The Bedford gazette. [volume] (Bedford, Pa.) 1805-current, 1863-09-18
From the Plttsburg Gazette, (Rep.) July %.
GOVERNOR CURTIN AGAIN.
Political Effects of the LegisIa-
ton of 1861.

we have already referred to the dolngS
of the Legislature of 1S61-the same which
came in with Gov. Curtin, and participated
with him in the enactAnents and omissions
of that eventful year. Let us see now how
far the Republican party of this State was
affected by this legislation.
The people DID pass, at the next election,
in the way that had been predicted, upon
the acts, or at least the crowning act of that
memorable session. by refusing to return any
man, outside of Philadelphia, who had Civ
en- his vote for that measure, with only the
single exception of one small constituency,
which was specially interested in the Sun
bury and Erie Railroad, and whose repre-
sentative has the advantage of controlling
the newspaper of the district; and the great
Republican or Peoples party fell at once
from its high estate into minority in the
House at the very next session. The party
was made the scape-goat for all this, and
relegated to the wilderness, with the sins of
the Legislature and the Governor though
largely shared by the Democratic element
itsef-laid upon its back. Whether Justly
or not, it was at least the popular belief,
that they had sold the people and betrayed
the State. If the Governor himself-the
cause the highest al and most most powerfa1lIhasd
been the candidate, instead of the inferior
agents of all this robbery, does any body
doubt that his fate would have been the
same, or even worse9 Is he's any body
weak enough to think that these things are
already forgiven and forgotten, merely be-
cause the press has spared him out of con-
sideration for his office-because of the en-
crossing interest of the war-or for the sake
Of other people, whose influence has been
strong enough to silence it9
But there is more to the same purpose,
and more for which we have to thank our
present Governor. If the first session of
his rule was disastrous to the State and to
the party, the next was equally unfortunate
to both. If the locks Of the strong man
were shorn in the former, it was only to turn
him over bodily to the lords of the Philis-
tines in the latter. If the one bankrupted
the Treasury, and shook our power in the
State, the other consummated the work of
ruin, by betraying us directly into the hands
of the enemy, and comforting upon our bleed
ing country and ourselves the unexpected
boon of Copperhead Senator. 1t is as
demonstrable as any proposition in geome-
try that the friends of the Union who are
now expected to trust this man anew, are
indebted to him for the loss of vote in the
supreme advisory council of the nation in
the most important crisis of its history.
And this we shall proceed to make out in
our next number, which will be devoted to
the cunning structure and untimely catas-
trophe of the Hopkins Committee-to be
followed, in due course, by fuller presenta-
ton of the still more destructive effects of
the action and non-action of the Legislature
of 1862, upon the declining fortunes of the
great Republican party, with Andrew G.
Curtin as its sword-bearer-with Jonah,
and not Palinurus, at the helm.