Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1880-06-24
Great Cry and Little Wool.

The Democrats forced the extra SeS-
sion of 1879 for the purpose mainly of
wiping the National election laws from
off the statute books. They pretended
to take high moral ground. These laws,
they declared, were an Infringement
upon the rightful sovereignty of the
States, and a menace to the liberty of
the Citizen. Some of the old State
Rights Bourbons may have felt an atag-
Onism toward them on the ground of
principle, but the bulk of the party in
Congress was determined to get rid of
them because they prevented frauds in
great cities like New York and Cincin-
natl, and were serious obstacle to the
election of Democratic President in
1880. Having control of both houses in
the Congress, the Democrats tried to re-
peal the obnoxious laws boldly, but the
bill they passed for the purpose was We
toed by President Hayes. Then they
tried to coerce the President by tacking
the repeating clause upon general ap-
preparation bill and threatening to bring
the Government to standstill for want
of funds to carry it on if he failed to
sign the bill. This did not scare Mr..
Hayes. He sent back another veto. The
next move of the Democrats was to sep
arate the judicial appropriations from
those for the executive and legislative
departments, and put them in d bill by
themselvee with the repeal rider attach
ed. This bill the President also vetoed.
Finally the Democrats passed it without
a rider, but also without any item for
paying the United States marshals and
tlieir deputies their salaries for the cur
rent year. Then they went home, de-
clariLg as they went that they would re-
new the fight next Winter.
The Winter came, but when Congress
reassembled a different spirit prevailed
among the Democrats. The Fall cleo
tions had subdued them amazingly.
They did not repeat their furious as
saults upon the election laws, but cum
ningly went to work to undermine their
efficiency. 1t was no longer the princi-
pie of these laws which they inveighed
against. but the partisan manner of
their execution. The laws might be a
good thing, they said, but as executed
executed they worked for the sole bene-
flt of the Republican party. With a
plausible air of fairness they brought
forward a bill directing the courts to
appoint the deputy marshals, whose du-
ty it is to watch the polls, and to select
them in equal numbers from both polit-
icai parties. There was cat under the
meal of this innocent looking bill. 1t
failed to connect the new deputy mar
slals with the provisions of the old law,
and thus left without any directions or
restraints as to their duty. They were
to have no duties prescribed, and to be
responsible to nobody. The President
saw the trick and vetoed the bill. Baf-
. fed in their last effort, all that the Dem
ocrats could do was to put proViso in
an appropriation bill that no money
should be paid to deputy marshals for
services at elections.
Thus ends the Democratic campaign
against the election laws begun in De-
cember, 1878, and kept up in Congress
and before the people in State canvasses
until June, 1880. Not line or letter of
the laws has been changed. They stand
in all their original strength and vigor,
and they will be enforced next Fall.
The Democrats have made a great cry
Tut they have gathered no wool, unless
the petty, malicious achievement of re-
fusing pay to few officials whom the
laws require to be commissioned is
something to boast ON. Y. Tribune.