Centre Hall reporter. [volume] (Centre Hall, Pa.) 1868-1871, 1871-03-24

cred and the peril brought to the lie
publican party by the removal of Mr.
Sumner may have this effect on the
| nation. We may sec the loyal men
Of the North rally to the defence OF
the Union. Ii not, then there - but
one thing more for Congress TO do IN
| order TO sign the death.warrant OF the
! Republican party. and possibly OF the
Union. Let Congress now adjourn
with out authorizing martial law nj
az the South TO curb the ku>klux,
and they have assured the election OF
Democrat TO the Presidency, In'
deed the mood Of Washington in re-
gard TO the anarchy Of the South Is
such that We consider the matter about
settled. The TRirty>thrcc Republicans
,rho last tccek raRorcd Mr. Sumner from
his post elected democratic President
for 1872. Whether Grant will con
sent 20 run on Democratic ticket is
of course uncertain, Probably he
does not himself know yet. But evl'
dently Buffers bill on the ku,klux
is not likely TO become IA law. The
same subseryieney that ate dirt IN the
Sumner matter stands ready "a defeat
that. Any substitute that sends
Southern assassins 10 be tried by jury
of fellow.asSassins Is moekery.
Nothing short of shooting half a doz'
en- Southern millionaires at the drums
head will awe the ku>kluN into sub.
mission. There seems no likelihood
of such vigor either in Congress or at
the White House, The Santo Do
mingo collar ON Senatorial necks
shows that they belong TO man who
has entered on the course where An
drew Johnson perished. How far he
intends to advance on that pathway he
does not himself now know, But the
descent is fatally easy. We did not
expect much from General Grant.
But when he So Unexpectedly arose TO
the level of craftsmanship in the mat
ter of the fifteenth amendment and of
the Indians, we smothered all our
doubts and gave him large conf
dence. The last few months, capped
by this insolent interference with Con
gress, reveals the man, We persisted
IN believing that Mr.. Motley was re-
moved for adequate cause until Mr.
Secretary Fish's clumsy letter dlspell-
ed the illusion. That act. seen in the
light of this attack on Mr.. Sumner,
was evidently dictated simply and
solely by spite toward the great MasSa-
ehuSetts Senator. James the First
said, when he came to London to-
mount his throne aud found only
blundering officials, they have given
me secretary who cannot write, and
u speaker who cannot speak" Grant
is understood TO be in the same atiiic-
tion. And the Massachusetts rene-l
gade who helped Mr.. Fish TO his boy
ish rhetoric did his work SO poorly
that he betrayed the secret, and let
the world see that, after six months
incubation, the department could not
hatch decent excuse. just as that
discreditable act was floating away
into Oblivion comes this usurpation,
which puts the present Executive into
the company of Jaekson's bank intri-
CUES and Johnson's attack on Stanton.
The revelation il makes Of the seryilli-
ty of the Senate is disheartening 10 all
lovers of free government. Every
man knows that each Senator who yo-
ted for Mr.. Summers removal did so
solely because the President had let
him understand that only on that con-
ditien could he hope TO have any in
fluence at the departments in securing
Office for his friends. We tell only
what is an open secret at Washington.
Politicians there. attitudinizing on the
floors Of Congress, use words in \
Pickwickian sense and varnish base
acts with comely phrases. But II Isl
fit the people should know the plain
truth. The President has bought Oft
his opponents by refusing all winter to
listen, in the matter Of appointments,
TO the recommendation Of any member
of Congress who voted with Mr.. Sum-
ner The only excuse individual Con-
make for changing their
votes is that to be ignored at the depart
ments, when asking offices for their
is death TO their political
hopes. If Santo Domingo is annexed,
Grant secures it BY threats and brides.
The poorest memory will need bat lit
tie effort to recall the very embassy
that bought u keystone vote, the
iudgeship which won n Wolverine,
and the herring post that made anoth-
er Senator put on the Domingo collar.
Of course, wheE party becomes
merely "ring" to divide the spoils
i touches its downfall. II Is sad 10
hink that The pOlrer Of great party
'hould hare fallen into tie hands Of
rueh Lo,C, mereendry seLfshneSs. 1t is
'ad that we can oppose to outlaw as
iassins at the South, banded together,
and at every sacrifice, for
It least great object-secession-
hat we can oppose to them only
rang of Swiss, shamelsssly exhibiting
for sale to the highest
bidder. And so cheated Of hall our
,ains, betrayed in the house Of our
'riends, we must rally for another such
light as that which crushed Davis and
,alked Johnson. TO prerent the choice
# Democratic President may be inn
But our effort must go deep
II than that. We must begin to edu-
ate the people Into the determination,
hat il, encouraged by rebel Pres!-
lent, secession ever lifts its head again
It the South, the North will sweep re-
,eldom with the bosom Of utter dc
truction and leave it no ruler but the
Is NaN