Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1870-02-08

r G0D ana maluLlOu anu W one
of these two parties we must belong,
if we do anything for the country.
A "Third Party" may be tried, and
has been attempted; but the effort is
a failure. Names are nothing-prin-
ciples everything. Referring to a
proposition of an Alabama paper,
that Democrats should go over to the
so-called Conservatives, the Mobile
Register says:
Ii is a misnomer and a challenge tC
historical truth to term the Demo.
cratic party a "third party" 1t is g
first party, and the only party now
extant that has survived more than
seventy years of political conflict. II
must, from the force of its principles
as a party of the Constitution, live
until the great charter which is its
rock is swept into oblivion, and Rad
icalism POUNDS an empire on its ruins.
1t would seem strange indeed thai
any man who venerates the COnstitu-
ton and who believes in white su.
premaey, should refuse to help il in
its tremendous issue with Radical
revolutionists, because he does moi
like it.
The old Democratic party and the
old Wing party were really n in
this, that they both revered the Con.
stitution, and emulated each other in
their pretensions and efforts to serve
it. For the service of the country we
can therefore now go under either o.
those time-hOnored names. But the
majority of the Northern Wings are
now, through abolitionism, turned
Radicals, and we cannot act with
them. The ~utterance may be disa.
greeable for Southern Wings to hear
but it is true nevertheless. 1t has
now so turned up that the Democratic
party and name is the sole survivor
of the two, and to refuse to act with il
now when we profess Wing princi-
pies, or Democratic principles, or Con-
sentative principles, or patriotism,
would be to refuse what is necessary
to the practical maintenance of our
principles. He who is against ex-
travagance, abuses and corruption, is
compelled to go with the Democratic
party, or not go at all. From the
force of circumstances the Democrats
have gone over to the Wings as to In
ternal Improvements, and the Wings
have gone over to the Democrats as
to the Tariff. And, there being
no other old question alive, the
remaining common ground against
corruption, and the financial problem
has brought the honest men of the
old parties together, so far as the
South is concerned more especially.
They are Joined under a name which
is the best of the two, which the
Wings in their day Of power always
coveted; and they r not to be put
asunder while there remains a ques-
ton rising above party, and a reason
to struggle for the Constitution. They
that are not for the Democratic
party are against it, and thus
perforce must lend their countenance
to abuses and usurpations which it
combines, with the intent, the only
existing power to suppress. In the
language of Senator SALISBURY
from Delaware:
What has the Republican paaty
done that its advocates should taunt
Democrats on this floor with a want
of fidelity to the country, or that it
should set itself up as the great Judge
OF the Democratic party. its policy,
and its administration of the country?
years; a land deluged in blood; al
most every acre Of your soil freshened
with graves; a debt amounting to
billions of dollars; a people crushed
to earth by onerOus taxation, and
safeguard Of civil and cOnstitu-
tiOnal liberty set at defiance, ignored
and trampled upOn-these are its
achievements
You cannot look at the history OF
the Democratic party and charge it
with the violations of the fundamen-
tai law of the land of which your
party has been guilty. During the
period of sixty years, in which it al
most unbrokenly administered the al
fairs OF this Government, it never ar
rested one-nO, not wen the hum
blest American citizen, and tried him
on a criminal accusation except
by due process of law. No
mans house was ever invaded
except under legal authority du-
ring the whole sixty years that the
Democratic party administered the
Government; not one public press was
ever suppressed. This party of yes
terday when they came into power
found the Constitution under which
the people of this country had lived
for seventy-five or. eighty years in
the enjoyment of all the blessings OF
civil and constitutional liberty; they
found this Constitution, made by the
great and wise men who laid the fOun-
dations of your Government deep in
the principles of constitutional liberty,
and without any experience in so great
a work they set to work patching itup,
and patching it up, until now if the
great men who made it could rise from
the dead or descend from heaven,
they could scarcely recognize the in
strument which they framed.
We need not ask the white men of
the South to avoid such a party as
this. But we may well say that
much may depend on the perfect
union under any name or no name
for the service of the country in the
emergency which is testing its capaci-
ty for selfgovernment. We want, as
free people, to sustain and return a
sound Constitutional and Republican
Government. We can never do this
without union. We cannot unite by
the c~ountenance of any Third Party,
under any name but that under
which the opponents of Radicalism
are combined. And we should gain
nothing by it if we could, which we
have not already.