Eaton weekly Democrat. [volume] (Eaton, Ohio) 1866-1875, 1871-10-19

TEH LATEST DEPARTURE
SHALL THE DEMOCRACY MAKE 4
PRESIDENTIAL NOMINATION
(From the St. Louis Republican,
October 120

ONSODSA ASO
The active eanvassing of can
didates for the L @ ~nocratic Presi-
Dental nomination in 1872 that
took place prior to the elections
in California and Maine has been
followed by a more careful rehec-
ton OH the whole subject, and
one startling result of this recon-
sideration is a suggestion of the
question whether there ought to
be a Democratic nomination at
all. The idea is startling, be-
cause it is without a precedent
in our national politics, and is
pro foundly interesting as furnish
ing a precedent in itself. The pre-
sent theory of party politics is
that in important contests both
parties must place tickets in the
field, ever although one of them
goes through the Formally with
the consciousness that it's ticket
will be certainly defeated. The
new theory, on the contrary, as
sumes abe possible existence of
conditions in which it ia better.
for one party not to make a nom
nation at all, but leave the field
to it's antagonists, in the almost
absolute certainty that its anto-
gonists will then divide and pre-
sent two tickets.
While, however, there is ma
tional precedent for such a course
the experiment is not an untried
one; the campaign of last fall in
Missouri furnished a thorough
example of the new ideas, and
it is the very beneficent and gem
orally satisfactory results of that
example that have suggested a
repetition of it on a national scale
in the Presidential contest of
next year. 1t is asked: "Why.
should not an experiment that
proved 80 successful IN breaking
the power of Radicalism in Mis-
souri, be employed to break the
powero of Radicalism in the Uniopi
Why should not the whole coun.
try find deliverance from a party
Traits essentially oppressive, un-
constitutional and violent in it's
policy and practice, ia the same
effective way in which a single
State found such del1verance?'
The result of the Aissouria cleo
ton of 1870 was not indeed, 6
Democratic victory, but it wat
certainly a Radical defeat; anc
the abolition of Acknowledgement
the subsistence of animosities, the
restoration of concord and gooc
will among the people, and the
revival of a cheerful interest il
public affairs and in local enter,
prises which followed that defeat
II consequences which vindicatt
the wisdom of the experiment il
Missouri, and, at least, sugges
its repetition in a larger field
The contradictory and discordan
nature of the several State plat
forms, both Democratic and Re.
publican, that have been presen
ted to us in the last few months
show that both parties have los
their reckoning, and are beatinI
about somewhat wildly. The Con
stitutional Amendments and tn
legislation Of congress since tn.
war have eliminated several yer
important subjects of differenc
and dispute from our Nations
policies, and the result is a We
cum which confuses both partie,
The only common conviction i
the Republican party is that
ought to be kept in power, t
use such partisan legislation as
has given us in the past elk year
and the pre- eminent conviction i
the Democratic party to which q
questions of tariff, finance, annex
alton and foreign relations al
subordinate, is that the Republ
can party ought to be overthrow
and a gentler policy substitute
for the reign of force which it ha
given US. The Virginia Conser
tives, in their late State Conven
led to adopt the usua
I'D contented them
claiming as thei
position to RAD