The Hancock Jeffersonian. [volume] (Findlay, Ohio) 1857-1870, 1868-07-03
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! THE CAMPAIGN.
; SPEECH BY CARL sCHuRz
WHAT THE CHICAGO CoNvRNrios
MxANr-WHAT REPUBLIcANIsM IL
TO AccoAPLIsH-DpPLIcITE AMI
IksrABILITr OF TIE bEMocRAcr.
The Republicans Of st. Louis
Iopened the campaign on Friday night
last, by q meeting ct Mercantile Ii
lbrary Hall. Gen. Carl Schurz' wa
the orator of the occasion, and deliv-
erred fine speech, which the Demo
crat reports verbatim. We repro
duce it, with the exception Of para
graphs Of local interest, and long
and able analysis Of the characters
Iof Grant aad .Colfax, 'whiaa We are
compelled to omit for want of room
THE REPUBLICAN PLATFORM.
The Republican party has, during
and since the close of the war, accom-
plished greet things uNder diMcult
circumstances. "Ofthis fact the Ma
tional Convention itself, as it assem-
bled at Chicago, was a striking illus
tration. For the first time since the
Republican organization Vas born,
thhe ihe representatives OF all the late
slaveholding States took their places
among Us as members in good stand
ing of the great anti slavery party.
There was the whole North and the
whole South hand in hand--not an
ostentatious parade, not an artful
mockery gotten up for the deception
of the people, as in the famous john
son convention of 1866, where e mar
representing Massachusetts as il news
er had been, hung timidly, and as If
ashamed of himself, on the arm Of Q
man representing South parolina as
lit is not, and never again will be, but
here were the Free States, and the
late Slave States, the former glory
ing In the triumph of the principles
thew had fonrrhs Co. Al $500
...~y .--.-. ..-sns Ivi, tnc iatter purl-
fed of the foul blot of slavery and re-
lieved of the burden of arlstocrstic
class government, ali proud OF one
another; all believers in q common
faith, all champions Of common
cause, all striving to work out com
mon destiny-a truly NationdI Con-
ivention, for it represented not only
all the geographical divisions, but
every element of Q population inhah-
lting the soil of this republic. Thus
the Convention stood upon the ground
of accomplished results, for it could
with certainty assume that the States
and people thus represented at Chi
cago you'd soon be represented again
with all their rights tn the govern
ment of the nation. This fact Changes
the task imposed upon the Republi
can party; il hss no longer TO tear
down nor to build 'Hp, bHt to SECURE,
/! to preserve, to develop, to improve.
The consciousness of this duty
determined the character of the Re-
publican platform. The subject of
reconstruction presented itself as first
lin Importance. 1t has been the main
point in controversy since the GLOSS
of the war, and will be such until the
day of the Presidential election. !
will attempt in o few words to define
the issue. Our opponents assert that
the problem of reconstruction In
wolves nothing but the mere setting
in motion again of the machinery of
Goyernment In point of form-no
matter whether this procedure restore
to power again those who but yester-
day strove to destroy the Republic,
and PLACE the new order Of things
produced by the Faf, aud its frienda
at the mercy of their enemies. We
assert that the problem of reconstruc-
ton involves the restoration OF the
late rebel States to their full powers
and privileges as States of this
Union, and to the full enjoyment oi
the right of self-goyernment In their
local concerns, upon sHch q hssis,
and in such manner that those
rights, privileges and powers may be
exercised without coming in conflict
with the fundamental principles upon
which this republic rests, and with
out producing, new dangers to tbs
true friends of the Union, and 20 the
peace of the country. In othel
words, the States lately in rebellion
had to be recognized in full harmony
with the new order of things, In or
der to be then set afoat again upOr
the broad channel of self-government
The accomplishment of this end waf
not question Of privilege and power
but a matter of imperative duty-s
duty recognized by every patriotic,
honest and sensible man.
To attain the end, we had to looi
for the means. It was absolutely
necessary to devise measures whicl
could be relied upon to secure thu
development of tree labor, to pre-
vent the return of aristOcratic clasi
government, and to afford sufficient
protection to the Union element o.
the South. How could this be done
Could the development of free Labor
be insured against the reactiOnary
desires of a prO-slavery people by
excluding the overwhelming majority
of the laborers from all influence upoI
Legislation and the direction of pub
Ilic affairs, and placing all politica
power as a monopoly in the hands o
the lifelong enemies of free labor
Could sufficient protection be insured
to the Union element of the South By
putting the whole machinery OF polit
lical power into the hands OF thos'
who hated and persecuted themf II
q do this would have been folly ant
crime combined. In ordertO be tru
TO its duty, Congress was bound Il
place the governments Of the lat
rebel States upon an enlarged Dem
ocra,ic basis by armiHg with the bal
Ilat that class of the Southern pOpu
Ilation whose interests and symps
thies are most closely identified witt
the new order of things. The intro
n duction of negro suffrage in the lat
rebel States was, therefore, NO
even merely q matter of gratitude
but a matter of absolute necessity.
This is the reconstruction policy @
{ Congress, which the Chicago Con
vention has indorsed and pledge