Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1874-09-03
THE NATIONAL IsSUESI
Reasons why the Republican
Party Should be COntin-
ned la Power.
AN ADDRESS BY
HON. T.. DANF0RD.
BEFORE THE
BeIlaire Convention.

-uF. chairman ana GeIlstSHl61l OF JIt6
COnrentiOn:-I thank you for the honor
you have conferred upon me, in again
placing me in nomination as the Re-
publican candidate for Congress in this
district. l appreciate highly the honor
thus conferred. As We have some
hours here before the trains leave, it
may not be out of place that L should
discuss some of the political questions
of the day.
NECESSITY OF CONTINUED REPUBLICAN
ASCENDENCY.
The Republican party, in my judg-
ment, is as much of necessity 10 the
well-being of this nation to-day as it
was in 1861, when the armies of the
Rebellion were gathering round the
capitol of the nation. | know that il
is frequently said the Republican party
was organized for the purpose of antag
onizing the institution OF Slavery; that
Slavery has passed away, and there Is
no longer need for the organization OF
the party Gentlemen Of the Conven-
ton, did you ever consider this fact !:
that every law upon your statute books
in reference to human rights passed
within .he last thirteen years is Re-
publican measure, Jistinctively, and
that these measures met with the hos
tility of the Democratic party? There
is not measure upon the statute books
of the nation to-day looking towards
the collection of the immense revenues
necessary in order to administer this
Government that is not Republican,
Your currency laws are all Republican,;
and when you come to look at the laws
Under which you collect your revenues,
the currency that you enjoy to-day-in
fact, in looking through the entire leg
islation of the last thirteen years, if
this legislation should be repealed, you
would have chaos in the land; you
would be at sea in relation to your cur
rency; you would have chaos in regard
to the revenues of the country, and
upon all of the questions that divide
the two great political parties and have
divided them for the last thirteen
years. l repeat the Republican party
is as'much a necessity to-day as it was
thirteen years ago. Applause.
EVIL CONSEQUENCES OF A DEMOCRATIC
RESTORATION.
Take, if you please, the legislation
growing out of the Fourteenth and
Fifteenth Amendments to the Consti-
tuition of the United States, and look at
Kentucky and Tennessee, where with
in the last ten days there have been
riots and blodshed growing out of the
enfranchisement of the colored race;
and the parties are arming in Arkansas
and Louisiana fof a bloodier contest
still the coming fall; and if the Repub-
lican party should should go out of
power in the nation, what would you
expect so far as the civil and political
RIGHTS OF THE COLORED RACE
ia the Southern States are concerned
What hope would you have for them ?
What hope have we in the reconstruc-
ton measures of Congress outside OF
the ranks of the Republican party p
An intelligent colored member of Con-
gress, during the last winter, in speak.
ing upon this subject when the cOlored
men were charged with voting in a
solid body for such men as Governor
Moses in South Carolina, retOrted upon
his Democratic colleagues by saying:-
divide. You in the Democratic party
in the South, as we Understand you,
are organized upon the basis of the
white race and the governing power in
the white race, and in deadly hostility
to not only our political but our civil
rights; aud when you give up this hos
tility, then it will be time enough to
talk to us about dividing our forces"
That deadly hostility exists in every
Southern State of the Union. 1t is
manifested at every election and upon
every occasion in which they have an
opportunity to manifest it.
THE REVENUE SYSTEM.
There are other questions in regard
to which the Republican party is ne
cessity to the country that possibly
more nearly and directly affect tho
people of the Sixteenth district thar
this. Our revenue laws, by which we
collect in round numbers 300, ,000, ,00(
of dollars annually, to defray the ord:
nary expenses of the Government
involve questions that very nearly af
feet the people of the Sixteenth district
CHARGES OF REPUBLICAN EXTRAVA,
G.ANCE.
And whilst upon this subject, let me
remark that in some quarters it is
charged the Republican. party have
been so extravagantly expending the
resources and revenues of the country
that instead of large credit and large
reduction of the public debt, we have
gone down to the bottom.
HOW TAXES HAVE BEEN REDUCED.
Now, it may be well enough JUS
i here to remark in this connection thai
whilst two and three and four Year
ago we went to the people with /,
lshoWing which was the pride of tn,
Republican party, that the public deb
was being actually reduced at the rat
of hundred millions per annum.
remember that this showing was s
strength and power in the hands of tn
Republican press and Republican
speakers, and desire to call the atten
tion of the Convention for uoment t
: "a few facts in connection with the re
duction of the debt in the past, and tn,
fact that in the last fiscal year we onl,
reduced the debt a little over four ant
half millions of dollars. In 1870, a
J the end of the fiscal year, it was fount
/ we had hundred millions of revenu
to apply to the reduction of the publ
debt; and it was then argued that q
the present generation had done mucl
towards reducing the debt already
J that as the waste places in the SoutI
had not yet been built up; and that a
we were increasing in wealth and pow
er and strength day by day, it was goot
policy to postpone for time the pay
ment of the public debt SO rapidly a
we were paying it at that time; and il
accordance with the sentiment in Con
gress and throughout the country
there was by Act of July 1 1870, a re
duction of taxes amounting to $7S, ,848,
600 annually. AT that time the incom
tax was swept away, with many othe
taxes that the people of the Sixteenth
district remember four and six year
ago. Again, in 1872, it was found tha
our resources were still greater thai
our needs; that Notwithstanding tn
large reduction of 1870, we still hat
. something in the neighborhood @
, ninety millions of surplus to be apple,