Port Tobacco times, and Charles County advertiser. (Port Tobacco, Md.) 1845-1898, 1882-08-18
AS ID the Next House.

PLANTATIONS an entirely adequate concep-
ton of the Importance of the Congress
sionel elections of this year, but there are
as yet few signs of any unusual interest in
.he result on the part of the voting masses.
In fact there is, in most Of the States, an
obstinate sort OF apathy, a dom cent
kind of feeling that must be extremely
discouraging to professional politicians.
Later in the season there may come
a warming up of the populacc. The bugle
notes of the organs and clarion tones of
stump orators may strike responsive
chords in the popular heart, and the fires
that were banked in November, 1880, and
over which the ashes have long been cold,
may be, to some extent, rekindled from
the few sparks that have not utterly
died out. This will certainly be the case
if experience may be accepted as a relia
bic index of what the future holds.
The control of the next House is an OBJ
ject of sufficient Importance to induce and
not impressed on the Democratic mind too
many lessons on the folly of premature
exultation, we should be strongly inclined
to set down the victory as already virtual
ly won. But the Republican party has
heretofore shown superb capacity, to pluck
victory from the jaws of defeat. More
h,p n, -,
decisive heat of a hoty contested race
that party has forged ahead on the last
quarter and shot by the judges stand half
a length ahead. Adm ,nished by this kind
of experience, we have learned not to
count political chickens until they are
quite clear of the shells, and not to bid
the Democratic roos er to crow until en-
tirely out of the woods.
When one takes a calm survey of the
situation, looking at the facts Of the case
as they exist on Friday, il seems as if the
probabilities were strongly on the side of
Democratic success. Only very few
gains are required to put the organization
of the next House into Democratic hands
The Democratic party is united, while the
opposition is burst into bel igerent fac
tions, each more desIrous of destroying
the other than of delivering blows on the
head of their old enemy. In almost every
northern State there is bitter feud be-
tween Stalwarts and Liberals, or Admins
tration Republicans and Garfield Repub
licans-successors respectively to the
Grant and anti-Grant factions of 1Ss9-S0
In number of States, notably in Ohio
and Indiana the liquor question has pro-
duced great Generalization in the Re
publican organization. In all commu-
mites of those ates where the German
Republicans hold the balance of power
the Republicans are prepared for defeat,
being satisfied that any result more cheer |
ful is out of the question. Thus, in Gin
cinnati, the defeat, OF two Repub lean
candidates for Congress is frankly conced- |
ed. In all human probability there will
be gains of Democratic Congressman in
in New York, several in Pennsylvania.
three to six in Ohio, two or three in In |
diana, two in Missouri, and scattering
gains are contidentially expected in other
States.
The only hope which the Republican
managers have of securing any offset for
these losses depends on the success of
what they call the anti Bourbon move2e
ment in the South That so-called move I
ment is an attempt to unite all element
of opposition 20 the straight Demo /
crazy. Disaffected Democrats. Green i
hackers, Independents and Republicans
are expected to pool their issues, as the
Readjusters and Republicans have done
in Virginia in two campaigns, and by this
means it is family and feebly hoped that
there may be sufficient gains in the South
to compensate for inevitable and conceded
Republican losses in the North.
But there are up to this time no indi-
cations that the proposed movement will
amount to enough to cut an imposing
figure in the election returns Indeed its
most earnest supporters confess to serious
disappointment and growing discourage
ment. They find the obstacles to the
union of discordant elements much more
serious than they expected, and they are
beginning to despair of majority in the
Forty eighth Congress-Post.