Daily Los Angeles herald., 1879-10-14
auriosisies Of our Current Politics

lurfosisies of Our Current Politics.
We have no earthly intention OF
allowing lot of journalists who
have got off on the "wrong foot" to
persuade us out of the belief that
the Republican and the Democrat
ic party will poll every one of the
one hundred and eighty-fve cleo
toral votes whose distribution, &C.
cording to the will of the people,
will determine whether Republic
can or Democrat shall be the next
President. We give the Republican
party the preference III our emu
meration, on the scriptural princi-
pie that the first shall become last
aud the last first.
The arrival in Los Angeles yes
terday of the Hon. George w. Ju-
Ian recalls an interesting contro-
versy which took place, just about
his time last year, in the North
american Review. Mr.. Julian had
acquitted himself of an article un-
der the caption of 1.-THE Death
Struggle of the Republican Party"
At that time-one year ago-if
pools had been sold on the event,
the Republican party would have
sold very low indeed; now they
would sell fairly, not, as Republi-
cans are fond of asserting, because
the Democratic party has COM
mit.ed any grave mistakes, but on
account of the notorious capri
ciousness of the American people.
But the truth is that the Re-
publican party was then apparent
ly in the throes of dissolution. The
fact that the Hon. Timothy E.
Howe, of Wisconsin, replied, with
considerable vivacity, to Mr..
Julian, in the same Review, in no
whit altered this aspect of the
question. Subsequent elections,
however, seemed to confirm Sem
ator Howe's view of the matter,
rather than that of Mr.. Julian.
To-day the Republican party has
got the idea that it is again irwin
chile. Should that party
succeed in carrying Ohio,
through GreeDback detection,
and New York, through a John
Kelly emeute, it would regard
the Presidential victory as already
won. 1t would, at bound, forget
its own weakness, aud the Demo-
cratic strength, of last year. Amer
lean parties are as volatile as mer-
curry, and respond to every passing
change of the popular temperature.
We decline TO sympathize with
these hysterical variations, and
feel inclined, instead, to range
them under the head of curiosities
OF American politics. The truth is
that there is no more life
in the Republican, there
Is not less vitality in the
Democratic party this year than
last. We are, in truth, approach
ing a crisis in our political affairs
when the public good requires the
surrender of the government by
hitherto majority party into the
hands of hitherto minority party,
and the surrender will probably
take place in response to an ire
sistible demand of our politics.
1t by no means follows that be-
cause the Republican party should
carry both Ohio and New York
that that organization would neces-
sarily elect its candidate for Presi-
dent. This is so because the North
ern States, which would have to be
relied upon to elect Republican
President, are as unstable as water
in their political preferences. This
fact is strikingly exemplified by
the complexion of the Senate of
the United States during the last
twenty years. During and after
the war every appearance of a DEM
norm Z In Gopofor Fror, e,,nb Ctotos n q
Pennsylvania, New York and Ohio
represented a distinct and decisive
temporary revolution of popular
sentiment regulatory of the Re
publican party. Those appearances
have been frequent enough to jus
tify the generalization that, after
decisive Republican victories,
equally decisive Democratic ones
may be looked for. The margin
of votes which gives to
any party the control of
such States as New York, Ohio,
New Jersey, Connecticut, New
Hampshire, California, Oregon and
Wisconsin is really a trifiing one.
The developments of an hour in the
political field may make any one or
two-thirds Of them Democratic or
Republican.
This is The fuctuating element OF
our present politics.
When we come to the Southern
States, however, with their one
hundred and thirty-seven electoral
votes, the case is entirely different
The Returning Boards of Florida
aud Louisiana having been either
abolished or having passed into
Democratic hands. baolxed NV an