The times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1882-1897, 1884-10-31
GARFIELD'S WORDS.
Advice Given to Young Men
About to Choose Their Party.
Why THEY Should Become Advocates
Of Living Issues.

Now, fellow citizens, a word before l
leave yoi, on the v ry eve of the holy day
| OF Coda fit moment 10 consgcrate ourselves
| finally To the great work of rext Tuesday
morning. l see In this great audience to-
| night great many young men-young men
| who are about 10 cast their first vote l want
t, give you word of suggestion and ad-
vice. l heard very brilliant thing said by
boy the other day up in one Of our north
| western counties. He said to me:
General, l have great mind to
vote the Democratic ticket" That was
| not the brilliant thing. | said to, him:
"Whyr He said: My father is Republi-
can, and my brothers are Republicans, and
am Republican all over, but | want t. be
an indepeacert man, aud don't want any
body to say: That fellow votes the Repub-
lie an ticket just because his dad does ard
have half mind to vote the Democratic
tick, { just 10 prove my independence" l
did nor like the thing the boy sugge ted, but
| d admire the spirit of the boy that want
ed TO have some independence of his own.
BE INDEPENDENT.
INV, Jel you, young Hidl, uOn VOte Tue
Republican ticket just because your father
votes it. Don't vote the Democratic ticket,
even If he does vote it. But let me give you
this one word of advice, as you are about to
pitch your tent in one of the great political
camps. Your life Is full and tuoyant with
| hope now, and beg >ou. when you pitch
| your ten' p tch it among tn living aud not
among the dead. Ii you are at all inclined
to pitcn It among the Democratic
people and with that party let me 60 with
| you for a nome while we survey the
| ground where hope you will not shortly lie.
| 1t Is a sad place, young man, for you to put
| your young life into. 1t is to me far more
like a graveyard than like a camp
for the living. Look at It! 1t Is billowed
all over with The graves of dead
Issues, of buried opinions, of exploded
theores, of disgaced doctrines. You can
| not live in comfort IN such a place. Why.
look here. Here is a little double mound.
look down on it and read: Sacred to the
memory OF squatter SOW reignty and the
| bred SEQ de .Ision.n A million and a half
deaf fitteea yeas, died by the hand of
! Abraham Lincoln, AID here it lies. Young
man, tiat is not the place for you.
NOTHING BUT GRAVES.
But look little farther. Here Is another
monument black tomb-and beside it, as
our dis ingui he'd flrnd said, there towers to
the sky moGum' NJ of 1000 900 pairs OF
human letters taken from the arms of slaves,
and | read on its little headstone this:
sacred to the memory of human slavery. "
| For forty years of its infamous lie tue DEM
| ocratic party taught that IL was divine
Gods iusti 'Ution. They dfeuded it. they
stood srouni 1t, Jhey followed IL tn Its grave
as mourper. Blu here 1t lies, dead by the
hand OF Abrah IN Lincoln. Dead by the
| power Of the Republican party. Dead by
the justice of Al nighty God. Don't camp
there, young man.
| STILL ANOTHER TOME.
But here's another little birthstone tomb
aid / read across its yellow face in lurid,
| bloody lines these words: "Sacred to the
memory of state sovereignty and seces
SION" Twelve millions OF Democrats must
| tered o. ound it In arms to Ike p 1t alive but
| here it lies, shot to death by Tho million guns
of the republic. re IL lies its shrine
! burnt 10 ashes under the blazing rafters Of
rhe burning Confeder,cy. 1t is dead /
would not have you stay in there minute
| even ia this balmy night air, to look at such
a place.
THE RAG BABY's MoURNsks,
| But just before leaveit discover a new
made grave. a little mound-short. The
grass has hardly sprouted over it, and around
it see torn pieces Of PIPER with the word
| ''iat" on them, and look down in curiosity,
wondering what the httl grave il, and read
on il: "Sacred to the memory Of the rag baby
nursed in the brain Of all the fauaticism of
the world. rock ed by Thomas Ewing. Georga
| n. Pendeton, Samuel Cary and few others
! throughout the land. But it di, d tue LIST
of January, 1879, and the Sl400O0 600 of
| gold that God made, and not tat power, lie
| upon its little carcass TO keep 1t down for
| ever.
THE CAMP OF LIBERTY.
o, young man, come out of that That is
no rlace in which to put your young life.
| Come out, and come over into this camp of
| liberty, of order, of law, OF justice. of free
dom, OF all that is glorious under these
night stars. Is there any death here
| in our camp! Yes! yes! Three, hun
Dire | and nifty thousand soldiers, the noblest
band that ever trod the earth, died to
make this camp camp of glory and of
| liberty forever. But there are no dead
| issues here. There are no dead ideas here.
| Hang out our banner from under the blue
sky this night until it shall sweep the green
turf under your feetl 1t hangs over our
camp. Read away up under the stars tho
inscription we have written on it, lol these
twenty-five years.
| THE REPUBLICAN SILVER WEDDING.
| Twenty five years ago the Republican party
was married to Liberty, and this is our sill
yer wedding, fellow-ci'izens. A worthily
married pair love each other better the day
of their silver wedding than the day or their
| first espousals; and We are truer to Liberty
| to day and dearer to God than we were when
we spoke our first word Of liberty. Read
away up under the sky across our starry ban
| ner that first word we uttered twenty five
| years ago! What was itl slavery shall
| never extend over another foot of the terri
| tories Of the great West" Is that dead or
alivel Alive, thank God, forevermorel And
truer to.night than it was the day it was
| written! Then it was a hope, PROMISE a
purpose. Tonight IL is equal with the stars
| immortal history aud Immortal truth.
Come down the glorious steps OF our ban
| ner Every great record we have made we
have vindicated with our blood and with our
| truth. 1t sweeps the grounds and IL touches
the stars. Come there, young man, aud put
| in v ur young life where all Is living, md
where nothing 1t dead but the heroes that
defended i'll think these young men Will
do that-From speech delivered Saturday,
/