The Bolivar bulletin. [volume] (Bolivar, Hardeman County, Tenn.) 1865-1888, 1869-12-04
Democracy.

There are, says the ShelbyviIle american
Rescue but two parties in the country to-
dav, and those two are the Democrat and
Radical parties. Upon what ground any
man claiming to be opposed to Radicalism
can object to being called Democrat, we
cannot see We are inclined to believe that
such men do not know the meaning of the
word Democracy. For the benefit of those
very sensitive persons, who used to be
Wings, we will give the definitions OF the
words Democrat and Whig and If any SEN
sible man will then pretend to say that the
word Wing is more appropriate or has a
broader or more comprehensive meaning in
reference to republican form of govern
ment than Democracy we will then begin to
believe that some men have eyes but see
not ears but hear not We find on consult
ing "Worcesters Unabridged that the
word " Democrat means "an advocate for,
or defender of, Democracy, that " Democ-
racy means the people, and to rule. Il
/ form of government in which the sovereign
power is lodged in the body of the people
! a republic" Now what sensible man,
/ claiming to be opposed to the Radical party
and in favor of a Republican form of gov
ernment, will object to being called a Demo
crat 1t expresses exactly what he processes
| to be in favor of, and hence its appropriate
/ ness. NOW lGG US see HudG ttlG SttillC tLu-
thority has to say rs to the origin and mean
| ing of the word ' Whig' On examination
the reader will find that the word Wing 3"
IS a name applied to d" a great political party
/ in 1879, who opposed the cause of the royal
family The word is derived from Whiggan1
a word used by Scotch peasants in driving
their bOrses According to Daniel De Foe,
Woodraw, and others, the word was taken
from a mixed drink which the Scottish Con
ventieners drank In their wanderln2s, com
posed of water and sour milk, and called
! Whiq or WHey" Such is a brief definition
of the two wor!s, under which at one time
in our country, two mighty political parties
contested for the supremacy in ruling this
government The Wing party died out be
fore the war There was u organization o
that kind known at the time OF our late
bloody conflict The Columbia Herald, IL
an article upon this subject says
Some people will be prejudiced agains
the name of Democrat, even though thell
reason must tell them that the name alone
has survived The prominent leaders o
that party, at least in this section, are really
the only live and progressive men we have
They want to forget the war and Its issues
and live alone in the present and prepare tol
the future. After the States of the SoutI
are safely in the Union, and their govern
| IuGDIS III TIE MINUS u Vic pSOp1C, bAACJ WI
either form new party or give tone anC
spirit to the Democratic party of the North
Whatever course they pursue, the past vii
be forgotten and the present recognized
Like the planters, who do not attempt to re
place the banks washed away by the MIssis
sippi floods, but seek to build new levees OF
the remaining ground, so will the peOpll
make their fight upon what is left of consti
tutional liberty The Jacobins will neve
stop in their mad career toward centraliza
ton unless stopped, and Democracy is tn
only power which has any such disposition
coupled with the power.
A Whig name would suit as well a
Democrat if it had the same potency, but
has not Sensible men look only to tn
spirit and substance of things, and not t
names, and he is a silly map, indeed, wh
allows his old prejudices against the Demo
cratic party to drive him into Radicalism, 0
even upon neutral ground The contest
not between Democracy and Whiggery, bu
Radicalisn and Democracy.