Waterbury evening Democrat., 1888-06-14

CONVENTION HALL, CINCINNATI, glOoU. king Caucus Dethroned" was the newspaper heading of the report of an event in 1894 which put an end to the plan of congressional caucus, prepared the way for conventions and finally made Andrew Jackson dictator in American politics. The people believed he had been swindled out of the presidency in 1S2425,! and he was nominated in 1898 by 'tspon- taneous enthusiasm" as the papers had 1t, no convention being necessary. But in 1882 the times were stormy. All the exciting questions came at once, high tariff, United States bank, French spolia- tion claims, alliances with the republics of South America, nullifcation and Wings confidently claimed that all these forces worked in their favor, and ridi- culed their opponents as the ''rabble,"
 ignorant Democrats" etc., only one of thousand proofs that Americans of the old Federal-Eamitonia type never will
 understand the country they 1.-Two in. The Democratic doctrine that the rich and the
 learned can take care of themselves, and that where government interferes at all it should guard the interests of the poor and the laborer, is to the Hamiltonian a stumbling block and to the Republican,
 foolishness, but it always wins in a free, ,
 country when faithfully adhered to. 1
 Aided by his personal popularity it gave
 Andrew Jackson 219 electoral votes to 49
 for Henry Clay, and made the succession, of Martin Van Buren in 1886 q certainty.
 Then came panic-always bad for the;
 party in power-and Van Buren, again
 nominated at Baltimore, was defeated ini 1S4O. The campaign of 1944 was most skill fully managed by the Democrats, and it's hSct0r fn politicians who town their party" or
 think they do. Martin Van Buren and Henry Clay had contracted to ''take the
 Texas question out of politics." Each one of them was to ignore 1t. The Demo-, crats saw this scheme in time, and set MT. Van Buren aside. The convention, again at Baltimore, was extremely stormy. James K. Polk was nominated, at once making the Texas question prominent, and Clay was completely outfanlzed. In the heat of the campaign he attempted to change front on the Texas question, and. thus completed the demoralization of thes Wings. In 1849 the New York Democ-! ' racy was divided, and that meant disaster; for united Democracy in that state is almost absolutely certain of victory. The | convention again met at Baltimore, May 22, and nominated Lewis Cass, of Michi- gan, and Gen. William c. Butler, of Ken '
 majority of the votes and of congressman
 the division in New York gave the state to Taylor and Fillmore, and so Gen. Zach ! Taylor became minority president
 In 1852 the Democrats were once more ! united and victory was considered certain,
 as all the distinctively Democratic meas
 ures since 1844 had borne good fruit and
 the country was in the highest state of
 prosperity. The convention again met at Baltimore June 1. nominated Franklin
 Pierce, of New Hampshire, and William
 R. King, of Alabama, and put forth a per,
 fectly encyclopedia platform, one so long
 that the people never read it, but made, the campaign and cast their votes entirely
 upon the record of the two parties. Nor was it till 1862-64 that it was generally ] known to this country the the long plat ] form contained an indorsement of tho oft 1 disputed Virginia and Kentucky *'Resolu- tions of 179S." Pierce and King got tho
 vote of twenty-seven states to four for
 Scott and Graham, the Whig candidates.