The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1868-10-28
SPIRIT or THE PRESS.
EDITORIAL OPINIONS OF THE LEADING JOURNALS
UPON CURRENT ToPIcs-CoMPILBD EVERY
DAY FOR THE EVENING TELEGRAPH.
The Great Democratic Blunder-The New
Age of Steam and the Telegraph.

Age OF Steam and the Telegraph.
From ne NJ Y. Herald
The Democratic flagship, bearing the broad
pennant of Seymour and Blair, is "hard on
among the breakers of Southern reconstruc-
tion. The Tammany platform on this subject
hatlv declares all the legislation of Congress
and all the reconstruction proceedings under
this legislation 'unconstitutlonal revolution
arv. and void, aud General Blair, through
the Southern wing of the Convention, was
made the Democratic candidate for Vice.
President mainly because of his Brodhead
letter, in which he declared that if he were
President he would assume the responsibility,
and compel the army to undo its usurpations
in the South, etc.
Here was the great blunder of the Tammauy
Convention. Here was rare opportunity
wilfully and very stupidity thrown away. Upon
the general issue of the shortcomings, waste
full extravagances, unparalleled eorruptions,
excessive taxations, etc., of the party in
power the Democracy, with Mr.. Chase as their
candidate, had the succession within their
grasp. Unfortunately for the party, however,
the Convention was too largely composed OF
the Northern Bourbon Copperhead and old
Southern State sovereignty elements of the
school of Calhoun, and the Southern wing, as
before the war, held the balance of power. And
so it was that in the Tammany platform, and
in the nomination of General Blair the De-
mocracy were made to fight over again their
battle of 1864 upon the leading idea that the
war was failure.
Thus the Tammany platform and ticket were
exactly what the Republicans wanted; for
they could ask for nothing better than the
battle of 1864 over again, combined with the
great issue of the constitutional amendment
fourteen, upon which they swept the country
in 1866 against Johnson's plan of Southern
restoration. And here we are drawn to
Mobile letter published in Mondays Herald,
giving some account of a conversation of
Howell Cobb with our correspondent in Au-
gust last on the political situation. From this
letter it appears that Cobb, originally sup
porter of amendment fourteen, had changed
his mind to the most decided opposition, and
(under the inspiration, no doubt, of the Tam
many Convention) demanded nothing less
than the abandonment of every measure
(adopted by Congress) of reconstruction and
a recognition of every Southern as an
equal of every Northern State" As for this
amendment fourteen, "he considered it the
most dangerous encroachm ant upon the re-
served rights of the States of any yet at
tempted by the party in power" He thought
the prospect for Seymour's election was bad
that the revolution must reach its climax, and
expressed a high opinion of Mr.. Benefits
political sagacity. But the most emphatically
expressed opinion of the late conspicuous
Georgia politician was this-that, after all,
"the South will be, an Independent repub-
lic;" that "Jeff. Davis truly said that although
our cause is lost, the principles for which we
fought can never die.'
From all this it will be seen that the mana
gers of the Tammany Convention and the
Southern Democratic leaders are still delvng
among the fossils of a past age. Abandon
these Southern reconstruction laws as "rsvo-
lutionary and void ?" Has Congress, then,
no power over rebellious State after disarm-
ing it If not, then the subjugatod State, ou
its reserved rights, may go out again to-mor-
row, and the war was failure. The constitu-
tional amendment fourteen is an encroachment
upon the reserved rights of the States as they
were before; but we cannot see how it is to be
set aside except by another amendment or
another civil war. 1t cannot be abandoned
otherwise for, with the official voucher of the
Secretary of State affixed, we apprehend that
it has passed beyond the jurisdiction of the
Supreme Court. Having made up their case
upon these issues, il needed no prophet to tell
the consequences to the Democratic party and
their Presidential ticket of Seymour and Blair
against Grant and Colfax.
The idea too, that the South will yet be an
Independent republic is fallacy of the epoch
before the deluge. Within the last twenty
years the telegraph, railways, and steamships
have introduced new testament among the
nations and peoples of the earth. The old
theory of confederation of petty sovereign
States is supplanted, and everywhere these
new political forces of steam and electricity,
together with universal education and an indie
pendent press, are operating to Capitalization.
We have one example of this in the unifcation
of Italy, another in the unifcation of the
North German States, and yet another in the
amendments of our Federal Constitution
since the Rebellion against the pernicious
dogmas of State sovereignty and reserved
State rights; and these are but the beginnings
of this new dispensation. With the telegraph
the cities OF New York and San Francisco are
brought into immediate rapport, and with the
railway the people of New York city and ST..
Louis are as near to each other as were New
York and Saratoga fifty years ago. The
splendid turnpikes radiating from the Ca pi-
tol were one secret of the commanding power
of the Roman empire; but with his railways
and telegraphs the strength of Napoleon III
at Paris reduces to bsgatele the power of
Augustus.
In word, we are in the midst of new age
of Capitalization under these tremendous cen.
tralizing forces of steam and electricity and
powerful central governments embracing hun
dreds of thousands and millions of square
miles OF territory will take the places of
petty municipalities and States and rickety
considerations of iDcOngruous little sovereign
ties. The sooner our Democratic politicians,
Nsrth and South (but especially of the South)
begin to build upon this idea the sooner will
they begin to see daylight.
SeymOnr's Insincerity.
From the N. y Times.
A man aspiring to the Presidency should,