The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1896-05-28
HE WRITES ANOTHER LETTER
WHICH IS A WITHDRAWAL
FROM THE RACE
As h CANDIDATE FOR GOVERNOR.
He Gives His Reason for Such Action
rs Being Attendant Upon the
Chaotic Condition of Affairs.
Not q Tool of Gold Bugs.

yesterday. and announces his Withdraw
nj from the race for governor as was
forecast in Yesterdays special from Bur
net:
Marble Falls. Texas, May -, lS9G.
Amidst the great confusion produced
by number of political parties i'll tins
state. each claiming public favor, or SUI
premacy within the state Of Texas,
with the Democratic party divided. each
wing Of which claiming to be the Demo
cratic party, it may be well to take our
reckoning, so as to find out where we,
MS profosscd Democrats, are at, III tins
pccIllinr iuucturc Of public affairs in
Texas.
What is Democracy, how and when
did it originate, 10 what governments
did, and does it apply, how has it been
preserved, and pcrpctuatcd, ana what
have been ana are IT'S benefits within the
states Of this Union?
A very brief reference to the separate
parts of this subject may be of some IN
tereSt at this crisis.
1t originated in the formation Of the
UrSl SIhlt governments VI tillS COUNTY ~
1916 and subsequently. In the bill Of
rights in the constitution OF Virginia,
the following provisions may be found:
"That all power is vested i'll, ana cOnSc-
uucntly derived from the people; that
magistrates are their trustees and ser
wants. ana at all times amcnablc TO
them.
"That no man or set of men are en-
titled 10 exclusive or separate cmolu-
mcnts or privileges from the com
munity. but in consideration of public
services, which, not being dcsccndablc,
neither ought the officers of magistrate,
legislator, or judge to be hereditary
There are other provisions, cnjoining
rotation IN office. freedom of elections,
freedom of the press, and of religion,
equality before the law in the protection
of rights of person and property, with
the warning expression: That no free
government, or the blessing of liberty
can be preserved to any people, but by n
firm adherence to justice. moderation,
temperance. frugality and virtue. and
by frequent recurrence to fundamental
principles"
There was Democracy founded pure
and smplo-thc rule of the people. How
was il To hr maintained! Not 10y one
man power. not 10y Il central cOmbina-
ton, not 10y II single assembly under II
majority unit rule, which may be more
tyrannical than II Onc-man power. for
want of individual responsibility; but II
government with representatives of the
people in the two houses of the assembly,
acting rs cheek upon each other, with II
governor invested with conditional veto
power. ana with Il court TO arrest uncon-
stitutiunal laws that involve judicial
questions.
The idea that our Democratic govern
mcnts are or ever have been maintained
by the unchecked majority unit rule is
n gross mistake. contradictcd even by
our city governments. and all others
both state and national.
And the Democratic party. which in its
established organization is Il species of
voluntary government, was not cStab-
lishcd. nor maintained by the majority
unit rule nor can il he. from the ma
turc of the principles of that party.
If each state had been left indcpcn-
dent. as il was then, it could have
made its own Developments of its local
interests. in pursuance of those Demo
cratic principles. The adoption of the
constitution of the United States, and
the administration of the federal gov
eminent under it. acting directly upon
the people of each state, threatened II
possible danger to the rights and inter
csts of the people of each state. in the
exercise of their Democratic local self
government. This was believed to have
occurred by the federal measures.
adopted during the first twelve years
of its existence. which brought forth
the resolutions of Virginia and Ken
lucky in 179S and 1899 drawn mp by
Jefferson and Madison. under the in
iluencc of which Thomas jefferson was
elected president, and Il party in support
of him was formed, styled the RCpubli-
can party, in opposition to the FcdCralist
party. The purposes of those resolu-
tionS were to define the powers of the
federal government. and TO cOutinc its
action within the well defined limits aS
prescribed in the constitution: by which
the rights and interests of the people in
each state. in their Democratic state
governments. would not he curtailcd or
infriuged upon. That was the mission
of that party. and of its successor in
principle. the Democratic party. for and
during sixty years up to 1851.
In pursuance of that design. il pre-
vented the federal government from en-
gaging in internal improvements. in II
manner To prejudice the rights of the
states. the continuance of the national
bank. that by the money power was
perverting free suffrage. the maintain
ing of n high protective tariff. besides
other measures of less Importance. The
effort 10 resist the frccsoiliSm and fed
eralsm joined in the Republican party,
failed by Il division of the Democratic
party, as between the north and south.
and in the south itself by different
southern states having voted for diff
ferent candidates for president.
Thus by the action of the federal GOV
eminent under the principles of the res
outions of 1898 and 1899. which were
adopted aS part of the platforms of
Democratic conventions after they were
held. the taxes and expenditures of the
federal government. during the sixty
years. were small. and the same
policy prevailed in the states.
and even in cities and towns.
so that the whole country exhibited. dur
ing all that time. Il magnificent prosperity
and great growth in power.
Another instance to protect the right
of free suffrage in the people of all the
states occurred in the assembling of the
Democratic national convention nj Bal.
timore in 1899, in which Gen. Andrew
Jackson was nominated for president
and Martin Van Buren, vice president
and another such convention was held
in 1896. in which Martin Van Buren, was
nominated for president Generally. be-
fore these conventions of the people. 10y
their delegates. candidates for president