The New York herald., 1878-11-16
How Not 60 win In 1850.


The party organs of both sides are very
busy just now showing by columns of cleo
tion figures how each may, can or must win
in 1850.
The republicans, ignoring the fact that
they have but 1873 votes in the next House
out of total of 293, and that they will lose
their present control of the Senate. vigor-
ously count up 2l3 electoral votes for them
selves, against l56 tor the democrats. and
cry out, "Glory; let's hoist the bloody
shirtr
The democrats point out that their oppo-
nents carried Ohio by a plurality OF less
than 3, 500 and by only 274, 900 votes out Of
$50, 900, the total cast: that they carried
New York by plurality of about $4,000.
and only with the help of the Tilden demo-
Gratis, and that in general the democratic
defeat is not irretrievable. vG
We advise the partisans of both sides to
remember that the American people are. in
the words of a we'll known negro preacher,
''mighty onsartain," and they were
never more changeable in political mat
ters than just now In fact, they are
not fit to be trusted they are the
despair and contempt of all political
managers, and there was hardly ever time
when majorities were worth SO little as
permanent investment. Here is the great
State of New York, for instance. The repub-
licans, with the help of first class GERRY
mander," have swept it in the election Of
Assemblymen and Congressman they have
over sixty majority in the Legislature and
seventeen in the Congressional delegation.
But New York elects a Governor next year,
and who knows? Those perfdious wretches,
the free and independent voters, may cause
the twenty-five thousand republican plur-
ality Of this year to disappear in 1879 as
completely as the boy under the magician's
basket.
So the democrats have been reckoning,
after their accustomed purblind and silly
fashion, that the ..solid South" with New
York, Connecticut and New Jersey, was
sure to give them the Presidency; and be-
ern States while of the 'ssolid South" it
may with certainty be said that if it re-
mains sssolid" it will ruin the democratic
prospects in 1880 by creating a s'solid
North, but that it will probably cease to be
solid before then, as the increasing num-
Der of independent organizations in all the
Southern States shows in which case the
democrats must carry good many North
ern States to win.
Under these circumstances, and consid-
ering the lamentable disposition of the
great and increasing mass of independent
voters to vote rs they please, we are benevo-
lently moved to give both parties piece
of advice. There was once Machiavellian
schoolboy who remarked to his young
chum, ''Never lie, unless you know the
whole case. When don't see my ground
entirely clear always tell the truth. 1t is
the only safe way" So we advise both
parties In their present situation their
only safe course is to be honest and to seek
their own success by determining to serve
the best interests of the country.
It will be ruinous blunder, for instance,
for the republicans to place themselves, as
they are apparently tempted to do, once
more on q sectional issue and to strive to
set the North and South by the ears. The
country is heartily tired of all that kind of
fuss and trouble, and it understands per-
fectly that it was not the duty Of the people
in Louisiana, for instance, to elect to Con-
gress Madison Wells, "Tom" Anderson and
Chief Justice Ludeling, who were republi-
can candidates down there. If the republic
can party means to take the ground that it
.holl nofa not ions 6 roonoc and tbiavac
for Office, and that if they are not elected this
shall constitute grievance against the sec-
ton whose people reject them, it will assume
a very untenable position. If the Northern
republicans wantto establish n Southern wing
Of their party, and desire the sympathy Of
the country in doing SO, they must see to it
that honest and honorable men are nomi-
mated down there-men whom gentlemen
like Messrs. Blaine, Conkling, Garfield,
Hoar and others will not be ashamed to
support on Southern soil. The repub-
licans ought not to forget that they owe
their salvation in the recent election en-
tirely to the administration policy. which
they have so long reviled. Il tho Presi-
dent had treated the Southern States as his
party "anteu MIN W no huount OF demo-
cratic folly could have saved them this fall.
Mr.. Hayes Southern policy and his hard
money policy, more ably and effectively
defended by Secretary Schurz than by
any other republican leader, were
what saved the republicans this year,
and not their own follies, which they are
now attempting to revive. They owe their
success, such as it is, entirely to the admin
istrntion, whose policy it is that has left
their party in so.good a position now, rel
atively to 1880.
To the democrats there are so many
ways open to secure magnificent defeat
two years hence that we scarcely know