Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1854-08-31
A WORD TO THE FREE DEMOCRACY.

Under tho peculiar circumstances, in which
you find yourselves placed, in the election now
at hand, we can only exhort your all to go to
the polls, and all cast your suffrages in that
manner which conscience and Judgment shall
tell you will the best count for Freedom, and,
at the same time, administer the most signal re-
buke to the foul Vaccinations of the Slave
Power. We are aware that, to considerable
extent, you are divided in opinion on the ex-
pediency of supporting all the men whom our
Conventions and regularly constituted Commit
tees have presented for your support; but hap
PLY there is no division among you respecting
the platform which the candidates have all UNI
hesitatingly and firmly pledged themselves to
sustain And that platform, it is but just and
candid to say, is as purely and strongly Anti
Slavery as you have ever claimed, or as you
could reasonably ask, even in this alarming cri-
sis in the thickning conflict between the powers
Of light and darkness-lberty and Slavery.
And it remains for you to decide how far, the
principles of the platform being right, it is
your duty to give, Or withhold your support
from any particular candidate on account of
his having previously acted with other parties
As before intimated, many of the Free De-
mocracy, doubtless, are hesitating in deciding
where lies the path of duty in regard to the sup
port Of men, and have fears and misgvings lest
they be led into entangling and weakening al
hanccs; and in support of these misgivings ii is
alrged, that the Wings, with whom our leaders
have been induced mainly to cooperate, on the
State ticket, this campaign, do not generally
give up their old organization as those who
joined You in the new movement held out, and
us you all expected. 1t is true they have not /;
neither have the Free Democracy given up their
organization They have still an able, trusty
and every way an efficient State Committee, who
will never yield their trust till it is fully ascer-
tanned whether we are to go alone, as we all
know how to do, or whether we can safely 90
In tho company proposed for US, in our march
to the battle fields of Freedom.
And there is yet another consideration. which
among all yonr doubts and misgivings, should
have its weight in making up your opinions. It
is the now unmistakable fact that your position
as party was neyerso gratifying or so proud an
onebefore Two yearsago this seaso. syou saw the
two great parties of the country, embracing
more than four-ffths Of its freemen, both eaoerlv
rallying for the Presidential contest under 70.
voting and utterly subversivo pro-sIayerv dor-
mas which they had all approvingly or ouies.
Gently allowed the Slave Power to prescr;hs
for their rule Of political action. each olorv;na
in their apostacy to the cardinal princines of
American Liberty, Wanting in their fanc;ed
strength, and looking down with scorp and con-
tempt on your own small and seemingly feeble
band of freedom, whom, though alone faithful
to principle, they had virtually combined to
override, crush out, and destroy as political
power and party in the land. But now the as
pect of things is all changed you, the same des-
pissed and decided little band of freedom, have
che qualification of beholding one of these two
old parties broken on the wheel of justice for