National Republican., 1880-08-10
THE LESSON OF ALABAMA.

pOo'"SS Hoib
THE LESSON OF ALABAMA.
The reflections of General WEAVER when
he cOntemplates the returns from Alabama
can be imagined if they cannot be described
for these returns are as great source of
astonishment as the celebrated operations
of An SIN in the famous little game with
Mr.. WILLIAM NYEwhich Mr.. SIN "did not
understand" as the veritable history of
that transaction records. General WEAVER
having made q complete canvass of the
state, arousing tremendous degree of en-
thusiasm, found by all the usual indica-
tions which determine the state of public
opinion that he would have an overwhelm-
ing majority at the election on the ID in
slant and get sendoff ut the start which
would startle the complacent General
HANCOCK from his confident security and
cause Encouragement of the figures on all
the political states. But it did not so hap
pen. The solid south is not to be broken
in that way. The 13S votes of that section
have been pledged to HANCOCK and must
be delivered This is a high duty. The
honor of southern gentlemen is involved,
and that must not be tarnished. There
must be no failure, and that there may be
none all the means of success must be en-
ployed. The argument is short one. The
colored people and poor whites are large
majority, but they are unfit to vote. Their
voting is curse to the state. They ought
never to have been allowed to vote, and the
power which allowed them to vote was
arbitrary, unjust and usurped, and it is
absolutely right that we should defeat and
overthrow it by all the resources within our
reach. The ballot-box is the security of
freedom, and we must use il. 1t is not
what goes into the ballot-box which deter
mines elections, but what comes out, and
having the power TO take out whatever we
like we should be fools not to do it, see.
ing we are in the right.
1t is no answer TO this to say that tissue
ballots and false counting put an end to
democratic and republican government be-
cause these people do not and never did care
for popular government, not particle. They
claim openly, boldly, without qualification
or concealment, that there is a natural rul-
ing class in society in all ayes and countries
which by different methods and institu-
tions finds way to rule and actually rules,
no matter what it may be called or what it
may profess to be. 1t is made up princi-
pally Of three olements-wealth, blood and
brains. These create natural aristocracy,
aud in countries where there is no wealth
or but little, blood and brains become the
ruling powers. AT present the south is
poor. Her wealth has been devoured by q
cruel, unconstitutional, inhuman war; but
what remains is in the hands of the first
families, who also have the brains. But
brains and blood are not going to submit
to mere numbers, for numbers are the
weaker force, and the weaker force invari-
ably goes to the wall. 1t does not matter
by what weapons numbers are made to 90
to the wall, so they go, for the end aimed
at is the main thing, and the end in this
case and in all cases is the success of the
greater force, which is, in other words, the
carrying out of well-known natural law
made for the good of society.
This is the whole of tile argument, and it
cannot be met by argument, because the
premises are assumed and are ofa nature that
admits of nothing but denial, and ultimately
in all probability the denial will have to be
sustained either by counter force or absolute
submission.
The question in essence is the same ono
that caused the rebellion. On the surface
secession was the supposed or accepted
cause of the war, but behind that, and the
cause of secession, was slavery, and the
right to hold slaves and take their earnings
to live upon was only one form of domina-
ton, or the right of the first families to rule
the masses in the interest of the first fami-
lies. 1t went farther than this, however.
for the shareholders aimed to rule the
masses Of the north, and in fact did by the
same agency as now proposed-fraud aud
the democratic party. When ALEX.
STEPHENS made his great union speech in
1861 he opposed secession on the ground
that it was unnecessary, as the south had
controlled the government from the first.
IL had only third of the population, less
than third OF the wealth, but such an ex-
cess Of brains that all the presidents but
two 1.-THE two ADAmsEs) had been southern
men, or else northern men who were under
control of southern men; and large major
ity of the judges, speakers Of the house,
cabinet officers, ministers abroad, generals
in the army, commodores in the navy aud
all important officers Of all kinds had been
taken from the south, aud what had been
would be again.
Beaten in the field they have rallied
again on the old dea--a solid south against
a divided north. But the south is not solid