The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1884-11-07
FOOLISH AND DANGEROUS THREATS.

EUULlSd AMI OANGhhUU0 IAhbA4o'
The New York Evening News last night
published the following incendiary paragraph
conspicuously on its editorial page
eve believe it to be our duty to caution
the friends of Blaine that any attempt to sub
vert the will of the people by tampering with
the returns will be perilous. The people, in
case of fraud in the returns, could not be
restrained. AS much we deprecate VIC
lence, we fear turbulence and bloOdshed would
be the result So beware~
The evident intention of the News is to
anticipate possible narrow plurality in favor
of Blaine by uttering insinuating threats
that it hopes might intimidate Republicans so
that they would not dare claim their own
Without at this writing knowing the result
of the election in New York, we venture to
predict that no violence will result, nor will
fraud be perpetrated or attempted, unless by
the party that has Systematically distorted the
electoral vote of the South so as to make pos
sible Democratic triumph. The Republican
party is not in the habit of committing fraud
in changing election returns, nor has it ever
tried to buy the electors of Florida,
of Louisiana and of South Carolina.
nor invented Cronin, of Oregon, nor resorted
to cipher dispatches traced to the very door of
a national candidate The man who has
plurality of the popular vote of New York
will be awarded its electoral vote, unless a
Democratic board of elections resorts to fraud.
There will be no trouble, and it is contempt
ible and criminal to incite violence by such
in6ammatory "cautions." If the returns
show Democratic plurality, there will be
no trouble, though the Republican
party is only too well aware Of
the fact that the Democratic
party went into this election with not
less than thirty seven Republican electoral
votes in its pocket, put there by the most
atrocious fraud and violence ever perpetrated
in a civilized nation If plurality is returned
for Blaine and Logan, they will receive the
benefit, not because of threats, but because
the sentiment of vast majority of the people
of New York and of the Nation will so decide.
The people of New York have never shown a
disposition to go into rebellion, nor to de-
feat the result of properly-appointed and
fairly-conducted elections. A majority or
plurality of ten thousand would never have
hundred or less, except, perhaps, by a char
acterless few bent on getting into power and
winning money by methods that can not in
honor be defended. We repeat: there will
be no general violence. The shoulder-hitters
of New York city, the hummer friends of the
New York News, may think their sentiments
are the sentiments of the people. They
would quickly discover their mistake. A vast
majority of the American people be-
lieve that the majority should rule.
If it be decided that Mr.. Cleveland
is entitled to "a majority of the electoral votes,
he will get them, and no one will stand by
that more firmly than Republicans. If he is
not entitled to them, he will not get them,
and his own friends, the best of them, would
unite with the majority against illegal pre-
tensions. The American people, North,
South East nor West are not easily turned
aside from their rights, The threats of gam
blers do not terrfy them. At critical
juncture, with the people wrought up to
fever heat over the doubtful issue of
Tuesdays balloting, anxious only to
understand and accept the popular verdict,