Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1884-11-08
THE MISTAKE OF THE CAMPAIGN

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count reverses the verdict declared by un-
. official returns. As soon as it became ap-
! parent that the vote in New York would be
close the entire Democratic press OF the
country. and even Governor Cleveland
himself. asserted the election of the Demo
cratic candidate. From this time until the
announcement of the official count the
Democratic press of the country, aided by
the Democratic politicians and by Mr.
Cleveland and Democratic Central Com
nlittees, will declare that Cleveland has
been elected and that any change from that
result will be conclusive evidence of fraud.
Whether the official returns shall give the
State of New York to Blaine, or otherwise,
the lessons of the campaign will remain the
same The radical error Of this campaign
from first 10 last was the attempt to revive
! the old Wing and Democratic alignment of
parties in this country. The effort to make
the doctrines of protection the one single
| issue of the campaign was a grievouS blum
der, and one which, in the very nature of
things, could not do otherwise than restore
the political domination of the South in
this Government.
The issues growing out of the extension
of slavery to the common territory of the
nation gave birth to the Republican party
and later the assertion of the right of Sc
ccssion on the part of a State, and the ext
genc;cs of the civil war, consolidated the
North on an alignment of patriotism and
treason. The Republican party in the i'm
mediate past campaign attempted the ex-
pertinent OF ignoring sectionalisln in this
country 1t based It's campaign upon an
! issue as cold and abstract Us the multiple
cation table. II presented a problem in po-
litcal economy upon which the best minds
of all countries have been divided 1t was an
issue calculated to divide the people of the
| South. as we'll as those of the North, into
| their natural national elements. For Illus
tration: The great leading interests Of
Louisiana are dependent for their existence
upon protection. The iron interests of
! Tennessee, which can control that State with
| the facility we have witnessed III Pennsyl-
vania in the control of that State, are
equally interested with Pennsylvania in
! the doctrine Of protection. In the days
OF the Union and the Constitution as it
was, Kentucky was Wing that is, at
tached to the doctrines of Henry Clay, and
uni:tlteringly loyal to the principles of pro-
lection. The result has proved that the IS
sue made by Mr., Blaine divided the North
but did not disturb or break up the solid
South. Why Louisiana, Kentucky and
Tennessee should remain with the solid
| South column is eXplainable only
by attIibuting the fact TO Il sec
tional motive. These States, whose
| interests are 50 strongly interviewer
with and dependent upon the policy of pro-
| lection, remain with the South, for reasons
which relate back to the issues of quarter
of century They refuse to accept the
living issues OF the present; they remain
with the South for Southern reasons and
for the accomplishment OF purposes dis
| tinctly Southern. The South maintains
,, its sectional attitude because it has hoped.
through the apostacy of two or three States
from the Northern section of the country,
to regain its ascendancy in this nation No
other Ineligible explanation is possible
From the very outset it must have been
evident 10 the people Of the Southern States
that the only hope OF Democratic success
in this country was in solid South and
since the Democratic party would owe its
triumph to that one fact the election of a
Democratic President would take the
sceptcr of power from the hands of the
great tree-State section and place it within
the grasp of thc slave-Statc section The
temptation o acquire this heritage Of power
was sufficient to overcome all considera-
lions OF private interests; hence, Louisiana,
a protection State by tradition instinct and
interest returns as large 4 Democratic ma
iority. proportionately, as any other South
ern State. THE purposes which solidilied
the lately seeded element in this country
are not far 10 seek. Once firmly cstab-
lishcd in the seat Of power, the Democratic
! party in the North viii grow stronger
States like Connecticut New Jersey. In
diana, and otherrortions of the North where
the vote is close. viii readily wheel into the
| Democratic line, but government will pro
cecd from the South as absolutely as if no
| electoral votes had been obtained north Of
! Mason and D;xon'> line IN this situation
! The South viii remain south; its soiidity
wiIl simplify the political problems Of the
country Itm0y be relied upon for a given
number or electoral votes, 10 which may
easily he added through the patronage of the
Government hereafter 10 he welded by Il
enough apD,iatc northern States to carry
| Presidential elections. itS domination IN
the nation once thoroughly and firmly
established, sectional views and sectional
| purposes VIII become easy Of achievement;
and foremost among these VIII lie found
! indemnity for the loss of slaves. and in
some measure the liquidation of the
Southern debt II is useless to say that
| constitutional amendments stand in the
way of the accomplishment of these OBJ
jects Constitutions are subject to amend
men,, alteration and app al and the lust
of power which within the living genera
ZION maintained the monstrous iniquity of
slavery Is quite equal 10 the accomplish
ment Of shy OF AL Of the objects herein
outlined
! Speaking Of the result, ii is plain that the
political police of Mr. Blaine has failed !;
and even if nc had been elected President.
ii would have failed SO far rs it was de
| signed to break and disturb Southern unity
| OF political action From the very first we
deprecated the attempt to revive the old
Wing aud Democratic alignment Of parties
in this country. We do not believe in the
doctrines of protection We supported Mir
Blaine because we believed the tariff issue
to be false issue in this campaign and
because above and beyond il there were
more flr-rcaching reasons for the continued
supremacy Of the Republican party Not
withstandinc the effort to ignore H. the
question a 10 whether government should
proceed from the loyal or disloyal sections Of
this Union is and will remain q vital ques-
ton until the broken unity OF the South