Alpena weekly argus. [volume] (Alpena, Mich.) 1871-1893, 1888-06-20
Allan g. Thurman.
J. NJ. WESTON,
Chairman.

Ohio, and a number of the citizens OF
that place, together with the Randall
club, of Pennsylvania, paid visit to
the Democratic nominee for Vice
President, a short time after the con.
vention, and were addressed as fol,
lows, by Judge Thurman:
"My friends, and fellow citizens, |
sincerely thank you for this manifest.
alton of your good will and esteem,
1t has been well said, find how a man
is thought of by his neighbors and
you can form correct judgement OF
that mans character and worth. II
l may Judge from this demonstration,
as well as from all the acts of kind
ness that have received from the
goodly people of Columbus for more
than a third of a century, | may in
dulge the hope that | stand well in
the affections of my nsighbors.
"My friends, / should be the most
insensible and cold-blooded man in
the world if / did not feel grateful for
the kindness you have manifested to-
ward me tonight yes, and | may
say that you have manifested toward
me before tonight, and yet / do not
know about that quite. say kind
ness-what is kindness? was living
in my own quiet home with my good
wife and my children and grandchild-
rem and friends around me, wishing
for nothing in this world but peace and
quiet, when you and others like you
force me once more into the political
arena. Whether that was kind or
not time will tell whether it was
well advised or not, time will disclose,
but one thing that | need not wait for
time to disclose, and that is that /
owe you the deepest and profoundest
gratitude from the very bottom of my
heart.
"You will not expect me to make a
political speech tonight. When the
two parties shall have been fully
in the field, when the is
sues, as the lawyers call them, shall
have been fully declared, when all
the candidates have their harness on
and are ready for the tilt, then it will
be right to bear my humble part in
the ARRAY. Then give you my word
that / shalt be heard from according
to my feeble abilities. l think there
is life enough in me yet. | think
there is still in this old head some
remnants of brains to enable me to
tell the people why it is that all my
life long have been a Democrat and
mean to die one, and ] think that |
shall be able to give them some reason
why they should be Democrats from
now until they are laid in the grave.
my friends, it is not my purpose
to say any harsh things of our polit-
ical opponents. That has never been
my style of speaking. Even when |
was a young man, or might say, not
a man Mt all--for the first stump
speech ever made ] was nothing but
a boy--even then ] always endeavor-
ed to keep a civil tongue in my head.
/ always recognized the right of every
man to do his own thinking, and if he
would only think honestly and be as
tolerant of me as | was to him, there
should be no harsh words fall from
my lips in respect to him, and so now
in the contests that happened in our
own party. it never has been my hab-
it to quarrel with those who did not
think just as / thought. have been
before your convention at St. Louis
without my will, against my will, as
a candidate for great Office. was
warmly, generously, nobly supported
in that convention. | was also warm.
ly and earnestly opposed. Towards
those who opposed me | have nothing
in the world but feelings of kindness.
1t was their right, if they thought
some other man was better-a better
man to be nominated, il they thought
it was more polite or advisable, how
ever well they might think of me, To
nominate somebody else, il was their
right to think so. They were sent
there to exercise their judgement, and
God knows they have created not a
single ruffle In my bosom nor the least
symptom of ill-will towards them
No, my friends, am here to advo-
cate the right of every free American
citizen to think for himself. ] be-
lieve in it and have always believed
in il as the very essence of democracy
and of free government, and so long
as God gives me strength to speak "a
my fellow men so long shall talk to
them the good, honest Democracy in
which ] was schooled and in which ]
believe.
Nov, my friends, should be play
ing the part Of Hamlet, with Hamle,
left of, if did not say another thing
that | am going to say, and which
reserved, upon the teaching of the
New Testament, that the master o.
the feast brings on the best of hi,
wine last. ] tell you, my friends