Chicago Daily Tribune Newspaper, May 13, 1876, Page 9

His Record in Eentucky as a ‘__R,epublican. A staunch Patriot, as a Sol- dier and as a Legis- lator. : His Legislative Votes in the Inter= st of Unionism and Antie Slaveryism. —_— Actively Supports Lincoln and Grant for the Presidency. LW RS Ertracts from Some of Bristow's Speech- es--His Advocacy of Univeraal Education. He se of the Rights of the Colored Defen: ¢ Race, and Esposition of the Mis- sion of the Republican Party. Cincinnati Gazette. Benjamin He Bristow, the Secretary of the Treasury, Is 8 son of the Hon. Francis M. Bris- tow, deceased- His father was a Whig, and a member of Congress for two successive terms. He was also a member of the Convention which framed the present Constitution of Kentucky, {n which is found the following provision: ‘Therisht of properts I+ before and higher than o paitutiona sauictlon. and_ the right of the A0y Coof A slave to sach elave is the eame and us faviolshle as the right of the owner of any property whatever. The father of Secretary Bristow was one of the soven members of the Constitutional Con- vention who voted against that provision. Tln150 the Whigs of Kentucky nominated Joshus F. Bell for Governor. Ie was opposed by the Hon. Berich Magoflin as the Demoeratic candidate. . When the campaien opened, 10 the eurprise of many Whigs, Bell took the extreme ground that it was tho duty of Congress, as dedlared in the Dred Scott case, toprotect Slavery in the Territoritics. Although Bristow was an ardent TWhig, he was sO ‘much displessed with the ultra ‘Pro Stavers position of Bell that he Gedined to vote for him. When tle War broke out, in 1861, Benjamin H. ‘Bristow was engaged in the active ‘practice of thelaw. He promptly announced his pur- pose to §TAND BY THE USION, and avowed his determination to enter the srmy. The county in which he then lived was one of the largest. sloveholding counties in the State. In connection with others, e entered upon the work of raising a regiment for the na- tionel service. Of the regiment raised he be- crm Lieutenant-Colonel, and James M. Shack- 1ord Colonel. That regiment participated in ths bzt:les of Fort Donelson and Shiloh. Subsequently, Bristow raised the Eighth Ken- tucky Cavalry, of which he became Colonel. That regiment was part of the foree which cap- tured Morgan in Ohio. While in the army, Bristow was elected to the Kentuey Senate from the Counties of Christian nd Todd. and, after serving two winters, re- signed, and removed to the City of Louisville in 1563, to practice his profession. N:Juflnghis term as Senator, he was earnest in DEVOTION TO THE UNION CATSL. Although a very young man, he exercised large influence, and was one of the few in that body who took advanced ground in reference to all the questfons arising out of the War, induding the question of Slavery. At the session of Jacumery, 1865, it became pecessary to elect » Speaker pro_tem. of the Senate. ~The candidates were the Hon. John B. Braner, of Breckenridge (Conservative), and the Hon. K. Tarvin Baker, of Campbell (Repub- Yican). Bristow voted for Baker. 1In the election for Senator in Congress, he hoted, with other Republicars, for Gen. Rous- seau, against the Hon. James Guthrie. On the 19th of January, 1855, the Hon. Martin P, Mershall, from the Committee on the Status of Slavery, reported the following resoluti ‘Resolreil, That it is the duty of this Legi topase stich Jaws in relation to Slavery as will most rpeedily remedy its demoralized condition, and o dlgil\' labor as to offer inducements to free white 1=boress to settle in our State. Bristow voted for this resolution.—[Senate Journal, 1865, Y 197. 0Oa the 7th of Febraary, 1865, the Governor of Kentucky laid before the Legislature of that State the official notice reccived from the Scere- tary of State of the United States of theadop- tion of the Thirteenth Amendment to the Con- stitution of the United States. On the 224 of February, 1565, the Senate of Kentucky took up for consideration the follow- kg' Tesolutions, which had been previously offered, respecting the Thirteenth Amendment, viz.: Wreness, The Congress of the United States, ‘ender authority of Art.3, Sec. 1, of the Constitu-~ tion, has proposed to the Legislatures of the several States the following as an amendment to the Con- stitation of the Tnited States: “ART. XIIL ++8pc, 1. Neither Slavery nor involuntary eer- ~itude, except as 2 punishment for crime, whercof the party shall have been dnly convicted, shall ex- iat within the United States or any place subject to their juriediction. o 2, Congress shall have {A‘chr to enforce o ‘he eame has been officially Legislature for their ratifica- jection therefore, be it 1. Recolved by the General Assembly of the Com- monteealth of Kentucky, That the aforesaid pro- posed amendment to the Constitution be, and the same j« hereby, rejected. 2. Recolred, That the Governor forward 3 copy of the foregoing presmble and resolution to the President of the United States, with the request that the sume be loid before Congress. —[Senate Journal, 1805, p. 274. Bristow voted with the minority in favor of aresolution RATIPYING THE TIIRTEENTH AMENDMENT, end then voted with the minority against the foregoing resolutions rejecting that amendment. O the2ith of February, 1865 the Kentucky Benate took up for consideration the following 'Q'Nmnblc and_resolutions, which had been pre- viously passed by the Kentucky House of Repre- sentatives, viz.: WaEuEss, The Congress of the Tnited States has, bra vote of two-thirds of the members of each House, xnbmitted to the Legislatures of the tes, respectively, for their consideration and xction, the following proposed amendment to the Federal Constitation, to-wit: % = S ART. XL 1Sec. L. Neither Slavery nor fnvoluntary ser. ritude. except as a punishment for crime, whereof the perty shail have been duly convicted, shall exiet within the United States, or any place subject {o their jurisdiction, c. 2. Congress shall have power toenfore c by proper legislation. ™ The" above propoced amend- Dent bas been oflicfally Jaid before this Legielature or it8 consideration and action: therefore, be it o Jiesolred, "By the General “Assemnbly of 1he Commonuealil, of Kentucky, That the propozition fo make eaid propored amcndment 2 thirtcenth ar- ticle of the amenduments to the Constitution of the United States, be, and the same is hereby, reject- 2. Recolved, That the Governor be requested to Toreard the foregoing preamble and resolution to President of the United States, and also to the President of the Semateand the Speaker of the House of Representatives of the Congress of the ited States,—[ Senate Journal, 1865, pp. 408-9. n!i“l:‘\'cn Senators voted against these resolu- Al AMONG THE NAYS WAS B. H. BRISTOW. 2 K boot that time the condition of Slavery in rm"«kyw:\s very peculiar. The Legislature :1 that State was ‘unwilling to accept ihe Thir- teenths Amendment, or uckuowledse the abo- u!lon of Slavery, but was disposed to resort to P':O;?:s of cypedients to harass the colored § A sample of Kentucky statesmanship will be nil“ in the bill concerning slaves and runaways, l?‘tfl’ed in the Kentucky Senateon the 25th o ‘ebruary, 1865, viz. : ',szngs 1. Beit enacted by the General Assembly 8 the Commonucealth of Kentucky, That all laws Sow in force in this Commonvealth requiring the lwue.r of a ¥lave to pay a reward for the arrest or ipprehension of such slave a3 a runaway, be, and ‘¢ some are hercby. repealed. oupi: 2 That if aay person liereafter shall, ~with- out the conseut. of the owner, Lire or permit to fe- Dain in bis or her service the megro slave, of a1y other person, the person so hirin of permitting to femain in his or her cervice such elave shall’ be lisble to the owner thereof for the eam of $3 for every twenty-four hours euch elave may, be nl'\_':uch service, to be_recovered and collected s other debts for " similar smountg under existing we. Any judgment under this eection may be enforced by exccation of ca. sa. Src. 3. That the owner of a_slave msy, by his written permission and authority, license and per- %hu £lave a0 act as the agent of the owner, and bimgelf or herself ot for the bemedt of the SALURDAY, MAY 14, 1876—TWELVE PAGENS , or that of the slave, 1f 5o expressed. terms owner and master in this act mean the per- son entitled to the possession and. control of the elave. SEC. 4. Be it further enacted, That it shall be the duty of all Sheriffs, Marehals, policemen, and other ministerial peace ofticers, and it shall be the right of all other persons, to arrest all nezro klaves £it for, and who shall be received into, the military service of the United States, whom they may find goinz at large withont the written permit of the master of sich slave, wnd not engaged in the business of the master; and such slave so arrested shall he, by the person arresting him, taken and put into thi military service of the United States, ;ufll‘)e credited to the eounty of his owner's resi- ce. Sec. 5. For each negro o arrested and put into the mervice of the Tnited States, the pu’;on a‘r- resting and delivering him shall receive the sum of £20, to be paid out of the State Treasury upon Ris production to the Anditor of the certificnte of the proper officer of the United States showing the delivery and reception thereof. i Protided, howerer, That when any megro ar- rested nnder this act shall be willing and request to return to his master or owner, then the arrester shall tuke and deliver such slave to the master or owner, who shall pay 1o the arrester the sum of $20 and the reasonable cost and expenses in- curred after the arrest and in so returning such slave. Prorided, That no euch enlistment shall be ms isxcflrfl z‘:lf,ihuemxr{'l“:dfn l:.)ll‘ act, wuhmn“km c';z,i‘a_ naster of such slave.—| 1865, pp. 436 (0 430, e.—[Senate Journal, AGAINST THIS BILL, in all its stages, Bristow, witk a Yittle band of Kentucky Senators, voted. During the same sesslon of the Legislature, an incident oceurred which indicated very clear- 1y how scngitive the Kentucky mind Was upon the question of Slavery, and how little tolera- tion there was for Hepublican newspapers. It Dad been the custom for many years, and is still the custom, for the Kentucky Legislature to take the Louisville daily papers at_the public expense, during the sessionof the Legislature. At that time there was_ published in Louisville thie Daily Union Press, devoted to the cause of the Union and to the Republican party, Sena- tor Bush, of Clarke, offered a_ resolution dircet- ing the Sergeant-at-Arms to procure the usual number of coples of the Daidy Union Press for the use of the members and officers of the Legislature, and_moved to dispense with the rules’ requiring jolut resolutions to lie one day upon the table. The Senate refused to dispense with the rules, Bristow voting in fa- quently, when the solution came up regularly for action, it was ccted by a strict party vote, BRISTOW VOTING WITH THE MINORITY FOR IT. At the same scssion of the Kentucky Senate there was another vote which indicated the state of feeling in Kentueky. At that time there ex- isted at Berea, in Madison County, Ky., a church and & 1ocl, under control of Abolition- ists_of the Johii'G. Fee school, who recognized no distinctions, political or otherwise, based on color. In the church and in the school, whites and blacks 1ningled, much - to the dlsgusL of Kentuckians who had been reared under the influence of Slavery sud the Virginia and Ken- tucky resolutionsof 1793. Thebrethrenat Berea desired an act of incorporation for their little chureh, and to that end a bill was presented to the Kentucky Senmate proposing to incorporate e Rey. John G. Fee, Teman Thomson, and Morgan Burdett,” and their suceessors, a_body politic and corporate, * for the Church of Christ at Berea, Madison County, Kentucky.” The i{rgposcd charter comiained notbing “of apo- itical or sectarian nature, and granted nothing but the usual powers incident to all such cor- porations. But the Kentucky Senate vould not tolerate the Fee sect, and denied to the Berea Abolitionists a simple act of incorporation for church purposes. Among those WHO VOTLD FOR THE RESOLUTION was Benjamin 11. Bristow. Ata subscg\xent Ferlod of the session, Senator Tandrum (a Iepublican) offered the following resolution: Resolced, Ly tha General Assemhly of the Com- montecl'hi of Kentucky, That the joint resolution adopted Feb, 4, 1863, by which this Legislature rejected the pronosed smendment to the Constitn- tion of the United States, e, end the same is here- by, rescinded. —[Seaate Jourac?, 1855, p. 630. A motion was made to dispense with the rules, so that the Senate could proceed at once to the cornsideration of the resvlution, but the majority would not allow it to be done. Bris- tu\; t\'m.cri,ns usual, with the Republican mi- nority. The foregoing votes of Bristow given in 1854, when 2 member of the Kentucky Senate, show very clearly his position with_reference to the uestions crowing out of the War and the aboli- tion of Slas rf' “No man ean_doubt his fidelity 1o the principles of the Republican party, and to the catse of the Union. e wasa Republican when and where 1T COST SOMETHING TO BE ONE, and prompily tovk sides with the country and against the Rebellion when by so doing he took This life in his hand. Tn the Presidential campaian of 1854, the great body of the Usionists of Kentucky voted for McClellan, hecause of his War-record: but Bris- tow declined to follow them, and refused to vote for McClellan, and voted for Lincoln. Bt Bristow’s labiors in behalf of Republican pringiples did not end upon bis retirement from the Kentucky Senate. Shortly after his remoyal to Louisville, he became District Attorney for the Cuited States, and in that position, which e held for about five years, he performed valu- able services in the prosecution of cases under the Civil Rights bill against numerous Ku-Klux, who believed in the divine right of their Klan to imaltreat and murder unoffending colored peo- le. - It has been said by those who ought to mown that the vigorous enforcement of the Civil Rights bill by Bristow, as District Attor- ney, did more than all othef causes combined to ROOT OUT TiIR COWARDLY KU-ELUX from our_neighboring State. Besides, in his office of District Attorney, he acquired that thorough Lkuowledge of the Internal Revenue system which has enabled him to grapplo so suc- cessfully with the Whisky Rings at St. Louis, Chieago, and other points. Inthe Presidential campaign of 1868, he par- ticipated actively for Grant and Colfax. Th 1871, the Republican party had its State Convention at Frankfort, Ky., and determined to make a vigorous cffort to obtain control of the State. A full State ticket was nominated, headed by John M. Harlan as the Republican candidate for Governor. At that Convention Col. Bristow was present, and made a speech, from which we m: the following extract: VIEWS OF THE PARTY’S DUTY. We have before us to-day a living and usefal il- Justration of the wise forcthousht and broad phi- Isnthropy of the men of *7G. To-day it ia the boast of the Xepublican party that evers man born in this country or naturalized, no matter what his condi- tion of life, hiarace o color, isan American citi- zen, and a8 such is entitled to equal rights before the'law, and to a participation in the clective franchise. The ne&llblimu party, which Thas achioved much for the country, hias wrought no areater work than this. 18 it niot a proud day for §s? Althoughwe have passed througl inary strugele in which thousands of our bruve and petriotic citizens have yieided up theirlives, yet we <cannot lose sight of the fact that at the close of the conflict” the {mmortal principle £o0 happily an- nounced in the Declaration of Independence has Tot only been preserved, but has rown inte prac. tical and living reality. This is the essential creed of the Republican party, and we are bure to-day for the purpose of declering our unclterable at- tachment to that party. ILis truc, we have not Vet secnin Kentucky unqualified séquiescence iu this grand result on the puct 'of our feliow-citizens, Dut the time is not far distant when even the peo- ple of Kentucky inust 1ay aside the prejudices en- Pendered by the lute War, and accept in its fullest Eenee the freedom of citizenship and equality be- fore the Jaw of all men. Lemocratic Conven- tions in Kentucky may be silent on this subject, ool a Democratic. Legislature may be crimiually Sewardless of its hizbest duty: the people them- Ecices mny be misled and deccived by political ers; the still, small voice of reason may be bushed and eilenced by the turbulent passions of the hiour, yet-the dayis not far distant when this underising priuciple of the Republicun parly will be fully acknowledged and accepted by all the peo- Jle of Kentucky. When this shall be done, the et ereat purpose of the Republican party will hove been sccomplished, and it will then be the duty of that purty to perserve intact its own great work. TIn the campaign which followed the State Convention of 1571 the Republican party in Ken- tuacley surprised itself and the country by polling nearly 90,000 votes. Tn campaign Col, Bristow made several gpecches, only_one of Which was published. From that speech, deliv- cred at Louisville, we bave extracte the follow- ing passages: TIIE SCHOOLS OF THE STATE. : Our system of commeon schools, outside the City of Loniville, tnd possibly one o twvo others of our smaller cities, is Pusilh’e!_v discreditable to the Siate. Indeed, he fs guilty of using o misnomer who calls it a system. From the ‘mouth of the Sandy to the Missisaipp River it ie & blnnderand o foiluse. Thereare hundreds—yea, thousands—of white children in this Commonwealth who have var of suspension, and sul x Practically no opportunity to recelve a common- Echool cducation. The voice of Civilization cries alond against this * state of things. The welfare of our State and the highest intercsts of society require that facilitics fof ncquiring s common English education be placed bin the réach of every child of the Common- Seaith, white and black. ' The idle clamor against Thized schools does not relieve us of the duty thot rests upon us. ‘The necesgities of the eituation de- T hd tchool-houses and echool-teachers for all, Bat not mixcd schools. 1f it be the desire of onc ot oth races to have sepsrate echools, be it 03 $ht 1n the name of our high and sucred duty 1o se¢ Deot the Commonywealth snifers no injury, dnd that the best intercsts of soclety are cared for, let us e e frec echools for all. 1f Tam asked how it is Proposed to raise the money to defray the expenses D bieh echools, 1 answer, by taxing the property Of the State. T would tax the rich inan's property o hicate his poor neighbor's child. L would tux o iite man's property to_educate the black e N child: and vice versa. In a word, I would P i She property of the State to educate all the children of tho State. NEGEO_TESTIMONY, _Toming from the Comctitution 1o the , wo find there provisions which no thought man wii! defend, but which the Dtnmcrnll}g gefi:} Intare has persistently refuved to modify. . lhSlm:e Slavery wa @:bolished by the operation of th! Thirteenth Amciidment to the Conetitution of the United States, the Legislaturo of Lieatucky has een in the hands of the Democraticparty. 1f any intelligent foreigner, who was fzmozant of the events that have transpired in this country within tb_e past ten years, should be called upon to look over the present Constitation and etatute laws of Kentucky, he could come to no other conclusion than that African Slavery etill exists in this State. Tarn to the statute regninting homestend exemp- tlon end testimony, ‘and the lawa relating to tho subject of education, and no ssne man can fafl to perceive that if Sluvers be actually dead, the spirit of the *departed " still lingers in Kentucky, snd controls herlaw-makers. Theetatate of Kentncky which denies t 000 colored prople of the State the right to testify in nny case, civil or criminal, affecting a white person, has its origin in the sup- poed necessitics of Slavery, and is indefensible a "1“‘:{“ 8{ 1‘rtic|dom‘ s denial is 8 monstrous and grievons wrong to Doth races. Itisa practical denial of freedom to the colored race; yes, itiseven woree than thaty it is a license, if not an invitation, to base mis- creants and cowardly Ku-Rlux to gratify their Dbrutal paseions and eatinte their murderous pro- rensities on this unoffending =nd defenscless race. ‘or the credit of my own State Idonot choose to dwell on the horrors that have disgraced many parts of the Commontvealth since the abolishment of Slavery, nearly all of which are traccable di- reetly to the criminal refusal of the Legislature to treat the nearo asa_huinan being, entitled to the protection of law. Civilization hus now progressed toofar to require argwnent to prove the’ mon- strosity of the deninl of this right, which is abso- lntely cesential to the frecdom and personal k- curity of every man. No intelligent mun yill at- tempt to Justify the action, or rathier, I shonld eay, the non-tction of the Legislature in thin regard; and yet the platform of the Democratic party com- ity this subject to the *tomb of the Capalets,’ and refuees to {)le(\ur: itaelf to correct this fearful evil. 1 raid no intelligent man would now justify this course; perhaps this rtatement should be qualified. There are menin Kentucky—and the species is pe- culiar to Kentucky—who seem to be sane, and may e called intelligent, on every subject except the negro; bat when he is introduced” they become as +smad as March hares.” They tell us that it ia right to let the negro testify in all cases: that the highest interest of xlm:h.-{a‘ deinands it: but, eay they, Con- aress transcended its conatitutional pawer (o ing the **Civil Rizhts bill,” and thereforo we will not modify the Kentucky etatute, Redncing thie so-called argument to a plain, syllogistic xtute- ment, it amounts to this: Congress did wrong, and, herefore, we ought notto doright. A 13- yeur-oid Iad who would deduce such a ~conclusion Trom such premires would be in danger of the rod in any log school-house outside Kentucky. Bui it csunotbe admitted that Congress did wrong in passing _the Civil Righty bill. ~ Without stopping fiere to defend this act, 1 only say that if Congres?, after havinz taken part fn the eruncipu- tion of the negro, had not passed some snch act to secure his frecdu and give hint the means of vin- dicating his rightsin States where all such means were withheld, it would have bLeen unfaithful to duty, and justly censurabla in the estimation of the civilized world. “ THE REPUBLICAN PABTY. 1t i€ my purpose, also; to spealk to you of na- tional politics, as an -Amferican citizen, feeling a Just pride in my natlonality, and confessing atle- giance to the great Republic parumount to that aich every man owes to his State. The R(‘-Euhllcun party of Kentucky presents iteelf to the people of the State with @ platform upon which cvery patriotic citizen may well stand, ‘Discarding the deud things of the irreparable pest, it _grapples with the living present, and Feaches forward to seize the mighty events of the coming future. 1lzving buried, fo faras it is con- cezned, the hates and prejudices thai belong to the past, and remembering that there is yet o common country to he served and a destiny to be faldiied, it addresses itself to the calm judgment of men, and invites the co-operation of all in the great work before us. Its utterances ara clear, distinct, and cannot be misunderstood. Tnlike the o-called Democratic party of this State, the Itepublican party, by its platforin, meets {fally and fairly every g jon, whether of Nation- al or State politics. ~ It lives and moves in the o mosphere of civil and religious liberty. It be- Jieves in the progress and advancement of man, and looks with undimmed faith to the elevation of the whole human race. Taking its inspirstion from the Declaration of Independence, it announc- es its beiief in the inalienable right of all men “~to life, liberty, and the Smnmh'. of bappiness,™ and that the plainest and most cssential of all ta is the right of cach man to own himself. ceepting as axiomatic the propo jon that go ernment is made for man. and not man for govern- Tnent, It proposcs to modify the fundamental laws of FOvernment as cXpericnce or uecessity may re- i Sot Gonbting the wisdom or patriotism of onr ancestors, but according to them their just meed of praise, the Repnblican party believes man o ‘capable of sclf-government fo-day o8 he fiax ever been, and neither the stupidity ‘of fogy- irme wor the & eentimentalism_that cling: to the past only lecause it is past, defers it from taking part in the improvement and perfection of our republican form 0f Government. Coneulting the ever-increasing capabilities and necessities o 4 free people, it claims for them tke Fight L0 pro- gress in the =cience of Government. Looking into the Constitution of our State, it finds there whole scctions that should have no plnce in u fundamental Jaw designed for the guid- Ance and government of 3 great Commonwealth of ihiv day.o Accepting the fact that ‘‘war legis- lates,” and zcquiescing in the changes that have occutred by the approval of some and in’spite of Tiic opposition of others, the Republican party of Kentucky now uaite in demunding that the Consti- tution and laws of our State be adupted to the liv- ins requirements of the peuple, in Whose interest all laws __ shoul bo | made. laving feither desiremor _ability to carry o perpetnal mrife with °oar meigliboring Dietir Stites, or with the aggrezate power of the T people of all the States reprcsented in our General Government, we insist upon bringing our lawe into harmonlons relations with theirs.” The present Constitution of Eentucky was formed und adopted more than twenty years ago, at a time when the summum bonum of all_political szgacity and so- eulled wtatesmanship was the perpetiation of human bondage. Under the inflnence of this idea every possible_safequard was thrown around the Slavery, and tie people were practi- of the puwer to modify their own Inteitigent men of this day must be etartled to find in the third section of the'miscalled Tiil of Rights—a part of our prexent Constitution— that absard political dogma which announces that ““the right of property it before and higher than gny constitutional einction; and the right of the owaer of u slave to such slave and its increasc is The same, and as inviolabie as the right of the owner of any property whatever." “\lways uniound a3 a political axiom, no arga- ment i3 neccssary to prove the monstrous ab- urdity of such a declacation at this duy, when Slavery has mo” foothold on this continent, and Swhien even the most obdurate of the two classcs of Democrats concede that it can never again ex- fxt here. But this is not sll. Art. X. of the present Constitution of this State contains three Bections, all of which relate solely to the subject of slaves und that part of the once servile raco Jmown a8 free mexvoes. The second scction of the article ix a¢ follows: ¢fhe General Assembly skall pass laws: pro- viding that any free negro or mulatto hereafter immigrating to, and any slave herenfter ewnanci- pated in, and refusing to leave this State, or, Baving Jeft, shail return and seitle within this State, sholl be decmed guilty of felony and ‘pun- fshed by confinement in the Penitentiary thereof. e moral gensc of many of the people of I tucky was shocked by the refinement of cruelty that snggested this section, but the behests of Slavory required ite adoption. and opposition to o was worse than vain. _Lvery member of the Lesislature of Kentucky is required to -take an oath to support the Constitation, of which this pection is & part; and under ity provisions it be- Somes the eworn duty of each meuber to kce that Taws are passed for punishing s felons every free negro or mulatto iminigrating to this State. The Section is imperative_and mandatory. [t leaves hothing to (ke discretion of the Ledislature. To say that this section hus hecome obsolete by rea- ton of the amendments to tae National Constitu- tion, or that the enlightened judgment of mun forbids its enforcement aow, is no unswer to the objection to its remaining in our printed Consti- tution. Ve have a right to demand, and do demand, that all obsolete and defunct provisions be stricken from vur Constitution, and that that instrument be made np of living words und scctions, adapted to The practical wants of un active, moving, and pro- gressive peopic. Nor is thisall, Sec. 8of Art. IL of our present Constitution prescribes the gualification of voters, and limits the exercise of the franchise to * free White male citizens.” By the ratification of the Fifteenth Article of Amendment to the Constitu- tion of the United States, this section of our State Constitution is abrogzted, and it, too, should be swept from the book.” Ina word, every provixion of that instrument inscrted in the interes! Slavery—and there are many such—ehould be ex- punged, and a new Constitution formed in the in- terest of freedom. : MISSION OF THE REPUBLICAN PARTY. The mission of the Republican party is not yet ended. The loyal people of this country who pres gorved the Government in war and have iaintained its houor in peace, are not yet ready to hand it over tothe party that conspired to desiroy it. and has resisted every effort to make it indestructible. At no time in our history has the cause of civil and religions liberty made uch progress as in the Aoeade ander the fostering carc of the Republican party. In giving frecdom with civil and political ghts to one race, it has not becn unmindful of the rights and llberties of the other. The same consti- tutional provision that gave freedom to the black man makes it forever impussible to enxlave any por- tion of the white ruce. The citizenship secured by the Fourteenth Article of Amendment to all persons born or naturalized in the United States applies alike to ail persons, rich arpoor, whiteand black. The inhibition nyun}hc States to make or enforce any law which ehall abridge the privileges or immunitics of citizens of the United States, orto deprive any person of Life, i or property, without due process of law, or to deny 10 any personwithin their juriadiction the cqual protection of the laws, is a ‘bulwark of safety to every citizen, and a protection szuinst the oppressions that might otheriise arise fron seco Tonaljealonsy and Jocal hate. ‘The constitutional gnarantee of the elective franchise is applicable to 311 races and people, and henceforth neither the United States nor any State can deny or abridge Ihisinestimable right on account of race, color, or Previous condition. Al these constitutionsl pro- Tisions were passed in the fnterest of personallib- erty and indlvidunl security. £ Y The love of liberty is inherent in human na- tare. 1t may be etified, but not withont much di dcalty. ‘e wronght npon as wallas pow- erful and active, whenever it s not gratided there is danger to the State. ~ Gratlfy it, and yon insure the safety of aocicsyel’ Neitber thers constitational provisions no: y statute pasked in pursuance of them oppreases or harms any haman being. ‘The penaliies of the Civil-Righits ond Ku-Kiux octs are aimed solelpat the Iawicss and violeat. Ko peaceful citizen or law-abiding community has apprehension of Injury or oppression {rom {hem. b cannot protect its hnmblest citizet: from ov and injury is unworthy the naue, and vight nut Lo command the support of a fre ple. ut *tthe Wicked fice wiien 1o man pursneth, " und when you hear these statutcs @emdimeed b7 Domocsatic Epezkers, yon may De aurs that either they of their friends have committed, or ore likeiy fo comamit, the crimes for which the punishment is_prosided. These ure the works of the great Republican party of the natton, which savedl the country in war and is able to preserve-t in peace. This is the party ihat must control the destinies of this free country for years to come. May we not confldently appeal to the'yonng men of Kentucky who propose to live in the stirring presont, and to be actors in the coming [uture, tocut loose from the hurtful prejudices of the past, and take part in the great twork of wheeling our State into the line of prog- Yeas and advancing it in the race for prospority and material wealth ? Sooner or later the cloud that now hangs over Kentncky and obstructa the moral vision of her people mast vanish like & morning's mict before the rising sun of a brighter and better civilization. e —— OUR POSTAL SYSTEM. To tie Editor of The Tribune. Cmicaco, May 12.—The watehword of the preseat time—and the motto of the party of success—is * economy in our civil and military sclence.” The nation—impoverished by the ex- actions of an exhausting civil war, and the reac- tion cavsed by the curtailment of our plethoric paper currency in order to its adaptation to a metallic basls of value, taken in connection with the corruption which bas crept into all de- partments of our civil, military, and naval service, destroying public confidence, and paralyizing every branch of productive industry, —have thrust the question of economy into the ffirefiraund, and made it the great question of the day. , No cfi:nd issues of the Enst can command the attention and awaken the interest which this question of the present awakens in the public mind, and politicians will labor in_vain to gul- vanize the old issues into lifo in the presence of this new issue, which so vitally affects all classes of men in every part of the Union. «How canthe Government maintain itself creditably, and cut_down its expenses 1" Is the great queéstion of the hour. Your paper has, at all times and under all_circumstances, been the consistent advocate of honesty and economy in the administration of the machinery of govern- ment, and_while it has believed in an advo- cated the fixing of salarlesat a rensonable figure which would render corrupt legislation an oficial stealing whoug' inexcusable, it, has main- tained the doctrine of economy in evesy branch of the National Government, as it has alsoin our State and municipal affairs. The report of the Postmaster-General shows that this department of the public_service is conducted at an immense loss to the Public Treasury, and that the last annual deficit in the Euslfll service, which has Legn saddled upon the nport and other revenues of the Government, Wi not less than $4,000,000, while the cstimated deficit, charzeable to the General Treasury, for the vear ending June 80, 1877, is 89,821,602, in- cluding two items of special appropriation, for the pustal service. The estimated amount for Postmasters and clerks, for the next fiscal year is 31,115,000 from which it will be obvious that the whole deficit 1s for money which goes to poy the salaries of Postmasters and their clerks. That the Post- masters of our great cities and principal towns re- ceive only a proper and rensonable compensa- tion is plain ; but the question arises, whether the public could not be as well served, ss at rusent, by adopting th_same method of secar- ing post-office service thmthout the smaller towns and rural districts, which has been long in vogue, viz: Submitting this service to com- Eetlhou, 'and awarding it to the lowest responsi- I bidder, and thus @ ‘saving of millions of dollars be effected in the cost of maintaining these smaller offices. The first objection which suggests itsalf to the partisan politician is that it ‘would reduce the amount of Goyernment patronage, and thus weaken the hold of any particular Administra- tion “fi:“ the pco?e—thg gift of Postmaster- ships being one of the most golent influcuces now wiclded for party ends. But it is coming to be regarded as onc of the evils of our preseut system that offices are ‘conferred for political Survices, and not on the ground of special fit- ness, as should be the case; and it is an open question whetber this revolution in the method of bestowing offices, js not one of its chicf excellencies. The Government—at least ostensibly—submits its contracts for public buildings and the con- veyance of the mails to 2 general competition, and awards them to the lowest bidders, irre- Spective of political associations. The Govern- Tent, by this method, acts agrceably to the will of thié people, who do'not wish to pay tos parti- san o bonus for Lis political views or services, when another man will perform the service, or do the work, for simply 2 just compensation. ‘Why not adopt the same method ot - seearing postoftice serviced Why not give the average post-ofiices, throughout the country, to the low: st responsible bidder who will, keep the offi at a conveaient place, in & _mitnner which will ‘accommodate.the public, and give ample sceurity for the faithful gcr{ormflncc of his official duties To behalf of this method it may be urged that it i in accordance with the policy of the Govern- Iment in othier matters, equally important; that it would doubtless reduce the cost of this service ceveral millions per annum, for the following obvious reasons: First, competition always re- duces the cost of service. Second, throughout the smaller towns and in rural districts the post-oflices are usually kept at stores or sliops, and the same Ecrsun who attends the store or shop attends thie post-oftice, and the additional Patronage, drawn to the store or shop, is an ad- equate compensation to the Postmaster, and in nearly all these places the merchant or shop- keeper would be willing to attend to the post- office for its incidental advantages, or would perform the service for the lenst nominal com- ensation. There arc alsoin ncarly ull places ighly respectable men and women, who, hay- ing an income adequate to their wants, would N form the dutiesof Postmastor or Postmis- ress simply for the honor of the position, and wWithout regard to the pecuniary reward. There are also _many cases in which there are supernumerarics in stores, shops, and oflices who cold perform the clerical dutics of the post- office, under a responsible Postmaster,—as the merchant, shopkeeper, or_professional man of the establishment,—at acost to the Government far Iess than that now incurred. ‘The experiment is well worth trying; and, if the defieit in the national postal service can be reduced by this method, the public would be re- Jieved of & heavy burden, and be able to con- aratulate itself on the change. The Govern- Tnent could classify its ;))ost.—ulllces, and except from this plan, as it should, thusc in the great cities, where the reasons, Which have been sug- tested, would be jnapplicable, and farm out all the smaller oflices to the lowest responeible bidders. Doubtless some millions could Le thus saved, and the public_be cqually well served. L. D. MANSFIELD. ————— THE MINISTER'S WIDOW. [A PacT.] "Way up. nest the Pole, stands acabin, At night Autora-Borealis throws splendor and light. Thhe atreams yet in ice-shockies linger. Jts snow-covered locks dues the spruce never miss, ‘And mercury {reezes, Old Sweden it Go there with the dreams of the singer. Walkin. Iere fa cold, here is dreary and dark. A mother hero sits, and with bread made of bark Her children keep up animation. Enough with her dear ones she's suffered fromcold, ‘Enouzh hes she fought with the enemy bold, The merciless gria one—starvation. ¢4 Bt soon comes our s, 50 the lttle ones crv. o ++And then we get clothing, and chickens, and pie, And books full of picturen und storles. So weep then not, mother, though thick falls the snov, For soon with onr fathet to church we will go. ‘And look at its candles and glories.™ The youngest crawled up in the motherly 1ap; And his dear little form in the ehawl did she wrap, “And smiled at her darling so zadly. And deep from her heart went a sigh to the Lord. The storm from the North on the outside rored. Tler heart was throbbing &0 madly. It knocks at the doar. **Itis Ae/™ With ashrlck Sho leaps to the door, aithough trembling and wealk ¢'Who §it2" Not he, but a stranger. A sailor in dripping-wet clothes stands alone. “On, pray, give me shelter ere life is all gone. 1 just have escaped from o danger. 4+ J've been driven at £ca In a bounding skiff, Since *Umca’ did sink. after etrikinz a cl Which gave us that horrible greeting. The Jast one I saw wore a miniater's cloaks Of wife and six children he tenderly kpoke, When his hicart in the billows ceased beating! Not more did he say, for 8o pale grew her cheek; She fell to the floor with a terrible shrick. There, senscless, the mother was 1ying. And six little children then kuelt by ber side. The hardened old sailor sat down and cried, And forgot that he almost was dying. With ;lighu that went up from their warm, purple ome, Did at midnight T glance to the biue, giant dome, Where the stars round God seemed to gather, And then looked to the earth, with its 20rrows and woes, And the question of skeptics, &9 Xa:dn,g‘ arose: ++Jathat God an All-Merciful Father o _Cmucace, April 27, 1876. EDWARD AXON, _. A Government which | THE CAMPAIGR. Discussion of State and Na- tional Politics. The % Wesfern Rural” on the Acting Governor. A Friend of Col. Harlow Comes to His Relief. Mr, Bcroggs’ Good Points Brought Out by = Comrade, Bristow the People’s Choice for President. BEVERIDGE. TIIE LEADING AGRICULTUKAL JOURNAL OF THE WEST ON TUE ACTING GOVERNOK. The Western Rural, the leading agricultural journal of the Northwest, in its last issue, de- Yotes a column of its space to the discussion of national and State politics. After calling the attention of its readers to the great importance of attending the primary meetings for the selec- tion of delegates to the forthcoming State Con- vention, which is to put in nomination a State icket, the editor of the Tural says: We are led to induige in these sngzestions from the eminently bad example that Gov. Beverldze and his personal friends now present to the people of this State, in urging the nomination of that femlen}nn as the candidate for Governor on the opublican ticket. 1f repeated and unrefnted re- orts ure to be believed, the present Board of Railrond and Warchouse Commissioners, and about all'the rest of Gov. Beveridge's appointees, are enzaged in * working up " delegations for him from the varions countics, orat leust a sufiicient number of them to give him a majority in the Con- vention. Withu, thisis a snfticient reason why he ehould be dmI)ped by the honest, reflect- in=, and _ intelligent men belonging to tho Republican party. The spectaclé of the Chbicf Executive of oné of _ the prondest 'and most magnificent States in the Union owering the dignity of his lllPh official position by engaging In the diety work of forcing upon the xenplo kis choice of 2 successor, and that successor imself, however it might have been tolerated in timos - post, 15 8 mode of procedure in_ the present ‘which is likely to call down upon him the contetnpt and scorn of all honorable men. Gov. Deveridge seems to have forzotten that the great masses of the people have fallen into the habit of **doing their own thinking ™ in political aifairs, and in the selection of men for places of high honor and grave responsibllity, —o iabit, by the way, that I8 proving fatal to the small army of partisan leaders by whom gmy ll‘g‘wc been 50 long misled, duped, and hwn- ngge X hiore apt illnstration of the dangers which a consequent to the Keople‘by a neglect of their du- ties a8 citizens at theirprimary meetings is eeldom farnished than that we have now-under considera- tion. A lamentably weak man has found his way 1o the head of public affairs in this State, and has Jaid hold of their adminlstration. =For months we iad a carnival of lawlessness and disorder in fome of the southern counties of this State, in which Violence, ontrage, and murder were the conspica- ous features, and which rivaled the bloadiest scenes of Sonthern Ku-Kluxism. The Federal Govern- Thent was sneeringly reproached for its neglect to interpose a military force for the protection of the people, the preservation of order, and to supersede the confessedly incflicient State Government of Iilinois, and it \as not until the press had made the State ring from end to end with their indignant pro- fests that steps were tukento putasiop tothe Dnsiness of assassination. The people of the State of Tllinois have in- cnrred hundreds of thousands of dollars in Getecting ond_ bringing to punishment the inardercrs, thieves, and desperadoes that Dove preved nupon them. They now feel tiint their time and money bave been thrown away, D lieir courts of justice insnlted and the laws out- raged in a profiigate abuse of the pardoniag power Dy the Governor, who has turned_loose apon com- hanity hundreds of convicted felens of the worst poseible chamcter. That no sound judsment has guided him fn the ‘exercise of this power, is evi- enced by tho recent cold-blooded and brutal mur- der of an honorable and respected citizen, by one ‘of the objects of his_mistaken_clemency, in tho ‘eighboring Town of Turner. But s is not our Pumpose to feview the administration of Gov. Bev Diidse. Tt has been sufliciently bad In all essential articalars—o thoroughly overwhelmsd with fol- Ji5 and delccts af the greatest gravity—as to warn the people azainst the dangers of its r;{n:umm and continuance. The glaring evils by which its histo- ¥ has been characterized can be corrected, und Tereafter avoided. if the neople of the State will act eflectively through theic primary meetings. “s Governor for the State of Lllinols IS wanted—a Governor with the attributes, the genius, and the profundity of a statesmen, instead of the narrow Views, the sclfch perional sitms, and the contempt- Ihle trickery of » demagogue and a pastisan leader. A Governor is wanted who entertains those broad nd manly views, those noble conceptions of the frandeur and dignity of a Stae, that are o essen- fial to its well-being and good government, & Governor s wanted with the brains, the capabili- {ies and the high manhood requisife for tie Chiet Executive of a State standing third in rank in this freat Union of States. A Governor s wanted who £5a1l talce nis place by and with the approval and Sanction of the honest, the thinking and intelligent people of the State, instead of a partiean trickstor T folsts himself npon them by the foul appli- nces of partisan machinery and shamefully per- verted oiliciul povwer. HARLOW. HIS ADMINISTRATION DEFENDED. To the Editor of The Tribune. SPRINGFIELD, IIL, May 11.—The means em- ployed by candidates for office to secure a nomi- nation or an election form a tolerably safe basis from which to judge of the kind of officers they would make if elected. Chicago people nced Dot be told this; recent experience in the office- secking and election line render them competent judges. Rural districts, howevery in their in- nocence may be misled by some of the recent satements made against Col. Har- low, Seeretary of State, in the interest of his competitor, Mr. Scroggs. The lat- ter, or his friends for him, have apparently adopted the tactics of pulling Col. Harlow down for tht purpose of building Mr. Seroggs up. Political campaigns in the past furnish abund- ant proof that these tactics seldom, if ever, win. Col. Harlow and his fricnds recognize the right of Mr. Seroggs or any other man to compete for the office of Secretary of State, and to use all honorable means to insure success. They arc not disposed cither to_liold Mr. Seroggs respon- gible for all the iudiseretions of his friends; but, when a man is sclected to do service for him in i ,it is presumable that he knows his man. A well-known small politician seems to have been chosen to do the dirty worls of the campaiz, and this person is_evidently laboringg liard to deliver on cuntract, as all the trumped- up charges bear the car-marks of thisindividual, and, wndoubtedly, emanate from his lurge store A% slsehioods. The charge that Col. Harlow was implicated in the printing irrezularitics of two years ago, which appearcd in the Chicago Times o few days since, was made by that paper at the time the matter was under_investi- ¥ation by the Printing Committee of the Twenty- cilith General. Asfembly. The Committee sifted that matter to the bottom, und every o ember of the Committec, regardless of poli: ies, acquitted Larlow even Gf suspicion. % Sl been anything left by a Republican Legislature uninvcscig;mted, it is safe to say the «{faynes Legistature? would have been only too rrlad to hiave had an opportunity to give Col. Harlow or_any other Republican "State officer the * grand bounce,” in their zeal to find some campaign thunder. ~ The friends of the preseat Secretary of State not clain for him . a® monopoly Of honesty or com- petency, but they do claim for him, and Hbmit ' his record as proof, alarge share of olitical honesty, official capacity, and an un- {:lcmlshcd private character. The charge that Tiarlow was guilty of irregularity in the binding of the Revised Statutes is a silly fabrication, and entirely unworty of notice, ¢xcept to show $owhat small things onc person claiming to be 2 Republican will resort to, to_injure a “Repub- Jican office-holder, confessedly ~honest, who bappens to be a candidate for re-election. It must be remembered that these cliarges arc Tade by Republicans against Republicans before the nomination, and then after the Conven- tion expect voters to support the ~party which furnishes /onest men for oilice. Consist- ent, isn't it1 The Revised -Statutes were bound for’s0 cents a volume. The contractor lost from $3,000 to $5,000 on his contract, and the work Speaks for itsclf, scattered in afl parts of the State where the people can examine it for thewn- selves. If there was any steal in that job the public got the bencfit of it. | The rm.emP to make cngihl out of the asscr- tion that Cof. Harlow has been in office sixteen years, when he has not held office four years, 1S about on 2 par with the fimntlnf and binding ‘scarve-crows.” If e had been in office twice sixteen years, his record would be s clear and unsullied’as it is to-day. No man Thas served in official capacity more honestly, conscientiously, and with a single vigw to tbe Dest interests of the public, than has George II. Harlow. Any charge to the contrary is false and malicious, and, from whatever source it me come, deserves disbelief and condemnation, an¢ this no doubt will be the verdict of & large ma- jority of the people at the next Convention. « Comparisons are odioas; " but a8 Col. Har- k-4 Jow's enemies havo beon making public the figures of the expense of his n tration compared with Secretary Rummull, from their staudpoint,the following true report is submitted that the pcople may judge, not as between Hare Tow and Rummell, but of the unjast, unfair, and aishonest attack made upon the present Secretary in the interest of another candidate. The account stands thus: LUNMELL. From 1808 to 1872, foar years, bath Inclustva: Office expenses. 5.210.1¢ Porters and mes! 5 Salary and clerk Total OW. From 1873 to 1875, threc yoars, bolhénciuslu: Offico cxpenzes ,497. Porters and mes: 4,223 28 Salary andclerk . 20,567.9¢ Deduct $19,1 for fees pald into the State Treasury by Harlow for two ycars and ten months, lenfln%‘s“" 097.51 net cost of adminis- tration of the o e for three years. 2 ‘Add to the cost of Rummell’s administration fees collected, estimated on the same basis 25 those received by Harlow,—and they were ccn- siderably more,—which were pocke ted by his predecessor, and the true cost of his adminis- Zration would be about S66,767.94. Net average cost per year for four years, Rummell’s adminis- trativn, $16,601.93; net avt for three years, Tarlow’s administration, $7,305.83. The increase in the item of “salary and cleri hire” under Col. Harlow’s admiuistration is caused by the abolition of the fee system and the adoption of salaries for State ofticers by the Constitution of 1570. What formerly went into the pocket of the Secretary now gues into the State Treasury. The prohibition of special legislation has thrown upon the office of Secres tary of State a vast amount of clerical labor formerly doue in the eurolling offices of the Legistluture. The saving to the peo] le, how- ever, is about a5 100 is to 1. The new onstitu- tlon also n:?nln:s ‘many additional records to be made, all of which requires additional force to doit. With growth and increase of the State, of course the business increasesalso. The labor to be performed in the Secretary’s office, it is safe: to say, is four times as greatasin um- mell’s tiwe, while the appropriations been increased less than one-tl Col. Harlow’sopponents havealsoattempted to prejudice his intercsts by citing Scroggs’ record s o soldier. I fail to sce anything in the latter record which entitles him to consideration on that score over several thousand of other good Tllinois soldiers, who_distinguished themeelyes inthe late War, while it may be said for Col. Harlow that he has, in distribating the patron- nge of his office, recogmized the claims of the soldier to & greater eXtent than any other State Federal officer in this State of which I have any knowledge. Of the six clerks in his office, slve lave been soldiers, whose aggregate term of service amount to over eightcen years. Every one of them entered the service a8 prl- vates; if come were afterwards romoted to commissioned ofiicers in the field, it is rather to their credit than against them. [linois soldiers can vote for Harlow with the consciousness that hehas put into practice the pledges made during. the War, shat, “all other things being cqual, the soldiers should have the preference.” The last and pettiest charge of all, that hebas This father and son on the pay-rolls of his office, is falsc in every particular and detail. Hiswife's sister, Mrs. Boilvin, is Assistant Librariam, and draws the munificent salary of £500 annually at- toched to- that office. ‘The rule before Col. Harlow's administration was for _the Seerctary to pockct the salary and pay the Clerk of the Library during the session of ‘the Legis- lature from the office appropriations. The attempt to fix upon Col. Harlow the arge of mismanagement or eXtravagance in official duty can result in nothing bat failure. The Republican pazty bave sins enough to answer for iu convicted eriminals and dishonest officials, withont attempting to blacken the charaeter and blast the names of honest, faithful men and officers. Yours, JUSTICE. SCROGGS. AN ARMY COMRADT INDORSES HDML. T the Editor of The Tridune. ‘BURLINGTON, Ta., May10.—A ¢ Sucker? from boyhood by adoption, though now & Hawkeye by residence, I fecl great interest in the politics of the Pralric State, and in the coming nomina- tions for her State officers. I therefors cannot ‘help noticing the great voice which comes to us over the river, and from Chicago to Cairo, in favor of George Scroggs, of Champaign, a joung man whom I have kuown well and favorably from his youth. At home, in the field of war, In public aod private place, in the editor’s chair, everywhere,—boy, man, soldier,.citizen, editor,—I know him but to re- spect him for hisability and his hearty zeal in all hishands findto do. The time has not yet come when the people of Illinois are prepared to ig- nore the claims of the men who have spent all their best years in support of the red, white, and blue agninst the white and red; mor are they indiffcrent to the claims of the press, which 1is their own mouth picce; mor to the men who make that ross, by their indefatizable labors and energy. f these men, uniting all requirements and all thesc characters in one mind and one bod&, I know no brighter or better example than George Scroggs. The characteristics which bave marked his suceessfal steps in life are not accident,—they are the evidences of a manhood 25 sterling in all its parts as that which has made bright the names which embellish our history. I Total T had the pleasure to be his comrade in the ficld in dark hours, now happily rendered bright by brilliant achievements. A private sol- dier, a Sergeant,—refusing offers of a commis- Sion because it would take him away from his own reziment, he earned his laurels fairly from 361 to "G4, when he was selected for his ability for an imfnmnz position upon _the stall of Gen. Jeffl. C. Davis, the mention of whose name will suggest to all a Division which mever bad a holiday, or did any garrison duty, but was always in the front_or on inde- endent and dashing expeditions. These scenes in the life of our hero I witnessed personally, and with admiration for his character as mai and soldier. In the very last of the war he was Sounded at Beatonville, and was especially honored by Gens. Sherman and Grant. Return- ing from war only when there was no more to do, he assumed the management of the Gazetle at Champaign, and you cannot be ignorant of his subsequent brilliant course in the building up of this enterprise, Which is onc of the most illustrious and successful of West- em_mewspaper ‘establishments. His whole course—which has been observed by the writer for twenty years—has been one of the best in all respects which it has been my leasure to Jnow, and T hail with gratitude the growing favor with which his name is pressed by lhet};uo— ple, in county conventions, by Lis comrades from The field, by his brothers of the press, and b{ all wio know him best, for the nomina- tion for Secretary of State. The qualifications he has developed in all connections wark him as not merely competent, but eminently fitted for the duties of ti office. Without ~disparage- ment to any old and respected office-holders, the Young men, the press, the army of loyal fellow- comrades, ask for this nomination from county and State conventions for this excellent repre- san]n.tlv:‘o(d:;lx: éh\:ir rgipcutlvn classes, 8o fit- tingly unite eorge Scroggs. gly e 58 W. Fau - W. L, Late 50th 111, and A. A. Insp.-Gen. 14th A. Corps. GAUZY DEVICES EXPOSED. To the Editor of The Tribune. JorreT, Moy 10.—In the last weekly lssue of the Joliet Sun appeared a letter from Chicago, in which the writer attempted to review the politics of the State from a Republican stand- point. The effusion was evidently prepared in the hope of sustaining the falling fortunes of two certain candidates,viz.: Beveridge and Har- Jow. Allsuch gauzy devices fail of thelr pur- pose, but just now the last resort of the Bev- ufld‘fie faction seems to be to bounce up n candidate for some State office in those counties ‘where the issue is doubtful. It was hoped to carry Coles and Edgar for Beveridge by eucour- ing Steele to run for Attorney-General. Col. ?fimnoll ‘bursted that game. As Malone feels about, getting Christian County to in- struct for John L. B., he punches Kitchell out for Lieutenant-Governor. Justas soon as it became evident that Cullom was going to carry McLean County, then Dan Ray slipped down there, caucused around, and got Judge Benjamin out for Licutenant-Governor. Now, Benjamin is an innocent party to the scheme but his candidacy, is attributable to Beveridge men, who hu% b; it to the county against Cullom. cli‘; here iz Jolfet and elsewhere the same game is to be tried, and the rumor is that ex-Congress- man Snapp is to be the man used 25 3 candidate to pull Beveridge through fn Will County. I protest that this is not fair. If Mr. Bevcrld%e achieves a nomination by such means it will be a deception which no party can stand at the polls. The same letter to which I at the beginning referred, also tries to excuse Harlow’s com- plicity with the printing steal at §, rln%dd‘ It Says the contract was let under Rummel, Abont thirty days before Rummel Went out of office the bidding was done, but the contract was not closed up, I thiok, until Harlow was installed in_ office, and for the reason, 8s Maj. Bailhach swore, that the contractors could get a better deal with Harlow. Tt was not so much in the letting of the contract ulfillment of it, where the steal came 23 ip the fu in. Theinvestigationof that fraud, whichis & doubtft matter of record and in pamphlet for that Harlow was either np ;))' toit ur'mc'u pably ncg..‘gcn: of duty. In either case the State was swindled most shamefully and outrageously. Should . Harlow be nominated, the oppo- sition will fight wus with his ecrooked- ness and _bad record all through the campaign. Many of the Icading Democrats of the State are well posted concerning the facts brought out in the investigution of the printing steal in 1574, and we shall hear from I.Eem oun that subject in case Harlow is our nomince. en, too, the reports of the Btate Auditor show that for four years Rummel run the Sec- retary of State's “office on sometbing over $21,000, while it cost Harlow over §25,000 to run. 1t two years, and the Lord only knows what i has cost during the last year and a half, for which time no report has been made. Hast ho]gnxgeld bnckdfnr a purposc? , for one, don’t want to carry any dead I;we!gu'.a this campais Give us good, {uom:. cxiest, clean men. True, Harlowsays he wants to be ““indorsed.” Well, the Republican party h:uybgen indorsing him for the 1ast sixteen years. If"‘ t that coongh? Snppose we now indorse MMr. Seroggs for Secretary of State, just once. He has a good record as 2 citizen, 2 faithful and hard-working Republican, an able and suecessful editor, and his wounds attest three years' honorable service with the boys in blue. "It is too bad that ke is not a Colonel, or a General, or something of that sort, but as he marched in the ranks with “ the silent heroes of the knapsack and gun,” suppose we indorse 3 man like that just once for huck. HaRrD TaCK. THE PRESIDENCY. THGREPUBLICAN AND DEMOCRATIO CANDIDATES, To the Editor of The Tribune, CortssviLLg, IL, May 10.—A few weeka since Republican sentimeat in this section of Il- linois was strongly for the Hon. J. G. Blaine for the Presidential nominee at Cincinnati, but lat- terly Mr. Bristow has beeome, if any odds, tha ‘most popular candidate in the field. Not that Mr. Blaine is not & most able, honest, and worthy statesman, but simply because public admiration for Bristow’s qualities a3 a success- fuland unequaled reformer has grown so in- ®tensc and universal that his name is on every~ body’s lips as the master-spirit and the right sort of materisl for the people’s President. Conkling is not heard of here in connection with the chief candidainre ab Cinginnati; Morton is often spoken of as amost able, honest statesman, but who fails to realize that the War is fully over, and Blaiue outranks Morton; but all these men have been too in- tent upon sceuring the prize; whilst Bristow is fightjng the true battle of the great party by l'_e(arminsl the abuses and dishouorable prac- tices which had erept into public official life, and zi! m':t the least coucerned about becoming Presi- ent The Democracy is exceedingly hard pressed to find s suitable candidate for the Presidency. Pendleton has been floored by his trickery, and Hendricks’ water-works bonds have laid him ‘out for the undertaker. A few foolish Demo- crats have named Col. Morrison for the candi- Qate;. but he is nuknown in that popular scnse in which a_Presidential candidate is expected to have a national reputation; besides, ke has done nothing to either recommend or condemn him for any position. After casting about in des}z:.-.lr for a candidate, howerer, it Is now gulte evident that the Bourbons have settled on Tilden us their chief candidate at the St. Louis Conven- tion; .and in this choice they manifest mora wisdom than is usual for that pasty todo. Itis true there liave been some ugly reports about this gentleman haying taken a large amount of bonds from the old Alton & Terre Haute Rail- road Company, which, if true, should disgrace o forever in the sight of all honest men; but for all this, it is quite evident that the Demo- crats consider him their strongest man; and from a Democratic standpoint Tilden is strong. He professes to be a reformer, and In New York it must be confessed that, sa a corrupt ring-smasher, his ‘Administration has had some success, and this is what the Democrats ect to use as his capital in tho contest this fall, and it will tell wonderfully with the Bourbon masses. It must be remem- bered that the Democratic Fm-t_v is not a party of cat moral idens, and if Tilden had been & roved fraud before in his earlier life, or a fnown bond-thief, this fact would not {njure him to any extent with the Democracy. after his nomination at St. Louis, because they intend to hold up his career in New Yorkasa successful reformer, and by this trick bellow down all rec- ollections of his earlier life. £ it is neeessary to bury Tilden's carlier recard and lifc, the Deinocracy will cheerfully assent to this, os it professes to have buried the last sixteen years of its party record. This much is retty definitely settled now: that Tilden will & nominated at St. Louis by the Bourbons, and, whether he stole the bonds or not, he has latter- Iy proved a successful smasher of corrupt rings, :mg will be a hard candidate_to beat. It is nec- essary, if we desire to insure Republican success, that our party carry the election in New York. e cannot do_this with Conkling, and if wa could e would uttesly fail in the West. Mor- fon would run as well as Conkling in New York, snd would outwind him in the West, an Blaine would beat either everywhere. But even with Blaine as the Republican candidate we are Tot entirely cortain of beating Tilden, because this rattling little Bourbon carries great prestige as areformer. We must, to make success cer- tain, nominate a man at Cincinuati who can beaf Tilden at his own game, and that man is Benjamin H. Bristow,—a man withouta blemish on his Srh‘am character or public record, wha collared the_thicves, t and small, and drove them right into the Penitentiary, and who is daily growicg strouger with the people. Conkling, Morton, and Blaine are all worthy, able men, but they are working like beavers for the Cindinnati nomination, while Bristow is at lu'srost working hard for the peo le, and not pulling a thousand wires to boost himself inta ihe Presidency. \ In Southern Illinols, as the sitzation now pre- sents itsclf, Blaine and Morton, who have been until latterly the strongest candidates for the Cincinnati nomination, are losing ground, and Bristow Is gaining rapidly. Therels quite an eclement of the friends of the whisky-thieves that are opposed to Bristow, and & portion of ke machine politicians will oppose hfs nomina- tion, but o great share of the untrammcled sentiment of the masses are very enthusiastic in Mr. Bristow’s favor. We are speaking now of the sentiment as to Dristow within the party; of course the Democracy to n Ffl‘:\l’- extent hate him becausc of his inmense popularity as a truc reformer, and are ever ready and willing to Bcddll: all sorta of Jics and slandery about hin. Democrats of low- minded antecedents, such as the Barney Cuul- field type, will of course resort to any means to Defoul Bristow, but, while this is true, it may also be truthfully said that many intelligent, conscien- tions Democrats will support Mr. Bristow in the cvent, of his nomination. 1f the Republicans ant to sweep the country with the old-time majority this fall, let them nominate Bristow at Cincinnati. 1 have always been ardently in favor of Blaine, who is a splendid statesman, but, 23 Bristow fs just as capable and vastly more 2vailable than Blaine, we are now for the ggagln’s candidate, Ben Bristow. . M. ————— GOOD-NIGHT WORDS. The pale, ead stars bend low, 30d revesently kise Your uhining hair to-night. And crown_you, swect queen-lil ‘from Heaven, pure and white? with a diadem The rare, #oft laces on_your bosom rise and fail; the rich rose, mestled there, All tremalons with ccetasy, so mear hy heart, my sweet! is not more fairl O beautifal! my lily! with the deep, pure heartof gold, and crown of light, Look up! and, with your starry, cloudless eyes, shine into mine & sweet good-night. O tender, girlish head! star-kissed, and *‘sunning ‘o'er with curls,” but look, and say, ++1love you,” mows: and, for the words, had T the power, I'd fling a world away! ERYA e Celebrated Shoemakers. A well-to-do shoemaker of Bremen reccatly conceived the idea of having the front of his housc ducorated with lifesize statues of the three most cclebrated shoemaker in German history. The first of theze was the Holy St. Crispin, the patron _of the shoemakers’ eraft; the second was the brave Hans von Segan, who, in 1370, turned the tideof the great battle of the Cerman orders against the heathen Lithuanians Ly bearing the imperial standard right into the midst of the enemy; and the third was Hans Sachs, the well-known shoemaker bard. The figures of these notabilities have been executed with considerable skill by Herr Kropp, a sculpt- or high repute in’ Bremen, and are said to very characeristic works, resembling in many respects the prodactions of the old Narnburg masters. Hans Sachs is represented in the Jeather apron of his calling, but with a book in his left had, and a free expressive of mischiev- ous humor; St. Crispin 28 & saintly persunac who yet does not dicdnin the sm of leathers and the patriotic Hans von Segan, bearing the Victorious standard, but with a wooden legy the price he paid for his courage. A Photographle Anflclpnl;n. A photograph of 2 yo lady in France, re- centh reveulgd B nt!j;'fi were not visible oo the Ladys face. A little later, the spots did ap- o andehe died o e s towale gestion g used by march on that disease.