The record-union., 1898-10-16

speaker SdlU he ndO HolHlHS 10 w Win
the harmony of the music produced IN
the Republican camp, and would leave
that strictly with the Republicans his
opponent in his keynote had dealt Witn
issues; General Barnes had minimlZed
and had delivered beautiful essay for
the first column and a half, on the
Spanish-American war, tending to show
that as the war had been fought under
a Republican administration, the glories
accruing properly belonged to the Re
publican party, and because there had
been glories, the Republican State
candidates ought to be elected.
Mr.. Mcguire said he denied that the
war had been a Republican war. 1t
had not been a Democratic war nor
Populist war. but an American war
fought for liberty and humanity, and
not for the Republican or the Demo
cratic party. The Republicans had
been loyal and patriotic and were en-
titled to full credit, but the Democrats
had been just as loyal and just as pa
triotic and just as self-sacrificing. AT
Santiago's bloody field the blood Of
the nation was shed-the blood of the
common people. 1t was a common
sacrifice and that sacrifice was not
bound about by party lines and sec
tional feelings, but was a common her
itage of the whole people and not the
property of any political party.
The war the speaker said, had united
the people and had once and for all re-
tired sectional strife and all claim to
superior patriotism by the people of
one section over those of another. He
tn a
20 make partisan or political capital
out of the patriotism of the American
soldiers, and he believed the people
would not uphold any pharisaical pre-
tense that the people of one section or
of one party We're more patriotic thah
those of another. He was glad, ne
said. that the war had been fought, IN
asmuch as it had given the men VINO
wore the blue and those who wore the
gray a chance to mingle in common Ior
a common purpose, and devotion TO
principle-glad that it had brought to-
gether such rugged fighters as Cen
erals Wheeler and Wilson, thus show
ing to the world that the patriotism OF
the land was not bounded by lines ana
sections.
General Barnes. Mr.. Mcguire said,
claimed all the glories of the war lot
the Republican party because 1t had
been fought under a Republican ad-
ministration, but omitted to mention
the responsibilities for the blunders
made. Somebody, he said, had been
responsible for the neglect ef the SOL
diers in the field-responsible for the
Woful lack of necessary supplies, 1000,
medicine; responsible for the fact that
in camus in the United States three
times as many soldiers had died as had
met death on the shOt-swept hills or
Santiago and went down in the Maine
Somebody, he said was responsible, and
he thought more honor would accrue
to the Republican party by fixing the
responsibility than by claiming all the
glory of the victories won. Somebody
in the commissary, in the quartermas-
ter and in the medical departments
had been responsible-he did not pre-
sumo to say who. but somebody be-
tween the Secretary Of State at the top
and the army mule at the bottom. If,
he said, the Republican party claimed
the honor and glory and advantages OF
the war, it could not escape the respon-
sibility.
Mr.. Mcguire said it was a chapter OF
shame that the war should be treated
as material for political preferment.
The war was a common heritage, ana
he advocated allowing it to remain so.
and believed that all parties should
fight out their battles on the merits OF
the principles on which they stood.
Three columns of General Barnes
speech, Mr.. Mcguire said, were devoted
TO an essay on the South Sea Islands,
and had evidently been derived from a
study of Captain Cooks travels and the
cruise of the Challenger. 1t was a
strange commingling of fact and nc
ton, wholly insufficient to justify his
conclusion. General Barnes, he said,
denounced the position taken by the
Democratic State Convention on its ac-
ton respecting the proposed anneXa-
ton of the Hawaiian Islands. The at
tack, he said was absurd, and the his
tory of the plank referred to would
prove it. President Mckinley in issu-
ing the Spanish protocol had reserved
the question of annexation, giving as a
reason that the facts on which to de-
termine the position to be taken We're
not available.
cize President Mckinley for a thing
he himself would have done. The Dem
ocratic State Convention had merely
indorsed the Presidents action, and he
proposed to let General Barnes fight it
out with President Mckinley.
Mr.. Mcguire turned his attention to
the Pacific railroads, and said the Dem
ocratic party declared that great cor
porations should be made to pay their
debts TO the Government, and be treat
ed as poorer and weaker debtors were
treated. He asked, he said. for no Op-
preston, but only that the railroads
should be obliged to pay their debt,
which the Government had, in an evil
hour allowed them to contract. He
objected to their retaining the monopo-
ly and not meeting their obligations
as other people are made to do.
Republicans, Mr. Mcguire said, say
the railroad question is settled. He was
willing 20 admit that the Union Pa
cific question was settled. because the
Government had closed the mortgage
held by it, and got every dollar of it's
money. But he claimed that the ques-
ton respecting the Central and West
ern road, wasN not settled. He said that
by beneficent Act of Congress, passed
in 1862. the Government was obliged to
pay the interest on the railroad debt
every six months, for thirty years, and
the Supreme Court had decided that 1t
could not recover from the corporation
until the date of maturity of the bonds.
At the expiration Of the thirty years,
he said, the railroad company had ask
ed for an extension of the time of pay
ment eighty-Six years, agreeing to pay
interest at the rate of = per cent He