The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1872-11-09

The result OF the election last Tuesday has
we presume, taken very few people by sur
rise No ordinary observer of the signs OF the
times for the last month or two could have
failed TO see how the current was running.
That there was vast majority OF the people
of the United States opposed to the reelection
of President Grant last May, was so plain that
none but fool could fail to see it, and when
the plan OF fusion between the anti-Grant
republicans and the Democrats was proposed,
it seemed that nothing but sheer stupidity
could prevent its success The Cincinnati
convention was the natural outgrowth of that
conviction. But the projectors and leading
spirits of that movement placed too light an
estimate on the difficulties to be overcome to
cement cordial and perfect union of the op-
position to Grant. Whether the nomination
OF Adams, or Davis, or any other man than
Horace Greeley, would have been better adap-
ted TO unite in one unbroken body the incon-
gruous elements of the opposition, it Is hard
to say-at best 1t is doubtful. While to thou
sands the swallowing of Greeley was like
seating crow it is no less true that to thou
sands of Others to swallow DAVIS, or Adams,
or any other man would have been equally
like "eating crow In short, it was the old
story of the man who hitched up five splendid
horses with jackaSs. The horses were
strong and willing to pull anything through,
but the jackass. by his unreasoling stubber-
ness and stupid impracticability, invariably
stopped the team at every hard pull by stolid-
ly refusing to move. We had among the de-
mocracy thousands of these Iackasses. The
Cincinnati convention WAS to them Il surren.
der of -prlaciph.' They could never 90 Gree.
ley an old Enc abolitionlst, Ec., &c, and they
Camored for straight Democratic nomina-
ton at Baltimore. The Baltimore convention
had sense enough 20 see the absurdity of TO-
noring the Cincinnati movement, and did the
only sensible thing that was left by endorsing
it. II the election had been held month la
ter, our opinion is, Grantsm would haye gone
overheard. But by the first of September the
thorough organization and the enormous ex.
penditure of money 10y the GRANTEES began to
tell on the other side. The B!anton Duncan
dodge, originated and engineered by Morton,
and backed up bymii0ns of contributions lev
led OFT the Office holders was the first check to
the tidal wave that was moving in favor of
Greeley. Then the North Carolina election,
which by sheer bribery and corruption was
worked up into a sort of Grant victory. fur
ther impaired confidence in the success of
Greeley. Now everything was at standstill
to await the result of the contest in Pennsyl.
vania and Ohio, and when the result there
Showed that perfect organization and unlim.-
ted corruption were invincble, the Greeley
movement fell dead, and the subsequent No.
vember election was little less than formali
ty. How things went everywhere else IS
shown by the result in this city, Three hun
dred democrats refused to vote at all. MANY
others cut off the electoral ticket and only
voted the local ticket while IN about fifty
other cases-and tins Is true as well of the
Grant tickets-the names of the presidential
Candidates were crossed off the tops of the
tckets,t the yoterln his ignorance not knowing
that he was still voting tor the discarded can.
didate ny voting for the electors,
We can stand Grant another tour years If the
lmpTactlcabies can. We are willing they shall
have all the glory that can accrue to them
from that sort of strategy. The world has al.
ways had profound respect for that wise
man who sat on a jury with eleven impractl-
Cubic fools. We have exactly the same re-
spect for the so-called straight ont demo-.
Gratis" who so splendidly vindicated their
pnnciples' by comprising the reelection of
Grant.