So his appointment was a great shock to the Anti-Slavery men
and made them believe that it was not safe to put political
power in Democratic hands. General Cushing vindicated this
opinion afterward by the letter written when he was Attorney-
General in the Cabinet of President Pierce declaring that
the Anti-Slavery movement in the North "must be crushed out,"
and also by a letter written to Jefferson Davis after the
beginning of the Rebellion recommending some person to him
for some service to the Confederacy. The discovery of this
letter compelled President Grant who had been induced to nominate
him for Chief Justice to withdraw the nomination. The other
cause was the passage of the bill for the prohibition of the
manufacture and sale of intoxicating liquors, known as the Maine
law. This measure had passed the Legislature, containing
a provision for its submission to the people. It was vetoed
by Governor Boutwell. The reason assigned by him was his
objection to the provision for its submission to the people,
without the secret ballot. The referendum, a scheme by which
men charged with political duties avoid responsibility by
submitting to the people measures which they fear may be unpopular,
--has never found much favor in Massachusetts.
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