Butte semi-weekly miner. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1886-1890, 1886-10-13
DEMOCRATIC DOCTRINE.

There is no better time than the presen
40 b,;rp to mind and in review some OF tn
GREAT principles OF the party of the peopl'
.h.t has met and defeated in turn the ole
FEDERAL party, the Wing party, the Know
Nothiug party and the Republican party
This great defender OF the peoples interests
the Democratic party, has since it's or
oanization, century ago, held certain
nr;nciples in Government a. essential te
tbe prosperity OF the country. While ther,
are minor issues upon which the people arr
divided by sectional rather than by party
lines there are others purely Democratic
unon which the party has fought and wor
lis greatest battles. Among them and
standing out prominently is the question o
tariff. Probably the clearest, as it is the
most correct, declaration of Democratic
principles respecting that issue that has
yet been promulgated by a political con-
vention is the platform upon which Speaker
Carlisle was renominated for Congress the
5th inst.
In referring to this same matter the st.
Paul Globe, which by the way is one of the
staunchest and most influential Demo.
cratic journals in the country, says 1.-THE
fact that Mr.. Carlisle was enthusiastically
nominated by acclamation and was pres
ent to accept the nomination in q neat
little speech, makes it fair to presume that
if he was not the author OF the platform it
Mt least embodied his individual opinions,
and is fair expression of his views. In
asmuch as Mr.. Carlisle is recognized as the
Democratic leader in Congress, the plat
form may be accepted as the Democratic
doctrine. 1t declares that there is no
warrant in the federal constitution for the
exaction from the people OF more than is
reasonably necessary for an economical
administration OF the government and "all
in excess OF that need is spoliation, not
legal taxation" Hereis the whole Demo-
cratic doctrine in a nutshell. All revenues
collected from the people in excess OF the
actual need OF the government is spolia-
ton and not legal taxation. Such is the
doctrine OF the national Democracy.
In explanation of it's position the Car
Isle platform goes on to say that the inter.
ests OF the people at large demand that
such reform or reconstruction of the tariff
laws should be adopted as will equalize the
burden of taxation in that form and re-
duce the income from that source to the
actual needs OF the government economi-
cally administered. 1t declares that ex-
cessive taxation, even when successful, is
ultimately destructive of the sources of
labor from which it is drawn. In the en-
actment of tariff laws it claims that Con-
sress should at all times have in view the
raising of revenue rather than the fostering
of any particular industry at the expense
Of others, taxing the luxuries rather than
the nccessaries of life, the duty and power
OF the federal government extending only
so far AS to impose tax for the purpose
OF raising revenue for public purposes.
The government Is never better admin
istered and it's true spirit is never better
observed than when the peoples taxation
for it's support is scrupulously limited to
the actual necessity of expenditure and dis
trbuted according to a just and equitable
plan. Believing in the Jeffersonian maxim
that "the best government for the people
is that which governs least" the Demo-
cratic party instructs it's representatives
that they carefully and faithfully observe
the constitutional limitation the people
have put upon them. That is why it is
safer to send Democrats to Congress than
Republicans. They go there educated in
the doctrine OF constitutional limitation"