Dodgeville chronicle. [volume] (Dodgeville, Wis.) 1862-current, 1868-10-02
Extract from Senator Mortcn's Speech
at Centerville, Ind.

: By the election of General Grant we
determine in favor of maintaining this
system of reconstruction, and carrying it
out to final success; in favor of protecting
the Union men of the South, white and
black; in favor of equal rights, of equal
and exact justice to all men in favor of
maintaining the public faith of the nation
by the payment of the national debt &C
cording to the law, as well as the spirit OF
the contract, in the language OF the Chi
cago platform. By the election of Mr..
Seymour we determine just the opposite
of all these things; that the new State
Governments recently organized in the
South shall be overruled; we determine
in favor of new revolution; in favor OF
undoing all that has been done. We de-
termine in favor of making war and revo-
luton the chronic condition of affairs in
this country. We determine that we shall
have not united people, but people
forever warning among themselves, which
will certainly result in their final destruc-
ton.
This is the exact issue that is submitted,
and | submit to the Democrats as well as
Republicans that they have an equal in
terest in the country; just as much inter
est in peace as we have just as much in
terest in having united and strong re-
public as we have; and say to them that
this is the true question that is to be de-
cided. Now, what is the platform upon
which Mr.. Seymour and General Blair
stand as candidates? 1t declares that
those Reconstruction laws are revolution
airy, unconstitutional and void. Have you
considered what is the full effect and pur-
port of that language? If those acts are
revolutionary, unconstitutional and void,
nobody is bound to obey them. 1t is the
right of every man to resist them. He
would be free of punishment finally, and
that is what they inculcate as the result of
law that is unconstitutional and void, and
therefore those new State Governments
that have been created in the South are of
40 validity, and the people are not bound
to yield them obedience, not bound to
stand by them, and the colored men,
whose rights are protected by them, there
by receive no protection and security
That is the declaration of the New York
platform, and it involves war ITSELF 1t
gives the people of the South to under
stand that these reconstructed States are
unconstitutional, and that these govern
ments shall not be maintained but over
turned, and that the control of the rebel
States shall be restored to the rebels them
selves. In other words, it is the loss of
all that we have done. The men that
Wayne county has lost in this rebellion
have been lost in vain. The $5,000000, 900
we have expended to put down the rebel
lion have been expended in vain. If this
thing comes about all is lost. 1t were ten
thousand times better that we had let
these States 60 in the beginning, and said,
as the Democratic leaders have said here
tofore: "Let them go in peace; let the
Union be destroyed, and new confeder-
acy be erected, the chief corner of which
is slavery" We have gone through
the war, suffered its losses, its fearful
waste of treasure; millions of households
have been made sad, millions of hearts
have been made to bleed, but we are now
in a position to lose it all if we shall fail
in this election. But there is a still more
significant declaration in the New York
platform, although that conveys all have
said and means more than can tell you.
The declaration of Mr.. Blair, the candi-
date of the Democratic party for Vice
President, on the Sunday before the Con-
vention met, wrote letter to Governor
Broadhead, which was published and
placed in the hands of every delegate to
that Convention. In that letter he declares
that those reconstruction acts are null and
rfOiu1 1llOoC hCW ObtGC kONcI lllGSdl
and unauthorized, and went on to tell how
we should get rid of them. He said
"You cannot change the character of the
Senate of the United States under foul
years." That was true They might cleo
new House of Representatives, but coulC
not change the Senate, and therefore they
could not repeal those laws. How was hi
going to get clear of them? "By nullifi
cation" said he. The President mus
trample those laws into the dust, and by
the power of the army of the United State,
must overturn what he called the green
backed government of the Southern States
He said: 81 want to go before the Con
vention upon this policy, and upon nc
other. This is the only ISSUE All ques
tions of finance, of tariff; all questions Of
currency are to be kept out of sight, fol
there is but one great question, and that is
the question of overturning this policy
established by Congress" destroying these
new State governments that have been
called into existence, and placing the pow
er back into the hands of the rebels-the
men whom it had cost so much blood and
treasure to conquer. General Blair wen,
before the Convention on that letter, but
he was nominated on the first ballot, anG
unanimously. He was placed in nomina
ton by General Wade Hampton, of South
Carolina, and the overwhelming rebe
sentiment of that Convention caused hi
nomination to be made unanimously anc
enthusiastically. This letter of Genera
Blair is the true platform of the Demo
cratic party, upon which it stands to-day
1t is the same in substance with their reso
lutions, but is more clear, more definite
and more tangible to the public under
standing. Consider for one moment what
are the elements that compose the Demo
cratic party. A great party, like man
has constitution, an organism from
which 1t cannot get away, which must con
troll its action just as a mans constitution
his temperament, controls his action. We
cannot get away from our nature, neither
can we get away from its constituent ele
ment, or from that constitution which i,
has.
Now upon the subject of the payment
OF the national debt. If you believe the
Democratic party, if it is put into power,
can pay that, you are mistaken. 1t would
be moral impossibility. Place that party
In power and reputation is an inevitable
result. L do not care what their plat
forms may say, or what declarations poll
ticians may make, that is the result thai
most certainly follows. Why? In the first
place the great body of that party are mer
who were unfriendly to that debt when
it occurred They did not own it, they
did not lend their money to the Govern
ment, and they are constantly opposed to
paying taxes in order to pay the interest
on the national debt. Therefore the Dem