Clearfield Republican. [volume] (Clearfield, Pa.) 1851-1937, 1874-08-12
WHERE DO I'VE STAND

crave from the oracles to whom may be !
intrustcd ourdcstiny some word ofrove
lation of the how and the when of its
escape. But "the oracles are dumb.
We conclude ii, therefore to be the part
Of wisdom to cndeavor to understand
the process by which these perils were
brought upon us and 10 fix the response
bility for their existence. The poet
Cowper says in his address to Yardlcy
Oak
40 could'st thou speak
As in DodonA once thy kindred trees
0racular, would no. curious ask
The future best unknown, but at thy mouth
Inqusitiye, the lcss ambiguous past"
And so questioning the unambiguous
past, the answer that comes to us,
clearer and sharperin its ring than any
that was ever breathed IN Dodonian or
Pythian responses, is that the danger
to our republican institutions is caused
by the violation Of republican princi-
pies Our political institutions were
based on the principle that there is n
fundamental law, fixed and inhexible,
capable of change or variation only by
a process prescribed by itself This is
American republicanism; and this fun
damental law, written. and not tradi-
tionary, is what we call constitution
BY il republican liberty lives without
it or outside Of II republican liberty
dies Such is our destiny, as iTever@-
bic as the decreos Of fate,
Nowrhcre came TO pass, in the ninth
decade Of our national existence, a state
of things which required the utmost
fidelity TO the principles of constitu-
tional government This was nothing
less than civil war for The pleserva-
ton of the Constitution iisoli. Our
government Is necessarily administered
by parties; and when the crisis Of
1862 came. il was administered by
sectional party whose political success
in obtaining possession Of power had
produced such q fear in the slaye-hold-
ing States for their local institutions
that they sought for safety in the dcs-
perate remedy oiseecssionanddisunon
The issue that was thus made between
the section adhering to tho Union aud
the section rcnouncing the Union legiti-
matcly involved nothing but the right
Of State secession. Being war, there
fore, on the part of the Federal Gov
ernment in defence of the Constitution,
il especially behoovcd the Federal pow
er to do nothing that the Constitution
did not warrant, eithcri in the progress
of the war or at its termination. New
theless such. was the incapacity and
want of true craftsmanship on the part
of the Federal Government that besides
AN almost countless number Of minor
errors two grand errors were commit
ted, from the consequences of which
the country has not yet extricated IL
sell, and from which 1t cannot be cx-
tricated by the party that Is RESPONSE
bic for them. One of these enormous
blunders was made at the outset Of the
war, the other at its close.
The first blunder consisted in carry
ing on the wnr by means Of paper
money, which, being made compul-
sorv iegol tender in naymont of private
debts broke down tLe constitutional
standard ofyalue enormously increased
the cost of the war, and cntailed upon
the country on the return of peace n
cu,rencv which was only palliated and
anologi1ed for Inv the alleged necessi.
| lies of war The paper-money scheme
was a nnInoble breach of the Constitu-
tion which never meant thnt the occa-
sion for The use of money should be n
,noasnre ~ the Gove,nmontis mower
ovcr tbo renreaontative of value That
ronroscntoiivc wns n 6xed tbing IN.
,ondod a. he tbe sonc ai MI fines and
nnJnr oll circnmstances But oven mn.
on the doctrine Of war necessities as n
meoanre Of constitutional mower and ms
maxine n discrimination between what
Il constitutionnl In 'tine of war and
what i uneonstitdtiopal IN time Of
noace-a most dangerous as well as
untenable distinction-the Republican
marry although cight years of peace
hove clansed dn,ing which il has had
the entire control of legislation. has
bca, ut,erlv ineonable of deyisinr any
nnasure by which tbe country can 6e
rcscued from the consequences of this
prcat financial blundcr. The party has
emnloved itself only in the work of
salfius,itication and oven in that Il has
hro1aht nothing to mass hut iudicial
Jae;n7a,, ,,.l,;oh ral, ma;or;t,, M Tho