The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1886-07-17
Without a Leader and All Torn Up.

biity of the Democratic party to con-
duct the affairs of the Government |
becomes more glaringly apparent. In
the White House sits the President |
engaged in vetoing mass of small !
pension bills. sneering at the appli- |
cant and Congress in every message
and characterizing his state papers
with coarse wit.
Outside, his party are without a
head, without a principle or policy
on which they can unite. They can
not keep pledge they made the peo'
pie, and will not. Their pledge to
reform the tariff is dead letter. 1t
never was alive. Their pledge to
economic the expenditures of the
Government is another dead letter.
Their only attempts at economy have
been in the direction of repudiating
honest debts. Their pledges on Civil
Service reform have been broken over
and over again, and the whole mat
ter made laughing stock. Their
pledges in regard to the navy are all
broken because they dared not appro-
pirate the necessary funds. They
will make no provision for coast de
fenses for the same reason. The long
; session draws to a close and there is
only shown a list of sins of omission
and commission.
The President is not in accord with
his party, and every faction is dissat-
isfied with him. He has the contin-
ued applause of the Mugwumps only,
and the abuses of the civil service
law have turned even them against
him, with the exception of the most
extreme self-righteOus. He cOnsults
with none of his party. He has no
cOntidants or advisers. He deals
shortly with all of his party who 20
business. He has no policy on any
| subject, and let's the party scatter as
they may. and while his party's idea
of economy is the cutting off here and
there of little odds and ends of Gov
eminent Indebtedness in the "true
blue jeans" spirit. hi, idea of econo-
my is to veto pension bills on all sorts
of excuses, of four dollars and eight
dollars a month. The party's whole
idea of running the Government is to
make as small appropriations as pos
sible, for campaign effect. without re-
gard to the needs of the various de-
partments.
1t will show the people no SHIPS
and no Qualifications, and no reduc-
ton of Taxation, but it will point with
pride to the small approximation, say
ing nothing of the inevitable defici-
ency bills of the coming year, and
elaborate on the stump the petty and
peurie economies pracliced at the eX-
pense of the creditors of the Govern
ment, and the hampering and disab-
ling of the governmental machinery.
There is no Democratic party to-day.
There is the usual conglomerati0n
of conflicting elements marshaled I'M
der that name-elements without
common cause. leadership or cohe-
sion. There is the President, who
belongs to none of them. Where he,
stands on the tariff question no one
knows, except that he, parrot-llke,
repeats his Mugwump lesson on civil
service reform. while in all depart
ments under him the spirit and sub.
stance of the law are openly ignored
or coyertly betrayed. There are
Vance and Beck denOuncing civil
service reform, and the President
too, and in the House that cause has
not an honest adherent.
There is Randall for liberal appro
priatiOns, and Holman for his usual
penny ante economy ohjecting to ap.
preparations Tor every other district,
and working like beaver to get APP
preparations for his own.
There is Morrison for free trade,
backing up Carlisle in the same di-
rection, and Randall and his faithful
following for protection.
The floor of the House is daily the
scene of bitter factional fights be-
tween the inharmOniOus and conflict
ing wings of that "party." They can
unite upon nothing, and so this sea.
son, heralded with the flourish of re-
form bugles and rich in fiattering
promises, goes out in ignominous
failure. There will not be states
manlike net to point to, or the keep.
ing of single promise to boast of.
Party Squables characterize the DEM
cratic cOunsels, cowardlce and inefii-
cheney their legislation, aud disgrace