The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1874-06-19

'sThe Gh 0st OF Cscsarism"-DriNs or
Discussion.
For thoroughly dead topic, q topic that
never really had any life, that was stamped
out, destroyed and utterly banished from the
memory of man by loyal postmasters in charge
OF administration organs and caricaturists in
search of theme, this third term discussion
shows extreme vitality. After all, was it not
"HERALD sensation" we think, was
the phrase, summer growth of the journal
istic mind, generated by the warm weather
and the poverty of the newspaper harvest, that
lived an absurdly brief life and withered2
We certainly have read as much in many
able and devoted journals But here it comes
again and again, from the North and the
South, the East and the West There never
was more persistent and irrepressible phan-
tom since Banquo. with the gashes on his
brow, broke up q royal banquet in most adj
mired disorder.
Here, for instance Is the Buffalo En-
press, coy journal in many ways, which
comes like fawn with the timid suggestion
that "there is absolutely no data on which to
base reasonable conjecture as to whether the
President would accept the nomination for q
third term if it were offered to him. This is
an idea that occurred to ourselves recently,
and we ventured to suggest that Mr.. Senator
Jones, who found how to induce the President
to express an opinion on finance, would be the
fittest person to obtain some 'sdata on which
to base reasonable conjecture" as to what
the President might do in reference to
subject as interesting as the third
term. The New London Evening Iele-
gram thinks the next contest will be
between paper and specie, and that "the
natural standard bearer Of the specie party
must be the President. The Springfield Repub-
lican which has solemn way of considering
most themes, sees in the fact of the Presi-
80 sufficiently startling and scandalous' cir
cumstance. The Republican alludes to the fact
that Andrew Jackson respected precedents
which the people held sacred" and intimates
that it would not be wise for the Pres dent to
bruise himself '''upon public opinion
armed with ballots" The ST. Louis Republi-
can, careful journal, by no means given to
dead topics or to discussing phantoms, sees
that ''the country has been forced, as a choice
of evils, to accept many things it was opposed
to during the last twelve years, and the pro-
cess may be still unended, and that s'thirteen
years OF republican rule have SO completely
detached the American mind from its ancient
moorings" and upset old traditions that the
country will accept any ''stable dea," even
third term, ''as refuge from its suspense"
Mr.. Wattsrson, of the Courier Journal who
recently startled the Southwest by embracing
the dead form OF the Cesarism ghost, does
not seem to have discovered that it is ghost,
but that it really is q living, moving body.
He thinks the democrats shave actually fallen
into the trap OF derision set by the republicans
to gain time or that they are coquetting with
General Grant to make him their nominee"
we suppose If the democrats would only
arouse they would save the country '.from
the obvious dangers of the third term;'
but uncommitted as they are on this question
'there is no knowing but they may finally
float to General Grant, and just in time to get
him beaten as Greeley was beaten" "This
denouement" says Mr.. Watterson, who evil
IDENTIFY discusses the question from meta
physical point of view, "would certainly finish
the democratic party and give the republicans
q renewed lease of power"
We turn to Washington with that respect and
confidence which We always feel in power, and
listen to the Republican as the inspired oracle.
The other day the organ notes were clear and
unmistakable; but somehow the music has
become hazy and unintelligible like Wagner's
emusic OF the future" In the first place, the
organ did not declare for General Grant for
. third term, although everybody supposes
that it did. Here, however, is what it did de-
clare 1.-THE safety of the Republic, of re-
publican institutions. honor and honesty are
the controlling and paramount ideas in the
minds of the overwhelming majority of the
people to-day, and we may be certain that
they will be the controlling ideas two years
hence Tradition or no tradition, the people,
we are confident, will see to it that they are
not in any way endangered in 1875 Prece-
dents are sometimes safe, and sometimes they
are not" There is mystic quality about
this enunciation that does not appear at the
first blush somewhat resembling an oracular
we recently quoted from the New
York organ, and which we translate to mean: -
ave are going for what's what when the time
comes, and for who's who likewise We do
not Just now know what is what or who is
who but on the whole, we should little
rather it was General Grant" i
1t is pleasant to watch the ebbing, and the
flowing of these tides of discussion. The
only observation that seems pertinent Just
now is that for dead theme, for topic that
never had any life, and at the best was only o
HERALD SIMMER sensation, this third term idea
occupies q large space in the public mind. In
the meantime, in the solemn and wise words of |