Three Years Among the Working Classes, The United States During the War, 1865, London.

Copy from the New York Herald, Nov. 1864.

"If you read the democratic papers now-a-days you discover that we have won no victories, and that all the victories we have won do not amount to anything. The rebels, it appears, are pressing us upon all sides, and there is no hope for the Union except in the election of General M'Clellan. But, on the other hand, the administration papers claim that we are just on the eve of crushing the rebellion, and that the re-election of Lincoln is the only thing necessary to complete the suppression of Jeff. Davis and his gang. The Democrats complain that a conspiracy exists to cast all the soldiers' votes for Lincoln.' The Republicans are just as positive that 500,000 men in buckram are banded together in the north-west, to upset the Government and vote for M'Clellan. The Democrats say that soldiers' votes are opened, and Lincoln ballots substituted for M'Clellan tickets. The Kepublicans assert that vast frauds have been discovered in the army vote, and that several thousand dry-goods boxes full of fraudulent ballots for M'Clellan have been seized by the military authorities. The Democrats say that Lincoln will control the election by force, and that this is what he means when he states that he will manage his election in his own way. The Republicans declare that the Democrats, aided by secession sympathizers, intend to control the election by bloody riots, and by burning all those towns which do not give M'Clellan majorities. This is a dreadful state of things, to be sure. Whom are we to believe? What are we to believe? Are we to believe anything, or are we to take refuge in a comfortable scepticism? ... "When we narrow down the circle from national to local politics, we find the same phenomena upon a smaller scale. Here is a candidate who used to be an ardent peace man, now trying to get into office on a war platform. Here is an ardent war man of a few weeks ago, now bargaining and jobbing for a peace party nomination. Here is an original know-nothing, who held that foreign-born citizens had no rights which Americans were bound to respect, now claiming to be a Democrat and soliciting the foreign vote. Here is a Conservative turned abolitionist, and an abolitionist suddenly transformed into a Conservative. Here is an advocate of peace-at-any-price striving to elect himself by the soldiers' votes. Here is an individual whose price was formerly 100 dollars, now assuming the character of an incorruptible patriot. Lucifer himself must laugh at these sudden changes of character, and at the terrible amount of falsehood and fabrication involved. Nor can he laugh less when he notices the recent astonishing increase in our voting population. In some wards there are said to be more voters, according to the registry lists, than there were residents a year or two ago. The old motto of our politicians will have to be amended. They may advise people to vote early; but as there are quite as many votes registered as can possibly be put into the ballot-boxes between sunrise and sunset next Tuesday, there will obviously be no necessity for voting often. We regard this increase of voters as one of the most remarkable of the political phenomena. It is well known that provident Nature takes care that there shall be a majority of male children born in war times, in order to supply the deficiency caused by deaths on the battle-field; but we had no idea that these children were born at a mature age, with cigars in their mouths and the regular ticket in their fists. However, wonders will never cease."

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David Upton