The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1867-09-21
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California conveys one or TWO lessons WHICH,
wa feel satisfied from what occurred at the
Nossaobusetts Convention, the Republican
,,ortv will take to heart The one is the
danger of relying too much upon party discl-
Mine. or even the goodness OF the pIinclple on
which the party is based; and the other is the
danger of importing too much Vi Ine uIl'an
spirit into politics. -, A.,
Iooal naners tried to persuade themselves that
their defeat was due to their not having been
ardent enough in their advocacy OF negro
suffrage, and proclaimed that they were going
40 secure victory next year by working harder
for It than ever, and in this pleasing theory
they received strong support from the New
York Tribune But nobody whom the horn
blowing which precedes and follows elections
does not bewilder, ever took this in anything
but Piokwickian sense.
We took the liberty ourselves, at the risk
of being misunderstood, of suggesting that it
was not too little negro suffrage but too much
which caused the disaster, and that it was the
over-reliance of the party on its efficacy which
gave the State to the Democrats, by causing
the Republicans to pay too little attention to
other things. For instance, they hattered
themselves that mere shouting for equal rights
would make such performances as the nomi-
nation of professed mountebank in the third
district Of no consequence; and the Tribune and
Independent here thought that, merely by hur-
rahing and finging of caps in the air, the rank
and file could be made to swallow him. In
like manner, in other parts of the State, the
approach of the election was, with singular
want of tact, selected as a fitting occasion for
the enforcement Of a prohibitory liquor law
which had for long time previous been
allowed to lie dormant.
Now, the reason why it is not safe in most
States to rely too much on the strength of the
fundamental idea on which the party organi-
satiOn is based, is that the whole of the party
is scarcely ever completely under its influence.
In Connecticut, in New York, in Pennsylvania,
and in New Jersey as well as in other States,
the ardent Republicans are never sufficiently
numerous to win an election. They have to
secure their majority by the help of a few
thousand who are only lukewarm Republicans,
whose political feelings are not strong, who
are affected in voting by divers collateral con-
siderations, and who, unless they are well
looked after, are as likely as not to go over to
the enemy on the day of battle. It is these
men who decide political contests in nearly all
the closely divided States. We dwelt strongly
on this circumstance last spring in comment
ing on the Connecticut election. although it is
something for which, amidst the roaring about
"armies" and "banners'' and "bivouacs"
which the party papers keep up about election
time, it is almost impossible to secure atten-
tion. The writer of the excellent papers on
"Constitution- Making" which have been ap-
III our Columns, also pointed IL out
his article last week, showing that this State
has changed sides in politics five times in the
last ten elections "by few votes in each
precinct going over from one party to the
other" In 1852 these few Thousand votes
gave the government of it to the Copperheads,
In the very midst of the war, when the zeal OF
the mass of the Republican party was at white
heat simply because they were somewhat dis
gusted with the military mismanagement and
the excessive touching of Mr.. Stewards 'little
bell"
Now, as long as the success of the party is
dependent on the fidelity of these auxiliary
corps, their feelings -prejudices, if you will
have to be borne in mind in the management
of it. They will support you in the pursuit
of your fundamental idea if you do not ask
them to sacrifice too much to it. But you
cannot work them up to such pitch of en-
thusiasm about it as to get them to vote for a
Snowman" or pugilist simply because he
supports it, or to wink at the total disregard
of character in nominations or of purity in
legislation. The Republican party, unmindful
of this has, in various directions, of late
been making rather heavy drafts on their
devotion. In Pennsylvania, for instance.
they have been arraying themselves
against judge simply because, in
the exercise of his judicial functions, he held
the issue of legal-tenders by Congress to be,
as matter OF law, unconstitutional--a per-
formanoe which the leading party organ, the
Tribune, to its great honor, had the courage
to denounce. Now, there are enough Repub-
Hcans in Pennsylvania who care more for
judicial independence than they do for negro
suffrage or the Congressional plan of recon
struetion to be disgusted by an incident of this
Sort and either stay at home on election day
Orgo into the Democratic camp. We know
what was done in Connecticut, and what the
result was.
In California the Republican party has suf-
tered itself for five years to be led by noto-
rious knaves, who, while waving their hats
tor Congress and the black man with one
nand, had the other thrust up to the elbow in
the state treasury. The main body of the
party are so much impressed with the gravity
OF the contest now going on at Washington
that they continue to vote for these rascals
Whue knowing and deploring their rascality;
put the main body are not able to carry the
Gay There is sufficient number who would
rather see the State lost to the Republicans
snan see the State Government in the hands
~ rogues' and SO these 60 over. The new
.e,so nenVr OF california is a War Democrat
otg'ns 0pposso 70 the Congressional plan of recon
~ osts.' oSsiCn' put ne Is man Of stainless honor
VI sn.ique purity and simplicity of character
,t; oLo oI",. ~ tne most devoted Republicans ant
alsA-siat eiy yr tneh IN the eountry-a man I,
whom the Republican party owes mhcb oh am
who knows Mr.. Haight well, and Irnows' 81, ~,
condition of California politicg-bas sii
us that had he been in California 80 .%a
election he would have voted the Dem mo- s',; ~
ticket. g a''
We would warn the Republican party 4, .