The Sweetwater enterprise. (Sweetwater, Tenn.) 1869-187?, 1871-05-25
Democratic Policy.
The Presidency is More Important
than the Platform.

One OK the Oc6t correspondents OF lnc
New York World, who uses tho sigma
ture of IS. d." writing from Augusta,
Ga, say5:
By the time tho Southern delegates
enter the Democratic Convention Of 1877,
that is il they enter at all, 1 fancy the
position OF the South viii be that now
occupied BY laost Of Tho leading Demo-
Gratis Of this State, that the Presidency
is more important than the platform.
and that the clutch OF tho general gov
eruInent NICE OFF its Nindpipe, the South
lwould never feel any very serious incon-
venience from twice the number ofpuni-
tory amendments which now exist.
The words "if they can enter at all"
refer to a question OF policy thatis being
considered by the Democrats Of Georgia,
whether it would give weight to thenom-
nations OF the National Democratic Con-
v%cntion were the South to keep out Of
that body, and thus stop the Radical
howl Of "rcbcl' dictation. We do not
make til" quotation from rs. D." de-
butte that question, but it il for tho pur-
pose Of giving Il unconditional assent
to the proposition, that just now Whe
Presidency Is more important ito the
South and the whole country than The
p}aJorm." We say that this is, unQues-
tionably, true, and that for II unan-
swcrable reason, to-wit that nothing
could be 90 disastrous TO Southern hap
pineas aud the we'll being and future of
the whole country "a the popular n
! dorsement and re c~leotion Of the Radical
partg hence whils our views about
platforms have been distinctly enun-
ciatcl, aid are 9tili unchanged, We have
said, "plntloTm, or no platform" we go
with tho Democracy against tho Beolze.
bub Of Radicalj3m, And yet, while the
success Of a Democratic President and
government is more important than tho
platform, il affords 10 reason why we
shouldn't havo q good platform--thc
best, in short, that is attainable, We
aro inclined to think, and We regret to
say it, that tho weight Of Democratic
opinion is against our doctrine, that the
boldcst fight we can make in 1872 i9 the
safest one, and that we should indorse
no crime Of tho JGcobins against the free
institutions Of the country, even so far
rs acquieacing in them and, further,
that our strongest and best battle-cry is
that of Douglas-this Is a white mans
government, made by white men and
dedicated to the uses Of white men for
ever. But malgre the pressure Of the
apparent majority against these views,
|, we must persist in holding to them to
the end. AS a member OF q great party,
/, we have a duty to perform and a right
to exercise, in urging it to take the high
. est groNnd OF principle in its line forma-
/. tons for a pending battle, But we have
!, no right to dictate our WI Judgments
al the cost of torsaking our friends and
retiring from the contest, if they are not
implicitly followed. We havo had large
experience on the subject. In 1850, for
example, we maintained that the hour
had struck for the South to takeits stand
Of self. defense and resistance to the So
called Clayton compromise, and to this
, day We IRE persuaded that the golden
opportunity for the adjustment Of the
|, threatening sectional dispute was neg
a, lqcted. At that time the abolition party
, bad not grown to its maturity OF power,
i, with induratcd bone and muscle to con
troll the administration OF tho govern
ment. Tho conservatism OF tie country
was still III tho administration, and we
believe an honorable and permanent
adjustment might have heenmade. But
the people OF Georgia, where We then
labored, thought differently, accepted
= the compromise, and elected Howell
Cobb, GOVERNOR on the issue by 10000
majority. We acquiesced, Of course, and
went with our people. Again, in 1860,
we were unfortunate enoughlto disagree
with our Southern party friends. We
opposed the measures that led to the dis
, indignation OF the National Democracy.
and protested against them, because we
, believed they would defeat the Demo
/ cratic candidate for President, elect a
! Radical, and bring on o war which the
, South was not ready for. We urged
| that a giant like the United States Gov
! eminent could not die without the NOR
| tai throes and agonies of death, and civil
: wal was inevitable to our mind. We
wero again ovorpowered by a majority,
again acquieseed, and when wal came,
= we threw our whole heart into it And
3 now, again, in 1871, we have our clear
: convictions about the true policies in
3 the coming Titanic conflict between free
D dom, local authority and the demon OF
| Capitalization at Washington. We hold
4 up to what we believe to be wise and
: right. If the majority Of u friends
perhaps more wisely decide against us,
we go with our friends, platform or no
] platform, against the arch enemies OF
: the Constitution, clear in the conviction
! that ethe Presidency is more important
than the platform" In other words,
$ that it is indispensable to the national
: safety and happiness that the Demo-
q Gratis and Conservatives of the country
SHOULD agree on some platform or point
! Of concentrated union Of forces against
: the common enemy.-[Mobile Register.
ell Ni ---->-e-4-
Col. CharlesS. Todd, Of Kentucky, died