Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1888-08-30

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Judge Thurman, Democratic nominee for
vice president, practically opened the Demo
cratic campaign August q, at Port Huron,
Michigan Mr.. Thurman was given enthu-
siastic greetings all along the line on his way
from his home, at Columbus, O., to Michigan.
AS Port Huron was reached the signs of a
great days demonstration appeared. Crowds
were waving handkerch iefs and cheering
Justify, residences were resplendent in bunt-
ing and flags, boats in every direction turned
loose their whistles and Port Huron and
pandemonium seemed one At the landing
the reception was an ovation to make any
aspiring statesman proud. The crowd was a
great mass of humanity, old and young
were there, yelling for all they were worth.
The local Democratic clubs were there in
white hats and with canes, flags whistles,
the blare of bands, big procession and
tastefully decorated buildings, the scene was
inspiring Judge Thurman said:
"LADIEs AND GENTLEMEN - Will you
kindly allow me to keep my cap on ferries of
yes, yes, certainly I am afraid that this
cold north wind might do me some harm,
il went bareheaded, and although I am
perfectly willing to uncover my head before
the people, don't want to break down at
the beginning of the campaign [Cries of
good, good, keep it on, and cheersl My
friends, this is the first time in my life that
I have had the honor of speaking in your
state. have beeninvited again and again,
but have never been able to accept any
invitation before this. l esteem it a very
great privilege to be able to address you
to-day. This, because I know what an en-
ergetic, enterprising and intelligent popula-
tion Michigan contains, and / know too that
people are taking the greatest interest in the
questions that are being discussed this year.
SIN the brief time that shall speak,
shall occupy myself mainly with one of those
questions. I shall do 50 because it is that in
which so much interest is now being taken
and upon which so much is being said by
speakers, by writers and through the public
press. 1t is not necessary for me before
proceed to that subject to speak of the presi-
dent of the United States and his admins
tration more than very few words. defy
any man who has any regard for the truth
to say that Grover Cleveland has not made
a good president of the United States
[Cheers.l A brave, intelligent, leyel-headed
noble man, he has had clean, an upright
and successful administration. loud
cheers. Four years ago he was elected. In
the canvass that preceded his election his op-
ponents predicted all manner of evils in case
he should succeed. He did succeed and pray
what has become Of this prediction? Laugh
ter and applause] Where is the ruin that
was to follow the election of Grover Cleve-
land; where is the disgrace that was to fol-
low his election? On the contrary the coun
cry has been more quiet, more peaceable and
prosperous than it has been for many years
that have gone by. Now, I know the man;
know him well, and I tell you, my fellow
citizens, that more upright and wise man /
do not believe dwells within the limits of the
United States. Loud cheers.1 And he has
a noble band of counsellors around him, and
not the least among them is the distinguished
citizen of your own state, Mr.. Dickinson.
[Applause.] Cleveland knows not only how
to govern himself within the limits of tho
constitution, but he knows full we'll how to
choose good institutional advisors. taesrsl
"Having said this much about the admin
tration, let me proceed to that question to
which I alluded in opening, which is com.
monty called the tariff question. Ipresume
there is not person within the sound of my
voice who does not know what is meant by
the tariff, and yet it may aid us to-day if
give clear and precise definition Of what
tariff is. A tariff, my friends, is nothing in
the world but taxa tax levied by the gem
eral government upon every article of COM
nnerce that comes into the United States and
that is intended for sale within our borders,
7Uh it,cto
the articles, and therefore becomes
tax or q burden upon every article of
domestic manufacture of like nature with
those which pay the tariff tax. Now we
have at this moment according to the last
advices Ihave seen, about 5,000, 900 in the
% National treasury called surplus revenue;
that is, taxes collected from the people bs-
yond the necessities OF the government.
Those Sll5 600 are lying partly idle in the
vaults of the treasury of the United States,
of no service to any human being, drawing
no interest earning no profit, but taken
from the pockets of the people to whom it
belongs, and where, if they were now found,
thousands and tens of thousands and hun,
dreds of thousands of people of the United
States would put them to good use and inn
prove their condition. [Applause.l
"The Democratic party says tha5 this is a
wrong condition of affairs-that money
ought not to be like the talent of the man
we are told of in the Scriptures, who buried it
in the ground; that this is very poor use
to make of the money Of the people, and
therefore the Democratic party say that this
surplus revenue which is produced in the
main by this tariff tax ought to be reduced,
that the tax should be reduced, so that the
surplus will not continue to accumulate
Our opponents, on the other hand, say it is
better to let surplus accumulate, it is better
TO take money from the pockets of our peo-
ple--it is better to pile it up in the vaults of
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