The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1880-02-07

In few months we shall plunge
once more in the excitement of
Presidential canvass. and this time
the excitement promises to be unusu-
ally great, owing to the prevailing
belief that the contest will be very |
close, and that neither candidate will
be willing to acknowledge his defeat.
X X X X
The circumstances under which
the coming Presidential election is to
take place are not ordinary any more
than those under which the last took
place. The seriousness of the blow
given to the Federal machinery of
government by the Southern rebel
lion was not made manifest until the
election of 1876, and that blow struck
in its weakest point-the one election
in which the whole Union partici-
pates, and the choice OF the one Off
Ger who represents the whole Union.
TX X n X X n
The election brought forcibly to
mind-more forcibly even than the
secession of the South-the truth Of
the old saying, that the greatest dan
ger to the Government lay in the
manner of choosing its chief offices.,
We say the election of 1876 brought
this to mind more forcibly than the
secession of 1861, because it is much
easier to deal with a movement for
setting up rival republic than with
a dispute about officers. In the one
case, the malcontents openly and
avowedly commit treason. and expose
themselves thereby to its pains and
penalties. In the other, each side
maintains that it is itself the govern
ment, and the minds of the best men
may be confused as to (which is king,
which pretender."
Civil war was avo ided by device
which, though it put an end to strife,
did not satisfy the defeated party,
therefore did not establish a useful
precedent. The worst of it was that
it left both sides in what may be
called a revolutionary state of mind
BY revolutionary state of mind,
we mean a state of mind in which
the voters or party managers are SC
eager to get possession of power, that
they do. not care what their oppo-
nents think of the means which they
employ for that purpose, as distin-
guished from the constitutional state
ofmind, which prevents party from
taking power by any process which
it's opponents do not consider fair
play. This revolutionary state,
which has undoubtedly shown itself
in both parties since 1875, is some
thing which no thinking man can
contemplate without uneasiness, or
can fail to see the necessity of ex-
tirpating at almost any cost. AS long
as it lasts. free government is in con-
slant danger.
The Democrats seek the Presiden-
CIV with the eagerneSs of men VINO
seek revolution, and the Republi~
cans resist in the spirit of men who
dread a revolution. The Democrats
seek the enjoymonts of an amount of
patronage, and the handling of an
amount of money (the expenditure of
$500, 900 900 per annum, and the dis
tributIon of nearly $4,000 Offices
which in other constitutional c0un-
tries nothing but revolution could
give, and the Republicans hold on to
an amount of money, which in other
constitutional counties nothing but
revolution could take away. No
state in our time, with the poDula-
ton and revenue of the United States
would dare to throw all the admins
tratiye offices of the Government irto
the arena to be struggled for at every
election, for no political machinery
as yet invented, besides our own, is
considered able to bear such strain.
-Ertrdcts from "PoIiticol OUTDOOR
from Scri6ner for February.
|
A bill has been prepared, and is
| understood to have the sanction of