Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1879-04-25
THE ARMY APPROPRIATION BILL.
Speeches Of Mcssrs. Blaine and
Logan.
MIR. BLAINE's SPEECH.

section OF the Revised Statutes proposed to
be repealed, namely, Or to keep the peace at
the polls,n was an unusual and extraordinary
method. The ordinary way to repeal a single
sentence is 20 strike out the particular words
objected to, but the mode chosen In this bill
is to repeal and re-enact the whole section,
except the last eight words. He was per-
suaded that this unusual course was not ac
cideutally, but designedly. II he might so
speak, 1t came OF ofcunnlng. The intent beingto
create the impression that the Republicans In
the administration ofthe General Government
had dusedtroOpsri right and LETT in every direction
aud thai as soon as the Democrats get into
power they proceeded to enact this prohibit
tory sixth section, and Democratic stump
speaker would, doubtless, make great political
capital out OF this idea; whereas, every word
OF II, from first to last, was the enactment OF
the Republican party. Whether Intentionally
or not, the issue thus presented was dis
honest one. The law was passed by Repub-
ltcan Congress. There were forty-siX SEN
ators sitting in the Senate chamber at that
time, OF whom only ten, or at most eleven,
were Democrats, and the House of Represent
atives was overwhelmingly Republican. We
were in the midst Of war. The Republican
Administration had 1,0000OO--or possibly
200, OO,WO-bayonets at it's command, and under
the circumstances, with the amplest power to
interfere with elections, had they so chosen
with soldiers in every hamlet aud county in
the United States, the Republican party
themselves placed that on the statute book
and Abraham Lincoln signed it. he asked
attention to the fact that this was the first
instance in the legislation of the United
States in which any restrictive clause what
ever was put upon the statute books in re-
gard to the use of troops at the polls, and
that 1t was passed by the Republican party
and signed by Abraham Lincoln when he
had more troops under his control than
Napoleon Bonaparte ever had. But the
point is, said Mr.. Blaine, to strike out the
few words authorizing the use Of troops to
keep the peace at the polls, and the country
is alarmed, or he would rather say amused, at
the effort made to create an impression that
the Republican party relied for its popular
strength upon the use of bayonets. This
Democratic Congress has attempted, by rails
ing an issue false in every detail, to create an
impression, not only in America, but in
Europe, and throughout the civilized world,
that elections in this country are attempted
to be controlled by the bayonet. He denounced
the issue as false, and though not at liberty
to say that any gentleman making II knew of
its falsity, and though he hoped they did
not, he proposed to prove its utter lack of
foundation. He held in his hand an abstract
of all the troops Of the United States east of
Omaha, including the States bordering the
Mississippi River on the west, embracing a
territory populated by Al, 100000 at least, out
OF A., 100000 supposed TO be in this country
to-day. By this statement he showed that in
all that great territory only 2,797 soldiers are
stationed Within this domain forty-flve
fortitcations are manned and eleven arsenals
protected. To every million people there
are about sixty soldiers. The honor
able Senator from Delaware was alarmed about
the overriding of the popular ballot by troops
of the United States; but there is not a single
Federal soldier In Delaware. The honorable
Senator from West Virginia (Hereford) had
spoken OF his State being trOddsn by the iron
heel of military despotism; but there is not a
solitary man in United States uniform on the
soil of West Virginia. In Maryland 1872 artil-
lery-men at Fort McHenry guard the entrance
to Baltimore's beautiful harbor. In Virginia
there is school of practice at Fortress Mon
roe; outside OF that school there is not Fed
eral soldier in the State. There are but thirty
soldiers in North Carolina, guarding a fort at
olna there are 100 artillerymen to guard the
| entrance to Charleston harbor. There are
20 soldiers in Georgia, and 1872 in Florida.
There is not one In Tennessee, Kentucky or
Missouri. There are 81 in Arkansas 80 in AL
ALBANIA, and 239 in Louisiana The great State
of Mississippi has not one on its soil, nor has
Texas, except those on the frontier guarding
the Rio Grande. In the entire South, said
Mr.. Blaine, there are LBS soldiers to in.
timidate, overrun, oppress and destroy the
liberties of 100000 OF people in 1908
counties, or not quite one soldier to
each cOunty-one soldier to about 200 square
miles of territory. There was an old saying,
he continued, that there were soothsayers in
Rome who could not look each other in the
face without smiling, and no two Democratic
Senators on the floor can go into the cloak
room and look each other in the face without
smiling, or rather blushing, over this talk,
the whole thing was such miserable pre-
| tense, such a miserably manufactured, false
issue. In New England they had $50 soldiers,
| or about l2O to every million people, whereas
| the ratio in the South was not quite seventy.
Yet the people of New England never com
| planned OF the military power. The tendency
| of this talk, as he had said, was to misrepre-
sent us abroad, and the Democratic party
stood indicted, and he hereby charged them,
| with public SANDER of their country in Great
| ing the impression In the civilized world that
we are under military despotism.
| But, continued Mr. Blaine, the real motive
| of the Democrats must he looked for else.
where. 1t is simply to get rid of Federal su
| peTvision at Federal elections; to get rid OF
the civil power OF the United States in the
| election OF Representatives to Congress, and
therefore this bill connects itself directly with
| the bill which was before Congress at the last
session, known as the Legislative, Executive
and Judicial Appropriation bill. He was aware
| that parliamentary rules forbade him to dis
cuss bill pending before the House of Repre-
| sentatives, but he also knew that nothing for
bade him to speak of what was not done in the
| House, but in a Democratic caucus, where this
| legislation was perfected.
| Mr.. Blaine discussed the legal questions In
| yolved, and continuing said The design now
is to get rid Of all civil officers Of the United
| States under pretense of keeping troops away
| from the polls, and the amendments which
will be sffered will test the sincerity OF the
| Democratic side on that point, and show Wheth-
| er the Federal lGovernmentwouldb be allowed a
representation at the polls at all, except
| by two men of straw, without any power,
who can merely look on. He would go so far
as to say that II the bill went through in its
| present form the remainder of the law In re-
| gard to marshals and supervisors would ee
| worth nothing, since there would be no power
vested In the Federal Government to enforce
its provisions. We are told, said Mr.. Blaine,
| and ii is rather a novel thing, that IL we dc
not agree to the bills as offered We are not to
have an appropriation. That has been an
nOunced In both branches of Congress, he
! supposed, on the authority OF the Democratic
| caucus; not merely the Army Appropriation
| they did not stop there-but in the Legisla.
tive bill, as 1t came from the caucus. There
| was an appropriation for detraying the eX-
penses of the Supreme Court, Circuit Courts
and District Courts OF the United States, pro-
| vided that certain sections of the Revised
Statutes be repealed. He had always under
| stood that the Government was divided into
| three distinct departments, Legislative, FIX
ecutive aud Judicial, but now the Legislative
branch steps forward and says IL the Execu
tive does not sign the bills it offers it will
starve the Judiciary. This was carrying
the matter further than he had ever known
It to 20 before, and besides starving the
|
appropriate a dollar for the expenses Of
the Capitol building and grounds, for public
printing or for the Congressional Library
The Department of State, of which the cOun
try had reason to be proud for its conduct o
our foreign affairs, was to be disabled, and on
diplomatic relations must cease unless tn,
President signs these bills. The beaeons anC
warning lights on 1900 miles of coast mus
go out; the mints of New Orleans, Denver
San Francisco and Philadelphia must stop
the Pension Bureau must suspend operations
all the executive functions OF the Government
are taken by the throat in highwayman styl
and commanded to stand and deliver in tn
name of the Democratic caucus. A leading
Democrat, an eloquent man, who had couT
age, frankness aud many good qualities, boast
publicly that the Democrats are In power 10
the first time in eighteen years, and that the
do not intend to stop until they have wipe
out every yestige OF Republican war measures
Forewarned is forearmed, and the Democrat
began properly on the measure signed b,