The Louisiana Democrat. [volume] (Alexandria, La.) 1845-1918, 1886-10-20
SENATOR VOORHEES,.
His Recent Great Speech at Indlanap.
oils "A Mastery Presentation Of the
Iss,,es Of f1,a f1Av.

recent speech at Indianapolis, IN Whlcn
he sounded the keynote of the cam
paign in the State.
!. Ex-senator Mcdonald presided, md
on the stage were a number OF the
prominent men of the party, not only |
of local, but State conspicuousness, and
when the president of the meeting in
PRODUCED Mr.. Voorhees, in the fewest
words possible, the orator of the even
ing received greeting which demon
strated how closely he has woven him
self into the hearts of the people Of In
diana. 1t is conceded that the speech
is the ablest political effort of the Sem
ator in any campaign. Contrary to his
usual custom, it was prepared with
care, as if the Senator had reason to
believe that it would be accepted as
keynote by the opposition, who would
carefully scan every sentence for the
purpose of criticism. Taken as an en-
tirety. it is magnificent effort, and if
there is Republican so hopeful as to
draw comfort therefrom he will pass
among his fellows rs modern Mark
Taplcy.
Senator Voorhees, was particularly
happy in his review of civil service,
as practiced by Republicans during
their long lease of political power, and
he emphasized his argument by copi-
GUS quotations from Hoar, of Massa-
ehusetts, and from other standard Re-
pNplicans like Sumner and Greeley,
who were the first to raise their voices
against the iniquity which had crept
into their own party in their admins
tration of the spoils Of Office. In 1871
! there was an act authorizing a COM
mission to promote the efficiency of the
civil service, and it was approved by
Grant whom the Senator credited with
an honest desire to do something in
that direction, but it was starved to
death by the party in its infancy, and
General Cox, of Oaio, Mt that time q
Cabinet officer, was made to feel the
sting of the party lash when he lifted
his protest against the plundering Of
the department employees in the name
of the party.
During his argument in this connec-
ton the Senator began with the retire
ment of Belknap then Cabinet Off
Ger, who resigned to avoid investiga-
ton, and he continued the review
through the iniquity which! made Hayes
President by the count in Louisiana
and Florida, and the rewards in the
way of offices that were parceled out to
every one connected with that business,
from John Sherman up or down, tc
show that with them it was u snare
and u delusion, and that they invari.
ably rewarded party worker for his
services to the party and not because
of any special qualifications he had fol
the duty and for the Office to which hi
was assigned.
The Senator also reviewed the Re
publican financial policy at consider
able length, showing that both silver AM
greenbacks exist to-day as part of thu
currency by express command of th,
American people, irrespective to
great extent of party affiliations, ant
directly in spite Of the persistent an,
determined hostility of Republican
, leaders and Republican Administra
, tons. The plea of the opposition tina
the public lands be reserved for actua
. settlers was another matter which h
5 exploded by reciting the enormou
, grants which the Republican Con
| crosses had voted away to corpora
, tions in nine years, in this way dis
| posing of 144, 538, 1874 acres, while witt
in two years of Democratic Admin
: istration it has been ordered tha
D nearly 1O2,O00,000 acres of land he'll
: by railroad corporations shall b
: thrown open to the people for home
{ and farms.
t He also investigated the labor que
t lion, citing the various enactments will
f in the past year for the relief of the Il
y boring man, not the least of which are Ii
0 bills putting the seal of condemnatio
/ on the use of convict labor by strikin
d from the appropriations every item fl
o the use of convict labor on publ
y buildings, and also prohibiting the in
n portation of labor under contract
II compete with American workmen.
e was this latter bill which the Republi,
II ans managed to defeat.
D The tariff question was also give
n iudicious attention, and his argumel
was based on the broad axiom that a
taxation shall be limited to the requir
ments of an economical government
and that the necessary reduction
0, taxation must be effected without d
priying American labor of the abili
: to successfully compete with foreie
labor. In his Judgment tariff whit
raises sufficient amount of revenu
and no more, for honest government
y and at the same time incidentally pr
tects the laboring classes, the man
featuring interests and the agricultur
and business pursuits of the countr
will be of Democratic origin when
comes, and it will have the sanction
ID the most illustriOus names in the histo
of the Republic.
The question of pensions was al
ct created at length, with the sentime
that any man or men guilty Of unfa
e. ness, illiberality or bad faith iowa
the soldiers of the war for the Uni
II would be speedily and utterly ovs
whelmed by the excavations of t
"! whole American people.
ne The work of the recent Congressio
al session was then reviewed, showi
what had been accomplished for t
soldiers, and the effort of the Repu
licans to belittle the administration
a. the Pension Department came in
its full share of execration.
OF On the question of prohibition, TAXI
OF for his text: where do the ros
or eo,l,9 ,s tho Conotor wos no rticn1a