New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1860-05-16
DEMOCRATIC CORRUPTION.

hands. The inevitable tendency Of protrscted
possession Of power BY any set Of men, BY any
class or any party, is to breed corruption. An az
oasionAl change Of rulers s ntia TO the purity
and efficiency Of all Governments aud is especially
necessary in a republican Government.
There never was q stronger illustration OF the
truth Of this maxim than the present condition OF
the Federal Government and 81 the party in " bosc
hands IT has bcca, with only transient Interrupt
tions. for nearly tAird Of a century. The long
possession OF power has corrupted, perverted aud
destroyed the Democratic party. II Is fagrantl!
utterly and bopee-rly rotten. IL leaders, it,
prominent politicians, the men whom IL has elc-
waited To- tie ghest ofces have repeatedly, within
the last three YEARS, been arraigned aud convicted
al the bar Of public opinion Of acts Of political
prohieacy any one Of which ough. t. t. be- suff-
cicut to demonstrate their unftnc.s Tor the trus,
reposed in them.
Passing over their subsersieucy b. the slave
holding ausiocracy and their completely IN The
atrocious ouirsge- and fraud. n Kansas we call
upon candid men OF all parties 70 consider and
weigh the disclosures which have been made
during the last three Years Of thu state Of political
morals among the Democratic leaders. Look al
the fraud. IN the Pennsylvania elections. ssccr-
tanned and proved By Judicial investigation.
and si the frauds m Michigan and Missouri.
by which Me-srs Howard and Blair were
cheated out Of their seat. IN Congress. Look
at thc still greater frauds p-rp~trsted in
Minnesota in the election Of October. i-j7, for
State officers and member, Of Congress, where /,
wa. clearly proved that msioriiics Of hundreds
for the Democratic candidates were returned and
counted from Wild and unorgauizcd district. almost
without inhabitants. From the fembina district
alone which at that time did not contaln hty
legal voters. fraudulent returns sent In. which
gave a majority of 7Uo for the Democratic candi.
date for Governor.
Fraud. 81 this nature. BY which ibe vii Of the
majority il deprived Of ia legitimate force, and
our systems Of elections rendered 4 mockery, are
unquestionahly the greatest and most dangerous
crimes that can be- committed against the public
wrliare. They 'trikr al the mo-' vital point Of
republican government, aud ar iraught with more
evil than almost any othrr sP"cirs of political
wrong doing. Yet in perhaps the worst ease ct AL
that have disgrseed our history. W. md, with
scarcely an -lccptou, the entire body OF Demo
cratic Ieadcrs in the Init~d states S'uai" con
curing IN the outrage and thus giving II ID" iull"si
and most authoritative sanction vi the paris.
". r,s,r ,o The IndiaaA lrAad by which Bright
and Fitch were declared 10 BE- cho."u United
States senator. iu utter contempt ard violation oi
the constitution Of that s-tai" and "a the ia"" oil
the protest of a majority Of the state senate,
who's. assent Was consttuiionally requisite Ia thr
holding Of a joint convention for the choice OF
United state, Senators. Notwithstanding this
protest and although the Indiana Legislature the
following year pa.-.d in each branch by decisive
maiorhir.. resolution denouncing the pre-
tended elscti"n 90 Fraudulent, unc"n-ulh'
t,onal and void ard elected two Senators,
Leall, ard regularly. and instructed them to
demand their seat, la the senate. the Democratic
majority 81 The senate persisted and siill persists
IN maiut aiming Bright and Fitch IA the SEATS into
Aich they ha,r fraudulrntly oh;ruded Themselves
The STATE of Indiana IL thus dsprN ii ii her proper
rcpr, sentative in the senate. aud the Legislation
Of the country IL in part determined b, men whose
,nl, claim io their high Office u that the interests
II an interruptions party demand their services IN
4.
i've conventions, e, us pass 10 eases Of pccnnary
corruption. Prominent among these stand Fort
Smelling and Willeit's Point The case of Fort |
Smelling va. briefly this; The fort together with |
the barracks, stables, ard other improvements,
cost the United States Government about 80. GO.
Attached TO il asa military reservation was tract
Of 600 Of beautiful Aad, at the junction Of
thu Mississippi with i,s most important tributary,
north Of the Illinois River. point certain Ia be-
soou the site IL q city. These -.Wo acrc. were |
worth hundreds o( Thousands Of dollar. and IL duly
Advertised and put up at saction In lots, would |
have probably brought 500 an acre. This i'm !
mense property, which was rapidly advancing |
In valve was privately sold by Dir. Floyd Tho |
Secretary of War, Ia a single favored purchaser |
for SIC, 900, or eli an acre. OF course a trans.
action Of this hind Ia apt 10 be- managed with sui |
fcicnt care and secrcsy 10 cover up the tracks Of
those concerned In II, but everybody knows that |
such Jobs cannot be carried out except by putting
some shares Of the Aecrulns profits into the |
pockets Of those In authority, who contrive or |
conniye ut them. The majority Of the Congress
spnal Committee appointed To investigate tho mat
ter reported resolves strongly oOndemning the |
whole Transaction, and though the Democratic |
House Of Representatives refused TO pass tho re-
so,.. thu. reported 10 accepted the substitute Tor
them offered by Mr.. Horace v. C'srA. which DE-
olsredi
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