Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1878-10-26
THE REPUnLroAN WATERLOO.
why the Party Was Whipped in
Indiana.

THE REPUBLICAN WATERLOO.
why the Party Was Whipped i'm
Indiana.
New York Times indianapolis Letter.
The Republicans of Indiana have
always been out of line with the
party in the Union upon the finan-
cial question, and when it came to
a contest upon that issue they fought
at a disadvantage, with demoraliza-
ton within their own ranks, with
no harmony in counsel or unity in
action. The only real surprise is
that the disaster was not greater
than it proves to be. Said a leading
Republican to me two days ago, as
we were catching after the elusive
hopes of retaining the Legislature /:
"When / look over the sort of reso-
lutions we haye been passing on the
money question in our State con-
ventions, l am astOnished and hui
inflated" Any one else will have
the same experience if he will look
over former Indiana Republican
platforms at this date. The Repub-
lican party in this State has culti-
waited its sal geleris character. There
has been no man in it great enough
and strong enough, to whom the
members of the organization looked
up with confidence, who has grasped
the issue firmly and attempted to
place the party upon proper ground.
The late Senator Morton devoted
the major part of his attention to
another branch of political service
during his later years, He did not
attempt to solidify the party upon
the solid ground he occupied at an
early day in favor of sound curren-
cy; but it must be confessed that he
yielded, in part, at least,-tO the
popular craze in the West upon the
question. The present
Secretary, Thompson, has been the
author of most of the party plat
forms for the last dozen years. He
always came over from Terre Haute
with a regular series of financial
planks in his pocket like a nest of
tubs, some one of which was war;
ranted to suit the taste Of popular
At one time the Secre-
tary made a speech in the Terre
Haute Opera-hOuSe, on the same
platform with Voorhees,, in which
he agreed with the Wabash states
man, that about 5000, ,000,0 900 in
greenbacks was about the amount
that Congress should be asked to
issue ''tO meet the wants of trade"
All the educational agencies of the
party have been radically wrong
and defective on this question. 1t
is true that Gen. Ben. Harrison,
Hon. Albert G. Porter, and some
others less well known, have ever
been sound, and whenever they had
occasion to speak, gave forth no un-
certain utterance. But they have
never been aggressive, and, indeed,
never seemed such as
to warrant either in assuming a
position until within
the past two months, during which
Gen. Harrison has done gallant and
effective service, raIlying the party
to a sound position, and putting it
in an attitude where it could hope
to accomplish something. But the
time was too short, the party had
been badly weakened, and although
much was done, it was not enough
to rout theOpposition, as our Ohio
brethren have done, with such
steadfast leaders as Garfield and
Foster and Sherman, and with such
consistent newspapers as
the Cincinnati Gazette.
That this has been, and was iD
the late campaign, the weakness of
the Republican party, needs no ar
yument. The party recognizes it |
now. The great cOmpensating con-
;ideratiOn is, that the battle has pu-
-ified it as by fire, and hereafter the |
Indiana Republicans will not be |
found harloting with the enemy. !
The oldest, staunchest, strongest |
counties have frittered |
away their maiorities under the in
,idiOus advances of financial heresy,
by any vigorous advo-
cacy Of the truth. 1t makes a Re |
ashamed to see that such |
5ibraltars of Republicanism as
Henry, Hamilton, Parke, Vermil-
ion, Hendricks, and the like, have |
ost the faith once delivered to the |
party, and now assist in the election !
IF q Legislature that will send DAN |
eI w. VOORHEES, to the United States |
Senate. In the First District, in
which there is a strong German ele- |
nent, the people were moved by |
he consideration of financial hon
4sty. They were appealed to upon
hat ground, and as result William |
a wealthy German manu- |
acturer, goes to Congress, as pro- |
est of the conservative citizens of |
hat pronounced Democratic district |
against the dangerous unSOundneSS |
)f Indiana Democracy. This (the |
seventy District has been lost by |
'eason of the party for a series of
years, so that when the issue came |
hey were in no attitude to VigOr- |
)usly and with effect fight the battle |
or honest money and the national |
iaith. The Republican party is re-
,pOnsible for the National party |
lere, and for the strength of the |
National idea. 1t never has at |
to oppose the imitation the |
DrieS which here run rampant. |
With flaccid muscles and demOral-
zed conscience, it made a losing |
lght in the district,
So it was all over the State. In |
he absence of one unifying and |
commanding purpose animating |
he whole party, counties divided |
IpOn local issues. With no over |
principle espoused by !
he party, the fight deteriOrated in
% a scramble for the petty offices
1f Clerk, Auditor, Sheriff and Treas
Irer. These absorbed the energies
md attention of the party every.
where, and all else was subOrdinated |
20 them. In many localities party |
did not want any public |
discussion of the issues involved. |
In others they wanted only Green
lack speakers and the s0ftest sort of
2Olitical documents. The State
Central Committee were implOred |
10 send only velvet-tongued orators
IN the financial question, and in !
every respect the canvass was en-
cred into with half-heartedness so
'ar as the paramount issue involved |
was concerned, and with abject |
as the ruling motive. An
Instance of this selfshness is the fact |
hat in thirteen counties In the !
northern and northwestern part of
the State, from which the RepublI !
cans should have at least ten mem
Oers of the Legislature, there is not |