Changes

Following the assassination of President [[James A. Garfield]] by [[Charles J. Guiteau]], a mentally ill self-professed "Stalwart of the Stalwarts," ascendant Stalwart successor Arthur angered his old faction associates by expediently declining to reward them with patronage out of fear that he would face the wrath of public backlash kindled against the faction. Some contemporaries of the era speculated that the rift between French and Arthur was due to a request by the former for the appointment of Collector of the Port of New York, though ''The New York Times'' noted the factually incorrect nature of the claim.<ref name=nytimesobit/>

Following the assassination of President [[James A. Garfield]] by [[Charles J. Guiteau]], a mentally ill self-professed "Stalwart of the Stalwarts," ascendant Stalwart successor Arthur angered his old faction associates by expediently declining to reward them with patronage out of fear that he would face the wrath of public backlash kindled against the faction. Some contemporaries of the era speculated that the rift between French and Arthur was due to a request by the former for the appointment of Collector of the Port of New York, though ''The New York Times'' noted the factually incorrect nature of the claim.<ref name=nytimesobit/>

==="Proxy" incident===

===“Proxy” incident===

In September 1882 amidst the state's gubernatorial election that year, the Republicans were divided once again between the Stalwart and Half-Breed factions; Judge Charles J. Folger was the candidate of the former.<ref name=nytimesobit/> French claimed that [[William H. Robertson]], a prominent figure among the Half-Breeds, sent him the subsequent telegram:

In September 1882 amidst the state's gubernatorial election that year, the Republicans were divided once again between the Stalwart and Half-Breed factions; Judge Charles J. Folger was the candidate of the former.<ref name=nytimesobit/> French claimed that [[William H. Robertson]], a prominent figure among the Half-Breeds, sent him the subsequent telegram:

{{quotebox|Hon. W. H. Robertson:

{{quotebox|Hon. W. H. Robertson: