The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1870-07-07
sPrRxx OF THE PRESS.
Editorial Opinions of the Leading Journals
upon Current Topics-Compiled Every
Day for the Evening Telegraph.
POLITICS IN MISSOURI.

Ihe passive attitude In which the Demo-
oracy of Missouri stands on the eve of an in
teresting and possibly important State can
vass is a spectacle which, one would think
ought to cause some serious reflection in the
minds of their opponents. If one of two
combatants, long engaged in strife, were sud-
denly to drop his weapon and stand still, uu-
armed and defenseless, to receive the blows
of his antagonist that antagonist would first
be surprised, and next, If he were a brave
and generous foe, would want to know the
reason of such strange conduct. If told that
his passive adversary refused to fight longer
with one arm manacled, he would not be able
to repress feeling of shame at the reflection
that he had bound his antagonists arm,
before challenging him to combat.
No such honorable feeling finds place in
the bosom of the dominant party in this
State. 1t affects to believe that the unusual
attitude of the Democracy is a party trick,
the object of which is to divide the radicals
into two factions, that the Democracy may at
the opportune moment either put forth its
own ticket or throw its auxiliary sword into
the scale and decide the contest in favor of
that faction it can make the best terms with
To thwart this profound strategy, the Demo-
Crdt tells its wrangling party that it must
Endorse the amendment, and nominate such
a ticket as to command the support of the
whole party for, in that case, it solemnly
declares, "with a Democratic ticket against
us our success would be certain, and with no
ticket against u.s. it would be equally certain.
This candid Acknowledgements affords the
true and only explanation of the passive atti-
tude of the Democracy. We have the inspira-
tion of absolute and foreknown certainty, of
victory, says the Democrat. If our opponents
fight, 'our success is certain; if they do not
fight, it is equally (not more) certain"
This is shameful truth. The registration
law is o skilfully devised machine-a votome-
ter, we may call it, devised by the party in
power, to measure the result of elections in
advance, with absolute certainty, and to make
that result just what the ruling party may de-
sire. The lessons of two elections held under
it prove that the radicals can always defeat
their opponents by forbidding them to vote.
That law was framed to disfranchise the ma
jority, and to perpetuate power in the hands
of the minority. Were our opponents the
maj ajority they pretend to be, they would not
need to disfranchise one-third the number of
those who desire to vote against them, and
they would scorn to impair the value of their
expected victories by unneeded advantages
over q minority whom they were able to de-
feat in a fair contest But they knew them
selves to be a minority of the qualified voters
and it is because they know this that they de-
vised cruel registry law to disfranchise fifty
thousand of citizens whom the constitution
itself does not disfranchise. There is not a
single censpicuousmember of the ruling party
that does not esteem this despotic and inde-
fensible enactment as the sheet-anchor of their
minority domination. There is not con-
spicuous member of that party from the
sliberal ex-senator Brown to the illiberal
Senator Drake or Governor McClurg who
does not approve its wholesale wrongs, and
who does not demand the continuation of
these wrongs as the necessary instrument of
q radical victory in November next. How
ever Mr., Brown and Governor McClurg may
differ about merchandising ''rebels" after
the next election, both are united on the abso-
lutte necessity of disenfranchising some 50,000
qualified voters who are not ''rebels, at the
next election; and it is because the radicals
believed they could not elect either Mr.
Brown or Governor McClurg, under a modi-
fed registry law, that they refused to modify
it at the last session of the Legislature.
The Democracy, as we believe, intended n o
trick in abstaining from the nomination of the
State ticket. They simply mean to protest
against the cowardly despotism which decides
beforehand that no such ticket shall be elected
There never was time when the Democracy
felt more confident of carrying a fair and
square election in Missouri than now. They
could beat their opponents with 20, 600 whit
men disfranchised under the constitutions they
could beat them with $4,000 new colored
votes added to their opponents strength; they
could beat either B. Gratz Brown or Governor
McClurg, on an aggregate vote, by a decisive
majority, and carry three-ffths of the coun-
ties in detail. But no such fair election was
held in 1866, nor in 1868, and none will be
allowed in 1870; and the Democracy have no
desire to put on harness for fight which
thirty-three registry superintendents have
already decided against them.