The Washington bee., 1895-01-12

THE NEGRO kMOCRAIlC ASSO-
CATION.
At the meeting of the colored
Democrats on last Monday night,
Editor James A. Ross delivered an
address which was adopted as the
platform of the as ssociatioD.
FELLOW DEMOCRATS
1t is recorded that after the disastrous
| discontinue of the Union arms ON the
first day of Chickamauga, when, owing
to miscarriage of judlclouS plans, our
army was for a time "ithout leader
| and without concert, when all was ull.
certainty and despair for the want OF
| leadership, one subordinate General
stood forth equal to the emergency,
planted his colorS on commanding
hill, formed his lines of defense, gath
cred to himself the other staggering
columns, reSto ed confidence in the
forces. sounded the hugle note OF def
| ance, conducted mas erful and order
ly retreat, and saved from ignominiouS
| destruction the Army of the Cumber-
| land [App.ause] which sixty days later,
at Missionary Ridge, was destined to
put to rout this same doughty foe.
| That great hero was General Thomas,
''the Rock of Chickamauga," whose
| fitting monument stands Wi hin a
stones throw of where we now deliber
| ate. All honor to that noble sou OF Vir-
gin a, but not to him alone was due the
| salvation of the Army of the tumber-
land on that memorable occasion; but
also the brave men of the rams and file
| who fou hit Tor a principle which they
| well understood, and whose ccurate
| military instinct was tested on many a
hard fought field. [App!ause]
Gentlemen, We meet here to-day with
| a condition confronting us not unlike
that on the evening of the first day of
Chickamauga. We are fgh ing i'll a
glorious c.uSe. The rank and file of
our army are men of intelligence and
well know what they are fighting for.
[Applause
Through Some mi carriage OF excel
| lent PLANS, through some treachery in
our own ranks, through over confidence
In our strength, principally on account
| of ill-choSen ground taken for onslaught
our arms have recently met with some
reVerSes The eXultant enemy, drunk
| with unuSed-tO victory. is Stru.tlng be-
fore our works, not only in imagined
strength and securi y. buf with the pre-
sumption of our eve a capitulation.
Some of our leaderS-ln-chief, have
proven inefficie or r,creant to their
trusts. There is with us some cOnfu-
sion and chaos, and we may yet bn de-
stroyed by our own inaction, The rank
and file, the great army of Democratic
voters look for leadership, be it in one
leaoer Or more than one Continued
applausel
Gentlemen, we the chosen representa-
tlveS of the negro Democratic voters
have met here to-day in council Of war
to take steps looking to their safety and
their glory. We must equal the emer
gency. We must take bold stand, and
sound the tOcSin of defianc and battle,
and ;round us will rally that same
grand army that swept the victorious
fields in the campaigns of 1890 and 1892.
AS leaders. we have only to take a bold
stand, like SO many s. Rocks Of Chicka-
mauga" We need no new enunciarion
OF principles, hut only the re-atfirmation
of the Shibboleths of our tribe. We
need only to draw our party robes more
closely about us and study more closely
the teachings and lives of those great
Statemen, saints whom we delight to
honor and whose names stand for we'll
known and cherished principles. jeff
erS n for equality, Franklin ior tOlera-
ton, Jackson for national sovereignty.
Lincoln for freedom, Greely for mag
nanimity, Grant for simplicity, Garfield
for free-trade and progress, David B.
Hill for unse fish loyalty and Cleveland
for Sigular combination of all of these
great qualities a d others, the most
conspicuous Of which is honesty. Jap
plausel
Gentlemen, it were useless to pro-
nounce eulogiums on our own party and
our own men in their presence. The
fact that We are believers in these men
and principles account for our being
here to-day. But rather it is an occa-
sion for taking our bearings, for noting
the strength Of our craft for replacing
defective rigging, for stopping lnsidi-
Gus leaks, for examining he current
and he winds, or, to revert 70 our mill
tary figure, it is a time TO examine our
lines to establish our plckets, to deploy
our videtteS, and to clear well of the
enemy; find in what measure he de-
pends upon real strength and i'll what
measure upon mere subterfuges and
az itices of strategy.
And gentlemen there is still another
feature of the contest that must not be
overlooked. 1t is the custom of govern
mentS and armies after having won
many trophies in a campaign to distrib-
ute those trophies to the bold and loyal
officers and men whose valOr made those
victories possible
The distribution of such trophies and
the awarding of commissions is always
the occasion of much rel icing to the
brave men who dared to die. Sucn rec
ognition is not on Y necessary to the
otfectivr fighting status of an army, but
goes further and gives bouyancy, esprit
du-C orJs to The army. 1t is such treat
ment of leaders and men that calls forth
daring deeds, gallant feats, unit ing eX-
ertiOn, and cause men TO rush 10 g.Ory
OF To grave
The usual incentives to the perform
ance of mere duties are the necessities
of men. Love of country incite others
still further. But the crowning feaIs of
daring and proweSS arise from a desire