The Third Party

Frora the Chicago InterOcean. Tlie tltiril party has now been in existence and active for a full year; it inay not be iimiss to inquii e what it lias acrompli.-hed iluring tliis time. One reason arged tor the organizatkm of the new party was the alleged fact that all previou8 erForts to proinotc the temperance reform had prored fallares. We were told that moral nuasioii and total abstinenee societies and orgiinizations like the Sons of Temperance and local optiou lawê bad all been tried and found to be of little ral na As iiotliiiijr remained bnt tlie formation of a new political party, that must be done to save our country from the curse of rum. But is lt true that the temperance reformation has proved a follare. So far is tkls from belng true that it ïnight be afflrmed with as good a show of reason that Ühristiauity bal provod a failure. After more tlian a half a centiiry of earnest effort, we have whisky, and grog-shops, and drunkard. Aller more than eighteen uenturlei of Christiun tndeavor, there are atlll innen, and inüdels, and heathen ia the world. What, Uien, shall we vote the gospel a failure and say that prayer and preaching and personal eflbrts for the salvation of souls are vain and useless? Shall we decline the nieans appointed by the head of the churcli for evangelizaron of the world because they have not been as successful as we desired"? Are noisy street parades with their barlequin dresses, and horns, and tarabournes an improveinent on tlie ways of Chlist and his apostlesf Every departurc frora the old paths is not au advance in the right direction. This new party' wiis called into exlstënce In c.ontempt of the tact stated by Bishop Merrill, "No great reform involving moral elements has ever been laéoeMfally carried out in this country Chrough the agency of a aepaiate politica! orgaulzation." Up to the present time there is not a sinirle indicution that the political Prohibition party is likely to créate an exception to this universal rule. I wil] not characterize in fitting terms the arrogant assumption, that the managers of this party are the special and pie-eminent friends of prohibitiou. If we art; to bellere some of the cham plons of this third party, it Is not the rtunseller ii(r the drnnkard wlio is respon8ible lor tlie evils of iutemperanee, but tl;e tempéranos men who refuse to vote ac their dictatiou. It should be borne in niind in this coiineetlou that the euactmeot of prohibitorj Iswa is not tii end for which the Intelligent friends of teruperanee are laboring. They aim at nothing less than the removal of all the evils that result from the use of intoxicating drinks. Writing, speaking, voting, are all with them means to this end. When, and where, and how they are to speak, and act, and vote, they must decide for themselvea without submitting their judgment or conscience to the dictatlon of a little knot of self-appointed censor. Some things have been made so plain during the past year that "wayfaring men though fools,'" aud blind ought to be able to discern ihem. It has been demonstrated: 1. That this third party movement does not command the conlïdence or secure the co-operation of more than a mere fraction of the friends of prohibition. We were assured one year that this party would poll a round mil 1 ion of votes at the approaching presidential election. When tiie ballots were counted they were found to be, if my memory is correct, about 850,000 short,Ohio cast over 300,000 vates for prohibition on a non-partisan platform, thirty times as manj' votes u St John secured a few weeks aftenvard. In examining the election returns one is struek by the fact that the States that are most pronounced in favor of prohibition give as a rule the (mallest vote for the tliird party. The pioneer State of Maine gave 147.000 votes for prohibition and about 2,100 for the third party. St. John secured in the following States the folio wing vote in round nuinbers: In Iowa, 1,000; Misíissippi, 700; and In Georgia, 200. Arkansas, so far as known, not a single vote. In about one-halt the states of the Union the third party vote dld not average 1,000 to a state. Whcther fanática will see it or not, this state of things demonstrates that the true and tried frieuds of tempérame are not rallying aiound the Standard of this new party. And the reasons for this are obvious euough. They do not befleve that this new departure is called for, aud they lack confidence in the men who are managing it. We have liad a striking illustration of the weakness of this movement here in Chicago withiii a few months pust. It would probably be safe to say that there are in Ihls city more than 10,000 citizens who are in tavor of prohibition and ready to uie all reasonable and practical means to secure its success. At the recent mayorally election more than 8-2,000 votes were cast. Of these a reputable Citizen who was the nominee of the third party, received about 200, or less tlicn one in 400 of the ballots cast. This pitiful showinfi emboldcns the whisky party belittlfsthe cause of prohibition in the public cstimation, and disheartens the most sincere friends of tempéranos. Meantime the leaders of the movement are fertile in expedlents to keep up the courage of their followers. We are told from one quarter that the new party is about to cast about 100,000 votes in Ohio, and from another that the republicana have aecured theeir last triumph in the State of New York. One sapient candidate for oflice gravely nnnounces that if all the friends of prohibition in the state in which be lives would vote for him he would be elected. To this a newspapcr man replies: "This reminds us oí the fellow who sald, 'Did 1 ever teil you how ncar 1 carne to a millionalre? i had $3, and if 999,997 men had only given me a $1 a piece I should have had a round million." Yes, doubtless, but the contributors to the fund of a million, like the voters for the third party candidates on election day, do not materializo in any considerable numbera. We were all told when we were boys how easy it was to catch birds if we lirist put salt on their tails. It is amusing to hcar the advocates of the new departure compare themselves and their party to Gideon's band of 300- every one of whom lapped water like a dog - and in whose preience the hosts of Midian were as grass-hoppers. The comparison fails at every essential point, and therefore illustrates nothing. We are utterly without evidence that the Lord lias commissioned St. John & Co. for the work in which they are engaged, and all their blowiug and shouting fails to carry consternation into thc ranksof the enemy. It may be that an overwhelming majority of the frieuds of temperance are blundering in this matter. It muy be that wisdom has forsakcn them to IIihI her lióme with the "reninant," if so tlie cause of prohibition is doomed to wander for more thnn fortyfrearsin the wildnerness, before entering the lnnd of premiso. 2. Tlie course of this third party durng tlie last ycar raises the question, whether the prohibition of the liquor trafflc is the only or chief object toward wliicli their efforts are directed. If it be íiiid that tliis statement is uncliaritable, I reply we have the highest aothority for Judgiujr a tree by its fruit, not trom its leaves or blossoms; and men must be judged by their performances ratherthan from their professions. "Even a child is known by his dolngs, whetlicr ii ís work be pure and whetlier it be right." Mucli more i political party. Tbere is something significant In the fields of labor chosen by the third party workers during tlie last presidential campaign. Two great political parties have existed n our country for the last quarter of a century and seem llkely to continue for a quarter of a century to come. It is hartlly possible that a third party should be organized that would not prove au adjunct to one of the existing parties. Neitber o( these parties are made up of perfect men. Companiea of inen wlioare without spot or wrinkle, or any such thlng are found ín heaven. It does not follow from this that all parlies are alike, so that there Is uothing to choose between them. One of the parties referred to elected Lincoln and Grant and Garfield. As a party it Btood by the country during the war, and, with God'8 blessing8 upon its offorts, suppressed the rebellion, saved the Union and eiuancipated the slaves. It has been recognized during all its liistory as the party of freedom, and IaW ar.d order. It has been the friend of the colored people, aud tho Champion of thcir rights. It numbera among its members au overwhelming inajonty of tho friends of tempe ranee and prohibición in the United States. It has during its historv made lor itself a record honorable to the Nation, and of which any party Hiight Ue proiul. The other and antagonistio party nurab.ers among its adherenti large numben of intelligent and patriotic citi.ens, who stood by'the Nation in time of perll. Bnt the party as a party, was liever loyal during the war. It extended ald and comfort to the traitors in niany ways. Henin Chicago in the very crisis of our history its National convention demanded the cessation of the war, and peace on almost any terina. Prominent actors in that convention denounced Mr. Lincoln in coarse and brutal languaj;e, and strongly hlnlcd at hls assassination. There was on the part of the rebels of the soutli an intense desire that McClellan should be elected president in the place of Mr. Lincoln. ThU party that made war for the perservation of slavery has been the persistent oppressor of the black man since his emancipation. It ia in power to-day only because tens of thou8ands of colored citizens in the south were not allowed a fair and honest vote at the last presidential election. This party has been and is the avowed enemy of efficiënt temperance legislatlon. It falsely stigmatizes prohlbitory laws as sumptuary, and arrays against them the whisky and agrariau influence of the country. To attempt to place these two parties on the same plañe as to temperance and loyaltyto the country, is as absurd as it would be to claim that there is nothing to choose between the treason of Jeff Davls and the patrlolism of General Grant. The people of this country are not ignorant of the fact that this third party movement haa been so managed to assist the democracy and inflict ttie greatest possible injury on the republicana. The leaders of the third party seem as much against the republicana aa Saul of Tarsuwas against the early Christians; and like him they "breathe out threatnings and slaughter." When the repubItoana are defeated there is joy and exultation among the political prohibitionists. Should Ohio elect a democratie governor next month we are pre pared for rejoicings among the men of the third party, auch as we lieard from the copperheads when the rebels won a vlctory during the war. The fact that democratie success in Ohio means the triumph of the whisky party and the ascendency of tho worst elements in society would not interfere at all with their rejoiclng. It may be that all this signifies nothing. It may be that good men believe that encouraglng the saloon and promoting druukenncss is the best way to advance the cause ol sobrifty and virtue. Poasibly that heap is made up of innocent meal, "only this aud nothlng more,''but it looks very much as if it was deslgned to conceal a large sized feline ot' the male sex. Persons are justly held reponsible for the results of their acts, when such results are wliat might reasouably be exiweted. Whatever this third party may desire or propose, there is a wide spread conviction that, up to the present time, its course bas served to weaken the cause of temperauce and encourage the old whisky and pro-slavery party of the country.