Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1879-07-31
A SOLID UNION.

The Boston Herald, paper Of Re
publican proclivities, makes an editorial
criticism on the speech of Secretary
SHERMAN, or so much of 1t as refers to
the issues between the sections, that is
worthy of perusal by the whole country.
IL is seldom we find so much OF wis
dom so fifty spoken in so short space:
1--WE have cordially praised Secre-
tary SHER,IAN's eloquent story OF the
return to specie payments, and we re-
greet that we cannot give equal praise
10 his remarks on the issues between
the sections and the attitude of parties.
Could he have sunk the partisan in the
statesman on these questions, we be-
lieve that he would have done better
service for his party, and Tor himself as
a Presidential candidate, than he did by
his assumption that the party OPP
posed to his own is actuated by UNI
patriotic and diSloyal motives. We see
no reason to believe that the Democrats
love the country any less than the Re-
publicans. One party sees evils which
are invisible to the other, and is blind
to those evils which the other magni
fies. The student of history, free from
prejudice, cannot fail to see that neither
national supremacy nor state rights
fills the measure of our system of gov
eminent, but that both are established
by the constitution, and that the two,
existing together without encroaching
on each other, are the pillars OF our tenn
pie of liberty. In all national matters the
national government is supreme, and
the national constitution is the supreme
law by which all State constitutions
are measured. But in domestic matters
the State government, in harmony with
the supreme law, occupies the whole
field. Ii is the instrument for this SER
vice appointed by the Constitution itself,
without which there would be no Ma
tional government, and ii the National
government disObey the Constitution,
il violates the law OF it's existence. II
Secretary Sherman had taken a broader
view of the present condition of the
country he would have seen the States
lately in rebellion restored to their
places in the Union, working in har-
mOny with the National government in
full recognition of the results OF the war,
and progressing as rapidly under the
new order of things as could
be reasonably expected. lie
would have seen States well governed
and States i'll governed, but States gov
erning themselves and steadily imprOv-
ing. He would have witnessed the
operation of natural laws. which Con-
gress cannot repeal, and which execute
themselves, gradually bringing the
Southern people out of those social con-
ditiOns created by slavery into a full
recognition of the fundamental ideas of
American civilization. Were Secretary
Sherman a philosopher as well as a
statesman, instead OF being strong par
tisan and good deal of politician, he
would see that the success OF one
party or the other cannot much
help OF hinder the progress
OF the republic; that the main thing re-
quired is wise, economic legislation, to
enable the country To make the most OF
lis advantages, and cessation OF the
contest over issues long settled. The
extreme partisan view on one side
evolves the extreme view on the other
side, while the safe, reasonable and pa
triotic course, which commends itself to
the great body of the people, lies be-
~. Il Faxs
policy on which the best men of all sec
is to make solid North arrayed against
Union, in which the rights of all men
shall be promoted under the Constitu-
ton and the laws.