The Grenada sentinel. [volume] (Grenada, Miss.) 1868-1955, 1907-08-03
TRUE DEMOCRAT
Islands STRICTLY FOR EQuALl.
TY BEFORE THE LAW.
Opposition to All Taxes That Tend to
Foster Monopoly Is Cardinal Prin-
ciple of the Disciple Of Jefferson.

The dictionaries and Mr.. Bryan de
fine a Democrat as one who adheres
| to a government by the people. But
| that is only a nominal definition-one
| which explains only the meaning Of
| the term defined without indicating
anything more Of the nature of the
thing signified by It than is implied
by the term itself tn everybody who
understands it's meaning. 1t Is equiva'
lent to saying that a Democrat Is a
Democrat.
What is needed at this time Is not
a nominal but a real definition Of the
word-one which will explain the. ma
ture of the thing defined by reference
TO it's origin and history in connection
with American politics. Such a def
milton would necessarily relate back
to the principles set forth by Thomas
Jefferson and James Madison in 1898
and 1899, when those men founded the
Democratic party of the United States
those principles being embodied in
certain resolutions, and in q report
made by James Madison to the Vir-
ginia legislature, insisting upon q
strict construction of the language Of
the federal constitution respecting the
powers granted to the general gov
eminent and those reserved to the
states.
A Democrat, then, is a strict-con-
structionist. That is his chief char
acteristic. He believes in the doctrine
of state rights, or local self-gOvern-
ment-that is, home rule-as opposed
to Capitalization and Imperialism. He
believes in equality before the law.
and therefore opposes the creation Of
vested rights or prerogatives and pri-
vate monopolies by legislation. He be-
lieves in taxation for ven only,
and therefore opposes any and all
taxes that foster monopoly, as u
tariff laws do at this time. He be-
lieves in the right of trial by jury as
that right is guarded by the Consti-
tuition; and Is therefore opposed to
government by injunction. He be-
lieves in majority rule in every local.
II, but that a majority of the people
in the whole country have the right to
rule the minority only so long as it
rules in conformity with the COM
pact expressed in the Constitution;
whereby it is agreed that a majority
of the representatives of the people
in one branch of congress, and a ma
jority Of senators representing w
eign states in the other branch, shall
make general laws subject to a quail
fed veto by the president, and to
restrictions imposed by the
terms of the constitutional compact.
A Democrat also associates himself
with the political party which, from
it's birth in 1898, has always stood
pledged to carry out it's policies in
accordance with these general princi-
pies. He opposes those who seek to
evade or nullify constitutional provi-
sions by stretching and twisting such
provisions in applying them to cur
rent legislation or current judicial pro-
ceedings. He is plainly distinguish
able from an O%chlocrat, on the one
hand, and from an imperialist on the
other. For ochlocracy is a form of
government in which the multitude
rule directly; whereas, in a democra-
cy like ours, they govern through
their representatives. And imperial
such as the imperial DEM
pcracy Of Athens-denies to its sub
jects the right of representation In its
legislative body and taxes them with
out their consent; whereas our demOc-
racy, both in its origin and in its con-
tinuing purpose, repudiates that sys-
tenn.
Perhaps SO per cent. of the people
of this country honestly adhere to the
Of government by the people
and may, in that sense, be called
But many of them believe
o~chlocracy, and many others be-
Iieve in imperial democracy. In party
nomenclature, however, only those
who believe in representative democ-
government, and adhere to the
strict construction of the Constitution
are Democrats.