learning the dead languages.
He replied that he did not think that Greek was of
any particular advantage, excepting' to men who itt-
tended to pursue a literary life or special calKngs that
would make researches ^into the works of ancient an.,
thors necessary. But he said that Latin, in his opinion,
iRas decidedly necessary in the forfnation of a correct
English style, and, he added that whatever there was
of good in his style he attributed to his study of Latin.
As 40 modern languages, he thought them an advan*
tagejn some cases, but to the great majority of men
h^ ^ught the time might be more ach^antageously
em^oyed than in studying modern languages, outside
pf ^ English. In the case of his owii sons, however,
hesaki.that he had Walker and. Emmons boi^ l^xnk
French an^ German, and had givelii them an opportu-
Pi
d\
'•HS
M:f.
*1
, "f^
482
UFE OF HON. JAMES O. BLAINE.
'V
nity to perfect themselves in the languages by study
abroad
HIS EULOGY ON GARHELD.
Senator Hoar in speaking of Mr. Blaine's literary
works, says that his eulogy on Garfield has always
. seen ed to him (Mr. Hoar) one of the most exquisite
productions of the dass to which it belonged. This
recalls to mind the fact that Mr. Blaine in giving me a
bound copy of that eulogy, with an autograph inscrip^
tion in it, remarked that he took as much pride in that
address as in anything he had ever delivered or
written; v.'^ .
^': The death of Garfiela was a great blow to Mr.
.Blaine. He told me that had GarBeld lived he had no
doubt before the end of his term that the RepuUicayi
^rty would be thoroughly united, and the animosity
that had grown out of the effort to renominate Gen^
eral Grant for a third term would have died out under
the kindly influences of Garfield's administration. Al-
diough Mr. Blaine is everywhere known for hisaggres-
siveness in politics, yet he was in no sense a vindictive
man, and was personally anxious to live on terms of
peace and good-will with everybody. . He was anxious
tb be reconciled to Conkling, and the fact that they
never were reconcifed was not Mr. Blaine's fault, as I
know of my own personal knowledge.
WOULD HAVE SOLIDIFIED THE PARTY.
Ahhough the nomination of Judge Robertson lor
Collector of New York by Garfield was ascribed to
Blaine, there ia good reasons for saying that Blain^
^ -^, -*
t -'■■.."
▲ UAXtr AMONG MEIT; -^^l
.4S3
vdtd not dictate it. But even had he done do, there tras
no good reason for Conkling pursuing the course lliat
he did in the matter. Judge Robertson was quoted
vm a recent interview as saying that General Arthur
^ made a great mistake when he did not keep Mr.
%Bklne in his Cabinet, as it would have solidified 'the
pEirty and insured President Arthur's renominatlon. $
> That recalls a remark that Mr. Blaine made to me
tlir discussing the same subject. He said that he did
-not care to reniain in President Arthur's Cabinet^ but
;that he would have done so if it had been insisted
upon, and he thought that President Arthur had an op-
^rtunity to unite the party and to bring about ah era
cof good feeling,' such as would not be likely to ocdur
again m a long time. President Arthur took die oth^r
vi^urse and made the great mistake of going to Albany
.tto try and re-elect Mr. Conkling, and as Judge Rdb-
eirtson says, "President Arthur got no thanks for it''
During the campaign of 1884 efforts were made by
inutual friends to bring Mr. Conkling |ind Mr. Blaine
together, and also to bring Mr. Arthur to New York
%o preside at a meeting where Mr. Blaine was presid-
ing.^ But so far as Mr. Conkling and Mr. Arthur were
•concerned, the efforts were a failure. Although Mr.
'■ Arthur was spending a short vacation at the residence
of Mr. Frelinghuysen, in New Jersey, only a short
distance from New York, yet he refused to attend the
meeting, and I know that Mr. Blaine felt hurt as a
^ re^t of that foyiure. - * ' '^^i^ '' ^
■it]
'.-^fi
■ .&4
i .J
'V
•^/
484
LIFE or aoir. james d. i^lainb.
jw.
A good deal has been written and siaid kbbut 1
Blaine's return to New York aftfer his visit ta the
West in the campaign of 1884, and in regard to the
dinner he attended gotten up by the late Cyrus W.
Field, and the consequent Burchard incident which
would not have happened if Mr. ^ Blain^ had carrieid
out his original intentions of not returning to New
York city.
THAT FATAL NEW YORK DINNER.
. I discussed that matter at a good deal of lengl^
with Mr. Blaine two years afterward, ahdhe4oM irie
then, as he told me at thie time, that he d!d not wattt
to return to New York .city, and was persuaded against
his will to do so. He said that he could not rdusci tb
attend the dinner given by Cyrus W. Ffeld tvithout
offending some of the prominent niana'gei's in his can-
vass. Mr. Field had been v^ry active In assistm^ ih
the work of the campaign, and, as a r^ult, Mr; Blain^e
allowed himself to be persuaded b/ ex-Senator Pla^tt
and others to return to New York, which unqiiestibn^
ably caused him the loss of the Presidency. i^^>^
As to the Burchaird incident, I was present in the
hotel at the time the speech was delivered. I did not
myself notice Mr. Burchard make th^ remark thait
was attributed to him. But a few minutes later
ec-CoUector Murphy, of New York, who is himsdf id
Roman Catholic, came to me in the corHdOr of th^
hot^ and remarked that if something was not dbn|i
right away to offset what Burch&rd had' said ill Hi^i
^eeh that it would do great harii^, b^U^f^c^lM^
■>.»<<%..
^i.
>"«
,;'.V«^»'? v'
4. MAK illONO MEK.
485
Clitic newspaper correspondents, who were there
'within St few feet of us at that moment, were preparing
to make the most of it .
,' n^ t? MR. BLAINE'S UNCONCERN.
I immediately went up to Mr. Blaine's room to see
ihini about it, and found that he was not aware that
anything of the Idnd had been said. But he remarked
that an attempt to correct an alleged statement of that
kind might do as much harm as good, as it would
q^end the Protestants, particularly those of the bigoted
kind. He did not seem to think that the matter was
of any particular importance. 3^ ,.^
, Two hours later when I had learned that the Demo^
crats were preparing to circulate this "Rum, Roman-
isini, and Rebellion " alleged statement of Dr. Burch*
ard, in the form of handbills and in other ways, I again
saw Mr. Blaine about the matter, but found that he
was fiot rotich concerned. It was not until late in the
next day that his friends persuaded him to make the
s^tement that be did in regard to the matter. Many
persons have blamed Mr. Blaine for not replying to
Dr. Burcbard at the time the remark. was made, but
there is no doubt that he never heard the remark if it
was ever made, and although I was listening to the'
speech, though not with much rire, I did not hear it
Willi Mr. Blaine's extraordinary alertness and skill in
nialctng use of any incident of that kind if he had heard
itfj^ would undoubtedly have been prompt to reply«
A goodnisuiy persons have undertaken to ridicule states
.f|^^it9ito. th^ e J^t Mr. Blali^e wa^ defeated for
*■ -1" '
■*'.•.»"' V,.Y
UFE or BdK /AHES 0. BLAINE.
4^6
tliJB Pfelsid^tityr^iby the use Democrats mide of
auleged remark on the part of Dr. Burchard. I h^ve^
good reiasoii for saying that it is capable bf proof that'
ehoqgh votes were changed in that way to account
for his defeat in New York. ''*^^H-^;
■J . •■ '■' i' '.rfjii;-; -v/iJ
MANY VOTES CHANGED.
Handbills were circulated at every Catholic Church
in New York on^ the following Sunday, headed; "See*
what Bliaine says," and then the remark was ascribed
to Mr. Elaine himself. A handbill of that kind was
delivered at nearly every house. in Brooklyn, and,
among others, at my own. Some time^after the e\tt^
tion a considerable number of men were placed at my
disposal, and I was charged with the duty of tnvdstf-
gating to see if I could ascertain whether or noi! any^
votes actually h^d been changed as a result of th^ ti^
the Democrats made of that alleged remark of Dr;
fiurchard. I found a number of men who were willing"
to acknowledge that they changed their votes on that
account. One of these was the president of a larger
Catholic educational institution in the upper part of
New York city. He told me that he intended to vote
for Mr. Blaine, but he changed his mind and voted fbr
Mr, Cleveland, because the Catholic Church had been
insulted in Mr. Blaine's presence and be Had not
* i^assing a certain jewelry store the sanie day I mci
^n eic-State Senator who lived in /lushing who tbiici
me of Several persons who had similaflybeetv inftcr-
^ehced. H^ went With me intb the ^eit^'s^ikikM
\
r
:>.5B,
>. - ■ . "* . ^
A MAN AMONG KEK.
487
'ij
not
-K>rr
\
the proprietor told us of a German shoemaker in the
basement of the building who had been influenced in
the same way. I saw that shoemaker, and he said
that he had changed his vote on that account, and
gave the names of several of his friends who had done
the same thing. I found a Catholic priest in West-
chester county who had advised the members of his
flock to vote against Mr. Blaine as the only way of
repelling the insult that had been^offered to the church.
Pursuing the matter further, I gathered a large
number of names of persons who were willing to
acknowledge that they had been influenced in the same
' way. Patrick Ford showed me hundreds of letters
from diflerent parts of the State telling of votes tha|
had been changed in that way, and he expressed the
opinion that thousands of votes had been lost to Blaine
on account of the Burchard incident. As Mr. Cleve-
land only had 1047 plurality in New York a change
of 550 votes would have elected Mr. Blaine. I have
never had any doubt in my own mind after that inves-
tigation that he would have Been elected had he not
returned to New York, after his trip from the West,
contrary to his own judgment.
DID NOT SEEK THE NOMINATIQN.
Mr. Blaine told me in August of 1384 that he had
not sought the nomination for President that year, and
he seemed to think that it was not a good year for a
Republican to run in. He told me in 1886 that he did
not believe that any Republican could be elected in
i,8i88, but after Mr. Cleveland's celebrated tariff mes-
' i\
^ 4/
' ''1
AM
un or uas: uniB o. blaini.
,.i>.. ^
sage Mr. Blatne changed his mind and he did think
there was a good opportunity then for the RepubUcans
to elect their candidate. - He had said before that he
would not be a candidate. But when it became evi^
dent that the campaign was to turn on the tariff, and
Mr. Bfaine had in letters from Europe expressed the
opinion that a Republican would be elected, his friends
made an effort to get him to consent to accept the nom-
ination. His health was not good, however; and he
was depressed in spirits- at that time. Still Mr.
Boutelle and others who were concerned in that effort
believe that he would have accepted had he been nom<^
inated. .
v^ Mr. Boutelle holds to the opinion that if it had 'not
been for telegrams sent from Chicago to Mr. Blatnc^
by a United States Senator and some others supposed
to be close in his confidence that Mr. Blaine would
have been nominated and elected. But in view of his
liealth during the past four years, and the organic
disease with which he was suffering, everybody must .
now concede that it would have shortened his life had
he been made President. i
Mr. Blaine was very tenacious of life, and I never
traveled with a man who was mote concerned about
his safety on railroads. He was extremely nervous,
and if anything happened in the way of a slight aoch
dent to a train it upset him at once. He was very fond
of company, and always liked to haye some one<to tajk
toi and when left to himself was very apt to lie moody
and^ mdandioly. He may have had some pfemcMiiiioit^
t
I
r
h
G
d
fa
k
\
t
».c
M
.>M';";';*^*it J
▲ MAK AMOTO MIK.
489
, 1
■%
:%
jdf Ilis oirganic trouble, but it was very evident to any
person brought much in contact with him that good
company and cheerful surroundings were necessary to
his health.
lltere was a vein of something approaching super-
stition in him which has always made me wonder that
he consented to move into the old Seward mansion,
considering the mishaps that have befallen its former
occupants.
When Mr. Blaine went out of the Cabinet at the
death of Garfield his physicians told him that it would
be necessary for him to take up some work that would
keep his mind occupied, and that was how he came to
undertake the work of writing a history of his "Twenty
Years in Congress." It was a kind of work that was
tongenial to him, and no man in the country was prob-
My so well fitted to perform it. His acquaintance
with the political history of the country and hisknowl-
edge of public men and events were second to that of
no other man. He devoted, a great deal of time to
tlhat work, and told me that it gave him more sadsfao-
tion thar anything that he had ever done. Butit is not
at all improbable that it did much to shorten his life.
" Dip NOT CHERISH ENMITY.
, ;Mr.^ Blaine did not cherish enmity. He was very
senaittve to criticism which reflected on his hoiioras a
man. In the campaign of 1S84 ex-Secretary Bayard,
who was associated with Mr. Blaine in business enter*
p^tisea^ and for whom Mr. Blaine had high regard, de^
liWed a speech in Jlrooklynia which he attacked Mr^
'\...
'■;>:>!■■-«?■
4d0
IFS OF HOK. JAMES 6. BLAINE.
Blaine's character personally on account of the Mul-
ligan letters. When I read the speech the next day I
spbke to Mr. Blaine about it. He had not seen it and
said he could hardly believe that Mr. Bayard wpuld do
a thing of that kind, and requested me to point out
the part of the speech to which I referred. I got the
paper and showed it to him. He read it, dropped th^
• paper on the floor and sat looking out of the window
in a most dejected manner for at least fifteen minutes,
evidently feeling deeply^ hurt.
Some years later, when Mr. Blaine was Secretary
of :State, I chanced to be passing down the corridor of
the Department just as Mr. Bayard stepped out of the
elevator into which Mr. Blaine was about to enter.
"Hello, Tom, how are yout " was Mr. Blaine's hearty
greeting, which was met with a similarly friendly re-
sponse on the part of Mr. Bayard, and the two locked
arms and walked off together. Remembering the
incident in regard to the speech some years before, I
was strikingly impressed with the fact that Mr. Blaine
was a very forgiving man. That was evident also in
the impiartial, not to say charitable manner, in which
he. spoke of his worst opponents in this " Twenty
Years of Congress/'
While Mr. Blaine had a good business &cu]ty, he
was very careless of details in money matters. I re-
call a curious incident in that respect One time
while on his way to a town in the extreme northeast-
ern part of Maine to deliver a speech, to reach which
it was necessary to make a long detour by rail
I
m -
j^-Sri-'
i^v:d*'<'-w>-
.m^u A iTAif AiioNa Mfiir.
m
out
the
th^
low
tes,
rail
- New Brunswick,' some iU-in formed friends^
aidyised him to break the journey by stopping all night
ii{ a little village not far from the N»iw Brunswick
frontier. My own experience with village inns led me
to endeayor to persuade Mr. Blaine against making
the stop< But he thought his friends must know the
place well, or they would not have advised him; and
so we started together from Augusta in the afternoon
<ind reached the pierce where we were to stop over
night about I o o'clock. »
v^ It was very dark, and there wag no conveyance at
the station ; and we had to get a man with a lantern
to pilot us to the inn, about a quarter of a niile off.
When we got there we found a regular old-fashioned
qountry inn. As there was to be a circus in town
next day, all the rooms were engaged, which was a
sorry outlook for Mr. Blaine and myself. But the
pitoprietor said that he would have a couple of rooms
fixed up, and so we sat down to wait. It seems that
he routed out a couple of his guests, and made them
get out of the rooms so that we could have them.
■ -When we finally got to our rooms Mr. Blaine came
into mine just as I was making a tour of inspection to
ascertain the number of bed-fellows I would have. I
found the bed was well peopled in its way, and Mr.
Blaihe'was horrified. I then went with him to his
room, and while we were not able to discover any
like* inhabitants, there were suspicious evidences of
them- about. Mr. Blaine insisted on my remaining
" Vl
"^'^t'^^'ii'.,
^!t^7i^
P2-
y-f^
^^y^
49i
LIFE OF HON. JAMES 6. BLAINE.
'*■-
with him in his room, and we did not enjoy what might
be called a tranquil night's rest
When we came to settle up in the morning I found
that Mr. Blaine had come away from home, expecting
to be gone some days, without having thought to
bring with him any money, which illustrates his dis-
regard of details.
But in his larger business transactions he was very
successful. His first entry into the newspaper busi-
ness in Maine brought him a proQt, so he told me, of
$18,000. He got die money all in cash and took it
home and put it out on the table and showed it to his
wife, with the proud satisfaction of saying that it alt .
belonged to them. That was the first money tha^it J?e ,
ever got together as a surplus, and he managed tp
invest it to good account. He lost money in some ojf
his enterprises, but as a rale they were successful, ain4
it will be no surprise if his estate foots up in the
neighborhood of a million.
;?■ ■':■'''
4
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n
to
re
W
tel
!!2
ra
fo
si
ti
i:- ;' • / ,
^vvi^lS-;*
M^
ght
'U5S,
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t ■'.■>'''>■; 'S * • ■ •
CHAPTER XXIII.
^Igj^j^^ Home Life and Personal Tnut9. ■ .r-mz.
Nd indre fascinating spot exists m xVashingtQn
t6 the avbhige sightseer than the late home of Sec-
r^tiary Blaine. Mri Blaitie had Had several homes in
Ws^shington^ — a modest three-story residjeiice on Ftf* ,
teeh^ Street; the'tOwering mansion on Dupont circle j
an elegant house on Lafayette square; and fte big, ;
raniib^ng structure which decorative art had trans- <
fbrnied into a most luxurious residence. : "?
flo. 1 7 Madison place boasts b*f a career ?w diver-
sified as that of a modern politician. It has been in
turn dwelling house, boarding house, government
office and twice the home of the premier of the ad-
ministration. The third floor under the slanting roof
sheltered a Chief Executive of the nation. President
Polk having lived there for the four nionths of the
White House repairs. In Secretary Seward's occu-
pancy it was the social headquarters of the wealth and
distinction of the day. On the memorable night of his
attempted assassination a scene of horror was enacted
under its roof, the memory^ of which seems as fresh as
if it were an incident. of yesterday. After yekrs of
is
'l^
rii
ti.
■«/«
%
' ■<
m
494
LIFE OF HOir. JAHSS i:^. BLAINB.
:v -
service as a government ofifice the house was finally
vacated and leased by Secretary Blaine. bi«j anpv&W
He made it one of the cosiest of faomes^not
spacious enough for large entertainmentsi Init ju^t thd
thing for tlie conveniences and smaller hospiiadities
re.
SECRETARY BLAINE'S DINING-ROOM.
that Mrs. Blaine had contem()]ated; It has a cheerial
look at' night, with the light streaming from every
window, and particularly from the kitchen ind t|«&
servants' quarters, which, after the style of thdioli
days> stretch out in a long L atthe bade ./ri/vT
Ily
ies
7^
SjC
M
™^?3^^fi-^^;r
^■^^w^mw
V-',?^^5!^?SP
1 •
•
HOMB LIFE.
^
K 495
. ■■■■■^.
■oii
.
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^
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<
Be ''
."
-
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-jj
*
■
v ■ , " .1
, ■ - ,:
1
(
1
INtERIOR ARRANGEMENTS.
On one side of the hall is a small parlor, decorated
in white and gold, where Mr. Blaine saw his callers;
It is furnished in antique mahogany in a comfortable
and pleasing style. The family are welcomed there,
and occasionally breakfast is served there, so that the
room does not at all take on the look of a regular
workshop. The dining-room is on the other side of
the hall, facing the street, and is rather small, since
the table will only accommodate eighteen persons. It
isturni^l^ in antique oak, and is bright and cheerful,
if kee|king lirith all the rest of the house. Upstairs
tho drawing-room occupies the entice width of the
^house. It is light and delicate in coloring, and pale
olive, with a touch of crimson^, as the predominating
tint. Adjoinii^ on one side was Mr. and Mrs.
Bfalne's bedroom, and opposite, at the other side of
the hi^l^ IS the library. ^ \ ^
The )ibt»ry is the favorite sitting-room of the house-
hold. TtiieiiC intimate friends join them there, and in
the late afternoon the young ladies are sure to be
found ^ere with such of their friends who drop in. *
They keep up the English custom of oSering a cup of
tea and a sweet bite ^ij those who come in. After,
dinner Mr. Blaine always joined his family, and the
group about that library table was generally one of
unusual distinction. The room has a good north
light It is finished in mahogany. The walls are
Itsed with low bookshelves, there are several rplendid
qinvases, in nearly every corner are writing tables
i-..'.-
I' <
' -^
496
LIFE QP HOST. J3kMIS G. BLAINS.
i»;
s?^.' -
and desks, piles of books are on t^bl^ aitd tnaht^sl;
and there is always an air lingering of thft iiieill^ s^nd
social relaxation that the room witntsses^^*^ ^i*^^^ ^**^^-^*J
■ yV
COIiONIAL TASTES.
The furniture throughout the house is in hantiony
with the colonial style predominating in its architec-
ture. Much of it was brought from the Bklhes*
Augusta home, but most of it Was selected by Mriii^
Blaine in New York. There are many fine pictures^ .
on the walld, a few that they bought during Chdir l^t^
trip to Europe, And many old engfraving^ anid printis^;
that are fiuniliar to all who remember the Ibok^' th^'
Augusta home.. •..,,_*! c^v..^^ ::j,y4U:;i|vf
it was considered rather an untisuaf tbtdf ISi' !Se^^,
retary Blaine to take up his home iii a house tlih^^^
by the histoiy of an attempted fnunder^af^d pdd|)l^';
widi a superstitious turn of mind indulged in tnln^ fe-
marks when, to let more light and sun int6 thehbusc^^^.
Mr. Blaine had four windows cut into the ^dn^ wiilV.'^'f
The Blaine home in Augusta is not extra^^ifl]^
furnished. It is simply comfortable and artistic ^tM^
hftuse and indosed grounds are richly shaded %ith^
apple trees, and all the sqrroundingd are tfitit'^ 4M^
neat but plain New England style; The - stintm'eif '
residence at Bar Harbor is quite a ^reten^ous c&ttagie.
It is called the "Stetnwood," for tlie famify nkincll'of"
Mlrsv Blaine. Mr. Blaine never gav6 tip hi^lKim^t^
his hon^ life in Maiiie, but for nearly diittjry^
maintaitiedahomeln Washingtom^ Jk ^W-^rt^i(li^
first enMnir W»8h^gton,he|>iJt«d6a«^
^^n^
u#l.t*
lit
■'V^
»
HOm UFI.
40?
at^Sai W^st Fifteeath Street; where he lived while in
Washington for about ten years. Early in the seven-
ties he had built a Bne new residence in Dupont Circle.:
The death of Garfield changing his plans, he leased
t^ house, a^nti returned to^ Maine. nfi^ t r^
:. THE SEWARD HOUSE.
AboMt the beginning of President Harrison's Ad»
ministration, after he had begun his duties as Secre-
tary of State, Mr. Blaine purchased his late home»
which has always been known as the Seward House,
c|e5f:ribed above. The old place had been unoccupied
for some time, and was in a dilapidated condition.
Mr. Blaine gave it a thorough overhauling, and, with-
out destroying the quaint features of the old-fashioned
apfc^te^ture, he changed it into an elegant home,^ithi
i^q4ern equipments and facilities. !i ^'
. Xhe house has some very gloomy associations, hs^ -
first occupant was Secretary Spencer, whose son, a.^
young lieutenant in the navy, was hanged at sea early
in !|b!e» ^rti^s for an alleged attempt at mutiny. Dur-
ing Buchanan's Administration the Washington CluSc
occupied it» and it was from it that Philip Barton Key*'
walked out into the sunny street just before he was
shot and killed by General Daniel E. Sickles.
Se<;retary Seward was the hext to occupy it. And
00^ A|>ril 14, 1865. Louis Payne forced his way intoi^
^i^oli^ chambers where the Secretai^ was lying ill
ati^ 8tahbe4 him nearly to death. For four years after;
tl|i%1ithe^W0r Department kept d patrol there day and ^
, ^^t^|fal»M^flQt a4l(l«t l^^fffutl^tion of the hoySe^H
-, - jr;g
:- '*■ ^ , ". ■ - ■■■■' •v"'",. >••
;- r
498
LIFE or HON, JAMES 6. BLAINE.
\^
['#
;d.
After Secretary Seward, Secretary Belknap was the
tenant and he had hardly got his household settled
when his wife died very unexpectedly. He soon re-
moved and after this the house remained unoccupied
until 1889, when Mr. Blaine established himself and
family in it Within two years and a half Mr, and
BLAINE'S FAVORITE SEAT AT HIS BAR HARBOR VILLA.
Mrs. Blatne lost then* three eldest children and the
Secretaiy himsdf died in the house. Gloomy tradi-
tiOns have hung over the house for a half century, and
the latest death within its walls will not tend to dispel
-g.^ljratAT BAR HARBOR, V
During; the liimmer Mr. Slaiiie )if ed-opi hffk{H>rcil at
^<s-J.
v
n
LLA.
nd ^
r tradi-
ry,and
dispd
orcbat
hoUe Lira.
499
;'^r Harbor, Maine, a great deal of the time and *
' ^seeriied to enjoy immensely having his. granddvildr^n
^bbuthinito talk with. This Bar Harbor cottageis
^--ai' large building and is chietiy remarkable for its great
; veranda, which completely encircles the house. -A
'beautiful view can be had from its porches, on which
j the family almost lived in the summer time. It is
'about twenty feet wide where it overlooks Mou^t
i Desert Bay. . - i
I Mr. Blaine was very fond of Biar Harbor, an^ occa-
i sionally, when in a reminiscent tnood, wo^ld tell Ims
j visitors of the time when he ihight have bou|[h!t Jhe
; whole island for $5oa BIf .. Blalfle s^'id^ titat whj^;he
die Maine Legislaturq he had for a seat iiiajte
ffan >Rodick, the original setder and (^ropriet^r
^yi^ilibrtd. Piis wa§ in 1856. The tw^ men l>e-
#ell acquainted, ind one summer R<^ck. ask^
ia#^'M|r to fliis home. Rodick live4i>lone on
isl^ili Mr. BlaJhe ivent there and aclmired; tfie
$^:0:^a0y, whereupon Rodick oflered to seH it to
" HfS^ SOCIAL QUALITIES.
Personally Mr. Blaine was a delightful man ; whether
at his home or at his position of duty his caller Mras
always received with dignified courtesy and consider-
ktion, and it was a charming trait of his that all those,
w!^ whom he came in contact were made to feel' Ihat
he always felt in them and their affairs the interesi of
a friend. Thousands recall brief association with him'
wlfliidlfrhi^ and many are the stories that^an be told
. f-A
-5,:^.
>5, ■ .
fiOO
LIFE OF BOK. JAXIS Q. BLAINE.
>">'
of Mr. Blaine*s remarkable memory of faces and
names.
High as his position in Washington became, Mr>
Blaine always kept in close touch with all his old
friends in Augusta and throughout Maine* and always
on his visits to the State upon which he cast so much
honor, his hand was ready and willing to grasp thf!
hands of all those whom he met. His bonie was al-
ways open to all the citizens of Augusta. He was
idolized by the Republicans of his State and admired
and often voted for by the men of other parties. In
his life as a citizen there was never the slightest osten-
^tion» no display of money, no assumption of soc^l
supremacy. ,
When Mr. Blaine returned home from a season in
Washington with his family to Augusta, he and- h|s
entered into the life of the little city as heartily as di4
any of the inhabitants. Mr. Blaine was often on the
street and he seldom rode. Mrs. Blaine w^s prqoni-
nent In church work apd mingled freely aniong many
friends, while the sons and daughters did not hold
themselves off from the other youth of dhe city, but
enjoyed what they enjoyed. , ,;
FAVORITE IN SOCIETY. ;
Mr. Blaine .was exceedingly popular in society, aRfl
his fame reached across the Atlantic. The l^ndon
Wor^ published a. sketch of him immedi^^ly^^ftqr
his appo^iDt^ent as Secretary of S(ate in i^o Offili^
Cabinei part of which is wprthyof reprQ4u€|tiojpi^i|i
this notice. After descn^ng his poHi^al c^fef^.l^
1
•
BOMK uns.
501 1
'|)aying a ju^t tribute* to his statesmanlike attributes,
the article thus depicts his daily life at Washington
during the session of Congress: "Mr. Secretary
Btaihe*s house is incontestably the most popular in
Washington, dn Wednesday afternoon, the day in
Washington When during the session the wives of
Cabinet Ministers and those of foreign ambassadors
receive, there is no house in the American capital so
crowded. Whatever the weather, however thin the
attendance in other drawing rooms, there is always a
^throftg at Mr. Blaine's. Nor is this due to the im-
portance di his present position as Secretary of State.
It was the same when he was in Congress, whether as
mendber or Speaker of the House. It was the same
when he was in the Senate. It would be the same if
Mr. Blaine were not in p6litics. People go there be-
cause they like Mr. Blaine and all his family, which
tonsisCs of his intellectual and ladylike wife, a kins-
woman of brilliant reputation in American letters who
uses ^efum de plume of ' Gail Hamilton/ and six fine
and premising children.
"In the examination of the drawing rooms at Mr.
Blaine's we find among other valuable possessions'
one very interesting picture — a large caiivas by Sir
Peter Lely; representing Charles II. and his Court. It
'Ut ftigned with the date 1658. It was painted by Sir
l^ter for Lord Baltimore and was bought bjr Mn
'Bfaiine for a sum of comparative unimportance at the
•^e of the Cilvcrt estate, Riverdale,Md., some ife^
%i^rti: lago. 'jniyile Is adt an art gallery lii Europe;
^i
■ ' .. 'J!
-*'.
6(^'^
LIFE OP HOK. SAUXB O. BLAIKE.
ltr..l
puUic or private, whidi would not be enriched by tliis'''
large historical picture, full of portraits and' ek^cui^
in l^ely*s most delicate and yet most anirtiated style.'*'^ ''
''Near at hand on a pedestal stands a fine life-sizie
bust of Mr. Blaine, as good a likeness of the states-^
man as could perhaps be obtained in this form of a''
man, the charm of whose features lies principally lii'^
their mobility and' ever changing play.' Portraits df '
men of letters abound here. Thackeray, Dickens; '
Disraeli, Washington Irving, Hawthorne and manfy'
otiiers gaze down from the walls, principally in th^ '
last of the siiite of drawing rooms— ^the one in which'"
the Premier sits of a morning before going to the t)e- '
partment of State, examining such letters as impersip^
tively demand his attention at home. Routine coi'-
respondence was carried on by secretaries in a vast |
room at the top of the house, and was an enorhlOiis^
and never ceasing task."
HIS PERSONAL APPEARANCE. ,.„
As to personal appearance, there is one adjectiV^
which best describes Mr. Blaine. He. was command'^
Jrig, hot only in stature, but particularly so in featured; ^
up to the close of his life. Mr. Blaine was a splendid
type of manhood. Straight as a Maine pine, brOad- "^
shouldered and stout, yet as light of step as ah athlete,
he was a man who would compel attention, even from'
the few who might not recognize him. He had a full; ^
high forehead, large, keen, observant eyes, pf a }i(|uj<^^'
manrietism, a nose aquiline and sllgh^y promii^,e»)t
and of the sort to emjf>ha^ the strength of d^li^l^^
tl
nj
P
i .
.-v^&fa
■i
In
. 4
Bom tin.
60$
of its owner. His short, cropped beard, which half
concealed the lower portion of his face, gave him a
semi-military air.
In speech, Mr. Blaine was rapid, but distinct in
utterance and clear cut in exprersion. It vas his
masterly arrangement of the facts and his .^asp of the
logic of the situation, rather than eloque co, that made
what he said so effective. He wa> vrjver super •^JOUs.
He seldom sought occasion to speak, and almost
always spoke extemporaneously, his wonderful knowl-
edge of the minutest portions of the country's political
history and his retentive memory making prepared
efforts quite unnecessary, save on most important oc-
casions. The greatest oration of his life was undoubt-
edly his eulogy of Garfield. There are few more
eloquent or beautiful l Ibutes in print in the English
language.
SOME OF HIS HABITS.
Mr. Blaine waf always a hard personal worker.
This may be illustrated by the fact that in the corre-
spondence with the authorities of Italy in reference to
the New Orleans affair, he wrote all the letters himself,
not even using an amanuensis. The cares of his high
position ever rested lighdy on him, and it was not un-
til domestic sorrows came crowding in upon him thick
and ^t that Mr. Blaine began to need the services
of physicians, and that the country became fearful for
hisii|ealth^
A gientleman who was Intimately acquainted with
Mr. B^ine^said tjbat, in his opinion, Mr. Blain^ broke
■i.;<i:a.elK4«a«>»9U«M>li«U«M>>KM'«''A»' -v. -....«
• ■?.,"'-■ 1"', ■
n-
f^l-.
LIF£ OF HOir» JAltBS O. BLAINS.
himself down by intemperate work and irregular hab-
its of eating. Mr. Blaine was a highfpressure worker.
Whenever he became deeply interested tn a subject; Mr.
Blaine would shut himself up in his room» would not
allow himself to be disturbed, and would not eat» sleep,
or rest until he hod
pnmsviyANuiMsnTUTiM
Ml rut
mmCTlONflFTlieSUNB
f^Tt bfl C!»1\
finished his task. He
seemed to have
adopted the motto
which thegreai; elleb-
trician, Edison, who
works in much the
same way, gave tola
youdi, *< Don't kicdc
at the clock."^^^ qi
An examf^ of Mh
Blaine's habit 6f con*
tinued, uninterrupted
labor was furnish^
in the eariy partel'
the Behring Sea cor-
respondence. He
became intensely
BLAINE'S CHAIR IN THE BUND ^bsorbed in carrying
AsvLVM. on tilts correspond-
ence with Great Britain, and would redre to his room
Krhere he worked with law books, diplosnattc co r r sq w n d-
«nce, and papers. piled high around him. H^ wottid
start in after breakfast^ and sometimes.would work on
Yt^adily, without rest or food, ui^il nine or ten o'clock
djffii*
Mi^M''-tj
unB.
606
V
«it^^t Th«n he would be loo fatigued to eat, and
thie next mornrng would make up for it. These tits
df labor would use him up for a week.
He was not a large eater, but he was very irregular
^ his eating. Apparently he had no marked fond-
ineiss foi^ any kind of food. He did not care for fancy
^ dishes^ and when travding seldom consulted the men|i,
>but told the waiter to
bring him a good meal.
He liked plain, old-fash-
ioned cooking. When-
"<iVer he did taste ahy-
.thing . which greatly
f>lcjased iiim it was hard
to get him to quit, and
/he would continue to
eat, despite his watchful
• wile^s admonitions. Iil
rfohner years he \|ras
ifond-of horseback riding
and took considerable
exercise, but afterward
lie showed much disinclination to bodily exertion.
^ '^^*^ • DELIGHTFUL MANNERS.
f. The personality of James G. Blaine was peculiar to
/an extent which distinguished him from the vast
majority of politicians. He was a man widi remavk-
•iibly chalking manners, an easy and agreeable dis-
position, and a refinement and cultivation far above
.^average. It is said that no, man could meet him
BLAINE'S TAVbRITE REATDING-
CHAIR.
B--.A.;
506
LIFE OF HON. MMBS G. BLAIKE.
without being fascinated by him, and he had ji recol-
lection for names and faces which has become pro-
verbial, i-i ,^
Mr. Blaine was a man with what Chesterfield would
have called " a distinguished manner ; " not that he
was ceremonial or pompous, but he possessed that
grace and smoothn.ess which 'is generally supposed to
bespeak a lofty and cultivated mind. No one could
meet him without knowing instinctively that he was a
man, not only of thought, but of reading. The char-
acteristic of his mind was that he looked at every sub-,
ject from the veiy« broadest standpoint On all
subjects of a political, economic, or historical nature
he was accustomed to generalize about the great
results before coming down to the minute details, and
it was this which fitted him for leadership,
IDOL OF THE RURAL POPULATION, •
Energetic and active, he wa% possessed of a restless
nature which inspired life in every enterprise which
he undertook. The enthusiasm and devotion which
he inspired among his followers was a phenomenon
without a parallel in American politics. . It was a sin-
gular fact that this feeling of enthusiasm for Mr.
Blair.e was strongest among that section of the people
to which we have been taught to look for the truest
exemplars of the homely and uhcorrupted virtues of
American citizenship.
Mr. Blaine was emphatically the candidate of the
rural voters, in contrast to the people of the great
cities. The most earnest opponents of machine poli-
mj
b(
h(
a
tt
H01» laFBi^O^^'
:^0. -j^*^^
607
tici''fc¥d- beeh 'me most zealous in laboring for his
advaincement Fifty years ago this rural popularity
would have been enough to insure his election by a
lafg:^*hiaj6rity. But in thfe last half century the per-
cei^tagfe of rile civic element in the United States has
int^y^sed so rapidly that a candidate, now has to sat-
isfy another dass of voters.
A MAN OF THE PEOPLE.
While thoroughly conversant with the abstract prin- ^
cipl^s of political economy, Mr. Blaine was essentially
a tnAn of the' people, fond of human society and com-
psihion^hip and wide in his feelings and sympathies.
Fr<)m early childhood he had been accustomed to
popularity among his acquaintances. When he entered
Cbrigr^ss without much reputation his magnetism at
once made itself felt in that political clearing-house,
and he easily became the most popular member of
thsit body. Mr. Blaine was always generous in 4iis
syhipathies, and he overflowed with animal spirits,
whfch made him the life of every assemblage. * In the
society of the capital he was equally at home and
universally run after. ♦
At first it was thought that this ease and grace of
mind and body were all that made up his political
c^jpital, but that idea was quickly dispelled when he
began to display capacities for leadership. The Biai n e,
however, of 1892 was far different from the Blaine Who
caVne to Congress as a simple Maine journalist and
ex-State legislator. He 'vas constandy improving
through Observation, rea iiiig, and experience, and
,'''^i
^ I ■
?f>'!f*^^^^:-^f;:5?p|^
f
■ft-
fi08
' UFB OF HOITi IAMBS O. BLAlNl,
drawtiig muck that was helpful from those with whom
he came in contact. ; loi^-q
Mr. Blaine's range of knowledge extended for
beyond the domain of politics. He was fond of poeti^
aiid works x>f fiction, laid down a novel la pick up a
descriptive sketch of a remote period, and was inter-
ested in music and paintings -V H '
" HIS HIGH TEMPER.
It has been said that the principal characteristics x>{
Mr. Blatne*» intellectual make-up were those which he
derived from his Celtic ancestry. He was highly
developed on the side of his imagination and sympa^
thies, and possessed a nimbleness and facility of mind
that was rare. These were joined to ^dnaltng per-
sonal qualities that would distinguish any man from
}m fellows* if - ;i>
> Mr. Blaine occasionally lost his temper. He would
get very angry now 4nd dien without warning, btit
d)is as quickly subsided and he would fesume his
cheerftil, social manner. He i.ad the quality of humor
which is conspicuous by its absence in many another
'American statesman. Mr. Blaine never was duU^
Mere association with him lifted peofde out of theMT
(Dommonplac^ lives and excited heroic emotions. Me
couH k seemed, instill life into the deadest sjubjeolsi
and even the most stupid men felt the intoxicatkin of
his presence* u.
U has been said that Mr. ^aine wa^ so fi|r siiperiof
to the general average in this country that -h^cpill^
not logically daiman olScellke ^e P|i!sk^^» wti^
U
is
M^."^
•>i^'';
ani/.tu
BOH^U0iL^^'f
far
upa
I inter*
icisx>l
ich he
Wghly
f mind
g per-
k from
would
tg, but
ne hh
htunar
Lnotbet
s duU^
»f thciir
8. He
ibjeG|9i
ttoiiof
iipenojT
is siippdsed>t«i be representative of the American
people. Intellectually he was the superior of most
of the Pr^idents. Mr. Blaine had many of the quali-
tieid of Garfield, and the two were in long and intimate
as$ociation before the latter was nominated. He dif-
■fer^d in almost every respect from Roscoe Conkling.
. Henry Clay is believed at Washington to have been
4 -4. ;the only man in American history peculiar for the
<|uditied which distinguished Blaine, but it is likewise
believed that Blaine was the greater of the two in the
possession and exercise of these qualities. The^careers
, of ^ the two men show many singular parallels.
$j«*i * Hig PERSONAL MAGNETISM.
^ M^ great charm of this man lay in what has been
90 often caUed his personal magnetism. Great orator,
debater, statesman as he was, he would never haVig
Numbered his friends by the million had these beeif
his only striking qualities. What made him realty
great was the strong power which he possessed ovei;
men, both as masses and individuals. As an orator
he stood in the fksl rank. In his speeches^^ action
played a leading part He rarely stood in front of
his desk, biit was wont to move out into the aisle, and
odten advanced toward his opponent with upHHed
fflenadng 6nger. Wit and sarcasm were favorite
weapons with him, and his sallies were invariably
greeted with hearty laughter. There was common
ll^itse in alt his utterances and snap in his mode of
fkpressiofir During the winter of 1875-76 he had
itoHy bouts with pdSticsd opponents, and not only did
■i'm
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i^
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L« -
(610)
BLATNB AND GRANT STARTING FOR A WAUL
nOMK LIFE.
51T^
he hold his own most gallantly, but he also won ap-
plause from unprejudiced audiences and adverse
majorities. To account for such influence all that
can be said is that quickness and personal magnetism
constituted the quintessence of the powerful impres-
sion produced by his speeches.
Great, too, was his power of ridicule, as the few who
ventured to expose themselves . to his withering
sarcasm learned to their cost. How many apt nick-
names he, invented for his political opponents ! £^rly
tQ his career, iAcensed at Conkling's over-bearing
banner and excessive pomposity, he applied to him
the. epithet of "Turkey gobbler." Soon afterward
^muor Conkling was asked if he would never forgive
Blaine. 1** Never," he replied, "so long as memory
finds a place in ^is distracted brain of mine ! '^ Cox,
•of New York, owed to Blaine his sobriquets of *^Suti-
y set*' and ^ I}ewdrop/* and l^aine h^s also been charged
With describing Bu^er,^ of Miassachusetts, as "a lamen^^
^lably stiecessiiil cross between ^(qxsLnd a hog! "
HE WAS A MILLIONAIRE. ,
As to Mr. Blaine's wealth, it is not^ easy to form
in approximately exact estimate. He was among tlie
Hsf ormilltonaires. His holdings of coal lands Ifi
W^tern Pennsylvania, which he inherited froni; h^
filler, are very liirge and have been very profitsible.
^ ' jFfe was assoe&IUed with a number of men of weailth
l" \m various enterprises, and his sagacity and business^
I ibresight k<^t hini from wasting much money on
I brilliant but illusory speculative projects. He wasT
i' -■
>.*
«-.v
512
Un OF LON. JAMBd (}. BLAINB.
interested with Secretary l^lkins years si^o in ai silyc^^
mine/ out of whieh he made considerable hxQhey.''l^(^
owned valuable real estate in Washington. ,' '
Mr. Blaine bought his Dupont Circle properl!)/, now '
almost in the heart of the fashionable Northwest, wh^d
Stewart Castle, which is across the way, was thougi|[);
to be out in the suburbs. The grounds and the hbus^
cost him approximately $85,000. Two or three years
ago he sold a number of the lots in the rear of liis '
house for 1^^5,000. The house and the reniaihin^''
ground is valued by competent juclge^ at ^t$6fid6^'l
Mr. Leitef, Mr« Blaine's tenant, Originally paid ^lir
000 a year ren^ which has been reduced to |!i&,o6pTn^
consideration of !ilr. Leiter malcing certain re';^ira,
necessary |ft!er the fire, which came near consuming
iXt Thet h0use on Laff yet|e ^square hie at first ren|<9fl^^'
for ^ree years, with i^a option of purchasing lfoi'|o$,-
dop. H^ took advan^ge of the Optibn^ahd bc^ughfi/
the piooertaf after $lx itionths residence. .
^' OTHER PROPERTIES.
He alto owned some valuable ground on P street'
and a considerable area of ground of a less Wet!-:
established but increasing value on what is known ais !
Meridian Hill. This property is just beyoiid the bid
city limits and overlooks the town. Mr. Blaine bougjjit
it very cheap, paying in the neighborhood of ten jdeli^
a foot A boom in it a few years ago ntake^ il'^lalkbte '
floW at from fifty cents to j^i pe- ;,quiui^ jf^ s^n^^
sonie of the choicest lots are held ajt J^ll^^^
Blaine also owned reddeniie prc^p^ iii Aup|t|^ii^^
-. ; ■
.1 ■..?■/»-
rei;
ml
.V ■ ■ I ^
low
iiii
^ r-'^^^mf^i
QOXB i^ri.
613
Bar Harbor, Me. He was associated with Mr. C, P^
>f(|Qtingtpn and President Ingalls, of the Chesapeake
and Ohio Railroad Company, in the ownership of
lands along the line of that road# He was also one
o^,tne. directors in the West Virginia Central Railroad
Cpmpany, in. which ex-Senator Davis, Secretary
Elkttis, ex-Secretary Bayard and others are interested.
Charming as Mr. Blaine wa$ in ordinary social inter-
opursf, it was in the
famUy circle that he
w^ seen at the best.
Nomajnin public life
wa^ moiie fortunate in
h^ donieiitic relations.
Ii[e was the companion
a^d confidafit of his
clitl4ren»aAd they feared
hud no mere than they
fciairea one of their own
number. Mrs. Blaine
w|ui a model wife and;
motli^r, and more is
MISS HATTIE BLAlNE.
du<e to her strong judgment, quick perception and
h||oic courage ihan the world wiil ever know. ,
HIS T|Srr TO HIS OLD HOME.
I^any y^rs, nearly two score, after Mr. Blaine's,
fajdiier had reaioved from West Brownsville to Wash-,
liK|^ii» Mr. Blaine returned to the place of His birth.
m Jiadvlefj^ it yfliw a boy of 13. He returned gray-
J^^^ .«iid l^lf ^ i^ l^nofs, actomp^nijsd by hts sons
.'Zri%
514
LIFE OF HON. JAMES 0. BLAIKX.
Emmons and James, and Stephen B. Elkins. The
party passed the day in going about the little town
and made a long stay in the quiet, quaint cemetery in
which lie Mr. Blaine's parents.
While Mr. Blaine's visit jto his birthplace was the
most dramatic event of the day, it was preceded and
followed by others of almost equal interest. He and
Mr. Elkins took a long walk before breakfast down
the eastern river bank, and after breakfast a long line
of people filed into the hotel to shake hands, nmong
theim was an old man with tangled white beard reach-
ing nearly to his wairt. He grasped Mr, Blaine's
hand, saying: "Don't y<u know me?" Mr. Blaine
gazed straight into hiii eyes for nearly a minute.
" Don't you remember John Harb — ** the old man
began, when Mr. Blaine exclaimed : " John Harbison
-M>f course I remember you and your partner John
Pkul. I remember, too, how good the grapes were in
your back yard and how I used to climb the fence to
get them." ^ ^
A wrinkled old Irishman with weazened face rushed
up exclaiming, " Me God! Misther Blaine, but it's
moighty glad I am to see you."
^^^«How are you, Johnny Malone?" was the quick
reply. Johnny was a farm hand who worked over the
whole region when Blaine was a boy. Then an agea
and very black negress pressed up and seized Mr.
Blaine's hand in both hers. The tears poured over
her cheeks and she sobbed violently.
^Why, Aunt Hetty!" Mr. BlaineSsxcIalnied, apii
'1.- .-.T:
the
and
and
Uown
line
.Ty./.i. ■.•//.>i;.
HOMB tin.
5>fi
rt
M5
• ■ ■ ' ' '"•■^■
^'calmed I^er agitation. Henrietta Harbison worked Jn
''Neil Cillespie*s family when a little wench» and j^e
^ cboked the dinner that President-elect Harrison: ate
when journeying to take his inauguration. Mr. Blaine
. Slipped a yellow coin into the old woman's hand as she
turned to go, exclaiming : " God bless you ; may you
have heaJth and happiness in this world and a home
in Heaven hereafter." ^ j^ .h «^ ,;•
"^>norriA ^-f-;;;.-^^ INSTANCE OF HIS MEMORVi;* lii^oq t(,
^, Another man, who was a playmate of Mr. Blaine jin
hTs early boyhood, now a Western Pennsylvania m^r-
^ chs^nt, speaking of Blaine's remembrance of his earty
friends, tells this story: "Many years after our early
bovhood days I occasionally saw in print some remark
of Congressman Blaine, of Main^, that had so mu^h
' tho: ring of my old schoolmate that I thought there
'^must bie some relationship, I knew Blaime was smart
Wough to be a Congressman, but you knowahpy
will never be more than a boy to one who has not
J seen him in, years. One day, however, I; read a speech
'containing some of my old schoolmate's pet expres-
- sioris. Then I sat down and wrote a letter, telUng
ivho I was and asking If he was really my old com-
^,|anion. ^ . . .f-^.^f^^
. '* " Only a few days afterward I received a long letter
frc^m^Ir. Blaine, written from the Senate Chamber,
expressing t^^ greatest satisfaction at hearing (rom
'die and recalling ^acquaintances and happenings of
thirty years ago. A yc|ar or two later he came to
t)hi6 to spes^ andl, being n^ar MasslUon, went over
. 1*
;s
'<£^iMi,^l
516
LIFE OF HOK. JAUMB O. BLAIMB.
^^
there to hear him. I got there late, jim was already
on the platform, with a crowd of prominent men
around him, waiting for the time to begin. The ^tght
of him made me forget my age for a moment and hi^
too. I was a boy again, and stretching my arms over
the crowd I tapped him oh the head vrith my cane.
" He looked around and caught my eye. He hadn't
seen mejn over thirty years, mind you, when we were
both beardless boysi but it wasn't half a minute be-
fore he hadf broken loose from the poFitieal big biigs
wh^wer^ talking to him, elbowed his way through
th4 «rc»ivd and had both my hands in his. His hand
hfui^^m powerful grtp, to6. We exclmnged notes for a
few iiiiQutes, when the committee called him to comli
to the front 'Confound it ! ' says he, * it's always the
way ; now Imust be Mr. Blaine again, I suppose. ' "
A STORY BY BOUTELLE.
Mr. Blaine always haul the -admiration and hearty
cQ-operalion of his colleagues. Congressman Boutelle,
a day or two since* tdd the following story ^s illus-
trating Blaine's subtlety in matters of State: •*MK
Blaine's versatility is wonderful. I remember in the
administration of Governor Garcelon, when the Dem-
ocrats were trying to vote the State fiom tis* and
when Maine was in fever heat and civil war seemeid
impending, Mr. Blaine was the chairman of the Sisate
Committee, and had charge of the Republicaa Jight.
We had been endeavoring to get the Governor to
suDmit the questions at issue to the Supreme Court,
but had not succeec^. '
[■'i**.!
V .^^^^
^-':t:-
HOME un.
517
"Mr« Blftine led the fighting; was aggressive and
unyielding, and of course nothing that he could say
would be listened to by the other side. Presently
there appeared a letter to the Governor, signed by
Lot M. Morrill, who was known otherwise as a peace-
loving, conservative Republican, asking the Governor
t^hy before the
Supreme Court the
questions at issue. The
letter was mild in tone,
fi^nk and fair in its
expressions, and adroitly
put upon the Democrats
the onus of refusing to
submit the dispute to
arbitration.
"Public sentiment at
on^e changed. The
. Governor ivas obliged to
submit the matter, and
the decision was in favor
<i( the Republicans.
For years Mr. Morrill ^^^ J- ^' ^^^^^"^^ ^'
received the praise of hundreds of men, not . only
in Maine, but throughout the United States, for his
wisdom and tactt
ul •* Mn Blaine wrote that letter. Mr. Morrill simply
copied it and signed his name."
>*' WS DOBfESnC SORROWS.
Mr. and Mrs. Blaine had sue diildren, three sons
-<i
51^,
UF£ OF HON, 7AM6I^ 6. BLAINE.
^nd^ltiri^e daughters. Two years and a Judf befpipe^,.,
his death all his children Were liyip^. Qi). jftnii;,^^
ary J 5, 1890, Walker, the eldest son, died in Wa^))-
tngtoxi after ^ very brief illness. At the time he.waf^i^
an Assistant Secretary of State, and a young maq pfi r
most brilliant promise. He had achieved distinctippjy:
by able service on several occasions. He was a gra^-^ , .
uaste of Yale, and in many respects he was thq pro^q- ^
type of his father. He inherited the brow and eye:'
of iiis father, and resembled him closely mentally and
in his/^stes suid habits. He was very dear to his
father's heartland his sudden death was the i;^a|,j;
cause of the beginning of Mr. Blaine's collapse.
Pj^ February 2, less than a mon^ after the deatH
of. Walker, the eldest daughter died.. She was Mrs,
John J. Coppinger, wife of a colonel in the army. Q(^; .
iJuneiS of this year, very soon after the Minneapolis »
Cofiventipn, Enimons Blaine, the second son, died, ;
and the fact that his death was superinduced by his/y
tremi^dous exertions to secure the nomination of his
father only served to increase the sorrow of his parents. , .
Emmons Blaine three years ago niarried Miss Anit^
McCormick, whose fortune was j3,ooo,ocx), and. his,
life had been passed since leaving Harvard in the ..
afiairs of Western railroads.
bereavements so many and in such proximity served
to underpiine the health of the rugged physique, andf
to. these sorrows was added another which, perhaps,,-
caused more grief than all the rest, Tbe sensational
ibarriage and still more, sensational married life of his
hi*- ;■
HOME LIFE,
HOB
519
loffj
tQ-
i.u.i'
'i£
■;;?
youngest son, James G. Blaine, Jr., in all the details,
are still fresh in the public mind.
In all these sorrows Mr. and Mrs. Blaine ever had
the sympathy of the whole people of the country.
Three children are living, Mrs. Walter Damrosch,
Miss Hattie Blaine, and James G. Blaine, Jr. The
unfortunate marriage of the latter, and the subse-
quent separation of himself and wife, form a painful
chapter in the family history. Mr. Blaine wrote an
open letter which was intended to suppress public
gossip and justify himself and wife in the part they
acted in this unfortunate affair.
THE WASHINGTON HOME.
Mr. Blaine's house has one of the most beautiful
interiors in Washington. It was from the first a beau-
tiful home, where sorrows, frequent and heavy though
they had been, never once shut out the sunlight. Mrs.
Blaine would have it so, and Mr. Blaine liked it.
While in deepest suffering for those who had beeii
taken away, the devoted wife and mother never ceased
to keep the home bright and beautiful for those who
were left. Crape was never on the door, and at no
time after the death of Walker, and two weeks later
the death of Alice, were the blinds closed against the
sunlight.
The wedding of Margaret Blaine and Walter
Damrosch will long be remembered as the most
beautiful house wedding Washington had seen for
many a day. Mrs. Blaine was determined to cast no
shadow over her daughter's) happiness. The windows
520
LIFE OP HQK. JAMBS 0. BLAINE.
were thrown open on that perfect May day, and tho
whole house seemed filled with sunshine, while the
oudook on Lafayette Square showed the first foliage
and blossoms of spring.
The drawing-room is the whole width of the spacious
old-fashioned hbuse, and is finished in white with
delicate gold lines. The beautiful room was decked
with roses, and beneath the portraits of her children.
Walker and Alice, Mrs. Blaine had set masses of
violets. For the first time mother and daughters laid
aside their black gowns. Before the bride and her
sister appeared in their white gowns, Mrs. Blaine
came in to greet the wedding guests. All the morn-
ing the suffering woman had been in the seclusion Of
her own room, making the bravest struggle to Hit
herself above and out of the grief which weighed so
heavily upon her.
It was not strange that Mrs. Blaine's nearest friends
doubted her strength to endure the ordealo But ^^'hen .
she came to the drawing-room that morning there was
no sign of the struggle she had undergone. She had
laid off her black gown for one of soft gray satin and
black lace, and with a gracious sweetness of manner
none will ever forget, she welcomed the guests. Mrs.
Blaine again put on her black gown, but their home
life went on with no outward sign of mourning. Until
Mr. Blaine's last illness their friends always found
them in the drawing-room in the Jate afternoon daily,
where, around a simple tea table, Mrs. Blaine and Miss
Dodge were the cleverest talkers.
«3tHMiJti
,-i>
the
the
age
ious
with
:ked
-.f|4lo ,1:
^:t^
CHAPtER XXIII.
Reminiscences df the « Plumed Knight."
James G. Blaine was a country boy. He had the
pre-eminent advantages of fresh air; of bare feet in
vsummer; of sleeping in an old-time, healthy house ;
oil working m the harvest fields; and of throiving
snow-balls in winter. His early life was not artificial,
fa^ionable, " dudeish/' and effeminate ; like the Titans
< of okl he hu^anded strength by contact with mother-
earth. He was a manly boy. He did not grow in a
city back-yard ; he was an oak of the mountains.
K He is remembered at Brownsville, Pennsylvania,
where he spent some part of his early Jife« and many
incidents are related by the residents of that locality
which show the character of the boy. What he was
'■ then in the commendable qualities of his character he
was in after years, and his broad manhood was only
.an enlargement of his boyhood, the mind mature; the
judgment formed, the conscience quickened, the mag-
nificent faculties developed*
The interest which the old friends and neighbors
take in a lad they have known and the pride they feel
in his successes are pleasantly illus':rated in the inci-
dents narrated concerning Mr. Bbiae's early life.
(621)
52d
UIFE (V BOK. JAifES 6. BtAlNB.
A LEADER IN THE GAME.
"He was a master bay," says one old lady of
Brownsville, "to lead off. Ke would get together a
lot of youngsters and propose a frolic in the hills, a
game of hall, or a fishing jaunt, and all agreed to his
suggestion and joined in whatever he proposed.
-"It was enough to always insure the sport that
Jimmy Blaine had charge of the game or the frolic, for
it was understood he would not fail to do his part for
the general entertainment. He protected the youngei*
boys against the older, but taught them all to rely uponr
themselves as mi^ch as possible. He was cheerful,
generous, and truthful, and always i eady to do a good
turn for friend or neighbor. He came to our house
to borrow a net one morning, and father-^that's what
I called my husband-«-didn't want ro let. it go. 'I'll
bring it back to-morrow,' said Jimmy. * It isn't bring-
ing it back that I'm talking about, but letting it go,'
said father. Jimmy thought a minute ; then he re^
plied, * You'd better lend it to me than to somebody
that'll never bring it back.' Farther laughed, and then
I knew he would give in. Jimmy got the net, and, of
course, returned it according to agreement.
" Once I got him to stand still long enough to an-*
swer a few questions. He was so foil of life and fun
that it was hard work to keep him quiet for any
length of time. I asked him some questions in his-*
tory, geography, and the catechism, and he answered
all correctly — that is, if I knew the correct answers-^
and then I asked him what he expected to follow when
lof
a
Its
REMINppfC^ OK 1^ ^UllED KNIGHT. 528
he grew up. ' M^ybe FU be a preacher or a steam-
bqs^t oap^in/ he.rQi^ied» ' but Fd rather be a member
of Congresrs.t He hadn't forgotten this reply when
he was^here a few years ago, and acknowledged that
he ha^ lia^bisi preference*" M .^
Mpr>." GENEROUS TO A FAULT.
.An'^t^her aged dame remembered him as the most
charitable boy ^he ever knew. " Why, he would give
away his dinner rather than have any one else go
hungry. He gave. his pennies and his fruit and his
candy to the children of poor parents, and d^'d this
so often that it was talked about in the town. He
played jokes upon some of his mates, but only upon
his equals in strength and opportunity. He seemed
to despise everything in the way of a mean advan-
tage."
" Wiien we were boys," said a bright-eyed old
gentleman, " down on Indian Hill farm, Jim Blaine was
a lively chap. He kept the whole township in arms.
Once I got even with him. I was down in the meadow
pitching hay. • He knew that I was going to do that
job, and he went down there a day or two before and
fixed one of the haycocks so it could not be lifted.
He ran a long wire, through it in such a way as to
hold it togetlicr, and then fastened it under the mid-
dle pf the st<«.ck to a post which he had driven in the
ground Some of the other boys knew about the
game» and they stood around looking kind of sneaking
and smiling a little.
'/xl tackled the doctored stack early in the day. I
524
LIFE Of fiOK. JAMES a. BtiAIRS.
drove my fork into th6 top,and, spitting on myhsLtidi]
bore down upon it. It didn't budge. I tried it onde
more, with a litde extra strength, and broke the fork
dean o^ at the handle. A boy sitting on a rail fence
snickered, and I knew something was up. A mO>
ment's examination convinced me that the stack was
tied down, and just then the boy who had laughed
pointed in the direction of another stack not far
away. ' ^
" I felt in my bones that Jim Blaine was hiding there.
So I crawled up kind of easy, and finding him watch-
ing the performance on his hands and knees, with,
some of the grass thrown over him, I got behind him
and raised him one with my boot. I was mad, and I
put a good deal of heft into that kick, for he shot out
of the stack head first, as if he had been fired from a
cannon. It hnmped him for a while, I tell you, and
there was a lively scattering among the rest of the
boys.
HOW HE TURNED THE TABLES.
" He was always great in learning some good piece
for speaking in school. It was nothing for him to get
it by heart, as the boys called it. He generally told
the boys what he was going to speak,^o that none of
them would get the same ; but once a fellow, whose
name was Ames or Amos, pitched upon the saine
piece that Jim had, just for a joke, and as his name was
called first, he took all th c iv'ind out of Jim's sails by
pretty good speaking. Jim didn't appear to mind it
much, but the teacher remarked that they had better
londe
fork
rence
mo-
was
ighed
k far
'■ i•'';■,^'•
*'>
m
BiBimriscEifCES of tbe fl^iud knight.
1^26
hav9 an understanding in future, and avoid repetition.
The time came pretty soon when they had a' school
exhibition, and each one who took part had to write
his own piece. Blaine was given his choice between
the first and last speeches, and he chose the first It
was grand. I don't think he has made a better one
since.
" When Ames's name was called he wasn't there,
although a few minutes before he was seen in his seat.
'Gone home, sick,' said one of the boys. It finally
leaked out that Ames lacked either the ability or the
disposition to write a piece for himself and had gone
to Blaine foe help, and that Jim, not caring to keep all
the good things, and remembering Ames's favor on a
former occasion, had copied and given him most of his
own speech, and had only followed Ames's example
in using it first. Ames left the school and this part of
the country shortly afterward."
DAILY LIFE IN V/ASHINGTON.
From a distinguished correspondent who has
known Mr. Blaine intimately for many yerirs, we
gather the following interesting details of his daily life
and habits:
At -first he lived in Washington in a noniadic
way — in hotels or boarding-houses, as do most Con-,
gressmen — but when he was elected Speaker he
bought a house on Fifteenth Street, in the best quarter
of the town. Opposite lived Hamilton Fish, then
S<2crot;ary of State ; next door lived Fernando Wood ;
General Sherman's house was only a few doors di9-
.Jk.i
..... ■■■v-i'.f ■'■■»'
626
UFE OF HOK.' JAlfKS €l; lliAi^ ^'■'^
; tant, ai)^ General Butl^ could be^fdtifid jik afotlttd
•the corner, nui .tot^qjaijui-bim quoH 'Aooi oil — ^r>b\i.il
Blaine's house was thought a hand^me^'bne lit-fHkt
time, but it was only a plain briic^c ^trticttlr^ in k i^w,
and it cuts no sort of a figure in these dsiys 'Wheh'brg
mansions in the Queen Anne, Elizabethan; Nohti^h,
and Iknow not how many other styles aboniid a'^ the
i capital. There were two big parlors on the first flobt',
and back of them a sitting-^room and dinlrtg«-r<!K>m, aifid
all four rooms connected by folding doors, ^0 that the
crowds that used to surge in at the Speaker's bffid^l
receptions were measurably well accommodated. ) 'In
the belongings of this, 1ms first WashiAjgtbn hdrti^,
Blaine showed a fondness for engrivings, for sub^tiElh-
tial furniture, and for books. «f yi-^iu u i>ai. ,ripiii
WIT AND HUMoSi^ '"^ -^'^^^ ^^^^
He was much given to hospitality, and n^v^f lii^r
peared so happy as when entertaining a congenial
dinner party at his big round table. For hi^ dinner-
table talks he had an inexhaustible fund of anecdotic
and witticisms. I never heard him tell the sd>me story
twice. He did not resemUe in tH^ leadt ri>ie hand-
Organ typeof man who has only one little setof tuiie^.
No matter what the topic may be, he is sure to cOii-
tribute to the conversation something particularly
bright and entertaining. . ..i.;;. u
,,^hen not entertaining friends at his own 1^1^%
usually dined out. I remember to have warned hiM
once of the perils of the diner-out — how aft emihen^
man had come to an ui^imely end l^ eating big din-
BEiilKISQSNCiBS OF THE PLUMED KNIGHT.
627
tiitd
^nn, He said he observed a strict rule at dinner
parties — ^he took soup and roast beef, but no prepared
djshes; no dessert, except a little ice cream. By
sticking closely to this dietary programme, he could
4tne out every day in the week without injuring his
digestion.
In those days Blaine was not a great letter-writer,
either with his own hand or vicariously through that
pf his secretary. He did not, like Garfield, reply to all
the letters he received. He was a great newspaper
; reader, and always knew the attitude of every really
important journal in the country on the dominant
i;^sues of tlie ds^. He knew the history of these
journals, too, and something of the men who madie
them, and if there was any power behind the chairs
of their editors he was pretty sure to be informed
.^bout it ..jis ,y.^ - '" ^^
"wasn't quite sure."
He was not accessible at all times and to all (he
world, as many men who cherish great political ambi-
tion think it necessary to be. The impassable black
guardian of the hall door was never quite sure that
Mr. Blaine was in, but he would see. If the visitor
was not welcome he would manage to make him
believe that the Speaker had just gone out a few
minutes before. This colored person had a fine in-
stinct for diacerning tlie men whom his master wovild
probably wish to receive. They were shown into the
front parlor; others waited in the hall.
In the Fifteenth Street house Blaine lived while in
■--*jS
,
I
I' "
628
Un or BOH. JAMES G. BLAI^I^^^^^
Washington until after the death of Garfield. He h^
]>reviously begun to build a huge, expensive red-briclf
pile out on the P Street Cirde» deeming himself coniv*
fortably rich at the time, and thinking the position of
V^ rv BLAINE S WASHINGTON MANSION.
Secretary of State carried with it duties of enlargi^
hospitality. The house was a mistake ^s he soon
found. He lived iji it only about a year. As ^ private
citizen it was much too l^rge for his needs ; befiidfp, a
considerable share of his fortune meltpd away in, ^
^«'-;^
i
C(
Qt
it
n
soon
rivate
id<p,a
RIMINISOBNOES OF THE PLUMED KNIGHT.
d29
great shrinkage in stocks, and he did not feel able to
support the expensive establishment which the house
demanded. He consic' d himself very fortunate to
ht able to lease it for a sum which amounted to six
per cent on its.cost
; Then he condensed his household into a dwelling
of moderate capacity, facing on Lafa^^tte Square.
From his front window he could see the White House
tprough the treea in the pretty park. Not many of
liis own belongings came with this house save his
l^ks and a fewpictures* In k he did most of the
4rork on his ** Twenty Y^s of Congress/' living as
i|etired as his friends would let him, ai^d getting hi^
^xercise mainly fronri H daily morning walk to the
^pitol, vt|hither lie ilrent to consult the books in the
VoiigfeinonBi Library.
j ^ ^lUfe 0|i> HOMESTEAD. *
{ j^l'ilhis i^niie bis real home, if the attachments of
liipfe|lf ^jBMwl thg nteitibety of His family were consid-
"^i^lfWas die Isurge, old-fashioned, broad-fronted white
l||o^^^v%ith it| green blinds, ifts ma{^s, and its grassy
]^i|i, whielit stands on a quiet, shady street near the
$tate Capitol, in Augui^ta, Me. This house typifies
the well-to-do phase ^f village life in New England,
as it expressed itself in architecture before the recent
i^ania for colors, angles, balconies, and fanciful forms
Ciiiliie in. It represent? the plainness, solidity, and
cbhservatism of the last generation.
^^^MR Blaine modified it very little, and not at all at
mi expense of its sober, old-tinie appearance. , He
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MfE ^P HQNr JAMBS Qi BMIKHfil.t^
added^ two ^r thiee rooms ia^ tiie rear^^«H>ne ■ laige '
librftfy, which was his work-room^ and which durmg
the matiy hard fights he waged with the Democrats
when he ivas chairman. of the State Republican Com-
mittee used to be a rendezvous for^ his^ lieutenants
from all parts of the State. In the course of two
Maine campaigns I saw a good deal of Mn Blaine.
He was the busiest man in the State» hurrying from
county tcJ county to address mass-meetingS| writing
tdegrams on the trains, getting a podcetiul of dis-
patches at every town, dicta^ng letters at night to his
secretary, yet always cheerful and companionable, and
with a good joke or anecdote ready to enliven evesy
occasion.'' .f^ ^-•*;i;u.- .'.cm^iiix,
A STILL HUNT. ^ ^^V
He knew the whole State as w^l as his oiirnf door-
yard, and was acquainted with the leading men in
every UAm, He brought the canvass tlowa tojdie
school districts. The hurrah work of processions,
bstnners, and big meetings he estimated at its proper
vakie, but he never depended on it to produce resuHs.
Hie real business of a campaign was to perfect local
{organization, ascertain who were the doubtful voters,
and bring argument and persgnal influence to bear
upon them through the efforts of their Republican
neighbors. V'^-
Saturc^^ we special correspondents used 16 man-
age to get back to Augusta if we could, to spends a
quiet Sun<ibiy afternoon widi Blaine at his house, in
^ evening some musikailfiiefids of the fan^^^^^w^
•K-^?v
^j«Sl
¥■ ^
BXHISlSeBHOES OP THE FliUlfBD ilQUGHT.
*ii|BuillyiC(Hiie^is^ and viie had agoodltime singiilg^ijld-
^fashibncBilDhi^ck pimes, for^hich Bkine had siilbdd-
aiess^andla'ivb^hkh 1)6 wpuMj^in mth his th^ren aild
«tth^ alliH^ •' nien^berd of die -company who could make
.anyiahowJoIja voice. :uy^\^fe' ,; '«wi vj he^u 'imilm
(mi 'to ::>.rsf|ifi gitk)I>XLO^ "to ■TilE^PEOt»tiK.. f^^-' nK'^{l\
^niOa^th^lfltiori of the House, in the Speaker's cMdr,
lagaif^oii^thelfloc^ df the House, hence in the Senale,
^aiididunfig political jcampatgns, on the sUimp^n almost
jQ^evy Ntortbern State, Mr. Blaine was em^ticalfy
aMtlirl^liiec^le and pf.thepeopkk His opinions jig^
lall; qUestionswere |)ironoi!in€ed, sometimes toa^gres-
> ^atyeaess* Jaiad dfris worst enemy never ac:cu8e4 hiitiof
evading or avoiding any responsibility or tl)e: expres-
sion of his conviction on any public issue.
lod^What ^reat iieasure did Mn Blaine ev!gr}|)i-igi-
«iBate;^r ftskis the unfl^ged biitomnipolcnjt chamber
:«latesmaav and might go on ind^fihilsely askings what
.^ciat measure did Mr. Sherman,i6r M^. ThuHman evser
70t|%iqate, pr ' Mr* i^mt^^Sj or Mr. Gonkling, or Mh
Ji^^lehffiteri or M<v Gallatin ?i Siidk critics and Suc^
icrt^dsfils are equally shallow. Great measures grchv
in the minds of die people* Specie payment came
Tdfl^r long public ^discnss^oh, and now Seoators^are
ri|ua[nfeUng as 'to; who it was that drafted the 1^
passed in 1875. \ . - • )v>^^r/
-ar So it is witk all measures of great public moment,
illiey da Bc^ spring from the n^ind of one man sit%g
r^hindrhisr CongressionM desk. The duty of t*he
; iitatesi|lai|43 ? tm ahi^rinduld» gmde, direct 4n a i^.
*! V
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minds of many, and the c^usei of acdjdh i^ nece^i^ffr.
/the great lawyer does not ck-eate fcis dtijii 'He
aiqgfues it, develops it; applies principles tdi ii
A FAMOVS SPEECH.
' To say that Mr. Blain^ was a power in C<;thgress is
simply to affirm' history. Though entering very young,
he made his mark at once. At the perii^ of darkest
depression in the war, when anxiety brooded every-
tirheVe and boded everything, Mr. Bliaihe deliver^ a
speech on J* The Ability^ of the American Peo^fe to
Suppress die Rebellion," which has been cited fc^r, the
gjr^ attention and c6mmendaildii tt m^fed: Its
'value lay not alone in its timeliness, for afi^r its li^t
Svide circulation it was reprinted aS a camjpaigh d6cu*
mentinihc Presidential cam|>ai|^df 1864; "vt^"- ji
It was the delivery of this speedy Ind sohie 'IKsji^i-
' sl^tts which took place shortly aftdr, ihat pauied Tha^:
<^8 Stievens to say that *' Blaine of Miinejftiis sS^)^
j^ ^^reat aptitude and aHlity for the highei" iw^lJcs of
j^^ It^ as any man that had idoihe to iC^iigr^
during his petriodof service." '
VALUABLE SERVICE,
^ii't>nM-
taring th^ first session dr Mr.^'Mifie'ss^fce^^
jtierfiberic^ idie.P<^t Office jCoifimitte^ he ti6<>^ifiS^
live paft in cdroperatio^ wid^ ^ chakiriiiatf^Hc^|o^
Q. ^% an^ the lai^ |at^ pf'^pw'fpric^
^e^sii^mrat^ng 9^ of p^^
iidV io' uiiiversal use. Xl^^ribudol^ 6h tll^ M^
ItMt 1)een isut^tci on l^/|fi^
mf|2«;
■'■V'v
" J
"t^*'
'<«'■
bem;
it, in
NOSS OF THE FLUXED KNIGHT.
$33
a!||^[)i^pri^t|9Hs for, the (enlarged service were Jibt
|^r^fi|i^ wjthQiit opposition.
-[jiPollowing tii^ war, and throughout the period of
reconstructioo, Mr. Blaine was active, energetic, and
intelligent. He was especially prominent in shaping
some of the most important features of the Four-
teenth Amendment, particularly that relating to the
t>a$t$ , of r<;presentation. The discussions on this
great series of questions, in which Blaine figured
largely, stre siinong the most interesting and valuable
in the H^tory of the Anierican Congress.
<5;jj'v5fJ|.f,..,. ^OFF TO,BUROPE. ,
'. Mr.. Blaine becana^e a lesider in legislation as he be-
came the leader of men generally, by virtue of his
Cjoniprehensiveness of mind, his quick perception of
oljective joints, and his devotion in advocating >yhat
he felt w^ right and dti^.
fijlitn i^^7 |i/(]% Blaine sought a^ temporary relaxation
fron(i official cares and labors, and for the first time
■■'■ -^ ■;T' , : "■ "■'.• ': , ■■•V ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ . '- '
paid a short yistt;to Europe. While he was put of
thie c<^untiy the theoiy of paying the public debt in
greenbacks was. started in Ohio by Mr. Pendleton,
and in Massachusetts by General Butler, just after
Ills n^^rn in the av^tnn^ at a special or adjonttiect
, ^^issftori of Congress in November, Mr. Blaine as-^
7,4|t|lted .the pr^i^ition fo a $p<eech of great research,
k^|:,^n4 Cpn^ It ttus.hai^ened that he was the
pi^t j^^^ i^ ^tber branch of Congress who spotce
aiaijsltffi^linaiicii!!!^ K^ in siibsi(equen|^ years
80 micti of public attention. From
■-m
^IJ
XI
y 1
-J»*^
-.:^*.
I*,
< ^. - " ■ .A ■ ■■•■■ ' ,'■.'■
ririt«^tll4^>ftk)ihi lit €ottgT«M^^^^^^«^ Aa^oRcopUii
MJ-. ^fekbfe «/^^ i^efatig^bk^ mrlJbriiigiag) the 4»iblt*r
opliiii^ «rf^the Kiountry td tha^jtght sundarti of tifinanir
dal^atid'^tilitteirial'lionorjj^o Bidi.ky 3«o, «|ijiv/oi|4 ifi;:uri.
Six years irt C^gr^shadmadeiiiiwsSOCOfifilpicu^tMf
ad at tesld^fvaii^ ^ noted as a pfarliajncotanja%tb^
idJb "maile ^Spcdk€r of the House, apoatfoiilthafc thq
fittdfiv^lth mailed ability for sk^^
Deki@ei!a:» obtained cofim>l 6^ that b^dyjf ' Ma! Blcitni^
«t^ ]^rha|kd ^e ypungcst man who^veroc9tipt$d.<^
Speaker's chair, being then 39 years of dge*? He jprftr
sided over some of the most iiripottant and exciting
S^ifiibris <^ the House, and by hia juifc ruMnj^ivadiajir-
sitAS t^ and magnetic influence,: he passed? thnoi^
the«long^ai«J trying^ period wdirthe apipnal^<;#;0C
both' Mbndraiid fo&' '.'-'/ ■ •}ymw, t^mnKf '}>dw^:
>Ev«n more marked, at least in th<? pi^uter>^«^
than his career as Speaker, vma Mr^ B!miie'& colifsi^
in the House when he returned to the floor i at tb^
^d^i«if4i» Speiflcershipt EeW have forg^^ttHit the
«u<kitn tilt byiwhidi, la a dayiia^victoiioMfi^hditei^ii)]^
dDt Democratic majority was chang^ tl^to asurpHe^
l^ttbduediahd saddened lerowilitiiderMr^
^Tiftifeive^aittd.iiaexp^ctfcd. taetics. . r.::.:, -^^4 ^>^m'mn^>
! ^^[Siedebatesofiiiatinemosrable^esmQn oAit^ pf^fl-
av^fi^lfieskin alimindSrStiidmore mc<dy tb^b^4p{^r^
^^ tieffaafMi#«day'iA^ tifB« wiiitinrllttljbiit
.-j^.
•ri,: ?v
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f^'r
«i,.<"f«l;
RBMllBBGfeiieES'^Oi^rirfiE HiUlfSD KNIQHT.
m
the
tbree year^ ,MrvBlattiie'r speeches laid die fottn4at
tibfi of sisccess in/ the campatgn.of 18761 though \if
was not selected as liie standard-bearer. The exibite-
ment growing out of this exciting session with all its
attendant events brought Mr, Blaine more prominently
before the country than any other citizen. ^i^^ ~
- His congressional career embraced the mosttryihg
period of his country's history, the sombre years of the
rebellion,'the reconstruction period, and the perilous
time ^helii the Section of President Hayes aroused an
apparently triumphant Democratic party almost to the
verge of madness.
A PKBAT BEBAtCI^
A good example of Mn Bkine'&pow^rs as a debater
fSibund in a speech' delivered in the Senate, April 14,
1^^ ivhen an effcnt was niade) by the Democrats to
strike out the words from a section of the Revised
Statutes which provided for the use of soldiers to keep
peace at th^ polls. In reply to the charge that the '
^Idiers wer^ used to^ intimidate Southern voters, .
Mr. Blaine s^id : > t^rio-^
ii ri« Th^entif^ South has 1,1 55 soldiers to intimidatet^
oVerruh^ oppress and destroy the liberties of i5,Q00y^
000 peopte! Jnthe Southern States there are ||2Q3
counties^ If you distribute the soldiers, there is not
.•quite one for each 'county. If^you distribute theqd
lerritorifillly, there -is one for efvcry rscven hundred
i$<|iiiire'miM of territory, so diat if you make a tem^
> tcnjft) disti^b^tiOfi, I would remind the jionorableSena^
r,
. -i*,
» '
J-
:SS
^ .«":
:5;^;':.
:-vv.; x-m
'-"■■":; ^M'
'fS^ii^f?*^
•ny?;-y-.
536
tnfB or HON. JAUKS a BLAIHi.
-;;v^.
quota for his State would be three* 'One ragged
sergeant and two abreast,' as the ,old song has it
That is the force ready to destroy the liberties of
Delaware."
:. He was a member of thelliirty-eighth, Thirty-
W\ ninth, Fortieth, Fdrtjr-fjrst, feorty-secbnd. Forty-third,
and Forty-four^)\C)Qqgrfsse%|UQi4 b^f^n^^^e acknowl-
edged leader of the party in the House, ^nd his
speeches during the period which he served in don*
gi;ess are a glowing tribute to ht^ ability, his ac^tii^^
sagaci^, hi^ bmM and Miuad statesmaniittpi and ixA^^
flinching patriotism* ^^n)
.K ■
/a '
■;;Ji'J-?
.6
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^>n
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.\
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' •PC-'".* '^i\f
ri£,
A,*V ^"^^
f,'^
,/•.,. -jr., t.
■ * i"^ t
\o .•ifitvJi^ffi'
.?-
-Vf 1' ■'^Jf^eHAPTER XXIV.' :
b/ur *>i:^ in the Vall^ of Death.
.fir.£^ dauhi: ia which the country was kept with r^
gilP^ to Mr. Blaine's physical condition by ejcag^er-
ate4 ^^ cQi^icting reports was at4asf mournfully dis-
pelled, and his fellow-citizens were aware that the
career of the most distinguished of our con temporary
statesmen was nearirig its. end. There was still some
difference of opinion as to the precise phase which the
iUness from which he was suffering li^A reached, and
as to the imminence of its apprehended conse-
quence.
There were those who said that a rally of some-
thing more than a transient kind was not past hoping
for, while others insisted that the' final issue had be-
come a question of hours or at most of days. The
one point to which the American people paid attention
and attached importance was that Mr. Blaine was in-
disputably stricken with a fatal sickness, from which
there was no hope of his recovery, -and that while he
might linger for a greater or shorter length of time,
according to cirtumstances which could not be fore*
seen* the death sentence had been pronounced.
It is fiot^merel^ the l^{»e of time that measures life
(887)
M
<m
■* .
'*.'■: 'T
j)^
^h-^*^
< ^y
m
iimM^nm iMMi ^.^ni'Am**
m*-'-
1*.>
w
u
as much as many a one tw^^.ty yes^i^Jiif jc;^l9r^: l^H
ways a man of corrept and^^b^mipus halnts, and in
hi^.lat^r years, at leasts soUcitops; for' the pr^rvaj^n
of his health, the relati^ety (early d^cay of his physical
powers was a striking instance of i th^ .^i|i^i;4 wie^ring
out the^ scabbard. , • . .7., ,, ■>!-;., t./fi h^jm^h mi- m
r Hq had all his life been a hard worker .M4i<s mp^|
eichaustipg kind of toit and to the de^i^nds in^djp, by
his bnlHant and i^tless iatellect Hppn a bp^y never
more than ordinarily robust^ were added tHe<^(;t|9JMi| .
pi a sin^larly nervous and empiipnal teqniperai|tfnt
Happiness, with th^ peai^e of mind whic^ jt ioipl^
was the tonic wbich^he needed |^.eH^r,9fj^
have prolonged. bis years. . ,.^(%:V:4-? i-j:;!ri^t j'h Irv*
^ JC bis amlMtipns could have been satisfied ^d hlf
id^ipns spare^ilie wpuld npt in all buman pn)|)«a^
lly have, been stfickew ia the very fulness of hiai)ria%
hop4 ; but the medicine which alpnp might have sayef
him he could not have; and the ?cciimulattpn of;^rp|r.
anxiety and disappointment bpre jiiih down, , .,•
r Qn December iS^ i^pv the ani^ncement was
^made that James G. Blaine^s death at any ho^r would
be no surprise to those acquainted widi his critic^
condii^n. About .the only assurance py^n |»y ,hi;s
physician was that his immediate rdeath was . not j^
pieptedk The sick man {la^a sinking spel^ h^.^f
morning, which was of a mpst^|^mtih^cl^i<actqr«ai^
from wjWdb^ he rallieii ^iik;M ^?ea<e»t;jKfifculty, / A
■^*yj
.^|i"%^^'^^*ifci^1
'r.
'■f : w
ifmiftl'bi m^^iodii&mUiff^ftArtd, would find hk
^''Mir/Blir[Mli(ia'ii6tb6i6n a w for morethan
i}fii^h\ '(V^bh he t^t^t^ed'from Bar Harbpr about a
f6kit'lMcitii'md m\i tip his Wittter residence in Wash-
ington, he showed a marked improvement over what
had been his conditJdh when he left New York for
tr^^KMiWr IH'tfi^ (M^Ous June; He took up his
i^ili(Th''thi^Sta(t^D^rtment, but it was noticed that
hWWi ibii^ ^^i^ was iaddiigr. He Was not reguku*
m'hfs'iiKttefjdift^ktdie ioffiee^
^^7H¥l<s^ih(^^ht breather usu^% kept him from
^ST^civei: 4o tK^ be|>ai^ment; and he would transact
fi)e i^kc^lK^n^^lirsoffide^ such as the signing
of his mail,,at his residence. He would be troubled
#iity?fi'leq^^#ith^4^ be tempor-
a^f ^6ik^^ ^dlich' ^^tild kstperhaps for a day and
ii6^etth{ei| fbr k^ral diaysl' He was in the hands of
k^'hysliiiiiifh Hikfit of ^e timie,' and at no time within die
^tmH^ iWelvi^' iiionth^ coiikl he have been con-
sidered a thitif^ghiy %e!l irian.
^^ Afl^i^es^itfg frorhi^^^t he wen^
kWi^j^ a^d thii; Wsst^^d freedcim seemed to benefit
^^^*Hftl ijfPartti^^^ h^^ ^en he returned to
ll^^aiiffh^^ iti kie'Mr^i^^ not reassuring. His
Imulle Matted 1^ retutn with greater frequency until
Ii^'ii^|li6de^'^hfined to |he house. A shorf;
4iv<1i;^li^l<S^;^ #<9^^ the last f»n^
.M^^^'i-!-,
' '^' ft
i
f-i
",' ^
is...
.Vi.
-•'-.
*»-.'
i* **
tf
<•«*
1*^ .
m
^irnfr^
r*. ,
)k^ f Its o^t8ide of his houae« 9^4 it was beli^ed i^
>^ CONCBAUmBNT FINALLY ABANDONED^ ,'
It had been believed for more than a ypix^ <^
^mrs l^t he suffered fronj some organic ^|0»le.
The family and physicians would never ^clinirijt until
the above^Mppiftn theatteiiding physiciaii jqiai^de the
statenill^^t " evidences of local Organic dis^e have
beeipplBESsted recently, and it isMttvecl^t his
pi^ii^ipidilf^ l| due to this ca«8?.:;.^^;|t^re is
Irea^irtil^clie^ thi^thc family werf^ av^r^ o^^Mr.
Blainii'i prccariO!|i ic^^ as in the W© Pf
'other g»t^pl|||^ there was a disp^^^iljon to
jconceatlliei^t state of the |)atient^8 luialti^irom
ithose4itoidte'&rJ^mily cirdc ' iy ^f* #
V> ; A^YMPATHBTIC OHQWD." [ ., , :ji
lil^iibotti^jbe Blaine maii8ip|iwer«!lft^aii^i
^^^IpB^lteaaiWii^ The news of his ttifam
S^^iaiisiil^^k^ «0Q^ spread on the streets an!
pathetic and amcious watchers stood In die vi^aiiy fif
the "Red House," waiting for tidings irom Uie sick-
fqom. Jt was not surprising then that about 8 o'do^
In ^e evening one of the local; papers put out aii
edition tel(ing of the statesman's near approaqh to
death. Many on reading t^ extra hastened ^ward
Mr. Blaine's house,, ITje ciowd gaAered to swcl^^an
extent that its presence wap made known to t&
ip^tes. ' ^ "- ' , " . , ' ; • ^ . '. ;
\Jgmes6. blaine. J^,, fbout hiilf p^st $, c^ni^ejj^tpf
^^-
cxis
nU:
.5*^
*•-*
'«^'t .."**.■;?.
■,.>,■
^k
until
tethe
^t tits
sfe is
se pf
3n to
irom
) ana
'- »
syni-
iiyitf
sick-
at an
5^ to
tv-n
dian
■,f,C'^
... ^ - ■
il^^tfli iritunr or math
041
frorti iiobi'/ and hurriedly approaching a group
standing on the paVietnent, said with some emotion i
<f\Aifhat does this mean? What are you standing
lifeit here for P"^
** Mi 6faine,* said on(^ of those present; *• we liiikrd
ail<i , haVe read in an
(Ehr^riiftg pap^r that your
iither was dying.'*
! "Thkt is untrue/'
said young Mir. Blaine
excitedly. "My laAer
is viegV ill/ but It is un-
thie that he is dying.*''
**W^ are very glad
to hear you say so/*
answered the gende-
'tneh;* and thse group dis-
m
t
f^'ti
a news-
ape r<»ilrespbnde^
ri ' Bfatne, somewhat
by thisympa^'
WALKER BLAINE,
idiiitictpneof the gemlemen whom he had just ques-
iiorl^ isked:* What has caused this excitement?**
f^ jfte f«ks told th^ had spread over the city that
vMs^i^f was critically ill, if not dying,and thatsut^
ll^git^ent ^d been putdished in an extra edition (6f
III Jibing i%<^^ and was handed a
He opened it and as the headline ^'Near
i^ "^^iaBight his ^ye, he exclaimed :
^"^ • f , •
., >
■ yyl
. ^1
V«3
t .
V ,yj"
/v ,
^ii^'-- ',* .;
m
m
E-V
1.4
Ul^ <^ BKMr;.|AK«^ $»r^M{iinB.
. ?! That is absolutely uiyii»^ig^fel^(, ,.$iHt^.fi^9ff^ffftn
has been given from :|hm]hpHs«;^l^/>j§>Mr,u]^^
phystdans thatwouW.?vairra0t Aa|Jn^, ,-
is vejy side, but at no li^^^,;^iave|.«H4l^ftlf^^«^{?«?s
critically ill. and any pMMicatip%jl9..l}w!|; efl^c|^.i?„Hn-
true. The physicians hswe j^st MMn4feM^9ls^^ipd
us that Mr. Blaine is better dian h^.Fa»ill>i%Wprmg.
and is likely to p^ a comforiW?Je f>^if*u , \SrM^^^
he :hurried^tO iw house. ..^jvi j^it6w" •>? Ij rl :j t H w
Two polfipe oflUcers quietly dis|^;tiM; ^hief, crMd
ft^ ^tiie Jpimcdiate vidnity of Hm l«m?^i b^^^fla^e
^^ i^t ^iiM groups ^IftiBW^firji^
otiwf^ i^atdied at a respectful 4istajnipj<^aa>fn ifto?
'Pi^ truth is tiiatl^l <lay lofigthe U%^#^
hui^ tremUing in the balance^ jiEor^iiw^jte^^^
h(^^i^:|lie foitnoon hope uras abeiQ^otlod 2to4 rtfie
^t'^'^^kHxam^y expected hypJx^Bim^ Sm^Y
^^40^t^. ; Ip^^lation was thf^wnr asWi5 iftilN
Wg^^^^a^Sf^^ ofr: 4eat^aM#fl41.'^«^:
st^^^£med i^ts c4^ hii lllhess^r^hetlofig 4e!#4i^^^
now admitted Brfght's disease* thef ^fc^ippaUfMlfllli^ls
of d^iriuin. the long hours wheOvhe^SNdi^iilJf^
of speech or motioii, the»8 and ojtjier 4i*tlll^gife*''
tures of his jainess all jncidenttJiip. the Of^^sjc^ef^^
ering organic trouble, Brig}it*sdise^8!p?H?iajf^l^d
as this had been by a cold contracted whflc impru-
dein^y vffnturii^ out driving ,tw9;weelwi h^m »«<*
by malaiM fcveiv and i»«iirQiitp4^^^
inaEt-i^ia
•..vla'-IDiKwifii;
s>^
&■>,..
« .f
^ *'ji''*'i **
.i^.,'5t-^
limine
nr »rHB tXiLEY '<* t«AtH.
&43
.**i
e
impru-
jitipkk'ed^ytiearly two ye»ra of continuous sickness—.
aftrthese ikct^ were tiow tacitly admitted. >*
^ *^^e'^ystcta«ii dedai^d thj^t th6re had nbt^tfe^n
Sfty heitibrrhagei ais had be6n asserted, but this was
'Almost tte oiily alarming symptom which was denied.
The fir^t€i^tsis was reached between lo and ii o'clock
this mbrhinff,^ when a
sitikm^ spell set in, from
which the worst was
'feai-ed. His family were
^called roiind the bed-
ild^ and his physicians
sent messenger after
messenger to the iiear^
est ' dWg ^ st6fe^ "w^ith
prescrii>tsons requirihg
fasty attention. Thfe
^b^giitished patient lay
iinconscious sind to all
'appearances dying, until
rshprHy before i o'clock,
#h4sn a slight rally set
iil. His pU^Sfe, Whith WALTER J. DAMROSCH.
had almost ceased to beat, became again perceptible,
%hd (iar^l consciolisrtess was restored. The rally
^<i©^tinii«d duHitgthe d night.
■atftli ^4 u NO tjj^lsDiATE APPREHENSION.
^n n ^^VPfifl^' the impffbVement in Mr. Bkine's condition
^iiirai biit slight and iiotsu afford any gfeat
, amount of encouragement to his family and friends,
1 v*
lis**'
*^^%^
."■> ,
«»»'
W'
l<^'
*4*
W
'Uk
V , r> i"V
LiF^ OF H5lr. ^'iiH^ d:
d^ rtactibn bad
prehension for the
Jr., and Walter
kw, walked down, the avenue in the evenuigt
' All day representatives of the press patrbflf^llall-
Son Place and c&refuily watched the old red )n^
which has become celebrated for it^ historical as^ocfa^
tidhs, and the fatality with which misfortune ha^ fcl-
lowed its occupants. From theSickdsrICeyes tragldy,
more than a j^|bd of a . century ago/ followed by ms
attemptecjl |i^^aitpn of Secretary SeWrd^duiT^
the kst^^relr of the civil war, down to the pr^eiit
time, th^ pall ^f ill 6te has hung over ^emansio^I
During tbc- les# l|i&tn four years' ocCupafi^^^pfjtli|$
house ^ the Blainl jliipjily, his daughte^ the wife of
eoioi^CoppLog^^ Walker Blaine and Eiifiihons
B)aine,^tiieiBecreU|^ promising sons, diedj. " -
" >, ;Visi?!^ BY President hahrisqn. r
President Harrison, accompanied by his private
secretary, Mr. E. } . Halford, walked oVer from ' iie
White House to the ex-Secretary's residence 4n tlie
evenings, to i^rsohally inquire as to his condition, am'
expressed relief and gratification at bdng infefmedl
that there had been jsome abatement jof the more
warming symptoms. _
from an Intimate Inend of the ^mlly if wa^ Ibsurneci
th^t It was only when Mr. Blaine wsb suddenly seize^
ivitfirthe sit^king^ell in the mot^n
forborne minutes to terniinate ra l|ieart ^tlure* diat
Ms iaimly ktfy realbed jiow neiir |e wg^ W aM^
.*- • %\
is- .
e,':^
6#
door. For a few seconds he seemed to be in ext^emi3
jtodj^e watp^^ bent jinxiously over him. The ema-
ciated faqe of tfie dying statesma was white as raarbfe.
and liis features sadly drawn. At times he scarcely
MCfned to breathe, and at others gasped for breath.
TOe ptiy^icians who had been hastily summoned were
In the mearttiipe not idle. They plied him with stimu-
fetive cordials, the trained nurses chafed his extremi-
ties,; and it was only after
"working over the patient
lor ilpward of thirty min-
tites and the application
of every art known to
1^^ ,Vm^ profession
ti»t Mr. Blaine' slowly
revived.
MRS. BLAINE'S WONDER-
FUL WILL.
The family gathered
around the l)edside were
al! in tears, except Mrs.
Eilaine. She maintained mrs. james g. blaine.
outward composure throughout the trying scene, and
calmly gave such directions to the attendants as were
necessary. Her will power, when in fact her heart
was breaking, is described as something pathetic and'
fiarvelpus. * It has been her cheerfulness that has
soothed her hust>and*s despondency.. Mr. Blaine's
ph^^sica! condition was such that he at times gave
away to despondency. While manifesting no fea|
V .^^i
f£~
i-
64e UPB OF BON. JAIOES O, BI,JUNE.
6f death, Mr. Blaine often said lie did not want to
die. ■ ■.''^£^^i^:'-^
Shortly after i ||p^pH|^ii^ closed carnage was
dnven rapidly 10 ii^ fiii^^^ mansion from
which ali^ted^ii l^^ii^^s Abiga^^
(Gail Hamflto^ ii#N^Ifi^^ The ladies
were cbsely iiral^ and-ian^^^t^^ crowd of
correspondent^ and ot{)i|^ ga&^^ in front of the
house into the ii»idsi6n|fe^ Blaine,
Jr., who had just returned from%fcw mi^fuit^* walk.
Mr. Bl^he^ in response to an in(|(ii(^ i^ii<l::hi^ father
wa^abio^t'the'same.''-- ^ ■Vf^'1-^'' :::,.•. -'M^^'ij it ■'
At|l|di(>'4^<^ the next evemi^ « J^{ii^j^||^ an
intervfei^Tfe^^lr^Bkihe's att<?^«^ipi^p|i|Pr8.
W^^^^.p^illi^ ind Franjiflty^^ for
bc^M^ '^00; fi. j^)hnstcitt^saidfei;;: ^:^;t^'' ^"^^ ■
' " Blaiwfif is dis^e^lietter to.n|g^<|to.nJ}i^^ last
nighl,and much better than he iirfe^K» l^^ng."
'*%^t was the natur^ of tfel^ attack to^ay,
"ttfas a failure of his h<^ to |)erform its func-
tion* s|tisfactoril^/^ ; ^:
" Hi| trouble is not in his heart?" was asked.
*' No,% is not But in the general weakness from
which he is sufifeHtigi all ^ orgahl lare affected, and
the heart makes manifest the vr^nessftLtlii
.^l^s^ehv Bkin^ qondiiJ9fi has been $u ^ that yiim^
' Ae^takedf (Xtid^ as he di<JL teii days^or^jti^ p^8pp»^
\' s,^ ">^i-5
^ ftXfjOdxi OJt DEATH.
547
A •} .■.• i
7ti.
ii/i^.;0-^^niiv
'Jii/;'Vin''jf"^
MRS. WALTER PAMROSCH.
Fof some days prior io and including yesterday, hqw-
ei^nli^ws recovering from^ the effects of the o^d
attd lei^/aiid Ian nig^ht he was entirely free from
fe^i^ 1^ piilse be^^lf strongly and his cOnditioft
*i#.
bP-
548
UFE OF HON. XAXBS O, BLAINS.
i.
quite gratifying. This morning, however, he had an
ill turn, his heart-beats became more indistinct and
irregular, and he was more languid and less observant
However, he rallied from that condition, those symp-
toms disappeared, he has taken nourishment during
the afternoon, sM&ni^kdtS^, he is better and
brighter Hi^jpj^g l^sj^gg^r^flid the reaction
quite niarked.
.K r/il jww tii^,|^neral impr^on thipughout.|he^un-
;«jy:l^tW?v5 Blaine w^ in )ii^ If st si^e^s, and) >^c
endJw^^ itol; far disuujt , I^ a Uwg Ome al^niil^g
j«cp(^mi5»n€)eK|iinghi^ impaired, hca|t^ Jl^4j ^fli #'
cpulatfil4;t 110 oajB consicfered him. a, ^M, m^;, J^, Jif^r-
f^^^n la^q^Ji«4 ti?W beavHy ofi h^
r»i^n>ili|td Ji^fiF |he «[||^!^G^W?''i^^^^^ m^
giving ominous sigp^pC it? %aIj^wiil^Ui ijft p/,/:m
1 5 btHe BH^nse m^m^l^- mW^i^ :fW3f1*^«
te^fty^ IOr*e dfetiijguishfd ;8tate^f^
In thei^se;»M Senstejqq^r^KH^^
^ficfcw^i^ hfftid Ort *ll SMJ^, D^9p€r?t^ If in# Re-
^lu^apA til their spipa^fop:,lh^ ^mtly^m^,^^
^m^i rc^g^t tfepifc the l^Hf^ ,<^^ t^^i^
rThe i«*»|^l^^«C J^^^ «#eri^ Jee^fij^fllto
X^ seriQW$ aiiieiSi of M% JSwt^ that jm^f^g
'li
■* r^
«■)>;
■■•?r*-1 i'r
'.<^r ^'.(i
mrii}
iSr
.J«?s
■' .sr^aaa s..^ mmu :wm- -tiym
y.
b^ xiit
mg ScehesL
/ .. , "■■ ■■ '"■'■■ "^■-?'-
^^^'Gif ^ itidMhg of ^riuaiy^7, f8^^ sit iekven
#cfe6fe, prt^ G^terdi abdur Ms
i§ Hhh^i )[}eial^ taurne were all ' thbse he loved
lieii y ^ tliii^ tiiintitei^ from ther tim<^ <rf the an-
^dbuSiiceinfelnft' lifi^t the ehcih^ come the historicf dian-
^hen^ h^ bi^thed Ms 1^ beda^iihe oheid^
'^ Bte*t!J9t to iSie «ii€li;fed W The sad
news flew to'thi^ eiilds of th^ earth.
^^^^^^ his fihs^ rest Uke a tired child in
^^ih^er^ arMsJ In ikct; the ahxioys wa^
^^Ihe^bidsiai^ Ibiew iK>tiN^en yie end had c^^
- -^ tl^f^wah^ilg that the end Was at hand cdmeat
liM 6^ddt%ihci ih^ Mn Blaine siiifer^d
' Si iotdly tinekpecte^ rdaps Bd^ of th^ {iihydcians
ii4i6 feadb^^t^stifiil>^in attendanc^^
lii^y Ibm^dfiM. 61^ |0h3^ was the iirst 1 to
^ira^I>i^ Hyatt Mlb^^ They
did all that could be done for the dying man, but soon
rdiltzed that Mr. Blaine was beyond human aid.
It was at half-'past ten that the family were sum-
moned, and Dr. Johnston, as gendy as he could, in«>
Ibrm^ diem that the end was dose at hand.
o:
'^»
?^5
^'T^-'M^i&t^^ *f.A
6601^^:
tlFK OP HOir.lJAlIBS 0. BtjUNB.
Then the fiunily entex^ed the sick^chambar, aiid^
watted. for death to come* Mrs* Blaine had been:
with the sufferer all the morning. In iact) to her dch
vottOB and constant attention was largely due Mv*.
Blatne's great batde for life. When he died there
were present at his bedside his wife, his two daugh-
ters^ Mrs. Walter Damrosch and M«S8 Harriet Blaine;
Mr. James G. Blaine, Jr.; Mr. Walter Damro|Sch and
Misi Ab^ail Dodge.
WATCHED FOR DEA^f^^ .^£,
From the tinm the ^ < r
family gathered" about
the bedside of ihe f dying i
statesman udtil hb^^trii < .
had departed no < #ord jI
was spokem NowT^md . /
then the dbctorn ori lihe f
professional nurse would
move abotitt sedoHBg to
ease the sufferer aft bestt ^
iheyeouUi v i im
MrSi Blaine sat by th^head of^ bed, holdiiif one ^
wasted hB»nd of the $u^r«ir ^nd smoothly badie hit t
hair. H«i/ two dai^hters knelt at ei^er side of ^e
bedi weejpttUg silentl^^ liieir^eads btirfed ill their bandit
tMt.^ end had b^n li^jong expected r^)bedfllf >t
^nom^ its horrori. Hunng^ the las^rhi^ howp iof ' i^
Mri Bku9^s tifeitin^siiiiply a wea«y^walilfl|^ferlN i
defar^ng apktl^to IB^ i^r
" I i ii' t- 'i j i i , I I II' , i; y* . .,
t/r;
■«-*,
.^-I'K? JOIJOSINO-''B01NB»,^O& 'ia M-ild
561<
£)i«;j0h«(s«Mi a1 eleven o^doek felt the patien^i
puld«^-di^ii befH^^bwiv itt the vain hope ;6f hearing- <
som4s> &Atk ^ho ^f Mfe. Then he knew the end had ^
conti^/ Wlthc^a^Word he phced the sufferer's hands
acr6«s'llii diest and^ nlbtioning tb Df. Hyatt, quietly •
A "fen^^iidrniefiy latlf ihe physicians left the house.
Wsilkingfilplo4liem€:wj|]^per men who were in wait- -
ing Du Johnston said:^ '* Gentlemen, Mr. Blaine is <
dead;'*-'"'^ ''''■' '"^^' ■' : ' ■ "~'"':^:""^
Mr. Blalnd l^d l>een critically ill-|o|^i)fe^s, and
there ^as Ob Impe of hik recovery. ^btWithsd^nding
thitf^^U^ the news of his death cana^ su^^ly and
alniqstbnekpectecH^ I'Fot several iifr|psi^^ b^n j
someni^iati better, and^iti was co^^^j^ ei;;geqtfed^^^^^^ i
hp would Hve ibr oouly days. ^Tfiief retim| bf |i^^i^ts9^ i
weiiiierf ^^it- was ^ught by/ the physic^M^ "^^"{4
matdriallyaidtMr. Blainei \' \ \-\
Mr.^Pai!itehad been in bad health iince tBS;^^^ ilxh ^
firsi tflriottff^^iafpti^s'were caused by what is tech-
nically known a^aiiteri^ ^rosis— that is, a hardening
of the walls 4f the arteriesi. This, as time wore otir
deteloped^i^ ^4 lorm of Bright^s disease. It also :/
impttkr^d ot^r erganS) tv^bly the heart and lungs.
WkmrdkdtiS paralysis from whidi Mr. Blaine siil^
fer^ 'While ti^VeMing In Milan^ some years ago, was
diriiitly ' ttsikiye to^ tW^^ Ulness^ No reme^^ ^
appdin^ t9 liet^ftvmi Th^fentlyb^me akrmedr^
and cQQSuhed ^stisigui8il^^^>^ialist8. In no lastaweei '
VVi
'M
v'.^
l*iS
41
4
.-^n
~ikv'
- > *^i4
•> ,>..-'.-
/,.*
5811
LIFE OF nOK.rJAUX&m^UhkllfE,
v4
-3 -;
yms o^er than * temporary relief afforded^ ^ ThegdOf^^
eral system became impaired, and three yeari after/
the first alarming indications Mr. Blaiiie beoamei a
confirmed invalid; '' •■■.;•?:, ^inb^^i _/*,f,ni-:b,ii> wjuhMiti^ii^i
' Mr^ Blalne-s vitality was '^soj^at; Ms min^ ^MFas sdt
active, and his spirit so high that the members loC lusi
family hoped that death could be averted forv manyt
years. This hopeful spirit was manifested all thronghf
the time When Mr. Blaine succumbed to the sUghftest:
shock. Cold settled in his throat and chest fre^i
quently, ai|#<3ta%Very occasion he was forced to ettket
take to h^ 1^ prjuspend his daily pursuits. Thei
repetitioiijOfihesie attacks finally resulted in a? species?
pf nervous^fiB^ir^sfcb^ and towards th^kstiMrjBlamt^
i>ecame a hypbdpliiidriac. -■-rthy.t.V' '-tmi^p.f^r!.
Despite this l^^ir Ihat every weak ^s^l<wouIdMbff
Jiiis jUtlst^ his^spirit and%iibition nevet? left Mm. ^^-^y-^^i!
/His fight for life during the liist stac wd^cs wite
regards in local medical circles as ooeof 'khe^ntost
remarkat>Ie exaihples of physical endnrajtce vtbj |^
found irithe records of medical sciiBnce*^^c;K;i ,0hX>
M ^e doctors could do was to end^aivor tolik^Sj^
Rlie^in tie frame as long as possible. MTipeand tim^
ag^ death had appeared tnevitciUe^ but the laie oift
heroic remedies was, until the last, aU^ to postpone
the inevitable end for a time*
■'■ This local physioaiis iiad been most oonstaaitm ^r
attendaaice atHdie becMde of; the' sSxk^ wamii'MpokM
ftteftiifviiirser isnidi the immk^ ic^i^i^ifiifiiMy^luiii
:
f*;^'»i»;^.
■'••'tft
I Vi ' CLOSIKQ S0ENB8.
m
i
eadmisted every means at their command to ease the
weairy houiB.
; Even at nine o'clock in the morniiig a hope was
entertained that Mr. Blaine might be pulled through
this reli^e^ Nitro-glycerine was administered, but
not with the usual result of easing the pressure tipon
the keart and restoring comparative calm to his throb-
bing nerves. His pulse became intermittent For a
time It Would beat furiously, and then stop altogether
for several moments.
Then oedema of the
luiigs set in* Mucous
.secretions began to fill
the air spaces. The
breathing became la-
beled and Anally ster-
torous. Mr. Blaine was
at this point unable to
mofve^ He seemed con-
scious that the end was
rapidly drawuig near.
The expression of the
%ce,itlie twttdiing of the facial muscles, were evidence
4n^ he was conscious. The lamp of his life ami
^ fight of Ms great intdlect were extinguished
REV. DH. HAMLIN.
MIND CLEAR ifd THE LAST. ' ■
o^A^remaHoible feature of Mr. Blaine^s entire illness
Kei iliidie fadt Aat hts^brain wad at all times cleait
^^si|iilr<i^dia:tistion ^^e^^ntly intervened and reduced^
M
^\';
.. m
**'fe"i-i*-
■h(^;.
'•
654
UFB OF BOir«' Pilots Hfl^SLAIXfm
rf
, .. ..J
«<.
him toa smi^oomatoM eotiditiofi, but at^o fiiiiiib It U^^P
believed^ did his brain wander. ' ^'*^^^
In the latter auget «if the Ulntsa witlmirhieh MlV'^1
Blaine suffered softening of the brain is not an i^iconir' ''i
mofi symptom. This case is said to be aii eiteeptieini ;^'
To the last he retained his mental jpenelratieni * At' >*<'
timet he was keenly alive to his condition andsttt^ -^^
.Toundings and at other times dimly do^icilMM, bu^ «» '^
mental delusions and no wanderinga oi the mhid vrM .
ever' noticed. ' i^i^ouA.> • . ' ■ '-^ i^ua-^^ili
The news of Mr^ BlaineV death ^preadi like wild-
fire. Crowdt gathered on the coriiei^ and vlsit^ .
flocked to the house. The Rev. Dr. Hamlin, whd'iiip4i n
passing the ' house wh^n the sinnouncement of death
i^^n^ato^^
Word waa sent to ^e President immediately ataf^' '^>
the death, and at twenty-five niinu«B6 afkr 'el^y^
ihresident ItoH^ii, accbtiipanied by PHvatc S^pretifjp *
Halfiitti and y#ittsn8mi: I^^r? #^4 ova^J^ ft ^[j
of i^i^K ip^
^e Pfe9ideiit,-and ilteW ^Ihe 0iiim' membera^ef *^«&w
CabiiMit and^ many |>romineiit j^eople ft>lkiwed. , '^^^^^'^1
'^e Pre^n^ received wattling «rf Mfc,BW|^^a, ^
s^)pioadu^g end tiifough i l>ptfil^ iittih!Sif<p?i(^^ ..^
him' ^t jMlr. Blaine^ Ci^£|i<i* not live thr^g^ th^dax^/^.v
He^,imi9i§#i|% hadithe auWt^ .
tdegrai^ed over the department^ mea in ^di^#i#>Y''^
>...
aSS*. '*, '/'
i^4
'A indt
ftfi .,
eath
mmUi
islnr
■,mio,
if'"'
^W»".
■•n/.T
iOMNUNO BOXSm.
550
ou« Qtbuicl officers. It was a few minutes later only
that Mr. Montgomery, the operator at the White
House, roeetved another message addressed to the
President. "Blaine is"— is all he waited to hear,
and, be started on a run for the room of Private Sec-
retary HaWord. The final word " dead " reached him
as he was in the hallway separating the telegrapK^iii
rooiQ from Mr. Halford'a office.
Th« Cabinet was immediately notified, and came to ;fi«
the Cabinet meeting at the usual hour fully prepared.
THE OFFICIAL PROCLAMATION.
The- President at two , o'clock Issued the following
proclamation: i>i-
" Executive Mansion,
* w ^i "Washington, January 27, 1893.
**It is iny painful duty to announce to the people
of the United States the death of James Gillespie
Blaine, which occurred in this city to-day at eleven
o'clock*
"For a full g[eneration this eminent citizen has
occti|^$eda conspicuous and influential position in the
na]tipn.r ,HJs first pubitc service was in the Legislature
of hii S^te. Afterward for fourteen years he was a v
miember of the National House of Representatives,
and was ihree times its chosen Speaker. In 1876 he
wl^rilblected to the Senate. He resigned his seat in
that body in 1881 to accept the po3ition of Secretary
of §|aie to th^ Cabinet of President Garfield.
•^fl^r llje^j^ of his chief he resigned, .^
Jromjili^ Cabinet and devoting himself to literary ''^
work; gai^e to the public his 'Twenty Years of Con-
grei»;i)^lii09t4^^b^ enduring contrtbutidn to '
.ottr|»Qlitki[|liteftttiu^ "- ^^
•41
"■41
'> ■-' -!-«.
'•■■•f.-^.,'/-
j (/:.' ;g[
■^-■
556
LIFE OF HON. JAMES O. BLAINE.
Iv.'
■ii'il Ci^l ./^f)qf!0]j
In March, 1889, he agai^ Decaine ,3ecre
State, and continued to exercise tlhis office uiiiitjiinj
1$92.' - ■■;■ ' ■..•■:.:■.-,.<,■> „.n,>
'Hi* devotion to the public Interests, his marked
ability and his exalted patriotism have wOn. lor htfiEi
the ifratitude and affection of his countryiyie;|iaiii(il the
admiration of -the world. In the y^-ried pursuits, c>f
lie^islation, diplomacy and literature his genius lias
added new histre to American citizenship. :^^^^'^^'
As a suitable expression of the natiohi! a^rmS-
tion of his great public services and of the g«neial
sorrow caused by his death I direct that on tbbiSay tiS
his funeral all the departments of the e3i;eculjivf braiijoh
of the government at Washington be closed aQd j||^t
on all public building^ throughout the United §itates
the national flag shall be clisplayed at half-st&flt M^^
that for a period of thirty dfiiys the Department of
Static be draped in mourning^ iM^^f^i;t|jo/in^^
By order of the President ^^ i>^7e>^l3b f*lisH 5M
' BENJAMIN HARRISON. Preadcotii
John W. Foster, Secretary of State, T fM-
■%.
CONGRESS ADJOURNED*j,
Hii
*i f-f^t
'Si f^4
As soon as the reading of the journal was ended in
the Senate tHe announcement of Mr. Blaine's death
was made by Mr. Hale, of Maine, who was for many
years one of the closest personal and poHtical fnends
of the dead statesman, and who said that the dread
event would carry sadness and mpurning ^rougho\it
^1 thci ^ ^nited States and would awaken triterest and
sorrow wherever civilized men lived. ,
/ His remarks were ibltowed by a motion by Mr.
Cockrell, of Missouri, that the Senate adjourn out of
I,' Si
B'r
',.»
CLOSING SCENES.
of the deceased, and the
667
i^es))ect to the memory
^;^]w^d(S(^(ed carried.
The adjournment made the sixth interruption of
im$tpc^^jni^e Senate caused by death within the
ishii^ precedifig weeks.
tjjf^jf^ d^tii of ex-Speaker Blaine also brought the
(m^iti^^d'bf th^i House to a sudden termination. A f<^w
committee^ reports^ vrere made, including a bill to re-
pi:^,ltl:M^fcdeii^ election laws, and then, after brief and
!9^€6tif)ig ispeedves by Mr. MUlikeo, who represents
Mi^ Blaine's old district, and Holman, who served
ye^s with him in the House and who had
l^eci his personiil friend, the House out of re-
l^peqt; t9^e memory of the dead statesman adjourned.
k^ nmnm ' ■ -■ '■ .'Sf^NATpR ^^HALE*S ■ EULOGY, ■. ■/,
In announcing Mr. Blaine's death to the Senate,
Mr. Hale delivered the following appreciative eulogy
uj[lon the dead statesman :
"Mr. President: We are again summoned into
the presence of death. A very great man has passed
(rpni this earth. Mr. Jkmes G. Blaine died in his
\house in this city at ii o'clock this morning. ' His
long illfiess had in some measure prepared us for
|ha^ but the dread event will carry sadness and
I mourning throughout all the United States and will
a^i^eh interest and sorrow wherever civilized mdn
J lives on -the face of the globe.
*'«* Mr. Blaine's career was so remarkable and his
p|iblic services were so great that in all histories which
.may^t)e written of his times he will stand as a central
/■
f^:nf ?/ '
d68
LIFE OF HOiHt. tAim ^. BLAINE.
i>
IS?,.
''^«8
fl-i
figure, iiot 0iily ^s to his dwn country, but oh
and subjects that affected other greatt nation!!; He
belonged, Mr. President, not to any one State but to
all th6 country, and Pennsylvania, which gave Win
birthplace and nurtured hini, and Maine, where he
made his home and where he became her first citizen
and which filled his lap with all the honors which^lie
could bestow, mourn him no more to-day than do the
dwellers by the shores of the great gulf and in the
cabins of the far Sierral >
"This is no time nor place for me to speak m detlEtil
of his distinguished public life. He was for years a.
distinguished member on the floor of the Hou^e of
R^resentatives of the nation, and for six years pl^-
sidedasits Speaker. His services in this chamber
covered years. He was twice Secretary of State and
was until of late a member of the present Adminis-
tration. I do not think there is one Senator here Ivhb
would not deem it fitting, in view of these fects and of
the fact that he died where his last peaceful IbOk from
his chamber window might embrace this Capitol, whc^re
his voice had been so many times heard, that we make
a precedent at this time, and that, although Mr. Blaine
was at the time of his death a private citizen, this body
take immediate adjournment"
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENtATIVfeS.
When the House met the Chaplain referred to Mn
Blaine in his prayer in these words:
^v*i»0. eternal God, we stand before thee profoundly
nioved as the news eomes to the Capitol and flies
, -"-,*'
■*^
x^^^
ufjn
OLQSIKG SQB^S^
a :^'^ij
^;d69
'k.
.^pvgh the.Und that a great man and a prince among
,^e peopiejias ended bis earthly career. Rich in the
|n^|[;!^fQld; gift^ with which thou hadst endowed him,
,jj^j?eless in^ energy, devoting himself for a generation
, to the service of the land, holding men to him by bonds
s^pnger than steel, winning for himself the hearty
affection and confidence of millions of his fellow-citi-
zens sind such a place as has rarely been held l^y any
jpap, he passes from us mourned, honored, lovedr-
his memory a fragrance in this House and throughout
>^^e Capitol and throughout the nation."
Congressman Milliken, of Elaine, said : <rco
^|L Speaker: It becomes my sad duty to an-
nounce to this House die death of James G. Blaine.
Mr. Blaine was for fourteen years a prominent and
leading member of this House. For six years he was
the distinguished Speaker of the House. Ev^ry posi-
tion he has held he has gilded with the light of genius,
^9;id he^ has given to the public service for a genera-
tion such devotion and such industry and such labor
as have brought him to his death to-day^ I do not
.doubt that every member of this House will be glad
to pay him a tribute of. respect by an adjournment
^ Mr. Holman, of Indiana, said : j 3;^ .^w/
Mr. Speaker, the deaths which have been announced
so recently of illustrious citizens may well bring to
oi^r minds the prophetic words of the Hebrew King:
" How are the mighty fallen ! " The death of James
4fi« Blaine will profoundly impress the sensibilities of
|ht^ country. A great man is dead. He laid the
M
'■tM
2 : :i
'. .■'!■■>■ *. v.v' '^-^ ■^■■'^<"'
iXi
660
UFE OF HON. JAMES G. BLAINE.
'<*■
foundation of his fame in this hall. Here were his
great and early triumphs. How often have we Heard
in this hall the tones of his ringing.eloquence ! Great in
statesmanship, known not only to our country but to
the statesmen of the civilized world, and not only great
in statesmanship, not only one of the illustrious diar-
acters which have illustrated the value of free institu-
tions,, but beyond that, he was great in the field of
literature. As the historian of the grandest epoch
in the history of the world he did his work wdl.
H^ History, covering a period of years, will go down to
posjt<srity as one of the brightest illustrations of the
ilibe in which he lived and of the grand events of
^tch he was a part. It would seem, Mr. Speaker,
to be eminently proper and fitting that with the ^n-
nc^ncement of his death here in this the theatre of
his great achievements, this House, out of respect to
his^rinemory, should adjourn. I therefore ir^iove that
tb|^i|QUse do now adjourn.
THE. PRESIDENT WAS SHOCKED.
Within an hour of the announcement of Mr. Blaine's
death a newspaper correspondent found President
Harrison in his private office at the White House
with one or two members of his Cabinet. He ap-
peared to be deeply moved. He said :
"I was greatly shocked to learn of Mr. Blaine's
death. The impression made upon me was no less
profound because of the fact that Mr. Blaine^s illness
has for some time been believed to be fetal. The
piiymcians slnd relatives of Mr. Blaine abandoned hopb
r.... ■■{
liiie'a ^
lirte's
less
llness
CLOSING SCENES. 661
sorne time ago, but his death was none the less un-
expected and a great shock to me. Before learning
.thesacl news I was preparing to call at the Blaine
^ xesidence. I at once paid a visit and left a message of
Vsyjnpathy with James G. Blaine, Jr."
, CLEVEI^AND'S WORDS OF PRAISE.
The news of Mr.
Blaise's death did not
f^ch Mr. Cleveland
until the afternoon. He
!was in his office in
. New York at the time.
Although both pc-
^ cupied 60 iarge a place
in, the public life of this
country during the pre^
^ ceding nine years, Mr.
Blaine and Mr. Cleve-
land did not meet often.
The^ had headed op^s-
, ing tickets in a national
election long befote.l;liey
inet personally, and ^r. grover Cleveland.
Cleveland had been elected and inaugurated before
the opportunity arose for them to become acquainted..
Then very properly Mr. Blaine made the first call,
wheilf as Mr. Cleveland said, they had a very pleasant
lolerview,^' ■ ''^"5-;' •■■-■'■■;
tt was suggested that these reminiscent facts wotdd
hkoi unique and profound interest at this time.
, ■ '■ -«a
M: » }
^/•^■'^l|^'''
N
\l
mi
m
UFE OF HOtr. ^AlOS O. BLAINE.
-Mr/tDleveland said : "Thefirst tinfe I ever siw Mnf
Blafhe-I had a very pleasant interview with him at llie
Whit(i House, shortly after my inauguration as Presto:
dent While I have seen but very little of him^ince
that time, yet in a personal way, in common with aU
other American citizens, I have not failed to admim
his traits^ the breadth of his information and the akit^
h^s of his intellect. ^a ^•fii
r<*A figure like his," ^ntinued Mr. eieveland, "which
has been so prominendy before the people and whidi;
they have so long seen in different lights^ cauinot fail
to M long remembered by those of the presenit
geiierationj and will certainly occupy ^Jarge place kl
^^ histdrjrof the country^ - ?- t. - lo r
tn^i^ffivc6mmon with all his comijtrymen;' condndccl
Mr. GJeveland, ^ I share the regret occasioned by die
death df a man such as Mr. Blaine^ so well entitted to*
be called an Amcricanistatcsman irrespective of difer»
ences in political beliefs or in opinions touching publid
oa^stiotis.^*
f HOW DEAtK CAME TO HIM. un** '
Though forewarned repeated^ of the p/scariom
eharacter of his health, Mr. Blaine eadiibited Kt^
defiression^r despondency during idie last twaor three
years of his life. In his own fam^y circle, too, one
affittddh canie upon another, not fewer thaii four deiths
oca^rring between 1890 and 1892. Neverthelc8s,iMr.
^Ine kefiit lip an appearance of cheerfuln«^ and fat-
%elest^ aiid did friends found hint genial and compan-
ionable and as fertile aw* brfflistfitia^conve^?!^
i-y;^ ,
.">;
■"^***
CflUOSING SOEKBS.
663
■iif
he had always been. As often as his health (xer-
mitted he went out to dinners and other social gather-^
ings^ and he gave constant entertainments at home.
His fondness for society never failed, and even when,
confined to the house, he had given up the habit oC
seeing people downstairs in the general reception-
rooms, he had many callers come up to the parlor on
the second floor of the refitted Seward house, and
diere chatted whh them for long periods with great
apparent pleasure.
A journalist >yho called on Mr. Blaine on the Sun-«
day before he was taken with his last illness, found
kun in the brightest spirits^ and enjoyed a conversa-
tion on current topics which must have lasted nearly
in hour. Though physically weak and noticeably pallid
fhun his long stay indoors, he showed no trace of
listlessness or depression. Seated in an easy-chair
near the fireplace in the drawing-room on the seqond
floor, he chatted about politics past and present with
all the interest and brilliancy of earlier days. His
manner was as cordial and spirited as ever, and though
disease had left its marks in the slowness of his ges-
tures and the deliberation of his speech, his conversa^
tiim showed no perceptible abatement in range or force.
WORDS OF A DYING MAN.
r^^aXbe whole subject of his withdrawal from the Cab-
kilit in June^ 189^, was gone over in a frank and unre-
served way, Blaine discussing that interesting and im-
portant inddent with as little show of feeling as if it
i»dhaiq>eaed twenty yeara ago.
J ■-'
'i*.
664
UFE OF HON. tAXES 0. BLAIKI.
His own retirement from the Cabinet^ he said, had
not been prompted by personal motives altogether;
nor did he, as some false friends had asserted, cherish,
either at the time or afterward, any bitterness of feel-
^ing toward the President He had not expected nor
desired a nominaltoh from the Minneapolis convention,
and had stood r^dy to congratulate with all cordiality
the j^ej^ublidknnohilnees on their elecdon. Blaine's
inrhple manner sl^owed that hebaci suffered no shade
^f disappointment or ill feeUn|f tp disturb the personal
tr^^uitlity whiqh he . ha4 sought to. secur^. w jyi^
cloj^nf ;jday8 of his career by liis de^nji;^ j^pifien^^
jfrom pMblic, life, , , . ,,,,|,..f I 3,|.^ ,^^^-^ ■■
Tf]|0, jm^<;h valMe (^ saircely be attachietd to th^f^
ffa/^lc pcpr^sioiis on the events and incidc^nts of Jfin^,
the closing chapter of Mr. Blaine's long political c^refx*
Jlie cpny^rsationin which they were embodied was^pne
pt i^e ladt of any length held by him ; for a few day^
ia^er ^e became seriously ill ag^in ar|d to^k i^J^f^i h^»
from which he never rose.
i-iUki^Ui^
M.m.w
■■ ium
. i-,'5
.■^
;-»
bid JIM^ ^ ,}r ; ..■'.• ■* nit tn(yi\- w^m^h^i^m^s>;s^^
■ion Ivjt^i^srtrvrt ■ k;7r? .^f I ■' ^rr-,h:- ..,•; ^^.. ],.^;^,,,, ^^-jj
.A,nl.iIr*^.Honors ^i^^^
f •*¥iaE ifdneral of James G. Blaine was a simi>le one,
i^iliii tile invitations td attend it were based upon the
niies l^overning the invitations to public functidns.
thi ftesfdent, the Cabinet, the Judges of the Supreme
Court, the Piplomatic Corps, the Senators and Rep-
%sentatives in Congress, were invited to the services
ait the^ cHiif^h, and Seat4 were {Provided ibr thenv !A
ofdfef^of precederiie.' " ^^■''" '^' ^ ; ^- -.-^^>'^^^->:^:|
-^brtrf service at die hbu^^^^
ceideJ the itiore ibrnial ceremonies at the Church of
the Covenant To this ceremony not more thau on^
hundred and fifty officials, associates of Mr; Blain^.
and friends of the family were invited. Among them
were the President, who came accompanied by Mrs.
McKee and his private secretary ; the Vice-President
and Mrs. Morton, with their daughter ; Speaker and
MrSv Crisps the Members of the Cabinet, with their
families; Chief Justice Fuller and his wife, Mr. and
Mrs. Andrew Carnegie, Mrs. John A. Logan, whose
husband was on the Republican ticket with Blaine in
1884; Mrs. Garfield, whose husband Mr. Blaine was
with when murdered by Guiteau ; General Alger, Mr.
K-K,
"p *,«
H ■>
Is
^"4* ?'^mia
o <
666w um OF BpK. JAldBd' d. BLAINB.
iui4 Mrs. Theodore RqosevelC Mrs. Hitt^ Mi^ii
fMacomb, IJdiss Loring, Siei^tor an4 Mrs. Camerbti
and Miss Cameroiii Senator and Mrs. Chandlei'^ Cveh-
ieral and Mrs. Parke, Mrs. Eugene riale, Mrs. T. 1$.
Hamlin, Mrs. Alexander Rodgers, Senator ' ah d Mr^.
Wolcott» Mr. and Mrs. John R. McLeain/ Mrs. Jotin
cljay, Mr. and Mrs, Fv C. Newlands, Mr. and Mi^
Gordon Cumming* Mr. and Mrs. Henry Cabot Lodge*
Mr. and Mrs. HowUnd, Mr. and Mrs. Marieell^s
v;^aUey,> Mrs. Audenreid, Mr. and Mr< M. H. Bunnell,
I of Minnesota; exrGovernor and Mrs. t^ei^anii Of
: Maine ; $ir Julian and Lsidy Fauhcefqrte, Mr. A. C
Tylfer, Mrs. Francis B. Loring, Senators Gordon arid
Voorhees, Kepiresentatiye Holman and J. T. tJevfiie,
Mr^ Blaine's stenographer in tji^ pr^paratiph Of jiis
*f Tweaty Years of Congress ; *' Represeh^tive Bloiint
.afid Mr. Charles Empty Sniith, exTMinister to Riis^ta ;
Representative and Mrs. iDingley, Represenktlve
Milliken, Mrs. Frye>^ Maine delegation of fbiiirie^n
.^headed by Governor Cleaves, and Mr. S. P. Fessenden,
.j^f, Connecticut ; Senator and Mrsr Manderspn, S^na-
lor^^VVUison, McPherson, Sherman, Cockrell, GonUan,
Aldridi and Morrill ; Senator and Miss t)awei^ S^n^for
, Ho»-, Senator and Mrs. V/s^shburn, Senaibr R^n^m
,,^nd General B^ird, judge and Mrs. Wylie,
^A SIMPLE CEREMONY* 7 v^
:|- Mf, J^ioieV body Is^^ ^'^^ drawlng^iOOjntt jdne
%t^ ^ire^^^ sireet. ifei copiri 6f red cedkii cov^
,;erQd;^h;^a9k, cloth j^ a railing of ^dver ^n*
ning^il around it, rested upon flbral pedestals^ B^itl
.^<
■■*■ -^tf.
V
LAST HONOBS.
■ 't.ti
667
jHft^^h ms. stretched a thick carpet of roses nine feet
^c^ng an4 four feet wide. The room was crowded with
wre^thst and crosses of flowers, with palms, lilies and
))uge ni^^ses of violets. The upper part of the coffin
jHfap covered over with glass. The body was clothed
1^ t>lack broadclo^ and the hands were folded across
'iS^Veas^f;^?;;:': >r>^ow,
. ?Thp?e who had been invited began to gather at ten
Qt^ilQ9ky A Ipng row of carriages extended very soon
;piieiAcr side of the door. A do^en policemen kept
i jdie <qntrance clear. The crowd on the sidewalk facing
^ house was quiet, tt was not a large crowd. At
r |B(evei^ o'clock the President, who was one of the feist
tp afnve, entered the hou^e. He glanced for a nw)-
ment iat ie thin, worin face in the coffin, and then took
l^j^! ^qa.t whith had been reserved for him. Mrs.
JBlainf entered immediately after, leaning upoh the
arm of her son, followed by the other members of riie
jHiJi'
fti
THE PALLBEARERS.
,Tlie ser^^^^ followed was very simple. The
ffe(ey.I>r. Hamlin, of ^e Church of the Coven^n^
|Mn|y^d, standing beside the coffin. He asked God to
(OOiiii'ort and uphold those whom the dead man had
left behind him. The prayer was short. At its cbn-^
elusion Walter Damrosch, Mr. Blaine's son-in-law,'
,09^^ a few chords upon the piano.
■ 1^ un^ hurriedly gathered up
iV si?^uy as possible pf the floral tributes aiid t^k
'i|em; m iy^dgon to die church, while the cdffiti ih^s
- t-
% -'
- Ai
668
LIFE OP HON. JAMBS 6. BLAINl.
ft'
Kfc"' ■
canieid downstairs to .|he hearse. The pollheacehi
who accompanied it were Senators Hale and Frye, of
. Maine; Senator Morgan, of Alabama; Representatives
Thomas B. Reed and Boutelle, of Maine ; Represent-^
ative Hitt, of Illinois, formerly Mr. Blaine's Assistant
Secretary of State; Representative Bingham, of Pentu
sylvania, the State in which Mr. Blaine was bom ;
Gen. Thomas Ewing, of Ohio, Mr. Bhine's secOml
cousin ; and John Hay, formerly Assistant Secretary
of State. The pallbearers were all selected by Mrst
Blaine, and acted at her request. '^ '^^
When the coffin was brought from the house the
crowd had increased. There were thousands of men
and women gathered about All the men removed
their hats and stood in silence as the funeral proces<*
sion started for the Church of the Covenant near by.
DECORATIONS OF THE CHURCH.
Meanwhile the officials and friends of the family
who, for lack of space, could not be invited to the ceiv
empny at the house, had gathered in the church. They
nun)l»&red 800, as representative a political gathering
probably as was ever brought together in this country.
Nearly every branch of the public service and all im-
portant departments of official life in Washington were
represented.
The two middle rows ol seats on either side of the
cen^l aisle were roped off with ribbons of white satiU/
Every atteii^)r was made to prevent an air of gloom
surrounding the services. The badges of the ushers
were of white sating the decorations of ^ iEdtar *wera
i^'^i.
A.-^kt^'^^:-\
LAST HONORS.
669
' 1
i,-**l
brilliant #ith coloring — white and red and violet.
There was not a particle of black in all the decoration
of the church. The seats fenced in with white satin
were reserved for the family and for those who had
been invited because of their official position.
Hie altar was a mass of flowers, and when the
wagon loads of roses, violets and lilies were brought
fron the house it was almost impossible to find room
for dieni. Huge wreaths were hung upon the posts
of peWs and piled upon the floor at the foot of the
altar. The floral carpet which Mrs. Emmons Blaine
had Sent was spread upon the floor before the altar,
and upon it were the supports for the coflin.
DISTINGUISHED PEOPLE IN THE CHURCH.
At the hour of twelve all those who had been in-
vited had arrived and the church was tilled. The gen-
eral public was not admitted to any part of the cer-
emony, and a number of policemen, with ropes
stretched around the church, kept the approadies
clear. The gathering in the church was impressive
and interesting. AIL the Judges of the Supreme
Court sat together in seats just back of those reserved
for the family, with the exception of Chief-Justice
Fuller, who attended the services at the house and
sat with the family. Justices Field and Gray arrived
first, and immediately behind them followed Justices
. Blatcfaford, Brewer and Brown. They were a fine,
simple-ldoking lot of men, with solemn fac^s, wear-
ing old-fashioned clothing and tight black gloves, veiy
AmoiUfan and v^ry comforting to look at.
570
LIFE OF BOK^ f^Mf 0. BLAINfi.
Back of them sat the strange assprttnent ofi men
who go to make up the Diplomatic Corps in this
country. There was Sir Julian Pauncefote, the Brijt-
ish Minister, who, came4n a sttmning equJpag;^ m^
English coachman and footman, each more than si^
feet tall. A very dignified spectacle was Sir JulHin^
solemnly doing honor to the man whose pppularil;y
was largely built up on his disagreements with Great
Britain. Across the aisle sat Mr. Mavroyeni Bey» the
Turkish Minister. Mr< Tat'eno, the Japanese Minis-
ter, sat next to Mr. Ye^ the Corean Charge d! Affaires.
Mn Y^ wore a black pointed cap. - s^
OtMSR DIPLOMATS PRESENT. . i
r Prince Contacuzene, the Russian Minister, wU^i liis
secr^stary; J. Mott Smith, the Hawaiian Minister; Pr.
Holbein, the German Minister, with Baron Kettler,
also of his l^ation ; Seflor. Romero, of the Mexican
JUgationi Count Sponneck, the Danish Minister ;G.
De Weckherlin, the Minister from the Netherlands;
MrKCIaparede,t|ie Swiss Minister; SeAor ppn Ho-
racio Guzman, the Nicaraguan Minister; SefVor.Men-
douca, the Brazilian Minister; M, Patenotre, the
French Minister ; Dr. Bustamente, the Veneziielan
Minisi«r ; Mr. Sousa Rosa, the Portuguese Minister ;
Mr.Le Ghait,the Belgian Minister; Mr. Grip, the
Swedish Minister; Baron Fava ^Marquis Iinp«ri-
aMt of iJie Italian Legation, and a lot of attach^ gpr-
f eons in mioient aa4 penonal attraction, filled 9^¥ejPil
TOWS.. CW,- Seats. '■ - i'#i.'t-if5*«:*?' ' ■ •■
Whoever has not b^n in WasbingUm^asja^idAa
«-,frj
' >^
:>iK^h}'
LAST HONORS.
^'■B;
^1
bf 'the fine sight which the Diplomatic Corps pre-
sented. These distinguished diplomats travel all over
die world in the course of their iAteresting careers,
but they nevef go to a country where a man as great
ifi the eyes of his fellow-citizens as Mr. Blaine was is
likid to rest with as little fuss and feathers as they
witnessed that <3ays ^rrrr - ^ „
The seats of the Senators and Representatives Itt
Gottgress were tack of those occupied by the Diplo-
Ih^dc Corps. They were filled by a crowd of men
'%ell known to the country, and ^ few women. Among
them were Gov. Cleaves, of Maine, and a delegation
from that State ; ex-Senator Davis, of West Virginia ;
ex-Delegate Gannon, of Utah; Mr. and Mrs. D. T.
irfcKee, Warner Miller, Dr. J. C. Welling, Mr. and
Mrs. Roeissle, and ex-Senator Eustis, of Louisiana. ^
Delegations from the Union League Clubs of New
York amd Philadelphia and from a dozen other orgali-
izatlonS throughout the country were also seated
within the white satin inclosure, as were also the heads
^f the bureaus in the State Department
THE PROCESSION ENTERS THE CHURCH. ^ '"^^^^
The funeral procession from the house reached tHe
jfcfiiirch at 12 <>*dock. Dr. Teunis S. Hamlin, v*ho but
ft shott time before led the service at the funeral of
W^ker Blaine, walked slowly up the aisle at the head
6f the procession, reading as he walked from ^e
l^tiail^erviG^, beginning with the verse, ** I am the
resurrection and the life." Slowly and solemnly he
f^fij^eaied^ ifirorda which emphasize the fact that am^
a
m
UFE OF HON. JAMBS 0. BLAINE.
iu
bition and hope of preferment all' stop at the gi^ei
'* We bring nothing into this world/' he liQld his h^g^
ers ; "we can take nothing from it ** This, ol ooursebf
was not taken in too harshly literal a sense ^ykiaf
hearers, who" knew that Mr Blaine had tali^efl^wi^i:,
him the one thing which hc^d made- his life worth It^
tng-T*the affection and admiration of mtlliofis of his
countrymenw^ ;jj?"^' .i.t.i - xnip ^ ■ ^^o^imio:-^
Behind Dr. Hamlin walked the honoraiyHpattj^
bearers, with the big figure of " Tom " Reed towering-
above all the others. He walked with his heavy head
bowed down. Eight undertakers' assistants d^fhe
next, carrying the cofifin, which was s^most buried
from sight beneath a mound of flowers. ^rb j^ u>!
MRS. BLAINE WAS ABSl^NTrr niim.nli
Mrs. Blaine did not attend the services at th^^urdS"'
Directly behind the coffin came her daughter, McSk<
Damrosch, leaning upon the arm ol he^ brother, Jaotea
Q, Blaine*^--no longer James G. Bl^ne« Ji. MisSf
Harriet Blaine; ^r. and Mrs. Robert Blaine, andrlbe
oth^ members of the family followed^ All thewOni^n
were heavily veBed. hiui
Next came the President, with Mrs. McKee leaning
u{>on his armr He was very pide, and his liead
appeared to be sunk more deeply than ever in the
collar of his heavy overcoat He took a seat in the
thii^d row b^ind the honorary pall-bearersi ^ '
jFred Brown, Mr. Blaine's colored buder, todfton.-
the box of the carriage in wlticH were MtaiiHattif^
Plakie and young James G. Blainoiirndsa^ nidi Hie
■ft,'
.^^4
';'i'~ .-■■\'
«.iJii
«.v%fr * .a-'
LAST HONORS.
678
£un% in itie church. It is doubtful whether Mr;
Bldne hM any 4nore sincere mourner outside of his
immedi^ family than this faithful servant who sat
K^ei^g with appreciation to every word of comfort
aadwijHng his eyes at every allusion to his dead masi
ter^s good qualities.
^Mlds AWgail Dodge (Gail Hamilton), Mr. Blaine's
cousin, entered the church and sat with the ladies of
Mr* Elaine's family, dressed like them in deep mourn-
hm)d:{rr>b}. . the service.
-nWhen the congregation was seated Mr. Damrosch,
iMho had taken the place of the regular organistr played
for a short time, and then came the reading by Dr.
Hamlin of extracts from the Bible. Prayer followed.
The pmyer was in the nature of a eulogy on the dead
roafaf* It enumerated his great qualities as a patriot,
statftiinaii; &ther, and husband, and condoled with the
^^mdiifie of the United States and the President, with
tl«i Stale of Maine and State of Pennsylvania, and with
all' of the commonwealths, upon the loss which they
had sustained. Here in full is the text of the prayer r
' DR. Hamlin's prayer.
i**f hanks be unto thee, Almighty God, that we come
into the presence of death with such words of triumph
as^theser' ■ ■ ■ ■ .
"Thanks be unto diee^ O Lord Jesus Ghrist, that
iUfmMid life* is no more a dim surmise, a probable
s^ilM^tion, but an assured fact
r i^Tl^]t» be untothee, O Holy Spirit of God, that
H>
' 4
574
LIFE OF HON, fiJtSS 6. BLAlNft.
m^
P'v '.
thou hadt revealed to the hearts and minds of men
l^ese truthfiil verities upon which we rest when human
life passeth like a shadow^ when our hopes are all
frustrated and our plans all put to naught in Che pre»>
ence of the great destroyer. . iiiiv w
" Thanks be unto God, the Father, arict the -^n,'
and the Holy Spirit for Christian triumph in the pres-
ence of the open grave.
^^ We render thee in this sacred and solemn place
and presence, O God, our tribute of gratitude for that
thou didst make thy servant whose ashes we are now
committing to the resting place of all the livings We
thank thee for all that mental endowment with which
tJitm didst bless him, for all the fidelity in culture and
refinement in the puiiiuit of all that makes the hummi
mind clear and true and strong andmighty that marked
hlS"fne. " -'-^^- : ':■ x'>.\'-?^-- :■■;•■:,■...:..■ ■-/-'•',■''
. f! We thalilt- ^eb for his patriotismr hts sereite'a^
ttiidianging faith in the institutions of the land he
loved. We thank thee for his sdrvices to his country
In days and years of peril, through critical timei
steadily holding to his confidence in the -great prifiei^
pl^ that underlie our institutions. W^ thank tliee
f»i^ his fatdi in Godi his faith in Je^Us Christ, his
arcs^ptaiice of Him as hb personal Saviour and
Redeefher. We thank thee for his broad charity, bis
kiiidftess-and ^eetness of heart that impress^ ^
^ose^ihat love man isind serve God We ^nnlb theci
f(Mr his strong serenity under ^e great add ci^sMhg
Mfeav^ents tfa&t in^^ese^faist ydus We£dlett^tipo»
•^*S'J^:.
a/iHi!(i
5 I4A.ST HONOBSw
him and upon his household. We thank- thee for his
fortitude, during all these weeks of waiting, for his
patience and his gendeness. We thank thee, Lord,
for ail that our departed brother through thy grace
was as man and citizen, as patriot, as a servant of his
couhtryi, as husband and father in the beautiful life of
the home.
"And now we entreat thee, CX God, that thy com-
fort may come upon those that are most nearly
bereaved, that these members of his own household
and those of near kindred maybe strong in faith,
trusting ki God alone; and while there flows to them
such a stream of sympathy from all parts of the land
and of the world, we pray thee that, receiving it yrith
g^titude, they may rest hot in it, but in the priceless
sympathy of the Son of God.
"We entreat thee that they may be able to look,
nc^ into die, open, grave, but into the open heavens;
not at what they have lost» but at what the dear one
gone has left behind. And we entreat thee that the
fragrant and precious memories of this dear husband
and father^ friend and kinsman, may be their solace
tndiese desolate and trying days.
"Wiiask thy blessing, O Lord, our God, upon the
Executive Department of the Government with which
t^ 9^^vant was so intimately associated. We> com-
^cnpilo thee the President of the United States, the
Vjee-Brestdent and sdl the members of the Cabinet
iiilthwhoiti our departed brother labored. And ;we
pifereai that upon them all in this sense of loss and
■il
ft
■'"j
J>nifrii''*iw*
■^P^^*^?^??^?f
m&mti^:r-,<ii..
■?^-f:-
m
LIFE OF HON. JAM£S 0. BLAmi.
■».
tftfs new adfnonitioii of their own mortality, there miy
come a comforting consciousness and serene trust in
God and the Lord Jesus Christ.
"We pray Thee, Our Father, for the Congress <rf
the United States, in whose councils for so long thy
servant participated, and with such influence for good
We entrcut thee that every member of Congress may
be impressed anew with the need of trust in God 'in
preparation for this event that cometh alike to all, and
that their work henceforth may be done under the
consciousness of their responsibility to God under the
power of an endless life.
"We ask thy blessing upon all our commonwealths.
We coftimend to thee especially the State in whidi
our brother was bom and the State ^at adopted him
aind that together rejoice to-dajr in his illustrious ser*
vice ; and we pray ihee that the Executives and leg-
islators of all our commonwealths may be men of
God'; that they may trust and serve thee.
"We ask thy blessing, O Lord, upon all the people
dithe liand, upon the millions that whh singular fidii^-
fty have loved him, whose voice so man^ of them Imve
heard, whose counsels so many of them have foUowefd,
bi!it who now rests speechless in death. We entreat
thee that his patitotism, hist loft^ purposes^ his sincere
ahd constant lov<: lor the insthuticms of the land ii»^.
animatilall tile people and may be a blessed herhnge
to every cStizeh of the r^ublic i^
fWt commend to thee thejiationsof theeardt— dl
iioselandrtiii^ ^ir6 f^ Ite tqudi ^his iiaiid in tii^
a ~-
kSibSS^i^.i.!'
-rf-f,
LAST HQNOBS.
677
great relations of diplomacy, and we pray thee tbat
there, may come to them all a more profound trust
in God, in the people, in the liberties wherewith God
is making people free, and in all those blessed gifts
ths^t come from him to the nation that loves and
serves the Lord of hosts.
"And we ask thy blessing, O Lord, upon this
diurch. We thank thee that thy servant had part in
its very beginning ; that he did not despise the day
of small things. We thank thee that he loved and
aided it in its early days and its progress; that he
worshipped here and sat at this communion table.
We pray thee that thou will grant to this church, as
diou taketh from^it one and another, the consolation
of thy holy Spirit and thine abiding grace.
"And now, dear Lord, as we go hence and take our
place about the open grave and deposit there this sa-
cred and precious dust, wilt thou go with us, and as
this family return to their desolate home wilt thou be
with them. Wilt thou make good the >oid that is in
their Hearts ; may this many-times bereaved, this sorely
afflicted household have the abundant comfort and
strength and grace of Jesus Christ our Lord;
and we beseech thee, pur Heavenly Father, that
throughout all the land and throughout all the world,
wh<sr^ver the eyes and hearts of men are turning at
l^is hour towards this place, wherever any are send*
ing to God the tributes of thanks for the services of ;
this ltf«> wherever there is sorrow tcnlay, we entreat
thee that thy presence may soothe every sorrow, and
.«7
^"p^
% -
!■<.»!» >ik'* «>»»-:<
uf'W':-
'i « iijj'i"'"ifpwief
ir
EX"
m
UFE OF HOf, jrjIQES ^. BLAINE.
that the hope pf iinmortality may be inspired afresl^
in e^eiy heart j.^J ,: ;.?
"Forgive our sios; receive us all into the number
of thy dear chtlrken ; help us to so live that we shall
be ready at any moment to hear thee say, ' Son,
daughter, thy work on earth is finished ; come home ; '
and so to each at last may there open the doors of the
seat of God; and inay we enter in to be forever
blessed."
At the end of this prayer the clergyman and con-
gregation repe^d the Lord's Prayer t«>gether and
the services at die church were ended. 1.
" ^, TO THE'6R4VE. ;
The lowers were removed fipm the altar and taken
to the cemelnry. The mourners entt^rc^ their car-
riages and, ibUowiiig the hearse, b^ganpie procession
ta the grave. Ab^iit one hundred cgu-nlgesi Including
tl¥>se of ^e Vice-President a^nd membors of the Cab-
inet, were in line. Spectators were fcat^?r»l on either
side of thte way^dl aloi^ tb? route. ' ^
It was a dikr day, witb only a few clouds for the
sun to struggle widi now ajnd then, f n Ae prosper-
ous parts of die d^ men and jwooiei} gadiered at the
wnidows ^ see Aeproo^oin go^^^^^%^ In Ae poorer
streets dmlugh wMch the mineral passed^^ way
to Georgetown, modiers, black and white, brought
tMr ch^ren to the doofs and offered ibem die fine
pa^i^^€arHag<» W of 4^^ people as f
pkaising #vmiQp .
I
iU]5*wlL*t .
''k^J
-f- .»>
H ■
.»
LAST HONORS.
679
fimeral procession did at a slow walk. The hearse,
which had left the church at twelve forty-five p.m.,
reached Oak Hill, the burying-ground, shortly after
two. The cemetery was crowded with men, women,
WEN GRAVE WHERE MR. BLAINE^ WAS BURPBa
and children who bad gathered in the morning to look
at the opeii grave. With difficulty the funeral paity
managed to dear a way through the curiou&erbwd
; fmm ^i^t #«s SWM^^^^ Tfce immediate i»tet»ves,
%y
680
UFE OF HON, JAMIS O. BLAINB.
intimate friends, and members of the Cabinet gfrouped
themselves about the grave. The ground was soft,
muddy, and partly covered with snow. The general
crowd of sightseers pressed about as dosely as possi-
ble, and ranged themselves on the slanting terraces
df graves that mark the hillside above the Blaine plot.
Beside the open grave there was a large mound of
fresh, red earth. Seven men, dressed in long blue
flannel blouses reaching below the knee and fastened
at the waist with big brass buckles, stood with long-
handled spades ready to pile in the dirt upon the
coiBn* ^ ■:
COMMITTED TO THE TOMB.
Mr. Blaine's body Was committed to the earth with
a short prayer. It was lowered into the grave with
the flowers still lying upon the coffin-lid, and imme-
diately the seven grave-diggers with long blouses fell
to piling in the earth. For a while the women of Mr.
Blaine's household stood sobbing as the work went .
on. Before it had been finished they had been led away.
One after another the members of the Cabinet with-
drew. Mr. Wanamaker remained later than any of
his associates, gazing sadly upon the work of the seven-
men. Finally he too departed, leaving young James
G. Blaine alone with the crowd of curiosity seekers
beside his father's grave. He waited until the tai^
of IHUng ihe grave and sealing l^e bride vault bad
been completed Then he too went away*
F^iatlmoat an hour the crowd surged aboatrworry^
ing the poHcemen and grave4igger« wiUi 4i^
JAA
<• ., Aj
i ^>» T t
'^^ '■■''.■'■{-'
LAST H0N0B8.
681
bad
attempts to despoil the grave of its flowers. One
jpoliceman should be commended for the manner in
which he enforced the law and administered reproof
simultaneously. Those he had to combat were women.
His unfailing and patient remonstrance was: " Ladies,
if you don't know better than to take flowers off the
grave I shall have to teach you/'
WHERE MR. BLAINE LIES.
Beside the grave of Mr. Blaine are those of Emmons
Blaine and Mrs. Alice Blaine Coppinger. A white
marble cross marks Mrs. Coppinger's grave. There
IS room perhaps for two more graves, in the plot in
which Mr. Blaine lies buried. There is no room for
anything more than a very simple headstone to mark
his resting-place. On Mr Blaine's right, as he lies in
his grave, is a headstone marked simply *' Peter
Palmer," and on his left tiie grave of Stephen Glegg
Rowan* Vice^ Admiral of the United States Navy, who
lies buried beside his wife. Not far from where Mr
Blaine lies, in a more thickly settled point of the ceme-
tery, is die grave of John Howard Payne, author of
^ Home, Sweet Home."
'MRS. BLAINE AT THE GRAVE.
At four o'clock in the afternoon the crowds that had
filled the cemetery had dispersed. Only a few chil-
dren ran about the muddy walks and played fn the
hidf-melted snow of the graveyard. A woman, deeply
veiled, walked down the winding path to die grave
and leaned a^nst the trunk of the dead tree. It
wai^ MhL Blaine ''
'■im
- -w
M
^^1:
■•»}»,-
682
UFE OP BOK. JAMMB 0. BLAINS.
r-..
W'-
m:.:f-
At her feet were thousands upon thousands of roses,
violets and lilies, shutting out from sight the scar
which marked her husband's resting place in the earth.
All about were low mounds marking other graves,
some of children and some of old men. Many were
tramped down and disfigured by the thousands who
had struggled for a last look at her husband's coffin.
Behind her the sun was going down. Before her was
a deep ravine, a swollen brook rushing through it,
and beyond a gloomy series of red hills. Above the
htlb she could see the white shaft of the Washington!
Monument; the dome of the Capitol and the roof of
die State Department building, beyondf whtch^ but
visible^ was the White House." Occasionally a few
children gathered about with their hands behind their
backs to contemplate the lady heavily veiled* They
wei« warned away by an old man in chai^ of die
cemetery gate, wha had undertaken the. task of pro*
tecting the flowers on the grave until the gates should
close.
After sdmost an hour spent by the dead tree at 'the
head'of the grave Atrs. Blaine was led away to a car*
ri^ge by her son. It was getting dark. The sun was
hidden irom view behind the hfll, and the geave, with
its burden > of flowers, lay in the shadow. Two or
dit^e^palicemefi who had luigered about die gate
dlsaredidib «enietery of lltt^ c^^^ and of the:&w
4sa^ema.im^^^^ Hie hiii:»n gates were
dqsJB^inid paiRe^ffia8 ie&alone to b^n his loi^ roit
»<'l*l
CHAPTER XXVin.
Friendly Tributes to the Great Leader.
The universal regret occasioned by Mr. Blaine's
death, and the esteem in which he was held, were
voiced in many ways. The various State legislatures
^t were in session, adjourned, showing thereby
respect for his memory. Glowing eulogies filled the
columns of the press, and prominent men vied with
one another in speaking words of praise. Several
members of the Cabinet placed on record their high
appreciation of the man.
Said Secretary Noble: James G. Blaine died within
three days of the sixty-third anniversary of his birth
and little less than thirty years from the time he en-
tered Congress, on the first Monday of December,
1863. During this long and most eventful period he
held the attention and commanded the respect of his
countrymen to a most extraordinary degree*— more, I
think, than any other political leader save Lincoln or
Clay. Like Clay his followers were loving and en-
thusiastic, and alike they achieved great success but
fittled to reach die summit of their ambttion-*the
Preaidehcy, Blaine was highly intellectual and refined.
He had. great menti^ dis^cipline and vigor, with physi-
cal strength and the courage of his convictions. His
(M3)
-•liV
,!**<<
tr . -■frv'-?''
584
LIFE OP HON. JAMSS G. BLAINB.
learning and experience gave him immense resources
bf (>recedent and illustration, and no man was ever
more ready to see his opportunity or take advantage
of his opponent in debate.
The fadhtyand variety of his attack and defense
were unsurpassed. He was distinguished as a Con-
gressman, as a Senator, tabinet Minister and political
leader, displaying great wisdom in counsel, and for-
mulated the principles and issues of his party with
unerring accuracy. He had epitomized a great part
of his public career in his work, "Twenty Years in
Congress," and added to and perpetuated his fame by
the literary value of this narrative. I have heard
General Sherman, whose judgment in such matters
was acknowledged, say that Blaine's book was a great
work ; that he considered its lucid and incisive express
abns and comprehensive and accurate statements gave
it rank with Macaula/s history. It is one of the most
valuable of books. Blaine was an American thor-
oughly and invariably-^he loved our country and
^institutions. His deadi will be gready lamented, and
the whole nation will do his memory hon«r. His
critics will not be in this country.
THE IDOL OF HIS PARTV.
Secretaiy Elkins ^d: Mr. Blaine was a wonderful
Inan and wonderfully gifted. He was one of the
l^eatest statesmen and political leaders the country
has produced, and the most conspicuous leader or his
time. He was the idol of his party, the titost lov«d
man in it He liad, more than' any oihtf polidtal
'^-
^••l»3ffci;»Sl»l&SgSg
- iT-
tf--^
PRIENDLT TRIBUTES.
085
leader in tl?is country, the most enthusiastic following
and best and most loyal friends. He inspired his
party more thoroughly than any other man in it. For
nearly twenty years he did more than any other leader
to shape its policy. His control over men, his power
to draw them to him and command their unselfish
support was beyond that of any other party leader in
the history of the couutry.
His loss will be widely felt and mourned, but his
life will be a continuing inspiration to his party. Mr.
Blaine, though thoroughly educated, full of culture and
accomplishments, never paraded his leamiag. He
was versatile, full of resources and more widely
informed than any man or statesman of his time. lit
a certain sense, he was modest, seldom speaking of
himself, his position or commanding influence in his
party and in the country. He was broad, liberal and
just, always generous to an opponent; tender, gentle
and affectionate toward his friends. He sought the
Presidency in '76, after that seemingly abandoning all
hope of ever reaching that high place. In '84 he did
not se,ek the nomination, and in '88 steadfastly refused
to allow his name to go before the convention.
Of late years he was not only" the central figure in
American politics, but at all social gatherings and
wherever he went. In and out of office he attracted
more attention and excited more enthusiasm than any
other citizen of the republic. Wherever he went p^-
pl,e always eagerly turned to look at him» or stopped
tQ.scehim'as he passed by. . p^; claim. to gred^f^s
- \
W-
'^■'"•- •'■•■^,- ""i;
^e
LIFB OF HOK:. JAim O. B^IKE.
fc-"**-
1x^11 rest upon his literary work an4 his statesmanship.
Either would place him in the frpnt rank of^the great-
est men of the republic. ' His " Twenty Years in Con^
gress" will stand as an enduring monument, and
always mark him truly great. The strain put upon
him and the effort in writing his great work, I think,
had much to do in breaking down his health. The
production of such a work in so short a time; so just
and discriminating ; so fair to contemporaries and to
all : so thoroughly authentic and reliable, stands in the
history of literature unparalleled.
Without distinction of party, his death will be
nK>urned as a great loss to the country. Truly, a
great man has passed away, and a great light gone
out- ? -■ ..- .
LOVE FOR PENNSVLVANIANS.
Postmaster-General Wanamaker said: Eleven years
ago I made the acquaintance of Mr. Blaine, when at
his invitation I went to his house with his intimate
personal friend for cbnsultation aboui accepting pub-
lic office. The friendship then begun ripened in the
t884 campaign, and since !{ 887 has been more or less
intimate. His kindness and enthusiasm, that so
greatly attracted every on<!, were often manifested in
a special degree to Pennsylvanians, among whom he
was born. He liked to talk of people in Fniljadel-
phia who lived at the time he was teacher and- editor
there. I shall not soon forget the last hours spent
wjtibi him when he talked freely about his feelings i^nd
|plai;is> about a week before he went upstairs for
■>■
"i'-z *-■;:, v»
ftLimmjt f Ri^tr^Tfis.
SS7
dt^ last time. Pennsylvania may well be proud of heir
brilfiahe son, dever as Henry Clay and eloquent as
Daniel Webster. As an all-around statesman his
name Ml always be cherished with the ten greatest
Americans.
^ HIS STURDY AMERICANISM. r
Secretary Rusk said : I first met Mr. Blaine in i^^^
I being then Bank ComjptroUer in Wisconsin, to which
State he came to make tariff speeches* He was then
one of the most forcible speakers in the Republican
p y on this important i^uestion. The acquaintance
V formed with him has continued uninterruptedly
sint^, being welded by our closer personal and polit-
ical relations during the Forty-second, Forty-third and
Forty-fourth Congresses, in which we were both mem*
bers' of the House of Representatives, he being
Speaker during the first two Congresses; a position
for which I warmly supported him. I have no hesits^
tion in saying that in many respects Mr. Blaine out-
ranked any of 'his conten^poraries, and none has
wielded a greater influence in shaping the fortunes
of the Republican party.
One of the qualities I have always esteemed the
most highly in James G. Blaine was his sturdy, tin-
swelling Americanism. He will always be one of the
consfHcUous figures in the political history of this
country. While serving witfi him in President Har-
rison's Cabinet our relations were of the most cordial
aftid friendly character. For some time I noted with
ddep regret that phystcally he was not as vigorous as
»vs,:
«"
rc'M
$8S
LIFE OF BQN. JAM SS O^ ^LAIKB.
'3-
in former years. Hia death, while not unexpopte^i
.will be a great shock to the people of the whole o^-
^on, irrespective of their political sentimeots, . , >
HIS EXALTEP PATRIOTISM;
Secretary of State Foster saicj : Other of hi* friends
are more competent to speak of Mn Blaine> «erv|t$s
andgeni-3in Congress, in politics and in literature.
In diplomacy his chief characteristic was his exalted
Americanism. He was a thorough believer in the
Monroe Doctrine, and the reciprocity policy which dis-
tinguished the close of his public career was aaoptii
growth of his convictions respecting that doctrine^
His diplomatic correspondence will rank among the
best of his political productions. Hi9 repatatiqa
abroad will mainly rest upon his acts as Secretary of
St^te, and it is not an exaggeration to say that in the^
past ten years at {east, he has been die best known
American in foreign lands.
Secretary of the Treasury Foster said : I first met
Mr. Blaine when he became a member of the Fojty«
second Congress, and during his six y^ars service as
Speaker qf tjje House of Representatives. At tlu^
time he was in full health and a magnificent sped*
men, both physically and mentally, i^f mature man^
hood. As Speaker, he was the absoiute.dictatorof
the proceedings of die Housc.,enjoytng more fully ^^
respect ^nd confidence of the members than» pfn^fpt
any other Speaker, with pc^ps the ^xceptio^i ^
H^ry Clay, whos^ career Mr. Blaine's so muiji rft
sembled. H^<an^^|ieen pneof lea^^
4«„"t% ;*!^X
.mix I
l^RIEKDLt TRIBITTES.
589
^1
#i(lidtit ddtibt he posseissed the confidence, respect
and afieiition of the vaist majority of the American
people more^an any man of his time. His fame i^
world-wide. His personal popularity and his hold
upon the populat affection was not confined to his
own party. His death will be sincerely mourned.
COMPARED WITH WEBSTER AND CLAY.
Atrbrney-General Miller said: It is customary tb^
dpeak of one, ^ho, being elected to the Vice-Presi-
deilcy, becomes President, as an accidental President
With reference to Mr. Blaine, it may be truly said
tiiat his failure to be President was an accident. The
desire of an old gendeman to make a striking sentence
by alliteiration defeated the worthy ambition of a life-
time, and in no small degree changed the direction of
public aiiyrs in the nation. In the ^^hole history of
the coCinhy there has scarcely been a more striking
figure than Mr. Blaine, and no personality in the
country has been more strongly impressed upon his
contemporaries.
At tlie funeral of Daniel Webster one of his neigh-
bors, who livecl near Marshfield, looking on the face
of ^ dead' statesman, said: "Daniel Webster, the
world will be lonesome without you." The same may
be savd with propriety of James G. Blaine. Mr.
Btain^, #ith Ae possible exception of Henry Clay, was
the ihtost briniant statesman and political leader this
dinintry has ever prochiced. An excellent judge of
diiracter, he understood instinctively the strong and
wede points of those with whom he came in cohtact
'ti.i
.1
i^'
690
UFB OF HdB^'^lAMSg'd^' BLAINE.
FttH of huihan sympathy, he received all ' who ajjH
proached him with a kindness and afi&bility that made
tliem at once his friends. He was a most ciccutate
judge of public sentiment and he knew, as few m^H
/did, how to present a question of public policy so asi
to appeal to the sympathy and win the support of the
X>eople. He was a born leader of men and richly
endowed by nature with all those qualities that make
a great statesman.
In the United S!^%tes a thorough legal' training is
almost indispensable to a great and diversified pubUe
cafeer. lliat without such training Mr. Blaine could
achieve success in the va«ioU8 positions he has been
called upon to fill is an additional evidence of hsset<:
traordinary natural powers. " :
ESTIMATE OF A 6OUTHERNER. "^
Speaker Crisp said: The people of the Sout^ have
always entertained the kindliest feeling for Mr. Blaine^^
His part in the dd<^t of the first Force bill will never
be forgotten. It was within his power as Speaker at
the time that bill was under consideration to have
brought about its passage, but he resisted thestrongeitt
kind of party pressure and absolutely refused to enter-
tain the idea of a cloture rule. If such a rule had
been made it is prol^ble that the bill would h^ve been
passed. He rose above the partisan to ^ hdght of
a patriot.' Mr. Blaine was a great man— ^ne of the
greatest this country has ever produced; ^ ':M
Hamilton Fish was Secretary of iMte when Mt;
Pl^ine was the Speaker of the House of Representa-
yWj
. ■«>**
^" v», 73
FRISNDLT TRIBUTES.
m
tiV€s. His first expression on hearing of the great
statesnian's death was: "A great man has gone."
Continuing, he said : " His death will be universally
regrettedi and the unkind things that have been said
about him will be, I tliink, not repeated. He was an
affectionate man in his own family, and during the
Qight years he lived near me I had an opportunity to
see what an interest he took in his family, and what
love and admiration he had for his children. But his
death will not only be mourned by his widow and
children. For months the whole country has been
watching at his bedside and the whole country will
mourn its loss. I cannot say too much of Mr. Blaine's
ability. Had he not been so great and brilliant he
might have been President. He was a great man .
when he first entered upon a political career. He
became greater as years rolled by. He has been
accused of sensational things, but when Secretary of
State under Harrison he did nothing of a rash or
sensational sort. Haine was a man with a most remark.
able memory and in debate he could quote figures for
hours without referring to notes. He was certainly
the greatest American of his time, and during the
latter years of his life the people had every confidence
in him, and they felt assured that if he ever had
reached the Presidential chair his administration would
have been conservative and prosperous. The nation
has lost its greatest citizen.; hisuniqiie place in history
ic3l never be fiSed,
' ^1
■' 1
h'%
,,>
•^ «
69^
idFB or iroK. jAkKs cr. blainb.
■? ..- ;
'. ,-t
'^ A REJ^RltABLE MAN.
Waiiam M. Evarts, ex-Secretary of State and ex-'
Senator, was always a great admirer of Mr. Blaine's
abilities as a great statesman.
Mr. Evarts said: It is the close of a very eventful
political carefer. Mn Blaine was one of the most bril-
liant public men in the history of the country. Besides
hi^ brilliant public career, he attracted about him more
personal admiration and applause than any man of
his time. His hold in a place of history and in the
affections of the people of the* United States will live
long after his death. My acquaintance with Mr.
Blaine was intimate and agreeable for many years,
and I followed witii interest the career of the most
conspicuous personality iii recent public life. Mr.
Blaine was an able presiding officer in the House, and
in the Senate he ably demonstrated his capacity and
ability readily to grasp the great questions of the day.
At one time there was no orator in America who was
more than his equ^l, and in debate he was an antag-
onist worthy to meet. His memory was something
marvellous, and fiacts and figures, when necessary,
were always at his tongue's end. He had one great
ambitton. *He had the right to it There are others
who aspired to the Presidency, and were as capable
as Mr. Blaine of administering the affairs of the
highest office iii the land, but, like Henry Oay, it was
d^tined that he should nevet readi the White House;
But his feme could not have been greater bad he
(tidied the hdght of hte ambt^n; Hts>l^ ii^ hii*
^ .,-
'•A
FBIKNDLT TRIBnTM.
693
tory will always remain. More ample testimony as
to his brilliant and varied career, accoifiplishments and
services may well await a later day.
Blaine's own state does him honor.
The following proclamation was issued from the
Executive Uepartment on the death of James G.
Blaine.
State of Maine Executive Chamber^
Augusta, Jan. 27, 1893.
To the People of Maine: —
The Governor announces with feelings of profound
sorrow that the Hon. James G. Blaine died in the city
of Washington this forenoon at the hour of 1 1 o'clock.
His long, faithful and distinguished service to his
State and to the country is fully recognized and appre-
ciated. His noble life was filled with usefulness. He
was highly honored while living, and his death is sin-
cerely and deeply mourned by every household in the
land. In recognition of his most eminent career, and
as a manifestation of the high respect entertained for
his memory, the Governor directs that the national
flag be at once displayed at half-mast upon the public
buildings of the State, and during the funeral services
aU the departo^ents of the Executive branch of the
State government be closed.
Henry B. Cleaves, Governor.
The Legislature ap^inted a con^mittee to attetid
the iiifieral of Mr. Blsune, also one to draw upapprot
priate resolutions, and theo adjourned until Monday.
Memonat services weioe held by the Legislature on
^^
"ill
jj--
">
ftlM
UIB 0#* BOlr. >il;illtS 0. BLAINB.
the day of the funeral. Governor Cleaves d^nd Geii-
eral Selden Connor, chief of staff, represented tile
State at the funeral services.
GENERAL REGRET IN CHICAGO.
Although it had been known for weeks that M^.
Blaine was hopelessly ill, the news of his death cainte
with something like a shock to the majority of the
people of Chicago. Everywhere there were heard
expressions of sorrow and regret that so ^ble a
rtian had been taken from the service of his country.
Piriitical differences were obliterated and Demotrats
a:nd Republicans alike uttered tributes of respett for
the dead statesman. The general expressions re-
minded one of the scene in the last Democratic Na-
tional Convention, when resoladons of sympathy with
Mr. Blaine on the death of his soh, Emtnons, v^ew
passed bya rising vote. Mr. Blaine's death was the
topic of conversation at the dubs, hotels, pubKc offices,
Board of Trade, Stock Exdiange, and all places wh.ere
men congregate. Mayor Washburne ordered the flag
on the City Hall to be lowered to half-m^st, and
^Mlar^id Hitchcock caused? the Stars and Stripes
over the Federal Building also to be placed ^t li^f^
^mast
The Hon. Mackenzie Bowell, Minister of Trade and
Comnierce, who frequency met Mr. Blaine during^ the
reciprocity nego^tions at Washington, ^id tot he
^^ iiot^isliare in &e bdief prevttient that Mr. Bbuie
%aairniyefidly ^owaM^C^ Froito a^jseri^iit^ !^
lid les^ed 10 ^i^garc^ Btaaiie ks an adi^y^^
<«.»..-
'^-i^i
fiV .K
fRIBUDLY TRIBUTES.
m
Hberal-ininded statesiuan, ever disposed to do JMstice
. jso every country.
KIND WORDS FROM ADLAI E. STEVENSON.
** I shall eyer retain most kindly memories of this
great statesman, and his family have my profound
sympathy in this their hour of deepest sorrow."
Tl^ese were the words with which Vice-President-elect
" Stevenson closed a brief interview on the death of Mr.
Blaine. /' Mr. Blaine was a great debater — a man oif .
wonderful eloquence. Life, color, passion and per-
sonality were all thrown into his address. He com-
bined with his eloquence such a thorough knowledge
of his subject and such a complete mastery of detail
<liat his argument seemed irresistible.
'* He possessed to a large degree that magnetism
which appeals to friend and foe^— that something
which made men follow his leadership wherever he
led them, As a popular idol, as a great leader of his
party, no statesman in modern times had a more de-
voted following, possibly none had engendered more
bitter opposition among sec^ons of his own followers
than Mr. Blaine. Mr. Blaine had many warm person^
j friends among Democrat/'
TRIBUTE FROM CHAUNCEY M. DEPEW.
Mr. Depew g^ve the following highly appreciative
estif^ate of the dead statesnian :
. B^buiie was easily the most inter^ting and con-
apicupus figure |ii the. United States. He held this
post^n aQ4 ^e) ^s j^nique cUstinctioii 6>r a longer
. fifiric^tl^n any o^ei^^/Mp^eri<an statesman. He nlonf
^''
*'
"^ ,«
UTB OF lUttf, JAmS a BUklNI.
of our public men aroMs^4 tlie curiosity 9ivd fixed the
fltteiitioii of Europe upon his opinions and purposes.
He was a factor of equal and commanding importance
in our affatrst whether in or out of office* He. had a
following for a quarter />f a century whose afdor and
enthusiasm neither tim^ nor defeat could cool or
quench. It is rare that a party leader combines the
intelligence which secures the assent of his party and
the personal qualities which win the allections of his
partisans. The Scotch*Irish blood of Mr. BUiine hap-
pily blended the dear» cold and keen intellect; of the
one race and the susceptibility and impressionability
of the other. j ^
The secret of his success is not difficult to find. He
was always in. close touch with the people.: This
ready sympathy with popular ^pirations, and quick
determination to meet them aroused the distrust of the
critic and the terror of the conservative. For that
reason he always had Uie opposition of Mug-wumps.
The rapidity with which he arrived at conclusions and
the certainty and suddenness with which he acted
upon them created among these classes distnaa| j|«^<i
suspickm. They chained him with ulterior motives
and secret machinations.
But tlie read source of his power was his fr^kness
and transparent candor. The plain peo{4e of the
country did not misund^tand htni. He was pecu-
lilirly tlie representative of American idei». His ad-
ys^pced posi^ and a^^resMve attitude in our foreign
rel^itbn^^^ied ^ Uy^li^ta^^ Euro^
^^^'L
• s.
raitkoW AiBtnfcs.
m
and hostility at home. His action on those questions
was the natural result of the intense pride and ambi-
tion in the progress and power of the United Stntes
which were ' '^e moving influences of > is Hfe. ; •*
The American people, as a rule, iook wi^i ^^rikij
doubt upon spectacular exhibitions by public men. If,
however, the dramatic surprise has in it the eleme* vs
of victory, then they are captured by the episocv, as
they were by the fall of Vicksburg on the Fourth of
July, or Sherman's march to the sea.
Mr. Blaine's defiant attitude and daring counter-
assault upon his enemies in the midst of iSie canvass*
ing for a Presidential nomination, when he rushed
down the aisle of the House of Representatives and
himself read and presented the letters^ which it was
charged would incriminate him, was one of the most
brilliant, daring and triumphant movements in par^
liamentary history. It sent athrl* of pride through
the households of his friends, and of admiration
through those of his enemies, all over the land.
His sudden and angry sctack upon the McKinliey
bill before the committee which had it in charge, when
he smashi^d hts hat upon thie copy of the bill and
declared that there was nothing in it for the farmer,
led to the examtnatioh and revision which enabled that
bin tabecome a law.
' HIS WONDERFUL MEMORY.
Senator Satwyer, of Wisconsan, tdls tifie following as
fo Mr. Blaine's wonderful mtoory for names and
faces: "In I874," hessud, *' Mr. Btaiiie madea'speech
■'^i
■■* ^1
.->
U'-.
' *-i»* ,.
<&98
LIFE OF BON. JAMSS G. BLAINE.
til Wisconsin and he stopped with me ^hile he was
there I gave a dinner in Mr. Blatne's^ hoiior, ta- whidi
I invited Mr. Meyer, of Fond-du-Lac. In i S9 rv more
than sixteeir years afterward, Mr. Meyer came itere
and I took him to call on Mr. Blaine. Before^ we got
there we met Mr. Blaine^ and when within about forty
feet of him he walked quickly forward and without any
hesitation said: 'Mr. G.L.J. Meyer,howdo yoodo?^:"
A gentleman of the party with Senator Sawyer,
said: <'I was with Mr. Blaine when he visaed Lan-
caster, O., during a campaign^ Mr. Blaine had lived
there, and he got a great reception. He remidmbered
all the old residents* FinaUy some one broug^ in a
man whom they sakl he would not remen^>d'«
''Mr. Blaine replied: *Yes, I do, give md a Htde
time.' Pretty soon he remarked to the mkn; «I never
sawyon bi»t once,' and then be told this stoiy : {
" * When 1 was a boy^ there was great excitement one
day because a convict had escaped fi^m the Columbus
Penitential^, and had been tracked into tihat ne%h-
borhood. PoKce arrested htm, and I (Mr. Blame) was
mm of the crowd around. The man w^ taken to a
bladcsa^tii shop and had fetters riveted on Mm by the
biadcomith. You (turning to the man) and I walked
home to Lancaster togedier after that' "
THE SORKO^ OF -DIPLOMAIB.
The death of Mr: Blaine oetasioned great regret
among ^ tiiembers of the cKplomatic corps at the
OipM, with nearly aH of whom his rdatlons were
quite intimate. Bardn Fava, the Italian Mbtsten de«n
/.
ntlBNDLT .TRIBUTESi
oC the corps, said: "Personally, the death of Mr. •
Blatae is a great affliction. He was in office as Sec«
retary of State when I reached Washington, nearly
thirteen years ago, and went with me to the President
when I presented my credentials. Since then our
relations have been very pleasant. The loss to the
country of one of its greatest men I can appreciate,
and I desire to express the sorrow, not only of myself,
but of all my associates in the Diplomatic College, at
the sad event which has so afflicted your country.'*
Mr. Le Ghait, the Belgian Minister^who was with
Baron Fava when the reporter saw him, gave his con-
currei»» to the expressions of sorrow, and said that
the members of the diplomatic corps would desire to
manifest in the most pronounced manner their appre-
ciation of the worth of the dead statesman, and would
take part as a body in his funeral if it were a public
ceremonial, as they unckrstood it would be.
MESSAGES OF SYMPATHY.
It is impossible to estimate even approximately the
number of callers who left cards at the Blaine mansio?!
on the day of l>is deatli. Mr. Blatnewas known the
world over and from every part of the globe mes-
sages o^ sympathy and sorrow are coming. Here are
a few telegrams given out this evening :
President-elect Grover Clevelaiid.^-His brilliant
statesmanship Witt always be an inspirataon to the
nation he has served so long.and so well Permit me
to «ctend my sympathy on the death of your ifetin-
gutshed husband.
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600
UFE OF fiON. JAMES (}; ILaINE.
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Gov. Rodwell P. Flower, of New Yorki— My grcisit
respect and admiration for your late husband |>roib|yts
me to send this word of sympathy in your i)ereave-
thetit The country will mourn his loss as that of a
brilliant statesman and true friend.
Gov. Pattison, of Pennsylvania. — ^The sad messagfe
of thie death of Mr. Blaine has just reached me. You
have my heartfelt sympathy. The people of his
nktive State were greatly devoted tp him while
living and moura vrith you his death.
Gov. Crounse, of Nebraska.— The people of Ne-
bi^^ka weep with you over the ^^ath of your d^irin-
gutshed husband. The solace for our sbrroW comes
from the brilliant inheritance he has bequ^^ed die
nation. . '^ ' / ;^, ^^^--^ -^^7-'-
Gov. Clestves, of Maine.— Permit mie to express to
you the great sorrow felt by the people of Maine at
the death of Mr. Blaine. You are assured of theii'
deepest sympathy and that the entire States mourns
with you.
Robert T. Lincol i, Minister to Great Britain.---We
lose i dear friend and deeply sympathiise with you
arid your ch^dren in your great affliction.
Chief^Jtsstice Melville W. FuIlcr.-*-Accept my sincere
sympathy.
Gov. McKinley, of Ohio;— Please recdve our sincere
sympathy on the death of your noble husband. The
fHiople of Ohio share in your great sorrow and lametit
the deatJi of an illustrious statesman.
Gen. R. A. Alger. — ^The nation has lost its foremost
FItlENDLT TRIBUTES.;
»
and best beloved citizen, but the name of your hus-
band and the love of all classes, parties and creeds
for him shall never die.
James S. Clarkfson. — We send you loving sympathy
from the sorrowing hearts of a household in ivhiclk
loye of Mr. Blaine has long been a sweet and sacred
tiWng.
J. p. Foraker.-^Mrs. Foraker joins me in tender?
l}^g synipathy. The death of Mr. Blaine is a national
loss diat will be recognized and deplored by all Ameri-
cans regardless of political differences.
Andrew Carnegie. — The sad news is everywhere.-
The whole city seems stricken with grief. We shall,
of course^ retiirn to pay our last tribute.
Gov. Boies, of Iowa. — ^The whole nation mourns
t)ie death of your gifted husband. Nowhere within
Its Wrders is sorrow for him or sympathy for ypu
more sincere than among his mjutllitude of friends in
Iowa.
COMMENTS BY NEWSPAPERS.
Fftwi A* Inter-Ooetm, Chicago.
The death of James G. Blaine, thou^ on account;
of his long illness &iUy anticipated, will (^usea spasm
of grief throughout the country. Anticipation of
death is not always the realization of that great chang^^
It is human never to be ready for the dea^ of loved
oniesraiid it is only when the eternal harvester cuts
4ie j^rd and removes every shred that can sustain
hope that we realize that fihey are gone from us for-
ever. And certainly Mr. Blaine was a man laved and
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UFB 01* BQir.rJA]l£S a. BLAINE.
cherished by the American people, lie Wits one ol
thern, sind they clung to htm through good and evil
report with a tenacity that defied all <sfforts» both of
friendft, and foes. O^er .characters may have cast
grander shadows over the nation and impressed the
peppje with a sense of greater obligation for services
rendered, but no other excited their imagination^ and
sMrred thek,(eelings to such an extent as did James
G, Blaine.
It must; be said of Mr. Blaine as of/ all other great
pQlitiod leaders, that he vvas not always wisenor was he
always just^butwhom the people much love ^leylbrgive
mud^ and if they ever charged up any of these errors
of judgment or temper against Mr. Blain^ they wrote
them In thesand and the lines disappeared with ^e
>if^yesrof retiming enthusiasin which iavariably qaiiie
when he again spoke to thenw Mi:. Blaine was a jman
of comprehensive InftM^mation w^ a wonderful laeuli^
lor placing that information intisresdngly and clearl/
before others. He was bcJd yet diplomatic boidi in
actida and speech. His state papers will take rank
with those of our greatest secretaries* Tr *« was a
tdicept^ess and American ring about them that found
ai^ cciio in.«yery Amerifcan h^tt, f
Jt IS, iipweverias the political leader, tlmt llr. Blaine
will Uvein histoi:yaii4 in the memory of his countrj^
men. As^uch he is not con^raUe ^ith any ipf his
<H9iitemporaries> nor is it probable that Jitis 1%^ wiU
a^n be seen in American politics for a long
;.i#9e. ^-./ ;...>.;■ -.^.,, ■■ ,. , ,, . .,f:'v/'.ri.
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VBIINDLY TBIBUTES.
m
Among the modern leaders of American party
liToUtics James G. Blaine stood easily first. In the
power of drawing to himself the admiration of great
masses of the people, and of arousing the enthusiasm
of his followers, lie ha^ no equal in either politick
'A certain kKk of prestige which marked his brief
service in the Senate may be traced directly to the
circumstance that he was not a trained lawyer. No
ftmn has ever made a career in idie Senate — that grave-
yard of Presidential hopes and coffin of slain ambi-
tk>ns— who was not But as a commoner upon the
€oOr of die national House of Representatives, Mr.
Blaine was a Than. He was a Titan before the
pieople. He was a Titan among his political asso-
ciates in the doset and at the round table where
party plans are laid and party plans decided.
Mr. Bkine^s lot was cast in high party lines. In
p<^ti«al G<>ntroversy he neither a^^ nor gave quarter.
&ut in his private intercourse he was altogether free
frompdliddd prejudices^ unreserved and generous to
his advc^rsaries^ genial to all, and altogether delightful
as a companion. He was not so august as Clay nor
so ui^ardedas I>ouglas, but he will rank with those
for a parfy leader and be classed with them and com-
pardl lo them by the btographefs, for as political
4hkft8ans' and popular debaters the trio possessed
ifitidi in commoh.
Peace to the ashes of a noble adversary!
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UFB OF HON. JAMES O. BLAINi.
honor to the name of a great American ! At last the
Plumed Kni^^t has joined the knightly throng whom
the ages have assembled on the other side.
From the American, BalUm«Nre.
Mr. Blaine was the foremost figure of his time in
American public life, and this was due to the extraor-
dinary qualities of the man. His name came to be
reckoned among the half-dozen names which consti-
tute the crowning g?Jaxy of American statesmanship.
No man ia American politics filled, a broader space
for a longer period than Mr. Blaine, and the country
loses him while in the maturity of his splendid powers.
FVom the CoBititation, AUanU.
Mr. Blaine's death removes one of the most brilliant
and picturesque figures in niodern politics. Com-
paring him with Henry Gay as a partisan, Blaine
had a better hold on the public mind, diough Clay was
a greater man as a statesman, while not cutting such
a figure in politics. The people, regardless of party,
initinc^vely knew that at his best Mr. Blaine was a
representative American, a man ardendy in love with
his whole country and its institutions.
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