The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1877-01-04
A REASONABLE REPUBLICAN.


There is perhaps no abler thinker In
the Republican party than Horace White
who for number of years was the edl-
tor-in-chief of the Chicago Tribune. lie
is still Republican, and voted for Hayes
and Wheeler, but nevertheless he be-
lieves Tilden and Hendricks now fairly
elected, and ought to be inaugurated.-
His views are we'll worth considering,
and we commend them TO all candid Re-
publicans. He says
"0ur system of Government is DEM
ocratic Republic, based upon universal
suffrage, and its fundamental idea is, that
the majority shall govern--meaning, of
course, the majority of votes legally poll
ed. The attempted action Of the LoUisi-
ana Returning Board is to set aside this
principle, and to substitute in place of
the majority of votes legally polled their
own ideas of what the majority should
have been, and would have been If the
circumstances had been different. If
this precedent is acqriesCed in there is
no reason why it should be confined in
Louisiana. On the contrary, it will spread
over the country very rapidly, giving us
in the end the decision of Returning
Boards in all cases whatsoever in place
of the decision of the people. This IS
what | call subversion of our system of
Government, and perhaps the worst fea-
ture of it is, that after overthrowing our
present system, it gives us nothing else.
1t abolishes Democratic Republic, but
does not give us monarchy, absolute or
limited, in place of it. 1t simply organi-
zes disorder-that is what it has done in
Louisiana-and makes it applicable to
every State in the Union"
WHAT THIS REVOLUTIONARY PRECEDENT EN-
TAILS.
"When you give to Returning Board
the power to enter into the recesses of
the human mind, and inquire what mo-
tives were operating there when the bal
lots were cast, and to substitute their own
notions of how the people would have
voted if the circumstances had been diff
ferent, in place of the votes actually and
legally cast; when you do this, l say, you
have annihilated and destroyed the very
foundations ofa Democratic Republic, 1t
is immaterial what the law Of Louisiana
Is, or whether it has been legally admin
istered by the Returning Board. This
is the net result that the American peo-
pie have face to face, for it is not to be
supposed that so cheap method Of car
rying elections will be long continued in
Louisiana We came very near having
taste of it in Chicago three OF four
weeks ago, where our Returning Board
threatened to throw out some 5000 votes
and would undoubtedly have done 80 if
they had not been restrained by whole
some public opinion"
GOING BEHIND THE RETURNS.
In reply to the argument that there is
no power to go behind the returns, Mr..
White says:
"Of course some such claim as this is
necessary to complete the overthrow of
the American system of Government
Its latest refnements is that the presi-
ding officer of the Senate is Returning
Board of one for the whole country, and
that there is no power to go behind him.
If that functionary should declare him
self elected instead of either Hayes or
Tilden, probably power would be found
to 90 behind him with boot. The the
ory that there is no power to eliminate a
faisehood from the electoral vote of the
nation is precisely the theory that the
people are now called on either to acqui-
esce in or to repudiate and stamp under
their feet. If they acquiesce in it they
will have sanctioned radical and vital
change in the character of their Govern.
ment. But it is important they should
know the logical effect and consequence
of what they are called on to do. |
think they will soon find out what it all
signifies"