The Wellington enterprise. [volume] (Wellington, Ohio) 1867-188?, 1882-08-16
The " Time.Honored Principles OF
the Democratic Party.

A correspondent who has been read
ing the resolutions adopted by the DEM
ocratic, State Convention of Texas,
wants to know what are the " time
honored principles of the Democratic
party. As far as the said Texas Demo-
cratic. platform refers to National af-
fairs, it is in these words:
The Texas Democracy declares its ad-
herence 10 the time-honored principles Of the
we esspsp of 8 o
one business to the dstriment of others; OPP
posed to the centralization of powers of the
bead, the encroachment OF which tends to the
creation Of despotism; opposed to National
consisting OF gold and silver and paper con-
vert.ble into gold and silver; favor tarfn for
OWL service; favor a full fair and free vote
and a fair count; favor free ships and living
chance for American commerce on the seas,
OF one place over another by transportation
lines. ..,... .s,.. -..-.y...,.-i-... !.
Our correspondent inquiries if the
above planks have been the creed of
the modern Democracy so long that it
can in truth be asserted that they have
become. time-honored principles. +"
The answer is that they are not all of
them entitled to, any such distinction.
State rights, or opposition to centraliza-
ton, come the nearest to being a
{" "time-honored " principle of anything
in the list, and as that theory OF gov
ernment led the South into secession
and civil war, costing the Nation more
than a million of lives and billions of
money, the Democratic party will not
gain many converts by making that
plank too conspicuous. 1t reads well
for the Democracy to illuminate some
thing about .centralization" once in a
while, but the celebrated Kentucky
State Rights resolution of 1898, whose
authorship has been attributed to Mr..
jefferson, have become obsolete since
the legitimate consequences of that
theory stepped the Nation in blood for
four weary, sorrowful years.
The opposition of the Democracy to
the National Banks has been determined
and consistent, and grows out of its
blind adherence to the traditions of the
past. Its great high-priest and prophet,
| Andrew Jackson, made war upon 8
| National Bank, of which Nicholas Biddle
was President, and his (Jackson's) con.
duct in removing the money deposits oi
the Government from it made the ques
ton of banking an issue with the ole
| Wing party, and opposition to all sorts
of banking was among the first lesson:
taught to the Jacksonian Democracy
from that day to this. A modern Demo
crat never changes nor progresses, If ht
can help it, but he follows the creed O
his fathers, and blindly opposes system
of banking that has now become as mucl
public necessity as railroads and tele
graphs. The conduct of the Democrat
in the present Congress in fighting thu
/ bill to extend the charters of th'
existing National Banks is a case il
point
| That is about all there is in the Texa
platform that deserves the name o
"time-honored principles. The bal
ance has been recently admitted int
the Democratic creed, and is simply al
effort to obtain votes upon false pre-
tenses. Civil service must indeed be il
a bad way when the Texas Democrat
advertise themselves in favor OF its re
form. All that is bad and corrupt il
our present public service is legac
bequeathed to US from the old spoil
system, which was Democratic inven
ton of the Jacksonian period. But a
Texas was annexed to this country lon
after jackson was President, it is nc
surprising that his admirers in that sec
ton should not be well posted in respec
to that particular " "time-honored" prir
ciple.
But when we come to read that tn
Democracy of Texas is in favor of
"full, fair and free vote, and fai
count" the smile that the reading {
the other parts of the platform provoke
breaks out into loud laugh. In vie
of all we know about intimidation, bull
doing, ballot-box stutfing, tissue-ba
lots, ETC., etc., etc., to the end of th
long and disgusting chapter of electio
frauds in the South, to read of tbs
guilty crowd favoring "a free ballc
and fair count" is really " too funn
for anything" A free election and
fair count. indeedl-C Chicago Journal.