St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1884-06-19
Some Ringing Words
THAT REPUBLICANS SHOULD PONDER.

/ uC ihlCptuttuj VIII HOI support
the ticket nominated mt Chicago. 1t
commands neither our enthusiasm nol
our convictions. Our convictions were
not transferred by Powell Clayton,
with his drove Ot Arkansas delegates
Our enthusiasm is not kindled by gush
and dash and ''magnetism." The level
head and downright conscience of the
republican party demand devotion tO
principle. Devotion to party is not
enough.
We love the republican party and
are proud of its history. 1t has saved
the nation. 1t has liberated the slave.
1t has paid a third of the national debt.
1t has restored our currency. 1t has
reformed our civil service. 1t has re-
covered harmony between the north
and south. But party must stand on
| its present record and not on its past
history. The republican party is worth
nothing to us except as it continues to
represent principles and reform. If it
ceases to do this, the quiet, earnest
patriots To whom we speak cannot be
cOaXed to keep swinging its banners.
When it is dead they will bury it.
That is the most to be done with
cOrpSes.
Blaine and Logan are fit comrades.
They were the two most objectionable
candidates before the convention, and
it was natural that they should com
bine and conquer. They represent the
self-seeking, demagogical element,
which uses party for personal prefer
ment. No one suspects them of an
earnest desire for a single reform.
They are not known as advocates of "A
pure civil service, of frugal eXpendi-
lures of public funds, or of the purifi-
cation of political methods. On the
other hand, they have the reputation
of being shrewd and INSCRIPTIONS
party dictators. Their chosen, eager
friends, who have engineered their
success, have been the Star-routers of
the west and the bummers of the east, ,
whom Mr.. Arthnr flung away when he
became president. We have no heart
to 90 into Mr. Blaine's personal record /;
but we regard it Us not that of il man
who is fit to he Il candidate tor the re-
publican party. We can advise no
vote for men who represent not the
conscience of our party, but the profits
or the preiudices of its camp-follOwers.
Do we then advise our readers to
vote the Democratic or some third
party ticketP BY no means; for we
are not yet forced to believe that the
republican party has sunk to the level
of its ticket or its platform. What
there is of conscience and intelligence
in the party repudiates its antiChinese
treason to the Declaration of Indie
Pendence, its eight hour quackery and
its bimetallsm. With some excellent
platitudes the platform is the work of
Il demagOgue and not of Il statesman.
1t benefits its candidates.
But we have no desire to go over to
the democratic party with all its his
tory of shame and blunder. For we
are lOath to believe the republican
party dead. We prefer to believe it is
sick. 1t may recover. Meanwhile "A
defeat may give it shock which will
purge it of some bad humors and rein J.
vigOrate its enfeebled principles. If
some power could give the democrats
grace to nominate respectable can
didate, like Bayard or Cleveland, they
would make the election of Blaine i'm
possible. We understand that Mr..
Blaine's campaign will be conducted
with all the vigOr which shrewdness
and money can command; that it will
be unsurpassed for it's noise, fire and
enthusiasm, professions and torch
lights that it will exhaust every de-
vice of the most accomplished traders
and manipulators of votes and yet
we believe it will fail. The ticket may
carry some western states by tremen-
duOus majorities but good demo-
cratic candidate will sweep New York
by majority almost like that of
Cleveland two years ago, and Massa-
chusetts and Connecticut and New
Hampshire would follow. We said be
fore the convention that Mr.. Blaine
could not he elected. We were not
making threats then now we add that
he ought not to be elected. The con-
science of the true republican, who
love its faith more than its fishes, will
surely defeat its unworthy ticket, either
by refusing to give their votes to its
candidate, or by transferring their
votes to the democratic ticket, or, pos
sibly for third ticket not yet provid-
ed for.
But, meanwhile, we beg republicans
not to forget the long love they have
given to their party. The party must
be saved in spite of itself. We
may refuse for once to vote for our
ticket. We may even vote for a demo
cratic president, for we carry our SOW
erignty under our own hat but we
must do our best to elect good repub-
lican governors, representatives and
senators. We are the best sort of re-
publicans when we hold fast to ON
principles and refuse to vote for Oul
party's unfit candidates. But the party
must be kept in good heart, and ready
for Drawer work along grander lines OF
reform not yet achieved. We have
made excellent progress these last ten
wears toward a civil service which
shall he taken out of politics; but much
| more is to be done. The equal rights
of four races-white, black, red and
yelIow-are under the care of the re-
publican party, and must be provided
for by much state and same national
! legislation. Questions of education
home protection and temperance mus
and will come more and more int,
politics, and for their right settlement
the republican party is quite AS mucl
concerned as for developing the sheel
husbandry of Ohio, or for establishing
Il standard of bimetallism. BecaHs,
we stand for the principles and the old
genius Of the republican party, We
withhold our support from the Chicago
ticket.-lN. Y. Independent.
A large barn belonging to Munro'
Crowell of Barnard, was burned the
latter part of last week under circum
stances which point not to incendi
arism, but intended robbery. Crowel
and brother live alone, aud ar,
known to have considerable money il
the house at times.