The Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1877-1885, 1885-09-24

ISL pdTLy, VINO DtleNcu III u llD6rAi con
struction of the provisions of the consti>
tuition, and the national republican party,
who believed in strict construction Of
its provisions. Hamilton and Jefferson
differed greatly. Hamilton was brought
up in foreign land, was offoreign birth,
man of wonderful intellectual endow-
ment, possessed of every grace of an ora
tor. who, brought up under q monarcfial
government, was monarchist, and be-
| lieved that the suffrages of the people
should be so limited, that the sristocracy
only should participate in it, and as a
representative from the state of New
York in the Philadelphia constitutional
convention of 1887, proposed almost q
monarchial form of government In
Washington's military staff he had deeply
impressed Washington with his abilities,
and as secretary of the treasury he was
the ruling spirit of Washington's cabinet
Jefferson, on the other hand, inter
preted these principles to bringing about
a government in which the people had
the largest share. Jefferson believed this
government should not be centralized;
that the powers of government should be
so distributed that the state government
should have certain powers, and that
above all the individual should be clothed
with power; that the citizen should be
| supreme in the government. jefferson,
unlike Hamilton, worked from the citizen
to the national government, not from the
| national government to the citizen. He
believed it to be true that the constitution
meant something, and that the state gov
eminent within itself was supreme; that
the national government was not supreme
within state; that above all was the in>
dividual citizen. Hamilton participated
in the debate of that convention; he pre-
seEted constitution to that convention,
which held that the president should hold
office for life; that state governors should
be appointed by the president and hold
office for life; that senators should
hold office for life, aud that congressman
only should be elected by the vote of the
people. Jefferson, at that time was not
in this country; he was in France as min.
lister, and was therefore not present. at the
constitutional convention, and did not
participate in the debates prior TO Its
adoption by the states; and although at
first not favorably impressed with it, after
its final adoption, his construction of the
various provisions of it enunciated doc =
trines which have always been the docs
trines Of the democratic party relative to
the constitution. Having been minister
to France during the French revolution,
he became imbued with republican ideas,
aud firmly believed in the doctrine that
that government is best in which the peo>
pie have the largest share He believed
the citizen should have powers that the
government could not affect; that all
officers should be elected by the people;
that the president Of the United States
should hold office for a cer ain time only;
that they should elect the governors OF
states; that they should elect representa-
tives in congress; that they should elect
members of the legislature. who should
elect the United States senators.
Though he did not participate in the
debate in the constitutional convention in
Independence hall in Philadelphia, there
were his lieutenants in the hall, and the
difference between his and Hamilton's
views was presented; and while he did
not get all the measures passed, and while
Hamilton did not get all in the constitu-
ton which his extreme views led him to,
| the instrument as an act Of compromise
came fOrth-the constitution of the I'M
tied States, under which this people have
| prospered for nigh unto one hundred
years. Although Hamilton and Jefferson
were both in Washington's cabinet, the
difference of views in these two men were
widely separated. Hamilton, federalist,
favoring Capitalization, and Jefferson
| government which was more simple and
republican in its form. The federalists
under President Washington succeeded,
and Hamilton's views were accepted rath-
er than Jefferson's. The next election
coming after Washington the federal par,
ty was successful over jefferson. Then
again did a division arise, the republicans
on one hand and The federals under Ham
lltOn on the other. Then it was that the
federaists, with the views of Hamilton,
could not leave the citizen in possession
OF all the rights which the constitution
had guaranteed him. 1t was then, that
bloated with power, imaginary evils pre-
Sented themselves; then 1t was the alien
law was enacted, which gave the presi :
dent at his will the power to arrest any
alien whom he had suspected and gave
him absolute power to drive him from the
country, and if he went not he was TO be
imprisoned or fined. Then it was the Sc.
dition law was passed which gagged the
press, and made it subservient to the will
of the president, and made him absolute
dictator. If the president belieyed that
some paper had said this OF that rejecting
upon his administration, then the press
dent had right to stop that paper, and
had right to fine the publisher thereof
II was upon that question of liberty,
whether or not any one had any right at
ALL that the democratic party Tor as it was
more rightly called at that time the nat
ional republican democratic party sprang
into being.
The democratic party had charge of
national affairs for half century, except
with one or two short intervals, until
carrying its doctrines to extremes, and
then it was that the people with a right
eous Indignation, put the democratic par
ty out and kept it out until it could do
better in the future. The origin of the
democratic party was strict construction
of the constitution in such way as to
guaran tee to preserve all the right of the
individual citizen. | think it strange
that anyone coming into power under
such influences. should be found in the
democratic party who had the hardihood
to say that one man had right to keep
another in servltude against his will
Then it was the people turned that party
out of power. just one moment as to
the glory of the old democratic party.
I =. a. 7