The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1880-10-07
The Republican Party's Title to con-
tinued Confidence.

From speech by Hon. j. d. Cox at Hamilton,
Ohio, August q.
The fall elections will hand over
the administration and legislation of
the Nation to the Democratic party,
or will continue it in the hands of
Republicans. Let us try to under
stand just what this means, and what
would come Of the one result or of
1.-THE other.
The Republican party is in power
in the Federal Administration, the
Democratic in the Federal Legisla-
ture. A Republican President has
been an obstacle in the way of carry
ing out the Democratic schemes of
Legislation and of repeal, in some
things at least, and the general pol
icy of the Government, under the
laws, is that which has been fixed
by the Republican party in twenty
years of rule. What has that policy
been? 1t won't take long to state it.
First = The suppression Of the
great rebellion. Second The es-
Establishment of theH constitutional
doctrine that the Nation is indie
structible and that no State has the
right to secede when dissatisfied
with the National laws. Third -
The abolition of slavery. Fourth -
The giving the right to vote to the
freedmen and their protection in
their civil rights. Fifth The re-
cognition of the sacredness of the
National debt. Sixth total and
fcal refusal to recognize Southern
war claims of whatever form. Sew
enth The resumption of specie
payments.
/ believe we may say that in all
these things the policy of the Re-
publican party has been triumphant,
and that what has been done cannot
be undonc. A great historical peri
cd in the progress of the Nation and
of man has been brought nearly if
not quite to its close, and the results
are beyond the reach of counter rev.
olution. To quite finish the last
measure which l have named, the
resumption of specie payments, we
have yet to drop the legal tender
quality of our Treasury notes; but
that is only question of little
time, for it is logically included i'll
the steps already taken in our Ma
tional finance. The expiring strug-
giles of the would be Greenback
party demonstrate by their feeble
ness that the practical sense of the
people has divided the question and
is SO well pleased with the existing
prosperity which is based on solid
values, that no efforts to disturb it
by unsettling the currency will be
tolerated.
The leaders Of the Democracy
seem to make haste to meet us here,
and say they admit that these things
are settled, and that it is because
they are settled that the work Of the
Republican party is done and it
should yield power and place to it's
opponent. Not quite so fast, if you
please! The doing great work
well is commonly thought reason
for trusting political organization
with continuing lease of power,
not for turning it out. The sympa-
thy with the progress of the age and
of humanity which could carry a
great organization through so terri
BILE struggle as that of the final
acts of the anti-slavery movement,
even at the terrible cost of life and
treasure, argues that the body of
men who did it are capable OF under
standing their era. We may at
least look to find among them the
intelligence and the spirit to do
what else the times and the country
may need. On the other hand, the
lack of sympathy with human pro-
gress, and the blindness to the judg-
ment of all christendom which could
make it possible that another great
organization, in free and enlighten-
ed States, should attempt to bolster
and maintain human slavery at the
cost of rebellion, of war, of gigantic
and long enduring public debt, re-
fusing to recognize the finger of
God or fate, predicting success for
the wrong when it was in the act of
collapsing, and looking on with the
gloomy faces of mourners when the
right at last was victorious, what
ever else it may argue, does not ar
que the capacity to comprehend
their era or to guide its policy.