New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1874-08-20
TIE KENTUCKY HYPOCRISY.

e~~~No OAA N0OA AA0AoSA &A0400SClys w g
have shown the State rights Democratic
party at the North as the anti thesis Of
that at the South. The New York World
has gone round after every fight in which
Republican candidate has been defeated.
claimed the victory for the Democracy,
crammed the "old clio" into the scrap bag
OF Democracy and forthwith offered them
to any unsuspecting purchaser as fresh
from the Democratic warehouse. The
victories claimed for the Democracy Of
Kentucky contribute the most astound-
ing draft on popular credulity and the
most audacious stimulation of political
trade marks ever attempted. Kentucky
Democracy! What is it? Let US trace its
history. We pass its earlier embarrass-
ments about the pro tective duties Oh i'm
ported hemp, which were tolerated as a
similar embarrassment of the free trade
Democracy of Louisiana in regard to the
tariff on imported su gars. But at the be-
ginning of the war the most eminent
Democrat in Kentucky, Mr.. Guthrie, who
had been a member of the Democratic
Cabinet of President Pierce, openly threw
off the Democratic State rights collar and
took stand on the side of the Union.
That he had many Democratic sympa-
thizers will be shown by the sequel. The
Governor of Kentucky was a secession
Democrat. He refused to respond with
the State quota to the Presidents call for
troops. He declared in a message the
Union ''effectually sundered, and advised
that State convention called by the
Legislature should determine the policy
Of tie State. The Legislature preferred
peace conference at Washington of which
all know the futile results. The capacity
of the Kentucky Democrat to carry water
on both shoulders without spilling drop
was manifest in resolutions which de-
clared that the sympathies of Kentucky
were with the shareholders, but acknowl-
edged her allegiance to the federal gov
eminent until it should disregard the
right of property in her slaves. The use
of coercive measures to compel the seced-
ing States to return was deprecated, and
the Kentucky State Guard was reminded
that its fidelity was pledged equally to the
Union and the State. The Legislature
then refused to give the Governor three
millions of dollars to arm the State, and
required the State Guard to take an oath
of allegiance to the Union.
The Governor then proclaimed the neu-
trality of the State, and forbid the United
States and the Confederacy to invade
Kentucky. In legislative language it was
resolved that Kentucky should not ''sever
its connection with the national govern
ment, nor take up arms for either bellig-
erent, bat arm herself for the preserva-
ton of peace in her borders"
So rapidly came down the thermometer
of the Democratic secession Governor
below the war point. Now let US bring
the facts to the fore. The presidential
vote of this Democratic State had been,
in 1860, as follows:
Breckenridge DAmocrat). .-.................s3143
Douglas democrat, ....................l565 l
Total Democratic. ...................Ts8S
Bell CONSERVATIVE. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 05s
LINGO 1861
Total Conservative. .........674l 2
Democratic majority in Kentucky, No.
vember, 1860, 1882. 1t will be said that
many Of those Democrats who voted for
Douglas were Union men, so were many
Of those who voted for Breck enridge
Many who voted for Bell were State
rights men and wen into the Confeder-
ate ranks afterward. General Zollicofer
was, if We mistake not, one of these men;
at least, there were thousands of others.
So in November, 1860, there was a pro-
nounced Democratic majority in Ken
lucky. 1t encouraged the people Of the
slave States to take hostile position to-
ward the federal government and had its
effect in precipita ting them into a war
by which they were ruined and the Ken
tucky Democracy-enriched.
In May, 1851, an election was held in
Kentucky for members of a peace con-
vention, and at this election a majority
Of $4,000 votes was given for the Union
What a conversion A majority of II 900
State Rights Democrats changed within
six months intoa majority Of SO, 900 Union
men. Kentucky contributed many GAL
liant men to both the Union and Confed.
crate armies. Breckenridge himself put
his recreant State rights followers to
shame by going into the war and periling
his life to carry out his avowed prin-
ciples, howsoever mistaken the Repub-
lican party may consider them to have
been. But those wary old gray whis-
kered Democratic rodents who managed
The executive and legislative departments
possessed much of that which Falstaf
has pronounced the better part of valor,
and General Charles Lee pronounced the
'rascally virtue" Of discretion. They
,rawfshed out Of a war which they had
BY buster and bravado encouraged others
to enter. This unexpected neutrality, so
advantageous to the Union arms may
nave been somewhat promoted by the
pork and mule contracts and federal COM
missions in which the Democracy partici-
oated.
But the invaluable effect of Democratic
State rights neutrality consisted in the