The Hickman courier. [volume] (Hickman, Ky.) 1859-current, 1871-08-26
THE RADICAL PARTY REPU.
DEATED.
letter troEn Hon. 81. R stanton
10 a Leading Radical.
Reasons for Abandoning the
Grant Party.
NEW YoRK ,Jutv % 1871

ReasV~s E0r Abandoning the
Grant Party.
NEw YORK, July 20. 1871
DEAR SIR In your recent letter you
ask me IT | was the author of the mum
bers ia the Albany Argus signed "a
| Republican from the Start, which you
read as they came out. / was, and they
express my settled convictions; and L
am glad that you in the main concur ia
/ them You ask, What Of the future?'
aud tell me that you agree with Mr.
Greeley about Grant, aud one term. So
/ do L. Greeley is right; aud be himself
would ruu better than Gen. Grant, es-
/ peeialiy Ia the South where the Repub
lean psrty is liable to go all to pieces if
Grant IS renominated. Nevertheless,
think he will be. What then2 A large
body OF Republicans will refuse to sup
port him if the Democracy act wisely
What will you aud then dove, who
have acted together tor nearly twenty
five years? shall no; regret the success
of Democrat hext year, provided he is
sou1F. frtu, aud trustworthy on the new
| sr..s,are, and tor these reasons are
urief
I supported General Grant solely
to finish Up reconstruction by the ratIti
cation of the fifteenth amendment. This
done. | was done with him. Nearly my
whole active life has been devoted to es-
itabishiug the anti slavery principles now
engraited upos the Constitution. The
victory being won. [ have no taste for
securing the field to rife the slain. The
slavery controversy is ended, and the
Republicans will fiud that they cannot
construct a Presidential platform out OF
the debris of demolished rebellion, nor
elevate the negroes iuto undue promi
neuce on the points Of Federal bayonets
. want the South to acquiesce in
the Constitution a. IL Is, and be at peace.
This we shall not see until We have a
Democratic administration which accepts
and will enforce the three amendments.
Then he Southern malcoBtents will give
up their fight and submit to the stu
alton.
3 You aud I we're Democrats of the
Benton and v right school During the
rebellion the administration went outside
of the Constitution to suppress it. In
the reconstruction era Congress kept out
side about half the time There is no
excuse for remaining outside now. Bot,
having tasted OF unlicensed power, the
appetite Of the republican leaders grows
what it feeds upon. Right there lies the
danger Under the present regime the
government i lapsing into consolida
tiou, and unless we hasten back within
the constitutional limits traced by the
fathers, our descendants will cringe at
the footstoo of "a dictator l. therefore,
should not object to the election in 1872
OF State Rights Democrat OF the mod
rate type of our old friend Silas
Wright
| You tell me you want to see carpet
| bag rule at an end You are right. Il
1 is nockery OF representative govern
meBt, aud is ruling the South, which il
has Involved 10 debt full one hundred
millions You also favor universal am
4 restg But DC YOU not fear that we can
not secure either of these ends while
Grant or any President like him is il
power?
g. We both agree much more closely
with The mass of Democrats than with
the Republican managers on questions o.
finance, taxation, trade, &c Tie old
issues being out of the arena. this alone
would have weight 10 determining my
preference for 4 Democrat. Would il
not be yours?
Now, you ask me, will the Democratic
party present the right sort of candi
. date. IF they do, believe he can be
elected But will they? General Gram
received popular majority in 1868 o.
about three hundred thousand If he il
reuomiuated, and if the Democracy
place a worthy candidate on progress
i've platform, do you not believe that
sufficient number of those who support
ed Grant in 1868 will fall away in 1877
to defeat biln2 certainly think so
The Republican party was coalition IL
Its origiu The exigeney which bound
together homogeneous clements having
disappeared, the edges of the coalition
will crumble away.
Where the fragments will go depends
upon the course of the Democrats. The
result of the coming contest is in the
hands of these Republican fragments
Personally, | have nothing against Gen
eral Grant. He has done all | voted TO;
him to do. and something more, aud like
Mr. Greeley | am satisfied The de
feated party in the next Presidential cam
paign will go to pieces Which party
will il be2 At all events; | trust that
you and [ will then, as in the past, be
found e. hitting shoulder to shoulder.
I Very truly yours.