The Tiffin tribune. (Tiffin, Ohio) 1868-1887, 1872-04-18
- REErHER on THE PREsIpEscT
Hfs Speech at BrOOklyn-EmPhatic In
dOFsement Of Grant.

ing, resolutions indorsing the admin
istratiOn Of President Grant, and ad-
vocating his denomination, were
adopted. The principals peaker was
the Rev. h. w. Beeeher. He said:
This is a meeting Of citizens. There
has been a discrimination made that
] do not believe in. For polite
reasons t may have been wise TO eX-
clude Office holders; but it is my be-
lief, gentlemen, that if you make
holding Office OdiOus you viii have
odious office holders. LApplause.
Ny belief is that man may hold
Office under the government Of city,
Of the State, and Of the nation, and
be a man still LApplause.l And
that there ought not to be a discFim-
fnation made between one class Of
citizens and another. You have no
right to say to me, "YOu must not
NEEDLE with politics because you are
a minister" no more than ! have q
right to say to you, "YOu must Lot
NEEDLE with politics because you are
a merchant"
There is no class known in politics,
and men that have office under gov
ernment ought TO have honor, when
they behave themselves in such q
way that we can honor them. lAp-
pIanse.l When, therefore, a call is
made for citizens, it seems to me that
IL should be made without distinction
to class among citizens. so far pay
my respects to Office holders. 1t Is no
question that we have come TO discuss
Tonight as between the Republican
party and the Democratic party. Al
low me to speak with the utmost re-
spect ofmy lifelong antagonists. Al
low me to say in regard TO them that
while ! recognize in the ranks Of the
Democratic party men as wise, patri-
otic, and able as any thai live, still j
believe that that party in the ascend
eney would be safe in the country,
provided that its best men might give
lone to its councils and administer its
affairs according to their late wisdom;
vet do not believe that the Demo
cratic party, taking it rank and file,
are safe to be trusted with the affairs
of this nation to-day, and so think the
people. 1Applause. They lost the
confidence Of the American people on
moral grounds when they drifted by
and became not advocates of the rights
of the common people, but became the
advocates of the rights of the worst
aristOcTacy that ever infested any ma
ton Tapplause, and although in the
great struggle that followed there
were multitudes of noble men that
upheld the hands of the government
and the army, yet as an organization
the Democratic party regained no
trust in the people by their conduct
during the great civil war. Ap-
plause.1 Subsequently we were at
tempting to reconstruct the nation
they pursued the obstruction policy
they acted simply in partisan spirit
as we think, and not in large and
truly national spirit, and they have
gained nothing with the common
people by that course. And now, TO-
day, they themselves consider it 9
matter of DOUBT whether they may bt
considered as standing with Hamlet
and saving. ''TO be or not to be. ,
! lTIoud laughter. 1t is thought thai
they might be immersed in the Gin
cinnati- Convention and come Out
good Republicans enough for the Occa'
sion [laughter;l peradventure, il
might be so.
Il NEW PARTY NOT NEEDED.
One thing is certain ! believe that
the conflict before us is not to be one
between the Republican andDemOcrat
ic parties; what, then, is the issue be,
fore us ? 1t is an issue within the Re
publican party itself. 1t is an ISSUE
whether or not that party shall bC
the party of progress and of reform
as well as of Just administration. The
Republican party, as compared with
any party preceding it, has been one
characterized by progressiyeness aud
a reformatOry spirit. So it is yet to be-
and will, under the administration oi
Gen. Grant, be the party of progress
We have put in our resolutions, and
listened to it with peculiar pleasure,
a challenge of scrutiny. We are not
here for pronaiseuous praise nor for par
tisanship-not to defend things that
are either weak, or imperfect, OF
wrong. 1t is your interest and my
interest-it is the interest of every
citizen, that whatever is wrong shall
be pointed cut; by our enemies ifneed
be, by our friends certainly. We mean
that the Republican party shall be not
of the administration Of the
immortal Lincoln. lam not here then
tonight to cover up pmisdenaeanOr and
to apologize for Misrepresentation, if
such there be. Gentlemen, there is an
indispensable thing in the conduct of
q great cause-poiitical institutions.
You might as we'll attempt husbandry
without tools as to conduct public
affairs without institutions. The IN
stitutions of liberty are no small leg
acy from our fathers. Probably there
is more personal enthusiasm for liber-
ty in France to-day than there is in
America, but they don't know how
to administer liberty. They don't
know what are those public institu-
tiOns by which liberty is fifty admin
istered. We have them. We have
the institutions by which it is eniorc-
ed ; by which the government is ad-
ministered with all due checks, and
there is something beside that. Out
side of every government there is an
element which is just as responsible
as the government itself, and that is
party. Men sometimes have said, "I
don't believe in party" Well, there
is much that mingles in every act of
human life that is less than angelic.
Yet I aver that no free government
can be carried on without parties
There ought to be an opposition party.
There ought to be an administration
party. So that parties are indispensa-
bic methods by which institutions are
administered. Now, no party is made
up of other than men. / would be
glad if every man that belongs to the
party cherish in his heart
the fervor and patriotism which Wash
ingtOn felt in his dying hour. 1t is
not so, and kpoW human nature too
well not to know that it will not be
so. The men that make up Q party
are various. They are ignorant, half
bred men, they are learned men, men
with violent prejudices, men with
pride, men with selfishness. What
will you do? Will you have no party
because you can have only saints?
Laughter. You could take them in at
night out of the rain if you had only
saints. Renewed laughter. You
have got to take the average of hu-
bottom and middle-and
deal with them with all their good
and bad things, and their strength and
weaknesses. 1t is right to call for q
higher and higher ideal of party. Its
light for me as a public teacher, il is
light for every man who seeks a better
'uture than past, to inssst upon it that
parties shall rise. A party must pe
made up of men, and men have
ieal OF human nature yet in them. !
10 not undertake 10 sey, therefore,
hat the Republican party has been
luTe in every respect. 1t has not. 1
ay this, that the Republican party has
lone better than any other party you /
.ould have framed in the same circum-
taGeeS and in the same place. I say |
hat do not see any prospect at pres
mt of any other party that will do as
veil in the four years to come as this
aTty. / aver, in the language of |
he resolutions, that we are open on
very side TO critical examination, and
re don't commit ourselves to this
Measure or to that delinquency. In
he administration of the last four
eaTs-judging parties by fair impair
al rule that governs all large bodies
{ men, and looking atleglslatjOp that
as spread itself over this Continent
say that this party has done well.
Laughter aud cheers Yet there
as sprung up on it breeze. Laugh
lr. We have had renowned orators
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