Year: 1876

sible-to retain the rebellion, to appeal to
ative sentiment by intimating that o
democratic triumph would bring re-
pudiation and revolution. There is in
every country large conservative class sat-
isfed to let we'll enough alone. This class
defeated Mr.. Greeley because it feared his
election might mean revolution. Its ten
dency is now to support Hayes. 1t is the
policy Of the republicans to conciliate it and
do nothing to alarm it. On the other hand,
the democrats wish to remove every issue from
the canvass but reform" If they can sink
every question but this, if they can adjourn
every principle of political action but the
one demand for reform" they will win.
This was the meaning of the speech of the
Governor, and SO far as we have any idea Of
the democratic canvass, this inspires it now.
In other words, the Governor says:-"Attack
the enemy. Call them all thieves Arouse the
country to the fact that burglars are in every
room Of the government mansion. Demon
strate that the Centennial celebration really
celebrates the decadence, not the improve
ment, of the country. Point out that 1 am
the reformer, the thief catcher, the ring
breaker. Keep our opponents always on the
defensive, always on the rum"


This campaign is brilliant in conception.
If Tilden could be allowed to command
the army of his opponents as we'll as
his own he would win. But we must re-
member that there are two armies in fight,
that there are tactics on both sides,
that the republican forces are united and
under astute generalship, and we see the
ablest kind of management in this letter.
We must remember, too, that the republic
cans nominated ticket which united their
party, while the democrats nominated one
which does not give satisfaction to either
the East or the West. We do not know
officially whether Mr.. Hendricks will even
accept his nomination, or whether, if he
does, it will not be in letter which will do
his cause more harm than good. If, there
fore, Tilden can rally his party to
one point, if he can fuse it into a
fame if he can subordinate all ambitions,
strifes and disappointments to the one
thought, ''victory and reform, he will have
a fair chance of winning. The true aspect
Of the canvass is, therefore, that the repub-
licans have organized and the democrats are
trying to organize. When we have the letters
of Tilden and Hendricks, especially of
Hendricks when we see how sincere
Indiana and Illinois are in Tilden's sup
port, we can estimate the chances of
<-;r,,rb Co for ac Grant op1 Cropt;,v, 49,
concerned, the two burdens of the republi-
can party, they will lie more lightly upon
Hayes than upon any other candidate. They
are heavy burdens, we admit, and Grant is
stoid and selfish enough to increase them
by such acts rs the removal of Yaryan and
Dyer; but we question whether campaign
for the Presidency can be fought upon them
alone.


The weak point in this campaign of Til
den is that it wounds our national pride
risky thing to do at any time, and es-
pecially in this Centennial time. Here we
have been ringing bells and firing cannon
and burning bonfires-all to celebrate our
selves to ourselves and to all the world as the
freest, the bavest and the grandest nation in
the world. Here are two Emperors, the one of
Germany and the other of Russia, who write
us letters to the same effect. This is the
festival of the apotheosis of Saint Yankee
Doodle, and we are all off on grand fete
To be met in this merry-making by Til
den and his fellow prophets, to be told that
we are oil wrong, that we really going to
the bad, that our Centennial product is no
better than Spain or Turkey nothing could
be more annoying to our pride. This
is the danger of the reform" policy
and the underlying danger of the campaign.
so far as Tilden is concerned. Reform" is
good issue-but will it last? A revival in
church is blessing to religion, but even the
best Christians tire Of the anxious bench.
Tilden may convince the country for week
or two that it is going to the bad. but six
months is a long time for modification and
sclf-denial. Other questions will be forced
upon him. Governor Hayes throws half
dozen in his path in this letter. Tilden
will have the financial record of Hendricks
to carry-and already his enemies throw
oct suggestions TO the effect that he would
not live anyhow were he in the White
House, and that we should have Hendricks
after all. He will have the church question,
which, although the veriest quackery from a
political point of view, is still potent influ-
ence. He will have the Southern question