The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1875-07-22
SPEECH
DELIVERED BY
GOVERNOR ALLEN
AT
Newark, Saturday Evening, July nth,

Ol RobulNay w OOAlpbAV oOOub pOAliO NAV
tiers of local politics, and was induced by
the Democrats to make them speech in
the evening The weather was intensely
hot, and the hall crowded, 80 that he did
not speak more than half an hour. The
following is very full abstract of his
speech:
Men Of Ne,Odrk, Friends and FslLow-cttizsnS!
Many time before this have you and
l stood face to face to discuss the public
questions of the day; but at no time have
we come together under circumstances 30
profoundly interesting to the American
people rs on this occasion, when forty
millions of people inhabiting one of the
largest and most fertile portions Of the
globe, feel that something oppresses
them deeply and seriously, Every gov
ernment, whatever may be its form,
makes itselfresponsible for the condition
of its people to very large extent. In
a free government, based upon popular
suffrage, and acting through the repre-
sentative principle, the action of the
government upon the people in their
dearest rights becomes matter of the
most serious import to the people. For
more than fifteen years one class of men
have had absolute and unrestrained con-
troll of the Federal Government, and,
during all that period, the control of al
most all of our State governments. What
ever there is of happiness, of prosperity,
dependent upon the action ofthe govern
ment; whatever there is of suffering or
misery. dependent upon the action of the
government, is ascribable to that party,
for good or for i'll. They had it all. The
great Democracy Of the Union had no
function but that of paying taxes. Zap
plause. The other party had all the
bower, all the taxes, and all the profits
that necessarily grew out of them. Zap
plause
Now, if the condition of the American
people is prosperous and happy, if no
man is discontented; if no man is dissat.
isfed; if there is no clique or ring usurp-
ing the public authority and consuming
the public taxes; ifevery man who wants
to work is employed and well paid; if
every factory is running, with its blazing
fires throughout the entire day; if the
farmers, without being overburdened by
taxes, are reaping the full rewards of
their hard labor III the long summer sun
shine, and have enough to subsist and
educate their families; if every farmer
finds his farm without mortgage, himself
without debt, ready to extend the hand
of fraternity TO an unfortunate neighbour
ifthis be the condition of affairs then we
ought to thank the Republicans for bring
ing this state fittings about. Laughter
and applause.] With these long years
of absolute rule-the war did not last all
these fifteen years; the war is not to be
used as an excuse for what happened
after peace was restored-if, when the
war closed, and when this party took the
entire mass of the Southern States into
their own hands, and said, 1--WE will
govern as we please; we will recon-
struct;" if the operation of their recon-
struction has restored the Southern peo-
pie to their wonted prosperity; if it has
established peace without discord, they
are entitled to the appreciation of the
country. That the Congress ofthe United
States was responsible for the govern
ment of the South and its turbulence and
discord is manifest from the fact that the
party dominant in that body was the
only political power that had any eff
cheney there. If they could not rule the
Southern States after the rebellion had
been disarmed, how fit are they to rule
forty millions Of people throughout this
whole continent2 [Applause.J
They spread banetul blight over the
entire South; they promised peace and
prosperity, and they gave them the sword
| and have fulfilled their promise by pro-
duCing anarchy and pauperism. [Ap-
plause. They were loading down the
people of the United States with taxes
every day, and at the very time they
were piling up the taxes on the people of
the North, they had so desolated the
So lthern States that they had no taxes
to contribute, and all that the Southern
States were unable to contribute was
added to the taxes OF the Northern States.
That is part of their doings.
Well, they were in situation to set an
example of economy, of purity, to the
whole American people.
They had all the power, and the De-
mocracy had none, They could have
economical the expenses of this govern
ment twenty-fold more than they did,
but they did not choose to do it. They
went on increasing the taxes, increasing
the expenditures, and a large per cent
of all the taxes paid by the people never
reached the Public Treasury. 1t was
confscated on its way. They mildly
termed it defalcation; and the number
of these defaulters would almost rival
the innumerable multitude that St. John
saw in his vision.
Now, / want to define what this word
defalcation means. You have not the
least difficulty, if man, although hun
cry or prompted by the cries of nature,
when his little child lifts up his hands
and says, Father, want some bread"
and he has none to give, forces his hand
into a bakers shop and takes loaf. He
is indicted, put in Jail, and probably sent
to your penitentiary, Itisall of no avail
to him that he pleads the opportunities
and tears of his wife and poor little chill.
dren for food that he could not give, as
palliation Tor his offense. He is hurried
Oll-IO 10 CdllCu q elilClj u DuiBltT, n
Government officer appropriates to his
own use hundred thousand dollars.
That is not called stealing, not at all.
There is dignity about that kind of ras-
cality, because 1T is nothing but the peo-
ple's money that he has stolen. He is
called defaulter, not thief, and the
people are bewildered when they hear
that Government officer has defaulted.
That is, instead of putting the money in
the Treasury, he has put it into his own
pocket.
My friends, a crime don't change its
character by being hicknamed.
Now, there are some curious facts that
arise in the history of politics, and we
have q singular exemplifcation of the
statement at this time. We hear il said
by ell ofthe newspapers in that interest,
and the most of them In this State arc
conducted By postmasters; Nc hear 1t
EAidthat the' 'DSmOerstie party At COlSsn-