The Bennington banner. [volume] (Bennington, Vt.) 1858-1894, 1888-06-21
THE ORIGIN OF THE NAME RR-
PUBLICAN PARTY

I I'll
Wise men always desire instruction
and SO Judge Cook asks for light on the
question of analogy between the atti-
tude OF the Prohibition party of today
and the old Liberty party of the 40's and
the early 5O's. think the Judge as a
good lawyer should have demurred to
instead of traversing the plea of the
PrOhibitiOnists.
| The slavery question was sectional,
and the national parties, Whig and
Democrat, could neither of them oppose
slavery, for if they did 50, the Southern
| contingent would 90 over to the other
party, while intemperance is a national
evil,and can be antagOnized as naturally
by an existing party as by a new one, the
only drawback being that the temper
ance class in the two sections are in op-
posite parties, all which can be utilized
by such definite stand taken by either
as will draw the temperance support of
both, according to the plan of the anti
saloon Republicans, which, when acted
upon, will leave no occasion for the sep.
arate mission of the third party.
hut Judge Cook, one of the survivors
OF the Henry Clay idolators, can never
forgive the Liberty party for the defeat
OF their idol, by refusal to fall down and
worship at its shrine. | eXult IN the
grand old party for the same reason, as
the difference politically between Polk
and Clay, both Shareholders, was Texas
without war. or Texas at all events, and
Clay earned his rebuke by the Liberty
party when, in that Texas issue, the
Liberty party philanthropist, Mr.. Men
denhall of Indiana, in behalf of his party
interviewed Mr.. Clay with view of as
certalning what, if any, reasons his can
didacy offered over Polk for the support
of the Liberty party men. He was told
by that Wing idol, "go home, God damn
you, and mind your own business, nv
slaves are fat and sleek"
But to set Judge Cook righton the his
tory OF these times, though generally |
should modestly take the place of his
pupil, assume the position of tutor and
call the attention to the organization of
the Liberty party by its distinctive nom.
inatlon of James e. Birney in 1910. We
in Vermont gave him only 3l9 votes, set
down in the returns as scat" for scat
tering, and in the whole nation some
5000 votes all told.
In 1874 again by such nomination the
Liberty party vote was swellpd up to
some 10000. In 1S48 the anti Cass Dem.
Ocrats of New York invited union con-
ventiOn of the anti-slavery men of all
parties at Buffalo, which resulted in the
nomination of Van Buren and Adams,
the former an anti-Cass Democrat, the
latter an anti slavery Wing very dear to
the Liberty party, which, having partici.
pated in the union convention, did sup
port that ticket, thereby gaining large
permanent reinforcement from both of
the old parties. In 1852, contrary to
Judge Cooks memory, John T. Hale was
the nominee Of the unbroken old radical
Liberty party, and the phenomenal
growth of the party in that campaign so
clearly illustrated its appointed mission
that the Wing party of the whole North
began in earnest to e5pOuse the mission
of the Liberty party in a way | will
Illustrate from a home scene which in
the first National RepubhcauConvention
Of 1856 | made do the service of putting
Vermont at the head Of the national col.
umn Of Republican organization, on the
occasion Of the challenge from the old
war horse, LaCk Chandler Of Michigan.
The calls Of the Wing and Liberty
parties Of this county in 1854 for our
conventions, by sort of mutually
among leaders, of which at that time !
was in L position to know, were fixed
fer the same day and hour here, in Rut-
land, Both parties assembled at their
respective halls and organized, having
the honor to preside OveI the Liberty
party convention, and an eminent anti
slavery Whig over the other. Season.
ably, that eminent lawyer and astute
politician, Edgar L. Ormsbee, in the
Wing convention took the floor, and af-
ter a glowing tribute to the fitness and
fidelity Of the Liberty party, and the
stupid hesiJaucy of his own. which he
characterized in terms as shameful sub
servienCy to the pruslavery spirit, t,engcu-
dered as he said by a class of leaders
who got their religion and their politics
from the New York Observer, despiCa-
BILE, time serving sheet, 20 years ago and
had been growing steadily meaner ever
since He concluded by moving that
'as this hall is the largest. the president
appoint committee of three of the pO-
litest men in this convention to wait up.
on the Liberty party convention and in
vite it in a body to come into the Wing
NOh' oiiN III III ITN Bdll1 III
the purpose of promoting the cause of
human liberty The resolution having
with uproarious unanimity been adopt
ed the president had the good judgment
and taste to select those marvels of pO-
liteness, the mover and Hons. John A.
Conant of Brandon and Judge Cook then
of Dandy, who discharged the duties of
their office in SO courtly a manner that
we by unanimous vote accepted, and as
a consolidated union for worthy cause
we made up the ticket for the county, of
the radical men of the parties, and upon
the call tor a name for this pioneer
union party your paper has recently
published in communication of Judge
Bishop of California fact remembered
by others in this county that replied,
Let it be called the Republican party"
In conclusion, will say that consld-
ering the prominence of Judge Cook
himself in these historic proceedings,
how he could have fallen into error IN
detail is only explainable from the fact
that he could never forgive the Liberty
party in New York for the demolition
of the idol Clay, more than we can the
Prohibitian party of the same state in
defeating the Statesman Blaine by the
election of the humbug Cleveland.