The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1884-06-09
THE TWO PARTIES.
We Will Not Have Defensive Campaign
A Portrait OF Democracy

We VIII Not Have a Defensive Campaign
Portrait of Democracy.
Emery A. Storrs at Chicago Convention.
l have never seen the time, 1 never expect to
see it, when | can debate with myself where is
the choice between the Republican and the
Democratic party. One, with its shining and
glorious record of great deeds. and the other
with a career leprous with sin and spotted with
niquities never. in all its history, has done the
right thing except at the wrong time During
all the war it was in favor of peace. After the
war had ceased it raised the devil in the South.
When the greenback was necessity it spurned
it as unconstitutional, and when the neces-
Sity ceased it Swore we should have nothing
in the heavens but greenbacks. Thus it has
been with that crooked, incomprehensible
party-the demon of political cussedness and
the embodiment of all that is wicked 1t wants
us to look to Tilden its prospective represent
alive, and who weighs ninety pounds and is nm
able to hear, and is remembered only because he
was the architect of the most unsuccessful fraud
ever engineered in American politics. He is
pitied because the fraud did not succeed. ! have
no sympathy with him for that reason. Demo
Gratis tell me, Eve will nominate Tiden.7 That
is a sentiment. ] say to them For Gods sake,
if you have got sentiment stick to 1t laugh
teri: it is the only one you have got; you have
not had any in quarter of century You are
situated like the man with one pair of pants
you cannot be critical; it is these trousers or
nakedness"
Now. gentlemen. this is no defensive cam
paign. Don't you forget it. l presume that be-
fore the campaign is closed you will hear some
thing of the Mulligan letters. remember very
well in 1880, You might tell a Democrat that his
party had opposed the war, and he was dumb
you might tell him that it had opposed the con-
seription law, and he was speechless you might
say to him that he had wrought against the draft
and he was still silent; you might charge him
with having undertaken to destroy the national
existence, the national credit, and the national
honor, and he had not a word to say; but along
toward the close of the campaign this Democrat
whom you had thus addressed, silent and utterly
unable to answer your arguments, would
awaken you at midnight bya mysterious scratch
ing on the ridewalk, and you would find, as the
only answer this Democrat, prone on his belly,
writing with great anxiety and with great pain,
the 3 wrong side out, 800
have seen in one of their platforms that they
proposed to enter on business without capital ex
cept the purity of their principles. Was there
ever such bankrupt concern with such capt
tai? They say that that is all that they have
pie My Cod my friends A man that will
work on these terms will work for nothing and
board himself. Won't you think of that dear.
delightful, old daisy, if she could take physical
form, which we call the Democratic party, enter
ing into business upon the purity of her prnci
Ples? She has kept house of political ill-fame
f59 more than twenty years She has entertained
every dishonest political notion and every dis
reputable political tramp on the continent dur
inc that period of time.
Gus american citizen, with her shawl twisted
around her shoulders, with brass iewelry in her
ears, out at the toes. with drunken leer of
silly invitation in her eve, with maiden coyness
protesting to do business on the purity of her
principles. | would not for the world say any
thing dsrespectful of the Democratic
party. There are certain things about
il that attract me; but | regard
it 4 little as | do watcr-spout, which
| like to look at from a distance, but dislike to
get 700 near to; and when l see one of its pro
cessions-and we viii see many of them during
this campaign feel about them as our old
f';end Strobe, in this State, when he described
an experience of his own il the Blackhawk war
H. said by the dim light of the setting sun,
on distant eminence, hostile band.
They we're gentlemen without hats; | did not
know who they were. but knew d well
thoy were no friends Of mine
am for the war. I am very glad always to
see Democratic platform when it is wheeled
out early in the campaign. Have YOU ever look
cd at tR IT is one OF the most curiousy construct
ed pieces OF machinery perhaps in the world 1t
Looks very becoming and proper at little dis
lance. The edges are strung around with ging-
ham, the old creviees filed up with
putty; it is whitewashed, and its gen