The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1897-01-18
THE SOUTHERN WING REVIVAL

Ever since the war, and for years
before it, the Democratic party had for
its mainstay the solid South 1t is
apparent from recent elections and cur
rent events that this is nc longer the
case, and that the disintegrating pro-
cess will continue until the states below
the Ohio river will be as diversified
politically as are those north of it.
The generation that has come into po-
ltical life since the war has accepted
the political attitude of the South as
partly the result of the war, with it's
defeat of the lost cause" and the
abOrtiye efforts Of Republican admins
trationS at a reconstruction of tnose
states that would result in their Repub-
licanization. No account is taken of
ante-bellum conditions or political
faiths ther1se It being taken for granted
that they We're always Democratic
Now that the tremendous pressure
of the fear Of negro domination through
Republican legislation has been re-
moved. under which every other ques-
political faiths long subdued are again
IeaN ening public opinion causing fer
ment that will dissolve the solidarity
that has so long existed. Democrats
OF the North, who have been surprised
In recent years at the supposed treach-
cry or the lukewarmness Of Southern
representatives on the great issue they
have been contesting, will do well to
take into account the conditions in the
South before the common danger to
their peculiar institution consolidat-
ed parties into one defensive union.
They are apt to forget that the mother
OF Republicanisnl, the old Wing party.
was once strong in all the Southern
states and always a formidable minor
ity where not strong enough to domi-
nate 4 cursory review will help make
clearer the changes noticed and pre-
pare for the greater ones certain to
come over the long solid South"
1t was not until after that temporary
lull that succeeded the final extin-
guishment of the Federal party. known
as the EZRA of good feeling that char
acterized Monroe's administration. that
the Federalist spirit reincarnated first
In the National Republicans and later
during JacksOn's second term. in the
WING party, and the old antagonism of
the conflicting conceptions of govern
ment and its uses broke out afresh
Van Buren, and Clay answered, In their
day, for Jefferson and Hamilton in
theirs. Clay became the renresan+a-
i've OF ms party in 1882. While he re-
ceiYed the electoral votes of but two
southern states, Kentucky and Mary
land, the table of the popular vote
shows that his ideas Of government
were accepted by respectable minor
tues in most OF the other states of the
South. When Harrison became one of
the several Wing candidates four wears
later he won the electoral votes of the
same states Clay captured while White
carried Georgia and Tennessee. but the
popular vote indicated a large increase
in the Wing strength
When the campaign of 1910 came on
the Wings had gained sufficient
strength to abandon their guer-
rilia campaign Of 1886 and CEN
tered on Harrison. He carried
Maryland North Carolina, Geor-
eia. Mississippi, Louisiana, Ken
lucky and Tennessee, while Van Blu
ren's margin was narrow in most of
the others. The slavery question en-
tered the national campaign four wears
later, and Birney's candidacy defeated
Clay by depriving him of the vote of
New York and sending to Polk all the
other slave states except MARYLAND
North Carolina, Kentucky and Tennes-
seeJ though his margin was close in
many Of the states. Again in 184S
Van Buren, and his Free Sellers did for
Cass what Birney had done for Clay,
while Taylor carried Maryland, North
Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Louisiana,
Kentucky and Tennessee. The 1854
votes for Clay in 1882 had grown 70
1921 for Taylor IN 1s4s, forming near
ly third Of his entiresvote 80
The anti-slavery agitation had grown
to menacing proportions by this time,
and In the campaign OF 1852 carried