Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1883-01-26
A Decades Record.

publican party. lJS Cnlct icauerS anu
friends demanded reform. but their de-
TaAhd was treated with contempt by
the mercenarieS who represented the
President, and Charles Sumner and the
galaxy OF men who joined him were
obliged to prose ute tho aim from n
position outside the party they had so
long served and honored. The revolt
was formidable one, and the move
ment inaugurated at Cincinnati, with
Charles Francis Adams as its standard
bearer, might have averted the dispen-
satiOn OF organized plumber and the t
which have noo so woofully afflicted
every branch OF the Civil Service. But
this was not to be. George William
Curtis and the Republican reiormers of
his tyl e demanded reform within the
party" and could not tolei ate the idea
of boiling. They said the way to re-
form the party was to stay in it, and
that to Join the Democrats, or unite in
forming new party. would only open
the way for the return of the rcOetS to
power. The Republicans had put down
the rebellion and emancIpated the
slaves, and it was better TO endure the
maladm .nistration OF the Government
country to the enemy. The Same cry
was raised in 1876. The work of ere
form within the party had made no
Roadway, and t-rantism. with all that
that word implied. had more complete
ly than ever secured tho control OF the
party; but the same pOlicv o! reform
inc from within was still insisted upon,
and the same reprobatiOn of boiling
was everywhere pronounced. The
''rebels" must DO kept out of powerand
the fruits o. the war pre- served, and this
could only 10 done by Loyalty support
ing the old organization.
The organs and the leaders PLAYED
the same old tune in 1880, and the Re-
publican hosts kept step to the Same
music. IL looked a. il this deplnrable
patty in atuation would be ab O to per-
petuate itself indei itelv. aud bv the
power Of the spols and the skilliul use
of the machine, es,a sh polit cal serf-
dom over the people. from which there
cou be no peaceable escape.
But gre t lighehas finally dawned
upon the MI, and 1852 sends its greet
ing To 1872. ''Reforn within tho
party" is as "a tale that is told" Mr..
Curtis gives il up. and h s fellow labor
ers and fellow boilers are now numbered
by thousands and even hundreds of
thousands. The lenders of these indie
pendent ma SEES tell US that their act on
is lie that OF the Conscience Wings"
and Free SOilerS thirty-four years ago,
and that re o m with n the party" can
hest be no omplished by its overthrow.
They say that as long as par sue
Goods by corlupt method aud unprinci-
pied leaders, Il W II contin and wax
stronger in its evil ways, and that The
first thing to be done is to crush it.
Th is eXac ly whit the Republican
boilers of 1872 told their political
brethren, and it was lust as true then as
it Is 70 dlv. But time makes more
converts u reason 1t took the old
Wings ong VIII 10 to find out that t o
Free Sol err were right; but at last they
made the d ScoveTy. and were o ad to
be admit ed in o the Lew communion.
80 it has taken the Republican boilers
of 1917 ten years 10 find out th t the
men they SO b tterly denOun ed IN 1872
were right. and that bOltin sad ne
prerogaiive. but thov havo at | st
been enlightened. while they have abun-
dant reason lor following in the foot
steps OF Their h'g predecessors in their
future political acton. The change is
wonderful. The O ections OF this ear
will he remcmbeled rs a great epoch in
American poll les They show that the
sober secon1 thought OF the PEOPLE can
he trusted. and strengthen the faith OF
good men in opua in titutiOns. What
u pity IL that , rceley and Sumner
could not have we'd to witness their
splendid vindication in the pol teal
revolution of 1881 IL is Almost enough
to make them urn over in he graves
They were hunted to death because hey
rebelled az uns he ! oil teal buccaneers
Mt the party helm. They were in.
solenlly EN- nded that 'the Repuhl can
party ron .er than any man in the
party" and hat They must obev S
orders or b. shot as deserters. They
were branded as apo>tates. rebels and
Voneeades but they wer1 rght. ter
q aud history has already SO made its
record, VIII le Cameron. Conklng and
the other once amOus Republican hos G.
have NH ed hemse yes and the 7
machine into "a common ditch. Let us
vcjoice.
This rout OF the Pepub leans is final.
They talk al ont a lying the r. forces OF
another engage cent, but the. dO not
te.ieve q rOwn wo ia The feel that
tho bolt witch has shi cred th ,ir or.
guniIat ON IL the holt o. death. The I
te cat is Ike { q dc eat of the Wings in
1872. when they carr o only four states
and for y-two electoral votes They
said II was not muol OF shower and
that they would again rally. Us they had
so often done be ore but their for, es we're
never rallied. ii ed OF the Democ
racy had long lao Il the party together.
but 10 u as Gle d in is tres passes. and nc
hand could save it The Kepub leans
talk ab u gathering new Ii from the
plumbers and mistakes of the emoo
acv; but this ammun ton has beer
used too of en- to DO any longer ayalla
Die. 10 Il / safe count on extensive
Democratic blum lering. and no amo mi
OF IL would rec ncile the Republ G n
boilers OF to dav To The longer rule O
their leaders These leaders. no doubt
are quite ready to change their base n :,
the late election rs. hey are prepared
to make any required profess onS o DO
htical righteousne. s; Tut they have
sinned so long that no death bed re
pentance W u now. be accented. W.
do NOT that sho