The Valley Virginian. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1865-1895, 1882-05-25
"TJnhOlv Alliances

sUnholy Alliances"
1t is a common thing for the Bourbon
press to declaim against the coalition In
Virginia of Readjusters and Republicans
as an unholy alliance, and denounce it as
the sum of all political william les. The
cause for this is that it was successful, and
the result of that success the ejectment OF
the Bourbon party from the high and low
places of the State. But boil the matter
down, get at its substance, and there is in
finitely more honesty and consistency in
this coalition than there is in the organiza-
ton of what has been known as the Con-
sentative party and now the Bourbon fac
ton. There was but one question upon
which Republicans differed from the Read
busters and that was the State debt. While
the several bills of settlement were neither
of them what they should have been. when
they passed to the Courts and were there
acted upon, the Republicans commended
that it was the duty of the people to respect
those tribunals and abide their determine.
ton. The Republicans differed as widely
from the Bourbons as they did from the
Readiusters on this question, for the former
had no practical, definite proposition to
make, while the latter had. But on all
other questions, State and National, there
is an identity of belief with the two ele-
ments of the coalition. In State matters
the Republicans demanded the repeal OF the
capitation tax restriction on the ballot. and
the whipping-post law, and so did the Re-
adiusters. The Republicans demanded
change in the method of administering the
school fund and the appropriation OF the
moneys the Constitution dedicated to them,
and so did the Readjusters. Through the
coalition forces these changes and reforms
have been effected, in defiance Of the Oppo-
sition of the Bourbons. In national affairs
the Republicans favor tariff not only for
revenue. but for the protection of our in
dustries, as means of developing the ag-
ricultural and m neral resources Of the
country, and giving employment to our home
labor. They favor the natio nal banking
system as the best financial agency the
country has ever had. The Readjusters
proclaim for both of these truly American
measures, while the Bourbons as party
oppose them, preferring free trade and a
consequent destruction Of American enter
prise, and State banks, a sure precursor to
business wreck and ruin. The Republicans
favor free ballot and fair count, and
this Readjusters aided us in securing in Vir-
ginia, and in Congress have voted to!rebuke
the fraudulent practices in other States and
seat the members the people elected, but
who were defrauded out of their seats by
methods alone pecu liar to the Democrat ic
party.
These points OF agreement ought to JUS
tify, in the estimation of the country, the
coalition made in Virginia last fall, and
which will be maintained, to a greater or
less extent, this fall. Upon all these the
Republicans were opposed by the Bourbons.
There was not single proposition upon
which they agreed, and not to have assisted
the Readjusters, who agreed with them,
would have been to elect the BourbOns who
did not agree with them.
1t comes with bad grace from the Bour-
bons to designate any coalition Of political
forces as an ''unholy alliance" That fac
ton is composed of elements which agree
upon nothing but a struggle for spoils.
There are those in it who recogn ize the
injustice and wrong of the cap itat ion tax
restriction, and the brutality of the VIII ip-
ping-post-who favor the public schools to
the utmost extent Of the constitutional
limit-who believe in protective tariff and
the national banking system, but who are
silenced on all of these points by the pre-
dominant and controlling sentiment Of their
associates. There are in the Bourbon fac
ton those who oppose and those who favor
an unrestricted ballot-those who oppose
and those who approve the whipping-post
law-those who advocate the present
tariff laws and those who oppose
those who believe in the national banking
system and those who would substitute it
with State banks-those who were honestly
in favor of paying the debt inl accordance
with the arrangements of the funding bills
and those who were willing to repudiate
the whole of it, If by that means they could
retain power.
What kind of coalition is this? If
there was ever an ''unholy alliance" it is
here to be found. Men differing on every
important measure of State and National
policy, but coalescing to retain control Of
the State, that the Offices might be divided
among them.
Let these sanity patriots take the beam
out of their own eye before they undertake
to pluck the mote from their neighbours.