American citizen. [volume] (Canton, Miss.) 1864-1890, 1880-05-08
The Democratic Convention and Its
Nominee,


But one solid calendar month sepa-
rates us from the National Democratic
Convention of 1880. The blossoms of
the May will intervene. Ten weeks
hence the Democrats of the United
States must nominate a candidate for
the Presidency. The time seems short,
but it is ample. Opinions are forming.
Preferences are taking shape. Manipu-
lations. we mourn to say. are doubtless
in active progress. Prominent Demo-
Gratis in the Union are arraying them
selves in The uniforms of individual
candidates.. Democratic journals, of
which there are too few in the country,
are espousing the causes of persons.
The Enquirer, too, has convictions. 1t,
too, has preferences. We. also. take
an interest in this contest. The En-
qftirer, in like manner. has hopes CEN
tering in, and springipg out of, the APP
preaching National Democratic Con-
vention. We, like the others, have a
candidate. The candidate of the En-
quirer is the nominee of the Cincinnati
Convention. We have no other prior
to the Convention. Most certainly we
shall have no other afterward. Our
convictions, with an eye single to the
welfare of the country, are for him.
Our preferences, looking at the dangers
that hang over the Republic, are for
him. Our interest, in this political con-
dition of the. Republic, centers in him.
Our hopes. in this contest, which are our
hopes for the continued existence of
the Constitutional Republic, are built
upon him. He. the nominee to be. of
the Cincinnati Convention. is the En-
qnirer's candidate for the Presidency
its only candidate to-day, or prior to
the Convention, or prior to the election
in November. And, like the immortal
apostle. we would that other men wero
even as we are. We believe in the pe0-
pie, in the peoples unhindered and UNI
smothered instincts, and we hope that
the nominee of the National Democrat
ic Convention in June will be the delib-
crate choice of the unmanipulated judg-
mcnt of the Democrats of the Union.
The people are usually wiser than their
leaders. The Enquirer has no desire to
enter upon any attempt to manipulate
the broad, aggregate preference and
judgment of the Democrats of the United
States in the matter of the candidacy.
We should be glad if others would not
vehemently attempt to manipulate that
conviction. A forced, or manipulated,
or legerdemain candidacy, is not the
strongest. We are not parties to such
engineering. and we should take pleas
ure in discouraging, or suppressiDg,
such engineers. Exceedingly strong
and worthy candidates may be slaugh-
tered in advance by too much sleight-of-
hand.
The Enquirer's candidate, named
above, will be elected. He has at this
moment large majority of the votes
of the voters Of the United States Four
years ago Mr.. Hayes was in minority
of about quarter of a million Of votes.
in the popular ballot. Excluding four
States, the aggregate Republican ma
number. In order to count Mr.. Hayes
in it became necessary to count for
him Louisiana, with eight Electoral
votes; Florida, with four Electoral
votes, and South Carolina, with seven
Electoral votes. Here are nineteen
Electoral votes which it is not intelli-
gently pretended can be cast or count
ed for the Republican nominee in this
Presidential contest. The Republicans
begin the canvass with this compare
tive disadvantage. 1t should be re-
membered, also, that the counting of
these nineteen Electoral votes for Hayes
only gave him an alleged majority Of
one in the Electoral College. Had
those votes been counted for Tilden his
majority in, the Electoral College would
have been thirty-seven; and that these
Electoral votes will be cast and
counted tx the Cinctnna-
ii candidate in the coming
election is not seriously disputed. The
Chicago candidate must somewhere,
some how, make good this inevitable
loss. Hayes and Wheeler had but one
hundred and sixty-six undisputed Elect
oral votes, and they carried all of the
Republican States in the Union, and all
of the really doubtful States. They
carried all of the Pacific States, with
fifteen Electoral votcs-a thing the Chi
cago nominees are unlikely to do this
year. Where are the Republicans to
obtain the needed nineteen Electoral
votesP And what il they should lose
some which they gained before?
The friends of the candidates for the
Chicago nomination are devOuring those
candidates. The advocates of each of
the three candidates are predicting, al
most demonstrating, that neither OF the
other candidates can be elected. Tho
public mind is becoming familiarized
with all of these statements, and Il
voters take Republicans at their word
the Chicago nominee cannot be elected.
Republicans are sufficiently convincing
the public how vulnerable is Blaine. how
icy and unpopular is Sherman, and how
offensive is the thought of a third
term of Grant. The friends of each
of these candidates are helping matters
by announcing in advance their refusal
to support some other candidate. On
Republican testimony, what will be left
of either of these candidates when the
Chicago Convention shall have assem-
bled and separated? And what claim
which the Republicans presented for
suffrages four years ago will not be
weaker now than it was then.
We have already taken, and shall
hereafter take, occasion to picture with.
pen, as impartial as possible, and with
impulses as judicial as may be, the
various candidates that will be, and that
deserve to be, named in the Cincinnati
Convention. Our purpose is to cnlight-
en-. not to persuade. Our desire is
not to engineer in, or engineer out, any
candidate, but to truthfully portray all.
and we shall contribute something
toward giving fair play to all. If this
spirit shall become wide-spreadwec can
not but think that an excellent Cincin-
natl ticket will be the fruitful result.
But again we say that the Enquirer's
candidate is the Cincinnati nominee,
and that he will be elected. Cincinnati
Enquirer.
Mr.. Hayes has received letter
from 'sa soldier inclosing one hundred
and thirty dollars for the conscience fund.
The sender says that during the war he
stole a horse from the Government,
sold him. and pocketed the Proceeds.