Rensselaer Gazette, Volume 2, Number 14, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 4 August 1858 — GARDEN CITY GLEANINGS. [ARTICLE]

GARDEN CITY GLEANINGS.

Political Bubbles—Administration Gathering and Row—Sorrowful Casualty—A New Dodge and a Cunning One. Chicago, July 30, 1858. Dear Gazette: Your request shall be complied with to the best of my ability; and I shall, in giving you political matter, write impartially. There is one thing connected with the canvass in this State that has given the journals of both parties a bone to pick at; and which it seems impossible they will cease fighting over for some time to come—the challenge of Mr. Lincoln to Douglas, offering to stump the State in company. If Mr. Lincoln was really desirous to enter into such an arrangement, I think he should have sent his challenge at an earlier day; but the matter was not broached until the committee at Springfield had arranged the programme for the campaign. Because Mr. Douglas has not consented to break through the plans laid down for him, the Republican papers accuse him of cowardice, and call him all kinds of hard names. The Democratic papers—the Times in particular—make a great fuss because the desire ofjMr. L. was not sooner made known; and accuse him of cowardice in not preferring it when he had ample opportunity. Now they are on both sides endeavoring to make mountains out of .mole-hills, dragging up such petty matters to make capital of, because they can’t find anything substantial. Douglas has remedied the matter as far as he can, without disarranging the programme of the committee, by offering to meet Mr. L. at seven different places during the coming month. I have not the least hesitation in giving it as my opinion that the offer will be cordially accepted; that they will meet at the places designated, and address the same audiences. The assertion of the gentlemen being afraid of each other, is mere child’s talk. They are,- as I mentioned in my last, both able and popular men, and each able to hold his own. The contest will be a hot one, and, as you say, an interesting one. Illinois is now the center of attraction to the political world, because all who have watched the current of events for the past eight months are aware that much in the future depends upon the result of the campaign here. It is i time for the Republican party in this State I to work; and they seem to have taken off their coats with a determination that nothing short of a victory will satisfy. Douglas was in the citv a few days since, and looked prepared for the contest. Tomorrow he addresses the people of Paris, 1 .Edgar county. It appears that Mr. Lincoln has withdrawn a charge said to have been made by him, accusing Mr. Douglas of conspiring with the Supreme Court to establish slavery in Kansas and other free territory; and because he has been generous enough to do so, probably seeing he was in error, the opposition commence casting out slurs and remarks, which seem to me as bespeaking a spirit altogether unworthy of the man they are laboring to promote, and wholly undeserved by the one at whom they are leveled. This stage of degeneracy, to which many political writers are sinking, is beginning to lower them in the estimation of a discriminating public. Such low and frequent absurdities as are indulged in, have no good effect with thinking men. On the contrary, when they discover these ridiculous personalities, which really have no relation to the actual merits of the case, but are totally foreign to the issue, they begin to lose faith in the press, and rely upon, in a great measure, their own knowledge, and take nothing as truthful which reaches them through the columns of a newspaper. To bring about such a feeling is clearly wrong and hurtful; it is too much like the fable of the boy and the wolf. Instead of coming out boldly when they have, as in the present canvass, bold men to deal with, they go skulking about and taxing their inventive powers to get up stories which, in nine cases out of ten, are not believed, even by the most prejudiced. Such gas may serve to tickle the fancies of the untutored, but happily in this age they are in the minority; they do not even adhere to that axiom that “honesty’s the best policy.” (Per parenthasis—that should read, honesty is justice; the author meantgwell, no doubt.) The Danites held a meeting here a week since, which came near ending in a row. The Douglas Democrats accused the Republicans as the instigators of the disturbance; and the latter very justly denied the charge, but insisted on throwing the blame upon the Douglas men. The fact of the business was, the matter originated through the misbehavior of a drunken set of vagabonds, whom any one would be ashamed to acknowledge; but, as I said before, they must all have something to make capital of, no matter what, yet! such kind of foundations “are false as stairs of sand,” they will not uphold anything; and the sooner such petty trickery is dispensed with the better, both for themselves and the public. I started out to write fairly, and I believe . I have done so. I have neither sought to palliate, nor have I “set down ought in malice.”’ A few items of more immediate local interest now claim a little attention: A casualty of most distressing character happened off’ our harbor on Wednesday afternoon, in which three young gentlemen met with an .untimely end. Five, whose names are as follows —W. R. Grafton, G.

W. Scott, Harland Peck, A. McMillan and W. H. Palmer, started out on a yacht for the purpose of having a race with a similar craft, and when about a mile and a half to the south-east, their little vessel was struck 1 by a sudden squalll. The ballast, consisting of sand-bags, was shifted from its fastenings, the boat was capsized and sunk almost immediately. The other boat bore down toward them as quickly as possible, but her crew succeeded., in picking up only two of the five—McMillan and Grafton. They were all young men of high standing, and their sorrowful and unlooked-for end has cast a shadow over a large circle of friends. Young Palmer was the son of a retired New York merchant, and Was about starting in business in this city. Scott was a member of the Board of Trade of this city. The Board met yesterday and passed resolutions expressive of their grief at being so suddenly deprived of one of their most influential and esteemed associates. Our Mayor is about perpetrating another reprehensible act. One of the unprincipled blackguards whom John Wentworth has for some time fostered and kept in the city’s service, a since made certain developments which reflected dishonor of the deepest cast upon our authorities. The Mayor and others were called before the Grand Jury on a charge of employing this fellow to visit houses of ill-repute for the purpose of obtaining knowledge of the inmates that they might more easily be filched in order to replenish the city treasury. This tool, who has shown his teeth '(very injudiciously as regards his own well-being, but to the benefit of the community) and evinced a disposition to turn up his nostrils, is deemed dangerous; and while preparations are being made to investigate-the rascality in which he has been employed, his employers have trumped up a charge of arson against him, the result of which will be to send him to Alton before he can be used as a witness against them. The way official matters are conducted in this city, as far as i cunning is concerned, is worth comparison to the palmiest days of Richilieji. There is none of the lion about Wentworth—it is all fox; and I would like to Se'e Mayor Haines throw off his influence. The piece of business alluded to, took our worthy Mayor by surprise, no doubt; but he can’t help himself without helping his long guardian, who is well supplied with money, and of course able to lug himself through any difficulty where mercenaries are concerned, and cunning enough to blind all honorable men who are associated with him.

Yours,

QUIZ.