" Phelps had declined. So passed
forever Mr. Blaine's chance of holding the highest of all political
offices--the elected of the majority of the English-speaking race. But
he was once fairly elected to the presidency and done out of New York
State, as was at last clearly proven, the perpetrators having been
punished for an attempted repetition of the same fraud at a subsequent
election.
Mr. Blaine, as Secretary of State in Harrison's Cabinet, was a decided
success and the Pan-American Congress his most brilliant triumph. My
only political appointment came at this time and was that of a United
States delegate to the Congress. It gave me a most interesting view of
the South American Republics and their various problems. We sat down
together, representatives of all the republics but Brazil. One morning
the announcement was made that a new constitution had been ratified.
Brazil had become a member of the sisterhood, making seventeen
republics in all--now twenty-one. There was great applause and cordial
greeting of the representatives of Brazil thus suddenly elevated. I
found the South American representatives rather suspicious of their
big brother's intentions. A sensitive spirit of independence was
manifest, which it became our duty to recognize. In this I think we
succeeded, but it will behoove subsequent governments to scrupulously
respect the national feeling of our Southern neighbors.
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