Richmond daily palladium. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1876-1904, 1900-09-14
HISTORIC BOGEY MEN
The Democracy Fears for the Re
public Every Four Years.
A Nw Dres. Is Given Its Scarecrow.
Int the Same Old Idea Has
Pervaded Its Platforms
Since 1867.

I
baes, it matches out a choice collection
/ ofnightmares. Presenting a different
| reason each time, the party has always
! declared for the past SO years that the
| constitution was being overthrow
| and the perpetuity of our form of gov
| eminent threatened. A review of its
| Platforms since 1854 will show that its
| PRESENT alarm about the republic is
Iothing new. The democratic party is
always frightened, distressed and in a
condition of hysterical alarm lest a ma
| iority of the voters of the republic
shall be traitors to their government
and to themselves. There is always
shown the same old frightful picture
hung in new frame; the same old
hairy arm of Jacob, but with a fresh
voice of new Esau each time. A dem
ocratic platform without plank trem-
bling for the very life of the republic,
with a new excuse for the shivers, would
be as unreal as Hamlet played without
the Dane.
This year il is opposition to eNpan-
sion, national growth and information
al prestige that serves as the garments
of this old historic cornfield bogie man.
Listen 10 the wailing jeremiah of
1890.
The burning issue of imperialism
growing out of the Spanish war involves
the very existence of the republic and
the destruction of our free institu-
tons" This is an awful state of af-
fairs TO face. terrible condition TO eN-
list at a time when our people are so
busy making money under a period of
republican prosperity that they may
fail to be aware of the awful peril that
threatens. Only one thing is lacking.
The platform makers should have gone
on to declare that the wicked repub
licans had brought about season of
prosperity solely to engage the atten-
ton of the people while they prose
cuted their nefarious designs under
cover of the smoke of the chimneys of
industry. Drag from the mists Of al
most forgotten obscurity, however, a
long line of democratic platforms and
you will find that in the minds of de-
mocracy this awful condition of affairs
is chronic.
In 1864 the democratic platform
denounced Lincoln for -Four years
of failure to restore the union by the
experiment of war, during which. I'M
der pretense of military necessity of
war power higher than the consti-
tuition, the constitution itself has
been violated in every part and pub
lie liberty and private right alike
trodden down" And this same
treacherous platform firing in the
back of soldiers of the union. just
as does the platform of 1900, goes on
to condemn 1.-The administrative
usurpation of extraordinary and
dangerous powers calcu-
lated to prevent the perpetuation of
a government deriving its just pow
ers from the consent of the gov
erned"
The trainers of the Kansas City
platform evidently had the model of
the platform of 1864 before them
when they framed that of 1900. But
perhaps they also had as a model
their plank of 1865 when they de-
clared that I'VE arraign the radical
party for it's disregard of right and |
the unparalleled oppression and tyr
amy that have marked its career. It |
has converted the American capitol |
into a bastile. Under its repeated as
saults the pillars of the government |
are rocking on their base, and should
it succeed in November next and in
augurate its president we will meet |
as subjected and conquered people, |
amid the ruins of liberty and the /
scattered fragments of the constitu-
ton" For hysteria this is an i'm
provement even on Kansas City, but
in spite of it Ulysses S. Grant was
elected, and yet no one in Washing
ton has ever been known to stumble I
over any of those awful scattered /
fragments that should be LAYING /
around loose. In spite of the I'm
periar' Grant the constitution still |
survives in shape to furnish further
opportunity for nightmares over its
danger.
By 1872 a new excuse for the ire
mors must be found, so the civil serv-
ice became the paramount ISSUE"
and the awful danger to the consti-
tuition from the men and women who
held places at Washington was held
up in this shape: THE civil service
of the government has become
mere instrument of partisan tyranny.
1t is a scandal and reproach upon
free institutions and breeds a de-
dangerous to the per-
petuity of republican government"
In 1892 they brought out the par
amount issue" imperilling the life of
the republic in this shape: I'VE
warn the people of our common
country, Jealous for the preserva-
ton of their free institutions. that
the policy of federal control of cleo
lions to which the republican party
has committed itself is fraught with
the greatest dangers. scarcely less
than would result from
4 revolution practically establishing
on the ruins of the repub-
ic."
In 1896 the dreadful picture of the !