The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1893-01-19
SENATOR BRlce's SPEECH.

Senator Brice made very fine speech
et the Jackson banquet in Columbus.
1t is also valuable spetch pure In
ctiou, concise In statement and ele-
CANT In rhetoric. Senator Brice treats
the business situation and the future
policy of the Democratic party in q
practical way, and from the standpoint
of a successful business man. Senator
Brice was born In Ohio, in the great
black swan o section, and was born poor.
All that ne has earned he earned
by honest endeavor. He has never
been the beneficiary of the robber tariff.
He taught school, and earned money
to.attend college, and when he earned
his knowledge he had the mental vigor
and confident courage to achieve sue
cess. Senator Brice gives vivid pic
ture of Northwestern Ohio, as she was
when he was boy, We quote:
"There is, perhaps, no one within the
sound of my voice, unless he was with me
at the time of which speak, who lived 10
primeval forest among u people com.
mencing nt the beginning in all
things. Nearly flfty years ago
my father was preaching in 3
| log meeting house on the borders
of Putnam and Allen counties, ia ths
southern skirte of that vast, level, alluvial
| tract of land, then known as the Black
| Swamp, extending from the shores of
Lake Erie southwestwardly through Ohio
| and into Indiana, with length OF one huns
| dred miles and breadth OF from twenty
| to twenty five miles, as level as the bot
| tom of lake, which IL had formerly been,
densely covered with the greatest foresV
| which has existed on the surface OF the
| earth in our day. The bodies OF the trees
| were 30 close together as to form q wood
en- wall a few yards in front of the
eye. So close, that they were without
| branches of leaves except at the summit.
| With black soil soaked with water, strewn
| with fallen trunks of trees covered with
| moss and uudcrbrush OF every sort; roads
| were impossible except by sleds in the
| winter or for few weeks In the late sum
mer. There were no railways, no canals
4 no means of exit or entrance for the
greater part Of the year except on foot OF
| horseback. Into this vast forest came
poor families from New England. Penn
| sylvanis, Maryland. Virginia and Ken.
| lucky, settling upon such occasional sane
ridges, old lake beaches covered With
poplar, walnut, maple and beech, at
| offered some refuge from the univ"rgaIiJ y
prevalent moisture. So unbroEeu was Nht
wilderness, that when many years after
| my first recollection the Dayton ant
Michigan railroad was cut through thii
forest, passing by our station
at Columbus Grove, there was
|
Deshler now stands, seventeen miles ir
length, without break in the forest, ex-
cept that made by the railway cut-nc
house, no fields, no clearing no deaden'
ing. Nothing but the aisle cut through tn,
immense, lofty forest of cline.
That forest is now gone. Great ditche
as large as the Erie canal have drawn of
the water, stave factorieo in echelop have
advanced upon that forest aud cut II int
slaves. The patient industry OF fort!
years have changed everything, and Yol
may now ride on mGcAdamized roads o
roll upon railway trains, and look over on
vast, fertile granary, region like
prairie of the west, covered with fine farm
houses and farm buildings, the homes o
happy and prosperous people.n
Senator Brice then referred to tn
failure of the Seneca County bank, ant
; proclaimed his policy, as being agains
State banks of issue, and in favor o
governmental control of our currency
On the tariff question the Senate
announced himself in full sympath
with our more advanced tariff reform
ers.
We shall quote further from the Sen
ator'S speech.