The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1889-06-26
The Democratic Party To-day.

The democratic party in earlier days
had some fixed principles, everywhere
openly proclaimed; but it has none
now, save whatever its national conven-
tons elaborate TO fit such presidential
candidates as Greeley, Hancock or
Cleveland, and subject to quadrennial
change and mystification. Once estates
rights and the resolutions of '9S" were
in the forefront of the democratic creed;
but all this has vanished, and no one
now pretends to fear national invasion
of the rights of any state. Another
ringing article of their creed was hard
money, Bentonian gold, instead of
paper money, which they denounced as
being made only of "rags and lamp
black" Strange to say, there is hardly
anything now that can be invented for
circulation too cheap or too soft and
rickety for the major part of the party.
The time has been when the party was
wont to denounce all internal improve
ment as unconstitutional; but now no
appropriations for such works appear
too eXtravagant to find elastic support
in a democratic house of representa-
tives. The party once claimed as its
and privileges of all men; but in eleven
states such rights and privileges are
denied and refused to millions of
American citizens, by those who mas
querade and aim to dominate, under the
name of the democratic party. The
party, forgetting that it is itself, as the
sole author of the rebellion, the sole
cause of the extraordinary necessity for
the great increase of revenue, puts forth
the banner of "revenue reform,' I'M
der which it covertly battles for free
trade, but quivers and recoils from any
deep cut of tariff duties on Louisiana
sugar, on South Carolina rice, on Penn
sylvania iron, on Tennessee marble, on
North Carolina peanuts or on Florida
oranges, being largely products of some
democratic Observation-Disclosures, there
fore, dangerous to touch with free-trade
reform, and inclined to revolt. Once
the democratic party was wont to de-
clare and repeat that "the executive
power had increased, was increasing
and ought to be diminished" But in
spite of President Cleveland's many
and frantic vetoes; in spite of his de-
posting sixty millions of public money
in pet banks without interest and with
out law; in spite of his appointments,
without the advice and consent of the
state, of ministers (ninus the title) to
negotiate treaties; in spite of his at
tempts to govern congress by giving or
Withholding executive favors in order
to effect the repeal of all duties on wool
and to prevent the repeal of the inter-
nal tax on tobacco, the party made no
protest against the undue exercise of
extraordinary executive power, which
seems to have reached a growth not
less colossal than that under the adj
ministration of General Jackson, when
Calhoun denounced the democratic
party as bound together "by the cohe-
sive power of public plumber" To Sc
cure reelection, besides his reported
financial contribution, the president
set forth in his annual message his
free-trade political sentiments, which
had they been previously known, would
undoubtedly have defeated his first
election. AS a candidate for third
time he may have the support of the
New York Tammany Society, but with
no vehement adherents elsewhere
Senator Justin s. Morrill,, in jul,
Forum.