Port Tobacco times, and Charles County advertiser., 1886-11-12
DortG obacroGimes
PORT TOBACCO:
Friday Morning ......November IL, 1885,
The Recent Elections.

held Its own all along the line, and that
the party is in better position than be-
fore the election. The House of Represen-
tatives is still Democratic by clear ma
jority Of fifteen over all opposition. This
gives the Democrats an effective working
majority in the lower house of Congress
and they thus maintain their power to
shape legislation in the next House more
effectively, perhaps, than in the present,
where the too large Democratic majority
impaired the cohesiveness OF the party Or
ganization and disturbed the unity and
harmony of the action of the majority
With a smaller majority, as experience
proves, the party will be better united in
its policy and action.
And while thus substantially holding
their own in the lower house, the Demo
Gratis have made decided gain in the
Senate. The Legislatures of the States OF
New Jersey, Indiana and California pass
ed under Democratic control at the late
election. which, allowing Senator-elect
Daniel, of Virginia, to stand against the
new Republican Senator from Oregon will
give the Democrats net gain of three
seats in the next Senate The Senate will
then stand 81 Democrats to 80 Republicans
When it is remembered that among the
80 Senators thus given to the Republicans
are numbered Senator Van Wyck, of Ne
braska, who holds decidedly independent
views and often kicks quite outside of the
party harness upon important questions,
and Senator Riddleberger, of Virginia,
who frequently voted with the Democrats
at the last session, it will be seen that the
Republicans will have a very uncertain
hold upon the upper house of the next
Congress.
This very favorable result of the recent
elections will be regarded with still greater
satisfaction from the Democratic stand
point when viewed in comparison with
the past political history of the country
In the ''off years" or intervening congres
sional elections between the Presidential
campaigns the dominant party has almost
without exception sustained losses, and
generally decided reverses Such has been
the u2broken precedent of the last forty
five years. Never since 1910 has the par
ty which named the President been able
to return as many members to the Con
gress elected in the middle of the Presi-
dental term as to that which was elected
at the same time with the President. The
wings in 1S40 swept the country and elect
ed whig House as well as whig Presi-
dent. Two years later the House of Re-
presentatives contained Democratic ma
jority of no less than sixty-sne. Although
the popular vote as between Clay and Polk
was in 1874 very eTenlJ divided, Mr. Polk
on entering upon his admins ration found
In the House of Representatives of the
Twenty y-ninth Congress an administration
mojority of sixty-two. But when the
Thirtieth Congress met the administration
was faced with an adverse majority in the
House of eleven, and whig (Winthrop,
of Massachusetts, was elected Speaker
The wings in 1S4S, although they elected
Gen. Taylor President, returned four less
than one-half of the House of Representa-
tiyes. This very evenly divided House
was, however, in two years replaced by
one in which the opponents of the whig
administration outnumbered its support
ers in the proportion of about thirteen to
eight. The Democratic deluge of 1852,
which carried every State in the Union
save tour for the Democratic electoral
ticket, brought with it House of Repre-
sentatives, in which there was a Democra-
tic majority of eighty-four.
The rise of the know nothing party and
the opposition caused by the passage OF
the Kansas Nebraska act, completely al
tered the situation, and the very next
House had an antiDemocratic majority OF
seventy five. The Democratic party soop
recovered portion at least of its strength,
and when Buchanan was inaugurated the
Democratic party had a majority of two
in the House then newly elected. This
was, however, lost again at the next elec-
tions, and in the Thirty-sixth Congress
there was an anti administration majority
of ffty-one. The war now came. After
the withdrawal of the Southern member
from their seats in Congress, the Republl
cane had majority of thirty six in the
first Congress of the war period. In spite
of all the war fever, the next House had a
Republican majority of but eighteen
When Lincoln was elected second time,
the country, or rather the northern portion
of it, sent to support him House in which
the supporters of the administration out
numbered its opponents by more than
three to one. In 1865, although the South
ern States were not yet readmitted through
their representatives to the floor of Con
gress, the Republican majority was cut
down from one hundred and five to ninety
four.
When Gen. Grant was first elected, there
was chosen at the same time House in
which the republican majority was ninety
three. In 1870 the Congress elected in the
middle of his term had an administration
majority of but thirty-fve. In 1872 the
collapse Of the Greely movement was fatal
to the opposition strength in the House,
which found itself in the Forty third Con-
gress in minority of one hundred and
three. The republican triumph was short
lived, for in 1874 came the great democra
tic tidal wave, and with it House of Rep
resentatives which had democratic ma
jority of seventy four. In the election of
1876, although the democratic plurality
In the popular vote was quarter of a