The new Northwest. [volume] (Portland, Or.) 1871-1887, 1873-09-19
MANS RIGHTS CONVENTION.

nOIQef some 10 BIuinblSi SUM- ~ 49,
rel, some to crow. Upon first reading
the platform, we exclaimed, "There's
not even so much as a splinter for the
mothers of men to hang their parasols
upon.u but a second reading revealed
the following glimmer in the first reso-
ton: "Reaffirming the principles Of the
party as heretofore enunciated in its
conventions, we declare that their
practical enforcement is essential to the
welfare of the country and the main-
tenance of the rights and liberties OF
the people"
There are other planks OF course,
plenty Of them. The back pay bill,
Credit Mobilier and other corruption in
high places are resolutely resoluted
against. "Retrenchment, reform and
rigid economy" receive prominent at
tention; the oppressed Of all nations
are welcomed, increased facilities fol
naturalization are favored, but not q
word in favor Of anybody with the OBJ
jectionable sex, unless resolution first
may be so understood. Liberal grants OF
public lands to aid in building railroads
are favored, and the rights of Indians,
having the unobjectionable gender, are
properly respected.
This is the gist of the Republican
platform and the average reader can
much more readily understand it than
he can comprehend the platform itself.
Then follows a very foolish resolu-
tion-foolish because it was beneath
the dignity OF the Convention to notice,
even by implication or opposition, the
silly fiasco of the Democracy, whose
resolution of denunciation against Sen.
atOr Mitchell made the most sensible
Democrats ashamed that their party
should try TO have hand in anybody
else's funeral. The resolution claims tc
"neither apologize for, pass judgment
upon nor justify" the early social life o
Senator Mitchell; but ''believes to-day
that a large majority of the people o
Oregon have entire confidence in his in
tegrity, ability and patriotism" Now
while there is not decent or virtuoui
man or woman in Oregon who know
Mitchell but in their heart Of hearts be
lieves every word of that resolution
yet, when the Ore0onidn threatened L
bolt il that Convention should attemp
to pass it, and for many weeks KEEP
Haunting a red flag in the face and eye
of the party, saying, "Come on will
your resolution: l dare ye! And if yol
do come, I'll have my wished-for chanc
70 help elect Democratic demagogu
in whom there is no decency," we sa,
that il the party, when thus bantered
had been as wise as an ordinary woman
it would have split the Oregonian'
sails by discreet silence. But men ar
prOverbially belligerent and the ore
gonidn's red flag was a "dare," and tn
Democratic fire-brand a 'banter," hene,
the resolution"
The scene in the camp, judging from
the report in the Bulletin, was only
equalled by a similar scene in the Dem
ocratic Convention a few days previ
Ously. During tire convention diver
candidates, who had been fishing TO
the nomination for weeks, showed tn,
white feather shamefully. But ther,
was one man who proved himself no ra
to desert his ship because it seemed To-
a season TO be stranded on the shifting
sands Of popular prejudice. This mar
was Hiram Smith of Linn. After ont
man, and then another, and still another
had declined the Congressional tid-bit
he alone, of all the waiting ones, haC
courage TO accept the will of the major.
ity Of his party.
After q week or two have gone by anC
the spasmodic effects Of Pharisaical vir
tue have had time TO effervesce among
the few who hope to hide the grinninl
skeletons in their own closets behinC
the Puritanie walls they are sendinl
forth, sober second thought will prevail
Then the decentest Of the disaffecte,
will see philosophically that two wrong
never make one right; that if one man
whose early bad habits, being now il
the United States Senate, outrages thei
virtue, they cannot but make the mat
ter worse by sending another to tia
House of Representatives whose socis
record as an immoral blackguard, Libel
tine and wine bibber is a matter
such common notoriety that no ma
thinks Of denying it.
Hiram Smith is known as a man
virtue, temperance and veracity. HI
competitor in this race, ''J. \. Smith,
(who deserted in the days Of his yout
from Uncle Sans army, and change
his name to J. w. Nesmith, cons,
quently John II. Mitchell is not our fir
Senator with an alias, is the very Of
posite of all that is good for which II
other Smith, without an alias, is note,
Again, Hiram Smith has been, an
is, an active Woman Suffragist. II
has aided the movement by his none
and influence when he had no though
OF being Congressman, and will vote o
our side in the House of Represent,
tives. J. \. Smith, alias J. w. Ne
mith, refused the New NoRTHwEs
when it was paid for and presented
MIN by an influential gentleman of tn
city, and, being in the habit Of assun
- ing aliases, attacked us in the most il
decent manner through the Herald an
Mercury, signing himself "An Unpurcl
asaoie Woman" and trying hard to g
uD a fight with No =; =