The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1878-08-16
The Meaning OF Democratic Triumph
in this District.


| Elsewhere is presented classification Of
| Southern claims upon the Treasury, taken
from the columns of the New York Tribune.
| This classification the argus dismisses with
sneer. But it is not SO easily disposed of.
1t commands the attention of every man
who has property interests to guard or taxes
| to pay, for it threatens the one with ruin and
the other with terrible oppression. Congress
| has the power to allow these claims, or to
| shape legislation SO that they may be col
| lected, and upon the composition Of the next
| Congress their fate depends. The Senate is
certain to be Democratic. If the House is
| controlled by the South and its Northern
| allies its action is not open 10 doubt. The
proposed raid upon the Treasury will no
longer be merely proposition. 1t will be
fact.
From this classification all claims for depre-
dations committed by our troops, or for eman-
cpated slaves, or for injuries done to loyal
citizens, are excluded-that is, the great bulk
of Southern claims is excluded. 1t does in-
| cude the claims for the reiunding Of the cot
| tOh taA, q tdA QCuOuuCCQ Oy luC OOutucIu
press as peculiarly unjust and oppressive; the
demand for stores and supplies; for aban-
doned property, including cotton; for rent
of buildings and lands occupied by our troops; ;
and for property ''needessly" destroyed un-
der plea of military necessity by our armies.
The aggregate is $3.50, 100000, and it is to be
remembered that this does not include the
Southern demand made at the last session of
Congress for S300,o0O,000 for internal ina
proyements. Add these sums aud we have
over 5000, 100000 demanded from the Treas
ury by the South. 1t should also be remem-
bered that there is a bill now before Congress
(and which will undoubtedly be passed if
the Democrats get possession of that body)
eularging the jurisdiction Of the Court oil
Claims, and referring to it all the rebel claims
that have been barred by limitation. Re-
member also that loyal and disloyal claimants
are, by the terms of President Johnson's
proclamation, put on equal footing before
that tribunal.
Many of these claims are for the present
withheld to await the hour when the Demo
Gratis shall get control of Congress. If the
House to be elected this fall is Democratic
the claims will be rushed through. There is
every indication now that the contest for the
control of the House will be close one.
The majority either way will be extremely
small. A single Congressional District may
determine its political complexion. And
that single District may be the First District
of Maine. Is the First District willing to
send to Congress man who is and
always has been Southern sympa-
thizer, who during the war carried
his friendliness to the South to the
verge of disloyalty, and who gave no aid by
sword, voice or vote to the Government
in its struggle to put down the rebellion.
Will it dare to repeat the experiment Of elect
ing as its Representative "Northern man
with Southern principles?" Does it consider
that experiment safe? Is it willing to trust
its interests to a man who has always sympa-
thized with its enemies, who has always
yielded to Southern dctation, who looks
upon that dictation as the best possible thing
for the country, and who to-day does not ac-
cept the results of the war and believes the
constitutional amendments to be unconstitu-
tional and unjust?
The voters of the First District will not
Willingly do that. The Republican majority
certainly will not. But is there any Repub-
lican unwise enough to throw away his vote
upon third candidate who cannot possibly
be elected, and thus aid the candidate of the
Democratic party? If so he will do well to
question himself closely and consider the
effect of his vote before he goes to the polls.
If he but looks around him he will find that
his Democratic neighbors who have gone
with him into the new party are returning to
their old love and preparing to vote for An
derson, leaving him to throw vote against
the Republican candidate and indirectly,
though not less efectually, for the Democrat
ic. A vote for Cove is in effect vote for the
Democracy, a vote for man of avowed
Southern sympathes who, if elected, will be
called upon to pass upon the claims of his
Southern friends for losses incurred in a Ie-
bcllion he has never yet found words to con.
demn.