The Portland daily press., 1876-08-15

more than league of sovereign States
This doctrine may be called an abstraction, but
it sin reality the very seat and origin of 6
trouble which led to one bloody war and may
lead to another; for the first article in the Dem
ocrat:c creed is that man is primarily citi
zen of his state and only secondarily the citi
zen of the county. Every Southern membe,
of Congress will tell you that his allegiance is
first to his state, and only second to his coun
try, and not Democratic representative from
nor Democratic journal in the North will dis
pute this. Randolph Tucker of Virginia, mad,
practical application of the doctrine in his fa
nous post office opinion, and that opinion he
holds to, as he has acknowledged on the foo,
OF Congress, today. As an illustration. Mr.
Blaine cited the discussion between Tucker ap6
Lamar on the centennial appropriation, each Of
whom solemnly quoted from Calhoun in sup
| port of his position. AS illustration of the
| good old view which the South Carolina multi
fiers rejected, the speaker mentioned that in
| perusiDg the inaugural messages for the first
twenty years of the national existence he found
the country mentioned as a nation 115 times.
Indeed, it was not until the time of Franklin
| Pierce and James Buchanan that the country
| was spoken of by its chief executive as a con.
| federacy, and Mr.. Tilden, echoing these last
| unworthy executives, found the country only a
| confederacy in 1860. He has revived the old
| issue. We are again called upon to decide be-
| John G. Calhoun, between the doctrines of
Rutherford B. Hayes and Samuel j. Tilden.
Going on to review the course of the Demo-
| cratic party, Mr. Blaine pointed to the organi-
cation of the House committees, and showed
| that the South, holding but one-third of the
numerical power, monopolized these commit
tees, taking twenty-one of the thirty-one, two
thirds of the number. If the House, under
the strongest possible inducements to behave
itself, will do thus, what can we expect when
the whole government is under the contro! of
the Democrats? If this is done in the green
leaf what will be done in the dry?
Proceeding to consideration of the resump-
ton act, the action of the New York Governor
in respect to that statute was scathingly review
ed When the act was passed Mr.. Tilden was
delighted and engineered through the New
York legislature a resolve endorsing and re-af-
firming it, But he had not the strength of will
to oppose the dominant sentimental the DEM
ocratic party, and went over with all his hard
money friends, to the inflationists. No nation
ever yet got back to specie payments without
fixing date. Yet the Democracy protest
against date, and against any particular time
for resumption. The st. Louis convention has
called for an indefinite postponement of re-
sumption, and that is death to resumption.
Mr.. Blaine then proceeded to notice the in
vestigations instituted by the House, and par
ticularly that of the Navy Department or
against Secretary Robson. He said there was
not guarantee of personal right in the con-
stitution which the House did not violate. The
accused was not allowed to confront his accus-
ers. Five hundred witnesses were examined.
The greater portion of these witnesses were
broken down hacks, the disreputable of both
sexes Many came from the Pacific coast so as
to have their fare paid to the Centennial. Yet
no notice was served on Robson. The com.
mittee even undertook to inquire into his Cir
cumstances as Secretary of the Navy. Thew
went to the bank and examined his private &C
counts Ther seized 100000 or 5000 lbs of old
kilograms which telegraph company had sold
to the junk dealers, and their clerks were sort
ing out these private kilograms to see if they
They did find one in cipher. They demanded
the key. They found it to be a despatch from
Mrs. Robson saying that the baby was better.
These kilograms, said Mr.. Blaine, were as sa-
cred as private letters, yet the entire 100000 are
in the hands of this committee A distinguish
ed Englishman said it was an outrage which
would overthrow British ministry in twenty
four hours. Some years since the agents of a
British ministry opened the letters Of a foreign
agitator-a revolutionist-in that country 1t
was discovered and complained Of, and the
minister who caused it to be done died under a
cloud.
Mr.. Blaine said he had served on many COM
mjttees in Congress, but while his party was in
the majority, he had never known secret to
be kept from the minority. In the present
House the majority of committees kept the mi
nority constantly in the dark respecting their
movements. The minority was never consult
ed about a single important move
The rules of the House have grown up as the
result of the experience of century. There has
been one of long standing forbiddi0g the intro
duction of legislation into appropriation bills.
This was to prevent the coercion of members TO
vote for legislation they opposed in order to
save an appropriatlonsbill. The present house,
however, introduced a rule that legislation in
in the nature of retrenchment might be intro
duced in appropriation bills. Gen. Banks and
Mr.. Blaine voted against it in committee, aud
Speaker Kerr rather doubted its expediency,
but reported it. How did it work? The sun
dry civil service appropriation bill contains all
of the appropriations Of Congress in the nature
OF charities. 1t contains all the appropriations
for lighthouses, for life saving SERVICE for asy-
lurhs and the like. In this bill the commit. zee
inserted clause repeating the act for supervis-
ors Of elections. The bill was reported in Jun
and passed in the House on the ground that 1t
was in the nature If retrenchment. But the
Senate would not agree to it,
Why did the Democrats desire to repeal that
law? Mr.. Blaine answered by reading Tiden's
circular OF 1868, requesting party men in the
state to send to Tweed estimates of the vote,
so as TO enable that Democratic saint to count
enough fraudulent votes to carry the state OF
New York for Seymour and Hoffman. Mr..
Tilden has denied the authorship, but the House
of Representatives which has done his bidding
since the st. Louis convention, stuck for the
repeal of law which had made such frauds
impossible in national elections. Do Mr.. Til
den's friends propose to re-enact the frauds
which every intelligent Democrat now admits
were perpetrated in 1868?
Mr.. Blaine closed by saying that he had spok-
en- longer than he intended, longer than his
health would warrant. He hoped to speak
many times during the campaign, which he
felt to be most importa t. He should again
appear before his Portland freuds, whose
hearty welcome he most gratefully appreciate
ed.
THE TORCHLIGHT PARADH,
AT the close of the meeting the several Or
CARNATIONS marched to Myrtle street and
formed, with the right restlngi on Congress
street. They then proceeded to escort Hon.
Henry o. Pratt to the boat. Mr.. Blaine was
obliged to give up his intended visit to Rock
land owing to the death of his nephew at Au
gusta, and will return to Augusta to-day. The
procession moved in the following order:
Chambers Band.
Lieutenant Colonel IL. III. Rich.
Staf-Major. W. G. q. Carney; Adjutant, H. r.
Sargent; Quartermaster, w. Ii. Judkns; Ser
geant Major, G. H. Buxton.
Pioneers-Captaih G. w. Bean.
Hayes Battery-Captain j. III. b. Morrill,.
Continental Band.
Continental Drum Corps.
Co. A, Continentals-Captain R. T. Mcclellan Lieu
tenants H. @. Eaton, 5. Il. Green.
Co. b, Captain W. Senter, Jr., Lieutenants A. Mar
wick, F. A. Waldron.
Co. c, Washington Light Guard-Captain John
Co. d, Washington Light Guard-Lieutenant j. S,
Sturgs.
Co. E, Continentas Captain W. H. Seaverns, Lieu
tenants w. H. Rowe and E. A. Waldron.
Co. +, acknowledgement L. S. Sanborn.
There were about 300 men in line and they
made fine appearance as they marched over
the route of the procession. AS the procession
passed nm Congress street a fine aisnlav of fire.