The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1905-06-20
Ole Wessengn.
DEMOCRACY

The democratic party is immortal
and its principles shall prevail is til"
cry the leaders of that party have ut
tered upon every campaign since the
formation Of the party. The speakers
would face certain defeat in a state or
national campaign with this declara-
ton on their lips. The leaders WOULD
go down in overwhelming defeat at the
polls. but still crying their firm belief
in the survival of the principles and
doctrines of the party. They have al
ways claimed that nothing could wipe
them out: that they were the funda-
mental doctrines of a free govrnmenf;
that the p~erpetuity Of u republican
institutions depended on their survival
and maintenance by the people; that
ment could not exist and that the peo-
Die would never give them up. These
democratic principles have had MANY
a hard tussle and have often gone
down in temporary defeat and often
when they came back to renewal Oh the
conflict they were 70 disfigured tnat
they could hardly be recognized by
their old friends, but on the whole they
have been able to keep a footing on
the original base and to keep up the
fight with some of the original wear
ons of attack and defense. That II mas
survived so many defeats and attacks
of the enemy shows that it a a nrhi
foundation and a solid base Ihls con
dition of the party and it's remarkapie
hold on life Notwithstanding its many
blunders and defeats indicating the
truth of the claim hat it is immortal,
are graphically set forth in the 1ollo"-
ing editorial in the Washington Post.
Our fine old riend. the democratic
PARTY. seems to have in'o
Cogitation. and not ever the glorious
victory of uncle Tom Davis has arous-
ed the sometimes admirable. the OFT
times aggravating. the always inter-
esting. and ALWAYS "unterrihed de-
mocracy from it's meditation of men.
things and eVeT.tS. And Wnat d "oH-
cerful old party it is. or was! NOW d
Roger de Cove1ley. now a squire
Western. as knightly and as cranky
as Baron Bradwardine. as simple ana
as Ioyable as Uncle Toby. it Is alter
ali. the real G.. O.. P. What other par
ty could have taken a 1.-THE of the
punishment it has Withstood: what
other party could have survived the
part it PLAYED in the wal OF 1Sol-oa
What other party could have surVlV-
ed it's insanity of 1896. to say othin
of its repetition of it in 1900?
In 1864 a war candidate on a peace
PLATFORM: in 1868 a gcldhug on a rag
money platform: in 1872 Horace Gree
ley. an inveterate and lifelong enemy
these are some of its cOn~Sistencies.
No other party could have
into a forfeiture Of the victory it gain
ed in 1876. and no other party could
have thrown to the dogs the victory it
gained in 1892. Indeed. it reminds
one nf that not unkindred spirit.
David l.. Graves. Of Kentucky. a Pc
veril- of-the-Peak sort of a man. who
when lessee of Mammoth Cave fenced
off the property so as to shut QUE
a stage company that daily brought
guests to his hotel and visitors to his
cave-all because he fell GU with and
shot the stage driver. In 1892 Grover
cleveland was the stage driver the
democratic party fenced off.
Men have laughed at the old party.
1istrustcd it. abused it. even: but no.
todv has hated it. 1t has been guilty
of 4 thousand fOlics. out never OF a
single crime. It has reVerenced h
constitution. however. may
have been its interpretations of that
sacred instrument. It's instincts are
patriotic. it's impulses good. and had
its wisdom been equal to it's honesty
it would have buried its rival long
age.
I<oJOdv knows what the future has
in store for the old party. IT may
disirtecrate. anG then like another
%antjreus. it may become stronger han
cvo" for its contact with mother earth.
Meanwhile it is the other C. O. P.
that is working the floor these nights.
onG naxt winter the nights promise to
be lon and Goleful.
A party which has stood all this
and can still show a steady though
rather attenuated front to the enemy
will never die. The Post has demon
strated its immOrtality-if nothing
more than a party of opposition to the
n in power.