Daily Texarkana Democrat. (Texarkana, Ark.) 1890-1894, 1892-07-22
DEMOCRATIC STATE PLATFORM
Adopted by the Democratic State Con.
TentIOn at Little Rock,
Jane 18th, 1892.
TIE pLATFoRNl.

preme issue of the day IS the reform OF tht
administration of the Government; and thai
the people can safely trust the party founded
by Jefferson, and whose principles were en-
lphssized in the splendid, patriotic and non
sectional administration Of Grover C'eve'
land.
We denounce the Republican party fol
its fragrant abuse and prostitution Of power
during the last four years. Coming into full
control of all branches Of the Government
! in 1883 by the use of unprecedented corrup-
ton fund.- largely levied upon Government
flyorites by those before and since, close,
personally and officially, to the chief bene-
ticiary, that party Immediately entered upOn
a crusade of tyranY, fraud ard proaigste
extravaganza never before yentured upon by
any party In times of peace.
1t found the treasury with a large and
daily increasing surplus, snd in times OF
great depression, accompanied by the uni
versal demand for relief from the burdens
Of taxation, it dlssipated the surplus by
Masking annual appropriations Of S5O0,OOO,-
| 900, largely for unnecessary and utterly in
defeLsible purposes, and thereby failed to
meet and discharge the maturing bonded in
debtedposs of the Government, and now finds
itself confronted with an imminent deicien-
ey. Moreover, it made many Of its appro-
priations permanent, for no other purpose,
than to prevent the people from correcting
the evils done, so long as the Republican
party retained control of either the Senate
or Chief Magistraey Of the nation.
! 1t transcribed all precedents in vicious
! class legislation, in the enactment Of the Nc,
Kinney bill, and finally, frightened by the
extremities to which it had gone, sought to
appoase the pubic discomfort by reciprocity
fraud, the adoption of which was a comics
sion Of the iniquity it had perpetrated.
1t deprived States Of their just representa-
! ton by a Ease census.
1t deprived, in the most insolant and ar
| bitrary manner, and practically without an
opportunity to be heard, representatives OF
| the people of their seats in the lower House
/ of Congress.
And, finally drunk with its own excuses,
it sought to perpetuate the wrongs it had
done by depriving the people Of the right to
hold their own ections and choose their
own servants by tho enactment of the in
/ lannon's and execrable force bill.
1t treated with utter contempt all ideas Of
economy and honesty, both in it, pension
legislation and in its administration Of that
! bureau.
| 1t rejected Democratic territories ard ad-
mitt)d Republican territories in order to re-
tain party supremacy.
This regime Of tyrauny, extravaganza and
wrong,doing, contrastcd with the clean,
honest, prudent and WISE administration of
Grover Cleveland, brought upon the Relub-
lican party the most stupendOus defeat that
| n,,,r LoGal1 urv ,,ortv in The oc,,p+r, ON
inspired anew with confidence aad hope all
the people in the possibility Of preserving
! free government for mankind.
We declare our abiding fidelity to the
Constitution ofthe United S ates in its let
ter and spii it,
We declare our faith in the capacity Of
the people for solt-government, and in their
inherent right to enjoy it, free from all Fed
erpl interference,
We denounce the Republican party be-
cause it turned its back upon the interests
of the great mas es Of society. and sound,
stable government for all, and allied its for
tunes with corporate wellth, squander ng
millions CT the public domain upon raj roads
fostering legislation, the legitimate offspring
| OF which has been combinations and trusts,
| expressing the labor it professed TO protect
and fastening ever increasing burdens on
| agriculture, until the homes Of the people in
! great sections Of the country are covered
with mortgages, and the markets Of the
world closed to the fruits of honest toll.
| We denounoe the Mckinley tariff as q
crime against honest government and free
| people, not only because it lavies an unnec-
essary tax and thereby imposes wanton and
cruel burdens on the people, but because it
destroys the markets for their Surplus pro-
ducts.
We denounce it because it is class leg1sla-
lion, enacted in the interest of the favored
few, who are wealthy, and at the expense
and for the oppression of the grest mass Of
the people.
We denounce it because it does not in
crease wages, but surrenders the taxing pow
er Of the Government to the manufacturers,
and leaves it TO the employers to determine
whether they will divide the immense boun-
ty it yields with those they employ.
We denonaco it because it is an abuse
and r3rTer8ion Of the taxing power of the
Constitution, which was intended TO be
used TO raise necessary revenue for the sup
port OF the Government, into the means of
| plundering all for the benefit Of class.
We denounco it because it inaugurated
for the first time in free Government, the
practice OF taking from the public treasury
the money collected for public purposes
from all the people, aud with it, pay boun-
ties to select industries.
-, We denounce it because it destroys the in
dependence and self,reliance Of the people,
which is q National characteristic, and
and teaches them to rely upon government
tai tavoritsm.
We douounco it because the inevitable
tendency OF this system is the destruction Of
popular government, in the debauchmont OF
the ballot, by tribute extorted from favored
classes, whose enormous Jounties depend
upon the continuance Of the system itself.
! We declare that the mission of the Demo-
cratic party is to 50 reform the tariff by
reduction CT taxation as to limit the revenues
of the Government to its absolute necessi.
ties when economically administered, and to
so frame its tariff schedules as to place the
burdens Of government upon the Injuries
and not npon the necessrries of lite.
We favor safe and sufficient currency,
composed OF gold and silver and legal tender
paper convertible into coin on demlnd, and
maintained at par with each other.
We declare 1t to be the duty Oft The Demo
cratic party to preserve The parity iE value
OF gold and silver and 10 provide The means
by the equal and fair treatment Of both met.
ais.
We dcnounco the Sherman Silver bill as
an obstruction to the fair treatment Of silver
and ms a sham and pretense, intended to
postpone honest honest legislation and TO
appeaso the silver producers while giving no
relief to the people,
We declare our purpose to continue to
maintain, support and develop our public
schools in the interest Of general intelligence
and sound and stable government.
We declare It TO be tho sense OF this con-
We, ton that the Ponetentiary lease system