Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1879-07-18
The Real Points at Issue.

AbO6A Vlnbo ~ 4couos
Senator Hill, of Georgia, has made
good speech for consumption in the far
South. But he has made il in the
wrong latitude, and will find that its
effect is by no means what he desired.
In the South, where the State is wor-
shipped and the Union is hated, such q
speech would have suited the spirit and
purpose of the people. Here at the
North, it is u declaration of war. In
the far South, where ignorance abounds,
and newspapers are few and poor, and
lies have u chance to run long time
before they can be hunted down, the
false statements of Mr.. Hill might have
been received as truths. Here, where
the millions read, Mr.. Hill will be
obliged to acknowledge that he was in
error, and TO correct his statements SO
as to leave them powerless save to
damage the cause which he espouses,
or he will brand himself rs a willful fall
silier in the estimation of millions of
intelligent voters.
Mr.. Hill asserts that the Democratic
party "never proposed to stop the sup
plies of the Government and starve it."
Every Northern man or boy, who has
read the daily dispatches from Wash
ington since January last, knows that
this assertion is untrue. On the 10th of
February, three weeks before the regu-
lar session ended, Democratic caucus
was held to decide what political legis-
BIackburn presided, and very full ac-
counts of the proceedings, which ap-
peared the next morning in Northern
Journals of all shades of opinion, were
found to agree in every essential par
ticular by intelligent voters who COM
pared them. 1t was decided by an
overwhelming majority to pass certain
political provisions as amendments of
the Legislative, Executive and Judicial
bill, and in order to make them germane,
clauses which usually belong to the
Sundry Civil bill were to be transferred
to the Legislative bill. And the reason
was openly stated in the debate in eau
Gus, namely, that failure of the Sundry
Civil bill would throw out of employ
ment a great number of laborers on
public works, while the Legislative bill
was absolutely necessary to the support
of the Government, and if it should fail
an extra session would be rendered nee
essary. Mr.. Thurman was reported in
dispatches to the Tribune as declaring
that the Democrats ought to withhold
the necessary means for transacting the
public business until the legislation
he demanded was secured; and Mr..
Eustis, Mr.. Beck, Mr.. Blackburn and
others were reported as supporting his
position in speeches. On the other
hand, Mr.. Bayard warned the Demo-
Gratis that it "would be unwise for them
to take any steps that would look like
revolution" and reminded his friends
that " the South was already solid; that
the debatable ground was the North;
and that if the Democracy hoped to win
in the future, it must so shape its leg
islation as to make it accord with pub
lie sentiment at the North" The re-
ports further declare that "Senators
Hill and Herman made speeches in
which they supported tae position taken
by Mr. Bayard.n At this caucus, Mr..
Bayard was overwhelmingly defeated,
and the policy which he had termed
revolutionary was adopted without
formal division, either as to the Juror
clauses or as to the repeal of the Fed
eral Election laws.
In the face of this record, and much
more to come, Mr.. Hill has the cool
ness to assert that the Democrats "first
proposed to attach these laws 20 the
appropriation bills as the quickest and
most effective way of securing their re-
peal" thereby implying that no coer-
cion was intended. But he knows full
we'll that in a Democratic Senatorial
caucus on Feb. Is, Mr.. Bayard boldly
declared that he would not support the
proposed measures as riders upon ap-
preparation bills, "nor indOrse in any
manner the attempt to withhold the
means for carrying on the Govern
ment." Senators Thurman, Voorhees,
and Morgan replied, in substance, that
they "were not in favor of granting
cent of money to carry on the Govern
ment until all the obnoxious laws should
be stricken from the statute book"
1t is not important to know what indi-
viduals said, except as the revelation of
the purpose which governed the major
ity in what it actually did. All the
world knows that the Democratic ma
jority did refuse for months to vote
money for necessary expenses Of the
Government, except in connection with
the political measuresi that they thus
forced an extra session.; that precisely
the same purpose was formally adopted
in caucus at the opening of the extra
session, and adhered to for months in
open action in both Houses; and that
this coercive and revolutionary plan
was finally abandoned in part, only be-
cause it was found that a minority of
Democrats were prepared to defeat it
by voting with the Republicans for reg
ular appropriations. Mr.. Hill can have
quotations by the cartload, if neces-
sary, from reports in Democratic jour
mails Of the action of Democratic eau
cuses, to prove that his assertion is
false. Unless he promptly corrects it,
the people of the North will conclude
that it was a willful falsehood.
Neither is his statement of the pend
ing questions a truthful one. "The
Republican party ahirms that the peo-