The New Orleans daily Democrat. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1877-1880, 1877-05-31
OUR CONTEMPORARIES.


have mistaken it's position on several
important questions which have arisen
during the past few years. We SAID
that our neighbors, the Ptcdyune and
Times, opposed the impeachment OF
Kellogg; that prior to the State Con-
vention of last year they favored the
organization OF third party; that
they threatened to bolt the parish
nominations and support indepen-
dent candidates IL the action OF the
Parish Convention was not satisfactory.
We further said that, Notwithstanding
the views OF the Picdyune and Times,
the Legislature impeached, the third
party programme was q failure, and
that though, from the standpoint OF
those two papers, the action Of the Par
ish Convention was not satisfactory,
either of them had had the pluck to
carry out Its threat
Both the Picdv,ne and the Times have
responded In multitude of articles and
paragraphs which, during the past few
days, have afforded us great
deal OF amusement, and each has
replied in Its peculiar way. We are
at any time prepared to stake a rea-
sonable sum upon the proposition
that to any attack upon It's views.
or rather utterances, the Picay,tne
will reply by D reference to Its age
and an appeal TO Its circulation; and
that the Times will In similar crisis
a firm that Its opponent has struck one
of it's foolish days." With the Times
II is always the same old song. Indeed,
the jackaas has but one note and I'M
der any and all provocations we hear his
bray. In this particular matter the
| Times has been true to its nature. But
the Picnn,tr,e has yentnred upon some-
thing little new, and instead Of boast
Ing of its own venerable age, patroniz-
ingly refers to the youth and ardor of
the DEMOCRAT, and then proceeds In the
most extraordinary manner to show
that all of our aiIlrmations in relation to
1t are erroneous, and quotes Its own col
umns to prove that 1t advocated i'm
parchment, opposed third party. and
never threatened the Parish Conven-
ton. We concede that the Pic. has
made out very fair case for itself,
and we are bound to say that, In
charging that 1t had ever furi-
ously advocated or furiously opposed
anything, we did 1t injustice Indeed,
after read ing the Picduune's defense Of
itself and then referring to it's files, we
are pretty well satisfied that its columns
will show that 1t has been on all sides
of every question Of importance that has
arisen, but never decidedly and aggres-
sively on any side. Thus the Picdyu1e
quotes from it's issue Of June % to show
that IL was opposed to the third party
programme, while the reader, by re-
ferring to its issue Of April % OF the
same month, will find the following ut
terance;
Substantially the political tenets OF the two
parties are now identical, and the people will
probably be called upon to choose between a
party which has betrayed them and party
which has not atterly had chance to do so.
This, on the 22d OF April, just on the
eve of the canvass, was not, we submit.
language calculated to consolidate and
strengthen theDemocratic.C Conservative
party. In the issue Of the 23d of April
we find, for the Pc, a quite virulent
attack spon the Louisiana Democrats.
BY the 2sth Of April the new party
humbug-the creation of sore. headed
politicians - had begun to make
Its usual noise, and to look a
little formidable. 1t looked, indeed.
as II there was something in 1t, and
our neighbor, watching to see which |
way the cat was going to hop, and
ready to hop with It, said:
We have come to distrust the professions of |
politicians of all parties, and there is no rea-
son why we should continue TO call ourselves |
either Democrats or Republicans should d |
new organization based upon sound princi |
pies of reform and led by men of approved |
character and sufficient experience appeal to
us for support,
The issues which formerly separated and !
antagonizcd Democrats and Republicans have
been swept away by the current of events.
The Republican party has accomplished its
mission. and the Democratic party has sur
rendered the convictions which distinguished
1t in the past. AS matter OF COURSE, |
professional politicians will oppose the disn-
tegration OF the parties with which they are
themselves why they are Republicans or
Democrats. That question has suggested the
third party movement. Will the new
party present new issues, and will 1t appeal
to the public under more, trustworthy
existence2 Until we shall have been satisfied
upon these points, we prefer to withhold a
more positive expression of opinion.
We have not hunted further over the
files OF our contemporary, and We will
not insist that 1t ever went further in
the advocacy Of the third party move
ment than these quotations from its
columns indicate. But we will say that