davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
West Feliciana sentinel. (St. Francisville, La.) 1876-1877, 1876-12-02
THE SUPREME ISSUE.

Thomas A. Hendricks Vice
President.
The only question which
is raised is as to the consti-
tulional right 10 set aside
the verdict of The ballot box
and to declare Rutherford
3. Hayes President. ard
William \. Wheeler Vice
President.
The radicals not only
propose this arbitrary
course, but they also pro
pose to despotica'y DENY any
power in Congress TO deter
thine the constitutioaaiity Of
this reversal OF The pc ular
viii, and to enforce that de-
NAL at the point of the bay
onct.
Any one can see that this
course is full OF peril. Any
one can see that a grave
constitutional ques / i o II
ought not to be decided by
!orce. Any one can see
that its decision ought % be
reached after calm discuss
sion. and in such a way as
10 be accepted Us conclusive
10y the common sense Of the
people.
The constitutional! right
of a State to authotIZ, any
set OF men to set a~IGe tie
verdict Of the ballot box
with regard t. national OF
ticerS ; the cDu>titu,IuUa
right OF the returning board
OF Louisiana to thu CAVES
the retQrus o! tie e.ecGou
for nat,opal Ciicar- ; HE
constiluiiouaiity of he en-
tire proc edN ga-thesc a c
the questions wnlct Wit
come up for settlement.
Are these questions to
be settled by a cabal? l.
there 10 be 10 opportunity
given !or carcfDi Cxamina,
ton and autborauve deci>,
ion ? Are we to have an
Imperial Decree aud every
man declared Il reucl 0. re-
voluiionist who asks i,r
deliberate review and judi
ciai action ?
The pubic judgment OF
the country l. d cc!-ive uLon
all these questions. 1t is
most decided ' averse to any
attempt TO Gctermine :re
question OF Presidential ,uc-
cesSion by force on either
side. Neither The power OF
the Federal bay euet, direct
ed by those in au,nDrl y
who DEFY laws aud cousiilu-
tons, nor the power OF rev
dictionary resistance, c.n
be invoked viii: IMMUNITY.
The people desire that q
man for President to whom
the Office ilghtiuiiy beloL g,
whether it be Mr.. Tudra CT
Ar. Hayes. they ohj CT to
a settlement OF thar question
By the scoundrels vino Goa
stitute the returning board
Of Louisiana, or the conspnI.
ators who are melting them
TO their iawles= work.
The supreme issue, then
is this Is the verdict ol
the ballot COX 10 be sci
aside, and all opportunity
TO anIhoritauvciy derIcrmjne
the coDstltutionailty and tie
righuusness OF THIS reversal
of the will Of The peuuIe to
be denied.
Upon this question there
is but one opinion. If II c
returning board of L)uisi-
ana shall see fit To revere
the yeid.cl OF the ballot bon
the glght.uine ; aud the
constitut.Graiiiy Of that re
veisal Hsu-t be fairly sum
mitied for confirmation Or
rejection 10 tne representa-
iives oi al The people. 10
undertake to crowd tue Iu-
fanny thr ugd ty force viii
be condemned bJ every hou-
est man il the laud. "A =
bany argus.
The hopes o. the RcpUb-
cans Of getting Tie e,ectorai
The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1876-06-24

The Fall River cotton mills are doing an
excellent business, having made net prof,
of 100000 during the last quarter, besides
reducing their Indebtedness In the last eigh,
months. They have recently made some
shipments TO New Zealand, and are about To
send an agent to represent their interests in
South America.-SprinDield Republican.
Bring the currency of this country up to
the money standard Of the world and then
give our cotton spinners free trade, with the
world for a market, and there is nothing
now any more than there was In 1860, to pre-.
vent them from driving English cotton goods
out of the South American, Chinese, Japan
and South Sea markets, and open TO them a
market that all the cotton factories of the U.
S. and double their number can never glut
II was protection that drove not only our
cotton manufacturers but also our iron,
wooden and leather manufactures out of those
markets, and they will only regain them
when they cease TO depend on "protection."
The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1876-06-24
WHEELER.

The nomination Of VIM. A. Wheeler for the
vice presidency at Cincinnati is PROBABLY moi
as strong a movement as was at first imagin
ed. Wheeler is largely interested in and
therefore faithful servltor of the national
banks, besides being a railroad attorney and
devoted to the interests of that monopoly
Then the New York World says of him:
Mr.. Wheeler was Mr. Blalne's adiutant
aide-de. camp in carrying through all the
most Objectionable republican subsidy legis.
lation on our statute-books. Mr.. Blaine, of
whom it must be said that he usually knows
his men, selected Mr.. Wheeler as the chair.
man of the committee on the Pacific railroad
and the vice presidential nomination at Gin.
cnnatl, therefore, saddles the republican
party with all the most assailable features of
Mr. Blaines political record, while in con.
junction with the presidential nomination, it
deprives the republican party of the glow and
go OF Mr.. Blaine's carefully cultivated sec
tional issue. To Mr.. Wheeler also cIvi.ser-
vice reform is indebted for It's death. blow.
In truth, the nomination of Mr.. Wheeler can
do so little good and must do so much harm
to his party in the national conflict, that one
is half tempted to believe that it must have
been foisted upon the weary and distracted
by the New York enemies of an.
other conspicuous republican leader, Sena-
tor Conkling, who also now lies bleeding and
bedraggled In the house of his friends
The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1876-06-24

Kcely, the Philadelphia motor man, finds
a dangerous rival in Mr.. Nicholas Thomas,
master mechanic of the N. W. car shops a,
Chicago The latter has constructed an en-.
CINE, evidently on the Keely plan, but with
such decisive improvements as to make the
Chicago machine success, while Keely's
thus far has been signal failure. Thomas,
instead OF using but thimbleful Of water,
which Keely says is enough for he's machine,
uses couple of gallons at a time, which
must be replenished by thin, steady stream
while the engine is in motion. There is also
this difference in favor Of Thomas, that his
machine will run day or week right along
without stopping, while Keely has been un-
able to keep his in motion over minute at
a time
The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1876-06-24
THE BOND QUESTION

| The Supreme Court Of the United States
has lately made several important decisions
in reference to bonds voted by cities and
towns in Illinois in aid of railroads, one OF
the most important of which is the case Of
The town of Elmwood Peoria county, u.s.
Geo. o. Marcy. The point in this decision
bearing particularly upon the case of our
Ottawa bonds is this. The court lay It down
as rule, to be followed in all such cases,
that "The Federal Supreme Court will al.
ways follow the decisions of the highest
court of a state in the construction of its own
constitution and laws. 1t is only where they
have differed that the court will make de-.
cision of its own" AS the Ottawa bonds
have by "the highest court OF this state"
been decided to have been illegally issued, of
course, under this rule, there being no con.
iict Of decisions on the subject by our court,
the Supreme Court OF the L. s. will follow
the decision made by the Supreme Court of
Illinois.
The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1876-06-24

While the New York EreHiac Post, Prof
Woolsey and few Others OF the political
saints" give their adhesion TO the nomination
Of Hayes, Prof Sumner calls the nomination
a farce" and while Carl Schurz prefers to
to say nothing until after the ST. Louis con.
yenticn, his St. Louis partner says the Ger.
mans are disappointed. What the German
voters want" he says, rs reform. They
want some man who will change the existing
condition of things" No such change can
be looked for from the ring that will "ruR'
Hayes If he is elected
The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1876-06-24
DEMOCRATIC STATE CONVENTION.

The Illinois Democratic State Convention
at Springfield on Thursday did up its bust
ness tremendously and with commendable
dispatch. Hon A. G. Burr presided, with a
vice president from each congressional dis.
uict. The following delegates were appoint
ed to the st. Louis Convention:
For State at Large-W j. Allen, F. Fl. Win.
ston, C. L. Higbee, Chas. Durham.
District DeLegates.-First district, nj. w
Fuller, Cook county; John Forsyth, Cook
Second SIS Hayes, Cook John c. Richberg
Cook. Third, Perry Ii. Smith, Cook; Her
man Lieb, Cook. Fourth, Thomas Butter
worth, Winnebago; A. NJ. Harrington, Kane
Fifth, W. II. Mitchell, Stephenson; NJ. w
Hathaway, Ogle. Sixth, William II. Mesen
kop, Bureau; j. s. Drake, Rock Island
Seventh, William Reddlck, La Sale; ID. ii
Pinney, Will Eighth, J. Duff, Livingston;
j. E. Ong, Marshall. Ninth, John s. Lee
PEORIA s. p. Kummings, Fulton. Tenth
Daniel Ellis, Hancock; Chas II. Whitaker
McDonough Eleventh, Lewis f. Worces.
ter, Green; Daniel r. Chittenden, Adams.
Twelfth, John A. McClernand, Sangamon
Jas. NJ. Eplcr, Morgan. Thirteenth, Jas. S.
Ewing, Mclean; Jas. r. Hab0it, Logan.
Fourteenth, E. S. Terry, Vermilion; Thos.
II. Macoughtry, Douglas: Fifteenth. VIM.
M. Garland, Lawrence; Vim. S O'Hair, Ed.
gar. Sixteenth, Thos B. Murray, Fayette
G. Van Moorbeck, Clinton. Seventeenth,
VIM. r. Walsh, Macoupin; Gus, A. KGrner,
st. CLAIR. Eighteenth, Geo. W. WALL Perry
Thomas c. Crawford, Monroe. Nineteenth,
VIM. Duff jefferson S. +. CLANCY Sabine.
The committee on resolutions reported
that as another state convention is shortly to
be held to select candidates for state officers
and presidential electors, It was inexpedlent
10 adopt platform at this convention. This
was unanimously adopted, and the conven-
ton adjourned sine die.
The state central committee have agreed
upon July 9th as the date for the convention
TO nominate candidates for state officers.
1t is understood that the delegates to ST.
LOUIS are about half and half for Tilden and
Judge Davis.
The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1876-06-24
From Dayton.
DAYTON Ill, Jur

DAYTON ILL.,, June %, 1876.
Editors Free Trader-Allow me through
the columns of your paper to note few facts
in regard to our little village. Although tor
several years we have been laboring under
most irving circumstances we are still alive
and trying to rally. The +. Il. IL. Collar
Manufacturing Company are still carrying
on their extensive business; the cry every
where is "hard times" but they seem not to
notice it, Their sales increase yearly and
with the number of men now employed are
kept busy to fill their many orders. The
Wooden Mills are again in operation; but
owing to the scarcity of wool have been un-
able to do much until the last few weeks.
Our school is in prosperous condition
We have been very successful in securing
the services of competent teachers for some
time past, as our school will show today.
The Hotel, Grocery store, &c, are doing as
well as could lie expected for the size OF our
little town. Lastly, let US call your attention
to our Centennial Flag Pole, erected here py
our true and noble Democrats on last Satur'
day. We are proud to boast of being me
first town in the county to hoist flag in CON-
memoration of the great year of Jubilee, the
Centennial birth of the Nation. we are
glad to see our young men manifest such
firm determination to do or die regardless OF
the SCOTS and jeers of others. We nave
few enterprising men in our town, ana nope
in a few years to see our younger members
of society following in their footsteps. Al
ter the ST. Louis convention is over, which,
TO be held on the eth Inst, We hope to be
able TO inscribe on our banner the name OF
a firm, true Democrat, one who believes the
same money as good for the ploy holder as
the boHdholder. We almost forgot TO men,
ton festival which will be held here on
Friday evening, the proceeds 70 be used for
the repairing of our sidewalks
IA WELA WIsHER.
The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1876-06-24
THE PLATFORM,

Even the New York Times, while cordially
endorsing the Cincinnati nominations, adj
mits that the platform IS "weak and swashy.'
And the Ecening Post, also indorsng the
nominees, Is disguised at the platform. TN the
way of feeble utterances they may confidently
challenge comparison with any yet made
There we're but two points on which the time
invited from the convention clear and ring
ing utterances-the financial question and
civil service reform Both are treated with q
timidity and halfheartedness that would be
cowardly II it was not sheer demagogism
Continuous and steady progress to specie
payment is all the convention promises on
the financial question. Why Peter Cooper
and Judge Kelly promise as much, for they
contend at least that their greenbacks will in
a short time be atpar with gold, which is the
same as specie payment. And the civil ser
vice reform fares no better. All the conven
ton had to offer was the familiar platitude
that "honesty, fidelity and capacity" are the
true qualifications for office. Boss Shepherd
himself would assent to that.
The other teen resolutions of the plat.
form are either gltterng generalities or bra.
zen mendacity. 1t is false, as the I'd resolu.
ton asserts, that the republican party has
preserved the national government to the
kundredth anniversary of the nations BIRTH"
for the party is less than twenty years old
and it is false that the republican party, as
the 4th resolution asserts, has since the pas.
sage of the Infamous public credit act of
1860, been making continuous progress to-
wards specie payment" for at least twice
since then it has passed laws to initiate the
currency and depreciate the value of green.
backs-the law.ot 1870, adding 800, 5000 to
the national bank circulation, and the law of
1875, establishing free banking to initiate the
currency.
What could be more hypocritical than the
sixth resolution, rejoicing that the conscience
Of the people has been qulckened and de-
mands honesty and reform! Or than the 9th,
pledging the party to oppose any further
grants of public lands to corporations, after
the party has already recklessly squandered
about tie entire public domain In that way. Ar
admirable companionpie to this resolution
is the 9Th, approving the great American sys.
tenn Of tariff spoliation. After robbng the
nation of its public domain, there is no other
legalised system Of plumber left so available
as tariff robbery.
There never was viler demagogism than is
covered by the 18th and 10th resolutions; or
more pitful and puerile than that covered by
the 18th and 18th; and the character of the
whole is most appropriately stamped by the
closing resolve, commencing and endorsing
as honorable work. all the rot:enness and
corruption of Grants administration.
The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1876-06-24

There Is dsgraceful revelation in refer
ence to the famous Caldwell dispatch from
London, which Blaine accused Proctor Knott
of trying to suppress to his injury. The dis
patch purported to have come from Caldwell
in London, and affirmed the truth of Tom
SCOTS evidence TO the effect that the said Ar
kansas railroad bonds, which gave Blaine SC
much trouble had been handed over by Cald
well to Scutt and not to Blaine, or anybody
for Blaine 1t now turns out that this dis
patch was written in Philadelphia by Scot,
himself and sent by telegraph TO Caldwell in
London, and then sent back by Caldwell to
the committee in Washington. 1t was thus
manufactured to order, and not being even
sworn to, so far from beng evidence, is, In
connection with surrounding circumstances,
little short of an infamous lie on its face.
The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1876-06-24
FROM WASHINGTON.

The struggle between the senate and house
over the appropriation bills is the exciting
topic now at Washington, and deepens IN in
tensity. AS passed by the house, the appro-
priatons are cut down about S40,0OO,OOO be-
low last year, and most of the reductions are
admitted to be legitimate and proper Even
Secretary Taft agrees that the six million re-
duction in the army appropriations will not
impair the efficiency of the service. But the
senate is determined not to let the democratic
house have the credit of making retrench'
ments, and amends every appropriation bill
by restoring every last years item that the
house strikes out. The result is that every
bill goes into that hot bed or iniquity, the
conference committee, to be doctored mus
the legislative and post office bills are now
before conference committees with no appar-
ent prospect OF an agreement on either. The
house bill restores the rates OF newspaper
postage to the figures of 1874 and curtails the
allowance tor railroad transportation. The
senate is doggedly set against both these re-
forms AS both houses are firm In the mat
ter, it seems doubtful whether half the appro-
priation bills can be passed at all.
The President has sent to the senate the
name of Senator Morrill,, OF Maine, as Brls.
lows successor. Bristow will leave the treas
ury as soon as Morrill, Is confirmed.
For twenty years no lis, of defauliers to the
government has been published, though the
law requires such publication annually. In
response to resolution of the senate, an ex.
hibit of the defalcations for the last forty
years was sent to that body on yesterday by
the secretary OF the treasury. Mr.. Sherman
objected to the printing of the document be.
cause "it would be great scandal to publish
the list to the world" The Ohio senator
seemed to be afraid the publication Of the list
might hurt somebody.
The senate on Tuesday passed the house
bill for the issue of ten millions more of sill.
yer coin in exchange for greenbacks.
The kilograms of Thursday represented
Mr. Blaine's condition as not having improved
for the previous three days, and that his
physicians insist on his leaving Washington
and its exciements that he may have absolute
rasf
The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1876-06-24

Secretary Brstow has sent his resignation
10 the President, to take effect on the LIST Of
July, and Grant has accepted it. "Thus de.
parts says Bristow liberal paper, 1.-THE last
remnant Of honesty and reform from Grants
administration" Our impression all along
has been that Bristow was greatly over-esti
mated. His zeal for reform looked like little
else than an adrot game. Like Blaine, he
wanted 10 be President, and the first thing to
do, he imaginated, was TO squelch Grants
third term aspirations. Blaine's mode of do
ing this was to steal Grants anti Catholic
and bloody.shirt thunder. Bristow concoct.
cd the more effective plan of assailIng Grant
through his friends, Babcock, Shepherd, and
the St Louis, Milwaukee, Chicago and New
Orleans whisky rings. There were other
whisky rings, however, quite as corrupt as
these, at Cincinnati Louisville, Memphis,
&c, which happening to be largely composed
Of Bristow's friends, were lett untouched
The first part Of Bristow's game having sue
ceeded but the other part signally failed, his
retirement from the cabinet follows as a mat.
ter of course If not voluntary, Grant would
have been compelled, from sheer selfrespect,
10 remove him.
The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1876-06-24
HAYES AND WHEELER.

! Recovering from their sore disappoint
ment and disgust at the defeat of Blaine anC
I,he announcement that nobody" had re
ceIved the nomination, the republicans of II
illinois, less anxious, as usual, for the good o.
the country than the party, are trying HARD
to persuade themselves that after all the
nomination may be good one. "For the
party" that may be measurably so. Hayes
is confessedly small and weak man. liz
has been twice Governor of Ohio and has
served couple of terms in congress. liz
has thus had abundant opportunity to distin
gush himself, if there was anything in him
yet who ever heard Of his originating or do
Ing anything to raise him above any one Of
the two hundred robodes that help to fill up
the roll of congress or the list Of smallfry
that walk through the dull routine Of the
average state governor.
The factions and rings that struggled for
the mastery at Cincinnati hated each other
with sublime intensity and the triumph
of any one would have been the death of the
others. Thus if Blaine had triumphed, Conk.
ling, Cameron, Morton and Bristow would
have been crushed; while if Conkling, or
Morton, or Bristow had triumphed, Blaine
and the rest would have been crushed and
so on, had any one of the four borne away
the prize the other three would have been
crushed; and nothing is more certain than
that this intestine feud would have been
carried into the campaign, and the defeat of
the nominee inevitable.
The nomination o: Hayes sounds truce
to this war of factions and unites them
against the common enemy, the democrats.
To this extent, therefore, the nomination is Q
good one for the party. But in another
sense, suppose by this temporary truce be-
tween the warning factions the party obtains
a meretriciOus triumph in November: q
worse squabble between them than at Gin.
cinnati must follow for the possession of the
president Who is to own and run him
Blaine, Conkling or Mortons The poor
weakling Hayes will be buta shuttlecock be-
tween these adrot gamesters, and must inc
vitality fall into the hands Of one or the other
of them.
And then, be it Conkling, Morton or
Blaine, how will the country fareg With
the Conklng ring IN power, we shall have
Grantlsm restored, with all ITS whisky rings,
buying and selling of Offices, endless thiev-
cries, jobs and corruption. With Blaine in
the ascendant, we shall have relentless,
vindlctive party rule, with endless Pacific
Railroad jobs, Texas and Northern Pacific
land steals and .peculations and populations
without limit. With Morton at the helm We
shall have an era of domination and bloody
bloody shirt hate. Is the country prepared for
any of these? AT best the election OF Hayes will
place the country under the domination of
faction which on its own merits would be
defeated before the people five to one. There
is no way TO avert such calamity except to
defeat all these malign factions at one blow
by defeating Hayes and eIecting that sound,
able, selfconsclous and self.owned man
whom the democracy next week will place
before the people at st. Louis.
The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1876-06-24
THE PARTY AND HIRAM.

ANOTHER "signal victory of the people a.
gainst the bondholders" has been achieved,
according to the local press, in the recent de-
cision at Decatur, this State, IN the Midland
Illinois railroad case. In other words, the
decision, if sustained by the Supreme Court,
renders worthless large amount OF bonds,
issued and purchased in good faith, without
suspicion Of the wonderful possibilities OF
the law In the way of sauctioning repudia.
'tion.-Railteay Age .....
Or, IN other words, certain Spectators who
went through the country and promised the
people if they would subscribe certain 6.
mount of stock, they should have railroad
in given time that would yield them hand
some returns on their stock, but which said
spectators broke every promise they made,
now, find the people have turned the tables
on them by playing the same kind Of game.
The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1876-06-24
The Joliet Sun, after reviewing the radio

The Joliet Sun, after reviewing the radical
squabble for congressman IN this district
concludes:
Perhaps, ali things considered, it might be
well to locate the candidate in the little coun.
ties, and to nominate an editor. And if So
we should have a preference for the Oldest
and best known one, viz: John II. Marshall,
of the Kendall County Record. He is in the
prime of life, has held responsible county
office for years and publishes one Of the best
country newspapers in the state.
Now, Rad, that won't do. You object TO
Cullen because ne has made enemies by his
fight on Plumb, but Marshall is in the same
mire, a foot deeper than Cullen. The candl.
date must be an editor, that's settled; and as
Cullen and Marshall are voted out, and Hayes
has come into the district SO recently as hard.
ly to be eligible, why of course there is none
left but Rad himself See? Hurrah for Rad.
clitfe