Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1884-04-24
FROM WASHINGTON.
rErom our R.aslar corr,.rond,rt.l

f@N~rA
WASHINGTON. ID. c.. April Is. 1884.
The Danville investigation by Sena-
tor Sherman's special committee, is
attended at intervals, with some inter
esting tilts between members of the
committee and the witnesses, and some
of them are something more than excit-
ing. The evidence of Mr.. DezendOrf
last Tuesday, and that of citizens of
Copiah county last week, will furnish
Mr.. lamar with all the pabulum re-
quisite for an interesting speech. He
has been watching these investigations
with eager interest, and he doubtless
intends to give us the result of his OBJ
servations. He finds that most of the
Northern people are ignorant of the real
condition of that sentiment in the South
among the negroes that interprets
Democracy to mean that slavery is to
be restored and negroes again reduced
to bondage. The Democrats in Missis-
sippi, while in numerical minority of
$4,000, go on year after year securing
victories, to the surprise of those who
take it for granted that the 10000 ne
groes, i'm excess of the whites, are all
Republicans, and that Democratic sue
cess must therefore come through fraud.
This theory is not by any means cor
rect, for the negroes are not organized
as are the whites, and they are apa-
thetic at elections unless impelled by
some strong sentiment. They conceive
that their interest and those of the men
who, possessing the wealth, the learn
ing and the governing experience and
conservative opinions, have striven for
the control of power, the collections and
expenditure of taxes, and the main
tenance of good order. In the elabo-
ration of these points, Mr.. Lamar will
invite long and it may be most in
teresting controversy.
The end, aim and object of the Demo-
cratic party is to protect labor from the
reaction of enormous and grinding mo-
nopolies. The argument that is urged
against tariff reduction is that it will
tend to reduce American labor to the
condition of the ''pauper labor" of for
eign countries, which if true should put
an end to any debate on tariff reform.
But, see if it is true. To day the spin
ners of Fall River, to the number OF
10000, are working on two-thirds time,
while every loom in England is running
full time, and while our cotton manu-
facturers enjoy heprotection of an aver
age fifty per cent duties, the wages OF
American operatives are no higher than
those of the English spinners. Mr.
Shaw, the consul at Manchester, Eng
land, in his last report says: Opera,
tives here are the best paid and most
comfortable working class in England
and their influence and wealth are in
creasing at a rapid rate" Mr.. Shaw is
a Republican, and yet he gives this un
biased evidence in regard to what we are
pleased to call "pauper labor" in free
trade England. The Manchester op
eratives are happy and contented, while
the Fall River spinners are fighting
and fighting continually, against re-
duction of wages that has aggregated in
three years more than sixty-seven pei
cent, and more now threatened. The
contrast is one worthy the study of the
politician as we'll as the political econo
mist. When properly studied out, it il
possible that the American operative:
may desire 10 shake off a system tina
robs them of their earnings under tht
swindling pretense of protecting them
| Everybody remembers when the ole
public functionary, James Buchanan
was President, his beautiful niece, Har
riet Lane, presided at the Width House
and never, since the days of Mrs. Madi
son, have the honors of the Executive
Mansion been administered with mOr'
grace. She at once became so popula
: that revenue cutter was christenet
; after her, and once upon time she &C
cepted an invitation to take passage il
the vessel from Washington to New
York. This simple act, which was il
violation ofall precedent in the history
of the Republic, called forth mos
stern rebuke from the President, abou
whose ears came animadversions from
. all parts of the country. How differen
things are in these days, though hardl.
two decades have passed since this sim
, pie social innovation! The successor
, of Mr.. Buchanan, with the exception O
Mr.. Johnson, have used the vessels O
the navy for purposes of pleasure with
out regard to time, season or expendi
ture. Grant led off in the business
Hayes followed it up, and Arthur ha
| outdone them both by using one vesse
for himself during the summers of las
year and the year before, while he sen
his daughter on junketing tour ii
, another. Nor is this all of it, nor tn
. worst of it, for three weeks ago the U.
man-of-war Yantic was dispatched t
the Bahamas by Secretary Chandler t.
bring home the family of Mr.. Edmunds
,, the upright, the incorruptible and &C
: complished Senator from Vermont, an
who expects to be in position mex
wear to reciprocate these hospitalitie