Knoxville weekly chronicle. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1870-1875, 1874-08-05

nothing but vote, yet even this they re-
fused to give. By simply writing eyes"
upon their ballots. instead of "bo." they
knew they could give freedom TO four mil
lions of human beings. They were sure of
victory if they said ayes = they could only
hope for victory If they said "no"-and
vet they said "no.h 1t was II mere question
Of violation. The ques ion was sqharely
put to them after they bad b. EN- led shudder-
ing clear through the Red sea and stood dry
on the other shore--stodd, too, in that
marvellous blaze which irradiates the
nineteenth century as il sinks into the
twentieth-they were plainly asked Are
you willing the bond should be free ?" and
"no." When is that generation coming, and
whence is it coming, that shall excuse or
forgive that mpious refusal
And when, in spite of Democratic ress-
lance, the bond had been made free and
secured against a return TO slavery by an
amendment to the Federal Constitution,
! this same opposition was asked once more,
7" May the freedmen become citizens aud be
admitted to civil rights?" And again the
answer was "no.'
And when, in spite Of that resistance, the
| freedmen had been made citizens, the
/ Democracy was asked, May these citizens.
though they be black, have the protection
of the ballot which the law benignly grants
to all citizens, however humble, Of every
color ?" And again the answer was" no.
And when the kuklux, armed with brand
and bludgeon, hunted the new-made citizen
| by night-hunted him through swamps
and pursued him TO death-when the local
authorities stood powerless in the presence of
organized murder and arson, and this oppo--
sition was appealed to to lend the protec-
tion of the national tribunals to the victims
of such incsrnate hate, they still Knocked at
such calamities and refused all relief.
1t is often fippantly said that all these
crimes and horrors are past, and it is
absurd to attempt to maintain a political
party on the memory of them. Perhaps so.
But would it not be insane to trust politi-
cal party that could SO readily forget them ?
1t istnot magnanimous, it is indeed hardly
manly, to prosecute men for sins of which
they have really repented. But that is not
repentance; it is Hypocrisy which processes
to repent of sins and does not forsake them.
but embraces worse ones. Such is the
anomalous repentance displayed by the
Democratic party. 1t never ceases to
denounce the Republican party for what it
has done or is trying to do, but it straight
way thunders with fercer denunciations of
what the party has not done and is deter
mened shall not be done. The moment
Democrats forget to decry Republican
policies they begin to belle Republican
motives For twenty years they deemed it
sufficiently opprobrious to call Republicans
Radicals; = now they claim to be radicals
themselves and denondce Rupublicans as
rsscals.
DEMOCRATIC PROMISES
Since the early part of 1872 they have
been diligently seeking to suborn renegade
Republicans,to turn states evidence and to
swear that all POLITICAL virtue is in those
discounted forces which resisted the
progress Of the last decade, and all villainy
is in the forces which marshsled that
progress. To such witnesses they have Law
shly offered honors, offices, dignites, pres
dencies, everything which could be made
the subject Of a promise
To answer to any name; to profess every
, creed to follow any flag; to sleep in any
bed TO fraternize with all factions; and to
offer a salve for every sore-such is the
mission of the opposition to-day. Never
before in politics was a lie enacted so trans.
parent and so audaciOus as that paraded by
the Democratic party in 1872, when they
gravey introduced Horace Greeley to the
people rs their representative man. 1t is
not possible such "signs and wonders
can "deceiye the elect SO far they have
failed to deceive even the electors.
If that party feels it to be unkind to
remind it Of its past career, how must il feel
to be reminded of its present attitU lie Once
its members protested distinct principles
all that could be objected to them was that
they professcd the worst principles extant.
But bad us they were, they were more be-
, coming than this utter abiuratton of all prin-
. ciples. You may not like to employ, but you
, do not wholey despise, the zealot who consis-
tently asserts that sarsaparilla will cure
every disease and so urges it upon every
! patient; but who can respect the charlatan
who persistently cries to the sick, "give me
your money and you may take what RENE
dies you please ~
: When in 1860 Democrats said Con-
| tinue us in power and we will hecl the
Territories with slavery when in 1864
r they said, "restore US to power aud we will
A barter with rebels, giving freedom for
pence when in 1868 they said again
= "restore us to power and we will abrogate
! three great amendments to the Constitu-
, ton, secure, government TO white men, and
r return slavery to colored men, it could
e only be replied that such Investigations were
: very unattractve But when in 1872 they
/ cried, "restore us to Office once more and
1 we will do everything that anybody wants
o done" the invitation was utterly repulsive
e And when they supplement this brazen
g Indifference to principle by stolid iudif-
c ference to truth ;lwhen, weary Of opposing
It the measures of the majority, they combine
t toassail their characters; when they abandon
S false reasoning only to resort to false asser-
9 ton. they exhibit an opposition hard if not
d impossible TO parallel.
: And yet that opposition, while it
i never was so bad, was never so dan
y gerous as now. People can better
! Judge the merits of measure than the
d merits of man. They can more readily
= detect a fallacious argument than false
n statement When the opposition denounced
d Republicans as misguided statemen, the
people could safely compare our measures
a with theirs, and judge which were best
n But when they denounced Republicans as
3, thieves it is not so easy TO try the truth Of
t, the assertion, Besides two circumstances
n give slight color to that allegation, First
It Republicans have possession of the Govern
o ment, and have the best chance to peculate.