The Union and journal. [volume] (Biddeford, Me.) 1858-1882, 1866-02-09
miscellaneous.
WHAT THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY HAS
COST THE COUNTRY,

Tho national debt. tho whole cost Of IN,
war, its vast slaughter OF men and destruction
of property, and the taxes 10 has cntailed. arr
the returns the people have received for theil
confidence in the Democratic party. From il
invention to its attempted execution, secession
was purely Democratic. The members Of q
Democratic Administration conspired the plo,
20 precipitate the rebellion. A Democratic
Administration disarmed the Government be-
fore secession, and gave il immunity BY the
declaration that the Government had no con.
s.itutonal power to defend ITSELF A demo
cratic administration transferred the public
arms to the control Of the rebels, and lett the
national forts delenceless before them. The
leaders of the democratic party were the lead
ers of the rebellion. and they still continued
the leaders OF the whole party.
The rebellion made no division in the party.
The same leaders continued to exercise the
same control. The confederates in the Moth
maintained that the Government had no cons
ti,utional power to put down rebellion. They
opposed every measure to raise troops for the
national defense, and 10 provide means to pay
them. They opposed the arming Of the North
ern States for their defence They sought to
divide the North. to reduce il to Confederate
terms. They continually dcclaimcd that every
act against rebellion was violation against
tho Constitution. They boosted their consis.
tent adherence 10 their resolutions never to
vote man or dollar TO put down rebellion.
They labored to magnify and protract the war,
with the deliberate design that its burdens
should break down the Government.
They strove to discourage volunteering, to
stir up dissatisfaction. and to organize sedition.
They denounced the draft Us unconstitutional,
and melted lorciblc Resistance 30 il. They or
gained conspracies 10 precipitate revolt in the
North. and to bring in a savage Southern army
to rayage and lay waste the country. They in
cited barbarous treatment TO our soldiers in the
South, and the spirit Of murder against all our
public men. They met in general convention,
and resolved that the war to restore the Union
had failed, and should stop. Their aid and en-.
enlargement, and the hopes they held out,
kept the rebellion alive long alter its cause
was hopeless, and multiplied the cost Of the
war. They served their Southern party lead.
crs all through the war, and now, when tho
rebel military power has submitted, and is rci-
dy to ratily the death ot secession aud slavery,
the Northern Democratic party seeks 10 revive
these issues, and to renew the conflict.
Let Democratic journals and orators howl
over the debt and taxes their war has brought.
They but magnify their own sins. Every dol
lar Of debt is Democratic legacy. Every tax
is = Democratic gift. Every Government stamp
is . Democratic sticking plaster. Every per
son in the United States drinks in Democracy
in his tea, his coffee and his whisky, and in the
sugar wherewith he sweetens them. Each i'll
grcdicut pays its quota for the cost OF Democ-
r,cy to the country. The smoker inhales De-
mocracy. Tho sick man is physicked with Do
mocracy. The laborins iuan gives about one
hours labor every day to pay for Democracy.
Tho capitalist pays one.tenth OF his income for
tho cost Of tho Democratic party. Every
transf,r OF property il saddlcd with tho Demo-
cratic burden. Before he is bcgotten the child
is subject to the Democratic tax. From the
cradle to the grave he never is free from ii.
Tho funeral mourning must first pay the penal
~ Of Democratic rule, and portion OF that
which he leaves behind must 60 into this Dem
ocratic vortex.
Generation after generation will carry the
Democratic burden from birth TO Gcath Like
tho original divine curse, ii will be felt in the
sweat Of the brow Of tho laborer and in tho
travail of women. and in swallowing up a por-
ton Of the earth's productions for all time.
But for the Democratic party our people would
hardly have known tho nature OF taxation.
But for il the hundreds OF thousands Of young
men whose bones arc strcwn over the South
would now DO productive laborers, and the sup.
port and comfort Of families now desolate. No
ono will attempt to deny all this indictment.
No one will pretend that the Democratic party
hid any cause for rebellion. Yet it has the
eflrontery to cry over the burdens OF taxation.
And as the father Of the Democratic party,
when he had stripped job Of family and pos
sessions. charged 1t to his own sins, and sought
t. draw him from his integrity, so his Demo-
cratic sons now como forward with equal ef-
fron,ery, and charge their doinss upon the 10y
al people, and hypocritically howl over their
Affections, and seek TO scduce thom from their
integrity, to elect to power the party that has
brought all these woes upon tho land.-CiHe'n-
ndii Gd:stte.