The Portland daily press., 1876-06-27
NEW YORK. June "a. 187R.

son VI tne democracy mas been rendered ex-
tremely embarrassing by the universal acclaim
with which the Cincinnati nominations were
received by Republicans irrespective of preyi-
GUS prejudices or partlalities. The chances
OF Democratic restoration never were worth
counting, save through detection in the ranks
of the dominant party. All the life there is in .
the opposition has sprung from this source.
Of course ary party that has held power for
sixteen years must expect to encounter treason
and desertion in its own ranks, however pure
and blameless it may keep ITSELF The Repub.
lican organization has had great deal of this
internal rebellion to contend against, and it is
very credtable to the good sense of the Ameri-
can people that it has been so little weakened
by it. This everlasting fiddle faddle about
wide spread corruption" has emanated chiefly
frcm men who formerly were and still pretend
to be Republicans The inane drivel about
third term over which so much ink has been
shed and SO much paper spoiled, was not an
absurdity of Democratic continuance. 1t was a
spectre raised by some journalistic wag by way
of joke or sensation, aad hunted assiduously
for three mortal years chiefly by certain allies
of the Democracy, lately recruited from the
Republican army, who fsncied they could
serve their new associates more effectually by
affecting an attitude Of independence. Ridicu-
lous as the phantasy was
ia tale
told by an IDIOT full OF sound and fury signify
ing nothing
so frivolous and puerie had the tone of public
discussion become, that it occupied three times
as much space in the political columns of the
leading newspapers as the momentous and
vital question Of finance. Here the country
has been drifting since the panic upon sea Of
uncertainty, with no fixed policy, with no def
mite idea of when or how redemption was to be
accomplished, and those whose business it is to
assist in creating wholesome public opinion
on topic of such supreme concern, have been
burrowing In the scums for nasty gossip about
men in authority and flinging slangy epithets
at ncumbents of official stations. And they
succeeded no doubt in creating vague impress
sion among few simple minded and credu.
lous people, who don't take the trouble to dis
tinguish between assertion and proof, that our
national affairs were in very bad way-that
Decentralization, corruption" iniquity we're
prevalent in every department of the govern.
ment. A little reflection would convince any.
body in the least degree capable Of reasoning
that such allegations must necessarily be false
and malignant. Why! look for moment at
the condition of the national finances during
the past three fiscal yearsl In the first place
the revenue was very much reduced by the abb
rogation of internal taxation, and then
it was seriously impaired by the decline in
importation which the panic Occasionsd
These losses have been made up by more ex-
act and rigorous administration of the revenue
statutes, and by a closer economy in expen-
ditures. The things that are taxed now fcr the
support of the government yield better re-
turn than they ever did before, notwithstand-
ing there is diminished production. That is
simply because the laws are enforced. The
most notable example of this is the whiskey
tax. There has bean more noise about frauds
in this article than in any or ALL others.
There was doubtless abundant cause for it. 1t
has exercised the ingenuity of men of other
countries and of earlier ages to discover mode
of evading this levy. But it is a fact worth the
consideration of those who ignorantly or will
fully defame their country by thoughtlessly or
falsely imputing dishonesty to its rulers, that
under the present administration, with duty
on whiskey of only one quarter of what it used
to be, the receipts from that source of revenue
have quadrupled. Taking that instance as an
Illustration and it is a perfectly fair one, we
can see how, with such greatly reduced
resources the authorities at Washington
have made both ends meet during these three
eventful years of panic, depression and bank
ruptcy, and even curtailed the national indebt-
edness. 1t is great deal more difficult to
hnnd how tho daluainn ohfafpa1
lodgment in the head of any human icing not
positively insane or idiotic, that corruption"
was especially prevalent in our public affairs.
1 can imagine politicians to be reckless enough
and even depraved enough to make such
charges with view of promoting their advent
to power But it requires a great stretch of
charity to suppose that any body prefers them
believing them to be true, and an equal degree
of pity for the mental condition of whoever
really is duped by them.
The plain, transparent truth is, and it is
strange that anybody is so blind as not to see it
or so perverse as not to ackno wledge it, that
public men are better than they used to be
because they are conscious of being the objects
of closer watchfulness than they ever were
before-that executive trusts are more scrppu-
iOuoiJ DOOduSC buo SilSuleSb ucEollCblOu
is more certain of detection and involves severer
penalties than in any former period of our his
tory. The people are in o mood for trifing
with the faults of their servants Transactions
took place under Lincoln and johnson without
eliciting indignant comment, which could not
happen now without filling the very heavens
with angry denuncation. There were earlier
epochs in which there was still less espionage
upon the doings of men having charge of af-
fairs, and consequently greater impunity In re-
spect to operations of doubtful morality. For
tunately, there is a vigilance exercised at the
present time, which makes it almost impossi-
BILE for any person holding a place, humble or
exalted, to perpetrate wrong without subject
ing himself to exposure and disgrace. And
that is why the public revenues are more faith
fully collected and more frugally disposed than
heretofore aud honesty prevails to an uu-
wonted extent in all departments of the federal
government.
1t is barely possible that some well meaning
but extremely superficial observers imagine
there is more corruption" prevalent than usu-
al, because they hear so much more said about
the little that has come to light. But there
cannot certainly be enough of these amiable
dupes to account for a thousandth part of the
clamor an dcalumny which have made the polt-
ical atmosphere so noisome during the past five
years. 1t happens, unfortunately, that there
are no living issues to divide parties. TIE Re-
publicans, having been always in the right
have nothing to undo or unsay. The Demo
Gratis, having been as uniformly in the wrong
have gradually given up their creed, article by
article till there is no platform left for them to
stand upon. There is no shibboleth remaining
to them, and so they impute corruption" to
the party they seek to supplant. They are not
required to prove it. They have, to be sure,
made some efforts in that direction, which were
pitiably abortive. But then they do not recos-
nize the slightest obligation to retract charge
merely because they find it is untrue. On the
contrary, the clearer the evidence Of its falsity
the stronger their iteration of it.
Just now the Democrats are in a dilemma.
Do what they may, their chances of success
next November are not hattering. And they
find it difficult to determine whether they had