The Donaldsonville chief. [volume] (Donaldsonville, La.) 1871-current, 1877-03-10
THE DEMOCRATIC BRAY IN A
LIONS SKIN,
BY EMERSON BENTLEY.

expiring hours. When 1T is remem-
bered that the President of the Senate,
in Joint session, had formally declared
Hayes and Wheeler elected to the of
fees of President and Vice President
of the United States, the subsequent
proceedings of the House appear in
strikingly questionable light. (See
Associated Press, March 81. A reso-
luton reported by Hon. j. Proctor
Knott of Kentucky, adopted By
strict party cote. declaring that Til
den had received 1876 votes of duly
qualified electors, and was thereby
duly elected President, and that in
the opinion of the House Hendricks
having received the like number of
electoral votes was thereby duly
elected Vice President
If the explanation is offered in de-
Tense of the Democratic majority
that this declaration, officially made
after voluntary participation in a
previous contrary and lawful declar-
alton, was simply to complete the
party record for future campaigns, we
shall be at loss to discover the neces-
sity of the act. We still have vivid
recollection of the famous pronuncia-
mento of Hon. A. S. Hewitt, chair
man of the Democratic national exec
utive committee, promulgated last
November, congiatulating the people
upon the assumed election of Messrs.
| Tilden and Hendricks, and from this
standpoint to the lawful close of the
presidential struggle Democracy
| fought with the utmost confidence. A
dissent from the verdict of the Elec-
toral Commission, as party measure
would emanate with a higher degree
of propriety from chairman Hewitt,
or Democratic caucus, but it is diff
| ficult to conceive of IL formal declara-
ton of legislative body, on 50 grave
subject, at ST. perilous crisis, as a
merely partisan deed. This assertion
| will fail to atone for the gravity or
treachery it now conveys to the pop
! ular mind
In the absence of any adequate de-
Tense it must be regarded as a pitiful,
degrading act, fairly Illustrated by
| the old fable of the ass who brayad in
the lions skin but signally failed to
maintain his exalted professions. We
read that u Congress of the United
States, within the short space of
twenty four hours participated in two
opposite declarations of an election to
the Presidency, and gave its practical
| operation to the Inauguration of
one it believed to have been defeated
| and offered Il paper resolution to the
candidate it believed to have been
| elected. We also read that this same
| Congress has conducted inquisitions
against men whom it has charged with
defeating the popular will and claims
to represent the party of reform with
in the republic. After perusing these
irreconcilable features of the record
how can we escape calculating, "May
the good Lord preserve us from the
calamity of continued leadership by
such reformers Z"
Having united in declaring the Re-
publican candidates duly elected,
common decency and faith, to say
nothing of the sworn obligations of
Congressman, prohibited any official
action impairing that decision; and
only unpatriotic motives of partisan
revenge can be cited in any attempt
at justification. But the treachery was
accomplished by a further manifesto
ton of cowardice. The Democratic
House did not follow its second act to
its due sequence, but meekly voted
the usual civil appropriations know
ing they would be used to maintain
the government headed by President
Hayes, leaving only an unfedged
and unsupported title to its own Til
den.
These travesties upon all accepted
ideas of dignity and honor associated
with an august body, come to us with
a peculiar significance when we view
them as the results of a strict party
cote. Not a single Democratic men,
Der arose above the lowest level ever
/ reached hy anv Anarioon Dartr ~.