Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1888-10-31
DEMOCRACY ARRAIGNED
TEXT OF JAMES G. BLAINE'S CHICA
GO SPEECH.


The twenty-four years of Republican rule in
the United States form an epoch second only in
importance to those great years comprehended
between the Declaration of Independence and
the organization of the Federal Government.
history recognizes this by assigning to the first
President and chief actor in the later period
rank second only in American craftsmanship
and heroism to Washington himself. The twen-
tysfour years reach from 1861 to 1885, and We're
distinguished by advance in every department
of industry and by progress in every field OF
human effort more extraordinary than were ever
realized within like period in any age in any
other country.
the executive power of the nation was trans
ferred to the Democratic party, and the political
campaign in which the American people are now
engaged is to determine whether the Democratic
rule shall continue or whether the Republican
party on it's record of achievements shall be in
trusted with a new lease of power The Repub-
1icans contend that the general welfare of the
,country has not been promoted by the Demo-
lcratic administration and that the Democratic
promises of reform have been signally disre-
garded and trampled upon. They contend that
the administration has been against the mate
rial welfare Of the country, that it has not main
tanned the national honor, and that 1t threatens
the impairment of our industrial system,
whereby, under protective tariff, the country
has advanced SO rapidly in power and prosper
ity.
The Repub leans arrsign Mr.. Cleveland for
falling short of the promises wherewith his
administration was inaugurated and for disap-
pointing the just expectations which his words
inspired.
l. They arraign him for his failure to improve
the civit service as he promised in every form of
words in which official pledges could be ex-
pressed. Instead of reform there has been con-
slant deterioration. Instead of curing the sys-
tenn of artisan removals the President has do
veloped it to such extent that more officials
have been removed from office during the pres
,ent administration without charge and for more
political reasons than by any three of his pro-
selectaei who were eight years in the Presiden-
tial chair. The spoils system, instead of being
h. 57or al lDaw,
sdevelopai more intensely than ever before, ea1
the assessment OF oficebolders is so notorious
that the Chairman of the Democratic Nation
Committee takes his station in of the hotels
in Washington, within sight of the WLito
House. and as read from congratulatory dls-
parcn published in Democratic paper, receives
assurance of contributions from more than loo
oficeholders in a single day and proved before
special committee of the Senate. It has, more
over, been charged in responsible newspaI ers
that men of bad character, even convicted and
pardoned criminals, have been placed in office
under the present administration, and that
thus the civil service has been subjected to open
shame III degree hitherto unknown.
Tho Republicans arraign the President for
having surrendered the rights of the country in
the fisheries of the North American co ast in o
manner derogatory to the dignity of the nation
and in utter disregard of the rights of the fish
ermen. The question Of the fisheries has been
q subject of dispute ever since the war of 49,,
and never before has the country, even in It's
days of weakness, been willing to surrender to
Great Britain the rights which now, in the day
of our prestige and power, the present admins
tration abandons, TO tie. sacrifice of national
honor and the destruction of the rights of our
brave fishermen. The American people were
not more surprised at the tame manner in which
our fishery rights were surrendered than wore
the negotiators of England themselves when
they found that obstacles hitherto insurmouns-
able by British diplomacy had been removed by
the present admins tratlon and the pathway
diplomat victory made smooth and easy to
the representatives of England.
3. The Republicans arraign Mr.. Cleveland
for his cruel disregard of the rights of poor and
needy soldiers who incurred their distress and
their poverty in the service of the nation and Hho
by the interpostion of the President veto were
deprived of the pittance voted to them by G Ie-
publican Senate and a Democratic House. Not
only has the President vetoed the general bill
passed fer the relief OF all needy and dependent
soldier but in more than 200 cases of peculiar
and personal sGfferings he had interposed his
power TO prevent these creditors of the nation
receiving their just dues. His vetoes. of he
bills both general and personal, had thrust thou
sands Of soldiers for their daily subsistence upon
the Illuminating alternatives OF private. chai tiles
or the public poornouse. No man jealous of
American honor, no man appreciatng the sacri-
fee which the soldiers made for the country's
unity, should ever be willing to see man who
in the ranks of bat lie had defended the Union
of the States declared public pauper and left
to die III the aims And yet that is pre-
cisely the condi ion in which thousands Of
soldiers who took honorable part in the coUn-
try S defense are left by the PRESIDENT veloss.
The Republicans arraign the President not
merely Tor MS veto OF pension bills, but for Lis
general and dangerous use OF the veto power,
without precedent i'll the previous history of the
country and altogether beyond the conception or
imagina ion of those who framed the Constitu-
ton. HEr. jefferson, whom the Democrats have
politically deifed as the founder of their party
had e.Gat years OF administration distinguished
by troublesome periods and by events of greag
moment and yet he never found occasion even
for using the veto, SO great his respect
for the viii OF The people as manifested through
their representatives in Congress. For the long
period from Nashlngtons inauguration to the
close If Arthurs administration the veto was
used bus seventy-fiVe times in ALL Mr.. Cleye-
lands term rounds out he century of the
TN M in h ar
1straton be has used the-veto 30 times-nlore
tts-n four times as frequently as it used by
al OF his predecessors in the long period of nine
t. six years. 1t seems to me the Presidents
eco conception of the veto power is that wherever
he.Wou,I vote No" if he were member of SEN
ate or House he would veto q measure as PreSi-
dent, which is an entirely new Interpretation of
the Constitution unknown to the founders of
the Government and absolutely repadiated by
every one who has occupied the Presid initial
achair before him.
There is something extraordinary in the space
which Nh. Cleveiands vetoes will fill i'll the
archives o; the Government His yetoes Of pri-
vate pens ON bills will occupy more space IN our
political history than all the regular ann ual
messages of Washington Adams and Jefferson
for the first twenty years OF the Federal Govern
ment; al if all his vetoes on all subjects be,
combined the space they will fill will be greater
than the annual messages of all the Presidents
from the formation OF the Constitution TO the
close OF the second war with Great Britain.
submit that the trainers OF the Constitution
never intended to make the President third
Legislative power with vote that could override
has been condemned by all the great statesmen
of both parties Such a of the veto power
would delIone any constitutional monarch in
Europe. 1t such use of tie veto power
that gave that French King who brought
the revolution the of Monsieur Veto";;
and President Cleveland will be fortunate if in
history he escapes the same descriptive soubri-
quet
a. The Republicans arraign the admins
tration for having unjuatly, without precedent,
and for partisan reasons DISTINGUISHED 100000
American citizens i'll the Territory of Oak ia.
1t has been toe established practice of the Fed
era Government to admit Territory TO the
privileges of q State when it has SUFFICIENT
populat on to entitle it to Represent ativs in
Congress- habit that naturally and readily
,deiuced from a clause III the Federal Constjtu-
fior. There has been no variation from that ex-
cept u slight detention which occurred prior to
1851 by the efforts of the slave power to keep an
equality of votes in the Senate and to force
slave state into the Union whenever free state
YVES ready to enter. Thus, Mississippi and In
diana, Alabama and Illinois, Missouri and
Maine, Arkansas and Michigan, Florida and
Iowa. came in practically in pairs in the order
have named them. But after this equality was
broken by the admission of California In 1850,
wicked attempt was made to re:establsh 1t by
the fraudulent admission OF Kansas as q slave
State Since the failure OF that conspiracy, how