Daily Davenport Democrat. [volume] (Davenport, Iowa) 1864-1874, 1864-11-22

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ssnaains = nueA q hsth relating 70 The
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f p6p4foCAt PARTIES AuD Tnsss ossecTx.
Political parties, Ike churches and oil
e1he eneial organizations. hassa double OBJ
ject. First tho promn1gation and estAhlish,
nsnt q principles o. rules u actlon and,
second, the support Of ito leaders and their
assistants. W. find in al parties two classes
q individuals-th men u faith, and the
men Of spells and a. the one or the other
predominant, they are long or short lived
The men Of principles are the only reliable
support Of al organizations the spoilsmcn,
when all-controlling, being invariably their
Destroyer.
We may see this distinctly In tho career
Of the Democratic party, and all parties
should take lesson from its fate. Aslong
- Il advocated principles, success after sue
cess crowned its efforts but ~ usual, the
posssssion Of power gradually corrupted the
party, and after 1848 il became mere Mu-
Sual Insurance Company for Office seekers
principles came to be disregardsd, aud con,
siderations Of party success alone swaycd
its councils. The men Of principle in the
party, after trying in vain to check this "a
I'll error, were either driven out Of the par
~ or into retirement, and Office holders and
ONCE seekers became its leaders; the glory
Of the Democratic party wis gone, and a.
ter struggling long and hard, It WAS finally
totally overthrow in 1860.
Defeat alone could rsssor< IT. oM ritality
70 The Democratic party. Since 1860 it has
been sloughing of the mere Office seeker
end the men whose only object wa. me r.+
tecation Of personal ambition, for q could
oner them n..::..ner government Offices nor
pow ...ai success. Some Of these men still
cling to the party. but the election just past
will induce the most Of them TO abandon the
Democracy, while it will largely increase
their numbers in the Republican party, for
the spoils have been growing
''Small by degrees
And beautifully less"
among the Democrats, while they have been
growing larger and largcr in the Republican
patty, who are now in danger Of being
swompsd By the rery same cause that destroy
ed the Democracy.
The defeated party must now live in hope
that the future will see repeated the same
changes that have taken place in the past,
and while deprived Of Office it may console
itself by the remembrance that great poll
tical principle are generally more .tysctually
disseminated anil esfobiished by thcse out Of
office than BY those who are in. The Chris
tan Church was me- h,ore eifectunl in
spreading its doctrnes, and in swaying the
dcstinics Of the human race. than when it
hal few or no spoilsmen on it's bosom. And
no party erer erercises greater po,cer for good
than phsn deprircd Of office. It then ribs
itself Of the corruptng influence Of power,
and seeks truth rs means Of attack
" TRUTH" says Lamartinc. "is powerful
weapon, and woe be to him who abandons
il to his enemies" The administration of
government brought the Democratic party
in conflict with its principles, which were
abandoned again and again. Deprived Of
power it will again advocate principles
which. if correct, must once more bring back
eictory to its banners, for Truth is all-pow-
srful, and must prevail"