The morning call., 1893-01-20
MORAL OF POLITICAL FIGURES

Messengers are bearing to Washington
from the various States the official returns
of the Presidential electors; CALIFORNIA; re-
turn will be one of The next to arrive. The
messengers have no surprises to disclose.
But an analysis of the figures of the cleo
ton will astonish citizens who have not
kept a close watch on the ebb and flow of
public opin ion.
Weaver, the Populist candidate, received
100000 votes As he practically repre-
scented no political principles. his platform
being a crude asSemblage Of homogeneous
crotchets, his vote may be regarded as
measure Of the vote Of those who were dis
satisfied with both the ruling parties. He
gathered round him the aduliamites in
every State. He seems TO possess little
personal strength. In his own State,
where he is probably best known,
his vote was only 10000. as against
81, 600 polled by him in 1880. 1t seems
that about oue-twelfth of the American
voters can be relied upon to bolt both
tickets, aud TO show their independence by
voting for a candidate whom they cannot
elect, and would not know what to do with
if they could. The effect of their action is
to elect to Congress and to the State Legis-
latures a small number of third party men
who. in close States, hold the balance Of
power and occupy the position of the man
on the fence. These people must not be
cO1faunded with the silent voters, men OF
conviction, who shift their strength from
one party TO another and sometimes decide
elections. These citizens are emiuently
useful; they are The safeguard of free instl-
tuti0ns. They bear no resemblance TO men
who throw away their votes On hopeless
candidates, and the practical effect Of whose
acton is to enianger the election OF can
didates who are the popular choice.
The aggregates Of the vote of last Novem-
Der show that the election was carried
through the detection of Republicans and
not through gains by Democrats. In thir-
teen States Mr.. Cleveland's vote was less
than it was In 1888, his total vote only in
creased IS 600 in the four years, and that in-
crease was almost wholly at the South and
in New England In the latter section of
the country Harrison gained in the four
years $3.50 votes, while Cleveland gained
$4,000. The Southern vote shows an increase
Of Democratic strength. which merely i'm
plies an effort to poll the full party vote.
In the Middle States. including New York,
Pennsylvania, Ohio, New Jersey, Indiana,
Michigan, Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska. Kan
sas, Minnesota and Wisconsin, the Repub-
lican majority was reduced to about 260 600.
a heavy falling off TIE whole story is told
in the sentence that OF the new vote which
came into existence between 1888 and 1892.
larger proportion went into the Democratic
than into the Republican camp. 1t does not
appear tat any material proportion Of the
old voters changed their political faith.
The fact is that a mans political creed,
ike his religion. is very hard to change, A
man is a Democrat because his father was a
Democrat, Just as he is Methodist because
his mother took him to that church when
he was a boy. The rank and file of man.
kind do not look into the reasons OF their
faith, political or religious. Thew vote ae-
carding to their old affiliations. from habit
and early practice. Once in a long time
a stirring issue, like the Northern up
rising against slavery, shakes the founds-
tions of public opinion. and men cut loose
from their old party ties. But that is a
rare occurrence In piping times of politi-
cal peace the only factor which political
seers need to study is the tendency Of new
voters young men who have just acquired
the franchise The veterans will vote as
they have always done.
The moral is that the nominal instinct of
the American voter is conservative. a man
who has got along fairly under the Presi-
dent of his party does not want to change
him, however powerful the reasoning Of his
opponents may be. He does not stop to
! aDalyze the argument, but simply concludes
that when he IS well off he would be fool
to want a change.