journal.
In justice to those in control of The Tribune at the time, it
must be confessed that the newspaper was in an extremely em-
barrassing position because of its relations to the two political
parties: founded to support one, it had for some months past
been ardently supporting the other. But for its great vitality
and this public announcement of its position, it doubtless would
have succumbed with its founder, who, after his mind had given
way, died on November 29, 1872.
Of all. the newspaper critics of Grant's Administration, the most bitter was unquestionably The New York Sun, which was under the editorship of Charles Anderson Dana. Forced from the position as managing editor of The Tribune by Greeley, Dana had gone to Washington in November, 1862, as Second Assistant Secretary of War. Resigning this position on July 1, 1865, he returned to journalism as editor of The Daily Republican, which had just been started in Chicago, and which undoubtedly would have been successful had it not been so severely handicapped for lack of funds and by political dissention among its owners. After a vain struggle of about a year, Dana became so discouraged that he resolved to leave and go to New York, expecting either to buy or to start a newspaper. His previous connection with The New York Tribune had brought him in contact with several men of wealth, so that he had little difficulty in raising the necessary capital to commence a new paper when he was offered The Sun for $175,000. He accepted the offer and on January 25, 1868, announced his policies as follows :
The Sun will continue to be an independent newspaper, wearing the livery of no party and discussing public questions and the acts of public men on their merits alone. It will be guided, as it has been hitherto, by uncompromising loyalty to the Union, and will resist every attempt to weaken the bonds that unite the American people into one nation.
Of the acts of public men those of Grant received the most attention. Henry Watterson summed up the situation in the following editorial, headed, "One Who Hates The Sunlight":
