The Oxford intelligencer., 1860-09-12
= IPeAeaEfrat

1WYTPe4caE <fratagem.
AT the ofehiag fhe present canva5
the state bf ptrtiss = well understood 81
every person of srdii b intelligence. II
Back RPublicahs pidOminated in nearIy
all the free States, while the friends of Breck-
inridge were obviously in q majority in the
| slave States The Supporters eof Douglas
were chiefly to be found in that portion Of
the Democratic party, IN the Northern States,
Shish ~ss i9sctsd via she Lstntiafnts lOf
anti-slayery, and in that smaller unsound por-
ton Of the same party; N the South; wEich
is Indifferent s6'se fighisiof the South, and
more anxious to preserve the Tpion77and
enjoy. theisweets Of offieeTthan to, resist the
encroachmeats of our enemies Mr.. Bell,
like Douglas, was wholly without strength,
and almost as eutirelyl&ithout a party to
support him. The old folks who, put hun in
nomination, and who, with the characteristic
childishness Of advanced age, attempted to
delude the American people with few broad
and unmeaning generalifies, felt, at the time,
trembling apprehension that their artifice
would not succeed-an apprehension which
seems now to be darkoning into the gloom
of certainty. They made themselves ridicu-
lons by their action at Baltimore, in laying
down their intlia-rutbcr- platform they are
every day rendering themselves still more
supremacy ridiculous, il that were possible,
by the terrible tales they are telling in regard
to the prospects of their ticket. The friends
Of Douglas, however, who are playing the
same game" cut no less ridiculous. figure
than the friends Of Bel. The tive parties
seem to be acting, in this, as in many other
respects, MS though there were a very good
understanding between them.
The new stratagern, to which the Bell
Douglas men have mutually resorted, is that
of representing that Almighty change is going
on in public sentiment, and that, in conse-
qucnce of this change, their men, respective
", are certain to be elected Now, in the
first place, it is clear that the Bell men, or
the Douglas men, must be mistaken for Bell
and Douglas cannot both be elected. In the
next place, the Bell men are discredited as
prophets; for they predicted an overwhelm-
ing success for Fillmore, in 1856, and he was
terribly defeated Thirdly, Douglas men are
so scarce that it is sheer nonsense to dream
Of the election of their candidate.
Let us investigate, little, the allegation
touching the recent changes to which allu-
sion has been made. Where have these
changes occurred At the North Fremont
carried most of the Northern States in 1856,
and, since that time, the party which SO near
ly elected him has received such large access
sions of strength as to have enabled it to con
troll, with scarcely au exception, every North
ern State No well-informed person, who is
honest, will be likely to pretend, we imagine,
that the former adherents of the Frecsoil
party are abandoning that party to support
either Bell or Douglas, in such numbers as
to diminish, to any apprc,iable extent, the
probability that Lincoln will carry most of
the non-slaveholding States. Such being the
fact, neither Bell nor Douglas can, in any
event, expect to reap the slightest advantages
from all the changes that may have taken
place at the North. That changes have been
rapidly going on there, within a few weeks
past, we do not pretend to doubt but we
are satisfied tina, they have occurred, for the
most part, among the members Of the differ
ent minor parties who have been politically
arrayed against the Black Republicans. There
has been aughablc breakup dance in the
political family to which these minoritics be-
long, in the course Of which there has been
so general change Of partners, and crossing
over, that the followers OF Bell, Douglas, and
other small candidates, have become very
picturesqucly intcrmingled with each other.
But the stubborn fact still remains, that all
these minori'ieS, when aided together, will
not equal the Black Republican, party in
point of numbers. "Fusons," therefore, in
this aspect of the subject, lose much of the
sign6cancy which they have been supposed
to possess. 1t is as though the numerals |,
>, 3, 4, 5, G, Z. 8, 0 and 10 should enter into
combination for the purpose of ovcrwhelm-
ingl00 by the mere force of numbers.
Having seen that there is absolutely no.
thing in this strategic cry of change" so far
as the North is concerned, We might here dis
miss the subject, with the simple remark,
that, without good maay Northern votes,
neither Bell nor Douglas could be elected,
even though he should carry every Southern
State. We have never vet heard of any ono
who was quite silly enough to express the be-
lief that either Of those candidates could
command the vote of the South. We hare
heard Bell men declare, however, that, in
their opinion, Bell would carry Mississippi!
When asked if they believed that Douglas
had so many supporters in this State that
Bell could run in between him and Breckin
ridge, they answered in the negative. Being
pressed to ~give reason for the faith that
was in them," they staInmered out a con-
fused asscrtioIfthat their expected acccssions