National Republican. (Washington City (D.C.)) 1872-1888, 1873-08-05


II sccis that all the corruption and ras-
cality Is ,ot confined to the Republican party, |
to tho Republican Congress or to the Repub- |
llcan administration. For years and years
the Opposition press has been endcavoring to |
persuade that the sum Of all yillainics was
was to be hund hero In Washington; that all
the evils oispcclal legislation from which the
country is altering fourishcd In the national
capital, ant In the capital alone. Time and
again pubic attention has OF late been dl-
rcctcd TO TIN acts and proceedings Of the So
called Radtal majority in the House and
Senate; the departure from the line of
strict construction Of the Constitution has
been bcwaied and the stern Jctfersonian
virtue of the earlier era has been
pointed to an awful commentary upon the
legislative hSity and decentralization Of these
degenerate lays. The energy and persistency
with which these and similar charges were
maintained In the columns of the opposition
press; the ar Of yirtuvus Indignation which
the Opposition editors and statesmen assumed,
led us to suppose that their hands, at least,
were clean, and that no such charges as those
laid at the loors Of Republican Legislatures
could be preferred against them.
The Louisville Couricr-Jounal, In q recent
Issue, disSip,tcs nil these illusions, and faces
the conclusion that Democratic law-givcrs ART
no better, u indeed they arc as good, o.
their brethren Of the opposite stripe. Ken
lucky was The last place where We should
have expected to find the evils complained o.
In full force and vigor. II has been so long {
stronghold Of the Democracy; II has been 8,
lmperyious to Republican ideas and princi
plcs, that We do not know how TO account 70
the awful condition of affairs which our co
temporary so mercllcssly discloscs. Notwlth
standing the fact that general incorpora
ton act has been on the statute-books Of Ken
lucky for years, the Journal declares that n
attention whatever has been paid to II; tina
thousands Of special charters have bee
granted within very recent period
charters which are fraud and swir
die on the very face Of them.
liberal and generous has the LcgislG' III
[ been In these matters that, under ban
\ charters, railroads and even hotels ha,
a been built. To particularizc, the Gait hous,
n we arc told, was erected under ban
A charter. The Journal says: "While the raj
roads in kentucky may be counted on ii
fugcrs, there are, II Is said, some three hun
v dred railroad charters eXtant granted by otl
Legislature. Some Of these are cXtrcmcl
0 LIBERAL as witness one held by some gentle
0 men in Frankfort, under which the incol
Q porators may build not only main stem an
branches to any point, but branches TO thcs
r branches wherever they please
AL this reads like tale Of Harrisburg
the tales which have boen again and again s
: giowlngly painted by the opposition. To-
r Scott, in his palmiest days, never was able I
. find Legislature so subservicnt and doci'e q
z these high-struug Kentucky patriots, who in
4 agine themselves specially charged with IT,
: preservation o. the Constitution, seem /
r have been to the little Scots Of that Stat,
The credit mobiller company, about which "
;. was as powerful in Congress as these privat
bankers and railroad spectators In Ken
' lucky are, beyond all question shown to hav
\ been. OF course II would be mere folly l.
suppose that the usual appliances by whcl
legislative concessions OF 50 large and lucra
c tive character arc usually obtained were un
T known or untried around the Hobbies anC
comnllttee-rooms OF the Kentucky capitol
y To suppose so would be hardly complimcn
, tary to the Intelligent legislators of a State
who have always holdthe front rank as judge
Of old Crow whisky and experts in the noble
and enchanting game of draw poker. Let
the Courier 90 ahead aud throw some furthe
light upon these interesting operations, tht
details Of which 1t seems to fully understand