Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1880-07-17
WHOLE NO. 1920.

] and patriotism, and so long demon
strated their infidelity to many o
!, the most important principles of oul
political system, are again in ths
field for a prolongation of theii
power Certainly the democratic
party presents a strong contrast e
all this, and If the people cf tho
country really wish to put thei,
7. ssuvt,i- ::ssss.sset anon "A higher level,
they have an excelIeit oppOrtuhitS
in the person of the democratic can
didate and in the persons of those
whom he can call around him in
I the great work OF reform, and In the
restoration of the federal powers to
their appropriate spheres. For these
important objects the democratic
candidate is well fitted. Y0u know
that / never participate in the max
ing of nominations, and never put
myself in positions which IMPLY an
obligation to support any and every
! man who is nominated. My hum
BILE support Of Gen. Hancock loud
and long cheers ], therefore, does not
| depend upon the force of any such
obligation. / justifyit upon entire
ly different grounds. Gen. Ham
cock is a soldier; but he is one OF
the few military men who made
distinguished regulations in our
late civil war, the brightest and
best parts of whose regulations have
been made by their reverence for
the principles of civil liberty. The
real objection to putting military
men at the head of our government
does not consist in the mere fact
that the Individual has never held
civil Office. 1t consists in the want
when there is such a want-of the
power to appreciate the supreme
Importance, in a government like
ours, of constitutional limitations
and the fundamental truths OF pub
lie freedom. In my youth / cast
my first vote with the party which
was opposed to Gen. Jacksoni and
/ had to unlearn many things in re-
gard to his public character before |
could admit his great qualities as a
civil ruler. Later III my life / was
one of those wings who were dread
fully exercised by the nomination
and election of Gen. Zachary Tay-
lor. He held the Office of president
for a very short time; but / believe
that all men are agreed that il he
had lived he had so much sterling
good sense and sound judgment that
he would have administered the
government well. I did not vote
for Gen. Scott when he was made the
Whig candidate because / bekeVed
that the men who had the most
of his political confidence were not
the men of whom l wished to
see an administrator composed.
OF Gen. Grant / will only say that
many of the errors of his admins
tration did not spring solely from
the fact he was military man, but
they are to be attributed to his want
of all power to understand and APP
preciate such constitution and sys-
tenn Of government as ours, and
therefore ne did things which We're
entirely inconsistent with the first |
principles of such a government. |
But now | desire to say of General |
Hancock, (cheers) that neither
Jackson, nor Taylor, nor Grant, be- |
fore his election to the Presidency. |
had ever been placed in position |
to demonstrate his fitness to be n |
civil ruler at all comparable to that |
in which Hancock was placed du !
ring the early period of 'recOnstruc-
tion.' The nation had to take all |
three Of those distinguished men
on trust. Jackson fully justified |
the trust that was repOsed in him.
Taylor might have justified ii. /
Grant did not. But Hancock has !
been tried as neither Of those men |
were tried, before their elevation to
the presidency, and he has shown |
that there are great elements of the /
civil character i'll his composition /
and his fame. / read at the time,
and have again read with stropg ad-
miration, all those remarkable pa
pers in which he exhibited his love /
Of civil liberty in a position in |
which he had an act of congress be-
hind him tiHt would have justified
him in making himself military
despot. / say that the instinct with
which he seized the principle that
the laws and customs and civil
courts of the States subjected to his
rule, 50 far as they were
not in conflict with the federal con- /
stitution, were still in full prcserva-
ton, was as true, sound, exact and
wise as it could have been if he had
held civil Office all his life. Cap
plause.) 1t was more for you will
how strong was the pres
sure that was exerted to have the
of the rebellion treated
Is Il military conquest OF subject
provinces; and no one can place too
high an estimate upon the public
service rendered by Gen. Hancock
to his country when he put himself
boldly and squarely in opposition TO
this tendency. He might have con-
strued the reconstruction acts as a
of every principle that
free state. lie con-
5trued them as vesting in him a dis
cretion not to do what he believed
to be wrong in policy and in princl-
pie and dangerous to the future well
fare of tile Union. For this he de
serves the gratitude OF the country,
and if that gratitude shall carry
him to the highest civil Office in the
land, he has proved his capacity for
that great trust, and his ability To
RELY upon those who can afford him
the best aid in the discharge Of its
duties. prolonged applause and