The Wheeling daily register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1864-1878, 1868-10-31
The National Democratic
Platform.

The Democratic party, III NdIlOudl SohNSn
ton assembled, repesiRg its trust in the intelh,
gence. patriotism and discriminating justice OF
fhe people standing upon the Constitution as
the foundation and limitation of the powers OF
the Government, and the guarantee OF the nd
critics of the citizen, and recognizing the ques-
tions of slavery and secession as having been
stttled for all time to come, by war and the vol
untary action of the Southern states, in consti-
tntional convention assembled, and never to be
renewed or reagitated do with the return Of
peace, demand, =, ,
First The immediate restoration of all the
States to their rights in the Union, under the
Constitution and of civil government for the
American people.
Second. Amnesty for all past political Often
ces, and the regulation of the elective franchise
| In States by their citizens
| Third. PAYMENT of the public debt of the mi
| ted States as rapidly as practicable; all money
drawn from the people by taxation, except so
much as is requisite for the necessities of the
government economically administered, being
| Honestly applied to such payment, and where
the obligations OF the Government do not OK
| nressly state upon their face, or the law under
| which they were issued does not provide that
| they shall be paid in coin, they ought, il right
| and Justice, be paid in the lawful money Of the
United States.
! Fourth. Equal taxation of every species oil
property according to its real value, including
government bonds and other public securities;
Fifth. One curr ency for the government and
| the pcople the labOrer and the Office holder,
the pensioner and the soldier, the producer and
| bond holder.
| government, the reduction of the standing army
and navy: the abolition of the Freedmen
bureau great cbeersl, and all political instru'
| mentalties designed to secure negro supremacy;
simplificatiOn of the system, and discontlnuance
of inquisitoral modes of assessing and collecting
Internal Revenue; so that the burden OF taxation
| lao, lnsQlupI
| the government and the currency made good,
| the repeal of all enactments for enrolling the
State militia into the national forces III time Oh
peace and tariff for revenue upon foreign INA
| ports: and such equal taxation under the inter
| nal Revenue laws, as will afford incidental pro
| lection to domestic manufactures, ana as Will,
without impairing the revenue impose the least
burden upon and best promote and encourage
the great industrial interests of the country.
Seventh. Reform of abuses in the administra-
ton; the expulsion of corrupt men from once;
| the abrogation of useless Offices the restoration
| of rightful authority to and the independence
| of the Executive and Judicial departments OF
the government. The subordination of the mil
| tary to the civil power to the end that the usur
pations OF Congress and the despotism OF the
| sword may cease.
Eighth. Equal rights and protection for nat
uralzed and native born citizens at hsme and
which shall command d tha ~orican n2ti9naiity
powers and furnish an example and encourage
ment to people struggling for national integri
ty constitutional liberty and individual rights,
and the maintenance of the rights of naturaiz'
ed citizens against the absolute doctrine of i'm
mutable allegiance, and the claims of foreign
powers to punish them for crime committed
beyond their jurisdiction.
| In demanding these measures and reforms we
arragn the Radical party for its disregard for
right, and the unparalleled oppression and tyr
| amy which has marked its career, after the
most solemn and unanimous pledges of both
houses of Congress to prosecute the war exclu'
sively for the maintenance of the Government
and the protection of the Union under the
Constitution. 1t has repeatedly violated that
most sacred pledge, under which was rallied
| that noble volunteer army which carried ouI
flag to victory. Instead of restoring the Union
il has, so far as il is in its power, dissolved it
| and subjected ten States in time of profound
peace to military dcspotism and negro supre
macy. 1t has nullifed there the right of trial
by jury. 1t has abolished the habeas corpus
that most sacred writ OF liberty. 1t has over
thrown the freedom Of speech and of the press
1t has substituted arbitrary seizures and ar
rest and military trials and the secret star
chambers of inquisitions for constitutional tri
bunals. 1t has disregarded in time of peace the
right of the people to be free from search and
seizures. 1t has entered the post and telegraph
| offices, and even the private rooms of individ
uals and seized their private papers and letters
| without any specification, or notice, or atfida
Wit, as required by the organic law. 1t has
converted the American capitol into Bastile
1t has established system of spies and official
espionage TO which no constitutional monarchy
in Europe would now dare to resort.
1t has abolished the right of appeal on i'm.
portant constitutional questions to the su
preme judicial tribunal and threatens tofcur'
tail or destroy its original jurisdiction, whchis
irrevocably vested by the Constitution, while
the learned Chief Justice has been subje cted to
| great and atrOcious Calumnies, merely because
| 10 pntp oh off 10
support of the false and partisan charges pre-
| ferred against the President. Its corruption
and extravaganza have exceeded anything
known in history, and by its frauds and monop.
oies it has nearly doubled the burden of debt
| created during the war. 1t has stripped the
President of his constitutional power of ap.
| pointment even of his own cabinet. Under its
repeated assaults the pillars of the Government
are rocking on their bases, and should it sue.
| coed in November next and inaugurate its
| President, we will meet as subjects and a con.
| quered people, amid the ruins of liberty and
the scattered fragments ofthe Constitution
| And we do declare and resolve, That ever
since the people of the United States threw of
| all subsection to the British crown, the priv.
| lege and trust of suffrage have belonged to the
several States, and have been granted regulated
and controlled exclusively by the political pow
| er OF each State respectively and any attempt
| by Congress on any preteXt whatever 10 de-
prive any State of this right or interfere with
| this exercise is fragrant usurpatiOn of power,
| which can find no warrant in the Constitution,
and if sanctioned by the people will subvert our
form of government, and can only end in a six
gle centralized consolidated government in
which the separate existence of the States will
be entirely absorbed, and an unqualified des-
potism be established in splaoe of Federal
union of coequal States; and that we regard the
reconstruction acts, so called, of Congress such
usurpatiOn, and unconstitutional, revolutionary
and void; and that our soldiers and sailors who
carried the flag of our country TO victory
against a most gallant and determined foe must
be ever gratefully remembered and all guaran.
ties given in the law must be faithfully carried
into execution.
That the public land should be distributed
widely among the people and should be dispos.
ed of under the presumption Of homestead laws
and sold in reasonable quantities. and to none
but actual occupants, at the minimum price es
tablished by the government. When grants OF
the public lands may be allowed, necessary for
the encouragement of important public i'm
provcments, the proceeds of the sale of such
lands, and not the lands themselves, should be
so applied.
That the President of the United States. An.
drew johnson, in exercising the power of his
high office in resisting the aggressions OF Con-
gress on the Constitutional rights of the States
and the people, Is entitled to the gratitude Of
the whole American people, and on behalf OF
the Democratic party we tender him our thanks
for his patriotic efforts in that regard.
Upon this platform the Democratic party ap-
peals to every patriot, including all the CoRser-
vative element and all who desire to support the
constitution and restore the Union, forgetting
past differences Of opinion, TO unite with us IN
the present great struggle for the liberties OF
the people, and that to all such, to whatever
party they may have heretofore belonged we
extend the right hand of fellowship and hail all
oh nlo VII fr,a ID and