The weekly standard., 1870-07-20

| ana that the Democratic party was wrong in ev
| er holding the contrary. OF this ground have
given them the benefit. II is the one most ia
| vOrable to them.
| The address refers to the disasters which bavt
flowed from the decisions in the elections 0
1865, as things in cverybody's mouth, not to b,
gainsayed, and without compensation. This is as
curious preamble to this confession. of error as
the confession itself is to the demand for political
confidence. Per contru! pray to know what would
have been the disasters OF u contrary vote at those
elections! What was the alternative rccumlhen.
dcd by the Democratic party? So great was Its
repugnance to the political equality of the col
ored man. that 1t recommended an indefinite pro-
longation OF subjection 10 military rule
rather than adopt it. l do not undervaluu the
mistakes and miscarriagcs that have occurred
within two years in regard to public affairs; but
which of them, in the eye of Il freeman who
cherishes his freedom, is to be compared with
the prolongation OF provisional military gov
crnment, and subjection to the General Orders
| of Sickles, Candy, or the like, issued from
Charleston, at the instance of such lelsurcly aud
sclfappointed ambassadors as chose to visitthe
commanding general and possess him, by any
arts of their views of the interests of the public
of meddlesome Orders issued with large details,
| by persons often Ignorant, and always irrcspon-
| sponsible. In view of this, it demanded some
power Of face to allude to The disasters which
| have followed the elections of 1868, as things
universally conceded, and requiring no enumera-
| ton. Especially, as the document which makes
the allusiOn was, in short space, to admit that
| what had been the all absorbing issue in that
| election had been correctly decided; and that,
| in effect the Republican party, which in the ca
| tholic spirit of true freedom, had secured the
| liberty OF the white man BY placing upon firm
basis the liberty Of the colored mar, bad been
So ss,l Z; dan; III 5p, ss ..se ,ss
blessing TO North Carolina-I mean tle conlts-
ring OF political rights upan the new class u
freemenl l therefore submit, with all conf
dencc, that the disasters which we have encOun-
| tered as community, in lSGS and 1860, are not
| to be compared with those which would have
| met us il the State had followed the advice of
| the Democratic Convention OF 1865 With
greater confidence, do submit, farther prop
ositon that there is no reason in all that OF which
have spoken, not only lor an admission OF the
| Democratic PARTY to pUwcr-but for its continu-
| ed existence. That continued existence ought
to be unpleasant to the eminent citizens who
have acted with it, viewed as :: continued re-
minder OF great error, and OF threatened disas-
ter to the State, averted only by that Providence
which bound together the poor and the despised
into party with which a great blow has been
struck, that is to rcsound through history!
That continued existence must necessarily be,
as well, troubler OF the thoughts to every man
who holds rights in spite ol it, and to that great
class whose hopes for themselves and their chill
drcn stand upon the foundation of the stability
and order OF the present condition Of things. 1t
ought TO have been dissolved.
The Address assigns but one reason TO the
contrary. 1t is silent rs to the administration of
National affairs by the Republican party; it ad-
mits great error by itself upon the great ques-
tion Of the day, but claims that such are the
comparative characters of the two parties in re
gard to corruption aud ertrdcaqdncc, that the
people will place their confidence in the Demo
cratic at the next election.
This claim is one that ought 10 have u serious
attention by the people. The pocket nerve is
the most delicate nerve in system Of civil
liberty. Liberty will have tlcd before such
charge as that OF corruption and extravaganza,
can hc heard without concern by the people. In
ordinary times it is perhaps the gravcst charge
that CAN be brought against public servants. At
no time is it unimportant. After the great ser
vices of the Republican party TO the Statc-in
view of the silent approval OF General Grants
administration by our opponcnts-it would pre-
sent question OF some complication to the
people, if it were found that such party was
eXtiavagant and corrupt 1shall not undcrvalue,
or evade the charge feel personal interest
in the question, inasmuch as l Joined my for
tunes to that OF the Republican party alter these
charges were made To have involved myself,
coolly, in such complications, were at least
disaster, and might be regarded as even worse
Let us consider the case. 1t IS asserted, of
course, that line may be drawn between the
two parties row in the field, which, for oil prac
tical purposes, will separate corruption and eX-
travagance on the one side, from economy and
to form party upon those principles, but to
show that a party now existing, can supply what
ever in this respect the cxigcnccs OF the public
may require. This is not hard to understand,
and surely is easy to establish. Is it true then,
that questions of extravaganza and corruption
have been party questions since lS6S: Fifty
gentlemen at the last General Assembly, taken
from both bodies of the Legislature, assert the
affirmative On the contrary, the Republican.
party denies it; it docs not say that whatever
aud -ict to.,b
to the Democratic party; but that both
paitics, indifiercntly, are affected by them
Leaving ,-isudecided -iht amount of=t6e evil.
| it asserts that it CONCERNS members oil both
| parties, but not the parties rhemselvc; that
| just as in cpdcmics, cholera or small pOx,
| or tLt like, would attack inditfurently the mem
bers OF all parties i'll politics, and of all religious
| denominations, without thereby subjecting (say)
| the Republican party to be dcnominated Il party
of the cholera, or (say) the Presbyterian church,
| or small poX church, so, when moral epidemic
| attacks a Legislature acting through extraord-
nary temptation upon human nature, it will re-
| quire demonstration to pr We what cannot be
presumed l mean that one party Or the
other as party, is liable to- and another party,
as a party, is exempt from the infection. We
have the means for such demonstration if it
| be possible.
The present Democratic party has been in cX-
| istcnce for two years or thcreabouts. The gen.
| tlcmen who signcd tie address have, in general,
whole vi that period. These gentlemen have
volunteered to be spokesmcn for their party, and
this position of theirs is acquiesccd in for the
purposes of the present campaign. For the pur-
| poses of the present investigation II is imnate-
| rial that they were in minority in the last Leg
| islaturc On the contrary, by being in Il mi
| nority, they were under the greater inducement
| to make a record which would sustain the
| claims Of the address. appeal to your rccOl-
lection OF what was party policy and party wis
| dom here ten more years ago, Tor the truth of
| the position that in Whig or Democratic times
| nothing was more certain than that party i'll
minority in the Legislature was, uptn that ac-
| count, apt to be but the more strict in Keeping
party faith if, having nothing to do with lcgis-
IaiinS upon party matters they did not there
fore the more strictly confine themselves TO the
duty OF DnIttpg mp q record against the majority,
upon which 10 90 before the people at the next
election. lnasmuch as the fortunes of the last
election had rid them of responsibility for lcgiS-
lation, they voted Solidly in the negative on
| party matters, whether such were pre-
Iiously, or such as they desired to become So
with the hope That there would be miscarriage,
or perhaps with conviction that it would 20
wrong, SO that i'll the next campaign they could
appeal TO the people to judge what would have
been the advantage OF their having been in
power in the last Assembly, and what the ruin
of continuing their opponents in the next.
Meanwhile negative minority vote upon some
law that turning out TO be success hurt no one.
1t required no inspiration to suggest such STRAIT
cgy, nor any long memory to recall it, Indeed
II not recollectcd, the first party occasion would
find it rediscovercd. All the party stratagcms
will come TO light again; all the policy of mi
nOrity which entertains hopes for the future We
shall see amendments introduced with the ey.
pcctaton that they shall be voted down by a
party vote; and resolutions affirming principles
which the introducer hopes will be unsuccessful
except as document in the next campaign. |,
will not require a return of the secular year 10
reproduce these things.
The fifty gentlemen who signed the Address
in question had just emerged from record
which covers sevcRsl thousand pages ofjournals
detailing the events of five sessions of the Gen
eral Assembly, comprising nearly 300 days. Thif
record was kept in accordance with the require
| ments OF the Constitution OF the State This
requirement exists in all the constitutions o.
the States, and in that of the United States. Ii
is one of the bulwarks OF representative govern
ernment, being the only means which the con
stituent has of compelling the representative 4
account with him. / have myself looked through
large part OF this record My observation il
to the effect that no party vote was given upon
any question involving questions of eXtravaganc,
and corruption have been able TO detect none
am assured that there is none anywhere; tha
there is no vote upon any bill; on lst reading
I'd reading, 3rd reading; amendment, commit
ment on reconsideration, IN either house, for fy,
sessions, extending over some two years, aut
thousands of paGcs-where the politics of tn
persons voting for or against, can be discoveret
by their votes. That is an end OF the question
1t is very true that the Republican party wa
in large majority in that Assembly. 1t is alst
true us believe that there were both eXtrava
gance and corruption in the legislation fthat As
sembly. There were extraordinary temptation
acting upon men who may have sympathizc
+ with the general community in being UNUSUAL
dernoralized, as the phrase goes, and very proba
, bly extensive corruption followed; but th
I temptations were addressed to all, with
out distinction OF party, the demoraliza
ton respected no party lines and tn
the corruption pervadcd ALL II Interruption wer
, of party character, when did it become so; VIII
did not such Democratic gentlemen as all ADM
to have been untainted with it, draw the part
f lines, and exclude all who were believed 10 b
G tainted. l ask the same question in regard (
= extravaganza Where is the minority vot,
$ | ,rhnrc liz. resolution OF amendmcnt tllat eY