The Meridional. (Abbeville, La.) 1856-1906, 1896-10-31
DEMOCRATIC PLATFORM.

in national convention assembled, do re-
affirm our allegiance to those great essen
tial principles of justice and liberty upon
which our institutions are founded Il
which the Democratic party has advocat-
ed from Jefferson's time to our own, tree
dom of speech, freedom of the press, free
dom of conscience. the preservation of
personal rights the equality Of all ciazeus
before the law, and the faithful Observ-
ance of constitutional limitations.
During all these years the Democratic
party has resisted the tendency OF selfish
interests to the Capitalization of govern
mental power and steadfastly maintained
the integrity of the dual scheme OF gov
eminent established by the founders of
this republic of republics. Under its
government has found its best expression
in .he maintenance of the rights of the
States and in it's assertion of the necesSl-
ty of combining the general government to
the exercise of the powers granted by the
Constitution of the United States.
Recognizing that the money system is
paramount to all others at this time, We
invite attention to the fact that the Fed,
eral Constitution names sllyerHand gold
together as the money metals of the Unit
ed States, and that the first coinage law
passed by Congress under the COnstitu-
ton made the silver dollar the monetary
unit and admitted gold the free coinage at
a ratio based upon the silver dollar unit.
We declare that the act of 1873, de-
monetizing silver without the knowledge
or approval of the American people, has
resulted in the appreciation OF gold and
o corresponding fall in the prices of COM
modities produced by the people; q heavy
increase in the burden OF taxation and
of all debts, public and private; the en-
richment of the money lending class at
home and abroad; prostration of industry
and impoverishment of the people.
rr.paA fn fhn
recommendation, which has locked fast the
prosperity of an industrial people in the
paralysis of hard times. Gold monomet-
allism is a British policy, and its adoption
has brought other nations into financial
servitude to London. 1t is not only I'M
american, but a~nti-American, and it can
be fastened on the United States only by
the sitting of that spirit and love of lib
erry which proclaimed our political indie
pendence in 1776. and won it i'll the war
of the Revolution.
We demand the free and unlimited
coinage of both gold and silver at the
present legal ratio of Is to l., without
waiting for the aid or consent of any 9th
er nation. We demand that the standard
silver dollar shall be q full legal tender
equally with gold, for all debts, public,
and private. and we favor such legisla-
tion as will prevent for the future the de-
mOnetization of any kind of legal tender
money by private contract.
We are opposed to the policy and prac-
tice of s~nrrendering to the holders of the
obligations of the United States the OPP
ton reserved by law to the government
of redeeming such obligations in either
silver coin or gold coin.
We are opposed to the issuing of inter
est-bearing bonds of the United States in
time Of peace and condemn the trafficklng
with banking syndicates which, in ex-
change for bonds and as an enormous
profit to themselves, supply the Federal
treasury with gold to maintain the policy
of gold recommendation,
Congress alone has the power to coin
and issue money, and President jackson
declared that this power could not be del
gated to corporations or individuals. We
therefore demand that the power to issue
notes to circulate as money be taken from
national banks and that all paper mon
ey shall be issued directly by the
Treasury Department, redeemable in coin
and receivable for all debts, public and
private.
We hold that the tariff duties should
be levied for purposes Of reFenue, such
equallv~ throughout the country, and not
discriminate between class and section.
and that taxation should be limited by
the needs Of the government, honestly
and economically administered. We de-
nounce as disturbing to business the Re-
Z ~ VAS
law, which has twice been condemned by
the people in national elections, and
which, enacted under false plea of pro-
lection to home industry, proved a prolific
breeder of truss and m0nOpolies, enrich
ed the few at the expense Of the many,
restricted trade and deprived the produ-
GERS of the great American staples of ac-
cess TO their natural markets.
Until the money question is settled we
are opposed to any agitation for further
changes in our tariff laws, except such as
are necessary to make up the deficit in
revenue, caused by the adverse decision
by the supeme court on the income tax.
But for this there would be no deficit in
evenue. Under the law passed by o
Democratic Congress, In strict pursuance
of the uniform decisions Of that court
;.aving that decision sustained, constitu-
has been Uverruled by the ablest judges
VINO ever sat on that bench. We declare
that 10 is the duty of Congress to all the
constitutional power which remains after
that decision or which may come from it's
reversal by the court as it may hereafter
he constituted, so that the burdens Of
taxation may be equally and impartially
Ind to che end that wealth may bear it's
due prOportionate expenses of the govern
nlent.
We hold that the most efficient way to
pratect American labor is to prevent the
importation of foreign pauper labor to
compete with it in the home market, and
that the value of the home market to our
farmers and artisans is greatly reduced
lS a~vicious monetary system, which de-
presses the price of their products below
tho cost of production, and thus deprives
them of the means of purchasing the pro-
duets of our home manufacturers,
The absorption of wealth by the few.
the consolidation of our leading railway
systems and the formation of trusts and
pools. require a stricter control by the
Federal Government of those arteries of
commerce. We demand the enlargement,
nf the powers of the Interstate Commerce
Commission and such restrictions and