Daily Kennebec journal., 1870-08-18
THE DEMOCRATIC PLATFORM.

THE DEMOCRATIC PIAIFOhh'
The platform of the Democracy adopted
at Bangor Is about as loosely jointed and
poorly shapen piece of Workmanship as
could well be constructed. The arraign-
ment of the National Administration as a
failure on the score of economy and faith
fulness in national affairs. in the face of
the fact that it has reduced the public debt
since President Grant was inaugurated,
S156, 1873, ,7S4, while at the same time
greatly reducing taxation, is piece of
hardihood that even Democrats might
shrink from being responsible for. If this
is a failure, how about Andrew Johnson's,
which was extolled and supported by the
Democratic party, although it increased
the national debt thirty millions and kept
up reign of terror in the South of which
the bloody riots at New Orleans and in
Georgia were the direct growth? We
think they must have forgotten their own
record when they talk about this matter.
Mr.. johnson, with taxation at the highest
point, created larger debt by the sum we
have named, while President Grant with
taxation reduced more than two hundred
millions annually, lessened the debt as
above, and will soon throw off eighty mil
lions more of taxes. According to Demo-
cratic ideas, however, johnson with his
whiskey rings and ''bread and butter
ho
Administration, with its honest and sue
cessful endeavors in managing the affairs
of the government and reducing the bur-
dens of the people, is failure. Their no
tions of economy are about as sensible as
their ideas of patriotism during the war;
they see things inverted.
But the strangest part of the whole plat
form is that in which the State government
| is attacked. Isnot Governor Chamberlain
at the head of the State government, and
have the Democrats not been praising his
administration of State affairs with all the
laudatory adjectives in the English Ian
guage? Yea, verify, have they not been
so much in love with him and his conduct
of things relating to the State government
that they desired to make him their candi-
date for Governor? Was it not on account
of this that they had the late family 'on-
pleasantness" at Portland and adjourned
to Bangoro Why then this assault upon
the State government? Why this sudden
change of front? Where were the Young
Democracy" when this joke was perpetra-
ted upon them, to make them the laughing
stock of the cunning o.d hunkers and dis
interested SPECTATORS We should like to
know how they can reconcile their late
fawning upon Governor Chamberlain with
these attacks upon his administration.
Will Mr. Roberts or some of his friends
please explain. That Democrats should
assail our common schools and endeayor
to abolish universal education is quite con-
sistent with their course, and what might
be expected, but we don't see why they
should have so much admiration for the
head of our State government and so little
for the administration itself. That is what
puzzles us.
|. In regard to free trade. protection, ship
building, and the interests of our State,
we should be glad to have more light for
the resolves are not remarkable clear.
Shall we have free trade with the Cana
das, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia by
giving them access to our markets SO that
they can control the trade in lumber and
farm produce against our own citizens
Shall we discard the protection which
shipowners have had in the laws that pro-
tect our coasting trade against being en-
gagged in by foreign vessels, and that
which our ship-builders have by the regu-
lations that keep foreign vessels from
competing with them in our markets ? We
should like to know if free trade for the
benefit of Canadian farmers and lumber
ers and New Brunswick and Nova Scotia
shpbulders is the kind of policy the
Democrats desire, because when plainly
stated to the people OF Maine that doctrine
would soon kill itself. Admitted that ship
building is not prosperous, it does not fol-
low that the liberty to bring British-built
vessels into competition with our builders
will help the case. If man is nearly dead
with starvation, would little more OF the
same medicine restore him !? If the Demo
Gratis think they can thrive upon such
policy as this we have no objection to their
making the attempt.
Lastly it appears the Democrats have
become temperance men. Thanks for
this, they needed conversion; now let them
stick