The Democratic advocate., 1878-12-14
Che Democratic Sdrufate.
1.-THE Great Debate y

Ih6 treat DeDaL6.
"The great debate" which had been
announced for some days past, was opened
on Wednesday in the Senate by Senator
Blaine, on his resolution to inquire into
Congressional elections The resolution
is broad in its scope, extending throughout
the country, but Mr.. Blaine, in his speech,
spoke of violations of the federal election
laws only in the Southern States. Al
though he claimed that his speech was not
"bIoody shirt" one, it was rehash OF
Southern outrages and abounded with par
tisan bitterness, calculated to arouse the
lulling passions of the past. Blaine's OBJ
jects were apparent He attempted to
make "Solid North" as against ''Solid
South;" to show that the negro vote is
overbalancing the white vote of the North
and voting its money away, and back of
that design to do away with the 10th
amendment, and finally bid for the Re-
publican candidacy for President.
Although he had his speech printed,
and widely circulated so as not to be mis-
represented by the telegraph, his zeal out
stripped his knowledge, and it was full OF
inaccuracies and false conclusions. Be-
lieving that every colored voter is Re-
publican, as his party intended when it
enfranchised them, he concludes that they
are not allowed to freely exercise their
rights at the polls because they do not
elect more than four representatives out OF
one hundred and six. On this point he
was reminded by Senator Thurman, who
made brief reply, that intelligence and
virtue and property has and always must
rule ignorance; that the white people in
the South, like the Senator, in Maine, had
influence in elections by reason of superior
intelligence, and used it to their own ad-
vancement.
Mr.. Blaine complains that the negroes
have no representation in Congress accord
ing to their strength, presuming them to
be Republicans, but ha S not word to say
of Northern representation. Illinois, where
the Republicans are in minority OF 23,-
900, in the next Congress will have twelve
Republicans to six Democrats; Michigan,
with $4,000 majority against the Repub-
licans will have solid Republican dele
CATION; New Jersey, with an anti-Republi-
can majority of $4,000, will have dele
CATION of four Republicans to three Demo-
Gratis; New York, with Democratic ma
jority of 10000, will have twenty-four
Republicans to nine Democrats; Ohio,
with Al 900 anti-Republican majority will
have but two more Democrats than Re-
publicans; Pennsylvania, with an anti-Re-
publican majority of 63,OOO, will have
eighteen Republicans to nine Democrats;
and in Senator Blaine's own State, Maine,
where the majority against his party is
$4,000, three Republicans have been elect
ed to Congress to one Democrat and one
Greenbacker. Why did not Mr.. Blaine
cite these facts and explain the cause of
this heavy Republican representation If
the negroes of the South are debarred from |
any voice in Congress by Democratic fraud
and violence, is it not also logical to con-
clude that the Democrats of the North are
debarred from representation in Congress
by Republicans by similar means? In the
matter of representation Mr.. Blaine state
ments do not bear the test of comparison,
and on that subject he made fatal blunder.
In regard to the charges of intimidation
and violence in the South, Mr.. Blaine
contented himself with assertions and cited
no instances to prove his allegations. He
regards the negroes as naturally Republi-
cans, always Republicans, and ever to be
Republicans. He thinks they can never
change, and must always vote with his
party. White people change their views
and vote accordingly, and in supposing
that the negroes never change does he think
they are too ignorant to progress, and will
ever retain the ideas they possessed when
first clothed with the right Of suffrage ?
Mr.. Blaine's very assertion that the North
would not consent TO one vote in the South
being equal to two at the North, thus in
timating that if the South continued solid
ly Democratic, the right of suffrage would
be Withdrawn from the negroes, is in itself
sufficient to drive the colored vote to the
Democratic ranks. On the whole Mr..
Blaine's speech was not up to public ex-
pectation, and was only fair sample of
his past utterances, which always have been
void of argument and facts and made up
with mere assertions and expressions of
bitter hatred to the South. Blaine has q
voluble tongue and an immense amount of
assurance and impadence, and in assuming
to lead the Republiean party has by his
speech on Wednesday done it more injury
than good.