The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1888-04-11
Vermont Republicans.

vermont Republicans.
ELECTION OF DELEGATES TO THE NATIONAL
CoNvENTIoN-A LARGE ATTENDANCE, GREAT
ENTHUSIASM AND PERFECT HARMoNY-sTIR-
RING sPEECHEs-THE PLATFORM.
The republican state convention to elect
delegates-at-large to the national convention
was held in the Howard Opera-house, Bur-
| lington, on Wednesday, April 4. The con-
vention was called to order at 10: 80 o'clock
| by Chairman Page of the state committee.
After prayer by Rev. DR.. Eaton the call for
the convention was read. There were
about 800 delegates present, and to save
time the roll-call was dispensed with. Chair
man Page nominated Hon. Phillip X. Gleed
of Morristown as temporary chairman and
he was unanimously elected. On taking
the chair Mr.. Gleed delivered an able and
eloquent speech.
In his opening remarks he referred to the
extraordinary free-trade message of Presi-
dent Cleveland, and to " the brilliant leader
across the seas, who came so near to leading
the party to victory in 1884" This allusion
to Mr. Blaine elected great and long-con-
tinued applause. The speaker then asked,
Where was our Douglas then? One note
from his bugle-horn would have won the
day, and yet he refused it," He character
lied the democratic party as poor by nature
and ruined by cultivation 1t had produced
! nothing hut poor crop of free-traders. We
are here" he continued, ito represent no
political bosses, no ring of federal office
| holders, but are as free to think and speak
as the air of our native hills We are
| gathered to give form and utterance by no
| uncertain speech or hating measure, to the
Independent intelligence, sturdy virtue and
| far-sghted patriotism of the republican
! party of Vermont. Assembling as the sec
ond of the sisterhood of states forming into
battle-lne for the coming campaign we can
| say, in all sobernesS, that the republicans of
| Vermont have the same confidence in, and
enthusiasm for, the national republican
! principles, prophesies and leaders as in the
| brighter days of Lincoln, Grant and Gar
field That our confidence should have
greater stability, our enthusiasm greater
motive power is the natural result of what
we have learned in the sad school of add
versity of the blunders and hypocrisies of
the democratic party during the last four
years. In its foreign policy that party
seems to have forgotten that long ago under
| Washington the nation asserted, and on
many "A bloody field maintained, its indie
pendence of all foreign powers, especially
of that selfish mistress of free-trade, Great
Britain, and from that day to this the soil
of America, with all her rights upon and in
the seas, has been consecrated to the in
dustries, the culture and the homes of a
peculiar people, known the world over as
Americans. While with a broad patriot
ism, surpassed only by our charity we
recognize the equality of every citizen be-
fore the law, whether in the solid South
or divided North, we have felt again and
again an involuntary shudder as we have
seen the sword of excessive partsanship ;
turned relentlessly against the manned and
crippled defenders of the republic. We
have no judgment to pass upon the motives
of our former gallant allies who felt con-
strained in the heat of the last campaign to
| forsake us with whom they had fought so
many political battles and won so many
| splendid victories for personal liberty and
| civil gerNipp reform These Uputl pnaD "a r
said to be republicans with a conscience. Be
| IL so. Have they not seen their best-beloved
child-reform of the civil service-dishon-
ored, rejected and finally driven from the
democratic camp? Are they not discouraged,
| broken-hearted, in their fruitless missionary
work for that article of our republican creed
in that PARKWAY land of political spoils? In
! the name of their conSciences believe many
of them are waiting to take their places in
the advanced lines of the old army. We
welcome them and with them the care and
nurture of that republican child, civil service
reform. With the same candor and hopeful
| welcome we turn to that noble band of tenn
perance men and women who in the last
campaign unwittingly helped to place in
power their natural and inveterate foe, the
democratic party. During the last four
years they have seen the combination of
brewers distilers and dealers filling the
democratic campaign treasures with their
criminal gains, while the party itself is
every WHERE Known as DelnB VIGOROUSLY tne
friend of free rum They have seen their
former comrades still fighting beneath the
republican banner, driving to caves and
dens the demons of the drink curse with
the whip and scourge of high-license, anti
saloon movements, local option and prohi-
biton. Many of them must have learned
that with us they are power for good,
while apart from us they must share the
fate of Israel's lost tribes. We welcome
them back with hearty pledge to join heart
and hand in common battle against the
greatest foe of our free people and free in
situations. -Four years ago we were told
that the party of equal rights had failed to
secure TO the black citizen of the South a
free ballot and fair count, but that under
the strong arm OF a democratic administers
ton his every right should be sacredly pro-
tected. But what have our eyes beheld?
The colored republican of the solid South,
with greater despair than that in which
Adam turned from the tree of life, turning
away from the caucus and the ballot-boX,
loving his life more than his right to vote
even with the republican party, until he
has almost forgotten that there ever was a
proclamation OF emancipation or Consttu-
tional amendment that at once made him a
citizen and voter Our forced retirement
by the accidental loss of few hundred
voters in the Empire State, while it has
been the nations loss, has been our gain
In the cool and quiet of our retirement we
have reviewed the principles and achieve.
ments of the old party, we have listened
to its promises and its prophesies until with
a zeal, "A courage and certainty of hope
we come forth once again as "A strong
man to run race. With becoming mod.
esty we are to remember that numerically
Vermont is small in territory, in population
in voting power in the national convention
and the electoral college, but in moving the
heart and stirring the conscience of this
great nation no republican state has been
mghtier. In the spirit of perfect harmony
let us fill our delegation with men unpledged
for or against any candidate whom the pat
riotsm and wisdom of the national conven
ton may name, and who, after their work
with like harmony and fidelity TO the re-
publican party has been well done, will re-
turn to MS full of fight and faith and victory
Our delegation was among the first to plant
the banner of Vermont republicans at the
feet of that great commoner of the Amer
lean people, Abraham Lincoln, who gave