Fergus County argus. [volume] (Lewistown, Mont.) 1886-1946, 1900-09-26
CAMPAIGN
C0FIDENTY OPENED
Continued from FIRST page.

that 1t Is no longer the paramount
issue. 1t Is true we declare for free
trade. and II Il true that we declare
for free silver, just as we did in 1896,
but we. cover 1t all over, and we place
before the people "a paramount issue
Well, my fellow citizens, | believe that
in the history of platforms, so far as
have been able to read, it Is the first
time that have noticed within any
platform anything about a para
mount issue. And what is this that
we are presented with In this cam
paign that Overshadows everything
else-that is gilmore importancet than
the manufacturing establishments of
our country, that Is Of more impor-
lance to our Democratic friends than
the free silver agitation? Why, we
are about TO lose u liberties! This
good old republic that has stood one
hundred and twenty years is about
to totter over; the foundation IL Civ
ing way, and the first thing that we
know we are going To he ruled by an
emperor or king. That is strange
talk. Still, that the paramountissue
that comes before us. We are reach
ing out in our possessions; we are not
doing things as our ioreiathers did
them. We are getting away from
the old J~effersonian doctrine and the
old Jackson doctrine, are we? There
never We're two cases more parallel
within the recollection Of man than
the Jeffersonian doctrine upon this
question of expansion and the Nc
kinley doctrine upon the question OF
expansion, or the probable doctrine.
Not only that, our Democratic friends
think Andrew Jackson was a good
Democrat, and a loyal citizen, and a
fine president, and a great states
man, and a great general. And SO he
was. Do you know what placed
Andrew Jackson so prominently be-
fore the people OF this country? Let
me tell you. In 1877 the Seminole In
dians, down in Florida, together
with some mongrel bands, were tres
passing upon the territory Of the
United States by going over into
Georgia and Alabama and commit
ting depredations upon citizens,
and the president of the United States
sent General Jackson down there for
the purpose of chastising them and
driving them out of our territory,
and driving them back into the
swamps OF Florida and keeping them
where they belonged. Well, wedidn't
have very many telegraph lines at
that time, and not very many rail-
roads or electric plants or telephones
or such things us that. So they gave
General Jackson an army and turned
him loose. Florida, you know, be-
longed to Spain. They had their
governors over there and all their
civil officers, and were controlling
that territory just as they controlled
the Porto Rican and Philippine
Islands. Jackson went down there
and he drove the Semino.e Indians
into the swamps, and he went right
in there after them, and wentin there
and arrested the Spanish g%oyernorof
Florida and all the Spanish officers
that We're there, and took a vessel
and placed them in 1t and sent them
back to Cuba and declared himself
governor of Florida and ruled it as a
military governor for a long time.
at is true that the next congress, l
believe, called Mr.. Jackson to time
and censured him somewhatfor what
he had done, but the people applaud
ed him, and they said: He has given
to US a fine, n magnificent strip of
territory. and he is down there hold
ing it against the S%paniards.' And
they shouted and hurrahed for Jack.
son. Afterwards he became the idol
OF the people and was elected presi-
dent OF the United States by the DEM
ocractic party. You know the his
tory OF Florida; they got into that
swamp, and then the government
took it in hand, gave the Spaniards
s., ZOO, 900 for it and settled the mat
ter up by making jackson president
OF the United States. And yet our
Democratic friends say weare violat-
ing the constitution by doing the