The Superior times. [volume] (Superior, Wis.) 1870-1912, 1892-07-02
DEMOCRATIC PLATFORM.


cesSors III Democratic leadership, from
Madison 10 Cleveland. We believe that the
public welfare demands that these princl-
pies be applied to the conduct Of the tcIer-
al government through the acres sion 10
power of the party that adtOcRteS them
and we Solcmnly declare that the need ot
return to these fundamental prime pies of
free popular government, based on the
same rule and individual liberty, was
never more urgent than now, when the
tendency to centraiizc all power at the
federal capital has become Il meIacr to the
reserved rights of the states that strikes at
the very roots of our government under
the constitution as framed by the fathers
of the republic.
2. We warn the people of Our common
country, jealous for the preservation of
Their Tree institutions, that the policy of
federal control Of elections to which the
republican party has committed Itself is
trauGht with the grdteSt dangers: scarcely
ieSS lnemcntouS than would reSu t from Il
revolution practically establishing mon
arehy on the runs of the republic. 1t
strikes at the North as We'll as the South.
and iniurcs the coIored citizen even more
than the wl:itc; 1t means horde of deputy
lnarShalS at every polling place ARMED
with federal power. returning boards A.
pointed and controlled by federal autho.i-
", the outrage of the electoral rights OF
the people in the several states. the
the control of the party in power and
the rcvivlng of race antaGonism now hap
ply a)ated, OF the utmost peril to the
safety and happiness of all; so that the
measure is deliberately and justly de
Scrlbcd by leading Republican Senl;Or as
the most infamous bill that ever crossed
the threshold Of the Senate. Such policy,
II sanctioned by law, would mean the cS
enlistment OF Self-perpetuatlng oll
garchy OF off1cc-hOldcrS, and the party first
entrusted with lis machinery could not DC
dlSlodged from power until by an appeal
TO the reserved right of the p o, pie to resist
oppression, when is inherent in all self
governing communities. Two years ago
this revolutionary policy was cmphatcaliy
condemned by the people, but IL
contempt of that verdict the Ec
publican party has dcfiantly declared
IN Its latest authoritative utterance that
lis success IN the coming election viii
mean the enactment of the force bill and
the uSurpatlon CT deSpotlc control over
elections IN all the states. Believing tina
the preservation of republican & .vcrn
ment In the United States is dependent on
the defeat OF the policy of legallzcd force
and fraud, we invite the support of all
citizens who desire to see the constitution
maintained In its integrity with the laws
pursuant thereto. which have given our
country hundred years of uncXami led
prosperity; aud We pledge the Democratic
party. if ii be entrusted with lower, not
only to the defeat of the for q bill. but also
to offer relentless OPPOSITION to the Rcpub-
llcan policy of proligatc expenditure
which in this short space of two years has
Squandercd an enormous surplus and
emptled an overllOwlng treasury. after put
ting new burdens Of taxation upon the al
ready overtaXed labor of the country.
3. We dcnouncc the Republican system
of protection as a fraud the labor of ih,.
great ma jority of American people for the
benefit of the few. We declare Ii 70 be a
fundamental principle OF the Democratic
PARTY that the federal government has no
constitutional power TO impose and collcc;
tariff duties. eXccpJ TUT IHe puIIU,,'s Ut
revenue only, and we demand that The col
lection of such taxes shall be limited to the
necessities ot the government when hon
estly and economically administered. We
den0unce the Mckinley tariff law cnacte i.
by the FlftyfIrst Congress as the cuiml-
mating atrOclty of n class legislation; we
endorse the efforts made by the Democrats
of the present Congress to modify its
most oppressive features in the dircc-
ton of free raw materials and cheaper
manufactured goods that enter into gcner-
al consumption: and we promise its repeal
| as one of the beneticcnt results that viii
follow the action of the people in entruSt-
ing power to the Democratic party. since
the Mckinley tariff went into operation
there have been ten reductions of the
We deny that there has been any increase
of prosperity to the country since that
tariff went into operation. and We point to
the dullneSS and distress, the wag" re
ductlons and strikes in the iron trade as
the best possible evidence that no
such prosperity has resulted from the
Mckinley act. We call the attention o:
thoughtful Americans to the fact that after
| the thirty years of restrictive taxes against
the lmportrtion of foreign wealth. IN
| exchange for our agricultural surplus, the
| homes and farms of the country have be
| come burdened with real estate mortgage
| debt of over 81 900, ON, 900, exclusive OF all
all other forms of Indebtedness; that III
| one of the chief agricultural states of the
| West there appears 4 real estate mortgage
| debt averaging S165 per capita of the total
| population. and that similar conditions
| and tendencies are shown to exist in other
| agricultural exporting states. We de-
| nounce policy which fosters no industry
| SO much as 1t does that Of the sheriff.
4. Trade interchange on the basis of re-
| ciprocal advantages to the countries par
| tIclp ating Is a time-hOnOred doctrine of
| the democratic faith. but we denounce the
| sham reciprocity which jugglcs with the
| peoples desire for enlarged foreign mar
| ketS and freer exchange by pretending to
| establish closer trade relations for a cOun-
| try whose articles are almost exclusively
| agricultural with other countries that arc
| house barrier of prohlbltlve tariff taxes
| against the richest countries of the world
| that stand ready to take our entire sur
plus of products and exchange therefor
| commodities which are ncceSSarieS and
| comforts of life among our own people.
| 5 We recognize in the trusts and com
, bnationS which are designed to enable
| capital to secure more than its Just share
| of the joint product OF capitaI and labor d
natural consequence of the prohlbliIye
| laws which prevent flee competition
which is the life OF honest trade.
t. The Republican party. while profess
| ing a policy of reScrying the public land
for settlement and holding by actual set
tiers. has gwen away the peoples heritage
| till now few railroad and nonresident
| aliens. individual and corporate, possess a
| larger area than that of all our farms be
| tween the two seas. The last Democratic
| administration reversed the mprovideni
| and unwise policy of the Republican par
| ty touching the pubic domain, and re-
claimed from corporations and Sypdica'es.
| alien and domestic, and restored To the
| people nearly 1.001.000 acres of valuabI,
| land to be sacredly held rs hOmestead> for
| our citizens. and we pledge ourselves Il
continue this policy until every acre OF
| land so unlawfully held shall he reclaimed
| and restored TO the people.
! :. We denounce the Republican leg
| iSlatlon known as the Sherman act OF 1870
| as cOwardly makeshltt fraught with pos
| SlbIlItleS of danger IN the future winch
! should make all OF Its supporters. as we.
| as It's autuOI. auNluuS Iui NS Tencal. w
hold to the use OF both gold and silver a:
! the standard money of the country. an,
| the coinage of both gold and SILVER with0u
| discriminating against either or charge fol
! mintage. but the dollar unit OF coinage o
| both metals must be of equal intrinsic an,
! cxchangeahie value or be aduSte,
| through International agreement o.
! hy such safeguards OF Legislation
| as shah insure the maintenance of the par,
| iTy OF the two metals, and the equal powc
| of every dollar al all tunes IN the markets
| and IN the payment of debts: and we lie
| mand that all paper currency shall be kop
! at par with and redcemabi in such coin
| We insist upon this policy as especially
| necessary for the protection of the far me L
| sud laDuIing classes. the nTSt and most de
| tenSeIeSS victims of unstable money and Z
| 1iuctuaJlng currency.
| s. We recommend that the pTohlhit0rl
| 10 per cent. tax on state bank issues be re
| pcaied
Q. Public Office is public trust We
| a .f.A-s