The weekly Ottumwa courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1857-1872, 1860-05-17
The Prestige.

lnere can De no uenlal OF ttle tact tIial lll'
democratic party has lost the prestige o
success. Hitherto it has marched Straigh
on from president to president, making it,
nominations and electing its candidates. wit
hardly failure, or with only brace Of fail
ures in MANY years. 1t could always agree
upon a platform-always agree upon candl
dates 1t has entered every campaign witt
the prestige of success with that impetus
won from repeated t,iumphs and long per
petuated power, which enabled II to bear
down all opposition. The prestige is lost
The adjournment at Charleston without
making nomination-and demonstrative'y
without the ability to make one-is the most
damaging blow which the party could re,
ceive. The party splits on the questions Of
the time. 1t betrays irreconcilable phases
Of sentiment and opinion. 1t stops ir. mid
career to breathe-mayhap to patch up a
peace. and to watch the movements of the
other parties. 1t ceases to lead, and makes
way for organizations Of greater unity, with
defined purposes, and higher degree of vi
tality.
1t can hardly be pretended by any mem
Der of the democratic party that the causes
which produced the division at Charleston
will grow less as the campaign advances
It is demonstrated before the country tina,
upon the great question which looms ur
above all other questions in our national pol
itics, the party is divided. 1t can neve,
again be consolidated without an amount O
dirt eating on one side or the other. which
will disgust the strongest democratic stom
ach. The rottenness Of the party as ma
tional organization is confessed; and we de
clare it to be our conviction, that there car
be no thoroughly organized national oppoS
ton to the success of the republican party
in the approaching election. There will be
plenty of opposition, and that which will be
sufficiently dangerous, butt will he patched
up and disjonted one.
The republican qarty stands, then, before
the country as the only party that has vi
tality and unity; and may Heaven give its
leaders the wisdom to appreciate the advan
tages of its position 1t is the only party
Of ideas and of principles. The democratic
party has lived for years on the lie that
slavery was national and not sectional. The
wing party died because it tried toignore the
question of slavery, or tried to 90 as far as il
could with the democratic party on this
question After whirgerv began openly tc
be one thing at the North and a very differ
ent thing at the south, the doom of that party
was sealed; and the doom of the democratic
party was sealed from the day on which il
demonstrated before tn country the fact
that northern democracy had ceased to be
soathern democracy. No more national
parties can be built. or, for single campaign
supported, on the idea that slavery is ma
tional institution; and the party of white
men-the party which declares that freedom
is national and that slavery is sectiouaI-r
the only one that has national idea in it
the only one that has a strong and positiv,
idea in it. There is no set of men thai
know this better than northern democrats
and there are multitudcs of them who viii
cut loose from their long repulsive slavery
and Join the party of national ideas-thc
party of freedom and the future.
If the leaders of the republican party arc
as fully aware of its advantages as then
old enemies, we have nothing to fear
Nothing is more apparent to the most saga
cious political men Of all shades of opinion
than that the republican party has the game
in it's own hands.-Sprinafela Republican