The spirit of democracy. [volume] (Woodsfield, Ohio) 1844-1994, 1868-06-09


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Don Piatt PronOunces the Repub
! lican Party Dead, and Discour
i ses fnereOn.
j correspondence Cincinnati Commercial
M cuvvr Nov17 1eea
i "a
i IMPEACHMENT.
i I wish to make few observations Of,
philosophical sort, touching the late Re
publican party. g
i I assisted, some twelve or thirteel
wears since. at the birth Of the party Jus
Idemised. having Travelled from tie Mac-a
cheek Valley to Bufalo. carryipe; 4 Slanl
lfor the platform On which the newly
Ilborn was 20 be Graded aud INV I tfection
lhaye gfostn with its crowth 70 such =,
Iextesnt HAT it, snllden s|aath threw M,
Into ! state of nrofounds p-;;ef disturbe,
lby indignation. / passed from lamenta
,ltion to an INDIGNATION meetinp-an,
from al Indignation meeting to dee,
lgfief. But with reflection came eoifIisola
tion. came to the consoline though
that | was not the ofIly sufferer. and han
ding out my surplus affection to nv be
|lored country at large, I found nv shar,
could be carried without much inconye
nience. ss
The immediate cause Of its death wa,
dyspepsia, aggravated by whisky. Blu
the seeds of weakness and disease wers
planted in its birth. We began a party
of reform, Of agitation, of aggression, and
we took into otir embraces The old Whie
party, that was party of conservatism
aggravated by great dignity and timidity
The result has been internal dissensions.
The ultra reform party could not digest
the conservative lump, and We have been
afflicted with collie, so to speak, that well
nigh destroyed our usefulness. Our ac-
tions in consequences have been contra.
dlctory. While at one time We create .
John Brown, and glory in John Brown
as our greatest and best beloved; organ
lied huge armies; fought out big wars
and liberated q race; on the other hand
We have been busy smoothing out wars
wrinkled front with the decayed plasters
OF WRONG. doing 1t Is called compro.
mlse-Which means to give the devil YOU
soul ina dignihed, peaceful manner.
The last internal CONFUSION exhibited
with great clearness the different elements
On one side we had Butler, Stevens, Bing.
ham, Logan, Sumner and iDrakei on the
other stood, IN calm repose, Fessender
and Irumbull; while between hoated an
other element, born OF the revolutionary
times, that mad It's marketable value, ane
nuctaated as either party Did.
Now, I am prepared to admit thai
Messrs. Fessenlen and Trumbull were ac
tuated by the highest and most honora
BILE motives. / do not believe they could
be bought with money, or swayed bJ
prejudice. They felt that they were ju.
rors under oath, answerable to their Got
/ for the verdict they rendered. Nor do ]
blame them for responding as they did t
the solemn question asked them by th'
Chief Justice. | believe this as 1 beliey'
that the ty-6ve voting "guilty" wer,
honorable, honest men. But, in politica
life, blunder is worse than crime, AMI
Messrs. Fessenden and Trumbull blum
dered in belonging to the Republican or
ganization at all. They should have gon'
over to the party Of Stanbery andGroes
beck, where the old Wing dignity is pre-
served intact, and where Conservatism i
SO intense that an ancient wrong is pre-
ferred to "a new right, and where ofioia
position is so glorifed that halo il
thrown around an inebriated mule, tina
an all-wise Providence, through some in
scrutable reason, has set on end and made