The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1880-06-25
TlLDEN'S FAMOUS LETTER.



York delegation held meeting at the Grand
hotel, aud organized by choosing Daniel
Manning chairman and S B Halliday secre-
tary. Mr.. Pcckham read the following let
ter from Samuel J. Tilden
New York June 1S.-7b tie Dcieg1tes from
the State of Nc'0 York 10 the Democratic Nat
iondi ConveatiOn Your first assembling is
an occasion ON which it is proper for me to
state to you my relation to the nomina.
ton for the presidency, which you and your
associates are commissioned to make in be.
half of the Democratic party of the United
States. Having passed my early years in
the atmosphere filled with the traditions of
the war which secured our National Inde
pendence, and of struggles which made our
continental system government for the
people aud by the people, ! learned to idol.
ize the institutions of my country, and was
educated to believe it the duty of every
citizen to put his fair allotment of care and
trouble to public affairs. fulfilled that duty
TO the best OF my ability for forty years as a
private citizen. Although during all my
life, giving at least as much thought aud eff.
fort to public affairs as to all other objects,
have never accepted public office ouly for
a brief period and special purpose, and only
when the occasion seemed to require of me
that sacrifice of private preferences to public
Interests. My life has subsequently been that
OF "a private cliziu. 1t was, presume, the
success of efforts, in which as private citizen
had shared, to overthrow q corrupt cOmbina.
ton then holding dominion iu our metropolis
and to purify the judiciary which had become
its tool that induced democracy OF the state in
1874 to nominate me for governor This
was done in spite of tue protests of a
minority that the part had borne in those
reforms had created antagoui4ms to me fatal
TO me as a candidate. felt constrained to ac-
ceptthe nomination as the most certain way
of putting the power of the gubern torial Of
flee on the side OF reform and of removing
the impression wherever it prevailed, that
the faithful discharge of ones dutyas a citi-
zen is fatal to its usefulness as public ser.
want. The breaking up of the canal ring,
the better management of our public works,
| the large reduction of taxes and other re-
forms accomplished during my admnistra-
ton doubtless occasoEed my nomination for
the Presidency by the Democracy of
the Union in the hope that similar process
would be applied to the federal government
From the responsibilities OF such an under
taking, appalling as it seemed to me,
did not feel the liberty to shrink. In the
canvass which ensued, the democratic
party represented reform in the admnistra.
ton Of the Federal government and res
toration of our complex political system to
the pure ideas of its founders Upon these
issues the people of the United States
by a majority of more than a quarter of a
million chose a majority of the electors to
| cast their votes for the democratic candidate
| for President and vice. President. it is my
| right and privilege here to say that was
nominated and elected to the Presidency alb
| soluely free from any engagement in the
| respect to the exercise Of the powers or the
disposal Of its patronages Through the
! whole period of my relation to the Presiden
| cy did everything in my power to elevate
| and nothing to lower the moral standards in
| the competition of parties. By what nefar-
| iOus means the basis of false count was
| laid in several of the states I need not recte.
These are now matters of history about
| which whatever diversity of opinion may
have existed ia either of the great parties of
the country at the time of their consuma.
nation has since practically disappeared. l
refused to ransom from the returning boards
of the southern states the documentary evil
dence by the suppression of which and by
| the substitution of fraudulent and forged
papers pretext was made for the perpetra.
ton of false count. The constitutional
duty of these two Houses of Congress to
count the electoral vote as cast and to give
effect to the will of the people as expressed
by their sunrages, was never fulfilled. An
electoral commission for the existence of
which have no responsibility, was formed,
and to it the twJ Houses of Congress abdic-
ted to make the count by law enacling that
the count Of the commission should stand as
final, unless overruled by the concurrent ac-
| ton of the two Houses. Its false count was
not overruled, owing to the completely of a
republican senate with the republican ma.
jority OF the commission, controlled by its
republican majority of eight to seven. The
electoral commission counted out the men
elected by the people and counted in the
men not elected by the people. That sub
version of the election created new issue
for the decision of the people of the United
States transcending in importance all ques-
tions Of administration. 1t involved vital
principles Of self government through elec.
tions by the people. The immense growth
Of the means Of corrupt influence over the
ballot-box, which is at the disposal of the
party having possession of the executive ad-
minstration, had already become a present
evil, and a great danger, tending to make
the election irresponsive to public opinion,
hampering the power of the people to
change their rule and enabling the men hol- !
ding the machinery of the government to
continue and perpetuate their power. 1t
was my opinion in 1876 that the oppo-
sition attempting to change the admins
tration needed to include at least two
thirds of the voters at the opening of the |
canvass in order to retain majority at the |
election. If, after such obstacles had been |
overcome and majority of the people had |
voted to change the administration of their |
government, the men in Office could still |
proceed to false count founded upon the |
frauds, perjury and forgeries furnishing |
pretext of documentary evidence on which |
to base that false count, aud il such trans
action were not only successful, but if after
allotments of its benefits were made to its |
contrvers, abettors and apologisls by the
chief beneficiary of the transaction, it was
condoned by the people, practical destruc-
tion Of elections by the people would have