American citizen. [volume] (Canton, Miss.) 1864-1890, 1880-06-26
The Republican Platform.

The Republican Platform.
The Republican party at this moment
has no great principle to enunciate,
and, therefore, the Chicago platform
announces none. unless a great princi-
pie be contained in this portion of the
platform: 1--WE submit to the practical,
sensible people of the United States to
say whether it would not be dangerous
to the dearest interests of our country
at this time to surrender the admins
tration of the National Government to
party which seeks to overthrow the
existing policy under which we are SO
prosperous, and thus bring distrust and
confusion where there is now order,
confidence and hopes" The translation
of this: We beg the people not to
take the offices away from us. Indeed,
one delegate was frank enough to ask
in open Conventions: "What are We
here for but for the officesP'' There is
nothing else to hold the party together.
and the wrangle over these at Chicago
has already made it impossible for the
party to retain them after the fourth
day of next March, save by Democratic
amiabilitv.
| The platform points to the history of
the party; but that defeated them at
the polls in 1876. and during the can
vass the country will be reminded of
some things in the record of the party
which the Chicago platform omitted.
To be sure, the Republican party
points with pride' to the increase in
the number of miles of railroad and to
the increase of population, and to other
evidences of growth-which the Repub
ican party could not well have prevent
ed and did not altogether cause--since
it came into power; but upon this dec
laration it cannot win the election.
The second plank defines the spirit
and scope of the Constitution of the
United States. The Republican party
cares so little for the Constitution of the
United States that we are surprised that
it took the pains to define it. The def
milton is mixed the history of the ORR
gin of the Constitution, of its creation
and creators, is inaccurately stated, and
the declaration of Federal and State
rights finally takes the shape of state
ment of the jurisdiction of the Supreme
Court. But the country cares not so
much what the Republican party says
about the rights of the Federal Govern
ment and the rights of the State as what
it docs about them.
The third plank, after saying that the
''work of popular education is one left to
this work ''must be guided, not by the
genius of any one State, but by the av-
erage genius of all" If this means
anything, it means that the popular ed
ucation in which the Republican party
is engaged is educating the people to
disobey the Constitution. The next
resolution pays more respect to the
Constitution ; for, while it admits that
the Constitution wisely fOrbids Con-
gress to make any law respecting an es-
tablishment of religion" it recommends
an amendment of the Constitution to
remedy the defect.
The fifth demands protective tariff;
the abolition of polygamy; the improve
ment OF water courses and harDOrs; and
'that the obligations of the Republic to
the men who preserved its integrity in
the day of battle are undiminished by
the lapse of fifteen years since their
final victory; their perpetual honor is.
and shall forever be, the grateful privi-
lege and sacred duty of the American
people" The last portion of this reso-
luton will attract notice. The Repub- |
icans voted against the Arrears of PEN |
sions Bill little more than a year ago. |
John Sherman lobbied against it. The |
President came near vetoing it, and
Republicans, headed by Sherman, tried
to hinder the execution of the law. |
This is what they did, no matter what
they say at Chicago. These "obliga-
tions of the Republic were not then
recognized by Republicans. The most
illustrious of the ''men who preserved
the integrity of the Republic in the day
of battle" had been placed in nomination
for the Presidency before the Chicago
Convention. From the venomous Re-
in,
Chicago, from the malignant attack
made upon him, we infer that this res
olution declaring those obligations
by the lapse of fifteen
years. was injected somehow by mis-
take. AS upon the other questions, the
party does one thing and
says another upon the Chinese ques-
ton. Having voted against and vetoed
a mild bill limiting Chinese importation,
it asks Congress to do the thing it for
babe. And the next resolution praises
the Presidents vetOes, of which this
Chinese veto was one!
The eighth resolution plainly indi-
Gates that the Chicago Convention
doesn't like the Democratic party. We
think this is a fair inference from the
text of this plank.
The platform closes with joke-that
OAsL bCi fICO Ioioi III juno. ~ uOhidhuo
the cooperation of the Legislative with
the Executive Department of the Gov
to enforce that Hayes Civil
Service order! God save the mark!
The Democratic Congress was for
months demanding the . co-operation''
Of the President and of the Republic i
cans i'll Congress to the end of enforcing /
that order, and in vain. The Republi- ,
cans steadily voted against this 500 i
operation" the attempt to make that ,
Civil Service order effective, and day {
after day filibustered against 1t; and if
t had been possible, in spite of Repub-
lean iilibustering, to pass the proposed I
dill, though, in the very language of i
he Civil Service order, it is likely that .
he President would have vetoed it. !
And this is another of the hypocritical {
of the platform, uttered ]
With the most brazen effrontery.- {
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