Ashtabula weekly telegraph. (Ashtabula, Ohio) 1880-1886, 1880-07-16
Platform Of the Democrats.


The declaration of principles adopted
by the Democratic Convention at Gin
cinnati presents but single issue at
variance with the Republican party
viz. State UerStts National sovereignty.
In otherrespects the platform is mainly a
condensation of the principles, pur-
poses and accomplishments of the Re-
publican party during the past twenty
years. Aside from the heresy of State
sovereignty, to which the Democrats
cling in spite of its historic renuncia-
tion by the American people, the dis
tinguishing difference between the
Democratic and Republican platforms is,
that the former merely adopts what the
latter has consistently enunciated time
and again, or promises what the Re-
blicans have actually doue in the face
of previous Democratic opposition.
1t is rather late in the day for the
Democracy to assume a virtue by de-
claring for "honest money, consisting
of gold, and silver, and paper con-
vertable into coin on demand" This
is precisely the kind of money with
which the Republican party has provid-
ed the country, but it received no aid
nor encouragement from the Democrats
as a party during all the embarrass-
ments through which it struggled to
attain the existing system. On the con-
trary, the Democratic party was chiefly
engaged during eight or ten years in
devising objections and projecting OBJ
stacles to the Republican efforts at re-
sumption. There has been no phase of
the ''rag-baby" lunacy which has not at
one time or anotherreceiyed Democratic
sanction and support. Hence the
Democratic party cannot reasonably
expect to share in the public gratitude
for the happy and prosperous solution
of the currency-resumption problem by
its conversion at the eleventh hour.
So of the other Republican principles
which the Democrats have at last
thought wise and prudent to incorpor-
ate in their platform-such as the en-
| Civil-Service reform, a tariff for
revenue, the separation of Church and
State, the condemnation of the Com
mune agitators, etc. To these and
kindred doctrines the Republican party
has demonstrated its loyal attachment,
and it has earned by actual service in
applying them to government degree
of public confidence which the Demo-
cratic party can scarcely hope to obtain
by q pro tormG declaration in opposi-
tion to its previous record. A the
Republican features of the Democratic
platform will, therefore, fail, to assist
| the Democrats in their present effort to
! secure the "spOils," for these features
are certainly not original, and there is
good reason to suspect that the Demo-
| Gratis are not sincere in adopting them.
But the obstinate devotion of the
Democratic party to the doctrine of
State-supremacy has been made suffi-
ciently conspicuous in their Cincinnati
platform to constitute a clear issue be-
tween the contending parties. The
Democrats pledge themselves anew
to the Constitutional doctrines
and traditions of the Demo-
cratic party These doctrines and
traditions are simply different phases of
the pernicious theory that the State
! House cliques must be permitted to rule
supremely number of subdivisions of
| the Union called States without any con-
| straint from the National Government.
| When some of these subdivisions main
! tllltu Allt lilAllbulloll5 VI Hulldu SldNb-
ry, the doctrine of State-sovereignty
was invoked to protect that institution,
extend and perpetuate it. When the
Democrats found that human progress
condemned their pet institution, and
that the day was not far distant when
the National Government could no
longer be prostituted TO the slave
power, State-sOvereignty was the eX-
cuse for the effort to break down the
National Government and dissolve the
! Union. And, now that the Democrats
! look forward to repossession of the
National Government, State-sovereignay
is again put forward as the ruling pow
er OF the party. The doctrine has been
repudiated by the American people at
the polls, whipped out upon the field of
battle, and eXpunged from the later
laws of the Republic; but the Demo-
cratic party will not abandon it.
Opposition to Capitalization and to
that dangerous spirit of encroachment
which tends to consolidate in one form
of government" is merely another ex-
preston of State-supremaGy over Ma
tionality. "Home rule" at the present
time, can mean nothing but the reas-
sertion of the theory that the State
House cliques are independent oligar-
chies, not accountable to the supreme
law of the lard. The condemnation
of the National Election laws grows out
of Democratic resentment at the exer-
else of National power even for the
protection Of National elections. The
spirit of notification apparently ami
mates the Democratic party to-day as
much as it did in the time of Calhoun
or during the secession period, and OPP
pOrtunity alone is needed for the often
sive and perhaps dangerous manifesto
tiOn of that spirit. This is the only
distinctive feature of the Cincinnati
platform, and the Democrats have but
poorly watched the drift of public SEN
timent if they imagine that they can
rise into power upon so lame and obso-
lete an issue, Chicago Tribune.
Bag- The "solid South wanted Han
cock nominated; hence his nomination.
Now the question is, Why did the
Southern politicians prefer Hancock
They must have had a reason that was
satisfactory TO themselves, tito nobody
] else.