Ashtabula weekly telegraph. (Ashtabula, Ohio) 1880-1886, 1880-06-11
Address Of Senator Hoar Before the Ma
tiOnal Convention.

tlOnal Convention.
The following were the remarks Of
Hon. George +. HOar ON assuming the
Chair as Temporary Chairman Of the
Republican National Convention:
Gentlemen Of tho Convention. accept my
thankH Tor this dgtlnVuishcd mark of your
confidence. he frnmgfs Of the Constitution
expected that the President w0uld be ch0scn
by ElcctOrs who were 10 assemble In their
respective States, and. ON cnnsultatlon with
ench other, Cu't their ballots Tor % chief Mag
lstrate In case OF failure by the Electors
me House Of Representative. voting by
states, were 20 maze choice from four who
hnd the highest number Of voices in the cob
leHes 70 Tar from direct popular action aid
tho Constitution remove the choice of the Ex-
ccutYe, But the people, by the customs they
hlNe established, have bliiied the eNpeetn-
ilon OF inc trainers Of the Constitution. The
ElociOr to-day is but % scribe. Inc Convcn-
tons Of great political parties designate each
man Tor whom the people vote directly
through their agents, the Presidential Elcos-
tors, % choice between whom they are prac-
ticnlly restricted. The function Ut this Con-
yenuOn, therefore, is 10 name one Of two men
IRON WhOm the people Of the United States
arc 10 select their President. II Il perform It's
duties wisely, fearlcs-ly and freely. Il h 20
name the man whom tho people will make their
Your term Of Office il but brief; but scarce
~ any duty is intrustcd to the most hOnored
citizens of the Republic which IN dignity, In
equals yours. II is twenty years since the Re
publican Convention met In this city, which
utter stormy but friendly contest, put IN
nomination Abraham Lincoln loud applauscl
and Hannibal Hamlin lchccrsl. Lincoln has
gone TO his rest. His companion I'm the un-
dertaking. in fresh and vigorous age Is pres
ent with us to-day lIppluusgl with his counsel
from the stores Of AN experience gathered
from III Of honorable public service. Linz
com mas gone 70 his rest Douglas and Brcck-
lnrldge, MS two competitors for the great Of
lice Of the Presidency. sleep by his side. But
the purties which confronted each other then
confront each other now, unchanged i'm pur-
pose, in temper, aud in character lap
plausc.l
The Democratic party was ruled then us
now by the South. The single purpose Of its
being was 10 give political supremacy 10 the
OIigarchs Of the South, and office without in
huence to their subscrvicnt Northern allies.
lAppluusel
Tic interest was saCriiced or dsregarded. EX-
pending little for public improvements, either
on the coast or on inland river and lake In
l.dO the credit OF the Nation was poor, It's
Treasury was empty, its siX-per-ccnt bonds
below par. our unprotected manufactures
conicnded at fearful odds with the pauper
labor of Europe, and on whose workshops we
depended for large portion Of the necessaries
and comforts Of life. Our little navy was
scattered over the four quarters Of the globe.
Four millions OF our COuntTymcn were in
hopeless bondage, and every new State, when
u took its place in the new great family, but
added new dungeon to their gloomy prison
20 its hold on power, the National flag seemed
about to be folded and laid aside, TO be regard
cd thencetOrth as a miserable symbol Of the
futility and folly of the last great experiment
of self-governmcnt.
The Democratic party confronts us to-day
rs ! said, unchanged in purpose, i'm temper,
and in character. United in nothing else pro-
posing no other measure of policy, IL wages its
warfare upon the safeguards which the Nation
has thrown around the purity of its election.
IL can see nothing else Of evil except that a
poor man should exercise free vote under
the protection of the National authority. In
Louisiana and Mississippi it is the accomplice
Of the White League and the Ku-Klux. In
South Carolina II takes the honest ballot from
the box and stutfs tissue ballot i'm its place.
In New York It issues fraudulent natuTaliza-
tiOn papers-three score thousands in num-
Der. In Maine its ambitious larceny tries to
plfer a whole State Government at once.
[Applausel In Delaware it stands cOmplac-
emily by the whtpping-pOst. Applause
As in war, II found in the Constitution moth
ing which could protect the National life, 50,
in peace, 1t finds nothing there which can pro-
tect the National honor Can you find, in the
history of the Democratic party for sixteen
years, anything that IL has either done OF tried
| TO do except to break down the legal safe
guards which make free elections pOssble2
lApplnusel
Yes, my friends the Republican party has
no such miserable history. II tells YOU of re-
belliOn subdued, of slaves freed, of great pub
lie ways constructed, Of rivers and harbOrs
opened to commerce, of homestead laws for
the settlers, of treaties protecting the rights
Ol our uuluIUllE'u ClllEens hDfOdu, OF puDUC
credit re-estabished, of debt diminished, of
sound currency restOred-lapplausel- Il
4 flag floating everywhere, hOnored and re
spected, over peaceful seas, and welcomed
everywhere in friendly ports. [Applausel
Bnt not for these things alone does the Re
| publican party challenge your respect or de
mand your confidence. National wealth may
exist, manufactures may flourish commerce
may increase in Il Nation whose people aye de-
graded and enslaved. The keynote of every
Republican platform, the principles OF every
Republican union is founded in its respect
| for the dignity of the individual man.
| lChecrs.l Until that becomes the pervading
! principle of the Republic from Canada to the
| Gulf. from the Atlantic TO the Pacific, our
| mission Is not ended lCheers.l The Repub-
lie lives; the Republican party lives but for
| this: That every man within our borders may
| dwell securely in happy home may cast and
have counted his equal vote, and may send his
| child at public charge 10 n free school. [Ap-
! plausel Until these things come to pass, the
mission Of our party Is not accomplished, nor
| Is its conflict with its ancient adversary ended.