The Cheyenne daily leader. [volume] (Cheyenne, Wyo.) 1870-1884, 1881-10-15
THE ~ELEcrIok or DAVIS.

farce; to others, a political necessity;
while a respectable portion of the peo-
pie look upon it as q species of political
trimming that bodies no good to the re-
%publicans.
Davis has been a balance ofpower in
the senate and therefore an autoerat.
When a measure did not please him he
voted against it, and thus be upset the
calculations of a political party as rep
resented on the floor Of the senate. II
a measure wooed his fancy his vote de-
cided it afiirmatiyely. Hence he virtu-
ally controlled the senate. Republicans
or democrats resolved upon matters for
the action of the senate not knowing the
result until the vote was taken and it
was seen how Mr.. Davis had voted.
Naturally he came to be regarded with
deepest solicitation. The republicans
saw no hope of gaining the ascendancy,
and SO the plan of electing Davis as
presiding officer was conceived and ar
ried out.
To a disinterested ~on-looker, it resem-
bles a comedy. MI. Davis was SO
strangely varied that he was ever fear
full of being charged with craftsmanship.
His vote always went to the opposite
side on such occasions. Yet when he
is nominated for the presidency of the
senate, he calmly and quietly submits,
and therefore contributes TO his own ell
ection. 1t must be borne in mind that
Davis stated that he would not vote to
unseat Bayard. Had any republican
senator been named in Logan's resolu-
ton, instead OF Davis, the latter would
have voted with the democrats. Know
ing this, Bayard would also have voted.
Then no change would have resulted,
because of a tie vote. So Davis has
been inconsistent. lie has contributed
to the election Of a successor to Bayard,
but only because 1t was himself who
became that successor. Indeed, Davis
was not the choice of the republicans.
They secretly despise him. But they
wished TO have IN acting vice president
who VAS not a democrat, and, In order
to prevent Davis from voting with the
democrats they nominated him-they
bought his silence.
And what are they to get in return
for this remarkable political movement
They have been pledged nothing. Davis
is not the man to make political prom
ises. Nor is he the presiding officer
of the senate who will vote Affirmative
ly upon every republican measure, for
then he would be open to criticism.
Having distributed his favors hereto
fore, he could not consistently reward
them exclusively to the republicans now.
because Of the obvious charge that he
had sold himself for his election. He
will not thus expose himself; he will
vote contrary occasionally, SIM
ply to be consistent. This looks par
adcxical, but it is nevertheless true.
Davis is still an unknown factor. A
prominent republican senator has de-
that the republicans have no
pledgesffom Davis, nordothey know how
he will vote on partisan questions. TAX
ing this to be the fact, and it seems
most rational, the republicans may yet
have occasion to regret their action.
They knew, exactly, Bayard's' position.
They don't know where Davis stands;
only know that he sits in the chair
the presiding officer.
But it may be that the republicans
in reality secured Davis by the
sop of office, and that he will stand by
the republicans through evil and good
If so it will prove the hollow
ness of Davis pretensions heretofore,
and must awaken the disgust of the
very men who found themselves forced
buy him. 1t will prove that he is a
who knows no motive but
office, and whose silence can only be
secured by favor. The future will dem
onstrate the facts.
The trouble is with Davis that the
presidential bee buzzes loudly in his bon
net. lie left the United States supreme
bench in order to %re-enter active poll
tics with the hope of a presidential NOM
He would have accepted
the democratic nomination a year ago,
and he would just as readily have con-
TO head the republican ticket
But he vas not hidden by either party.
he nov secs u chance for u
of his ambition. Should
die before his presidential term
Davis would become acting pres
dent Of the United States, and would
continue so to be until a general election
could be held for the selection Of a pres
dent, of the peoples choice. At least
several months of the presidency would
be vouchsafed him, and possibly he
trusts conidingly in his great big, fat
soul, that he would become the nominee
of the successful party and thus sail in
to the presidential chair as president
de tacto and de jure. This is doubtless
his day-dream.
However, Davis is only human; he is
built of clay, like the rest Of we mortals,
only there is more Of him. He is posi-
bly, more human, on this account, and
therefore more liable to err. He has
shown that when he takes the chances
OF erring he shapes things for his own
advancement and errs accordingly. The
people await with great interest the re.
suit of this strange and weird political