Wood River times. [volume] (Hailey, Idaho) 1882-1915, 1888-08-03
THE PLATFORM.
THE PRINCIPLES WITH WHICH
THE REPUBLICANS APPEAL
TO THE PEOPLE.

honor the mSmO1y OF tnelr HtSt great
leader, the immortal champion of lib
erty and the rights Of the people,
Abraham Lincoln, and to cover also
with wreaths of imperishable remem-
brance and gratitude to the heroic
names of cur later leaders, who have
been more recently called away from
our councils-Grant, Garfield, Arthur,
Logan, Conkiing. May their memo
ries he faithfully cherished. We also
recall with our greetings and with
prayer for his recovery, the name of
one Of our living heroes, whose memo
ry will be treasured in the history,
both of Republicans and of the re-
public, the name Of that noble soldier
and favorite child Of victory, Phillip
Fl. Sheridan.
In the spirit of those great leaders
aud of our own devotion to human
liberty, and with that hostility to all
forms of despotism and oppression
which is the fundamental idea Of the
Republican party, we send fraternal
congratulations to our fellow-Ameri-
cans of Brazil upon their great act of
the abolition of slavery throug hout
the two American continents.
We earnestly hope that we may
soon congratulate our fellow-citizens
of Irish birth upon the peaceful re-
covery of Home Rule for Ireland.
We real1irm our answering devo-
ton to the National Constitution and
to the indissoluble union of the
States, and to the autonomy reserved
to the States under the Constitution;
to the personal rights and liberties of
citizens in all the States and Terri
tories of the Union, and especially to
the supreme aud sovereign right of
every lawful citizen, rich or poor,
native or foreign born, white or black,
to cast one free ballot in public cleo
tons, and to have that ballot duly
counted. We hold the free and
honest popular ballot and the just
and equal representation OF all the
people to be the foundation Of Re-
publican government, and demand
effective legislation to secure the in
tegrity and purity OF elections, which
are the fountains of all public author
ity. We charge that the present ad-
ministraton and the Democratic ma
jority in Congress owe their existence
to the suppression of the ballot by a
criminal notification of the Constitu
ton and the laws of the United
States.
We are uncompromisingly in favor
of the American system Of protection
We protest against its destruction
proposed by the President and hl'
party. They serve the interests o
Europe; we will support the Interest,"
> Of America. We accept the issue
and confidently appeal to the people
Tor their Judgment. The protective
system must be maintained; it
abandonment has always been follow
ei by general disaster to all interests
except those of the Insurer and tn
sheriff.
We denounce the Mills bill a
destructive to the general business
the labor and the farming interests o
the country; and we heartily endors
the consistent and patriotic action O
the Republican Representatives il
Congress in opposing its passage.
! We condemn the proposition OF tn
Democratic party to place wool OF
the free list, and we insist that tn
duties thereon shall be adjusted an
maintained so as to furnish full an
adequate protection to the industry
The Republican party would etfee
all needed reduction of the nations
revenue by repeating the taxes upo
tobacco which are an annoyance an
burden to agriculture, and the ia
upon spirits used in the arts and 70
mechanical purposes; aud by sue
revision of the tariff laws as wi
tend to check imports of such Article
as are produced by our people, tn
-. production of which gives employ
ment to our labor, and release fror
import duties those articles of foreig
production Except luxuries) the lik
5 Of which cannot be produced a
home. If there shall still remain
y larger revenue than is required fe
the wants of the government, W
|, favor the entire repeal of interns
} taxes rather than the surrender {
any part of our protective system :
the joint behest of whisky trusts an
the agents of foreign manufacturer
We declare our hostility to the il
PRODUCTION into this country of foreig
contract labor and of Chinese labo
alien TO our civilization and our Coz
s.itution, and we demand the rigi
enforcement OF the existing Law
against it, and favor such immedia
Legislation as will exclude such lab,
from our shores.
We declare our opposition to a
Is combinations of capital organize
into trusts or otherwise to contr
,rbitra rilv tho con1it;op ~ tref