Litchfield enquirer., 1866-11-01
EXTRACTS FROM THE SPEECH OF REV. HENRY WARD BEECHER. ,IJ .r tsssl -. -. ..-.s- --........., -, D81Iv8RED AT BROOKLYN, MONDAY Eva-
 MING, OCTOBER 15. '1 5a..a.,s

Allow me to disclaim all intentionsof of as.
 sailing the motives, the character, OF even
 the patriotic intentions in the great maiori-
 ty of the individual members of the Demo
 cratic party, while undertake to show
 that that party is not fit to be trusted with
 the government of this nation fTremend- ous cheering and cries of "How are you Andy ?"] speak of it as a living organi-
 zation, with creed, with affiliations, affini-
 ties. with g platform, with party disci- pineS with an innate inevitable, tendency end 1t is not the citizen thatI desire to characterize, but the party called the Dem
 ocratic party. And first, the Democratic
 party was once powerful, useful and honor
 able. When the old Federal party had de-
 veloped real distrust of the people and a Esympathy with the government rather than with the goyerned-which is always the point towards which democracy tends-it became needful that thereshould spring up 6 party which sympathized with the people
 rather than with the government of the people, and that take it was the normal
 and legitimate organization of the Demo
 cratic party, and in it's early history was the champion of the poor-of common men and it's life and power was in this, that it had principle, and thst its principle was
 of humanity as we'll as of politics, and noth- ing could break it as long as it was true to
 this instinct and and principle of justice, liberty and equality down to the bottom
 of society. Applause, By and by there
 arose in the community 8 disturbing force, which, at first, in its infancy, was scarcely felt-1 mean the disturbing force of slavery
 and when, by the cohesive influence of .
 common selfishness the South held the bal
 lance of power the two. great parties that
 divided the1nation in the North Whig and Democrat stood both of them supplicating the favor of the South; that favor was to be
 had only as the price of compfomise with tslavery; and like scustomefs at acommon
 auction, Whig bid against Democrat. ani] Democrat against Whig, and they both aac.
 riiced principle for the isake of hayinr fine 1 balancsC of power thrown on to their siile
 by the South and slavery. Both parties
 were corrupted by it, the one as much as
 the other; but one sinned against light and
 the other without light, for the Whie party
 was made up of great number of reading,
 thinking, intelligent. men, and they knew they were doing wrong and 1t killed them,
 and it ought to- tOies of .sGood. .''I The Democratic party comprising the vast mass ] es of unreading men, with an undeveloped conscience, Hnned, but sinned against e blind conscience. At any rate they stood it better than the Whig party did. They succeeded in winning this bad contest. The Whg party died out; the Dehociatie party camc into ascendencM and came into
 it as the champion, defender and fast all.
 of slavery. The abolition of the Missouri Compromise, which took cplace nnder the auapices of the Democratic psrty in, union with the South. and the determination oi
 the South, winked tt by the Democratic