one whom we should call Nobody.  We cannot help remembering how well ‘Outis’ served ‘Oduxseus’ of old, when he was puzzled to extricate himself from an embarrassing position.  ’Stat nomin-is umbra’ is a poor showing for authority to support an attack on a public servant exposed to every form of open and insidious abuse from those who are prejudiced against his person or his birthplace, who are jealous of his success, envious of his position, hostile to his politics, dwarfed by his reputation, or hate him by the divine right of idiosyncrasy, always liable, too, to questioning comment from well-meaning friends who happen to be suspicious or sensitive in their political or social relations.

The reported sayings of General Grant and of Mr. Fish to the correspondents who talked with them may be taken for what they are worth.  They sound naturally enough to have come from the speakers who are said to have uttered them.  I quote the most important part of the Edinburgh letter, September 11, 1877, to the New York “Herald.”  These are the words attributed to General Grant:—­

“Mr. Motley was certainly a very able, very honest gentleman, fit to hold any official position.  But he knew long before he went out that he would have to go.  When I was making these appointments, Mr. Sumner came to me and asked me to appoint Mr. Motley as minister to the court of St. James.  I told him I would, and did.  Soon after Mr. Sumner made that violent speech about the Alabama claims, and the British government was greatly offended.  Mr. Sumner was at the time chairman of the committee on foreign affairs.  Mr. Motley had to be instructed.  The instructions were prepared very carefully, and after Governor Fish and I had gone over them for the last time I wrote an addendum charging him that above all things he should handle the subject of the Alabama claims with the greatest delicacy.  Mr. Motley instead of obeying his explicit instructions, deliberately fell in line with Sumner, and thus added insult to the previous injury.  As soon as I heard of it I went over to the State Department and told Governor Fish to dismiss Motley at once.  I was very angry indeed, and I have been sorry many a time since that I did not stick to my first determination.  Mr. Fish advised delay because of Sumner’s position in the Senate and attitude on the treaty question.  We did not want to stir him up just then.  We dispatched a note of severe censure to Motley at once and ordered him to abstain from any further connection with that question.  We thereupon commenced negotiations with the British minister at Washington, and the result was the joint high commission and the Geneva award.  I supposed Mr. Motley would be manly enough to resign after that snub, but he kept on till he was removed.  Mr. Sumner promised me that he would vote for the treaty.  But when it was before the Senate he did all he could to beat it.”

General Grant talked again at Cairo, in Egypt.