Weekly Trinity journal., 1871-07-01
THE DEMOCRATIC PLATFORM.

NNH''l ulaNu Ny Ndllduulguam anu HrSV adopted
BY a county convention in Ohio. The resolutions
are lauded everyV here, by the Democratic press,
as the master effort of his life and are being gen.
erally indorsed by the Democracy, throughout
the Northern States. The first query that sug-
gests itself to the mind is, Why is it such diff
cult matter to draw platform for the Democrat
ic party? 1t is because they are fully conscious
that they stand upon unsafe treacherous ground.
They dare not turn back. They cannot advance
except along the road leading to the endorsement
Of Republican principles. Witness the first two
resolutions. They accept the natural and le-
gitimate results of the war;" and regard the
three Amendments as a settlement of all the
issues of the war. Take the two resolutions re-
ferred to; if they mean anything, tits thatthe man
ner in which the war was begun in which it was
conducted, the various means adopted for carrying
it on, and all the reconstruction measures which
followed, never more to be discussed, and
are now finally waived. Yet each and every one
Of these measures were solemnly declared by
them to be unconstitutional and surely subver-
sye of the liberties of the American People
Here is a backing down indeed. The " new de-
parture is fitting term by which to distinguish
this last departure from the many others that
have gone before it. The platforms of the Dem
ocratic party, from 1861 down to the present
time, are nothing but series of u departures !"
from preceding ones and clearly show that mod
ern Democrats are Influenced by two sentiments
only; First-Sympathy with the " lost cause )"
nd Tp;Ap
party. Generally speaking, Southern-born men
who are disciples of the Calhoun State sovereign
ty school of politics are the brains of the Demo-
cratic organization and controli it. Keeping these
opinions out CT sight, upon the broad ground of
opposition to q the radical measures of Con-
gress," they marshal their heterogeneous army
of Secessionists, professed Union men, Kaow-
Nothings, and naturalized citizens For their
party suitable platform is extremely difficult to
draft, and experience has shown that they can
get along best when they have none at ALL
Coming to the third resolution, we presume
everybody has right to construe it to suit them
selves, and certainly no Republican will object
to it in the main. A little disagreement might
arise as to who are meant as the democratic
Fathers" Republicans nowadays quote Madi-
son and Jefferson and swear by the sword of
Jackson that the Union must be preserved :"
The fourth, fifth, seventh, eighth, ninth,
eleventh, twelfth, fourteenth fifteenth and sew
enteentb planks are buncombe of the most trans
parent sort, and afford proof positive of sad
lack of material. The sixth article attempts to
force the old issues of free trade or q protective
tariff and incautiously refers to the destruction
OF our shipping during the last ten years by "the
tariff legislation of the Republican party"
Now, we never heard it called by that name be.
fore, and always supposed that the AlaJama and
her consorts were the cause of many ships being
lost. Again, during the rebellion, the danger of
capture by rebel privateers so advanced the
rates of insurance that American ship owners
could not compete with other nations in the
transportation of freight and so were obliged to
dispose of their vessels These vessels are aAoat
and new ones will be built only as trade de-
mands. The allusion to a tariff is unfortunate
for the further reason that q revenue tariff must
now necessarily be high one, because of the
immense debt fastened on the people by the re-
bellion of the Democratic party South prolonged
by the aid aud encouragement of the Democratic
party North. These are facts not to be gainsay-
ed now or hereafter. They have passed into
history. Further, while they "deuounce the
system commonly called the protective system,
they inconsistency declare themselves in favor
of enforcing it against the Chinese That they
are opposed TO the protection Of american labor eu-
cept against The Chinamdn, is the inevitable
conclusion. The American laborer should be
protected against all competition outside of the
United States, if from any The advocates of
free trade are not the friends of the workingman.
They are leagued with monopolies, and foreign
monopoes at that. By means of Trades Unions
and Labor Associations, the laboring men are
united and informed as to their interests and
are not to be gulled. Taking the document as
whole, one thing impresses itself forcibly upon
the reader Scan it from top to bottom, read
every line, and there is not a paragraph a sem
tence, line nor even a syllable, that can in
any manner be construed as referring to the rec
ord of the Democratic party of the past as af-
fording pledge for the future. What their
principles have been and what they have done is
studiously ignored. Gladly would they Danish
all recollection of the past ten years. That all
taxes are oppressive, that there is good ground
Of complaint against officials in high station, is
true. A high rate of taxation can only be avoid
ed by repudiaton, and we are not ready for
that. Honesty and capacity should be required
of every officer, but cannot be claimed as exclu-
sivey Democratic virtues. In this respect,
Republicans and Democrats are alike. The
Democracy must yet depart still further
They must accept the situation in good faith,
upon appeals to caste and prejudice, and endeav-
or TO advance the interests of the whole coun-