The weekly North-Carolina standard. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 186?-1869, 1867-05-15
ube Rennblican Party.

State in all their public meetings, have rat
flied and approved the platform of princi-
ples laid down by the Convention that as
sembled in this City en- the 9th OF March
last It is true that body could not be
called in one sense Convention, for Its mem
hers were not chosen in the ordinary way in
which Conventions are constituted. 1t was
merely consultative meeting of one hun
dred white and fifty colored Unionists, who
assembled for the purpose of advancing the
cause Of reconstruction. The original pur-
pose was to suggest some mode Of recon-
structing the State under the Sherman act,
but meanwhile Congress very properly passed
the supplemental act, which rendered action
in accordance with this original purpose TN
necessary. This body of enlightened and
patriotic men, thus spontaneously assembled,
Thought thew owed it to themselves and the
country to announce their principles. They
did so, and respectfully advised the forma-
ton in the State of a REPUBLICAN PARTY,
TO act in concert with the great NATIONAL
REPUBLICAN PARTY. They assumed. the
right to dictate to no one-to bind no one.
but it was the first public movement of the
kind in the right direction, and we repeat
our qualification that the action of the body
referred to has been so generally and SO
warmly endorsed by the Unionists of the
frfa dc caxv
that they expect to point with pride in after
wears to the fact that they were members of
the little meeting which was held in Raleigh
in September, 1866, which endorsed the
Howard amendment and nominated Gen.
Dockery for Governor; but those who were
members of the Convention or meeting in
March, 1867, which laid down the noble
platform of principles prepared for the COM
mittee by our friend Col. David Heaton, of
Craven, and illustrated in its proceedings
practically the absolute political equality
which exists between the two races, will
have brighter and more memorable epoch
in their lives to refer to, than even those who
attended Tile september IitcliHS.
1t is frequently said, there are two parties
in this country. This is mistake. There
are factions, but there is but one party with
national organization. In the North we
find the Copperhead or Democratic faction;
in the South we have the secession faction,
which is in intimate sympathy with the for
mer. The history Of the secession faction
and its present status are well known. The
Democratic faction has no organized connee-
ton with the Southern secessionists but it
presents two faces to the two sections Look
ing South, it says to its secession friends,
ave are your true and best allies. We de-
test the Republican party, and we want you
to>aid US in putting down that party. If
you will go with US we will do you good
We sympathized with you during the rebell-
ion, and we embarrassed the government all
we could by demanding that in all things it
should govern itself in its course towards
you exactly by the Constitution. Unite with
US, and, together we can overturn the Re-
publican party and re-estahlish the Union as
it was" Looking North, it says to the Re
publicans, " We are just as true to the nation
as you are. We paid our money and sent
our men to suppress the rebellion. We hate
rebellion and treason as heartily as you do.
We demand that the South shall submit I'M
conditionaily, and if we could have our way
we would rc-establish the Union on sounder
and better basis than you can" Such is the
language which this Democratic faction ut
tiers to the two sections. Can such men be
trusted9 And if they could be, what
good thing could they do for the
South They have no power in the councils
of the nation. They have no national or
ganization. They are as powerless to help
the seceders and indictments of the South as
the latter are to help themselves.
We repeat, there is but one party in the
country, and that is the NATIONAL REPUBL1-
CAN PARTY We all know it is the party
that suppressed the rebellion and saved the
Union. Its principles may be summed up
in few words. They are, equal and exact
justice to all classes, colors and conditions. 1t
is the party of Liberty and Justice. 1t in
culcates the liberal and benign policy of the
founders of the government. 1t is the pecu-
liar guardian and supporter of labor. Its
sympathies are as much with the humblest
as with the highest. Its mission is to edu-
cate and elevate the people, and tc establish
equal liberty, regulated by law, on this con-
tlnent. We have had our prejudices against
tnis party. We have opposed it for years.
but long chain of events under the hand
Oh Providence has decided against u.s. We
nave always loved the Union, and tits, there
lore, natural that we should now act with
'he party that saved 1t, and which alone can
Dnild up and transmit it, with enlarged
boundaries and increasing power, to future
81 generations.
nut There is no choice in this matter, if we
Mouid restore North-C Carolina to the Union.
!. we are really Unionists We must be Repub
,"ans' Tor no other party can restore the
Union. If we present ourselves for admis-
s'-'n In even doubtful garb, we will not be
-e''iVeo. Ii we present ourselves as Demo.
.'as' as copperheads, as secessionists. we
"N certainly he rejected with as much
F''hianess and aversion as the Southern