The true Democrat., 1856-09-09
Hon. Josiah Randall's Speech
Before the Democratic State Convention. Held at Chambersburg, Aug. 9th, 1856.

tlut dll aware nave TeCelNeu GHlS COuT- tesy because 1 have heretofore been member of the old-line whig party.
 1n 1924-5, the democratic and whig parties were separated by no question of principlexbut were divided upon the question, whether Gen. Jackson was entitled to be elected President of the United States In the progress of time, during thirty years of the existence of the whig party, several important principles were pre- sented, and the two parties became distinct and independent of each other upon questions of public policy. These were:
 l. The renewal of the charter of the bank of the United States
 Z. The sub-treasury.
 g. The distribution of the proceeds of the public lands.
 4. The tariff.
 A "National bank" was abandoned by the democratic party, under the veto of General Jackson iu 1882, and by the whg party in 1944
 "The sub-treasury," the cardinal measure of Van Buren, was opposed by the whig party, has taught itself into public favor, and no one now wishes to disturb it.
 "The distribution of the proceeds of the public lands" has been superseded by the debt created by the Mexican war;
 "The tariff no longer remains either poli- tlcal or geographical question:; the last Congress exhibited the spectacle of the "State rights'' men of the south and the republican abolition- lsts of the north, united against Pennsylvania, without distinction of party, to reduce the tar llf below Its present standard.
 It there remain any practical diSputable prin- ciple which constituted all issue between the democratic and the old whi5 parties, do not know 1t.
 The whig party has performed it's duty, and has had its day. It has been prostrated by the organization of the American party, or the Know Nothing order. They and not the old- line whigs have been the executioners. They have renounced their old cognomen, laid aside their old principles, and substituted in their place d new name and a new creed heretofore unrecognized by Clay, Webster, Sergeant, or their noble compeers.
 know there are many intelligent and patro- tic men who cherish the hope that the wh5 party can again be resuacitated, but the hope is deuslVe, and It Is pernicious because 1t deprves the country ot a large portion of intellect and worth, which ought 10 be brought into public servIce. ln the history of our republic no par ! " broken down has eVGryct been re organized. Ihc fate of the federal and anti NJ asonic par ties establishes this fact There is not at this time Whis member of the popular branch oi ! Congress elected by Whig vote. There is not q member of the Legislature of Penmsvlvania elected by whi5 vote. There is not d mem. bcr of the councils of the city of Philad9lphia elected by whjy vote For the last two years, with but two exceptions, wherever the scatter ed members of the whig party have met in council, they have felt their position, and have, therefore, wisely abSta;ned from forming tick ct to be voted for at the polls.
 | In New Hampshire and Massachusetts they rallied at the polls, and the result was paucitv of numbers and total defeat. But, 1 ask, what good would be derived from the re- organization and triumph of the old whi5 party? They do not want national bank. They do not de- sire the repeal of the su(-trcaSury. The most ardent friends of the tariff do not ask for the re establishment of the high tariff of 1928, or even of l642; but all they ask is, that the ta- rift shall stand where 1t was placed in 1916 by the casting vote of the Vice President, Mr. Dallas.
 All the old issues have been settled. and as natural consequence, new parties have sprung up, and new issues have been formed The order of Know Nothinys have violated the let ter and spirit of the With article of the consti- tuition of the United States, which declares that ''no religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any office or public trust under the United States" they have established sc- cret societies, secret oaths and obligations With these principles the whig party in its days of power and numerical strength had 10 sympathy nor utilization, and there is no part ot the Union where the whigs were more inex- ble in opposing these political heresies than in the State of Pennsy ylvania.
 ln l045, when the whis party met in the ci- ty ol Philadelphia, after the defeat of Mr. Clay, the duty of opening the meeting and setting forth ther prlnc pies was committed to me. held in my hand at that meeting the charter of Rhode Island, granted to Rodger Williams winch contains the broadest and most compre- henslve declaration of religious liberty and equality ever yet penned. 1 read its eloquent and energetic platform and, this is the doc Urine of the whig party" and pointing to the ruins of the Roman Catholic church of St. Au. gustlne, burnt during the disgraceful riots of l8l4 and which lay within few yards of the place of meeting, l added, "thcre is it's desc cratlon." There is not corner in the vast re- zion of our country which does not contain old-lne whigs who are willing to stand by the constitution and the Union. But their numer- lcal strength is far exceeded by their patriot. ism, talents, and public spirit. This is the body to which l have been attached, and feel the deepest interest in the course they shall pur- sue.
 The republican party is sectional, and its sue cess must, in my judgment, lead to severance of the Union. do not believe that the great mass of that party anticipate this result but if It should be consummated, their regret will be no equivalent for the damning injury thereby inflicted upon this great republic.
 appeal to every old-linc whig in the Union to avert this calamity. The south cannot and will not remain in the Union, unless their rights are guarantied to them. If we were in the same situation, we should demand our rights In tones as imperative and mandatory as those which are now used by our southern brethren.
 How is this great evil to be avoided? I ans wer by the election of Mr. Buchanan Eve ry vote given to him is check to the progress of the republican party. I know there are ton of Willard Fillmore, and are willing to trust him again. Every vote given to Mir. Fillmore increases the danger of the success of Mir. Fremont. Every vote given to Mir. Buch anan potentially seals the fate of Mr. Fremont. But Willard Fillmore in 1848, '5O, and '52, is not the Willard Fillmore of 1856 When he was elected Vice President in 184S-when he became the acting President in 1850 -- and when he was candidate for denomination by the whig convention in Baltimore, in 1852 he protessed to be whig-nothing more nothing less The native American party at that time was in existence and proclaimed principles ill terms far less exceptionable than those now avowed by the Know Nothing party. But Mr.. | Fillmore then had neither part nor lot with them; he stood upon the ground occupied by Clay, Webster and Sergeant. What is he now? lie has been initiated into the order of Know Nothings, taken upon himself its secret oaths and obligations, and this at a time when h,s friends were presenting his claims to be President of the United States. He has since become the candidate and accepted the nomi- nation of the American or Know Nothing na- tional convention. In correspondence be- tween the order of United Americans of the State of New York and him, under date of Ju ly 25th, 1856, they say:
 Both from your past official acts, and from the assurances and views expressed by you on | bnv