St. Paul daily globe., 1895-12-16
NO POWER OF RESISTANCE.


When the human body is exposed
to any kind of disease, the most i'm
portant question that can be raised
is as to its power of resistance. I'M
munity from danger is far less
to face danger and overcome it. The
same is true of a political body. The
virility and the future of political
party can be estimated according to
the strength that it displays in oppo-
sition to the evil forces within its
own organization. Every party has
such. There are always men whose
ambition in public life is limited to
office and plunder. They attach them
selves to one party or the other, and
are quick to change from the losing to
the winning side. These are they
whose principle it is that public Of
flee is a private snap; and only in
as far as a party resists their ef-
forts to control it can it expect either
to do effective work for the cause of
good government or to command the
support of the people. ,.
The most obvious and remarkable
feature of the political situation to-
day is the complete loss by the Re-
publican party of power to resist
the worst elements within itself. At
| tackled, as every great party has al
ways been, by men of evil reputation
and vicious practice in politics, it
yields to them today almost without
a protest. 1t is like some great hulk
of human flesh, which. upon the ap-
pearance of an epidemic, lies down in
despair and waits for the moment
when the dread disease shall bring it
to dissolution. In all the great states
of the Union today not only is the
most Objectionable faction of the
Republican party also the most in
f1uential, but it is honored and obeyed
without shame or remonstrance.
The time was, few years ago,
when every respectable Republican
blushed and apologized for the fact
that one Steve Ellxins, Of Star Route
fame, belonged to the same organiza-
ton. He would not attempt a de-
fense of Elkins, but would simply
deny that Elkins could be called a
representative Republican. Nobody
could prevent this man, he would tell
you, from calling himself Repub-
lican, or anything else that he might
choose. But, as for his obtaining
any influence in the Republican
party, other than in the little in
trigues that were carried on around
No Republican talks that way about
Elkins today. Elkins is a Republican
senator from the state of West Eir-
| ginia. Elkins is the custodian Of
the respectable and pious boom of
Mr.. Benjamin Harrison. Elkins pre-
sides at dinners at which the party
fortunes are discussed and plans for
! it's future regula ton are adopted.
He is in the position Of party man.
ager, not to say a party boss. Re-
publicanism has lost the ability to
fight the Elkins microbe
Matt Quay is a worse type. No
body dreamed, in the days of his
earlier political activity, that he
could ever become a figure of ma
tional Importance. Decent Pennsyl-
vania Republicans declared that the
scandals connected with his admin
istration of the office of state treas
urer would not bear the light. He
has never made a secret of his politi-
cal philosophy, which is system of
commercialism and corruption as un-
blushing as was ever carried into
effect in any modern or ancient state
Still there is not vitality in the Re
publican party sufficient to throw
off the Quay influence. He is undis.
puted master of one of the greatest
states of the Union. After the tests
of his power that have been made,
we verify believe that, if he were tc
lay before the voters of that state
tomorrow a proposition to repudiate
1nhf TO nthar h q a
full and immoral thing, they would
ratify it by from $4,000 to 100000 ma
jority. From one end of the country
to the other, no Republican reformel
| has raised any opposition to Quay.
The decent sort of New York Re.
publicans have been making a fight
against Tom Platt. Everybody
knows what Platt stands for in pol
itics He has no more political prin.
ciples than Jay Gould had. Politics
with him, is strict matter of bust.
ness. He will make a deal with
facility. His influence in New York
state is based upon considerations
thoroughly immoral and corrupt
Yet the last flicker of opposition tc
him has just died away. He has car
ried overwhelmingly the primaries in
New York city against an opposing
Republican faction, and state con
vention tomorrow would indorse hi!