The Evansville journal. [volume] (Evansville, Ind.) 1866-1870, 1870-07-29

OWn CALN-CAH4luC JO0A
nitv for the truth of what / say. Was
business ever better than Il Is now?
Has labor ever been so well rewarded
as it is to-day? Have the wages OF
labor ever purchased so many neces-
saries and even luxqrles OF lie as
they now purchase? Was there ever
q more steady or certain employment
for labor? How is it with the me-
chanics? How is it with the manu-
faoturers? Their business is steady;
it is coming upon a solid foundation;
the imitation and uncertainty has al
most passed away. We are now hav-
ing regular steady prosperity; not
a spasmodic, feverish action that
grows out of an inflated cur
rency. We are coming out of an IN.
natural condition of things. We are
having health In business. We are
having regularity and steady tides of
prosperity. Sometimes nations have
spasmodic prosperity-that which ap-
pears to be prosperity, but is not-in
times of great excitement and great
imitation, and this spasmodic prosper
ity may be compared to a spasmodic
action of the human body. Men may
be sick or feverish, or become intoxi-
Gated, and appear TO have unnatural
strength for a time, but it always ends
in disease, %prostration, and sometimes
in death. We are now coming to a
regular and solid prosperity. And.
my friends, there are those who regret
this very much. There are those now
croaking and grumbling, and saying
that if we do not change our govern
ment-if we donot change our parties,
that the country will go to bankrupt
cy and ruin.
| say to business men of all parties
here tonight. l say to my Democratic
felloW-citizens, as we'll as to my Re-
publican friends, you were never doing
so well before in all your life. Why
do you want to make this changer
What have you got to gain by it?
Will it do you any good to have
Richard Roe and John Doe In Office?
Have you anything to attain by doing
that? You are now doing well, better
than you expected a year ago, and
better than | expected. But some of
them say that reform is necessary,
and / am advised that there is a re-
form movement on hand in this coun-
ty. l want to say that reform is the
normal condition of all good govern
ments. Every good government is
always In a condition of reform. It
is a great mistake to suppose that you
can get through reforming. That is
impossible. When you achieve n
reformation that brings another one
in view. Just as when ascending one
range of mountains you can see anoth-
err, one further off and still higher,
when you accomplish one reforma-
ton you are in a condition to begin
another; so after getting on the top of
one range of mountains and refresh
ing yourselves, you are ready to as
cend the second. 1t is certain you
cannot ascend the second range be-
tore the first. Reformation, to be
successful, must be progressive, step
by step. We can't make but one big
national reformation at the same
time, for if We undertake to make a
great many we are very likely to fail
in all of them. The Republican par
ty has been the greatest reform party
this country has ever known, or any
other country has ever known. What
we have Accomplished ten years has
been vast and glorious. We have
done that which the poet dreamed of.
but what the philosopher despaired
of, and have now reached a prosperi-
ty and development that is even more
dazzling than the tales of Eastern ro-
nance.
On the subject Of county reform
and that is talked of a good deal here.
/ am not familiar with local politics.
It is said that the fees and salaries of
some Of the local Offices are too large.
/ am inclined to think that is the
case. That is an abuse growing up
with the population of large counties
and cities, and the time has come to
reform it. The Republican party, at
the last State Convention, committed
itself to that reform. It has promised
to make it, and it will make it. As I
said to you before, We do but one
thing at a time, and the time has
come to do that, and the Republican
party is committed to it and will &C.
complish it if it remain In power.
The Democratic party is not commit
ted to that reform. / believe the
State platform says nothing on the
subject. Besides the Democratic
party is not a reform party; applause
it never has been a reform party-it is
not imbued with the spirit of reform,
while the Republican party is. But
my attention, my friends, was partic-
ularly struck with one feature in the
reform attempt In Marion County.
Looking over a paper the other day,
L saw a notice of a meeting at Mason
lc Hall, where certain reform candi-
dates were nominated, or certain
nominees were ratified in some way,
and l believe the candidates for audi
tor, and clerk, and treasurer, and per-
haps sheriff, came forward and
promised that all their fees
and emoluments over five thousand
dollars, for after paying the nec-
essary clerk hire and expenses of the
Office should be paid over to a fund
for building the county court house.
Well, now / do not know that build
ing a county court house can be re-
garded as a particularly charitable or
benevolent purpose, but these gentle
men propose to pay owe all above
$1,000 to build a county court house.
Now that is q pretty good thing.
Five thousand dollars as a net in
come over and above all necessary
expenses, especially as they are to
settle the expenses with themselves,
Qaughter) and have no account to
render to anybody else, is a pretty
good thing. But then it was entirely
safe on the part of these gentlemen,
you know, because they don't have to
in an account to any tribunal or
court, or anybody but themselves.
They settle with themselves for nee
essary clerk hire and necessary ex-
penses of Office, and [ don't think
that anybody is foolish enough to sup
pose that a court house will ever be
built by that kind of contribution.