Year: 1876




REFORM STANDARD OF THE OLD RELIABLE


DEMOCRATIC PARTY.


| MY FELLOW CITIzEss.-we are approaching what
| is always a interesting event in Amer
lean history-the election Of a president OF
the United st ates, change in the public officers OF
the country. The theory Of our government is
that the officers of government United
are not ITS rulers but the servants of the people
| and the people themselves the sovereigns. he
constitution of the United States says eve the peo-
ple' make this government; and upon the virtue and
| intelligence OF the PeOPle is ~ oassu. a yOur u
government Is ever lost IL Will be your faul Tor IN
your hands the ballobox is the power to preserve
your purify it when il becomes corrupt,
turn bad when they no longer assist you and
serve you and place good men in their stead. And
never face an American audience that do not feel
like impressing upon them the high responsibility
| that is in their hands.


RESPONSIBILITIES OF AMERICAN CITIZENS
| Indeed it quite often seems to me that the
people sufficiently impressed themselves with
| the mighty power which they control and have. IL


is your government my friends; If il Is bad govern
the American people permitted Ii to be so; II II
is a good government to you belongs the credit of
making Ii such And come here to-day 10 call on you
to change and purify the worst civil administration
your government has known. Wherever the
English tongue is spoken and in countries where the
English tongue is not spokeu-throughout the
boundaries ofcvilization the administration OF al
fairs in the American republic, for the last eight
years especially has become byword
and reproach. The Journals of England,
the newspapers and public men in every
country in Europe are pointing to the corrupt and
degraded ccndiiOn of the public service in the Uni
of government. They cite the pecuation and maud
in this country argument that government
with king, with aristOcracy, and with privileged
classes make purer and better government than
that for which fathers fought in the revolution.
These are solemn facts. Gov Morton, and that class
of men, may proclaim that you have pure govern
whole world knows that is not So take the entire
American people TO witness that 1t Is not
true. We have fallen upon evil times, aud the
public mind of the United States is moving as ii
ought TO move in behalf Of radical change in the af
fairs of the republic There is permeaiing the public
mind widespread and deep seated dissatisfaction-
nobody is satisfied with things they My Re-
publican friend, if there is one listening to my poor
voice to-day here, you are not satisfied. You may
stand up and tell me you are; know you are not.
In your heart of hearts you


DRNoUNoE AND LoATHE THE ADMINIsTRA-
TION


which your own party has given you for the last
eight years. And in your heart Of hearts, If you
could be convinced that you could trust the Demo-
cratic party or any other party you would say will
welcome change; for ii can't be worse and it may
be better That the feeling all through this coun
try. The people are moving, simply on
the idea % that have % Just prOSlsl@sd.
| because it can not make matters worse and might
make them better. In fact, my friends, change in
politics and the civil service OF the country Is often
\ desirable though special specific acts
pointed out. When one party has been In power as
long this party has the officers of the government
become indifferent you, they become neglectful of
their duties they become sordid and corrupt In their
greed and love of gain they feel that they are sPe
cay favored class set apart to hold possession of the
/ government. And when such state of affairs
that prevails, whether IL is party that is in office
for these many years, or whether 1t is your party
that is in office, my Republican friend,
it is better that there should change take
place. Turn them out and put In new men and
let the men that get in go In with new and vivid
sense of their responsibility to the people. They
are fresh from the people, and they have not been
there so long to forg. the people. On the same
principle that you change the crops in your fields,
that renders them more fruitful, men in Office
ought to be changed. This Republican party has
been grazing too long in Washington-a new stock
ought to be put there-a new breed and new class,
and the old ought to be turned into the public CON-
mons. lLaughter.l And the American people
about that thing this year. Why need stand here
and dwell upon what your eyes have seen aud what
your hav heard : The cOrruptons that have at


racted the attention Of the entire world for the last
Is years at Washington. They could cover up their
tracks because the Democratic party had depart
ment under its control; had no branch of Congress
under its control until the last Congress; had Op
/ portunty to investigate anybody or anything, and
the radicals could pluDder and squander your money
and one hid while the other STOLE [Laughter.l But
/ at last the people of the United States-and will
show that they ought to be congratulated upon it
| trusted one branch of Congress TO the Democratic
| party. Last December majority of Democrats
1 came into the Lower House for the first time for
| sixteen years, and ever since that time


INVESTIGATIONS HAVE BEEN GOING ON.


They have plowed up and turned over corruption,
| fraud and peculation faster and more frequently
| than you plowed up yellow jackets
nests in an old fallow field in the fall
| of the year. Laughter and applause.l Governor
Morton in his speech the other day. complained that
there had been some thirty investigating committees
going under the Democratic House of Representa-
| tives Yes, and if there had been thirty more
courses Plowed the service something wrong
would have been turned up at every furrow. Wher
| before in the history Of this government was a
secretary of unearthed a secret partner of a
con,emptible army sutler on the frontier, AID in
partnership with him In stealing from the private
soldier each pound Of bacon and bread that he
bought at the suffers tent? When was such a thing
heard of before But, says Morton. the reason why
Belknap stole that Grant took him from the Dem
0cratic party and put him in his cabinet. Laughter
| admit to you that IL is a bad sign and an evil
istration Ike Grants finds Democrat that is mean
enough to into its service and leave the old Demo
Cratic party. lApplause But II Belknap
Democrat, as his friends say he was IL still shows
how unsafe il is betray their prin-
ciples for the sake Of office, BelkDap and oliver p.
Morton, John Logan, and others who left the DEM
| Piasse.J These Investigations have shown the
highest officials ~ the land engaged in
| notice Of At all over the country The
time has been coming on, time when the
when the Industries Of the country we're parslyz
when the farmer getdHg low prices for his pro-
duce and paving high taxes. when the mechanic was
home On Saturday night with S. for his weeks work


s his veepine wife and children when they used to


gotten g.insi what cane sy Shsties' iss' get s'r
TIE LAND Is FILLED WITH MEN AND wokEN
i OUT OF EMPIovMEST?
What care they whether the great industries of
nation stand stilif Nothnga AZ all What cared they
whether two hundred thOusand men were
out Of employment in the cities al
New York and Philadelphia and Boston7
What cared they whether your highways were filled
With men, and women too. called tramps, tramping
for bread because they could not get employment 20
their bread? This il the state people AT
this time; this is the condition Of the American peo-
pie and IL has impressed every patriotic heart with
the necessity Of hurting these from power and
placing somebody else there. IL has impressed every
body with the idea that the funess Of the time has
come when change In the administration Of the
American republic is demanded In the In.