The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1859-05-13
The Presidential QusAti0n--The Political
Parties and Issues OF tho Day.

has degenerated into the jabber and jargon of
Babel, confusion oftongues which nobody can
unravel, and concerning which the great bulk
of the American people appear now to be utter.
ly Indifferent While our democratic organs are
discussing, North and South, East and West, the
knotty distractions of Congressional sovereignty
Supreme Court sovereignty, popular sovereign
ty and squatter sovereignty in the Territories
over the subject of slavery, and while thus the
democratic party is cut up into squsbbling fac
tons, the great Northern republican party, on
the broad and general issue Of hostility to
slavery, are confidently preparing for the fight.
AT the same time there ia, North and South,
the greatest abundance of floating materials for
the organization of a powerful third party for
the Presidency, for the possession Of which both
the republicans and the democracy are plotting
and contemplating. We have seen enough,
however, to know that coalition between the
Northern republicans and the Southern elements
Of the opposition in 1860 is entirely out of the
question, and that the fusion Of the Southern
opposition with the democracy is equally i'm
possible. Here, then, in the opposition party of
the South we have the nucleus of an inevitable
third party in the Presidential contest; but as
yet we cannot determine whether this third party
will be confined to the Southern States, or ex-
tended into the broad proportions Of a national
organization.
Within week or so the Virginia State cleo
ton, for Governor Legislature and members of
Congress, will come of. The opposition there.
disbanded with he election of Mr.. Buchanan,
reorganized few months ago upon the gene
raj principles of the old whig party in view of
the Presidential contest; and they have been
making considerable noise over the chances Of
defeating the democracy even in this preliminary
battle But of late they have resorted to such
frivolous and triiing expedients Of electioneer-
ing, and to such vain devices for cutting out the
democracy on the Southern side of the niger
question, that we have ceased to count upon
political revolution in the Old Dominion during
the present spring. Indeed, from the significant
fact that not only'in Virginia, but also in Ken
lucky and Tennessee, the opposition are driven
70 the miserable expedient of shouting "nigger,
niger, Niger" louder than the democracy, We
must conclude that the 'nigger" is the only ex-
listing political issue in the South of any vitality
1t would thus appear that as the Southern op
position have undertaken the task of cutting
out the Southern democracy as the defenders OF
slavery, there will be no room for fusion of
the old line wings and Americans of the South
with their anxious brethren of the North in
1860. Certainly, from the straits to which the
opposition of the South are now driven upon the
slavery question, it will be utterly impossible to
! patch up any compromise platform upon which
they may fuse with the republicans for the Pre-.
| sidency.
''Where, then'-may the Southern opposition
party ask, as Mr.. Webster inquired when left
| alone with the administration of John Tyler
"Where, then, are we to co." Their only alterna-
tive will be to fall back upon something like the
Fillmore movement of 1856, leaving out the
dark lantern and the bigotries and mummeries
Of Know Nothingism. But the proftless battle
OF 1856 will have left its discouragements be-
hind to this third party. We see that these dis
couragements are operating now in the despe-
rate appeals Of these Americans and old line
wings, North and South, for door by which
they can enter the republican camp. Let them
make up their minds that no such door will be
opened; for the republican managers are re-
solved not to hazard the ground they occupy in
the North for that sort of support in the South
which cannot promise them single Southern
State.
Such, from the present appearances of our DO
| hucai parties, will be the shaping of the battle
| In lo6o-a more sharply defined sectional con-
test upon slavery between the republicans and
/ the democracy than that of 1855. With tho
| reputation Of Seward, and the nomination Of
some SUCH Western man as Chase, of Ohio, the
chances OF republican victory will also be
greater, if we may judge from the present dis
locations, divisions and squabbles s.monp the
democracy. Thus, in 1861 the democracy NAV
fall through at Charleston as they fell through
at Baltimore in 1S4S, r, on the slavery Question
D0' - ". iOns INV ,rval of year which lies be-
tween "is p'es mt time and the Charleston Con-
ssn'''A ..cre may be wonderful revolution in
re position, prospects and relative strength of
our political parties and all our calculations Of
to-day may thus become as obsolete in reference
to the succession as the predictions of ten years
ago.
We know not how we may be affected com.
mercially or politically by this impcndinp Euro
pean war, but we do know that it has become
the absorbing subject of public attention in this
country, as in the rest Of the Civilized world. A
dead calm in reference to the parties, factions,
schemes and plots for the next Presidency has
thus suddenly fallen upon the public mind. In
the meantime the revived and still Increasing
financial and commercial prosperity Of the coun-
try is filing up the public treasury, and giving
abundant employment in all our agricultural
manufacturing and commercial operations. Kan
sas is out of the way, the Utah trouble will pro.
badly trouble us no more. The settlement Of
the affairs of Central America, Cuba and Mexico