The Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1877-1885, 1878-04-11
Thursday. April Il. 1878.
Patiently Waiting.

making preparations for the fall campaign,
and the reorganization Of the republican
party. Mr.. Chandler is reputed as favor
ing decided opposition to the course of the
administration, and of adopting an open
and aggressive action towards all Hayes
men and half-hearted supporters of the
presidents policy. Senator Howe, as
every one knows, failed to create any SEN
sation Of Importance by making personal
and vindictive assault upon the President
in the hall of the Senate, nevertheless,
what the Senator said no doubt found full
and hearty response in the breasts of the
ultra and radical members of the party, of
which Chandler may be reckoned as one
o. the iercest Of the fierce. STILL like the
famous assemblage of rats and mice who
agreed that their safety consisted in put
ting bell on the cat, they find the diff
Guilty is how to do it. The disagreement
as to what is good policy is as great as can
we'll be conceived, even among those who
willingly concede that something needs to
be done. Appearances indicate that a
goodly number, and possibly majority,
would like to shift the grounds of contest
but are at loss to decide precisely what
set of principles are the most! polite to
place before the people. The Howe plan
of concentrating abuse upon the President
personally does not seem to have produced
any visible good effects, and since then the
cooler heads, seeing that such a course if
not positively damaging brings no good,
are disiuclined to actively carry the contest
any further in that direction in fact, all
such efforts having proved abortiye thus
far, there is lurking suspicion in the midst
OF their councils that possibly the people
at large are better pleased with the Pres
ident than with his radical enemies.
On the currency and tariff questions it is
equally difficult to inaugurate a strong
party feeling, or aggressive party action,
because among republicans of different
sections Of the country there is every
whit as much diversity Of opinion as among
democrats, and this fact of itself precludes
the possibility Of making these questions
leading points of issue in the fall cam
paign.
A much larger proportion Of the repub-
lican leaders than among the democracy
have been in alliance with railroad rings
and schemes of internal improvement by
the general government, but even strong
and united contest based upon measures
or this character would scarcely be able to
make Roadway at the present time when
poverty is the universal complaint. busi-
ness so generally stagnated, and when the
cry for retrenchment and reform has been
so loudly and repeatedly heard in. every
direction.
1t is one Of the misfortunes of political
parties that they cannot subsist forever
upon the memory of past achievements
The claims Of the republican party to the
possession Of all the virtue, intelligence
and patriotism of the country, based upon
the condition of affairs when they elected
their first president and upon their ad-
mlnlstration of the country during and
immediately after the war of rebellion, has
long since lost its effectiveness as a rally
Ing cry for party organization. The
gigantic steals and the maladministratio
OF public affairs within the last ten years
have taught the people the important
lesson that the republican party has
degenerated from its pretended position
OF saving the country to that of
merely perpetuating itself by means
OF the most questionable kind, and by
abuses of power of the most glaring and
dangerous character.
Since the advent of Hayes to the
presidency, even the old time watehwofd
OF rebel outrages and abuse of the colored
race has fallen into desuetude. The
people of the south are committing no
outraees, they are living under laws
ana rulers of their own precisely
as the people of Northern States, aud with
no more violence or intimidation within
their borders, and though this condition of
affairs ID happy state for them and gives
promise Of future stability and good
government, it forecloses all chance for
republicans to declaim against their want
OF loyalty and to excite passion and preiu-
dice by displaying the bloody shirt
Perhaps the Southern claim business,
the rebel debt, and an occasional occurapce
Ike eiectlng q former rebel to Office, NAV
Stli' serve IN some sections 70 keep republic
ans from breaking ranks, but even these
no longer possess the potency of former
Gays to stimulate the efforts of the rank
and hIe. The break between the President
ana prominent members of Congress has
much wider and deeper influence in
breaking down party discipline than these
Oh time party watchwords have in repair
Ing the breach. Republicans themselves
acknowledge by their actions that thew are
ID a tight place, and it remains to be seen
whether the Zach Chambers and man ofI
DIS radical stripe, or the more liberal
are to predominant in the Marty
councils,
III TINS state it is proposed by the leading i
republicans to postpone the formation of |
their state ticket until late in the season .
10 TACT the proposition amounts to saving :
Inc party Is entirely at sea and must wait b
Tue aston OF the national organization and S
The movements of congressional dele0a b
'lonS' The republican party is no Longer 0
strong confident aggressive Organization.