Centre Democrat. [volume] (Bellefonte, Pa.) 1848-1989, 1879-09-25
THE AMERICAN DEMOS.

lowing extract from the letter of con-
graduation addressed by Judge Black
to the Lancaster Mteiiigencer:
"The American Demos, though not
without his faults, is nevertheless, IA
sensible parsonage, of good judgment,
open TO conviction, and lover of fair
play. lie is not as jealous of his politi-
cal agents as he ought to be, nor as Wig
liant in guarding his inherited rights
but he respects the memory of his an
cestors and has due regard for the in.
teTests of his children. His blood and
breeding will never permit him to be n
slave in the household of which he was
born to be master. lie is slow to anger
even against his worst oppressors, and
the most atrocious fraud does not ruiile
his temper; but in the fullness of time,
quietly and without vindict veness he
rights his wrongs. You need not be
afraid that your appeals to his reason.
his conscience and his pride OF race will
be made in vain.
eff you are doubtful of this, think
what the people of the Union have
lately achieved. Ten years ago the
friends of liberty, regulated by law, had
only seven Senators in Congress, and in
the the lower house they were outnum.
bered two to one. They had elected a
president sworn to preserve. protect and
defend the Constitution, for a compen.
sation of twenty five thousand dollars
per annum, but the enemies OF the
Constitution secured him to their side
by giving him, in the form of presents,
more than his legal salary would amount
to in four years. When the private
gifts ceased, Congress presented him
with an equal amount out OF the public
treasury, and so his administration be.
came an anti.constitutional job from
beginning to end. The army and navy,
and all the executive departments, the
whole organized physical force, all the
offices and all the money OF the nation,
were in hostile hands. Every atom OF
this mighty power was thrown against
liberty and justice. The Southern
States were wholly deprived of their
autonomy, their governments crushed
out, and their people placed under the
absolute dominion OF notorious thieves
while IN the commonwealths of the
North, as well as in Congress, legis n.
ton was controlled by great rings or.
ganized to enrich themselves by rob.
bing labor of the bread it earned. our
usurping rulers. entrenched in power
which they thought irresistible asserted
that the Constitution had been shot to
death in the war, that the States conse.
quently had no rights, and the people
no liberties which Federal authority
was bound to respect. They claimed
the power to suppress newspapers for
publishing the truth, to knock down
judges on the bench for administering
the law, to kidnap and imprison free
citizens for expressing their honest
opinions. Pretending to leave us the
privilege of the ballot they used sue.
cessfully every form of force and fraud
TO intimidate voters, to stifle the ex.
pressions Of the popular will, and TO
ialsify election returns. Superadded to
these indigniiies and outrages was the
pressure OF public debt so heavy and
public expenses so scandalously extrav.
agant that taxes absorbed all the profits
of industry, whereby the rich became
richer and the poor poorer wealth ac-
cumulated and men decayed. Does
history tell us of any nation more de-
plorably situatedP The outlook of Prom
etheus chained to the rock, with vul.
lures gorging themselves upon all the
lobes of his liver, seemed scarcely so
hopeless. Some of our best patriots de-
SPARED of the Republic and greatly
feared that the institutions established
by the fathers Of the country were ire.
coverably lost by the degeneracy of
their sons.
'In these most unfortunate circum.
stances how did the great body of the
people behave? The mighty and pnis.
SAINT Dcmog-he of the "invincible
locks"-whAt did he doi lie took UP
the huge burden of his debt and walk.
ed away like Samson with the gates of
GAIA upon his shoulders. lie soiled his
conscience with no thought of repudia-
ton, but worked on with every limb
stretched and every muscle swelled. un.
I'll he paid the half of all he was bound
for and made his securities for the 9th
er half as good as gold. In the mean.
time he looked after the corrupt combi.
nations that were squandering the pro-
ceeds of his labor, and determined to
have government that would pay
some attention to his wishes, his inter
ests, and his rights. In spite Of fraud.
falsehood and brute force, the numbers
Of the anticonstitutional faction in the
Legislature decreased until they became
minority in both branches. At the
last presidential election their candidate
was defeated by an overwhelming ma.
.iority and could only be counted in 10y
most impudent fraud Was not this
much to be accomplished in so short a
time and under so many disadvantagesf
In similar circumstances the Roman
Popuius would have been las in fact IL
was) utterly debauched and the spirit
of the Athenian Demos would have been
broken or excited to rash and Tuinous
insurrection by half of what we endured.
1t is something to be proud of, that We
alone of all Democratic peoples restored
our institutions after they were not
only wrecked but rotten.
"These peaceful victories, more re.
nowned than those of war, have not