The Kenosha telegraph. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1860-1888, 1880-07-30
4 FIERCE INDICTMENT.
The Democracy Historically and
Legally Considered by Emery
A. StOrrS.
Its DiscreditabIe Record -ar the Past
Twenty Yeas.

Fiyg times from and including 1860 has the
Democratic party of the nation appealed to the
people Of the nation for an approval of its pol
icy inthe past, its position in the then present,
and s0r confidence in its future. Five times
since and including 1860 have the people of the
country turned deaf ear to these ap eals, and
repudiited andrejected its protestations of 10y
atty and patriotism; and that the people of the
county in thus rejecting the appeals of the
Democratic party in the past have made no
mistake is now SO clear that no ordinarily in
tell mt Democrat, who will carefully examine
the situation and honestly speak his sentime is,
can say that the people have not acted wisely.
Since 1860, in 1864, agai in great election in
1866, in 1868, 1872, in 1876, and again in the
elections in 1877, has the Republican party
been endorsed by the people of the country. In
16S these two great political organizations
sgaih come to the people and again solicit the
confidence of that people. Is there, my fellow
citizens, any reason why the policy which we
have endorsed in the past should te to-day re-
yersesl? Has t e Democratic party met with
such change in its practice, in its principles or
in Il membership, as should lead us to-day
to give to it that confidence which for the
years past we have refused to extend to il
Has the Republican party done anything which
will Justify us in withdrawing from it the con-
hdenee which we have SO repeatedly reposed in
1t These are very grave and serious ques-
tons and we must answer them.
The duty of the citizen to attach himself to
one of these two great political organizations is
too manifest to require comment. No man is
nor .onk I'll al,o
small as to be beneath the injurious effects and
consequences of bad government.
have no sympathy for those highly distin-
guished men who declare, as if they we're de-
claring virtue, that they have no interest in
politics. If they are telling the truth when
they make such statements they are unworthy
citizens of greatcountry, whose greatest merit
is that it is self-governed. In making the Sc
lection as to what party we shall attach our
selves we must not expect that every little within
of caprice shall be gratiied, nor must we ex-
pect from parties more than we do from indi-
Viduals absolute perfection.
We must weigh these parties, comparing them
with each other as a whole, and if on the whole
we believe, as / thoroughly believe that the
general interests of this country, its freedom,
its prosperity, and the protection of it's citizen
in the enjoyment of all his civil and political
privileges will be best promoted by the con-
btCCCSb dllQ VI tLlG hGpuUu-
can party, then whatever smaller flaws we may
find in its management or in its methods, as
patriotic citizens, to that party must we attach
ourselves and to it must we give our allegiance.
1t is not singular when we consider its his
tory that the leaders of the Democratic party
are anxious to invent new issues and to with
draw publ attention from their record and
their history, Ever since the war closed they
have been loudly protesting that certain things
no vaoCE and t1RnH ,,l,sr,
of tsir career must be eliminated from politi-
cal discussion. We have been constantly as
sured that the war is ended that the constitu-
honal amendments have been adopted that
measures of reconstruction have been fixed
and settled; that the States have been restored
to their former relations with the Union, and
that those issues, therefore, are dead issles,
and that it is idle to waste time in their discu
sion. To a certain extent this is true. The
actual contests of armed men in the field have
closed the war between freedom and slavery,
between State sovereignty and national unity
which was thus waged is ended. The Tbir-
tenth, Fourteenth and Fifteenth constitutions!
amendments have been adopted certain Iegis-
lation appropriate to the enforcement of these
amendments has been made but that, after
all, has not removed from the field of political
debate the character of these two great parties.
The character of q man who seeks public trust
and confidence or private employment is al
ways in issue. A past larceny or any other
p st piece of scoundrelism, although in one
sense, it ma be dead issue and although the
party guilty of it may have suffered his legal
penalties for it. is an issue whenever he calls
for employment public or private. If in its
past history the Democratic party mas steadily
and continuously been politically dishonest and
dangerous, that fact is an exceedingly essential
one to be known. If it has steadily violated its
engagements and broken its pledges; if it has
never made worthy promise which it has
kept, these facts are exceedingly pertinent
when it comes before the people making new
promises and seeking to enter into new obi
cations In determining just how far we shall
rely upon these promises and accept these
new engagements. l think l am entirely safe
in saying that the Democratic party has never
made an engagement in which the interests of
freedom were involved, which looked to the
protection of the rights of the citizen, that it
has kept. l think am entirely safe in saying
that every revolutionary scheme which has
discredited and disgraced our politics within
the last twenty-five years has been fathered
by the Democratic party. / think no man will
dispute the proposition that it is great uni
yersity i'll which all the political heresies which
have endangered the perpetuity of our free in
situations have been taught for the last quar-
ter OF century, and that the students i'll that
university who have graduated as officers in
tho Democratic ranks have been in the main
men whose policy and whose practice has been
dangerous to the best interests of the country
think am entirely safe in saying-indeed,
know am-that We cannot point to one single
great achievement i'll our history since 1856
from which freedom here and elsewhere has de-
rived the slightest comfort, from which civil
liberty has been advanced. through which the
political equality of the citizen has been estab
hshed OF maintained, that has had the slight
est assistance from the Democratic party.
know | am safe in saying that no great measure
OF that kind can be found in our fundamental
law or upon our statute-books to-day which that
party has not bitterly, steadily and Indignantly
opposed. This is fearful charge TO make
against any political organization, but the most
fearful character of the charge is that it is true
That party has opposed every measure since
1866 which looked to freedom it has favored
every measure which looked to the degradation
and seryility of labor. have seen no evidence
Of change of heart in the members of that
party. Its principles are to-day the same that
they we're in 1860, in the main. 1t has advo-
Gated no policy which, if adopted, would not
have been destructive and at any of the peri
DDS which have named, had the people of this
country approved, by the election of the candi-
dates, the course of the Democratic party, the
result would have been disastrous to the last
degree. Had that party succeeded in 1860
disgraced throughout the boundaries of
the Union. Had that party succeed
cd in 1864, our army would have been
disgraced, and shameful defeat would have
come upon us, and humiiating and disgrace
full termination Of the war, resulting in the
separation of the Union, would have been the
sure and inevitable result. Had Andrew John
sons and the Democratic party's policy been
sustained in 1866 the fruits of victory in the
field would have been shamelessly returned to
the rebels from whom we achieved them. and
defiant rebels those who had sought the de-
struction of the national life restored topower.
The victors would have been the defeated, and
our achievements, with the immense sacrifices
which they involved, would have been basely
surrendered to our adrersaries Had the Dem
Ocratic party succeeded IN 1863 all the recon-
str1ction measures of Congress and the consti-
tutional amendments, which we're a part of that
reconstruction scheme, would have been wiped
from the constitution and from the statute
book, and thus all our victories in the field
have been rendered fruitless. Not only flat
had they succeeded reputation would have
fastened its ineffaceable stain OF dishonor mon
our national name and the reputation of orr
national obligations would have been the slne
and certain result Had they succeeded in
1872, results equally disastrous would have fol-
lowed. Had they succeeded in 1876, with the
whisperer of Gramercy Park as the executive
head of this great nation, to-day we would have
been struggling under deprecated currency,
all the barriers which loyal Congress had
erected for the preservation of purity at the