Year: 1877

Mercury is . fair-mlnded Demo
|crat, conservative instead Of rad
ical in his political views, and
gives intelligent consideration to
every matter he discusses. We
have never seen in his paper any
of those petty partisan filngs at
the President which are so CON-
mon in other Democratic papers
in that State which are much
more accustomed to the discus
sion of personal politics than of
political principles; but he ques-
tions the title under which Pres
ident Hayes holds the office Of
President. He concludes a we'll
written review Of the circun-
stances which resulted in the in
stallation of President Hayes as
follows:


The Democratic party has partial
tly submitted to this great wrong for
the sake of peace, but its submission
must not he misconstrued. The
wrong will never be forgotten or
forgiven. Mr.. Hayes course since
his Inauguration has been. in the
main. in accordance with Democrat
ic principles and doctrines, and
there fore Democrats rpprove it, but
they are none the less firm in the
opinion that he has no just title to
the office he holds. He may make
the best Executive the country has
ever had, but that will never prove
that he was lawfully elected.


We as earnestly desired the
election of Mr.. Tilden as did our
Salem friend; but we believe as
sincerely that the title of Mr..
Hayes to the Office is as clear
and indisputable as would have
been Mr.. Tilden's under the find
ings Of the same board of refer
ence. 1t cannot be impeached
without impeaching the action of
Congress, the Executive and Ju-
dial departments Of the Govern
ment, all Of whom gave APPROX
al to revolutionary measure as
an alternative to greater ca
lamity threatened-a collision
between the two. branches of
Congress which might result in
anarchy and an overthrow of the
Constitution. In this emergency
1t was more reasonable for the
natural mother to waive her
rights than to consent to the di-
vision of the living child. We
not only approved but venerated
the patriotism Of those Demo-
Gratis who, believing their party
had fairly Won the election, con-
sented to refer the matter to ar
bitration, and bound themselves
by every consideration that can
influence honorable men to abide
the result, and amply have they
been rewarded for their trust by
the advancement of the policy
which they professed to hold
paramount far beyond any thing
it would have been possible for
Tildelf to have accomplished in
that direction.


Our friend is mistaken in as
suming that the tribunal was es-
pecially created to try the facts
and issues involved in the local
elections. 1t was simply to pass
upon the legal questions involv-
ed in the elections; hence the
association of five Judges of the
Supreme Court in the commits
sion; and in the conflicting pre-
cedents by which decision
could be justified in favor of ell
ther of the claimants, it was well
understood that the commission
ers could find good legal prece-
dents for severally favoring their
own party respectively; hence
the division, as near as practical,
equally between the two parties,
leaving the odd member to be
selected under a prescribed rule
which would give the position
to Davis, an Independent, whose
vote was confidently relied upon
blythe Democrats, and whose own
political ambition cast the choice
necessarily upon Bradley, par
ty Republican, whose party vote
was no more censurable than