The Daily empire. (Dayton, Ohio) 1865-1867, 1867-02-06
S7A7T lTMOCRATIC CONVENTION.
THE PLATFORM ADOPTED.
JANUARY Sth, A. d. 1867.


l. Resolved, That the Democracy of Ohit
steadfastly adhere to the principles of tht
party as expounded by the fathers, and ap.
proved by experience; that In accordanc,
with these principles we declare that the
Federal Government is a government o.
limited powers, aud that It possesses nC
powers but such as are expressly, or by
necessary implication delegated to IL in the
Federal Constitution that all other powers
are reserved to the states or the people
that strict construction of the Constitu.
tion Is indispensable to the preservation o
the reserved rights of the States and the
people; that all grants of power to Govern
ment, whether State or Federal, should be
strictly construed, because all such grant.
abridge the natural rights of men; that the
preservation of the equality and rights OF
the States and the rights Of the people IS
necessary to the preservation of the Union
that the Federal Government is untitled to
legislate for or administer the local concerns
of the States that it would be monstrous
that the local affairs of Ohio should be regu-
lated by a Federal Congressin which she has
but two Senators, and the New England
States, with but little greater population,
have twelve; that the tendency of the Fed
eral Government is to usurp the reserved
rights of the States and of the people; and
that. therefore, Capitalization of power In
lts hands Is an ever pending danger. That
such an abs rptiOn OF power would. while
it lasted, be destructive of the liberties and
interests of the people, and would end
either in despotism or a destruction of the
Union; that q National debt, besides i'm
poverishing the people, fosters an undue
increase of the powers of the Federal Gov
ernment; that high protective tariffs have
a like effect sacrificing the interests of the
many for the emoluments of the few. and
plainly violating the equity and spirit of
the Constitution; that the collection and
disbursement of enormous revenues by the
Federal Government have the same ten
dency, beside corrupting the Government,
and that, therefore, economy Is essential
not only to the prosperity, but also to the
liberties of the people; that unequal tax
alton Is n plain violation of Justice, of
which no Government can safely he equity.
That TO each State belongs the right to
determine the qualification of its electors,
and all attempts to impair this right, either
by Congressional legislation or Constitu-
tional amendment. are unwisc and despot-
ic; that the tendency of power Is to steal
from the many to the few, and that, there
fore, "Gternal vigilance is the price of lib
erty !" that the tendency of government is
to enlarge its authority by uSurpation and
therefore government needs to be watched :;
that another of its tendencies is to govern
too much--unnecessarily and vcXatously
Interfering with the business and habits of
The people; that the freedom of speech and
of the press is essential to the existence of
liberty: that no person not In tine military
or naval service, or in the bounds where
martial law legitimately prevails, can law
fully be deprived of life, liberty or proper
ty, without due process of civil law; that
the courts should always be open for the
redress of grievances; that no eG post fdctO
law should be made; that the right of the
people TO peaceably assemble and consult
upon public affairs is inviolablc; that the
military should be held in due subicctiOn
to the civil power; that while the major
ity, as prescribed by the Constitution, have
the right to govern, the minority have in
defeasible rights; and that a frequent re-
currence to first principles is essential to
the welfare of the State and the people.
2. ReSOlUed, That the States lately in re-
belion are States in the Union, and have
been recognized as such by every depart
ment of the Government, and by Presi-
dent Lincoln, who, in the midst of the war,
invited them to electmembers of Congress ::
by President johnson, In various proca-
nations and official acts; by Congress,
which permitted Andrew johnson to sit in
the Senate as a Senator from Tennessee.
and members from Virginia, TeunesSee
and Louisiana to sit in the House of Repre-
sentatives after these States had seeded,
and while the war was being carried on,
and which further recognized them as
States in the Union by the Congressional
apportionment act providing for their due
representation in Congress; by various
tax laws, and especially by the direct tax
by the resolutions submitting amendments
to the Constitution for their approval, and
by various other acts and resolutions i'm
parting the same recognition; all of which
etnpn attpm
of those States by the judiciary of the
United States, which holds Federal Courts
in all those States, and especially by the |
Supreme Court, which entertains iurisdic- |
tiOn of cases coming from them which it |
could not do were they not in the Union. |
That being thus in the Union, they stand |
on an equal footing with their sister States |
States with unequal rights being thing !
unknown TO the Constitution; that. by the |
express terms of the Constitution. each
State is entitled to have two Senators and
due proportion of Representatives In the +,
and to vote in all elections OF
President and Vice president; that. though |
these rights are subject to interruption by
a state of civil war, they can not. in time of
peace, be suspended, much less destroyed
without plain violation of the Coustitu-
tion; that Congress has no power to de-
prive State of its reserved rights, and
reduce IL to a Territorial condition; that
therefore the exclusion, by the so-calle d
Congress, of all representation from ten
States, the proposed exclusion of those
States, from all voice in the next Presiden-
cial election, the threatened overthrow of
their State Governments and the reduction
OF their States to the condition of territor-
les, are each and every one of them uucon-
revolutionary and despotic
measures, destructive not merely of the
rights of those States, but also of the rights
of every other State in the Union. That
those measures are parts Ofa plan to nullity
the Constitution, virtually overthrow the
State Governments, TO erect a consolidated
despetism on their ruins; and to establish
and perpetuate tyranniCal rule of minor
ity over majority of the American peO-
pie. That the people cannot, without a
loss of their liberties, prosperity and honor
submit to such result; and we, therefore
in the hope that the warning will be
needed, and the danger 10 our situations be
peaceably averted, do solemnly warn the
advocates of the plan, that it will not
be submitted to.
3. ResolUed, That Congress is not an
omnipotent law-making power That the
Constitution provides that no bill shall be-
come a law without the approval of the
President, unless il be passed by two-thirds
of each House of Congress. That one of
the objects of the present so-called Con-
gress In excluding States from representa-
ton, is to pass bills by two-thirds vote