The Portland daily press., 1878-12-02
MONDAY MORNING. DECEM Ser 2.
(Albany August
The Rationale Of RuII. doing,

1uc hdtlOua1O VI Dull uVAhu6s
This perhaps needs to be said about BULLDOG
ing. II any majority Of voters can be bulldozerd
and are bulldozed, they are proved towards and
are liable to be rated, treated and left to
themselves for being towards. In the
last solution, man has just as many of his
rights as he will stand up for. 1t is so in bust
ness, In professional competitions, in every
thing. In any country, the basis of citizen
ship Is capacity to fight. The citizens gov
erument takes account of non-combatapts, but
not citizen account. 1t bars them from suffrage.
They are given fewer privileges or rights than
combatants, and If among those rated combat
ants should be any considerable number who
are not combatants in reality they are liable to
be run on and to 60 under, and there is nothing
in government that can long take care of them
las citizens. Government deals with such
citizens and is made and preserved by such
citizens as can take care of themselves. The
expression, "a bulldozed majority, is, in
strict construction solecism. A real MAORI
y Of citizens, majority Of those competent to
the duties OF citizens, cannot be bulldozed. The
main reason and the effective argument against
giving women the ballot is that they, as class,
could not perform the fighting duty of voters in
emergencies OF nations or communities The
operation Of this principle is salutary. The
men who are known to be ready and able
to fight for their rights, have them without
fighting for them. Their courage and capacity
to utilize it secures them respect and immuni-
". Government can no more protect voters
from the hurry burly of politics than rules can
protect boys from the hurry burly of football.
Ii boys can't stand the game they have to keep
out Of it, although the kindergarten pupils
may outnumber the classes that play football
two to one. The contentious of politics follow
the same rule. Government in so far as it has
anything to do with rights, mainly de.
clares grades and defines them. The
utmost il can do for enforcing them" is
to do for the voter as his agent and for his
convenience what be would or could do in his
primary capacity for himself, in the absence of
government. If it be true that Republicans
outnumber Democrats in any of the Southern
States-a statement we disbslieve-then for
their failure to take care of their own
rights" there is no. remedy. Govern
ment can do for classes what classes
can do for themselves-and govern
ment can do no more. If Southern Republic
canism Is collective coward it will 20 to the
wall and stay there. Every co ward class goes
to the wall in every pursuit, politics included.
and lot all the legislation or litigation in the
world can help it. Neither ought 1T to be
helped. There is no use in citizenship for unw-
ards. There is no function they can perform
which helps government. They can give no
quid pro quo for any protection" offered
them. The consideration between government
and the citizen, IN any contract, is his courage,
of which the government can avail itself
for its good and of which he can avail him
self to make good any ASSET the govern
ment ISSUES to him, on the condition that he
can take care of it If he lacks the cour-
age, the asset fails of value or the benefit Vt it
may pass to another who has the courage This
is the rationale Of bul'dozing. This accounts
for the fact that the reports of it prodace no
lasting impression on the public mind The
public refuses to believe that any majority OF
effective citizens ,an be bulldozed There is
not that In language or 10 the mind whicc saves
such a form of words from being q coutradic.
tiou 10 terms. We wish it distinctly under.
stood that we do not believe there is any bull.
DOING The men South who assert there is
have been shown 10 be rascals and liars with
out exception. The men North who believe
there is are credit to such witnesses Neither
do we defend bulldozing if there is or has been
any, though there are numbers of papers STUPID
and mean enough to say that we do. We hav-
sought TO account for the existence of bulldog.
ing, 1t there is any, by the laws which enter Inc
to the structure Of human nature, which we
wish was better than it is, and by the laws
which enter into the structure of govern ments
which are the opponents Of human nature just
as it is.