Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1883-10-05
Letter from Washington.

Mr.. Editor The nomination of Hon.
Robert M. McLane has been received by
Democrats all over the country with APP
plause. During his long and honorable
career in the service of his State he has be-
come well known as the defender of the
peoples rights and an earnest worker for
the public veal. To his record of duty
fearlessly done, of dangers warded off and
OF valuable advantages secured, Maryland
may appeal with the loving pride of a noble
mother in a noble son. There can be no
doubt but that Mr.. McLane will fill the high
and responsible office to which he will be
elected with the same conspicuous ability
he has ever exhibited in the past Pure in
his principles, firm in his convictions, learned
with wisdom and diplomatic with honor, it
is the duty of every Democrat to give him
an enthusiastic support
There are some honest men SO deeply
plunged IN the melancholy depths of pes
simism that they are unable 10 see any good
in politics, and therefore they refrain from
taking the slightest interest in elections In
the first place their ideas are far from being
correct. Not all men, not all politicians are
scoundres. Then, it is much better to help
in reforming whatever is bad and strengthen
ing whatever is good, than TO stand by with
hands folded and lips curled with cold
cynical sneer. Away with the miserable
sentiment which makes voters who ought
10 be out doing their duty to God and their
country stay from the polls and then growl
because bad men are elected
The platform adopted by the Democratic
convention at Baltimore is in many respects
excellent AS to that vile fraud by which
Hayes was placed in a despot's chair the
Republicans would, of course, have silence
The "grand old party" wish that the Ameri-
can people would forget that the sanctity of
the ballot box was violated, that the voice
of the nation was stiled, that our liberties
were perverted, and our fair robes of honor
draggled in the muck of political corruption
Forgive and forget" o most beautiful
charity Nor must we speak of the bribery
in Indiana, where two-dollar notes, weighed
with ballots, tipped the scales. Was Il for
the privilege Of buying and selling votes
that the fathers bled and died2
We are glad to see in the platform re.
cogntion Of the rights of working men, If
there is any one class absolutely essential to
the well being of society, that class is the
laborers. They are the strong pillars with
out whose aid the stately edifce with its
summit kissed by the clouds would tumble
into ruin utter and irretrevable. Or, to
change the figure, they are the life-blood
which percolates through the body polite,
giving II beauty and strength. Yet in spite
OF this automatic fact there are those who
presume to speak with disdan of working
men, and there are others who would, who
do, crush them 10 the very earth with the
iron hand OF oppression While the world
was reaplng the benefits OF conquerng
civilization, no small number of the men
who fought the battle were compelled 10
live in novels and feed upon black bread
and water Yes, and to our shame be IL
said that even in this century, by far the
richest both in wisdom and In knowledge,
thousands on thousands of working men
can not hold up their heads among men.
Such legislation as the Republican party
has given US in days gone by is calcu-
lated 10 rivet tighter aud tighter these iron
letters of labor. Yet that party dares 10
assert that 1t is the especial champion of labor
In proof 1t proudly points TO that iniqui.
tous invention, the protective tariff, which,
Il claims, greatly benefits the working man.
Waving the fact that the system in question
70 aid any one class OF laborers must heavily
TAX all other classes, we ask, how Is II that
the employees Of so many factories which are
under the projecting egis of the tariff de.
clare that they are unable 10 keep the vol |
from the door, How is il that, driven to
by the sight of the wan faces of |
wives and children pleading for bread, these |
very same men load the air with curses
If their udo-benclactors add refuse 10
work unles9 wages be raised II Alak6nnu