New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1884-08-10
NEW PUBLICATIONS
THE CASE OF THE DEMOCRACY.
rur nruocRATIC PATTY It's PoIitIca HI,,nlu,a 1I,


=, A.. acrearance of Mr. Boutwells able review
', ,ho bistory character and tendencies oil the no
,rhiican partv. another writer should puphSn
hat similar essay on the rival political OF
,ani,ation completing the survey oi pal'hN anu
s.,,i.,t the studiona voter 20 weigh pretty ac-
cpratelv the services OF both. Probably IT ~ only
eolncidcncei but # Aicssrs. BoutWcl and ration
had acted in con 'crt they could not hnyo c"ui'le
,,ntel e,ch oth, more exactly. MI boutwell, oN-
hibts the achievements of the one party VIZ
Patton s Principally concerned with the errors oni
futile undcft,kinps of the other Each has calro
attention g. remarkable fact not generally tn'Wu
or remembered which Ia this. thlt although W"
pomort lts had almost uninterrupted cohtt"l '' wv
Go,ri Ymcut from the time of Jefferson J." ln'o'
break ot the kcbc,lpn. thoy instituted ~ a'' ln''
iolu courtc of years 0aI9 ono hei'ur' "' l'''
which proved lasting and succ"'sinL Ihi WIZ INV
establishment of the Aub.ttcluiY NN'" 'o "'
miraaic arrangement which, however WIS "'N
adoptcd a~ the sequel aud remedy of u series col
Domoc.utic dnancial buudcr,, what more crush
iur proof of the innate ncapacy OF 'h' P'''N '"u'"
h ,,iv,n than thl, barren record II has ecuoiilN
bren assumed that among the southern leaders no
all events who were the governing element oil the
Democracy. m, arts of craftsmanship were hosl
carefully studied: aud yet IN sixty moulentonS
years crowded with change and development they
devised moi pabhc measure which stood the test
OF experience. except plan for taking care OF INC
Government deposits. Such an extraordinary liii-
IRE, RAINING through generations Is noJ To De 'A-
planned by ,he mistake Of Individuals 1T could
only result from some fundamental fault III either
the constitution or the objects of the party
Mr. Patton does not charge himself with the task
of explaining this phenomenon. lie Is content win
describing It. and experimenting the account with a
catalogue of the public questions ON Wpith Inc
Democracy has taken the side which has ultimately
pTTIy has not only failed to do useful work Of MS
own; 1t has opposed all the useful work undertake
Ly OF rs The history of its errors reaches rs far
back a. the time of Washington when it fought Bit
terly against the policy of neutrality in European
affair, which has been universally accepted as the
traditional and obvious duty of this country; ANA
against the financial policy of Hamilton. which was
soon found to bc the very basis of the National pros
pcrty. Under jefferson 1t completely destroyed
our commerce by the dcluSivc EMBARGO Under
Jackson II broke NJ the banking system fo,tcred
wildcat speculation. established the spos doctrine,
and created the profession OF hunting. By the
Tarn Act passed in the Administration IT
prosrafcd a. The industries of the county except
the raising ot cotton and reduced wages while the
Government accumulated an enormous surplus pee
cause We hl to import what we had ceased t'
Iuipufaetire. The result WAS the great hnIncA'
crash OF l~,-. deficiency in the National revenue
only one year after the Treasury had dcc t,' " SI-
plus of ~IUUOu,duO, political reaction, AND i'c
choice OF Wing President The protective tar"
Of 1872 revived the country: but no sooner dbl the
pemocr l. rc'urn 10 power than they made n'.ch"
again hv "a " tart for revenue only - in 1916 and
"A Thong tine consequences of this mistake were de-
ftucd for q Wl.lc by the discovery of gold iu Gale
lornia. thc prostrdion of manufactures Clnc ln
time and the inevitable crash followed IN l~-7
The Democracy however has learned nothing
though the rest of the people have, and ever since
TIE recovery of business under renewal of prot'c-
tive duties it has been STRIVING to repeat The old
buudcr
Tn, key to nearly all the errors of the panty for
forty year,-iucludng the tarn errors -v's
slavery. Mr. Patton saws less upon thu subject
chan might have been expected, perhap, because il
Is 40 generally understood II is 80 fully treated i'm
Mi Boutwell,, Look that We have no reason to 10
erct the blcyity with which IT is handled hero. but
In "a catalogue IF Democratic mislccds we must noe
overlook the worst aud most prolific of all thc sins
of the party. 1t. principal object from about ls26
until after the close oC the Rebellion, to aid the
shareholders in maintaining slavery where 1t
ALREADY existed. and in forclbly extending its area
when the superior vitality aud energy OF Freedom
threatened to outsrip t. Thus IL il that the party
Is shamcluy identified with the needless Mexican
war. the schemes for scnng Cuba, the ldbusterlng
expeditions IN Central America the fugitive slave
law the repeal of the Missouri compromIsc, the in
yasion of Kansas the bred Scott decision the Vlp-
lnton of the mails in the South, the doctrines of
State sovereignty and secession, the nou-ut"rict-
encc theory of Mr.. Buchanan. rampant hostility 90
emancipation aud all ITS consequences, dctcrniua-
ton. even when the was near IFS close, That the
Union should bo restored with slavery CT rot re-
stored AT all and stubborn opposition when thc
war was over, 20 the constitutional amendments
A IL "a American
Here indeed is a terrible list OF bundors-thr whole
work of party for nearly forty years discIcd.tcd,
brought 10 naught, confessed even 10y the party il
self to be discredItable in principle and mis-
chevous i'm practice But this does not exhaust thc
astonishing record. The Democracy opposed cheap
postage. opposed fast mails opposed the hon. teJd
law, opposed other plans fol giving land 20 the
landcss poor has opposed public impro' eneuts,
has opposed the support Of the army and nafJ and
the protection OF commerce, opposed resumption,
opposed the honest payment of the public debt, OPP
posed rounding opposed and still opposes sound
banking system, and with perfect unanimty has
fought every law to prevent fraudulent voting
What good deed has this amazing party ever done,
what good deed has it failed TO OpDosef 1t calls IT,
self the friend of the poor; but it has always been
the enemy of the wOrkingman the ally Of the land
owning aristocracy and foreign importers, tie al
vocate of low wages. Mr. Patton makes the
striking statement that from lNZJ TO lSOI, when
the Southern wing of the Democracy practically
governed the country, " there was not a cOmpre-
hcnsve measure to benefit the people at large intro
duced in Congress by Southern member,
except the Homestead bill by Andrew Johnson"
and that resisted by most of the rest OF the
party and vetoedby Democratic President.
ARMiNIUS NAMBERY His Life and Adventures
Written by Himself l2mo. PIP Kill, $40. Cas,cil q
Co
The Journeys narrated in this entertaining vol