Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1883-10-17
.Chs Repnblirar.
TIE DEFEAT IN OHIO.
(ATERTOlVN, WIS, OCTOBER IL.

It is not hard to discover the causes
which led to the Republican defeat in
Ohio last week. The prohibtionists can
be mainly held responsible for the disas-
ter. Then again the action of the Re
publican Congress in taking off the tariff
on wool worked against the Republican
ticket, The Columbus, Ohio, correspond
ent of the Inter Ocean speaking the
morning after the contest had this to say
on the situation:
The Democrats have succeeded in
capturing everything. 1t has been more
than forty years since they have held all
the avenues to power, The have finally
secured them by an accident. This is
the second time the temperance agitators
have defeated the Republican party.
They were practically forced to father its
schemes, and when they went to the
polls they betrayed it away for senti-
ment. They played a dishonest game
in the hope OF securing the second
amendment, and the Democrats secured
the fruits of hypocrisy. 1t cannot be
charged this year that the Germans are
responsible for the defeat. In the bitterest
fight against their beer ever known III
this state they stood by the Republican
ticket; while the people in the country
districts gave it away. They did
serious days work yesterday and its ei-
only reYolutionize the political machinery
of the State, but it has destroyed the faith
of all thinking people in the movement.
1t has been well-knOwn fact here for
years that the so called temperance news
papers were gotten up for no other pur :
pose than to be the recipients of tribute
from both the Democratic and Republic
an committees. Now in the election of
yesterday it clearly appears from the re-
turns that in country districts Prohib-
ton votes were traded off with Demo
Gratis. Under ordinary circumstances the
Democratic vote would be much heavier
than it is.
On the same day the Mansfield Her
aid published the following interview
with Senator Sherman: From returns
received so far, am prepared to say that
the Democratic ticket is elected. | at
tribute our defeat to complications grow~
ing out of the temperance fusion one
month ago upon the basis of the Scott
law. I had no doubt of the election of
Judge Foraker, but it is manifest that
the attention of the Republicans was
turned more and more to the contest
on the second amendment, and upon
that question we lost all,the German vote
and the large conservative vote that was
not satisfied that prohibition was advisa-
BILE in Ohio. | know no other reason for
our defeat, and have entire confidence
that on general political issues the state
is thoroughly Republican. The contest
on the temperance question was unavoid
able, and we had the misfortune to lose
the whole Of the German Republicans,
while not single Democrat voted for
the Republican ticket in consequence of
our temperance measures. Many thous-
and Democrats, no doubt, voted for the
second amendment who yet voted the
straight Democratic ticket. If, as I sup
pose, the Democrats have carried the
Legislature, they will have the burden
of the temperance question, and if they
fail to meet the advancing state of public
opinion in Ohio on that question they
will be defeated, as we have been. do
not think that our defeat will have any
effect on the Republican party of the
country"
A dispatch from Cincinnati dated o.
tober II, says of the result:-Both
political parties in this state seem to be
dazed by the popularity of the re-
suit of Tuesdays election. What puz-
zles the Democrats is that they have lost
where they should have gained and
gained where they should have lost. The
same thing compels the Republicans to
wonder at and analyse the figures.
Judge Foraker attributes his defeat to
the zeal of. the temperance Republicans
in behalf of tie Prohibition amendment
Both candidates eare agreed, or Judge
Hoadley attributes his success to the
same thing.