To this letter Sir Lionel Sackville-West was indiscreet enough to make the following reply: SIR: I am in receipt of your letter of the 4th inst. and beg to say that I fully appreciate the difficulty in which you find yourself in casting your vote. You are probably aware that any political party which openly favoured the mother country at the present moment would lose popularity, and that the party in power is fully aware of the fact. The party, however, is, I believe, still desirous of maintaining friendly relations with Great Britain, and still desirous of settling all questions with Canada which have been, unfortunately, reopened since the restriction of the treaty by the Republican majority in the Senate and by the President's message to which you allude. All allowances must, therefore, be made for the political situation as regards the presidential election thus created. It is, however, impossible to predict the course which President Cleveland may pursue in the matter of retaliation should he be elected; but there is every reason to believe that, while upholding the position he has taken, he will manifest a spirit of conciliation in dealing with the question involved in his message. enclose an article from the New York Times of August 22d, and remain yours faithfully, "L. S. SACKVILLE-WEST." The Republicans held back this correspondence until October 24th, when they published it both in the newspapers and in millions of handbills. A shout went up that Mr. Cleveland was now undoubtedly "the British candidate." Sir Lionel's letter was interpreted as meaning that the President was especially friendly to British interests; that his apparently rigorous attitude toward Canada was adopted solely for electioneering purposes; and that in case of his re-election he would pursue a very different policy. Mr. Blaine, who had now returned from Europe in improved health, went about addressing great gatherings of Irish-American voters, and using everywhere the Murchison letter as a text. President Cleveland at first paid no attention to this matter, and was obviously disposed to treat it with contemptuous silence; but his party managers insisted that something should be done to neutralise the effect of the letter. A telegram informed him that "the Irish vote is slipping out of our hands because of diplomatic shilly-shallying. See Lamont at once. Something ought to be done to-day." The clamour increased, and President Cleveland then showed the one and only trace of weakness that can be detected throughout his whole career. To gain votes he demanded that the British Government recall its Minister. Lord Salisbury demurred. Naturally enough he did not see why the diplomatic relations of the two countries should be strained because of the exigencies of an American political campaign. Thereupon the President ordered that Sir Lionel's passports be given him, and he left Washington soon after." 25 Had this action been taken so soon as the Murchison letter was published, it might have saved some votes. Had no action at all been taken, the President's dignity and his reputation for political courage would not have been impaired. As it was, he had obviously yielded to expediency and, therefore, he gained nothing whatsoever. At the election, Mr. Harrison won by a majority of sixtyfive electoral votes. He carried both Indiana and New York, though in the latter State Mr. Hill was elected Governor.26 Cleveland carried the South and also New 25 The dismissal of Sir Lionel was naturally resented by Lord Salisbury, who appointed no successor to him until after Mr. Cleveland's term had ended. 26 Harrison had a majority in New York State of 12,096 votes; Hill had a majority of 18,481 votes. Jersey and Connecticut. The Republicans were successful in the congressional elections, having a majority of ten in the next House. An analysis of the vote showed that Mr. Cleveland had been defeated by a very narrow margin. Even in Mr. Harrison's own State he had come within 2000 votes of a majority, and had obviously lost New York only through the treachery of his own party. In the popular vote, as against Mr. Harrison, he had a majority of over 100,000 ballots. The sentiment of the country as a whole, therefore, still seemed to be on his side. But the victorious Republicans in their rejoicing took small account of these considerations. They had won, and they believed that their party had come back to stay. They spoke of Mr. Cleveland as of one politically dead. On the night before the inauguration of Mr. Harrison, Washington was filled with civic and military organisations which had come to celebrate the glorious victory. Late in the evening, a motley crowd proceeded to the grounds of the White House. The windows of the executive mansion were darkened as though to symbolise defeat. Then the crowd of revellers, composed of "marching clubs," drunken militiamen, and hooligans of the city, lifted up their voices and chanted in discordant tones the ditty which had been most popular of all, in the late campaign: "Down in the cornfield Hear that mournful sound; All the Democrats are weeping- CHAPTER V THE PRESIDENCY OF BENJAMIN HARRISON BENJAMIN HARRISON was inaugurated in the midst of a violent rainstorm, which, continuing all through the day, converted the streets of Washington into a muddy lake. While the oath of office was being administered, Mr. Cleveland good-naturedly held his umbrella over the bared head of his successor; and when the new President stepped forward to pronounce his inaugural address, the torrential splashing of the rain made his words inaudible to the sixty thousand men and women who were huddled about the Capitol, drenched to the skin, and shivering in the raw east wind. Superstitious persons spoke of "the Harrison hoodoo," and recalled the fact that President William Henry Harrison had died within a few weeks after his inauguration, as the result of a chill contracted on that day. There was much criticism of the ceremonial arrangements, which had been unintelligently planned. Members of the House of Representatives complained bitterly of the insolence with which they were treated by the employés of the Senate, and they even discussed the subject afterwards in a heated debate upon the floor of the House. The procession from the Senate Chamber to the East Front of the Capitol was so badly managed that it degenerated into an unseemly scramble. The customary review, in which nearly forty thousand men defiled before the President, was shorn of its impressiveness by the condition of the streets and the bedraggled appearance of the paraders. Altogether, the inefficiency of man seemed to combine with the disfavour of the elements to render this day of Republican triumph inauspicious. Mr. Harrison's very long address contained, in addition to the usual rhetorical passages, several paragraphs that were of interest as foreshadowing his future policy. He spoke of the development of the new navy, and said that "the construction of a sufficient number of modern warships and of their necessary armament should progress as rapidly as is consistent with care and perfection in plans and workmanship." A general approval was given to the protective theory of the tariff, but on this head he probably thought it unnecessary to speak at length. There were a few sentences relating to the Trusts. "The evil example of permitting individuals, corporations or communities to nullify the laws because they cross some selfish ... interest . . . is full of danger, not only to the nation at large, but much more to those who use this pernicious expedient to escape their just obligations or to obtain an unjust advantage over others. They will presently themselves be compelled to appeal to the law for protection; and those who would use the law as a defence must not deny that use of it to others. If our great corporations would more scrupulously observe their legal limitations and duties, they would have less cause to complain of the unlawful limitations of their rights or of violent interference with their operations." Regarding the matter of appointments to office, Mr. Harrison was very frank. Though he pledged himself to enforce "fully and without evasion" the Civil Service law, he added, for the encouragement of good party men: "Honourable party service will certainly not be esteemed by me a disqualification for public office. . . . It is entirely creditable to seek public office by proper methods and with proper |