The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1875-08-05
North Carolina,

ocratlc majority, while seven Of the eight
congressional districts are represented by
democrats. Yet the character of the state
government is still mixed one. The SUI
perlntendent of public instruction is the
only state officer who was elected last year
and he is a democrat; but the governor
and the rest of the state officers, who were
elected in 1872, are republican. Accord
ing to the census of 1870 the population is
a little over one million, almost two-thirds
of which are white people, the remainder
colored. There is no election throughout
the state this year, the state officers and
legislature being elected biennially, but an
month for 4 constitutional convention. 1t
will be remembered that the North Caro-
lima election in August, 1872, played an
important part in the presidential cam
paign of that year, and this fact makes
the political situation in the state all the
more interesting.
The state has been visited lately by Mr.
Nordhotf, the correspondent of the New
York Herald, who has communicated his
observations to that journal He ascribes
the overthrow OF republican rule in North
Carolina to two causes bad financial man
agement and the civil rights bill agitation.
The state debt before the war was about
eight and half millions, which was in
creased during the war by Sl,l29, 900 tor
internal improvements, the debt contract
ed for the war being of course invalid But
while the state debt in 1860 was thus less
than ten millions it is now nearly $50,
600 900. OF this large amount $l2 900,
600 was incurred during the years 1868
and 1870, the republican rulers issuing
bonds for railroad and other purposes In
reality, however, the greater part of this
sum was wasted or embeZzled. North
states, the interest of the state debt not
having been paid. This condition of things
together with the civil rights bill agitation
changed Il republican majority Of 1900 in
1872 into a democratic majority of 5000
in 1874 AS to the present political pros
pect in the state MI Nordhof says: at
is confessed by the republicans that they
lose strength constantly, the fact being
that no new white voters Join their ranks,
while of course they lose constantly by
death, removal and desertion"
The same writer is emphatic in his as
scrtiOn that the state is now entirely at
peace For this he has the authority OF
the ablest and foremost republicans in the
state, one of whom told him: 1.-The dem
ocrats mean no violence, no wrong to any
| one, no hostility to the government; there
is no political crime in the state, there is
no intimidation by the whites they mean
only to defeat the radicals and keep them
down. and they dislike negro rule Very
instructive for republicans and all those
who believe in the omnipotence Of legis-
latlon are the observations of Mr.. Nord-
hotf on the civil rights bill That stupid
| republican blunder," as he terms it, is
practically a dead letter 1t will be remem,
bered that he told the same story OF othel
southern states, and North Carolina fur
nishes only another proof that laws which
are contrary to the habits, convictions and
real or putative interests of the people can
| not be enforced and therefore can only
work evil, since they tend to shake the re-
spect and obedience due to the laws No
| doubt a majority of the republicans were
from principle opposed to the civil rights
| bill, but advocated it as a measure for par
| tisan purposes. The effect may be seen
| in North Carolina, where it has almost
broken up their party and aienated from
| it large numbers of white men who for
merly voted the republican ticket The
more intelligent colored men are also OPP
| posed to it, because it has done no gooC
but in many eases serious harm to theil
| people Mr. Nordhotf objects to the meas
ure because it postpones the extinction o
| the color line. He thinks that without il
the white vote would not now be all or
one side. In the present state OF things
the republican party is the party Of igno-
rance in North Carolina According tC
than $4,000 newspapers are taken in the
whole state Seven-eighths of this whole
democrats; but there are some republi-
cans who think that their party associates
do not take even so many. There is no
republican daily now in the state. A pub
Usher who discontinued the publication O.
the official organ of the republican party
in Raleigh, two or three years ago, is re-
ported to have remarked: do you think
Pm damned fool, to print a paper tor q
party that can't read?" The only danger
to democratic ascendancy i'll the state, the
| only chance for continuance Of the re-
publican organization under its present
management, IleS--lu ue1nOCIatlC DlulucIs
In fact the same story is true in North
Carolina as everywhere else in the country
On Monday last. while Mr.. Sewall Cole of
Burnham was moving, a large snake of the
adder species came out of stone heap near by
and made for him. Mr.. Cole kept the snake
back for time, but was finally bitten on his
left arm, which Immediately began to swell up
and pain him. f. C.. Hersey, NJ. D., of Pitts
| field, was called TO attend the case. He found
Mr.. c. suffering severely, and his whole left
side swollen badly, but reports him as now
doing well.
The above is atloat in the newspapers.
We beg leave to express a mild disbelief
in the story. First, we have no poison
Gus snakes in Waldo county of the adder
species or any other, Second, no snake,
even the most yenomous, comes out of a
stone heap and makes for man. Third,
Mr.. Cole, if such a thing had happened,
would doubtless have cut the snake in