Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1883-01-27
WHy DEMOCRACY MUsr sUls.
Cincinnati News.

The attempt of the Republicans
to make their organization conform
! to the facts and suit with the sec-
tiOnal character OF the party, the
! failure of the plan, and the conflict
it renders inevitable, emphasizes
| the strong contrast between the
Democracy and the Republican
party. ..,,,. ...
None can deny the intelligence
and worth of the Republican party
in many States, and often its supe-
rior intelligence and worth. Un-
fortunately, none can deny the ex-
ceedingly low standard OF the party
in those States where il consists of
an unthinking, ignorant vote,
which never reasons, discusses ques-
tions or arrives at policies as they
are arrived at in Massachusetts.
These are marshaled by an ignorant
but shrewd and INSCRIPTIONS lead
ership. There are honorable ex-
ceptiOns of intelligent and worthy
headers and of intelligent voters,
but the rule is the other way. OF
course no true party can exist under
such conditions. AT best the bond
is a blind faith, a mere sentiment,
and not that intelligent conception
\ of public questions which is the re-
suit of discussion and thought, the
result of which Is genuine party.
Republicans resent this view as a
reflection upon the image of God in
ebony, an iconOclastic assault upon
Republican idols, and proceed to
say that, if this is true, slavery,
shot-guns, Southern suppression Of
free speech have made it true. The
only point worth considering is that
it is true. There Is NO such free
party capitalization on the Republi
can side in South Carolina as in
Massachusetts,. a1-'nH ti.ai1uu
Democracy is just the reverse OF
this. 1t has the benefit of the ever
age common sense jugdment OF the
people everywhere, all over this
country. 1t may be of higher
standard here than there il never
goes to the extremes of judgment
here or there. 1t is never guided
by the impracticable idealists of one
quarter nor by the lowest standards
of morals and Intelligence of anoth-
er. 1t strikes, from Texas to Maine
and from Oregon to Florida, that
general average of intelligence and
morals which must rule until we
get nearer the millennium. In
other words, Democracy is truly
national party, whose thinking and
discussion, preliminary to action
and application of principles in par
ty policy and in government, is
done all over this country. 0 -fef-
The Republican party may enlist
a high intelligence and a lofty NOR
al standard In Massachusetts II
can only enlist in South Carolina an
intelligence and political morality
little removed from that of Guinea.
About thirteen States contribute no
thought, do NO thinking for it, and
possess no Republican party, hav-
ing true party lie, or capable of
contributing to the solution of great
questions. .ts .r...f.4 .aff.
Democracy may he better in some
States than Others, possessing higher
intelligence and higher standards
in Georgia than in Louisiana, in
Delaware, than in Arkansas, in
New York than in Missouri, i'm
Delaware or Maryland than in New
York; but it adopts nowhere an
ideal too high for practical life or
designing policy low enough to
degrade instead of proving wise
step in practical progress. Its line
of thought and ofprogress lies every
where close TO the average practical
standard of human life, and such is
the party which must govern this
country, because, such party alone
is capable of well governing the
whole country. That can not be
done by party which has no genu-
inc party existence, based on free
thought, except in about twenty-five
States of the Union it proposes to
govern. # H.f #' EH,y...#