Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1874-06-19
Republican State Convention.

met in convention, by their delegates, at
Granite Hail. in this city, yesterday forenoon,
at eleven o'clock. The violent rain of the
previous day, and the fact that the renomina-
ton Of Gov. Dingley was conceded, had the
effect to make the attendance somewhat
smaller than on previous years, although the
main body of the hall was well filled at the
opening.
The convention was called to order by
Hon. S. T. Pullen of Portland, acting chair
man of the State committee, who read the
call.
Prayer was then offered by Rev. Mr.. Beck
with of the Unitarian church. Augusta.
The temporary organization was perfected
by the nomination of Hon. Z. +. Webb of
Waterville, as President, with the following
gentlemen as Secretaries A. II. S. Davis of
Pennington, w. X. Moody of Skowhegan,
Geo X. Hatch of Pembroke.
Mr.. Webb, on taking the chair, addressed
the convention at length, being repeatedly in
terrupted by applause. We give his speech
in full
Gentlemen of the Conrenticm
Accept my acknowledgements for the hon
or of presiding over your deliberations to-
day. For the twentieth time in our political
hietOIy tHc hepuUllCHuS VI nave met
IN mass convention to nominate a candidate
for chief magistrate of our State, and on the
18th Of next September the voters of this
State will elect the twentieth Republican
Governor by an overwhelming majority
There will be but two candidates before the
people-the one nominated bv this convention
to-day and one to be nominated hereafter by
the Democratic party. In these two great
parties are marshalled the 100, 900 voters OF
the State op6 for of how,
been contending for the mastery; they have
appealed to the people for support. 1t has
been conflict of IDEAS of principles, Of
policies and resulted in a conflict of arms
Each party has to-day record familiar to
us all and which shall never be blotted out
while the Republic shall last. The Demo
cratic party has existed since lS0l-a life of
more than three score years and ten; and as
the life OF man, if continued by reason of
strength, beyond three score years and ten il
full OF labor and sorrow because it is soon to
be cut Oft and wither away, so indeed it
seems to be with the Democratic party.
Its early history is one of glorious deeds
and love of country-of watchfulness and
care, of integrity in ofice-of economy in
business-it was mindful of the wants of the
country and labored for its development and
progress. But its later history is one of cor
ruption, of turpitude, of gradual and per-
sistent sinking into the bottomless pit and the
lower deck of the bottomless pit, until at last
it unearthed and brought forth the greatest
nest Of traitors that has existed in one coun-
try since the morning of creation.
1t begun in 1853 when the victorious de-
moeracy received from the falterng hands OF
the vanquished wings, the administration Of
the national government; when Mr.. Pierce
went into the White house and jeff Davis be-
gan to REICH and it continued from 1857,
with Mr.. Buchanan in the White House, and
Mr.. Davis still continued to control the desti-
MES of the naton-but be it remembered that
it eliminated in 1861. when Mr.. Lincoln was
elected President, for he a republican,
and the democracy were taken captive and
carried to Babylon, and they hung their harps
upon the willows by the streams of Babylon,
and lifted up their voices and wept, and for
these long years they have mourned the loss
of federal officers and federal power; and
when those were lost to them through the bal.
lot, and believing that they held the empire
of sea and land through the sword, they at
tempted to destroy the country they had ruled
so long; and in their frenzy and madness they
hurled the armies of rebellion against the de-
tenders OF the union, involved the country in
long and bloody war, characterized by
fendish barbarism never eQualed since the
beginning of time; murdered fifty thousand
Union soldiers by starvation and cold, deny
ing them fire by winter and shelter by sum-
mer; burned cities and spread pestilence,
filled the country with widows and orphans,
carried anguish and desolation to million of
hearth stones, and assassinated the chief
magistrate of the Republic. Yet with this
terrible record of blood and suffering; with
these marks of Cain upon them they ask
to be placed once more in power.
For twenty years the Democratic party has
stood hostile to freedom and equal rights. 1t
has borne the banners of slavery, won its vic
tories and shared its crimes.
Within that period of time there has not
been one patriotic act in favor of humanity
tina. has received the vote or sanction of that
party. They voted against the civil rights
bill; the last three amendments of the con-
stitution; they voted to make labor dishonor-
able in 900 square miles of the country;
they voted steadily for auction blocks and
blood hounds, for slave pens and chains; they
voted to dissolve the Union they voted men
and money to carry on terrible war against
it, but they never voted men or money to
save II, and know of no monarchy in Europe
to-day so persstenty and wickedly hostile to
the rights of the oppressed as the Democratic
party of this Nation has been for the past score
of years.
When patriotism was matter of emua-
ton; when the Republic was plowed down to
the beam, when it was shaken to the four cor
ners and being rent by foes within, the De-
mOcracy were silent unless they saw an OPP
portunity to do the nation some harm and if
you take the loyal liberty loving men out of
that party to-day there wouldn't be life
enough left in it to keep up circulation. 1t
is the only party since the days of Judas
Iscariot that has tried to make treason glo-
rious.
The Democracy have tried to do that They
had President and members of Congress
who lent their influence to it. Democratic
federal office holders North and South assert
ed it, Yeas Democratic Supreme Court pros
trated itself before the infamous doctrine and
democrats proclaimed it from the floor of the
American Senate and when in 1861 the Re-
publican party received from the maddened
and traitorous democracy the control of the
nation, it was in open war without an army
or navy, and never in the history of
nations has man been inspired by higher
aims than fired the bosoms of those patriots
brought together by the necessities of
their imperied country; they were loyal in
thOupht in word md act they varp ha con.