The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1896-07-17
miscellaneous.
me Democratic Platform.

The following is the full text of the
platform us finally adopted by the
committee on resolutions of the Ma
tional Democratic Convention on
Thursday of last week.
We, the Democrats of the United
States, in national convention assem-
| bled, do reaffirm our allegiance TO
| those great essential principles Of Jus.
J tice and liberty upon which our insti-
futions are founded. and which the
Democratic party has advocated from
Jefferson's time-to our owlI-freedom
OF speech, freedom OF the press. free
| dom OF conscience. the preservation of
| personal rights, the equality OF all
| citizens before the law and the faith
full observance of constitutional limi-
| tatiOns.
CENTRALIZATION OF POWER.
During all these years the Demo
cratic party has resisted the tendency
OF selfish interests 10 the Capitalization
Of governmental power and Steadfast-
maintained the integrity of the dual
scheme OF government established by
the founders of this republic of repuh
lies. Under its guidance and teach
ings the great principal of local self
government has found its best rx-
preston i'll the maintenance of the
rights of the States and in it an asser-
ton of the necessity of combining the
general government to the exercise OF
the powers granted by the corstitu-
ton of the United States.
MONEY.
Recognizing that the money Ques-
ton is paramount to all others ut this
time, weinvIte attention to the factthat
the federal constitution names silver
and gold together as the money metals
of the United States aud that the first
coinage law passed by Congress under
the constitution made the silver dollar
the monetary unit and admitted gold
to free coinage at Il ratio based upon
the silver dollar unit.
We declare that the act of 49,; de
monctiZing silver without the know
ledge or approval of the American
people has resulted in the apprrcil-
ton of gold and corresponding fall
in the prices of commodities produced
by the people; q heavy increase in the
burden of taxation and of all debts.
public and private; the enrichment of
the money lending class at home and
abroad; prostration of industry and
impoverishment of the people.
OPPOSED TO MONOMETALLIsM.
We are unalterably opposed to
monometallism which has locked fast
the prosperity of an industrial people
in the paralysis of hard times. Gold
monometallism is a British policy and
its adoption has brought other nations
into financial servitude to London.
1t is not only un-American, but anti.
American and it can be fastened Oh
the United States only by the sitting
of that spirit and love of liberty which
proclaimed our political independence
in 1916 and won it in the war of the
revolution.
FREE COINAGE OF GOLD AND SILVER.
We demand the free and unlimited
coinage of both gold and silver at the
present legal ratio of IL to 1 without
waiting for the aid or consent of any
other nation. We demand that the
standard silver dollar shall be full
legal tender equally with gold for all
debts, public and private, and we ia
vor such legislation as will prevent for
the future the demonstration of any
kind of legal-tender money by private
contract.
No BONDS IN TIME OF PEACE.
We are opposed to the policy and
practice of surrendering to the holders
of the obligations Of the United States
the option reserved by law to the gov
eminent of redeeminS such obligations
in either silver coin or gold coin. We
are opposed to the issuing of interest
bearing bonds of the United States IN
time of peace, and condemn the traf-
ticking with banking syndicates.
which, in exchange for bonds and Mt
an enormous profit to themselves,
supply the federal treasury with gold
to maintain the policy of gold mono.
| metallism.
AGAINST NATIONAL BANK NOTES.
Congress alone has power to coin
and issue money, and President Jack
son declared that this power could
not be delegated to corporations or
| individuals. We therefore demand
| that the power to issue notes to circu
| late as money be taken from the ma
| tional banks and that all paper money
| shall he issued directly by the Treas
ury Department, be redeemable i'll
coin and receivable for all debts, | ub-
lie and private.
TARIFF AND INCOME TAX.
We hold that the tariff duties should
be levied for the purpose of revenue,
such duties to be so ad iusted us to OPP
crate equally throughout the country
| and not discriminate between class or
section, and t.iat taxation should be
| limited by the needs of the govern
ment, honestly and economically ad-
ministerial We denounce us disturb
ing to business the Republican threat
to restore the Mckinley law, which
has been twice condemned by the PEG
pie in the national elections, and
| which enacted under the false plea of
protection to home industry, proved II
prolific breeder of trusts and mOnopO-
lies, enriched the few ut the expense
of the many, restricted trade and de
prived the producers of the great
| American staples of access to their
markets. Until the money question is
settled, we are opposed to any aglta
ton for further changes in our tariff
law, except such us are necessary to
make the deficit in revenue caused
by the adverse decision of the Supreme
Court on the income tax. But for this
decision by the Supreme Court there
would be no deficit in the revenue un-
der the law passed by II Democratic
Congress in strict pursuance of the
uniform decisions of that court by
having under that decision sustained
constitutional objections to its enact
ment which had been overruled by the
ablest Judges who have ever sat on the
b anch. We declare that it is the duty
of Congress to use ali the constitu-