The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1878-06-11
[Harper's weekly.l
The Proposed Revolution.

There be little doubt that the committee
of investigation will report that the President
was not elected. Any other report would be,
uLder the circumstances, fatal to their party,
which has no issue but "fraud'. The report
will be made after party spirit has been thor
oughly inhamed, and the total powerlessness
of Democrats in Congress under party pressure
has just been shown in the passage of the inves-
tigating resolution itself. Is it probable IL the
Democrats elect the House after an appeal to
the Country upon this Issue that the party
would split on resolution not to recognizes
the President whom its own committee havs
declared upon inquiry not to have been elected?
1t may be, of course for all things are possible
that it would. 1t may be that the Democrats
who hold that the lawful title is now per-
feet, whatever frauds may have taken place
at the elections, may be willing to break
with their associates upon that point But
upon that frail chance hangs revolution. The
power of the governments lies in the tive
Houses OF Congress united. They control the
purse and the sword. The next Senate will
certainly be Democratic. There is fair chance
that the House may be SO, unless the present
movement should, as we hope, alarm the
country and prevent it. II both Houses of
Congress should be Democratic, and should
refuse to recognize President Hayes, and
acknowledge Mr.. Tilden or anybody else az
President, what next? The army would be In
stantly divided, and would naturally lean
toward Congress, not only as the rightfully
elected guardian of the Treasury, from which
alone the army can be paid, but as really rep
resenting the people, An appeal by the Pres
ident to the States would find an overpowering
array of Democratic Governors who would
not respond, while the feeling that there had
probably been fraud, and that in contest .
lawfully elected Congress must be held to be the
government as against an Executive with q
title derived from a compromise, would un-
doubtedly affect popular opinion. Under such
circumstances revolution, totally subverting
the government, utterly overthrowing the Con-
stitution, and justifying the ancient sueer that
constitutional republics are impossible, would
be accomplished, and perhaps for time peace
ably. The American constitutional republic
would have disappeared, as the Roman republic
vanished under the imperial hand. The action
even If successfully taken, would be without
the least pretense of warrant in the Coustitu-
tion. 1t would be the result exclusively of
party discipline and spirit; but are party dis
cipline and spirit less formidable in the Amer
ican than in other republics?
That the catastrophe is not impossible or even
improbable, that it Is the obvious and natural
result OF the movement begun in Congress, and
tnat lt IS the declared purpose of the leaders In
that movement, no intelligent man will deny.
Democratic State Conventions may resolve,
and Democratic newspaper here and there
may declare that no assault upon the Presidea-
tial title is intended: But not only is that the
declared purpose of the leaders behind Mr.,
Potter, who is q suhaltern in the business, but
probably it would be made party policy BY the
votes of most of the members of those Conven-
tions If they were subjected to the despotism
OF party caucus. The chairman of the Nation
al Democratic Committee is reported to have
said that the Presidents title is as perfect as
that OF any OF his predecessors. So it is; but
the committee expressly refuses to say So and
the chairman is not so independent politician
that we may not see him as Democratic Sem
ator voting that Mr.. Hayes is not the elected
President The question of revolution
which Is thus forced upon the country neces-
sarily takes precedence OF all issues in the
Congressional elections Of this year. tits, in
Decd possible, as we have said, that the move
ment may not be pushed to It's logical aud in
tended results. But there is little doubt that IL
will be II it is encouraged in the least degree by
the result of the elections. There are many
Democrats who no more doubt the validity Of
the title of President Hayes than they did that
of President Grant; but notwithstanding this,
the danger of trouble lies wholly in the success
Of the Democratic. party. In 1864 there were
Democrats who sincerely wished to see the
Union and the government maintained. but
the only way to make sure of that result was
to prevent Democratic ascendency If the
next House should be Democratic the Presi-
osn,, dents title viii probably be denied: IL 1t
should be Republican, whatever may be appre-
hended, revolution will not be attempted either
by that Congress or by this.