Daily Republican., 1879-12-12
yu,sge Davis Rid.

Senator from llllnols, n"' "'
somsthing in the Senate. He was a
In lps of the Supreme Court OF the
Unite States, appointed by the lamen-
ted Abraham Lincoln, and though a
trems n iously large man he never made
hims If very conspicuous Tor his wire
decisions. The difficulty with the
Judge was, he was terribly troubled
with the Presidential bug that somehow
got tangled up in his raven locks, but
having been a Republican and seeing
that party was stocked with candidates
smarter and more available than he
eould make himself, he conceived Il 9
idea of atraddlirg tho political fence
giving about 150 pounds ayoirdupois To
each Of the leaiing parties o! the day.
In fact for long time he became kind
Of a pol deal fulcruIn, upon which par
ties balanced, and possessing the power
to throw one up and the other down, or
the other up and 'tother down. In this
condition he entered the senate. There
were large expectations from the pom
der GUS Senator, but these expectations
were not realized. Somehow the tep-
PER Of Congress was not in very ccm-
promising mood and so there was little
need for such men as Judge Davis.
SUI hs tri I'D to be a fulcrum but there
vas no fulcrum needed any more in
Congress, the Democrats having come
In possession of both houses with good
working majorities. The Judge had lost
his avocation He was mere cipher with
not half the Importance OF Tilden's
eiphers. He was big it is true, but it
was not big men that the Democratic
majority In Congress wanted. Davis
was fast losing bis prestige and some
thing lad to be done. He wanted some
thing more substantial than Ithe mere
mention Of his name coupled with tho
Presidency by some little uniGfuential
paper that could not control a dozen
votes. He locked loDgingly.a at the uni
ted Republican party which had coz
ferrsd on him all the greatness he ever
possessed and he would have returned
to its fold, but there was no room for
him there. With Grant, Sherman,
Blaine and others true and tried for the
Presidency, there was no need for men
who Lad proven traitors to the party
in its hour of need. No smile greeted
him as he glanced along the Republican
lines flushed with the victory OF 1879
and marching on with steady tread to a
greater victory in 1850. His mind was
made up. The Democrats needed a can
didate. Tilden was buried out of sight
in New York, Thurman was shelved in
Ohio, Hancock was wrecked in Pennsyl-
yania, Mcclellan was ditched around
in New Jersey; and Bayard-well Bay
ard was the only man left and his State
was too small for the man, and then be-
sides Bayard was Southern man and
could not be made available no matter
how sound he was on thenational finan-
ces. Here was q chance. The Democrats
want q candidate. The hating Judge
halted no longer. He was tired of be-
ing pivot or fulcrum as We have
termed it. True, he had never yet done
anything to merit the confidence Of the
Democracy except the negative merit Of
not Laving done anything against them.
Something more positive was needed.
What should it bep Finances No,
that had been presented in every cor
eeivable snaps, by boldsr and ADLER
minds. The army Yes, that is it.
There is an army Of ex-rebsl brigadiers
and colonels who, though possessed Of
every civil right, could not resume
their old places in the army. Others
had thought of that but were not hold
enough to offer bill in Congress re.
storing the ex-rebel Generals to their
lost places in the Union o Army. Our
Judge, however, was equal to the emer-
gency and has introduced bill to re-
establish the rebel brigadiers and colo
nels to their lost places. When Judge
Davis strikes he strikes heavy, bat he
is heavy man--3j0 pounds. Standing
upon the bridge which separates the
two great political parties he bids adieu
to his old party aud leaping with tre'
msndous bound plunges into the great
seething, whirling vortex OF the
Democratic party. Strange az il
NAV seem it is however true that The
plunge of such q heavy Object
has scarcely raised ripple upon thu
surface. It wss Judge Davis that cff.f
ed the resolution and that was enough
Had Bayard, Gill, Lamar, Thurman OF
the Democratic side, or Edmunds, Conk
ling, Blaine or even Kellogg on the Re
publican side offered such bill what I
commoton th3re wonld have been il
the political world. Of course nobody
ever expects such bill to become
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