Year: 1859

closed have ar important bearing or


the future of parties in this State, and


we opine, on nine so much will its in.
| fuence be felt as on the Republican


party. Will that influence be prod'ic-


tive of political gains to the Republi-


cans, or viii the tendency be to a dis


organization Of fthe party These are


questions about which we may legit-


imatoly speculate.


We must admit the numerical


strength of the Republicans in this


State in the Presidential contest of


next year will depend much upon the
I popular enthusiasm for the principles


of their party In the East and the


chances of success. A popular lead


er will cause thousands who would
otherwise remain cold and inactive


in the contest to enlist warmly in it.


There is large body of voters in sv-


cry state who really have no fixed


political principles at all, who it may


be. are to-day swelling the denuncia
tions against the Republicans, but who
are ready to throw themselves next


year on the popular side be it Repub-
lican or not. The accession of these
men to Republicans will depend al


most wholly upon which way the po-
litical current to them seems to set
1t would seem to be the policy of the
Republicans so to act in preliminary
contest, like that just ended, as to in
duce that current to flow in their direc-
ton. We suggest they should ex-
hibit strength this year on which to
predicate their claims to consideration
as party next. Have they done
so i? On the contrary weakness
While the Republicans of the State
are as numerically strong to-day as
the Popular Sovereignty Democrats, |
thousands of them voted the clean
anti-Lccompton ticket, leaving but a
scattering few TO support the Repub-
lican State nominees. That few will |
hereafter be pointed at by Douglas
Democrats and used as an argument
to show the pancity of numbers on
the part of their allies compared with
thoir own. Where is the table of
figures to prove the falsity of these
pretensions ? Those well posted in
the political affairs of the State will
know the truth, but the plainest tam
gible evidence is necessary to create
a popular current and carry the
ehangahle part of the people with it.
We say the Republicans ought to
have fused completely with the auti-
Lecompton Democrats in this canvass.
or to have selected one or two good |
men on their State ticket and made it
a point ofhon or to vote for them-ev-
cry solitary Republican in the State.
By complete fusion, or running one
ticket, they would have been on par
with the Douglas Democracy in de-
monstrating relative strength, while
by tenacious adhesion to one or
moro candidates they might easily
have commanded by their numbers
the consideration, from their allies, of
their claims as a party. They have
done neither. They have furnished /
troops and munitions of war for the
anti-Lecomptons, but at the expense
of their own future safety. The vote
of Shafter will perhaps be taken for
the Republican strength. But Shat
ter's vote will not exhibit it. There
are thousands of Republicans we dare
say who voted and worked for the
Popular Sovereignty State ticket en-
tire. In so doing they may have
been right. We do not say they were
or were not. We only contend the
Republicans should have, if they de-
sired to preserve and assist their party
voted in concert all over the State,
either for an opposition ticket, or SO as
to exhibit their full political strength.