The morning Astorian. [volume] (Astoria, Oregon) 1899-1930, 1904-07-07
BIRTH OF GREAT PARTY
IS DULY COMEMORATED
Secretary of State Hay Delivers Address
at Jackson, Michigan. Telling the
History of RepubIicanism.

Jackson, Mich, July 6,-Five thou
sand people assembled at Loomis par
here today to celebrate the fiftieth an
niversary OF the birth Of the republi
can party, under the Oaks" this cit,
July 6, 1854 1t was here on tina
date that the first state convention
acting under the name republican,
was held. The state ticket nominate
on that day went through heate
campaign to election-day success.
Secretary of state John Hay, VIII
was private secretary to Abraham Lin
coin, the first republican president, wa
the orator of the day. Other distin
guished guests present were Speake
Cannon of the national house Of repre-
sentatives Senator Fairbanks Of In
diana, republican candidate for vic'
president, and Senators Alger and Bur-
rows of Michigan.
Secretary Hays address was in part
as follows:
A century is but a moment of his
tory; it has often happened that sey
eral Of them have passed away, since
men began to record their deeds. with
little change in the physical aspect OF
the moral progress of the world. But
at other times-of intense action and
spiritual awakening-a single gen.
Grafton may form an epoch; and few
periods of equal duration in political
annals have been so crowded with
great events as the so years we cele-
brate today. Under the oaks Of jack
son on the 9Th of July. 1854, party
was brought into being and baptized
which ever since has answered the
purposes of its existence with fewer
follies and failures and more magnifi-
cent achievements than ordinarily fall
to the lot Of any institution of mortal
origin. And even the beginning OF
the end is not yet. This historic party
is only now in the full maturity of
its power and its capacity for good
We look back upon past Of unpar-
alleled usefulness and glory with emo
tions of thankfulness and pride: we
confront the future and its exacting
problems with a confidence born Of
the experience of difficulties surmount-
ed and triumphs achieved in paths
more thorny and ways more arduous
than any that are likely to challenge
the courage and the conscience of the
generation which is to follow us. 1t
is meet that at this stage of our jour-
ney we should review the past and
read its lessons, and in its light take
heart for what lies beyond.
Origin of the Party.
The republican party had a noble
origin. 1t sprang directly from an
aroused and indignant national con-
science. Questions of finance, of po-
liticaI economy, of orderly adminis-
tration. passed out Of sight for the
moment, to be taken up and dealt with
later on. But in 1854 the question that
whether there should be limit to-
whether thatre should be a limit to
the aggressions of slavery: and in 1851
that solemn inquiry turned to one still
more portentious. Should the nation
live or die? The humblest old repub-
Tcan in America has the right to be
proud that in the days of his youth
in the presence of these momentous
questions he judged right; and if he
is sleeping in his honored grave his
children may justly be glad Of his
decision.
1t was not so easy so years ago to
take sides against the slave power as
it may seem today. Respect for the
vested rights of the southern people
was one of our most sacred traditions
1t was founded on the compromises Of
the constitution, and upon long line
of legal and legislative precedents
The men of the revolution made no
defense of slavery in itself; Washing
ton, Adams, Jefferson and Franklin
deplored it's existence, but recognized
the necessity of compromise until the
public mind might rest in the hope
of its ultimate extinction. But after
they had passed away, Improvements
in the culture and manufacture of cot
ton made this uneconomic form of la
Dor for the time profitable, and what
had been merely tolerated as a tempo
rary necessity began to be upheld as
temporary necessity faw abgyq
a permanent system. Slavery en-
trenched itself in every department Of
cur public life. Its advocates DOM
mated congress and the state legisla-
tures; they eevn invaded the pulpit
and grotesquely wrested a few texts
Of scripture to their purpose. They
gave the tone to society; even the
southern accent was initiated in our
schools and colleges.
The Effort for Slavery.
If the shareholders had been content
with their unquestioned predominance,
they might for many years have con-
trolled our political and social world.
1t was natural for the conservative
people of the north to say: I'VE de-
plore the existence of slavery, but we
are all to- blame for it; we should not
east upon our brethren in the south
the burdens and perils of its aboli-
ton. We must bear with the un-
fortunate condition of things and take
our share Of it's inconvenience" But
the slaveholding party could not rest
content. The ancients said that mad
ness was the fate of those judged by
the gods. Continual aggression is a
necessity of a false position. They felt