The Highland weekly news. [volume] (Hillsborough [Hillsboro], Highland County, Ohio) 1853-1886, 1868-10-22
.BEEgHER ON TEE CANVASS /!
ssWHAT WE WANT NOW is ADJ
ILLUSTRATIONS -ss
Speech Of the Rev. Henry Ward
BeeclleF at the Brooklyn
Academy Of MusiGs 81. esi-.

within its walls than that of last night,
to hear the Rev. Henry Ward Beecher
discuss the issues of the campaign.
The Ibuilding was crowded, but the ar
Engagements were so perfect that no
one was Inconvenience. There were
fully as many ladies as gentlemen
present, and all had been seated fully
half an hour before Mr.. Beeeher. came
on the stage, escorted by Edwin A..
Sthdweli, Presidential elector for the
Third District. On the platform were
some. Of the most distinguished citizens
Of Brooklyn, among whom were Judge
Benedict, the Hon. g. Reynolds and
S. B. Chittenden. As Mr.. Beecher
walked up to the table a curtain, al
most similar to the one dropped at
Chicago when Grant was nominated,
was lowered. The Chicago curtain
represented Grant sitting on a pedes-
tai on the left of the White House
with the Goddess of-hiberty pointing
toward him, and above her the words
"Natch him." On the right pedestal
was a blank. space. The curtain last
night had this space filed with a pic.
ture of Seymour learning against
lamp post on which was inscribed
"City Hail." and a negro hanging
from a cross bar. Aboveall were the
words sCDFatched." In the distance
the flames of an Orphan Asylum were
seen. The whole affair was very
qpropos, and elected applause from
the audience. AS Mr.. Beecher step
ped forward to the table, the people
applauded him so intensely that it was
some minutes before he could speak.
Mr.. BEECHER's ADDRESS.
LADIES AND GENTLEAIEN:-Wh
next March, the President to be elect
ed by the people shall take his place
in Washington, it will have been four
years, lackinga few days, since the war,
in its active form, was closed. During
that time the country has gone thrO'
vast excitements, run rapidly forward,
question following question, until now
the questions are not the same-only
the principles are the same. The
issues of 1868 are not the issues Of
1864; but the principles that under
laid the one underlie yet the other. Par
ties remain substantially the same as
they were in 1854, and further back,
as they were in 1860; for in 1860 the
Republican party, then young, aehiev-
ed its first victory. 1t was new and
lunpTactised. It went before the e0un-
try to claim the administration of the
Government from.an old, expert party
which had a long record of early glory
and late eclipse. TApplause.
The Democratic party began by be-
ing the friend of the common people,
and Of the whole of the common peo-
pie Corrupted by power, it abandon
ed this principle Of faith in mankind,
in humanity, and became substantial
/ ly an instrument of a class. That
was the damning sin of the old Fed
eral party, that it represented a class
and not the whole people, and that,
to a certain extent, was the sin and
weakness Of the Wing party. The
democratic party slew them, because
il did, in its better day, believe. fer
vently in the common people-slew
those parties, and now has stumbled
itself into their grave. Applause, ]
In 1864 the two parties again argued
their claims TO the management of the
Government before the people, and
second time the people determined
that the Republican party, by its
principles, by the record of its deeds,
by the men who chiefly shaped its
policy, by its tendencies, in short, by
its past and by its future, ought to ad-
minister the government of the ma
ton. [Applause. Now, in 1868,
the question is once more to be deter
mined by the people. Shall the Re
publican party be instructed. to carry
on to completion the work of the past
ten years or shall that work be re-
pudiated? or shall the Democratic
party be installed in power, charged
to complete the work which the Re
publican party has begun? Which?
Look at the meaning Of the last ten
years of American history. The let,
ter and the spirit of our historical in
lstitutions, OF the character of our peo-
pie, made it sure that sooner or later
there would arise a moral and then pO-
litical protest against slavery. It was
impossible in a nation of such insti-
tutions, of such early ideas, Of such
spfrit-it was impossible that slavery
should exist, and there be no protest;
unless humanity died in the bosom of
men; unless conscience became but a
name. it was matter of certainty,
that first or last there would be men
who would feel the under, inward
power of our own institutions and of
true Americanideas, and would assert
them. Theanti-slavery agitation an
swers TO that necessity, and was the
logical sequence Of American ideas.
Men did not make that agitation. 1t
lay in the very frame and structure,
and genius of our American institu-
tions of Government, and men were
the instruments of causes deep as
everlasting principles. Against the
Influence of this protest, irritated, but
more ambitious Of power than irritat-
led at interference with their welfare,
the South at last, committing the su-
pren1e blunder. of the century, drew
the sword. The issue inevitably in,
volved the question of liberty. The
Republican party at an early day
sought to avoid the true issue of the
war, and maintain the Union without
meddling with slavery. 1t was the
necessity of inexperience to do this.
But Gods logic prevailed, and the Re
publican party were driven by events
that were mightier than they TO
emancipation, which was the logical
sequence Of their position. They hes
itated. They were carried forward.
1.-THE next step was to confer citizen