Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1890-09-15
Ex-Governor Cameron Leaves the Republi
can Party.

=
can Party.
Ex-Governor Cameron yesterday publish.
ed in the Petersburg appeal the following
letter to W. s. Dashiell. of Richmond, Va,
renourcing all allegiance TO the republican
party
Il have been taught by the events Of Is
months past that men Of our antecedentH
and Convictions can no longer with eel!-re-
epect lend our voices, out votes, or even he
negative support of silence to the repub!t-
can party as ia is expounded by the orgsn!-
zation in this State, or as it is admin
lstered by tho present executive and
legislative departments of the United
s ates Government. The republican party
preserves no longer the ssmbanoe Of
spesking for the entire country, but bases Its
claim 10 supremacy on sectional preludices
and sectional interests, pure and simple.
No. only go, bnt the directors of its Iolicy
asve not he5itated in attainment of their
ends to prostitute the plighted faith of the
party in sight of ell the world, end TO re-
nounce In their congressional enac;msns
ths promises solemnly made in the Chicago
| platform.
They stend seli-convicted, not only of
false pretense and punio faith. but Of mathe-
!
| or by reinvoking the war sent.ment at the
| North and West. and by resurrecting all the
ssocS PHRASES cf fanatcism and sectional
! ism, which could stir the South into resent
meut aud yatort. Their OBJECT was and is
70 force tie fighting as between solid
] Nor;h snd g solid South, and ct the same
time use the suell contingent OF southern
republicans in Congress TO niinimzs the
power Of the South by such political abomi-
nations as the Lodge bill, and by SO framing
tariff Law (uuder pre.ext of protection to
Ameri can LABOR and American products) as
10 increase every burden of the customs
| upon the weaker section as to leave in force,
| in all its shameless inequalities, the revenue
tax upon the tobacco of Virginia, Carolina,
Tennessee, Kentucky, Missouri, Maryland
| and Florida.
The ut.erancs5 of Mckinley on the floor
OF the House (be the patton of the Chicago
| platform, and the lesder of the House OF
| Representatives, and the chairman OF the
committee which framed the tariff billy, end
the action of the Senate on Monday In re-
| gard to the tobacco cleuse, constitute an
| open declaration of war against southern
deveopement, aud we must realize that
this action, apart from lts inherent ipjus-
lice, is 8 deliberate, 1antop, and absolute
Justification of solemn promise given to
the tobacco States by the National conyen-
tioD.
The record on the Blair bill Is 40 batter,
aud the tariff act, with its sc-oalled revision
! and equalization OF import duties, b-istles
| with discrimination against The South and
those industries and products In which
southern republicans have the came interest
as southern democrats.
The Lodge bill is mg-caled the "force
bill" because in operation 1t would be i'm
possible of enforcement tc the ends pretend
edy sought. To enact it would be to par
aiyzs the commercial progress Of the entire
country and to set back southern Gevelope-
ment, In which northern capital Is largely
engaged, half q centary. But the main
sufferer would be the negro, who. by this
vicious effort TO neutralizs inevitable oondi-
tons, would bs deprived of all the safe
guards which now surround him personally /;
sDd politically he would become the scape-
goat in local strife In which Lodge and
iIr Reed would have no concern and no In.
hasnce. Ths passage of this act into law
would be public calamity Its passage by
tha majority of the House OF Representatives
fixes the responsibility en- the republican
party.
The call for halt by Senator Quay in the
Senate only voices the protest of a fright
ened financial and commercial North, and
only proves that Mr.. Quay !s at,sid to risk
tais campaign on en- issue which one section
would regard as blunder, aud he other as
crime.
l see no reason to beisVe that the Presi.
dent has not bsen in active sympathy with
all that his party hiss done and left undone
in Congress- His own Performances have
net, howsver, been one whit in advance of
the legislative department He has done
nothing south of Msscn's and Dixon's line
since his Inauguration. except to recognize
with yeluctsucs that any such country ex-
listed. His appointments, with just few
enough honorable variations to prove the
rule, have been of men not represent tative In
character Influence, or capacity. He has
s,owp utter inaptituds 10 square his action
| with his utterances, his performances with his
promises, his principle5 with his preudlces,
or his status with his statue. He has bsen
the instrument, wiling Or unwilling, OF the
machine elements of his party; aud for the
want OF bold and brave and catholic action
be has made himself responsible for the fact
that in the North and West there is divid-
edrepublican party and that n the South and
here is none worthy of the name. After less
than two years of his administration Mr.,
Harrison has removed the last vestige with
which We bad hoped that the republican
party, by fostering an American policy, By
, subo,dinsting the past 20 the present bv
equal consideration for all sections, By re-.
moval OF unnecessary burdens of taxation.
might prove itself the restorer of the Union
IS well IS the prsserver Of the federal gov.
erDment.
1t is not worth while for enc man, or one
thousand men, to GEEK to stay the current o!
partisanry which has swept republicanism
from It's legitimate moorings. But one thing
remains In my judgment for us to do-for
man who recognize higher duty than that
which can be expressed by 8 party name
and that Is to fres ourselves from all part
and lot with party which has no faith too
sacred for violation and rec c,gnIzss no pledge
los too al ko