Worcester daily spy. [volume] (Worcester [Mass.]) 1850-1888, 1859-06-28
TUESDAY,. JUNE IS, 1889.


THE IMPRAcrrcABLEs-The Washington
correspondent of the Philadelphia North
American, speaking of the men who have lat
terly manifested their disposition to rule orruin
in the Republican party, says:
eve know what anti slavery ultraism
achieved in 1874, and still more recently IN
1856. 1t put Mr. Polk in power, and extended
the area of the peculiar institution over Tex
as and brood of States yet to come, and it
placed Mr.. Buchanan there, to open that Pau
dora's box of baneful agitation, the evils of
which are scattered all over the Union. And
now there are fanatical and managing leaders
who deSpSing the wisdom of such hard in
struction, or deluded with dreams of triumph
never to be realized are ready again to peril
everything rather than concede what duty and
justice and principle demand" 4
As much of the above statement as relatesN
to the campaign of 1874 has been current in
great variety of forms during the last fifteenS
years And nearly as often as it has appear
ed, it has been explicitly and directly denied. ;
1t is not creditabe to the sagacity or the hon
esty of those who aspire to be the councillors
and leaders of parties, that statement so far
at variance with the truth of history has ac-
quired so general circulation, and so tenacious
vitality. Slight Misrepresentation made I'M
der the impulse of disappointment or the sting
of defeat are easily pardonable. But to revive
erroneous statements of fact years after every
venial motive has passed away and is buried,
is unworthy of respectable and honorable jour
nalism.
Before the Liberty Party was formally or
gained, there were a number of voters, small
to be sure, but of fixed and earnest convictions
outside of the two large political organic
ations For the purposes which they had
in contemplation, neither party, in their
national covenants of faith expressed the
slightest sympathy or regard. AT the APP
propriate time, when they had organic
ed under the name of the Liberty party, and
nominated an independent ticket, they receiv-
ed accessions from both the old parties 1t
was not a Wing Liberty party, nor Demo-
cratic Liberty party, but an organization pur-
suing its owl ends independent of both.
Whether the movement was the wisest that
could have been made, we are happily not call
ed on to determine. They believed, however
that the tendency ofexisting parties and of the
federal government was to the defence and for.
tfcation of slavery. Events, out of which the
political history of our times is to be wrought
prove,at least, that they were not false prophets
But even setting aside all questions of prin-
ciple, wherein they stand justified by the null.
titudes who have since partially followed
their example, it is certain that if the Lib
erty party had been disintegrated after the
nomination of Henry Clay for President, and its
members had returned to one or the other of
the old parties, according to their original
bias, or their opinions on other questions of
national policy, the result would not have been
changed. The only States carried by Mr..
Polk in which the voters for Mr.. Birney held
the balance of power -w~rv-2t----- U--l- s.,d
Michigan, both of which States had been car
ried by the Democratic party in majority Of
the elections since that party was formed. L
the whole Liberty party had voted bodily fol
Clay, he might have controlled the electoral
college. &c. if the sky were to fall, we might
catch larks. The supposition is not a reason.
able one.
If the imputation made against anti-slavery
men in 1874 was unjust, the same charge in
1856 is inexcusable. The most radical of the
members of the Philadelphia Convention asked
no more of that body than that it should accept
as its paramount object that slavery should be
restrained and forbidden within the iurisdic-
ton of the Federal government. That was the
principle, for the violation of which in the case
of the annexation of Texas, they had been
bitterly and falsely charged with being respon-
sibe. What was the result! Some of our
conservative friends accepted a modification of
it with distrust and timidity. While large
multitude of them fastened into third party
standing upon an Indifferent and negative
platform, from which they detained, in the
style of the paragraph at the head of this arti-
Gle, against those who were determined that
no "Pandora's box of caamities" Should be
opened if sincere and united party, contend
ing for equal rights, gould prevent it,
1t is time to outgrow this infancy in politi-
cal wisdom Courage is never impracticabe
Decision is not fanaticism. The Democratic
party which was dominant in 1874. and is
dominant to-day, because its opponents, either
in body, or in squads, have always retreated
when IL made charge, does not hesitate
~ "N'OSoeC COuc LOT the terrltO-
res by virtue of the Constitution itself. 1t
has become a settled and well-defned doc
trine of the party that slavery must be
protected. Is it wise, or practicable for the
opposition" by whatever name it NAV be
called, to generalize its principles, till they diff
fer so little from those which the majority have
been accustomed to oppose, that there remains
little to choose between them Neither duty.
nor sound policy, which is the same thing, de-
mand concession which implies that the
frank declaration of principles already made by
the opposition party of the country is essential
~ or materially wrong. Parties, like States,
to be secure must BE respected Power and
consideration are things not to be begged, but
commanded And they can never be obtained
otherwise.
CASARDs FOR THE WEsT.-The Boston
Post OF yesterday morning, in an editorial
article, had several most unwarranted and
inexcusable mis-statements Of facts. Az the
article in question was written to injure the
Republicans in Minnesota and elsewhere At