Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1881-07-13
The Teachings of the Time.

strife has destroyed our mutual conn.,
dence. consumed our resources and
weakened our influence with other ma
tons. And now fractional enmities
threaten TO complete the wreck, and de-
strov the government itself. The ship
of State is evidently in imminent danger,
and as we are stationed on the lookout,
it is our duty to report faithfully what
we believe we see ahead. We may be
mistaken in our view, and God grant
that we may be, but nevertheless we
must make a full report to the COM
mander-the people of the United States
of what we discern.
The President of our country is the
suffering victim of an attempted assassi-
nation. His safety is not yet assured,
although we have hopes for the best.
Should he live, as every patriotic Ameri-
can prays for, all may yet be well. But
should he unfortunately die, what is the
prospect before us7 This is our con-
sideration, and it should be the study of
every intelligent citizen. In the retro
spect, forming an essential element
of the problem we are practically
solving, we find: that in the
year 1876 a President, the nominee of
the Democratic party, was duly elected
by the people; that the expressed will of
the people was VIGOROUSLY defeated,
however, by fraudulent counts of votes,
and by military intimidation of Congress;
that in consequence, the defeated candi-
date was installed unconstitutionally and
Illegally in the Executive Office, which
he occupied foz four years. by the forced
submission of the people to the fears OF
civil war.
We find further that at the expiration
of this forced Presidency upon the coun-
try the President who had inundated
the Congress with the cannon and troops
of the army, a successful and popular
military chieftain, pressed himself again
upon the people as a candidate for a
third term in the Executive office, con-
trary to the custom of the country; that
in this ambitious effort he was defeated
by General Garfield, of OHIO; that
the Democratic Republicans of the
political party to which both belonged
rallied around General Garfield, and
gave to him the nomination in prefer
euce to the third term aspirant; that a
personal feud followed this political
action, pursued with much heat by the
third-term or imperialist party, as it is
styled; that the leaders of the imperalists
attempted to interfere with General
Garfield's constitutional powers, after he
had been elected and Installed in Office as
President of the United States, and
failing in their attempt, two of them alb
ruptly and without reason abandoned
the trust confided in them by their State,
New York, and seek to humiliate her
still more by making her the endorser of
their bad faith and dishonest conduct;
that soon after the desertion of the New
York imperialists from the Senate. the
Vice President of the United States,
also from the State Of New York,
and an imperialist, too, adjourned the
Senate with deliberation, contrary to the
usage and descriptive right of that body,
thereby depriving the Senate of an &C
customed and necessary officer, and the
country of its successor to the Executive
Office, provided by law, in case of the
death OF disability of both the President
and Vice President; that there is rea-
sonable doubt of the eligibility of the
Vice President to his office, because
of foreign birth; that there is no Speaker
of the House of Representatives,
the third in the order of succession
legally to the Executive office, that
House not being in existence by reason
of expiration of service, and that IN con-
sequence the fourth in order by law is
the distant successor to the chief Office
of the country, until an election for
President and Vice President to fill the
unexpired term can be ordered, held,
and cOnsummated. 1t is still fur
Their notorious that there exists
enrolled, organized, armed and
equipped, ready for the field, sn
unconstitutional military organization,
six hundred thousand strong, styled
''The Army of the Republic" owing no
allegiance to the Constitution of the
country OF to the orders of the Presi-
dent, but obedient solely to the orders
of its General, the defeated aspirant for
a third term; that during the late Presi-
Dental canvass this Army of the Re
public" received and obeyed the orders of
the said General to support Mr.. Garfield
in the election, after an alleged cor
rupt bargain for political ends; that the
composition of this Army of the Repub-
lie is made up of whisky ring frauds.
star route thieves, and other infamous
social and political elements of the pop
ulation; that such creatures are the rev.
olutionary agents of designing men who
seek for the qualification of
their own selfish ambition at
the cost of popular liberty;
that President Garfield, the representa-
tive of Democratic Republicanism in the
Republican party, is the only obstacle to
the third-term or imperialist party in its
aim to possess and control the govern
ment of the country; and lastly, that
the personal characters and political
records of the leaders OF the imperialists
are such as to excite grave apprehensions
for the future government of the coun-
try should they, by President Garfeld's
death, succeed to his Office and powers.
These are facts, free from accusation
or innuendo, and command the attention
of an intelligent people at the present time
warned by the past Experiences of repub-
lies.
Our own Washington, the father of
our Democratic Republic. forewarned us
in his farewell address that "the alter
nate domination Of one faction over an.
other, sharpened by the spirit of revenge
natural to party dissension. which, in
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