Year: 1879

lutionary platform.


In postponiug dissolution of Parliament,
Lord Beaconsfeld commits an act of polih-
cal cowardice which will tend to demoraze
his supporters for the contest which is in
evitable next year. The pretext that the Gov
ernment desires to have the Afghan ana
Turkish questions off its hands before gong
to the country betrays the consciousness OF
impending defeat. Were its foreign policy
wise, the Government would gain rather than
lose by a fearless appeal to the people.


Mr.. Bliss's bill to prevent the further occu-
patton Of downtown streets by elevated
roads comes up for hearing before the Senate
Committee on Railroads Tomorrow afternoon.
1t is to be hoped that if persons interested
in opposing this bill do not appear at that
time, the Committee will not, through any
mistaken idea of magnanimity, give further
time for hearings. There seems to be no
possibility that this bill viii fail through
direct opposition but delay may be fatal to
it at this stage Of the session, and there
must be no delay.


The Southern Representatives in Congress
are chatting over Senator Conkling's taxation



remained faithful to the Union are paying
almost all of its import duties. The Treas
ury Department adds now to these figures
an instructive little table upon internal
revenue taxes. This shows that the internal
revenue derived dLEing the period from 1866
to 1873 from the eleven States winch
seeded was less than that obtained from the
single State of Ohio or Illinois, and scarcely
more than half Of that derived from the
State of New-York. Also that the revenue
obtained from all these eleven States during
the past fiscal year was less than that derived
from either OHIO or New-York, and not much
more than half of that obtained from Hi
nOis.


Senator Ben Hill advanced a number Of
curious arguments in his speech on Saturday,
but none was more singular than his attempt
to show why the present representatives, OF
the South in Congress could safely be trusted
with the care of the Union. Mr.. HIPS logic
was to- the effect that the loyalty of these
men was sufficiently proved by the fact that
some Of them had opposed secession until
secession was decTecd. It is difficult to see
how the Georgia Senator has improved the
case. He has simply reminded the country
that the men Of the South hold their ale
eiancc 10 their State above their duty to their
country and that. when they were compelled
10 choose between the one and the other they
foresw0re conscience and yielded to a move
meut which they knew to be wicked and trca
s1nablc. What these men did then they would
DO now, under the same circumstances, and
probably not one Of them would deny It. If
there Is a single SouthCmer Of prominence
who would not follow bis State anywhere she
chose 10 go, even to-day, he has not made
himself conspicuous in recent years. Mr.. Hill
insists that the Union must be safe with men
who refused on one occasion to betray their
country, and actually persisted in their refusal
until thcy-gayc way. The argument is not
impressive.


1t is now definitely known that the Prrsi
dent viii veto thencw Army bill, and the rea-
sons upon which ms action will be based are
outlined in our Washington dispatches. The
indications are that the second veto message
viii be stronger than the first, because the sec
end mlliseven more outrageous than the firstbill.
The effect OF one portion Of the new measure
would be that the National Government would
have no power over the Army and Navy on an
election day in any place where an election
was in progress, though by grim cOutladlc-
ton, which would eutItie tins bill, If the mat
ter were less serious, TO high place among
legislative practical jokes, the Government
of State might call upon the National Gov
ernment for troops, and thus become actually
the superior power. The National Gov
ernment could not protect its own
property-its Custom Houses, Post Offices,
Sub acknowledgements riot or attack
of any sort, if petty election
happened to be i'll progress in the same
place on that day. If the coming Fifth of
July should witness a great strike, as the
Chicago Socialists declare, and a repetition Of
the riots Of two years ago, and a local elec-
ton should be in progress in Pittsburg or
Chicago the Government buildings could only
be saved, if this bill became law, by defiance
of the law 1t is known that the
bill would repeal a long succession of laws
running back to tho origin of the Govern
ment, which authorize the Executive to use
force to execute the laws when civil authority
fails; what else would be repealed by
that sweeping final clause no one
knows, neither the men who framed
the bill, nor the men who passed it,
nor the men who are asked to execute it,
The President will put the brand Of just in
dignatlOn upon legislation so criminal as this,
and the country will sustain him, as it has
done already. VIII the Democratic party then
accept its defeat, or Will it fulfil It's desper-
ate threats to starve the Government


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