Page:History of Oregon Newspapers.pdf/130

Rh "On this night, April 14, forty-five years ago, Abraham Lincoln was shot by an assassin; a crime as foolish as horrible. It changed (not for the better) the whole course of political life, from that day to this, and it may be American doubted whether we shall ever escape from the consequences of that mad and criminal act.

The irrational division of political parties today is a consequence of this crime, and no man can see far enough in the future to imagine when the course of our history, set awry by this act of an assassin, will resume a rational or normal line of action."

Mr. Scott had reference, in part, of course, to the vast difference in the "reconstruction" of the South under Johnson from what would have been done under the saner and milder policies of Lincoln, as indicated by the tone of the second inaugural and other utterances, and, no doubt, to the cleavage of parties along sectional lines, which has done so much to obscure legitimate American political issues.

These paragraphs are but an indication of the moderation and lenity of the Oregonian editor's spirit toward the South in the reconstruction. Though he abated nothing of his earlier abomination of state sovereignty and slavery (7), he was never reconciled to Negro suffrage. As late as August 8, 1907, he wrote:

"It is not to be denied that the evils of indiscriminate Negro suffrage in our Southern states are too great to be permitted."

Scott was exceptional in that he began his newspaper career on the editorial page and to the end was never anything else but an editor. He was not the news—or managing—editor type of leader, being concerned chiefly with editorial policies rather than news details.

It would take volumes to give adequate consideration to Scott's editorial ideas as developed through more than forty years. Only a few can be mentioned here (8).

By common consent the most conspicuous of many great services rendered the state by Mr. Scott was his steadfast advocacy of the gold standard against tremendous pressures in the free-silver days of the 90's. Washington, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Utah, all went solidly for silver in 1896; California gave Bryan one of its nine electoral votes. Oregon alone in the West gave its solid electoral vote against the silver policy.

This was by no means easy for Scott, who was accused of sitting up there in his isolated tower and paying no attention to what the people felt out in the state. Republican newspaper support was much