refore appeal to you, Mr. Secretary, in behalf of this charming
and accomplished woman and her sweet and lovely children. In taking this
position I am satisfied you will have nothing to lose, for you will not
only have right on your side, but the interest of the public service as
well. Rise, then, to the dignity of the occasion and assert and maintain
your manhood and your independence. You have done this on previous
occasions, why not do it again? As a member of the Senate of the United
States you openly and publicly defied the well-known public sentiment of
your party in the State which you then had the honor in part to
represent, when you disregarded and repudiated the mandate of the State
Legislature, instructing you to vote for the free and unlimited coinage
of silver. It was that vote and the spirit of manly independence shown
by you on that occasion that placed you in the high and responsible
position you now occupy, the duties of which your friends know will be
discharged in a way that will reflect credit upon yourself and honor
upon your State.

"You again antagonized the dominant sentiment of the Democratic party of
your State when you pronounced an eloquent eulogy upon the life and
character of Charles Sumner. And yet you were able to overcome the
bitter opposition you had encountered on each of those occasions. You
can do the same thing in this case. I therefore ask you to promise me
that this worthy and competent public servant shall not be discharged as
long as his official record remains good."

The Secretary listened to my remarks with close and respectful
attention. When I had finished he said:

"I agree with nearly all you have said. My sympathies are with your
friend and it is my desire to retain him in the position he now so
satisfactorily fills. But when you ask me to disregard and openly defy
the well-known sentiment of the white people of my State on the question
of amalgamation, I fear you make a request of me which I cannot safely
grant, however anxious I may be to serve you. I could defend myself
before a public audience in my State on the silver question and on the
Sumner eulogy much more successfully than on the question of
amalgamation; although in the main, I recognize the force and admit the
truth of what you have said upon that subject. Hypocritical and
insincere as the claim may be with reference to maintaining the absolute
separation of the two races, the sentiment on that subject is