Delaware state journal. [volume] (Wilmington, Del.) 1870-1883, 1880-09-30
Business safe Anyhow.


Who are believed never 70 be N favor of 4 |
,hange so long as they are tolerably well
,ff. This is true, aud interests more per-
naneut il their character thau auy
involved IN single campaign demand
that this appeal TO the timidity
of capital shalt be stopped, aud that
capital shall eease to be eyerlastingly
Ihrusting its own cowardioe forward as
sort of sore toe which it begs nobody may
tread on Everybody knows all about its
timilty aud thinking people have seen it,
becsuse Of auGh iIuiditl. a4s'7t IN prop
ping up The rotten ,LTour Of Napoleon
III, ia F,suce. IA wall as helping corrup-
ton to maintain its power VI this country,
with mingled feeling u alarm and dis
gust.
such tactics in free government like
this have their dangers rs well as in
France, where an Infatuated mob turned
and destroyed government, capital and
everything else in one act OF madness.
Happily the quicker aud less restrained
acting of the popular will here makes its
effects less violent and destructive, but it
is sure to act, in the long run,
and it is the will of au aggregate
of human beings swayed by pas
sions and affected by impotence just
as individual wills always are. 1t is the
part of wisdom and true politics to keep
it steadily before the eyes of the voters
that the maintenance of peace and order
and property is to the interest of every
body, rich and poor but if every mani
festation by the people of disposition to
change, in an orderly and lawful
manner the administration Of their
public affairs, is to be met with this
miserable and false appeal to the cow
ardice of capital, then the influences
which are always appealing to some peo-
pie to treat vested rights and accumulated
earnings with contempt or violence will
be stimulated, and even well meaning men
will become impatient of something
which is always interposing itself in their
way.
In this campaign the Republican party
has chosen to make its appeal for contin.
nance in power rest on the acceptance by
its followers of the idea that the southern
portion of this Union is in the hands of
public enemies, and that the North must
make the Federal Government its agent
for ruling these people instead of
allowing them to rule themselves.
This is not an idsa which Americans,
having any conception of and affection
for the principles of their Government,
take kindly to, and many of them revolt
against it, Now, to tell people in this
temper that if they vote in accord with
their convictions capitalists will cease
their business activity, might possibly
scare them out of voting SO but, if it
does not have this effect, it obviously makes
them willing to defy those who make the
threat, and disposed to listen more kindly
to the demagogues, whose vocation it seems
to be to curse everybody better off than
themselves. Here is the risk in this sort
of attempt by capital to intimidate voters
and if its constitutional timidity were
governed by any sound sense, it would SET
that the best thing it could do woult
be to repudiate She efforts O
those who claim that toward on,
powerful political party it stand
in the relation of trusted friend and ally
while it regards the other as an enemy i
fears and hates. OF course, the pretenc,
is false one, but if it has any effect OF
one set Of men it will have an effect oil
another set, and political parties no NOR,
than the individuals have reached tn
Christian virtue OF loving their enemie
and treating kindly those who despitefull,
use them. We are glad to see therefore
papers like the HeraAi and the Republican
hoeniag Post, which really represent, t,
some extent, the opinions OF bushes
mer, deuounciag this attempt to thrus
the banking and business interests of tn
country iato the arena Of party politics
We cannot express too strongly, nor re
iterete too frequently, our sense Of the es
ceeding unwisdom, from a business STANG
point. Of such tactics at time when "
are apparently iast recovering from tn
effects Of financial craze which threa
ened both parties, There has Deen daI
gerous effort by demsgogues to represer
bank presidents as sort of publ
enemies, and capitalists as cormo
ants, dangerous to the welfai
OF the poor. We are scarcely through IL
battle against that idea when we find 8
effort to show that these men are the il
Veterate foes of party which shove
four years ago that it had a very clel
majority of the American people. 1t
little short Of madness on the part
capitalists to connive at such use
their names. We believe that
body of voters such as compose ii
mass Of either party, would be averi
to walking over anybody, and that VIII,
in a good humor they would turn asid
rather than tramp any human beil
beneath their feet but it would not
wise for any man to depend on this ind
position to hurt any one so far as to
down in their road with view
turning them aside. Even though he we
bank president he would be very like
to get tramped on, and il lie We
addicted to such attempts would be luc
if the procession did not stop long enou
to dance on him. Yet this is lust what
being tried on larger scale. Il is,
course, still an open question whether t
majority of the American people are d
posed to retain the Republican party
control Of the Administration or to c
the Democratic party to manage tn
affairs. If the former is II
this appeal to the timidity
capital and exaltation Of Wall str,
hutries into great political signs v
appear to succeed; but, on the other hand
the people have really made up their mil
that they want change 1t will not st
them from having their will to lay cho
assortment of bank presidents and brok
across the path of their progress. I
effect will be like that indicated
stephenson's famous reply concerning
COW on a railroad, that it would be 'vl
'bad for the COO ..a...