The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1882-09-08
BLOOMSBURY, Pa, FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 1882

cations be incorporated with the pres
ent regular organization of the party
but that each association shall be indie
pendent of every other, and that the,
be connected mainly by friendly cor
respondence. Established only by tb
voluntary action of the Democrats
voters, they need not be expensive o.
burdensome in any way. Their meet
ings would be regulated by the desires
of the members, or the exigeucies o
public affairs, but the organization one,
established would be there and availa
BILE for any emergency, like the vigil
ance committees of the revolution, anC
the Democratic societies, which con
| tributed so much TO save the Constitu
ton in 1900, dissolved the Federalis
conspiracy of that day, and gave us the
glorious Democratic Republican admin
istrations of Jefferson, Madison, Monroe
and Jackson
THE JEFFERSON AND HAMILTON SYSTEMS
How admirably these Jeffersonan
principles may be applied to modern
politics is illustrated by the following
extract from Mr.. Blacks famous paper
entitled: "a Conti iast-Jefferson and
HamiIton--Democracy and Federalism
-lS00-lSSl-The Same Parties and
the Same Principles-A plain Question!
Shall the People Rule, or shall they be
ruled 2" published in New York on
July 4, 1881. In that he says:
"Mr. Jeffersons sovereign cure Tor
all the ills of the State was the intro
duction of the most rigid economy; a
frugal government is seldom corrupt
and never oppressive. He cut down
the great military and naval establish.
ments beqneathcd by the Federalists as
rapidly as the law permitted, and final
ly, with the aid of Congress, reduced
the army to about three thousand men.
which were all that an honest govern I.
ment had any use for He reduced the
diploma ic force to the three Ministers
at London, Paris and Madrid. He
dismissed unnecessary officials as fast
as investigation disclosed their ex.
is,ence. He directed Galatin to sim
p'ify the Treasury statements and
accounts, so rs to render them in
telligible to the plainest citizen, and
invited every aid in the work of re-
form. The whole system of internal
taxation, including three-fourths of the
whole civil list, was abolished at
blow, and the deficiency supplied by
Jefferson's invariable expedient, econ
omy. When he had exhausted his
discretion he appealed to Congress for
authority to make further reductions,
and the curious spectacle was present.
ed of an Executive petitionrng the Leg
islature for permission to surrender
power and to give up patronage. The
result was the rapid decrease of the
public debt, which the Federalists had
regarded as national blessing, and
the rise of new question, new, indeed,
in every part of the earth, what
should be done with the surplus?' Of
this government, in truth, the people
knew nothing but the blessings its
burdens were imperceptible. This
was the system of Jefferson 1t was
faithfully continued under his lineal
descendants, Madison and Monroe,
and has never, for an instant of time,
ceased to command the deliberate ap-
proval of the American people. If it
has been displaced by corrupt admins
trations, they have never yet dared to
go to the country upon their Federal
ist principles. They have uniformly
disguised their measures, denied their
purposes, and ridden into power upon
false pretenses.
BoSsIsM AND THE sPOILs SYSTEM.
AT time when relief from the boss
system and the enforcement of admin
istratve reform are the ruling political
issues, what more fifty meets popular
wants than these principles from the
Jeffersonian system, as expounded by
Mr.. Black:
"Supreme confidence in the virtue
and intelligence of the people, and i'm
plicit obedience to their will when
legally expressed.
San honest administration of the
which implies not merely
Il just application of the public moneys
TO the public service, but a faithful OBJ
servance of the limitations of the Con
stitution. OF applicants for office
three questions only need be asked; is
he honest? is he capable?' is he
faithful to the Constitution
"a number of officials sufficient for
the transaction of the public business:
M supernumeraries to eat out the sub
stance of the people"
LIBERAL AND AGGRESSIVE DEMOCRACY.
His close study of this Jetfersonian
system necessarily makes Mr.. Black an
uncompromising opponent of excessive
extravaganza, corruption,
needless taxation and expenditure, ring
government, bossism and the spoils
system. All of his journalistic work
has been directed against these evils
which independent and thoughtful
men of all parties now denounce and
condemn.
His broad and liberal views of the
present canvass are the natural out
come of his political training. These
views were expressed in the following
speech, delivered at a serenade tender
ed to him by his neighbors, irrespect-
i've of party, soon after his nomination
for lieutenant governor by the Demo
cratic State conventions:
"The battle now to be fought is not
one for mere partisan victory; its
object is the reform of the State gov
ernment in all its departments and
clean hands only must be put to work.
The nomination of the gallant Pattison
the stainless young leader, who
stands at the head of the reform col
umn in Philadelphia, means precisely
that and nothing else, Like the Black
Knight of old, come to restore the
rghtful sovereign to his own, this bold
tribune of the people will be found
laundering at the gate of the ring cit
adel, battle-axe in hand, and when he
makes his Judgement within, the BLACK
flag of the bosses will be displaced by