Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1888-05-17
Belutn11t Gl.rni,icIr.
THURSDAY. NAY IL 1888.
WHAT DEMOCRACY Is.

WHAT DEMOCRACY Is.
New York Tribune.
1t does not please Senator Voorhees,
to be reminded that he was at heart a
traitor to his country when the Republic
was in peril. Men of his stamp are apt
to feel that their honor is affected, not
by the doing of shameful things. but 0y
the unkindneSs of anybody who calls at
ton to them. SO he broke out in the
Senate after a fashion which justified
senator ingalls, observation that if that
were a police court AIr. Voorhees, would
be- sent TO the rock pile for being drunk
and disorderiy. The I,4diaGa copper
head cannot plead any temporary ab-
erration of niiad for his reasonable cor
rcsp0ndence d Iring the war, nor for his
participation in cons piracies hostile to
the GoYernme It. 1t hurts him To have
the facts rem enbered, bat he may rest
assured that any Confederate soldier who
fought manfuIly for cause ne had been
taught to TANK honest will be forgiven
many long years sooner than the North
ern politician who acted as the treacher-
Gus ally of rebels in arms.
1t is getting 20 be time that the ques-
ton should be asked why such men as
Mr. Voorhees, are thrust forward as the
Chosen and most highly hOnored repre-
sentatiyeS of a party which pretends to
be thoroughly loyal. The history of
Voorhees, is not now made public for the
first time. 1t was familiar to loyal men
when some who are now voters were not
I, IL 10 4 Arn
the loyal sons of I0yal fathers so igno-
rant of all the past that they select this
Indiana demagogue as their ideal
statesman, not knowing what he was?
Strange that they cOntriYe SO often to
pick out men of that same nature. Was
Mr. Turpie, the other Senator from In
diana, ever among the defenders of his
country? When Mr.. Cleveland selects
as his pattern Democrat, for some post
of high honor. a man whose chief merit
= that he WAS yirulrnt roi'perlirad
during jh- War. j. an,b"d, surprised; !;
Far that matter was Mr.. Cleveland
himself more Jealous for the [ 'ni"n
cause than Mr.. Voorhees,:
1T is right that Il party should select It's
representative men for places of trust
and honor. In that way only the cOun-
try comes to know what sort of men do
best represent the party, in its own Opin-
ion The Southern Democracy makes
no bones about it; first Of all, the few
rebels who meyer stopped to ask pardon
are chosen for honor, and then the Con-
iederate officers, and never the men who
did not sympathize with rebellion. The
Democracy of the North has been illus
trating itself in the same way. 1t pre-
tends to have been and now to he 10y
al party. 1t carefully picks out for places
of trust and honor the men who were
trying to make the war failure when
Sheridan was riding down from Win
chester
How did these Democratic politicians
come TO be copperheads? The habit Of
licking the boots of Southern masters
accounts for something. But they need
ed support then, as they do now. Ig-
nominious and contemDtible, every one
of them would have been during the
war. and would have remained to this
day, if the Democratic party had ever
been loyal at heart, as it pretends to be.
Its sympathy with rebellion was shown
when the war was in progress by put
ting forward and voting for Voorhees,,
Vailandigham. and others of that stamp.
1t is shown now when the same party.
having abler and better men by far in
its ranks, keeps these ancient copper
heads in places of trust, or goes with
Mr.. Cleveland to search political grave
yards for them, in order to reward them
for their genuine and unadulterated
Democracy.