The Highland weekly news. [volume] (Hillsborough [Hillsboro], Highland County, Ohio) 1853-1886, 1880-08-05

! Ol the NlLlOudl duLuOElLlCS 10 GllOi CG
these laws, with all the power and
strength necessary to accomplish
that object
The Democratic party in Congress,
and elsewhere, deny this right, and
seek to repeal these laws. They de-
clare it to be an interference with
the rights Of the States. They say
that if the authorities of the State
fail to protect the ballot box, then It
must go unprotected that if the
State fails to maintain the public
peace, then the public peace shall
not be maintained that if the State
fails to secure political equality, then
the people living therein must be de-
prived Of civil and political equality
that if on the day of Presidential
or Congressional election, voters are
driven from the polls by violence,
the outrage shall go unpunished,
rather than let the General Govern
ment interfere that if at such cleo
tions votes actually cast are taken
from the box and tissue ballots sub
stituted in their stead, the fraud
shall go unpunished that if men
and women are proscribed, .persecut-
ed, or murdered, for opinions sake,
and the laws of the State are silent.
or the officers of State sanction it,
the United States shall not interfere,
and the National Government shall
be pOwerless to punish the wrong or
protect the right @ m
We say that every act preventing
legal voter from freely exercising
the elective franchise is crime :
that every act by which person not
legal voter is permitted to cast a
ballot, is acrime; that every counting
of a fictitious bollot is a crime that
every persecution or oppression Of
men or women for opinions sake, is
a crime that every organization, Sc
cret or public, created for The pur-
pose Of interfering with, or prevents
ing the free expression of the public
viii, is criminal organization, and
that it is the duty Of the National
Government to protect these rights
and punish these crimes.
We go to the Constitution Of the
United States, and find that it was
made not by the States, but by The
peoples of the Uniten States, sin or
der to forma more perfect Union,
establish Justice, insure domestic
tranquility, provide for the common
defense, promote the general vel
fare, and secure the blessings Of lib
ertg to ourselves and our pOsteri-
tyr a. ~
We find that the fathers, who
framed that instrument, by their leg
islation and by their administration
of the Government, recognized the
paramount right and duty of the Ma
tion to protect and maintain the in
diVidiual and political rights of all
the inhabitants, and to preserve the
public peace and order in every part
and portion of the Union.
The great issue, then, in the Pres
idential contest is, shall The ballot
be free 4? Shall the ballOt-box be kept
pure Shall the people, North and
South, be free to act upon their
convictions, and assert their rights
without fear of violence and Outrage7
Shall the public peace and order be
maintained ? and shall the citizens OF
every State receive from the Gov
ernment that protection which the
Constitution and laws are intended
to secure ? These are important
questions, and upon the issue made
we invoke the deliberate Judgment
of the American people.
There are other points of differ
.ence between the parties, deserving
notice, but I have not time to pre-
sent them here to-day. All ques-
tiOns relating to the currency and
the maintenance of the present f
nancial policy all questions regard
ing the tariff and the public reve-
nues; all questions relating to
internal improvements and to the
management and disposition of the
public lands are important and
should receive attention.
There is also the subject of pub
lie education. No man can estimate
the value of free schools to q Ma
ton.
Gov. Hart concluded his speech
as follows
We have entered upon an era of
peace and prosperity. The present
and future happiness and glory. OF
the people is in their own hands.
If they act with wisdom, prudence
and intelligence, all these things are
assured. Now, in this National cam
paigu, let every voter, in the eZer-
else of his rights and the perform
ance of his solemn duty, so use the
power he possesses as to maintain
the Government in its purity and
and strength, and preserve the rights
of the people.
As for me, my duty is plain
1 shall vote for and support General
Garfield, because I have confidence
in his patriotism, ability and purity,
and because I have faith in the prin-
eiples of the Republican party, and
its ability and purpose to enforce
these principles in the administration
of public affairs.