Missouri Valley times. [volume] (Missouri Valley, Iowa) 1874-1931, 1900-07-12
The rhiladclphin Convention.


tons"
The Philadelphia Convention.
| A few days ago another convention of
the the. republican party met in the city of
near as possible to the anniversary of
the convention of 1856. But mark Thu.
startling and most significant fact: ~
framed by this convention of 1900, there
appears not one resolution, not one word
MT one syllable of reference to the decla-
ration of Independence. Could anything
more clearly Illustrate the decadence of
that once e, splendid and patriotic organi.
ea9 ne sacrsd precincts rs Of the old
shade of Washington or Jefferson or
Henry or Otis or Rutledge or Adams For
..Philadelphia." whose Very utterance has
been wont to stir the souls of four gener-
atoms of Americans with memories or
spoke 81 june s 49, 1885, strang no
inexpiicable, that a great convention Of
repnblicans could assemble in the city of
echoes of that momentous history While
every "babbling gossip of the air" was
repeating over and over again to those
that had ears to hear that "all men are
created equal; that they are endowed by
their Creator with certain inalienable
cure these rights governments are insti-
tuted among men. deriving their just
powerS from tn the GO, consent Of the goy
place We're as dumb as the riven throat
Of old liberty bell. And so that conven-
devotions to the doctrines whose fame
has glorified and sanctitied not only the
city where It met, but the early days Of
the party whose early days 1T repudiated
Far From Party OF L,ncoin.
For. gentlemen of the convention, 1t
needed but this one act to complete the
demonstration that the party of Marcus
a. Hanna stands for absolutely nothing,
In either doctrine OF. spirit that charac
terized the party of Abraham Lincoln.
I The men whom a. n, we today Immediately
| 1896 chiefly because of its act at St. Louis
in betraying the cause of bimetalism and
surrenderins. to the banking combination.
Fundamee g. that question is as vital
toward the gold STANDARD was only
specific caia, example Of a genera! tendency.
all the other monopolies; and the result
Ing plutocracy, pursuing the course of its
prototypes in ancient medieval history,
quest; and TO entrench its power behind
the class distinctions and centralized au-
thoritY Of militarism. That party has
reaction against the principles of demo-
cratical institutions. All men who see
the danger must unite to avert It, If we
had not left the republican party in 1896.
| we should be compelled, as patriots. to
leave 1t in 1900. and forever.
The party Of Lincoln. In the preamble
\ to Its first PLATFORM adopted in June,
1856, declared its purpose to be to restore
the action of the federal government to
s sne prne'p h q b Mahn r,a and Jgfer
| Abroad, no cntangling alliances: at home,
equal rights for al. special privileges for
publican party has revolutionized the for
etgn policy of the government. and
whether. as we have, abundance of evil
lance between the United States and
Great Britain at this moment or not, GER
tain 1T is that in the words of Washin-
foreign ground and such an alliance
must ! Inevitably be the issue Of the. pres.
In our domestic concerns the republi-
can party. by careful system of special
privilege. to the few. has built up the
dustry and politics and have virtually de-
stroYed the democratic element in our so
| the great speculative banks have been
4 empowered to usurp the sovereign func-
ton of issuing currency and to establish
81 gigantic money trust. Through failure
TO enact appropriate legislation ard to en-
force existing statutes, and by tariffs die
lies in production and transportation have
been enabled to erect and maintain
despotism over the industry of the coun-
| try. Bimetallism. ancient and honorable
faith. of the republican party, has been
openly repudiated by Its degenerate mod
era leadeership after course OF such
the amazement Of mankind. Protection,
declared in Abraham Lincoln.s platform
OF 1850 to be policy incidentally to be
enue by tariff duties, has been made an
end in itself and distorted into an engine
OF oppression a ,ssa. and robbery of the many
| by the monoDolies and trust-combina-
| tons.
Cut Loose From Past.
| And recently, as the elimination of a
long progress, Of abandonment, we have
ally from It's most fundamental faith and
sever the last remaining link that bound
y IT. TO "a, a glorious past II has repudiated
proclaimed the pre-eminence of congress
above the constitution From tn cham
everywhere to amplify it's guarantees and
to broaden its definition, it has descended
to be AN advocate of the right OF con-
reason and sympathy of mankind TO show
how narrow and circumscribed and acct
dental thing liberty is. The rights OF
J erty that they ara willing to die for ii,
/; are declared to rest no longer in original
! Justice but on the permission of ~ repub-
adopted last, month at Philadelphia de-
clares that the blessings of liberty" are
to be conferred upon all the rescued peo-
pies by the republican party" 1T was
the belief of Washington and jefferson
and Lincoln, 1t was the ancient faith OF
the American people that God gives lib
erty to all races of men and that no self
Wanted benevolent despotism can either
confer or take it away. What God has
decreed to be the Inheritance of all men
Mckinley Shall not be permitted 10 deny
to any. We appeal from the last platform
OF the republican party to the declaration
| of independence; from the irnpious pre-
| sumption of peryerse president to the
eternal justice of the Almighty Father,