We Know The Worst Now

The " straight " Deniooracy of Wayne Couuty has spoken. The thousands that were awiiiting naught but the signal of their leaders to emerge from their roticence have trooped forth into the light of full acknowledgment, and thore is no louger iiny doubt or he6Ítation as to the strongth oi' the movement. The bitter, bitter truth has boon uuveiled and stands forth in all its appallrng propoilions : and to adopt for the moment the sense of oue of Patrick Henry's inimortal stateïnenis, "we know the worst and ninst próvido for it." And now that we do know thor worst, thero is etnsolation in the thouglt that it has mercifully been coucealed from us so long. Had it but onterfd into the hearts of Mr. Giecley's Democratie Supporters in this county to conceive that that time-honored loader of their party, John Ci. Feit, would befound lending the weïght of his poweful name to the support of the 6elf-appointed preservers of the ark of Democracy, what would have been their emotions ? How would the blanching cheek have betrayed the fear they could not hide ! How would the down cast eyelid, trembling with the "wèight of unshed tears, havo told the tale cf a grief that could not bo concealëd! And all this the Democratie inasses have morcifully been spirjd. " And Czar Jones, too. What cause havo we not to be thankful that the namo of this eminent preserver of principie was so long shrouded in the mists of futurlty, and taat fci the many happy, joyous politicul lüiotii'gs whieh have been held nono have had thair brightneis dimmed by a breat.h of O))position from this poworful ]atriot. Surely, if wo have causo to tremble for a futuro saddoned by t!u knowledge that he is armyod against ::;, nothing can doprive us of the happini 98 enjoyod whilo wo wore yet in blissi'ul ignoranco of coming sorrow. It was not a shrewd move on the part of the " straight " managers to koop b.iek so long their strength. By nn oarly ox hibition of their full power tluy niiirht have stricken terror to the hearts of Mr. Greeley's supporters and secured the vifitory withsut hiingagun. But thcy havo incautiously allowed the Democratie party, to which they formerly belonged, to try its strongth without thom ; and t ï- rifying as is the exhibition of power at Wayno, it has no single element of annihilation in it. Matters havo gone too far ; prido alone will do much to sustain a par ■ ty oven in the apparently hopeloss onslaught of a Feit and a Jones. But if thore is consolation in reftecting upon the suffering we have escapod, thore is more in the thought that we really do know the worst at last, and that thore are no more political giants in the background the announcemont of whose ■ straightness " can inerease our dospair. Wo havo soundod the depths in flnding Jones and Feit against us and nothing elso has torrors for us. Knowing tho worst, wo find some sad coiufort in the thought thttt the " straighta," in spito of Iheir vast moral strength, wore numérica! ly tro weak to fill even tho sinall list of county offices from their r.inks, and that oven the lure of their suppnrt could not tempt their nominees to " stick." Knowii'g tho worst, too, wo know that, not ouly did the fiftemi callers of the Convention fail to represent a thousaud Democrats, but that thö culi was itself n partial forgery, one niuno at least, and probably moro, boing signed without tho owner's kuowlcdgc r r. con out. One thing inore we know in kuowing the worst, we know liow easy it is to magnií'y tho most insigniiicaiit of movoinents, and ií knowing this wo are more fully prt'paibd tor tho worst that can befall at