Clearfield Republican. [volume] (Clearfield, Pa.) 1851-1937, 1872-07-17
Address Of the Democratic State Com
mittee,
TO The PEOPLE OF pENNsYLvAnlA,

10 IHE PEOPLE or PENNSYLVANIA.
According to tho usages and Gus
toms of the Democratic party of Penn.
sylvana a State convention was con.
vened in the city of Reading on the
3Oth Of May last, charged by its con.
stituents with the high and responsi.
bic duty of nominating candidates for
Governor, Judge Of the Supreme
Court, and Auditor General, to be 70.
ted for at the State election in Octo
Der next. This convention, for the
first time in the history OF the State,
was required TO nominate three por.
sons for Congress. The reason for
this is found in the fact that the Fed.
eral Congress by statute awarded to
Pennsylvania three additional mem.
bers. 1t therefore dcvolved upon the
State Convention to nominate three
candidates to be voted for at large by
the people.
The last Legislature having autho.
riZed convention to be held TO pro.
pose amendments to The State Consti.
tuition, the Democratic Convention
also nominated fourteen candidates for
the Constitutional Convention in con.
formity with the Act of Assembly.
Democrats of Pennsylvania Your
chosen agents in the State Convention
were required 20 perform these several
most important duties. That they
have faithfully and well discharged
them is acknowledged by ALL for the
work of the Reading Convention has
been hailed with general satisfaction.
The duty now dcvolves on you to
labor earnestly and harmoniously to
ratify at the polls in October this &C.
tion of your delegates The contest
before you is most important one.
1t is to decide many vital questions
directly connected with the dearest
interests Of the people.
1t is to determine If the labor, capi.
tai, wages, income, property and the
prosperity of the people of this State
are longer to be the prey of unscru.
pulous speculators in politics, who re.
gard the taxes of tho people as money
TO be taken by combinations known
as "rings," created solely to enrich
those SO associated, and accomplished
by the votes of the agents of the pco.
pie selected to protect their rights,
foster their industry and cconomise
the expenditure Of the public funds.
1t is also to determine if reform in
public affairs is possible for the people,
or if their agents are so arrogant and
powerful as to be beyond the reach of
the opinions and votes of the honest
toilers, business men and yeomen of
this State.
1t is to determine if the great prin.
ciplcs of Representative republican gov.
ernmcnt as established by our fathers,
are to be overthrow in order to set
up personal military dictatorship,
under which the people of Pennsylva.
mia will become the slaves OF ire.
sponsible power and military rule
without a voice n the management of
their government, or the right to regu.
late their domestic affairs or to pro.
tect their political interests.
II is TO determine if the States of
tho Union nre to he froo and indo
pendent, and the people therein TO re.
tain those inherent political rights by
the exercise of which they created the
federal government and ordained the
federal Constitution, to be tho su.
preme law of the land.
1t is to determine If personal liberty
is longer to be preserved or if that
dearest and highest right of freemen
is TO be destroyed at the caprice of q
military caoal, for tho purpose of en-.
forcing odious and arbitrary rule un.
der tho color of popular approval.
II is to determine If Legislation is to
be sold TO tho most corrupt bidder-if
tho money Of the people is TO be used
to enrich "rings" composed of men in
Office and their alles--if frauds on the
treasury arc TO be ignored and the
guilty parties exempted from punish.
monL, and if the privilege of the cleo
tive franchise Is to become q farce,
because frauds the most Infamous arc
perpetrated on the ballot box and
avowed as the only means to overcome
the honest votes Of the honest men Of
the State.
Democrats Of Pennsylvania! You
are called upon earnestly TO consider
these questions and to render at the
polls in October next your decision.
The memories of the past, the pa.
triotism ofyour fathers, the trials and
sacrifices they made TO establish and
give to their postority the blessings of
liberty and free government invoke
you TO earnest, active, united effort to
reform the administration of public
affairs We earnestly invite the
chairmcn Of the several county com.
mitteess carefully to organize their
counties for the coming contest. We
respectfully and aifectiopatelv call on