Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1870-08-30
TO ALL REPUBLICANS.
Address Of the Republican Congressional Com
miitee to tho Party-Review OF the History
OF the Psr.y-whss 1, hss Acc omplishsd
work Yet 60 be DoRe-succe.s OF
President Grants Admin,.sy.,,op.
TO the Republicans Of the United.States.

10 the heph0ncdnS Of the United States:
The Executive and Legislative De-
partments of the National Govern
ment, and two-thirds of the state
governments, have been committed
to your keeping. Such power carries
with 1T grave responsibilities. The
people, as is their right, will hold
you to strict accountability for the
exercise of this great trust. Elec.
tons are soon to be held for the
National House of Representatives.
These elections will determine the
political complexion of the popular
branch of Congress. They will. too.
determine the political character of
several state governments. And
these results will be accepted as the
verdict of the people upon the ideas,
principles and policies of the Repub-
lican party, and upon the measure
and character of the national admin
istration. To these responsibilities,
and to the gravity of these issues,
your thoughtful consideration is in
voked. In the present iunctare it
behooves the Republican party not
to forget its origin nor it's history.
Amid the difficulties that beset IL,
and the responsibilities and labors
which the needs of the country in
the new and untried condition of
affairs imposes, it should remember
that it was born of the nations me-
cessities, and thus far it has generally
met the exigencies for which it was
formed. Having passed triumphant
~ through three great eras of its
history, it is now summoned to enter
upon its foarth. Gathering, there
fore, inspiration from past successes,
it should graphic hopefully and with
unshrinking confidence with the
duties of the present and near future.
ORIGIN OF THE PARTY.
Recurring 20 their origin, Repub-
licans will remember, when the land
was the theatre of stern and ire
pressible conflict between the demons
of slavery and caste and the spirit of
liberty and equality, when tho slave
power held great interests and pow
erful organizations in it's grasp, and
ruled the nation with imperial sway,
that the founders of the party, in
structed by passing events, with
convictions deepened and zeal quick
ened by the teachings of history and
writ, and inspired by the deathless
words Of the patriots, statesmen and
heroes of our earliest time, rose to
the exigencies of the hour, opposed
the naughty ambitions, the madden
ing passions, the cruel prejudice, and
the disorganizing theories of the
dominating majority, and, although
long overborne by numbers, still
struggled on amid jeers, insults, mobs
and assassinations, till, under the
lead of Abraham Lincoln, they
achieved success and grasped the
sceptre of political power.
ITS SECOND ERA.
Entering upon its second era, APP
palling responsibilities at once arose.
The slave masters, in the pride and
arrogance of power, instantly plung-
ed the nation into the fire and blood
of civil war. But the Republican
Party rose with the crisis. 1t raised
money in unstinted measure, organ
lied vast armies, created powerful
navies, fought bloody battles, crush
ed the most gigantic rebellion of all
recorded history, and saved the ma
tons life. 1t was then, amid the
clash of arms. that the Republican
party saw that slavery was the re-
lentless and indispensable foe OF the
country, was tho inspiration, the
heart and soul Of that civil war, and
that its death would be tho annihi-
lation of the rebellion, the unity of
the republic and the development of
free institutions. Against cowardly
fears, selfish instincts and unreason-
ing passions and prejudices, it pro-
nounced the doom of that hideous
system of human bondage, though it
was upheld by the aggregated inter-
ests of three thousand millions of
dollars, hedged about by the accumu-
lated passions and prejudices, prides
and ambitions of seven generations,
and intrenched within the social,
political and ecclesiastical organiza-
tons and affiliations of life. By
series Of exc cutive and legislative
acts it broke the chains, and lifted
up to the SUBMITS of manhood, four
and a half millions of hopeless bond
men, who stood before the nations
with their riven letters in one hand,
and their title deeds to freedom in
tho other.
THE THIRD ERA.
The war ended, the rebellion sub
dued, the bondmen emanoipated, the
Republican party entered upon the
third era of its eventful history
Though conquered by arms, the
rebels did not accept the Just, hui
name and generous ideal of the vic
tors, nor did they return to their
proper allegiance and loyalty to the
Government but still bemoaning the
''lost cause" they remained unsub-
dued in will and unrepentant in
spirit and purpose. Though made
free, the bondmen were homeless,
without property, without employ
ment, subject to the cruel laws
against free people of color that had
always disgraced Southern legisla-
ton, and in the midst of a people
exasperated by defeat and maddened
by their loss of power still longer to
hold and Cypress. Property was
swept away, industry disorganized,
society disintegrated, and states were
without lawful governments.
THE WORK OF RECONSTRUCTION.
Upon the Republican party de-
volved the work of ceconstruction.
To it's intrinsir difficulties were added
the intense hostility of the ex-rebels,
the lingering prejudice long engen-
dered by the slave system, the timid |
counsels of conservatism and the
apostacy of the Executive. Great |
interests and powerful combinations |