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

y
in the National Convention, pause on
the threshold of their proceedings to
honor the memory of their first 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 our later leaders, who have
been more recently called away from
our councils-Grant, Garfield, Arthur,
Logan, Conkling. May their memo
ries be 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
and 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 fellowAmeri-
cans OF Brazil upon their great act of
the abolition of slavery throughout
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 reaffirm 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 and 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 jus,
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
ministration and the Democratic ma
jority in Congress owe their existence
to the suppression of the ballot by {
criminal notification of the Constitu
ton and the laws of the United
States.
| We are uncompromisingly in favo
of the American system of protection
We protest against its destruction
proposed by the President and hi
party. They serve the interests O
Europe; we will support the interest
of America. We accept the issu'
and confidently appeal to the people
for their judgment. The protective
system must be maintained; it
abandonment has always been follow
ed by general disaster to all interests
except those of the usurer and tn,
sheriff.
| We denounce the Mills bill a
destructive to the genera! 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 pla@ wool o,
the free list, and We insist that tn
duties thereon shall be adjusted ant
maintained so as to furnish full ant
adequate protection to the industry
The Republican party would eifec
all needed reduction of the nationa
revenue by repeating the taxes upo'
tobacco which are an annoyance ant
burden to agriculture, and the ia:
upon spirits used in the arts and 70
mechanical purposes; and by sue
revision OF the tariff laws as will
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
Of which cannot be produced a
home. If there shall still remain
larger revenue than is required 70
the wants of the government, W
favor the entire repeal OF interna
taxes rather than the surrender O
any part of our protective system a
the joint behest Of whisky trusts an,
the agents Of foreign manufacturers
We declare our hostility to the in
PRODUCTION into this country Of foreigl
contract labor and Of Chinese labo,
alien to our civilization and our Con
stitution, and we demand the rigi,
enforcement OF the existing law
against it, and favor such immediate
legislation as will exclude such labo
from our shores.
We declare our opposition to al