Chariton courier. (Keytesville, Chariton County, Mo.) 1878-current, 1890-07-31
Rebetifi0nS in History.

Since 1872 each successive Repub-
lican administration has met with
defeat in the elections for congress
in the second year Of Its term. In
1872 the overwhelming defeat of
Horace Greeley upon his manly and
generous programme brought the
Democratic party to condition Of
decentralization and despair that had
no parallel in the country's political
history save IN the breaking up of
the Whig party in the election of
1852. The exultant Republicans be
lieved that they need no longer
reckon with the Democratic party as
an adverse political factor, and they
governed themselves accordingly in.
the administration of public affairs
and in congress. But how wrongly
they estimated the virility and re-
cuperative power of the national
Democracy, and the spirit ot the
American people was shown in two
short years.
In the elections of 1874 the Dem
ocrats secured membership of near
ly two-tblrds in the house of repre-
sentatives, as well as control of most
of the state governments. In order
to counteract to as great degree as
as possible the effect of this tremen-
dous popular revolution the extreme
Republicans in congress, led by
General Butler, who was ranking
under personal defeat, undertook to
pass force bill for dragoonIng the
southern people. This truculent
partisan measure was defeated by
the stubborn resistance of the Demo-
cratic minority in congress, aided Ivy
Speaker Blaine and a few other Re-
publicans who keenlY recognized
that such a measure would do more
harm to its authors than to its in
tended victims.
In 1873, in the midst of the Hayes
administration, a Democratic ma
jorIty was elected to the house as a
popular rebukc to the electoral
fraud of 1876. Apart from its fraud
Gulent title there was little cause of
complaint against the administration
of President Hayes. The public fl
nances were skillfully managed, and
President Hayes himself did what
was IN his power to promote a con-
ciliatory spirit among the people of
all sections. Feeling that he held
his high office by dishonest tenure,
he sought in every way to divert
public attention from the sinister
fact. But the elections of 1878
showed what the country thought OF
him and his party.
Again, in 1882 the Republican
administration of President Arthur
was struck by popular cyclone in
the middle of its term. The sub.
stantial Republican majority in the
house that came in with President
Garfield In 1880 was completely dis
sipated and replaced by Democrat
ic house as the result of the brief
career of Speaker Refer and bis
party associates. Yet the course OF
Speaker Keifer and the house ovel
which he presided was moderation
itself compared with the tyranny oil
q speaker and a majority who have
ruthlessly trampled under foot con-
stitutional law and the rights of rep
resentation, in order TO accomplish
their desperate partisan ends.
But the rule which has so exorably
pursued Republican administrations
dld not repeat itself in the secont
wear of President Cleveland's term
The wise, firm and patriotic course
of President Cleveland, as well a
the general policy of the Democratic
J party, had the approval of the peo