National Republican. (Washington City (D.C.)) 1872-1888, 1874-08-21
THE PENNSYLHANLA PLATFORM.

L III LLN ~ Il y ANA L La L y OLAAus
What may be called the national portion
Of the Pennsylvania Republican platform,
printed in our columns yesterday, hiss the
great merit of dealing in practical way
with the questions which are now upper
most in the public mind and with the issues
which have almost been made up by the
country. The sixth resolution is, Of course,
the most important one, the one to which
we particularly refer. The only trou-
BILE about it is that it is not explicit and en-
phatic enough 1t declares as the true
policy of government in country as large
and diversified as our own, the protection
by proper legislation Of every branch of
industry, giving precedence to agriculture,
mining, manufacturing and mechanical pur-
suits, (Which, by the way, embrace about
all the industry there is@ against land
grants to railroads, and in favor Of Gin
"proving the navigation of our great in
Gland rivers of securing cheap transporta-
''tion and profitable markets for the pro-
"ducts of agricultural and manufacturing
''labor, of encouraging such manufactures
Gas shall bring the producer and consumer
Gin the neighborhOod of each other, and
"thus to establish mutual relations between
"them and those engaged In commerce and
transportation of property. The objec-
ton we have to this Is that it does not de-
clare by whom the work shall be done.
The Pennsylvania politicians, the gentle
men who drew up this platform and adopted
1t with so much unRnimity, are too sharp
and intelligent not to know that there is
some difference of opinion upon this point
at the present time. They must know that
the Democratic party as party insist that
the question Of transportation Is something
with which. the General Government has
nothing to do, that it should be left entirely
to the States while large portion of the
Republican party maintains that it properly
of the Federal Administration. The Penn
sylvania Republicans leave US in doubt as
to their position upon the question, and we
suspect they have done so Intentionally.
The addition Of two simple words would
have made the matter clear and let US know
SAlCLll MuCIC " uuu lnCLl
This lodging and twisting and halfway
meeting of questions is the principal trouble
with the Republican party at the present
time, and it is to be regretted that the Re
publicans Of Pennsylvania have caught the
contagion. The very questions to which
the resolution we have quoted alludes are
the great questions of the day, and the Re-
publicans of the keystone State should have
spoken with trumpet tones upon them.
Their example would have been inspiriting
and given courage and confidence to Repub-
liCans in other sections Of the country. As
il is, they have only weakened and discour-
aged. In political point of view the de-
claration of the convention against third
term for General Grant and the presenta-
ton of General Hartfrlnft as Presidential
candidate to the country, Is the most signii-
cant portion of the platform, and will re-
ccive the widest attention and comment
1t is the first open Republican expression
against the third-term idea, and marks a
new departure in its discussion. The men
ton OF Hartranft's name, of course, is only
a very thin disguise of opposition to Gene
raj Grant and a clever way~of putting IN a
prior claim for some substantial patronage
under the next Administration. The mod
orn Pennsylvania politician is keen and
sharp-wiltcd, and the gentlemen who met
at Harrisburg on Wednesday have shown
themselves to be among the sharpest of
their class. They have, Of course, no idea
in the world of nominating Hartranft. If
they had they would be very careful to save
him from the fire which will inevitably be
directed ct him during the next two years
The meaning of it is that Pennsylvania is
no mans man, and that whoever would
receive her vote in the next convention
must speak and speak plainly, for, as
she decided the Vice Presidential question
in ", so she may decide the Presidency
in 'I6