The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1880-06-05
The Democratic Dilemma.

cratic POSITION Is SuaIe W IhV AsN
publican side, because it tends 10
produce q dangerous confidence or
success. The Democratic party apr
parently feels that it is committed TO
the nomination anil support of a gem
tleman as an anti-fraud candidate
whose confidential agents tried to Sc;
cure his election four years ago Dy
the barest and most undeniable cor
ruption, and whose ignorance of the
transaction is not popularity believed
to be established. Nor is this all.
His nomination would at once insure
the division of the Democratic vote
in New York, and make his defeat
certain. This seems to us an absurd
position for great party. 1t does
not put forward any policy upon any
subject whatever. It gives no hiE.
of the financial or reform measures
which it would endeavor to enforce.
If man has decided opiniens upon
the Indian question, or upon the tar
iff, or upon the currency, or upon
any public concern, he is left to draw
such conclusions as he can from the
traditions and the conduct Of the
Democratic party as to what Dem
ocratie Administration would prob
ably do. All the information vOuch-
safed by the party Conventions and
papers is that Mr.. Tilden was de-
frauded of his election IN 1876, and
therefore he ought to be elected in
1880. To the inquiry whether the
revelation of the fraud attempted by
his private agents does not make
him an undesirable representative of
a campaign of political honesty, the
only reply is that he is not proved
to have known anything about it. In
fact, the Democratic cry of fraud is
meaningless without Mr.. Tilden as
the candidate, and ridiculous with
him.
This is position so pitiful and lu =.
dicrous that the Republican mana
gers are in danger of feeling that they
may do just what they please, and
that in any event Republican sue
cess is sure. With an unobjectiona
BILE candidate, we also believe that it
is perfectly sure. A candidate like
Mr.. Edmunds could be easily elect
ed over any candidate whom the
Democrats might nominate. But We
have no doubt that the nomination
of General Grant and of Mr.. Tilden
by the two parties would result in a
third nomination, with all the un-
certaintieS that would inevitably
follow. The probability of Mr.. Til
denis nomination is very great. His
party is everywhere planting itself
on the sole issue of "fraud." OF that
issue he is the natural and necessary
and perfectly willing representative,
and to discard HIM would imply be-
lief that he was stained by the cipher
dispatches. Mr.. Watterson says that
Mr.. Tilden embodies the Democratic
issue. The Convention will loudly
declare that issue. Its living repre-.
sentative is at hand and ready. How
is he to be set aside? What would
be the wit, under the circumstances,
of shouting fraud, and then nomina-
ting General Hancock, or Mr.. Bay
ard, or Mr.. Payne? The very point
of Democratic departure is that the
country wanted Mr.. Tilden in 1876,
and elected him, and was cheated.
Then it wants him now all the more
for that very reason, and will give
him still greater majority. He has
proved, according to Democratic au-
thority, that he can be elected. For
what possible reason should another
candidate be selected whose election
is necessarily doubtful Is Mr.. Til
den any less popular than in 1875 !?
And if so, aOhy? That is the crucial
question. If he is less popular be.
cause he is believed to be smirched
with the ciphsrs, then the candidate
of the party which cries fraud is be.
lieved to have cheated and bribed to
get the Presidency, and that is the
end of "fraud" as a campaign issue.
Now all the honest Democrats,and
they are many, who reject Mr.. Til.
den because of the ciphers and Of the
disclosure of the quality of his "re'
form" principles, should he be nom
mated, would stay at home, or vote
for perfectly "clean" Republican
candidate. But party ties and tradi
tions are strong, and if the alterDa-
tive were simply an Objectionable
Democratic and an Objectionable Re-
publican candidate, they would vote
with their party. This body of Dem
ocrats, however, would be disposed
to favor a third ticket, and it does
not seem to us at all improbable that
in the present political situation the
nomination by the two parties OF
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