The spirit of democracy. [volume] (Woodsfield, Ohio) 1844-1994, 1880-08-03
An Off-Year for Outrages.

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An Off-Year for Outrages.
We are sorry to report the Outrage
Business as painfully dull. There is a
large.stock on hand, and no demand
Gore is drug in the market.
Something must be done about this,
if it is only for the honor of the nation.
A Presidential Campaign without blood
shows shocking decline in political en-
ithusiasm. In England they are bowling
wildly, just because Mr.. Bradlaugh re-
fuses to take the regular oath, and wants
to say Etna Meena Mona Mike If we
are going to let the effete nonarchies of
Europe crawl over US like this, what is
the use in being free and independent
country RI
Yet there is no denying the fact that
the populace In general doesn't banker
after outrages so much as it did. In
fact, the populace spurns them. 1t won't
take them as gift.
This is not because Of any deteriora
ton in the quality of the article, either.
Our Esteemed Contemporary, the New
York Tribune, has been laying itself ou,
on as pretty stock OF Southern Out
RACES as was ever put before the public
and the public simply turns up It's un-
grateful nose, and goes off to ask wor.
risome questions about Garfield, and all
sorts OF extraneous subjects.
There was time when you could stir
the Northern blood with this sort of lit.
erature; when the Northern pulse would
thrill, and the Northern heart would
throb. and the Northern sympathy would
slop over.
That was the time when there pere
real, original, old fashioned Ku-Klux
Outrages
Nowadays the outrages are purely
literary, and the Northern blood will
not even simmer-there is not a thrill,
not throb, not slop to be got out OF
the North by the most narrowing recital
of the agonies of the helpless freedman
and the woes of the immigrant patriot.
The Tribune has always made a spe-
cialty of frst-class oulrages. No other
paper could ever hold a candle to it,
The Times never outraged anything
well-except probability; but the Trih.
une has always swung to the breeze the
neatest- fitting bloody shirt, j. G.. B.
patent-lS76, rt.s's-a f
The work has been done artistically.
Names and dates we're always given. and
everything was taken right out of the
maps and the directories, with little bits
of local color thrown in here and there
to helghten the verisimilitude. We be.
lieve there is not colored gentleman
in either of the Carolinas or Louisiana
who can lay his hand on his heart and
honestly say that he, bas not been, at
some time, outraged in the columns of
the Tribune.
In their day, the Ku-Klnx never did
anything better than the Tribune's invi-
tations. There was sangilnsry real.
ism about that noble journals produc-
tons that gave them an easy superiority
over all attempts at rivalry. Even if
you we're only mild partisan, you could
shut your ewes and almost believe in the
Tribune's little tales of the Sunny South
They sounded really life-like. You could
almost hear the clanking Of the chains,
the groaning of the victims. and The
cracking Of the flames about doomed
homesteads. Indeed, an acute ear might
even catch the sizzle Of the tar in the
boiling pot, and the fluffy fall of the
chicken feathers.
This year our Esteemed Contempora.
rvs assortment seems, from the few
samples which have been so far shown.
to be of exceptional brilliancy and Eov-
city Of style 1t was, indeed, a stroke
of enterprise to put these perishable
goods on. the market so early in the
season. II is not always easy to pei
suade even the most hard-boiled radicals
that the Southern politician is already
TO lntimidate next November's
dusky voter: No journal of less expe-
rience or smaller imaginative resources
could have attempted such q movement;
and we are not much surprised-though
We are panied, of course-to observe
that the Tribune's splendid stock has
not been taken very freely
Yet let not the Tribune despair. Nov
city may do it. Tar-and-feathers, lashes
and flames have pallcd on the popular
taste. Very we'll Try something new
Utilize negro or two in an oilymarga-
rine factory, kill carpet-bagger by
pumping water into him from steam
fire-engine; spare no expense or ineen-
uity, and possibly, before the campaign
is7over, you will get some sort of thrill
out of the languid arteries of the phi
lanthropic North.-PucE.