Lexington weekly intelligencer. (Lexington, Mo.) 1871-1887, 1880-07-17
TIE REPUBLICAN, PLATFORM.
from the New York Herald. July

buster which constitute its DIN
portions and there 10 nothing left but
commonplace.
1t begins with Dragging. The re-
publican party, says the first section,
suppressed the rebellion, abolished
slavery, raised the value of the paper
currency from ihirty-eigkt cents to
par, increased the foreign trade, paid
the pensions, paid off Q third of the
debt, revived industry. 1t seems a
pity to stop just there. Why not
have added that the republican party
raised the great crops of the last few
years, caused h droughts and rains
in Europe which made SO great aud
profitable an expectation of our pro-
ducts, created the fine wheat aud
corn weather with which we have
been blessed for years, put q step to
the cattle plague, discovered and de-
velOped the new mines of precious
metals aud dug-out the Erie Canal ?
If the republican party really fur
nished all the soldiers of the War aud
paid all the taxes since the war un-
dodbtedly it did all the other things
we have suggested. The plain truth
of course is that the republican party
has had control of the government
Tor twenty years; on the whole has
mismanaged public affairs very bad
ly, and is not u bit sorry for its mis-
conduct. In putting down the re-
belliOn and in freeing the slaves Mr..
Lincoln took counsel at every step
with leading democrats as we'll az re-
pubiicahs ; he was the president Of
the whole country, and democrats
were constantly among his most in
innate and cherished councillors. As
for paying the taxes, the democrats
have not been exempted from that ;
the pleasing aud republican part was
to collect them and spend them. pay
ing their share aud no more.
The republican chiefs have fallen
into the habit OF parties which have
been in power twenty years. In that
time, and indeed before that time.
parties, in the nature of things, be-
come effete. Like old men they live
in the past; there is no future in
them. Like old men, also, old par
ties conveniently remember only the
pleasant aud creditable part of their
past. Thus the republican platform
in its amusing retrospect says moth
ing of the scandalous misgoverRment
in the southern states Tor which the
party ls alone responsible; nothing
of the years III which they tampered
with the currency aud brought upon
the country by their cowardice the
plgue of greenoackers nothing OF
the mischievous election laws which
they enacted aud mlsused; nothing
of the scandals in which all the re.
publican leaders, with less than u
dozen honorable exceptions, have
been d~isagreesbly involved; moth
ing of the waste of the peoples
money which was thrown with lavish
hands to jobbers of various kinds for
years, until the democrats we're at
last placed in control Of the house by
All Indignant and Impoverished coun-
try:
Where the platform ceases to brag
it begins to buster, the connection
being made by q brief section in
which polygamy, internal improve
ments and protective tariffs are hud-
died together, q few cold words in
commentator of Mr.. Hayes vetoes
being thrown in. The hluster con-
Germs. naturally, the solid south aud
Those dreadful democrats, whose only
object, it seems, is. to turn their
minority into a majority, as though
the only object of the republican
chiefs were not to retain possession
of the government. The buster is,
on the whole, more strongly comic
than the brag ; it draws q picture OF
the democratic ''lust OF Office aud
patronage" which If it were not
labelled democrat" would be geuer-
ally mistaken for a description Of the
republicans drawn by themselves.
Surely a party which seized the pres
idency as the republicans did in
1867, and then quarrellsd with the
man they forced into the White House
because he would o crafty to the
extent of their demands their Gin
satiable lust of Office and patronage"
but honorably preferred to serve the
country rather than the party lead
ers-surely such q party should "sing
small" to use q sea-phrase, whom the
topic is greed of Office and power.
The democratic platform ia by no
means faultiess ; We mean to take it
10 pieces another day. But it has at
least the very great merit that il
looks ahead. 1t promises the country
something /; the republicans promise
nothing, except a. continuance of a
high protective tariff. The demo-
cratic platform speaks Of living ques-
ions; it proposes free ships and all
extension of American commerce in
American bottoms; /: proposes q re.
form OF the revenue law so that they
shall yield revenue and not mainly
embarrass commerce and foster mon-
nnnIlpEs II nrnpnona IN o~arN Ghn
money of the taxpayers for public
purposes alone and to eserve the
public lands for the people who will
settle on them. No doubt the demo-
Gratis are a terrible set of fellows ;
nothing could be more disagrceabie
to the republican chiefs than the ap-
partition Of an opposition party max
ing a real bid for popular favor, let
ting the dead past bury itself, aud
looking forward to living questions
in which the happiness aud prospsri-
ty of the people are concerned.
The republican platform represents
very accurately the spirit of the party
leaders. They have been twenty
years in power. as the platform takes
care to remind the voters; aud they
would like to have another twenty
years of it on the strength of past
services. They refuse to look for.
ward they promise nothing to the
country. At the last session OF con-
gress they played the part of OBJ
structives aud nothing else. Every
reform which was brought forward
received only their obstinate opposi.
ton. The election laws so clearly
needed amendment that all the candid
republican Journals spoke out in
favor of proposed changes, but the
party leaders opposed every change.
The civil service was seen to need
better regulation, but the most emf.
nent of the republican senstors de-
clared the question a mere abstrsc.
ton. The attempt of Mr.. Bayard to
place the currency on q stable basis
by Withdrawing the g%reenbscks filled
the republicans with CONSERVATION,
Every attempt to improve the tariff
and make some parts of it less bur.
denseme upon Legitimate industries
was vigorously opposed and success.
fully lhwarted by the republicans,
with General Garfield at their head,
The proposal for free ships was de.
nounced by the republicans az other
men would denounce an act of thief
or piracy. Their platform expresses
accurately their determination t.