Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1904-04-15

and dominant, today. and with the aid
of their allies Of Tammany Hall. dln-
gerouS. joined in an attempt to disrupt
this government. The Democratic sec
rctlry of the navy scattered our ships
wherever winds blew and water was
found to float them where they could
not be used in an emergency. Tho
Democratic secretary of war scattered
our armies over this broad land where
they could not be used to put down re-
bclliun. They inaugurated ana MAIN
tanned for four years the greatest re-
bellion the world has ever known For
three years they hurled back our de-
foated army on to Washington and
rad" the streams Of Virginia rivers Of
blood. They shot down in cold blood
our soldiers who had surrendered ANA
starved to death thousands of our
prisoners of war.
In 1854, Notwithstanding the rebellion
was crumAlng to a close. notwith-
standing the glorious victory of Meade
ut Gettysburg, Of Grant at NicksburG
and Chattanooga. of the great march of
the Army Of the Potomac from the
Rarilln, through the Wilderness, to
the james and Petersburg, of the sue
cess : Of Sheridan in The Shenandoah,
Of the unprecedented march of Sher-
man from Atlanta to the sea, they de-
clarel that the war was failure: that
peace should be made with the South
on any terms ana they nominated on
that platform an unsuccessful Union
general who mad not escaped the I'M
putation Of having been a traitor.
In 1853 they declared that the nation
al debt should be paid in irredeemable
paper currency, that the reconstruction
acts ana the 18th. Nth and 18th amend
ments to the Constitution which abol-
iShcd slavery and gave citizenship to
the negroes, should be rafealed, and
they nominated on that platform the
''bitterest copperhead'' in the country,
Horatio Seymour.
II 1872 they nominated as their candi-
date 4 life long republican, one of the
fathers of protection. in the person of
Horace Greeley, and they declared that
these same reconstruction acts and
amendments to the Constitution should
be maintained.
In 1876 they "blossomed out" as 4
great reform party. "Tilden and re-
form" you all remember the cry, and
they closed their campaign by an eff
fort. on the part of a nephew of Mr..
Tildcn and the democratic national
committee. to bride the republican cleo
tors in three states.
Failing to bride the republican cleo
tors, they disputed the constitutional
right of the Nice-President to count
electoral votes. threatened war, and
proposed an electoral commission
which should count the votes. This
proposition was supported by nine
tenths of the democratic senator's ana
representatives in Congress and OPP
posed by threc-tifths of all the repub-
licans. and when this electoral commits
sion decided in favor of Mr.. Hayes,
they cried fraud. and for four years
they addressed one of the most upright
Presidents this country has ever had
as His Fraudulency'
n 1850 they nominated 4 brave and
successful Union general, who had de-
cIarcd that the tariff was Il local issue.
on Il platform that meant anything or
nothing. as you please to read it. eX-
ccpt a declaration that the republicans
had stolen the presidency in 1876.
In 1884. nothing else being left to
them. they came out as free trade
marty. under an alias of tariff for
revenue. and they conducted cam
paign noted for nothing but vitupera-
ton ard Islander. shotguns and tissue
ballots, and by these methods succeed
ed in defeating one of the greatest men
this country has ever produced.
From 1884 to 1892 they cried tariff for
revenue. They declared that the re-