New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1868-05-31

Democrats can find anything to say against
either the candidates or the platform Of the
Chicago Convention. The personal char
acter of Grant and Colfax is unassailable,
and the.recerd Of their public life may be
searched in vain for single act that is not
worthy of commendation. From the day
when Mr.. Colfax entered Congress in 1854
up to the present moment his Life has been
devoted to the cause Of freedom. He has
been faithful. consistent and progressive
Republican from the birthday of that
marty until now and all his speeches, his
votes. and his acts have been on the side
of freedom. Naturally, the pro slavery
spirit that still animates the heart of the
Democratic party causes it to hate such
man. Naturally, its emissaries and leaders
seek to find something upon which to base
an attack against him, but they will seek
in vain. All that can be said in the dis
praise and vilifcatien of General Grant
has been said already. He has virtually
stood as the candidate of the Republican
party before the country for months
past, and has been exposed to
all the artillery of the Demo
cratic press. 1t is not SO very long but
that we all can well remember it since the
Democratic leaders were at the feet Of
General Grant, beseeching him to become
their Moses, and lead them into the Prom
ised Land Of power. When they found
that their temptations were in vain-when
they saw that neither Mr.. Johnson's per-
suasions ana promises nor their plausible
flattery could sway him from his fidelity to
principle, or lead him to join with them in
the work Of undoing what the war had &C
complished, they turned upon him and
since then they have assailed him fOully
and persistently. Naturally, the rebel ele-
ment in this country hates the man who
crushed the rebellion. Naturally, those
who yet dream of possible triumph Of the
" Lost Cause dread the thought Of seeing
the man who has proved himself as saga
eious in the cabinet as he was successful in
the field placed at the head Of the nation.
The same feeling which instigated Copper
headism in the North during the war, and
kept up FIRE in the rear Of the Union
armies, now animates the breasts Of those
who seek to accomplish by political trick
cry what they failed to do by open warfare
and by hidden treason, and nerves their
arm to strike against Grant, When the
Democratic leaders became certain that
they could not use General Grant for their
own purposes they sought anxiously to
destroy him. They knew that his popu-
larity was so great that when once nomin-
atea by the Republican party nothing
short Of miracle could prevent bis tri-
umpha.ssis election. Their efforts, there
rore, were for while devoted to
the inception of plot to injure his
character. The wholly absurd stories con-
corning his habits of Observation-Disclosures
so basely false that even that most unscru-
pulous Of Democratic newspapers, the
New York World, never ventured to dc
more than allow its correspondents to hint
at them-were invented and put in cireu-
lation; and Mr. johnson zealously Joined
in the work of attempting to destroy his
character by impugning his veracity, an
attempt which recoiled quickly upon Mr.
Johnsons head, and covered those engaged
in ii with shame and confusion The next
expedient was an attempt TO demonstrate
that Grant was no soldier, that he had
never won battle, or gained a single
laurel wreath. The New York World in a
series of painfully labored articles at
tempted to take from General Grant the
houors Of Fort Henry, Donelson, Pittsburg
Landing, Vieksburg, and Richmond, and
its success was equal to that which crowned
the famous critic who demonstrated that
Napoleon did not win the battle Of Aus
terlitz. The people locked on with Ian
guild contempt at these efforts to dim the
glory and tarnish the fair fame Of the man
whom they revered and loved, and on the
21st Of May they showed the apprecia-
ton they placed upon them by giving to
him the unanimous vote of the largest,
most intelligent, and respectable political
convention ever assembled In the United
States.
Nothing more can be said against Gen
eral Grant than has been said his fees have
exhausted, their ammunition upon him be-
fore. the battle has commenced. They have
not succeeded in wounding him he
is invulnerable to all their darts. Equally
vain will be the assaults that may be made
upon Mr.. Colfax. And If the Democratic
newspapers and orators are thus fOiled In
their attacks upon our candidates what will
be their success when they come 70 attack
our platform? Which Of the twelve planls
Of which II is composed viii they dsnounce?
So sngscious were the minds Of the men
who drew up this platform, and 90 admifa-
bly, did they frame the sentences which
were accepted By the Chicago Conventica
a. the expression Of the principles and
purposes Of the party, that our opponents
already feel that unless they can distort and
misrepresent the meaning Of the platform
they will fail to make any headway against
It. They have already begun TO complain
because the platform embraces the declare
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