The Valley Virginian. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1865-1895, 1888-01-26


came to deliver and to save. It entered
the arena where the bsleagnered and as
sailed territories were struggling for free
dom, and drew around them the sacred
circle of heerty,w which The demon of slavery
has never dared to cross. 1t made them
free forever. Strengthened BY its victory on
the frontier. the young party, under the
leadership OF that great man, who, on this
spot twenty years ago was made It's chief,
entered tha national capitol and assumed
the high duties Of government The light
which shore from its banner illumiRed its
pathway to power. Every slave pen and
| the shackles of every slave within the
shadow of the capitol were consumed in
the rekindled fire ofsyeedom.
Our great national industries by cruel
and calculating neglect had been pros
trated, and the streams Of revenue flowed
IN such feeble currents that the treasury
itself was well nigh empty. The money of
| the people consisted mainly OF the wratched
notes of two Thousand uncontrolled and
irresponsible state banking corporations,
which were filing the ceuntry with a cir
culation that poisoned rather than sus-
tanned the life Of business.
The Republican party changed all this,
1t abolished the Babel Of confusion, and
gave W tAe SouH1g cuFTsslcy as bstiouhi
as its flag, based upon the sacred faith OF
the people.
1t threw Its protecting arm around our
great Industries, and they stood erect with
new life. 1t filed with the spirit of true ma
tionality all the great functions of the gov
ernmept 1t confronted rebellion of VII
examped magnitude, with slavery behind
1t, and, under God, fought the final battle
of liberty unti the victory Was won.
| Then. after the storms of battle, were
heard the calm wares Of peace spoken by
the ccnquering nation, asing to the foe
that lay PROSTATE at its feet; "This Ia our
only rsvengs-that you Join us in lifting
into the serene firm lament Of the Constitu-
ton, to shine like stars forever ard forever,
the immortal principles Of truth and jus
| tice, that sll men, white or black, shall be
free, and shall be equal before the law"
! Then csme the questions IF reconstruc-
| ton. the national debt, and the keepfsg OF
the public faith.
Il tae settlement of these questions the
Republican party has eosplete'i IFS twenty
five years of glorious exfstadce, asd 1t has
sent ur here to prepare It for another lfs-
trum OF eusy and Of victory. Fl she'll wo
accomplish teis great work. We esBnet
DO 1t, my friends, by assailing our Re-
publican brethren. God FORBID that l
bhSNid 1&y OAC WGl0s OSSi RI7 6AaAOW
upen any name en- the roll of our heroes.
TIE coming fight is our Thermopyiae. We
are standing upon narrow isthmus. II
our Spartan hosts are united. we csr with
st4nG sill the PsrsisHs thst the Xerxss of
Democracy can bring against us Let us
mold our grennd this one year, and thea
1.-THE stars In their courses" will fgat Ter
us. The census will bring re-
endorsements and continued power.
But Ia order to win victory
| now, we want the vote Of every Repub-
| lican-of every Grant Repu 5ican and every
| anti Grant Republican, ia America, of every
Blaine nan aud every aad-B Blaine man. The
| vote of every follower Of every candidate is
! nesded to make success certain. Therefore
[ say, gentlemen and brsthren, we are here
| to take calm counsel together and inquire
what we shall DO.
We wansa man whose life aud opinions
cmbsdy all the achievements of which
| have spoken. We want a man who, stand
ing on mountain height, traces the VIC
torieus footsteps Of our party ia the past,
and carrying Ia hta heart tbs memory of Its
| glorious deeds, locke forward prepared to
| meet the dangers to come. We want one
who will act in no spirit Of unkiodnsss to-
ward those we lately met in battle. The
| Repuhllcaa party offers to our brethren
| of she south the olive branch OF peace, and
| invites them to renewed brotherhood on
| this supreme condition. That it shall be
adnitted forever, that In the war fer the
! Union we were right and they were wrong.
On that supreme condition we meet them
as brethern, and ask them to sh eTs with as
the blessings and honers Of this great re-
public
Now, gentlemen, net to weary you, am
about 10 present name for your considera-
! f{on--tbG of who tina
rade, associate and friend of nearly sll the
noble dead, whose faces lock down upon us
| from these walls tonight (referring to per-
traits Of Lincoln, Summer Wade. Chan dlsr,
| and other eminent Americans hanging ia
career 81 public service twenty
| Eve years ago; who courageously
confronted the slave power in the
| days of peril on the plains of Kansas, when
first began to fall the red drops Of that
bloody shower which finally swelled into
the deluge of gore in the late rebellion.
He bravely stood by young Kansas, and re-
turning to his seat in the national legisla-
ture, his pathway, through all the subse-
quent years, has been marked by labors
werthily performed in every department of
| legislation.
You ask for his monument, I point to
| twenty FIVE years OF national statutes. Not
ono great, henefcent law has been placed
on our statute bosas without his intelligent
and powerful aid. He aided in formulating
the laws to raise the great argaies aud
pavies which carried US through the ways
| His hand was seen in the workmanship &
those statutes that restored and breashs
back ''tee unity and married calm of
stAtes' His hand was in all taat
| great legislation that created the war
| currency, and In the sill
greater work that redeemed the promises
of the government and made that currency
equsl to gold. When at last he passed from
the halls of legislation into hig1 executive
| office he displayed that experience, intelli-
gence, firmness, and peise Of character
which has carried us through a stormy
period of three years with one half the pub
lie press crying ''crucify him. and a hos
| tile Congress seeking to prevent success.
In all this he remained unmoved until
victory crowned him. The great fiscal
affairs of the nation and the vast business
interests Of the country he guarded and
preserved while executing the law of re-
sumption, and effected it's object without a
jar, and against the false prophecies of
one-half of the press and all of he Demo
cratic party. He has shown himself able
to meet with cslmness the great emer-
gencies of the govern uent. For twenty
FIVE years he has trodden the peril
Gus heights of public duty, ana
against all the shafts of malice has
borne his breast unframed. He has
stood In the blaze of s'that fierce light that
beats against the throne,n but bis fiercest
ray has found no flaw in bis armor, no stain
upon his shield. l do not present him as a
better Republican or a better man than
thousands Of others that we honor, but
present him for your deliberate and favor
able consideration. nominate John Sher-
man, of Ohio.