New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1876-09-02

..solid men, substantial business men,
moderate men, and Independent vo-
ters.'" These '.stolid" creatures are ex-
erting ''baleful influence" by refusing to
subscribe zone farthing of their wealth
''to the cause Of justice, which we dis
cover q little further on to mean "a
change of administration. This is really
too bad, and these stolid solid men de-
serve the good scolding they have re-
ceived. There was . time when the
names Of every one Of them who dared
refuse to contribute money to buy ''jus-
tee" would have been paraded in black
list and published as public enemies.
But this custom has fallen into disfavor,
especially where the black sheep has a
slight control of advertising patronage.
Patriotic Democratic organs are left to the
grand resource of taking it out in general
terms. All those who refuse to fur
nish the ward clubs with the means to
buy Justice enough to effect change OF
administration are dangerous citizens,
who look with stolid eyes upon the
struggle of the republic for existence.
The noble old republic has had several
such struggles. One storm, in particular,
was very dangerous, and threatened to
engulf American liberty in one general
ruin. Most of the dangerous citizens"
who now refuse to subscribe to Demo-
cratic ward clubs gave very freely to pro-
mote that storm, and assist on the wrong
side of the conflict. They have hardly
yet recovered from their improvidence.
Then, as now, they were implored by
the party organs to subscribe literally to
the Confederate loan as a patriotic duty;
to commit their hard-earned wealth to
the care Of the politicians, and find their
reward in the co nsciousness Of having
saved their country" We are, ap-
parently, approaching some such crisis
again. Tremendous issues are pend
ing" No man can say with absolute GER
tainty whether Finnerty or Burke will be
Administrator Of improvements; whether
Fitzpatrick, Handy, Pagan, Waggaman,
or any one of half q dozen other aspir-
ants will secure the capital prize, the
Office of civil sheriff; or, rising little in
the scale, the struggle will determine
the momentous issue whether the chief
executive office of this State is to be con-
ferred upon gentleman who has given
US repeated proofs Of official capacity and
fidelity, or given to worthy gentleman
entirely without experience, bat sur
rounded by swarm of advisers who have
had too much. The interest which is felt
in the change of administration by those
who solicit subscriptions to effect it arises
solely from the expectation to share in
the division of patronage. It seems the
dangerous citizens are unwilling to buy
political situations for young men who
are strangers to them, and whose highest
recommendation for place is that they are
not fit for anything else. It is not enough
to call the present incumbents of Office
"Vandals, more destructive than worms
and insects" The question is, are they
more destructive than Democratic Van
dals would be, and if SO, how much?
What effect would a change of administra-
ton have on the profits in pork and mo-
lasses. First show these sordid mer-
chants that they will gain something by
investing in the political scrambles among
the ward clubs, and then such an appeal
as the following may be accepted as an
excuse to ante up:
Better, far better. that all the crops
throughout the South-corn, cane, cotton
and tobaccO-should utterly fail than that
this long suffering section should once more
be given over to the hands of those political
more destructive than the devas-
tation OF worms and insects, or than the
blight of summer drOuths.
Here is wealth enough blotted out with
. drop of ink to pay the national debt,
and all because the merchants of New
Orleans have stopped the usual supplies.
We hold that it is better to look after
these crops, SO magnanimously surren-
lered for principle, than to condemn this
fair land of sunshine, flowers and happy
millions to starvation and death as an
alternative for the success of a few
,cramblers for place and power. And we
doubt whether this sort of defamation
will wiring single dollar from the ''dan-
yerons citizens"