The Daily state register. [volume] (Carson City, Nev.) 1870-1872, 1871-03-25
A SOLDIERS OPINION OF THE RE-
PUBLICAN PARTY.

party III power has been drawn from
that citizen soldiery who went intothe
war and at it's termination retired from
its ranks and returned to their former
occupations as private citizens. The
associations, interests and prejudices
formed during those exciting times
influenced a majority of those eX-vol-
unteers to follow the political party
which p~erSiStently claimed to be their
particular champion. By many of
these volunteers the nomination of
Gen. Grant was hailed as a continual
ton Of the campaign, and inspired by
old military enthusiasm and often
almost ~insensibly moved by the in
stincts of former discipline the sol
diers of the war generally fell into
line and materially helped to swell the
majority which elevated Grant to the
Presidency. The leaders of the Re
publican party have loudly claimed to
be the only friends of the soldier, 10
whom he must look for those rewards
of military merit which are usually
found in bounty bills and homestead
laws. The Gem of the West and Sol
dier's Friend, published at Chicago.
has long been one of the loudest and
most energetic advocates of the Re
publican party. apparently cherishing
confidently the belief that every man
who pretended TO svmpathize with the
soldiers during the war We're neCeSsa-
rilv honest and patriotic men, whose
fortunes must be advanced. The scales
have been gradually dropping away,
and the Soldiers Friend Of late has
given the dominant party some of the
~severest scOrings we have met with
in the Western papers. In a late num-
Der it says: At appears as though the
Republican party is determined to
commit suicide" 1t cites numerous
evidences of fraud on the soldiers by
the Congressional representatives as
''evidence of the corruption of our
party leaders" and declares THAT if
upheld by Republican newspapers
they will send our great Republican
party to its death bed" 1t declares
that 1.-The time has come TO revolution
ize the political irmament-to band
together, and hurl from power the
men who disregard the rights OF work
in-men, and the rights of our conn
try's heroes It's ~favOrite for the next
President is Gen. Sherman. The fol-
lowing Indictment which the paper
prefers against the Republican party
will show some of the grounds Of COM
plant which is causing the change in
the political sympathies of the volun-
teers:
SOLDIERS BASELY BETRAYED BY THE
REPUBLICAN CONGR $.
Two wears ago we stood at our post
as we stand now cOnductinga fearless,
independent. soldier journal. Two
years ago we honestly thOughtth that the
rights of all soldiers were sacred, in
the hands of the great Republican
party, and We urged soldiers every
where to stand by that party and its
nominees. When the FortN-First
Congress was then placed in power we
reminded Republicans of their pledg-
cs and plainly told them what was
expected of them. We pointed out to
them the great injustice of the bounty
laws, and demanded an equalization
OF bounties. We showed them that
from the traditional history of our
/ country arl tho nrnn,i-p- n+ InnstGr-
ing officers. the soldiers had the right
to expect bounty land; and it was their
duty to award it 70 them. We told
them that the pensions of our soldiers,
and their heirs, were inadequate for
even the partial sustenance Of such
pensioners. We told them that they
were permitting gambling in pensions.
and fees TO be deducted from tie poor
pensioners every pay day. We told
them that the pensions should be paid
at the county seat OF every county in
the Union where there were half a
dozen pensioners, and that the fifty
nine pension agencies should be abol-
ished. We told them that the crippIes
needed artificial limbs every five
years. We pointed them to the decis-
ion of the Supreme Court, declaring
all soldiers who enlisted before July
-, 1861, entitled to bounty, and that it
vas their duty to authorize the ac-
counting officers to pay it. We told
them that the cOlored soldiers had
been denied the original 500 bounty
because they were borne on the rolls
as slaves. We told them all this and
many other things, and demanded
that they should redeem their pledges
made to the soldiers; and we solemnly
declared that if they We're false to the
soldier we should not hesitate to de
nounce them for their treachery, and
should hold the Republican party re-
sponsible. Wenow propose to redeem
that pledge. Let us see what this Re
publican Congress has done for the