Ottumwa weekly courier. (Ottumwa, Wapello County, Iowa) 1872-1899, 1876-09-20
INGERsoLL IN NEW YORK
The Great Speech Of the Illinois
Orator in the Cooper Institute.
Lively and Refreshing Reading for
the Campaign.

Colonel Robert G. Ingersol, OF
Peoria, ILL.,, spoke at New York, on
the night OF September 18th. to what
the Tribune, of that city, describes as
''the largest and most enthusiastic au-
dicnce which, during the last ten
years, any single speaker has attract
ed" Tho New York Times charac-
tcrizes the address as zone of the best
political speeches ever delivered in
New York" Tho Hon. George OPP
dyke presided over the meeting, and
introduced Colonel Ingersoll, who
spoke substantially as follows, being
often interrupted by applause and
bursts of laughter:
COLONEL INGERsOLLS SPEECH.
LADIES AND GENTLEMEN 81 am just
on my way home from the gallant
State of Maine, and there has follow
ed me telegraphic dispatch which
will read to you. If it was not good,
you may swear would not read it:
every Congressional district,
every county in Maine, republican by
large majority" Cheers and cries
of "That is reform!"l "Thc victory
is overwhelming, and the majority
will. | think, exceed 10000"
That dispatch is signed by that
knight Grant of political chivalry,
James G.. Blaine.
My friends, two political parties
are asking the votes of the people, one
wishes to retain the power that it has
held for sixteen years, the other
wishes Office. The democratic party,
with the hungry, starving eyes of n
wolf, has been looking in at the Ma
tional Capitol and scratching at the
doors Of the White House for sixteen
years. Occasionally ii has retired to
some cOngenial cmincnce and lugu-
briOusly hOwled about the constitll-
ton. The republican party comes to
you with its record open, and asks
every man, woman and child in this
broad country to read its every word !;
and | say to you there is not line, u
paragraph or Il page in that record
that il not only an honor to the re-
publican party, but to the human
race. On every page of that record
is recorded some great and glorious
action, done either for tho liberty OF
man or the preservation of our COM
mon country. We ask everybody to
read its every word. The democrat
ic party comes before you with its
record closed, record of blot and
blur, and stain and treason, and SLAM
der and malignity, and asks you not
TO read a solitary word of what il has
done, bnt be kind enough to take its
Infamous promise for THAT ii will do.
Allow me to say here that character
good characteristics upon record,
and not upon a prospectus. A man
has good or a bad character by what
he has really done, by what he has
really accomplished, and not by what
he promises to do. Ii promises
would make q good reputation, Sam
uel j. Tilden and the democratic
party would have one in twenty -four
hours. 1 propose to tell you this
evening, my friends, little of the
history Of the republican party, a lit
tie of the history of the democratic
party, and first the republican party.
The United States of America is a
free country; it is the only free coun-
try upon the earth; it is the only re-
public that was ever established
among men. We have read, we have
heard, OF the republic of Greece, of
Egypt, of Venice; we have heard of
the free cities of Europe. There
never was. q republic in Venice, there
never was a. republic in Rome, there
never was a republic in Athens, there
never was free city in Europe, there !
neyer was q government not cursed |
with caste, there never was govern
ment not cursed with slavery, there
never was government not cursed
with almost every infamy until the
republican party OF the United States
made this free nation. 1 want no
grander, no higher, title or nobility
han this, that belong to the repub-
ican party and did little toward
making the republican party fact.
In order for you to ascertain what the
republican party did for us--for us-
mean to refresh ourselves, for VEAL
know it, but it is we'll enough to say
t now and then in order to refresh
ourselves. In order to understand
What this great party has accomplish