Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1871-05-06
Address Of tho Democratic Mem
heTS Of Congress.
TO tie People of he United States

| Our presence and official duties at Wash.
| ngton have enabled us to become fully DC.
| qualntcd with the actions and designs Of those
who control the R,dical party, and we feel
called upon to utter u few words of warning
against tho alarming strides they have made
towards the centrnlzation of power in the
hands OF Congress aud the Executive. The
! time and attention Of the Radical leaders
have been almost wholly directed to dcvisng
snch legislation as will, in their view, best
preserve their asccndancy, and no regard for
the wisc restraints imposed by the Constitu-
ton has checked their reckless and desperate
career. The President Of tLa Uuitc, States
has been formally announced a3 candidate
for reelection. The declaration of his self
ish supporters have been echoed by subsid
lied press, and the discipline of party has
already made adhc2ions to his personal for.
tunes tho supreme test of political fealty
The, partisan legislation to which we refer
was dccrccd and shaped in secret caucus,
where the EXTREMIST councils always domipa.
ted, and was adopted by subservicnt major
lty, IT not with the intent, certainly with the
effect to place in the hands of the President
power to command his own renOminaton, and
to employ the army, navy and militia. ut his
sole discretion, as the nieaus Of subscribing
his personal ambition. Whel the sad expo
rlercc OF the last two years, so disappointing
TO the hopes and generous confidence of the
county, Is crnSlderca in connection with tho
violent utteranccs and rash purposes of those
who control tho Presidents policy, it is not
surprising that the graves. apprchcnsons Tor
the future peace cf the nation should be en-.
tcrtaincd
At a time when labor is depressed, and cv.
cry material interest is palsied by oppressive
taxation, the public Offices have been multi.
Piled beyond all prcccdan. to serve as instru
meats III the perpctua,ion CT power Parli,
sans'ip is the only test applied to tho distri,
button ol this vast p,trcmagc Honesty, TT.
'ess and moral worth are openly discarded in
favor OF trucking Submission and dishonora-
Ole comniiancc: hence enormous acfacatuns
and wide spread corruption have followed as
the natural consequences OF this pcrnc;ous
system. BY the official report Of tho Sccre
tary OF the Treasury, i: appcars that after the
deduction OF all proper credits, many millions
OF dollars remain from ex collectors Of the
internal revenue, and that no proper diligence
has ever been used to collect thcm. Re.
forms in the revenue and fiscal systems, which
all experience demonstrates to be necessary to
frugal administration Of the Government,
as well as measure Of relief to all ovcr.bur
dencd people, have been pcrsistently postpon.
ed or wlltuly neglected. Congress now ad-
journs without having even attempted to re.
duce taxation, or to repeal the glariny mpo.
sitions by which industry is crushed and i'm
povcrisled. The treasury is overlooking, and
an excess of SSO,000,OOO Of revenue is ad-
mltcd; aud yet instead of some measure Of
present relief barren and deusvc rcsou.
ton is passed by the Senate to consider the
tariff and excise systems hereafter, as if
the history of broken pledges and pretended
Tcsii1 lies furnished any better assurance for
future legislation than experience has done
in the past.
Ship building and the carrying trade, once
sources OF national pride and prosperity, now
laneuish under a crushing load of taxation,
and nearly every other business interest is
struggling without profit TO maintain itself
Our agriculturists, while paying heavy tax
es on all they consume, either to the Govern
nent or to mouopolists, find the prices of
thc'r own products so reduced that honest la
Dor is denied its j. st reward, and industry is
prosilted by invidiuus discrimination. Nenr.
ly 2O0, 900, coo acres of public lands, which
should have been reserved for the benefit of
the people, have been voted away to gaut
corporations, ncglccting our soldiers and en-.
richng handful OF greedy spectators and
lobbyists who are thereby enabled to exercise
most daEqerous and corrupting influence
over State and Fedora! legislation. III the
career of these conspiraiors be not checked,
the downfall of free government is inevitable,
and with it the elevation of military dicta
tor on the ruins Of the republic.
Under pretcnsc of passing laws to enforce
the fourteenth amendment, and for other
purposes, Congress has conferred the most
despotic powers upon the Executive, and
provided an official machinery, by which the
liberties of the people arc mcnaced and the
sacred right of local self. government in the
States is ignored if not tyranuically over
thrown Modelled up to the sediton laws,
so odious in history, they arc at variance with
all the sanctfed theories of our institutions
Aud tho construction given by these Radi-
cal interpreters to tho fourteenth amendment
is, to use the language Of an eminent Sena-
tor, Mr.. Trumbull, of Illinois, an "unnihia
tor of States" Under the last enforcement
bill "tho Executive may, in his discretion.
thu st aside the government of any State,
suspend tho writ Of habcas co,pus,' arrest
its Governor, imprison or dispc"se tho I.cgis
laturc, silence its judges, and tramplo down
its people under tho armed heel Of his troops.
Nothing is left to tho citizen or tho State
which can any longer bo called right all
is changed into mere suifernnco Our hopes
for redress are in tho calm, good sense, the