The Hickman courier. [volume] (Hickman, Ky.) 1859-current, 1876-09-22
National Democratic Platform

nm n he
,,or,inees of this convention and of no
,o,nocratic party IN each State Jealous
afrort and co operation to this end AMI 10
horebv appeal to our fellow 81
- former political connection 10 mn
lio,tate with rs this first and most nras
nrpatriotic duty. For the Democrar,
If he whole country We do here reaeiTn
onr faith in the permanence Of the Ed
.roI Union. and our devotion 10 the Con
.,i,,tion of the United States with 50
.,,nndments. universally accented n
Enol settlement OF the controversies tl,.t
an,endered civil war and do here record
our stealfsst confidence in the perpe;ui,v
If Republican self government. In a
reeolute acauieseenee in the will Of the
majority. the vital principle of republics
in the supremacy of the civil over the
military authority, In the total separation
of church and State for the sake alike If
civil and religious freedom. in the eouali-
~ of all citizens before lust laws Of tbeir
own enactment, In the liberty Of individ.
nal conduct unveXcl by sumptnarv laws
"a the faithful education Of the rising
Generation. that they nav preserve en-.
Inv AMI transmit these best conditions IF
human happiness and hope we behold he
uobiest products OF n hundred wears of
changcful history But while upholding
the bond of our Union aud the great char
ter Of these our rights, it behOoves IA free
people to practice also that eternal vigil
lance which Is The price OF liberty. Re
form is necessary rebuild and establish
in the hearts of the whole people the
Tuion eleven years ago happily rescued
from the danger of "a corrupt centralism
which. after ipAicthg upon ten States
the rapacity Of CARPET bag tyrannies, has
haucvromLcd the Offices or the Federal
GovernuentTtself with rnfapaclty, waste,
and fraud infected States and muhiciptl-
itirs with the contagion OF misrule, and
locked fast the prosperity OF an Indu~lrl-
Gus people in the paraly sis OF hard times
Reform is necessary to establish
sound currency and restore the pubic
credit aud maintain the national honor
We deuouucc the fuildrc for all these
eleven years 10 make good the promise OF
the legal tender notes, whlc are IA chang
ing standard of value in the hands ot the
people, and the non-pagment oil Whlch Is
a disregard of the plighted ihIth oI the
nation We denounce the lmprovidence
which, in eleven yearsof peace, has taken
from the people in Federal taxes thirteen
times the whole amount OF the ieGai-tch-
der notes, and squandPred four times th's
Iatinr any revenue for their redemption.
We denouucc the financial imbeciiity and
immortality of that party which. during
eleven wears of pcace. has made no adj
vance toward resumption, and no prepar-
alton for resumption, but instead has Oh
strucfed resumption by wasting our rev
enues and eXhuustiug all our surplus IN
come. and while annually protesting &"
intend a speedy return To specie payments
has annually enacted fresh hInjrhnces
thereto. As such hiudrance we de
nouuce the Resumption clause OF the act
OF l SO. and we herehI demand ITS repeal
We demand judiciow system OF prepar-
alton by public economies, by official re
treuchmcnts. aud by Eise financial man
agcmeut, which shall enable the nation
soon 10 assure the whole world Of its per
feet ability and its perfect readiness to
meet any of its promises al the call OF the
creditor entitled 10 payment we believe
that such a system. yell devised, anu
above all. entrusted to competent hands
for execution. creatiugat no time an ar
titicial scarcity of currency, aud ~ no
time alarming the public mind INTO
Withdrawal OF that vasfer machinery OF
credit by which - percent OF all bust
ness transactions are performed, sys-
confidence. would, from the day of its
adoption, bring heaiugpn its wings 90 all
our harasscd Industriesls set ia motion the
wheels of commerce, uanutacturcs and
the mechanical arts, resorc employment
20 labor and renew ia all its national
sources the prosperity q the people.
Reform Is necessary IN the sum and
mode of Federal taxatpu} TO the end that
capital may bee set free from d5strust and
labor lightly burdeued We denouucc the
present tariff. leyied upon nearly four
thousand al-i irlesl - h. rFiece of in
justice, Inequality aud ais Prejense. 1t
yields a dwiuilug, lQt yearly rising
revenue. II has Impoverished many in
dustrics TO sUbsidize "a few. Ii prohibits
imports that might purchase he products
of American labor. 1t has degraded
American commerce from the first to an
inferior rank on the Sigh seas 1t has
cut down the sales of american manutac-
lures Mt home aud abroai, and depleted
the returns Of American agriculture, an
industry followed by half our people. 1t
costs the people i've times more than II
produces To the treasury ohstruets the
processes of production and wastes the
fruits OF labor. II promotes fraud fosters
smuggling, enricbes dishonest oihclals
demand that all custcm-h0use taxation I
shall be only for revenue.
Reform is necessarily the scale of pub /
lie expense, Federal, State and municipal (
Our Federal taxation has swollen from
500 900 0OJ gold in 1850 10 Si50,OOO, 600 /
currency in 1870, and our aggregate tax
alton from Si5OOOO 0D0 gold IN $500 to /
S13O 600 Ool currency in 1870, or IN Que
decade from less thanhye dollars per head
TO more than eighteen dollars per head
Since the peace, the people nave pald IN
taxes more than thrice the sum of the
national debt. aud more than twice that
sum for the Federal Government alone.
We demand a rigorous frugallty IN every
department., and from every officer OF the
Government.
Reform is necessary to put stop to inc
prOhigate waste Of the public lands and
their diversion from actual settlers by
the party In power which has Squandered
Two hundred millions of acres upon ran
roads alone and out Of more than thrice
that aggregates has disposed Of less than
n sixth directly to tillers OF the soi'-
Reform is necessary TO correct the
of a Republican Congress and
the errors OF our treaties aud our dlpio-
macy which have stripped our fellow
citizens of foreign birth and kindred
race rccrOssinp the Atlantic, of the
shield Of American citizenship, and have
exposed our brethren of the Pacific coast
to the ipcursi0ns of race not sprung
from the same great parent stock, and in
fact now by law denied citizenship.
though naturalization is being neither
Accommodated TO the traditions of a pro-
gressive civilization nor exercised in
liberty under equal laws. We denOuuce
policy which thus discards the liberty
loving German and tolerates the renewal
of the CoOIie trade in Monaghan women
imported for immoral purposes, and Mon
golian men held to perform servile labor
contracts And we demand such modi-
hcation of the treaty with the Chinese
empire or such legislation by Congress
within constitutional limitation shall
prevent the further Importation immigra-
ton of the Mongolian race.
Reform is necessary and can never be
effected hut by making it the controlling
issue of the elections and lifting it above
the two false issues with which the office
holding class and party in power seek to
smother it; the false issue with which
they would enkiudle sectariau strife in
respect to the public schools, of which the
establishment and support belong excIu-
sively to the several States, and which
the Democratic party has cherished from
their foundation, aud is resolved to main
tain without partiality or creed and
without contributing from the treasury
to any !; and the false issue by which
they seek TO lift anew the dvi,1 ,hors