Litchfield enquirer., 1879-01-30
Political Tendencies.

A review of last falls election figures is not
 very reassuring even for the party that was
 most successful Republicans find themselves,
 as against the combined Democratic and
 Greenback vote, in minority of about 35 GOO
 in Ohio, 30, 900 in Michigan, 1900 in Maine,
 10000 in Illinois, 16,O00 in Wisconsin,
 5000 in Pennsylvania, 5000 in Connecticut
 and 40, 900 in New York. Their only hope in
 1880, therefore, is in the continued separation
 of the opposition vote. Though making little
 show in Congress as yet, the Nationals are
 the only gathers on last falls popular vote
 In Massachusetts and Maine they have pract-
 cally superseded Straight Democracy as the
 chief opponent of Republicanism. In Michi-
 gan the Nationals boiled 73,313 votesto 7s, 5o3
 Democratic, and 126, 2S0 Republican. Though
 that party, therefore has failed to accomplish
 all it promised, it has certainly accomplished a
 great deal. If any combination can be effected
 between Democrats and Nationals even in a
 small portion of the foregoing States, they may
 apparently expect an easy victory in 80.
 So far as any progress is apparent, then, it is towards Nationalism. We see it already announced by prominent Soft Money Demo- crat of Ohio that combination of Nationals and Democrats will be effected in '80, on the basis of an abolition of the national banking system andascaling fthe currency down from the gold to the silver standard Such combi- nation might be defeated in the East Could ff bah in T,1 and Wisconsin, Last falls figures certainly indicate that it could not. We incline strong ly to the belief therefore, that the next Dem- Ocratic candidate will be some soft money man from the West.
 On one most important issue of the last two presidential campaigns there is very manifest tendency to reaction. In 1872 Mir. Greeley based his opposition to Grant on the necessity of reform In 1876 the claims of both candi- dates as reformers were eagerly pressed by their respective parties. Now, the reform measures of one of those candidates, our pres ent president, are repudiated by the politicians who control his own party while the other rests under the gravest suspicion of attempting to procure his election by bribery. In 1876, the Republican party indignantly repudiated Grantism as well as Grant. Now, a third nomination of Grant will only be the natural fulfment of the policy which sends Roscoe Conkling back to the Senate without anoppos- ing Republican vote; which rc-elects Don Cameron, Grants last Secretary of War, from Pennsylvania and which restores Logan and Carpenter to the seats of which the reforming tendencies of former years deprived them, Turning to the Democracy, what hope of re- form dc we discover At the South, fraud and intimidation are unscrupulously practiced to suppress even the appearance of opposition In the North, the disposition to truckle to Ma tionalism is everywhere obvious, even in the Eastern States where the soft money heresy is odious to a large majority of their own party. In short, when we look at the two old parties, we see the very Bourbon elements which the country has repeatedly repudiated, predominant in both while the fundamental principle of the rising new party is simply noxiOus heresy.
 What then is the independent voter, desir- ous of fair and lasting peace at the South of au honest currency, and thorough reform of the civil servlce, to do? He sees the republi- can politician desirous merely of the restora- tien of the Carpet Bag regime at the South ]; favOring the spells system of civil service; un- reliable even in his opposition to an inflated currency. He sees the Democrat careless of justice to the freedman; thoroughly unsound on the currency; waiting eagerly for the expect ed distribution of civil service spoils in 's1 He has no sympathy with Butler, Kearney, and the Nationals America has little present use for such voter; but his time will neverthe- less come The errors and crudities of Na- tionalism must burn themselves out before the people will give much heed to the quieter work of reform. Whether that time will come be fore the election of 1SS0 or whether that be a mere scramble for the offices by Bourbons of both the old parties and Nationals, is q ques- tion time alone can determine.