In the course of this speech he uttered the following noble thoughts in regard to the vocation of the Editor, a vocation which he continued to honor by his own participation in it, until his assumption of the speaker’s chair. Were these views more prevalent, journalism would be a far greater blessing to the nation and the world than it now is.
“Next to the sacred desk, and those who minister in it, there is no profession more responsible than yours. The editor cannot wait, like the politician, to see the set of the tide, but is required, as new necessities arise, not only to avow at once his sentiments upon them, but to discuss them intelligently and instructively. It is also his duty to guide and protect public opinion in the proper channels, and to lay before the readers of his sheet such matter as shall tend to the elevation of their character. I have sometimes thought that newspapers in their sphere might be compared to that exquisite mechanism of the universe whereby the moisture is lifted from the earth, condensed into clouds, and poured back again in refreshing and fertilizing showers to bless the husbandman and produce the abundant harvests. So, with the representatives of the press, they draw from public opinion, condense public opinion, and finally reflect and re-distribute it back again in turn to its elevation and purification.”
No man ever yet had occasion to complain of want of courtesy, or brusqueness in Mr. Colfax’s treatment of him. His kindness of manner comes evidently from the heart, and men leave his presence with the impression that he is at once an able, honest and kind man. Political opponents like him personally, as well as his political friends, and even the bitterest of copperheads will tell you that “after all, Schuyler Colfax is a good fellow.” Personal enemies he has none, and the only condemnation to which he is liable, is that of the woe pronounced on those of whom all men speak well.
The breath of slander has never sullied his fair fame. The wife of his youth, after being for a long time an invalid, sank to her final rest several years ago, leaving him childless. At his receptions, which though perhaps not the most brilliant, are certainly the most popular in Washington, his mother, a still comely matron of but little more than sixty years, and his sister, Miss Matthews, preside. Nothing can exceed in chivalrous gallantry his attentions to his mother, who has been his cherished companion from his childhood. When she enters the gallery of the House, Mr. Colfax at once calls some member of the House to the speaker’s chair, and hastens to her, remaining, if possible, with her during the whole time she continues at the Hall of Representatives.
Eminently social and genial in his manners, Mr. Colfax has never fallen into the vices which have so sadly marred the character of some of the noblest of our public men. Early in life he signed the pledge of total abstinence from all that could intoxicate, and that pledge he has never broken. At the National Republican Convention at Chicago in May 1868, at which he was nominated for the Vice-Presidency, the canvass for him was conducted by his special command without a drop of any intoxicating liquor. At the head-quarters of some of the other candidates, strong drink flowed freely, but he preferred to lose the nomination if necessary, rather than to violate his temperance principles.
Mr. Colfax is a religious man, an exemplary member of the Reformed (Dutch) Church, and in all the relations of life, public and private, he has maintained an active and reputable Christian profession. The Sunday-school, the Tract, the Mission and the Bible cause have all found in him an earnest and cordial supporter. During the war, both the Sanitary and the Christian Commissions were indebted to him for abundant labors and the exertion of his powerful influence.
In the summer of 1866, in company with several friends, Mr. Colfax crossed the continent by the overland route, and received a hearty and cordial welcome in the Pacific States and Territories, and increased his already deep interest in the means of speedy and rapid communication with those portions of the Republic. One of the results of this journey was a lecture entitled “Across the Continent,” which he has delivered to many thousands of our people all over the Northern States, and almost always for the benefit of some benevolent enterprise. He has also published another lecture, on “The Education of the Heart,” which has been widely circulated.
To sum up our estimate of his character, we have only to say further, that the nation believes in him, trusts him, and is willing to confide its interests to him, confident that if either in the speedy or remote future he should be called to the Presidency, he will not disappoint the hopes of those who should elect him, or prove treacherous to the convictions he had previously avowed. He can not and will not under any temptation be other than a true, honest, upright, God-fearing, manly man. Have we not, then, answered the inquiry we made at the beginning, why Schuyler Colfax is so popular?
SPEAKER COLFAX’S LETTER OF ACCEPTANCE.
Hon. J. R. Hawley, President of the National Union Republican Convention.