The Forrest City times., 1888-04-21
WHO ARE THE DEMoCRArse
Editor TINES:

Editor TINES:
 In your last issne you declare that
 MT. Featherston Is an enemy to the democratic party because he accepted the call Of the convention of citizens of the First congressional district which copyeued al JoDeSboro on Aprli 1, to
 run Tor congress as a people candidate.
 l am one oI tac men who are responsi-
 ble for the acton Of that convention, and 1 have nothing to apologize for, but am ready and willing to give good req sons for the action of that body Tn
 breaking away from the system hereto fore obtaining for placing candidates iD nomination.
 need not remind the intelligent stu dent of our political system that there is no principle of democracy involved in either method of selecting canai- dates to nli our various public offices. If conventions or primaries aFe truly representative, no principle uf demo- cracy Is violated in using them as a means for selecting our future public servants. If, oD the other hand, ni ass meetings are truly representative, no principle of democracy IS Sacrificed iu using them for the same purpose. If the will of the people is expressed by eitner method, then either IS democratic. Tine question then resolves itself into one of expediency. So far 1 presume we are all agreed.
 We have been taught from infancy that ideal democracy, and It alone, ill., surrs a government of the people, Dy and for them. Political science not be- ing one of the exact olies, good men, patriotic men, have been, and Are no N divided on the question of how To se- cure the ideal government. ruomss Jefferson formulated principles which have been accepted as coming nearer the ideal idea of cemocratic govern ment than any other man before his time. That portion of tue American people who take him for their guide in matters political, constitute the demo- cratic party in the true sense.
 6ro-day the word democrat, as popu- larly used, does not mean the same thing, person or idea, that it did when this writer first breathed the free air of the greatest country on earth.
 Then it meant free trade and sailors rights; hostile opposition to National bank, or rather to it's resurrection, for Jackson had killed it before my time. It meant undying hostility to internal improvements, and the resulting in- terfersnce with the rights of the states. It meant opposition to the sumptuary laws of all kinds. It meant the fullest measure of liberty to the individual citizen, and 1t was out proud privilege to proclaim that under our common flag, each unit of the aggregate citizsn- ship was the equal of any other unit, in all that constitutes true manhood. It meant State sovereignty in the full eat sense of the term.
 To-day what does the word democrat imply, as used in our ordinary discus sion2 Is it not equally applicable to a protectionist or free trader, or to a National banker or greenbacker, or to prohibitionist or an advocate of tree whisky, or to an advocate of inter- nal improvement. or of the Blair bill, or to him who opposes both. The word is as fully indicative of the principles of the republican party embodied iD the person of the individual citizen as the word republican is. And yet we hear would be leaders, bawling themselves hoarse with mouths wide enough to take in l0-oz Irish potato, de mockra- cy, de-mockra-cy. My cheeky counter fsit democratic friends, you could be rebulicans if you were honest enough, because you advocate their principles. We are perfectly willing that you cast your lot with the oppressors of the the people If you are determined to do so The time has come when it must be de- cided who shall rule in this country, the people or their oppresors, the cor porations.
 Corporations. trusts, never could have obtained control of government. had our public servants both democratic and republican been true to the trust reposed in them. A feeling has taken possession of the people that the methods heretofore in use. namely conventions and primaries, are largely. responsible for the present condition of things. Hence this disgust styled by some. indifference, to the necessity fe. party organization. The work of political disintegration has eornTneneed and no power on earth can stay it In hEeneeS are st work, have been at work fOT some time, that will draw together into one body, men who think alike and whose interests are Identical. Appeals to the American Esglejcan not prevent this. Suppressing free speech cannot prevent il. The placing of Featherston in the field for congress was the direct result of this fusing of eoDgenisl clements. It means d re- turn to Jefersonian ideas in the ad- ministration of public affairs. Iii means the desstruction of that spurious