Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1888-06-23
The Ch,cnro Platform-Again.

Itisa noteworthy fac, that the Republican
National Convention put into its platform
not one word on the subject OF sumptuary
laws, lduor.ssloors, high license. or prohIbi-
tion. Ordinarily, failure to mention any
subject that such a convention is asked OF
expected 10 refer to indicates that the mem
bers OF the convention considered the
matter az unworthy OF the attention
OF such a body. But in this case the
failure 10 mention indicates that the matter
was considered highly irnportsnt-in word,
dangerous. The members OF the Chicago
convention were afraid either 10 denounce
sumptuaIy laws or 10 declare in their favor.
They were AFRAID either TO defend or to de-
nounee the hQuor.saloons. They we're
afraid either 10 oppose or to cham
mon high license. They were afraid
T. come out either for or against prohl-
billion. In word the Republicans as
scmbled in convention IN Chicago this week
had the sagacity 20 foresce that the Bepubh.
can party would - greatly damaged II thai
convention should make an iasue on prohi-
biiion. and tbis whether Il should take The
one side or the other. We in Virginia know
that If either plrty shall he weakened In tAis
state on account u TIE agitation IN favor OF
prohibitory laws 1t viii he the Democratic
party. ON the other hsDd, the Republicans IN
tie state ~ View York know that II either
party is 90 be weakened in hat state on ac-
count OF the agitation in favor Of proh6itory
laws 10 will be the Republican parry. And
this was wcighty consideration at Chicago
under a.. sting C,rcum,tances. A change OF
les, than six hundred votes from CLEVELAND
70 BLAINE would have giyel the vote OF tina,
State q, The latter In 1885,. The Prohibition
lists ID N,v York cast twenty-five thousand
votes in 1855. Think OF hat-tueniy-nye
Thousand votes throTn away, II we may sag
so, ou prohibition candidate, and BLAINE
beaten by only ten hundred and forty
seven. 10 wonder the Republican National
Convention gave 4 wide berth TO all liquor
questions.
Another noteworthy feature OF the plat
form is q free-school plank that makes no re-
ference by mime TO the BLAIR bill. The
words are: "The state or nation, or both
combined. should support free institutions
Of learnisg sufficient to afford TO every child
growing MP in the land an opportunity OF a
good commons hool education" This IL
not hall so strong a declaration az we had
expected. n, nllducss suggests that there
were antlBLAIR bill men on the Platform
Committee.
Another noteworthy and exceedingly i'm
pudent feature Of the platform is the decla-
ration that "thc Republican party is in IA
vor OF the use OF both gold and silver as
money, ard condemns the policy OF the
Democratic Administration in its efforts TO
demouetzc silver! That is indeed brazen
impudence. But the party which stole the
presidency in 1876 and in 1SSS denounced
CLEVELAND as q fraudulently-clected Presi-
dent was OF course equal to the task OF de-
nouncing the Democratic party FOR
crime committed by the Republican party.
A Republican President vetoed the silver
bill. and a Democratic House OF Representa-
tlyes passed it over the veto.
Even Mr.. SHERMAN was an anti.sllver
man, aud actually proposed In the United
States Senate so TO amend the silver bill IS to
provide for making a silver dollar contain
much more silver than it does contain.
In other words, he voted and
otherwise tried to depreciste oliver.
Silver vas denonetzcd by Republican
Congress, aided and abetted by a Republican
Presioeat-this was years before the silver
bill was passed--and has never been restored
10 its proper condition. The coinage OF sill
yer ought to be as free as the coinage OF gold.
Silver would soon rise to par with gold II il
were treated a. gold is treated.
The opening paragraphs Of the platform
ere puerile. The references to GRANT, GAR.
FIELD, ARTHUR, LOGAN, CoNkLING aud She
RIDAN are plainly perfunetory; aud the Bra
ri plank is contemplate. Nine tenths OF the
members Of the Chicago Convention care no
more for the negroes a Brazil than they do
for the poor workingmen who in Pepnsylva-
mis- aud other northern States are doomed Ia
life worse than one OF slavery. II
we could be surprised at anything that
Republican convention might do We would
have experienced that feeling when reading
the plank under consideration. But we
were not surprised. The Brazil plank was
adopted, not because the authors OF ii care a
straw for the negroes OF Brazil, or those OF
this country as 10 that matter, but because
that resolution was understood by the ma.
lignants TO reflect upon the people Of the
southern States OF this Union.
But enough OF the platform for to-day.