Aberdeen herald. [volume] (Aberdeen, Chehalis County, W.T.) 1886-1917, 1902-08-25
STILL ARE DEMOCRATS
The Unterrifed Are but Await
ing the Trumpet Call.
UNFORTUNATE VICTIM OF A PANIC

Had the Republicans Been in Power
In 1893 the story Would Have Been
DiGerent-What the Steal of 1876
Accomplished-Revival Of an Alb
surd Prediction.
While the gold Democrats taunt the
silver men with failure, the latter re-
tort that they found the party as badly
off as they left it. The elections be-
tween 1892 and 1895 were quite as eX-
tremely adverse to the Democrats I'M
der the lead of the gold men as they
have been since the party passed into
the control of the silver advocates,
writes Uncle DudleT in the course of
two column editO1al review of the
Democratic party's condition in the
Boston Globe.
AS matter Of fact, no party in pow
or could have withiood such Il miSfor-
tune as the panic d 1893. In spite of
much greater prestige the Republicans
were all but overwhelmed in the cleo
tons following the.panc of 1873 and
were only able to save themselves from
complete disastee by the peculiar
southern situation which enabled them
to seat Hayes in theprcsidency despite
Il million majority for Tilden among
the white voters of the country. Had
the latter been inaua,rated and his adj
ADMINISTRATION permitted to reap the ben
eft of the better tinrs which came be-
| fore another election who can say how
long the Republican, might have been
| compelled to wait for q return of popu-
| lar favor?
Some observers bildly declare that
there is Il reaction sgainst party gov
crnment which is wider than the
bounds of the natid. There are So
cial philosophers wlp see the near ap-
proach of final beaking up of the
party system in Graf Britain as we'll
as in the United Sraes.
Whether the great political organlza-
tin------~--~ lac g.ytlnnted by transient
and shifting groups as in France and
the continental countries. these proph-
cts, notable among whom is Goodwin
| Smith, do not venture to say, but they
are none the less certain that parties,
as we have known them. are to be
swept away al useless membranes
upon the state.
There is, however, constitutional
obstacle which the advocates of this
plan must not cave out of their reck-
oning. 1t is presented in the electoral
college, where in order to succeed a
candidate must secure clear majority
of the popular vote in the states hay
ing preponderance of all the electors
and receive clear majority of the
electoral votes in the college.
The last contest for the presidency
in which party lines were not drawn
was in 1924. when the electors were
divided into four groups. and the re-
suit was a failure to elect any one.
The choice, therefore. was thrown in
to the house of representatives, where
John Quincy Adams was elected, an
outcome which caused deep and wide
spread dissatisfaction.
Since that occasion presidential elec-
tons have been compelling cause of
party unification, and all minor differ
ences regularly have been sacrificed to
the anxiety for a majority vote in the
electoral college.
This is not the first time that the
downfall Of the party system has been
predicted. In the first twenty years of
the past century the Democracy was
without rival worthy of its fears. and
in 1920 there was no opposition what
ever to the reelection of President
Monroe.
Nevertheless in the midst of the so
called era of good feeling Thomas JEFF
ferson, the most profound of all Ameri-
can statesmen. did not deceive himself
with the idea that partisanship was at
an end.
you are told. indeed" Jefferson
wrote to Albert Gallatin, "that there
are no longer parties among us: that
they are all amalgamated; the lion and
the lamb lie down together in peace.
Do not believe word of it. The same
parties exist now as ever did"
Events quickly justified this state
ment when in Il few years the country
was filled with the strife of parties.
What jefferson said is as true of the
present as of his own times.
If the Democratic party is dead.
where have the Democrats gone? 1t
would be safe to challenge any one to
name dozen or even half 4 dozen
representative men in all the country
who have renowned the Democratic
creed and accepted the Republican in
the course of the past few years. A
million Democrats or perhaps more
united with the Republicans on the
gold issue, many never have been other
than protectionists, and many have
subscribed to the Republican colonial
policy, yet it is next to impossible to
find a Democrat of standing who is
willing to give up the name and con-
fess himself Republican.
There are as many Democrats in the
country as ever there We're, all only
awaiting the trumpet call of leader.
Wedding Gifts, ;ut qlass and sit.
var. COL 0MANs9. QAatf1A