The Wheeling daily register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1864-1878, 1865-10-18
Laying OF the Mask.

During the late political campaign III
Pennsylvania and Ohio and Iowa. the
Republican party, in districts where IL
ts,t that the contest was doubtful, was
profuse in its declarations that it was OPP
posed to negro suffrage. 1t resented
with bitterness the charge made against
it by the Democratic press, and denounc'
ed the allegation that it favored the OK
tension of the elective franchise to the
blacks as libel upon the party. In dis
tricts where it was more confident OF sue
cess it was not so sensitive upon the sub
iect General Cox at Oberlin was all
that the abolitionists desired, but Gen
oral Cox at Cincinnati was the most con-
servative Of Republicans. In Pennsyl-
vnnia the same tactics were employed
and notwithstanding fifteen or twenty
newspapers distinctly proclaimed their
advocacy of the doctrine of negro sui
frage, other party organs emphaticaily
deaied the charge. But, now that the
election is over, there is no longer any
reason for deceiving the people and the
rarty leaders are laying aside their
masks The radicals in both Pennsylva
nia aud Ohio now have the insolepce TO
claim that the result of the elections III
those States is triumph for negro sui
frage. Having carried the elections by
false preteuses they now claim their vic
tory as an endorsement of the moet
odious fanaticism of the day. They
row stand revealed in their true cOlors
No matter by what name they may call
themselves, whether Union, Republican
or Abolition, they are the negro suffrage
party still.
We readily concede that many of the
men who have heretofore voted with
that party are not advocates of negro
suffrage nor believers in the political
dogmas of the abolitionsts', but We dc
iusist that every man Who hereafter
identifies himself with that class Of pol
iticians thereby declares himself in favol
OF negro voting. The deception cannot
be kept up any longer. The issue i:
plain and there can be no installing it
whether the Republican party makes
any platform or puts forth any declara
ton of principles, or not.
In West Virginia we may learn lesson
from the elections in Pennsylvania and
Ohio. The Republicans there denied
that negro suffrage was party issue,
Just as they deny it here; but, ifthey III
tmph in this State, they will throw of
the mask here, as they have already done
there. The leaders of that party in this
State are identicalin sentiment with the
leaders of the abolition party.in Ohio and
Pennsylvania. They are trying TO de
ceive the people here as they hav" al
ready deceived them there, and hope to
succeed in elevating themselves to office
and power by the same false prctc.ses
that have been found effective elsewhere
There can be no better proof needed of
the negro suffrage tendencies of the Re-
publican party in this city than that
JOHN A. BINGHAM, of Ohio, one Of the
High Priests of abolitionisn in that
State. has been invited to address pub
tic meeting here and is cxtrayagantly
praised by the chief organ OF the Repub-
licauparty. For selfish purposes, and in
the hope of deluding some plon to their
support who shrink with disgust from
the idea of negro equality, the Republic
can leaders here still wear the mask of
conservatism. For the sake of the Fed
eral Offices they hold, some of them still
pretend to endorse ANDREW JoHNsoN's
administration, while at the same time
they are laboring to bring to naught his
entire policy. Should they succeed
In retaining power in this State, they will
doubtless carry out as radical pro-
erromme ru .nr-o cr-,rvrp ,ra"r., o..
dorse.