The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1888-07-12
TAMMANY.
The Grand Sachem and Chiefs
Celebrate the Day-Democratic
Congressman Present.
Letter From the President Calling
Attention TO the Perversion
of Our Government.

NEw YORK, July 4.-Tammany society
to-day celebrated for the one hundredth
time the anniversary of the Declaration
of Independence. Usually the celebIa
tion takes place in the wigwam, but the
recent fire there compelled the braves to
assemble in the Academy of Music. In
addition to the well-known Tammany
chieftains there were present, and occu-
pied seats on the platform as guests,
Senator Vest, of Missouri; Representa-
tives Roger Q. Mills, of Texas; Patrick A.
Collins, James S. McCreary, of Kentucky;
Charles E. Hooker, of Mississippi;
General f. Speedy, of Indiana; Melbourne
F. Ford, of Michigan; Wm. McAdoo,
of New Jersey; Governor Briggs,
of Delaware; S. s. Cox, f. B. Spinola,
General John Newton, Assistant Secretary
of the Treasury Maynard and General
Fitz John Porter. Many letters of regret
were read from distinguished democrats,
including the following:
Executive Mansion, Washington, d. O.,
June %, 18SS.-Hon. James A. Flack,
Grand Saohem, Dear sir: regret that l
am obliged to decline the courteous. in
vitation which have received to attend
the celebration by the Tammany society
of the birthday of our re-
public on the fourth day of July.
The zeal and enthusiasm with which your
society celebrates this day afford proof of
its steadfaat patriotism, as well as its care
for al chat pertains to the advantage and
prosperity of the people. | cannot doubt
that renewal of love and devotion to the
pure Jeffersonian democratic form of gov
ernment which you contemplate will sug-
gest the inquiry whether the people are
receiving all the benefits which are due
them under such form of government? ?
These benefits are not fully enjoyed
when our citizens are unneces-
sarily burdened and their earn
ings and incomes are uselessly
diminished under the pretext of govern
mental support. Our government be-
longs to the people. They have decreed
its purposes, and it is their clear right to
demand that its costs shall be limited by
frUgality and that its burden of expenses
SHAH be carefully limited by its actual
needs. And yet useless and dangerous
surplus in the national treasury tells no
other tale but extortion on the part of
the government and q perversion of the
peoples intention
In the midst of our impetuous enter
prise and blind contiderce in our destiny,
it is time to pause and study our condi-
tion. 1t is no sooner appreciated than
the conviction must follow that tribute
exacted from the people should be
diminished. The theories which cloud
the sSiect, misleading honast. men ane,
appeals to selfish interests which deceive
the understanding, make the reform,
which should be easy, difficult task
Although those who propose a remedy for
the present evils have always been the
friends of American labor, and though
they declare their purposes to further its
interests in all their efforts, yet those who
oppose reform attempt to disturb our
worklngmen by the cry that their wages
and their employment are threat
ened. They advocate a system
which bentf's certain classes of
our citizens at the expense
of every householder in the land, which
breeds discomfort because it permits a
duplication of wealth without a corre
spending additional recompense to labor,
which prevents the opportunity to work
by sitting production and limiting re-
form; and which enhances the cost of
living beyond the laborer's hard-earned
wages.
The attempt is made to divert the at
tention of the people from every such
scheme of taxation by branding those
who seek to correct these evils as free
traders and enemies of our workingmen
and our industrial enterprises. This is SO
far from the truth that there should be no
chance for such deception to sue
ceed. 1t behooves the American
people, while they rejoice in the anniver-
sary of the day when their free govern
ment was declared to also reason together
and determine that they will not be de-
prived of the blessings and benefits
which their government should afford.
Yours very truly,
GROVER CLEVELAND.
Speeches we're made by Senator Vest
and Congressmen Mills, Cox, Collins,
McCreary, Hooker, SniveIy and others.