Year: 1871




The first speech of Col. McCook at
Ashtabula, was in the nature of a gene
raj review of the political situation #
necessarily covered a great deal of
ground, the subjects were briefly treated,
! and there was an absence Of direct ag-
gressivenCss that induced great many
Radical newspapers to declare, and pos
sibly think, they were to be favored with
sort Of negative and milk-and water
canvass by the Democratic candidate
The speeches of Col. McCook at Chart
don and Painesville have convinced them
that their estimate was mistaken one
and that if the war is not to be carried
into Africa 1--WE are done with that sort
Of thing) it is to be waged with the
greatest energy and determination
against the abuses of the Radical party.
Col. McCook, dropping the generaliza-
ton that characterized his Ashtablua
speech, ,at CharldGn and gainesville took
up the particular wrongs that the Radi-
calls have inflicted on the country, and
especially the questions of debt, taxa
ton, expenditures, the tariff, the San
Domingo job, Grants nepotism and dis
graceful exercise of the pardoning pow
er, and neglect of his official duties. 1t
is an encouraging sign that upon these
very topics the people Of the Reserve,o of
both parties, desired political discussion.
Even the dyed-in the wool Radicals of
that section appreciate the fact that there
has been an advance all along the line,i in
politics that the issues of the war, and
growing out of the war, have died away,
and that the people are now confronted
with great financial questions, principal
among which is the protective tariff
swindle, and the desire for light as to
what is done with the hundreds of mil
lions of taxation annually levied upon
the country.


In fact these are the questions upon
which the members of both parties are
most anxious for discussion, and they
are the very questions which the Radi-
Gals desire to pass for the reason that
they are not united themselves on a
given line Of policy; and their State
Convention as consequence was forced
to trim and dodge and evade, until it
is impossible to say what their resolu-
tions favor or oppose. This is the con
fession of a number of their leading
journals, and among them the Cincinnati
Commercial and Volksblatt and the Ohio
State Journal. But because the Radi-
Gals drop these issues is the very reason
why the Democrats should press them.
1t is the sort of political discussion the
people want, and this is the strongest ar
gument why it should be the Democratic
plan of battle.


The principal of protection, if we can
dignity extortion by the name of princi-
pie, is directly involved in this canvass
in the election of United States Sena-
tor to succeed John Sherman. He has
been the chief reliance of the New En-
gland and Pennsylvania monopolists in
the Senate for the past ten years, and
has been of far more use to them than
Cameron or Morrill,, for their motives
were well understood; but Sherman is a
W estern man, and represents Revenue
Reform constituency; hence his acquisi,
ton by the protectionists served a double
purpose. He is candidate for re-elec-
ton, and it seems tolerably clear from
his success so far, that he will have
friends enough to elect him. should the
Radicals getscontrol of the Legislature.
It is in this way that the protection swim
die is now as decidedly in issue before
the people of Ohio as it can be present
ed. The success Of the Radicals means
that for sin gears more IN the Senate, the
Uery stronghold Of the monopolists. the
uoice Of Ohio sciU be neutralized on the
tariff question. A Democratic victory
assures the people that Judge Thurman
will have colleague as devoted as he is
to the principle of revenue tariff, pure
and simple.


These are facts that cannot be too
strongly pressed home by our Demo-
cratic speakers, and we are glad to see
that Col McCook makes the tariff ques
ton a prominent feature in his discus
sion Of the issues of the day.