The Abilene reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1883-1888, 1884-05-08
The Democracy and the Presidency.

There is certain degree of negative
,omfoIt taken by many Republican
papers in the fact that DEMO- ratio
sentiment has not thus far shown any
tendency to settle upon q candidate for
the Presidency. This is assumed to in
dicate either an an absence of faith in
the ability OF the party to win in the
coming contest or the existence irrec-
oncilabie and mutually destructive fac
tons. Nobody, they tell US, can say
positively whether Tilden will be in the
field or not, and there is quite as little
assurance that he would be welcomed
if he did enter the lists. Cleveland and
Bayard have, it is true, been spoken of
respectively with marked favor, and
even Payne has not been suffered to
waste his fragrance on the desert air of
the Senate; but around neither of these
gentlemen has there vet been anything
in the nature of a well defined move
ment formed: and what is true of them
holds concerning the whole list of DEM
ocratic statesmen, If we except the
manifestations made on behalf of Mr..
Flower. In explanation of this remark
able absence of the ''bOoms" aud other
organized Efforts familiar to politicians
the dispute over the tariff Is referred
to. This, it is said, has b, pelessly split
the party, first by dividing Demo
Gratis and those who will not vote for
protcctioniSt and those who will have
neither part nor lot in the work of rev.
-enue reform, and secondly by so setting
the recognized leaders by the ears that
either set would rather see the Repub-
licans trium ph than have the opposite
side of their own household attain to
victory. 1t does not, however. appear
to the Eagle that there is anyt ing in
the situation to JUST y either Republic
an exultation or Democratic des )ond-
ency at this stage of the game. On the
contrary, as matters stand, we believe
the Democrats have more chances in
their favor than were on their side in
the early part of 1876, the year in
which they swept the country, but were
cheated out of the fruit of their labor to
the advantage of that darling of Repub-
li.an politics, Rutherford b. Hayes. They
have not only on their side the disclos-
ure of the frauds OF all nds practiced
under the hypOcritical mask of the
Hayes A minis rat on, but they have the
proof conclusive FINISHED by the fiasco
Uf the Star-ROute tr ais under Arthur
that he who expects corrupt party to
cleanse itself in office is looking for
VII It never did nor ever will occur; and
added to these are the ev denccs on
every hand that the men in power have
Called alike in the work OF fostering the
trade, maintaining or reviving the
shipping, uphold NO TIE honar and
prov dug for the defense OF the
country against its enemies. Whrn
the average American tiZen comes
10 vote he will unquestiOnably ask him
self what OBJ ects of interest TO HIM are
10 be subserved by givinc the Repub-
Leans an Their lease of power, and when
lie asks the question he wi have to find
Il mind more ingenious than his own to
furnish a sati 'factOry answer. The
fortresSes without gun: the ships of
war that excite the derision of the
world; the Civil Service male obedient
TO the most offensive poll zeal dictstion;
the public domain divided between
great corporations: ban ing system
maintained for the benefit OF bankers,
and not the people; race pre- udices
fomented and Reputation made to do
service for patriotism in the Southern
States; a President who, surrounded
by the chief expon-nis of Repu licanjsm
in the country, did honor to the organ
iZer OF the Star-rOute frauds and deemed
it glorious Jest that this person had
successfully corrupted a commonwealth;
and, above all, the confessed prostitu-
ton of the department of Justice to
II. no
things which will attract the honest
citizens attention; and they will
not, ia the Eagles judgment, s EN-
to him to be reasons for renew
inc trust so o ten and so gre ssly
violated. With such an adversary wnat
is there to prevent the Democracy from
securing the coniiden e of the people?
There is abso' utely nothing if the party
in both Houses of the National Legs
lature have made an unasSailablc record
for strict economy and integrity. BY
them and not by Republicans tie bur
dens of the p ople have been lightened,
and from their presence, not from that
o their opponents, the lobbyists who
infested the chambers of Congress fled.
They can point to more than half the
ability to govern wisely, and pre-emi-
nently to the State of New York. which
will be the heart of the Presidential
contest. There is no fair test which
can be applied to statesmen or to a
political organization which will not
present the Democrats as many times
over more worthy to rule this land than
the party whose foremost candidate to-
day is the hero of the Mulligan CORE
spondence, whose last Speaker of the
House of Representatives was keifer
and whose present Chief Ma istrate
was. and or all we know still is, the
eulogist and crony of Dorsey. AS to
the fear of Democratic di>sension we do
not see what there is 10 base it on, TN
less it be assumed that the minority
led by Mr.. Randall intend to bolt the
cket if they are not permitted to name
the candidate or frame the issues. We
do not believe that Mr.. Randall has the
remotest thought of boiling, and we are
quite sure that if he did he won not
take any considerable number Dem
ocrats with him, for in party sense the
question of what shall be said or done
with the tariff is pre-eminently one to
be ,ettled by the vote of tie ma ritv.
The man who quits the Democratic
camp because the Democracy is resolved
to simplify the customs duties. is not
Democrat. With this as the outlook, it
is to tine advantage of the party that it
has not vet done much talking about
candidates. In the fact that the voters
and the politicians are uncOmmitted lies
strong ground for contiden e. In this
there is proof that the ground is to be
surveyed calmly and the bearings OF the
fight taken into consideration before the