The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1868-07-01
The Old Fire-Eaters and the Democratic
Convention.

The Old Fire-Eaters and the Democratic
Convention.
Eight years ago the Southern fire. eaters, after
having for years ruled the Northern democracy
with rod of iron, went into the National Con-
vention of the party at Charleston, and subse-
quently at Baltimore, with the deliberate pur-
pose of destroying the organization, as pre-
liminary step to the contemplated work of Sc
cession. They succeeded even beyond their
hopes. The men from the free States who had
been the toadies and lickspittles Of slavery
were insulted and abused by the chivalry; the
convention was rent in twain; Breckenridge
was nominated by the boilers in opposition to
Douglas; the defeat of the democracy at the
polls was thus rendered certain and the way
made clear for the election of Lincoln, which
was to be the signal for the outbreak of the
shareholders rebellion. Now that the war is
over these same old fre-eaters. who have care
fully preserved their lives during the four
years struggle-such as the Rhetts, of South
Carolina, for instance-again step forward
and essay to run another Democratic Conven-
ton and to dictate to the Northern democracy,
with all their former insolence and effrontery,
the policy they shall pursue. The ex-secession
delegates to Tammany Hall are already renew
ing the game of browbeating and assumed SUI
periority practised so successfully at Charles
ton and Baltimore, and threaten that unless
their sentiments are suffered to prevail they
will repeat the game of 1860 and break up the
party.
This movement of the old pro-savery oil
garchy has proportionately raised the hopes of
the radicals and filed them with delight. In
the revival of the exploded dogmas of the
South and in the threats of the Rhetts
to appeal again to the cartridge box lies
the only prospect of success for the Jaco-
bin ticket. If the Democratic Convention can
only be induced to rejaN Chase on account of
his loyal record, and, at the dictation of the
Knights of the Golden Circle and the Ku Klux
Klan to place upon their ticket some copper
head opponent of the war, the radicals will
have clear track next November, as they
had in 1860, and will elect Grant without
difficulty. 1t is the prospect of this fatal
action that makes Greeley, Dana, Thurlow
weed anu the rest OI the raulcalS ruO tnelr
hands in glee and chuckle over the predicted
trouble in the Convention of the Fourth. We
should not be surprised to see the narrow
minded blockheads of the Loyal League,
in their exultation at the dictatorial insolence
of the South, invite Rhett and the whole
batch of seedy ex-secession delegates to a
splendid entertainment at the Union League
Club House, and in their gratitude give these
hungry heroes the first substantial filing out
they have had In the last seven or eight years.
But New York has had enough experience of
the dogmatic philosophers of secessiondom
and If they should seriously attempt to ride
roughshod over the Convention and to control
its action, the Empire State, with her vast
commercial and financial interests and her
large stake in the peace and welfare of the
country, will once again prove that her people
act as statesmen and not as partisans and,
reversing her magnificent anti-radical victory
of last year, will give fifty thousand majority
for Grant