Year: 1874

THE MANHATTAN DEMOCRACY


The Manhattan Club and the General Com
mittee of Tammany Hall have held their meet


ngs of jubilatiOn over their recent great vic
tories, and they are as heartily to be congrat-
ulated upon the admirable temper which
marked their public rejOicings as upon the
triumph they have. won at the polls. After so
long an exclusion from the delights of victory
it would not have been unnatural for them to
indulge in some intemperance of speech or
alusion. But there was nothing of the kind
observable in the short and ringing remarks
made by the orators and statesmen of the
Democracy at the Club in Fifth-ave., nor in
the speeches of the leaders who came together
at Tammany Hall. We do not remember an
election which has been followed by 80 little
nonsense in the utterances of the talking-men
among the successful party. If any sensible
and candid Republican could dfyest himself of
partisan prejudices in reading the speeches of
Mr.. Tilden and Senators Thurman and Bayard,
it would be impossible for him to find fault
with any sentiment or any purpose avOwed by
either of these distinguished Democrats. Even
the remarks of Mr.. Eaton, whose election did
not seem to u.s. any more than to many others,
the happiest result Of the late Opposition vic
tory in Connecticut, were characterized by the
same sound sense and moderation which gave
tone to all the proceedings of the evening. He,
as well as all the others, spoke without heat
or ford phrases in favor of sound currency,
a restored Union, an honest Administration,
and a stricter regard to law than we have
lately been accustomed to. The effect of all
this Is in the highest degree salutary. We do
not think any one was so badly frightened as
some pretended to be. We gravely doubt
whether any leading Republicans sold all their
Five-Twentes when they heard of Tilden's
success. But if there had been any such panic
in loyal breasts the speeches we published yes
terday would have the best effect in curing it.


Of course no one will say that every man at
the Club House or at Tammany Hall held
sound or wholesome views on great public
questions. We know in fact that one of the
recently elected Congressman in this city, who
got his nomination and his seat on the Syra-
cuse platform, as soon as the votes were
counted, made haste to avOw his adhesion to
that paper heresy which seems to possess ire
sistibe attractions to every man who is too
shiftless to pay his debts or too knavish to
desire to. But these black sheep held their
peace, and the prevailing sentiment was an
honest and patriotic one. Most of those who
smoke seemed rather influenced by a sOlemniz-
ing sense of responsibility than by any exulta
ton of victory.


We cannot but regard this as happy augury
for the future. The men whose utterances we
published yesterday, those who spoke and those
who sent their greetings by mail and telegraph,
represent the leading and controlling forces Of
the party which has just gained possession of
the popular branch of Congress and of most
of the State Governments. We know this will
be camorously denied both by the defeated
Republicans and by those organs of the rag
money faction in the West who claim to con-
troll the party. But we have little doubt that
a substantial majority of the Democrats just
elected agree rather with the Democracy of
this State than with that ignorant and vehe-
ment contingent represented by wild men like
VOORHEES, and Richardson. The work which
now devolves upon these thoughtful and can
did men is one Of the most important which
has eyer fallen to the lot of any politicians.
They have won great victory over the Re-
publicans. They have now to win still more
difficult and benefcent victory over ignorance
and violence in their own party. Upon their
success in this the greatest results depend.
Not only their own leadership is at issue, but
also the supremacy Of their party, and the
welfare of the country at large.


The two parties which dispute the govern
ment of this country are similarly composed.
The majority of each consists of partisans,
who do not trouble themselves to do much
thinking about political subjects, but who vote
the ticket prepared for them by more active
men. If all voters were Ike this there never
would be any change except by an increased
fecundity of one or the other side. But there
are in addition to these steady voters, in each
party. two other classes which form the best