New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1870-04-30
Communicated
THE BLICAN PARTY.

The Republican party is now the represen.
tative of all the people of the United States,
irrespective of nationality, race or color.
pure Republic. The adoption of the Fiji
teenth Amendment is the best exponent OF
the progress of the nation.
Lift up your heads, o &c gates ye'waters
divide, and let the people pass.
To amend the constitution is not to vic,
late it. Il is simply to put an additions
buttress to the structure. Many amend
ments have been made to it since its original
formation. The Bill of Rights was appended
to it at the suggestion of Thomas Jefferson,
when he was absent as Minister to France.
Pity. it IS, that in that first great French
revolution, lof which he was a witness),
which swept away slavery from the domin-
ions Of France, he had not at that time
recommended the annihilation of slavery in
the United States. 1t could then have been
done without the gigantic struggle to main
tain it from 1860 to 1865.
Neither rights denied nor wrongs inflicted
unfurled the banner of revolt in the South.
1t was the fury Of faction for power, in
flaming the passions OF the people for
change. The change came, and what a
change. It came with the resistless power
of the tornado, carrying away our houses
and fences, and trees and flowers, and left
US shivering ard covering in the awful
blast.
We are slowly recovering. But we are
recovering, and from our adversities We
have learned lesson which we and our
children and their chiidren's children ought
never 20 forget.
Away have gone the famous resolutions
of '9S and 80, and they will never more be
part OF platform Of future conventions
at Baltimore. Richmond and Charleston.
They were delusion and snare. Peace
able secession is dead. Dead, too, is the
Democratic farty. mean the Democratic
party which the writer adhered to from
the time he voted for Mr.. Van
Buren, in 1886 up to the defeat of
Mr.. Douglas in 1850. From that defeat the
party may date its dissolution. 1t is true
there is party of that name, but of whom
is it composed? In the North of men who
opposed the administration of Mr.. Lincoln in
his ultimately successful efforts to save the
Union; in the South of old Wings, Know
Nothings, few old Democrats, secession
lists, and rebels. That is the self-styled
Democratic party of to-day. No more hete-
rogeneous aggregation of old party atoms
was ever attempted to be Cemented together.
1t can not stand. There is no principle of
| cohesion in it. When the honor and per-
petuity of the nation is at stake, it must go
down with the tories of 177G, with the Hart
ford conventionists of 1872, and the oppo-
nents Of the war with Mexico in l647.
We have now strong government, and if
| it is not strong enough, | for one am for
| giving it more strength if found necessary
to protect the lives liberty and property of
| the people. Call what name you will, Consol-
| idation or Capitalization, we want a stable
| government. We must have it; the people
| require it, for they know that without it we
can not have peace and prosperity at home
| nor credit and respect abroad.
| AS for the great and triumphant Republi-
Can party, am only afraid it will crumble
| from its immense weight Too many as
| pirants. All can not succeed, and the dis.
| appointed will become malCOntent and mu-
| tinOus. But the party must fulfill its
| destiny. l think it was John Randolph who
said d majority OF one was the best maj ority,
| it stimulated the successful candidate to in
creased exertion at the next election. But,
| however, If our Democratic friends ask
admission we must let them in. 'Forget
| not to entertain strangers, for thereby men
! have entertained angels unawares."