iiK».e^&i PI mSfsm P^pS! ' ,,1 SIP I^J^g^jjS^ H ^^ii/J^^L\\i^^^^^^l mmmmm v H Sil W^'Mw*w- l**?^CH ^^^^^F*WwOTBffp- LAW AND CONTRACT DIVISION, C. M. AN3TETT, CHIEF. THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY ITS HISTORY, PRINCIPLES, ACHIEVEMENTS, AND AIMS. BY HON. WILLIAM L. WILSON, LL.D., w MEMBER OF CONGRESS, LATE PRESIDENT WEST VIRGINIA UNIVERSITY. WITH SPECIAL TREATMENT OF THE POSITION OF THE PARTY ON THE LIVING ISSUES OF TO-DAY BY THE FOLLOWING AUTHORITIES: HON. JOHN G. CARLISLE, Speaker Nat. House of Reps.; Hon. JEFFER- SON CHANDLER, LL.D.; Hon. WM. L. TRENHOLM, Compt'r of the Currency; Hon. JAMES L. PUGH, U. S. Senator; Hon. COURTLAND C. MATSON, M. C; Hon. WM. R. COX, Ex-M. C; Hon. WM. S. HOLMAN, M. C; Hon. WM. M. SPRINGER, M. C.j Hon. NEW- TON C. BLANCHARD, M. C; Gen. JOHN C. BLACK, U. S. Com'r of Pensions; Hon. HILARY A. HERBERT, M. C; Hon. PERRY BELMONT, M. C; Hon. WADE HAMPTON, U. S. Senator; Hon. BENTON McMILLIN, M. C. PROFUSELY ILLUSTRATED. H. L. HARVEY & CO, Publishers, , r §i i BALTIMORE, MD. C. i.l. A A I) O- T^> ~1 ilON. CHIEF. Copyright, 1888, by J. M. Morrison. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. L/W ;/.« A W ^> ! *£. 1 » J ,S\OH, tKlSf. « l» • INTRODUCTION /"\URS is a government by the people. In all its ^ departments it is administered by their agents, chosen from their ranks, and chosen by themselves, either directly or indirectly. Under such a government, political parties necessarily arise either as representatives of some particular theory of government, or as advocates of some special or temporary policy. The student of the history of the first century of our national existence, cannot fail to be strongly im- pressed by the indestructible vitality of the Democratic Party. It, alone of all parties, has a history co-ex- tensive with that of the Federal Constitution, and its most unreasoning foe will scarcely claim that it shows as yet any symptoms of dissolution or decay. This is not accidental. It can have no other rational explanation than that the party has been, from the beginning, the guardian and defender of some fundamental principle, or principles, of free government, in whose truth and permanence it has found its life and its growth. The volume herewith presented is designed to trace the history of the National Democatic Party from the adoption of our Federal Constitution to the present time, and to offer discussion of many of the great IV. INTRODUCTION. public questions of the day, by gentlemen of recog- nized prominence in its ranks. While each writer has exercised the largest liberty in the treatment of the subject assigned him, and is, in a strict sense, alone responsible for the views expressed in his paper, the aim has been to secure for every topic a writer of acknowledged fitness and ability ; who writes as a Democrat, and who has enjoyed such im- mediate contact with the questions discussed by him, in the public service, as to give special weight and freshness to the views he may present. It is believed that such a volume will prove both timely and valuable. The Presidental Campaign now about to open prom- ises to involve, more than any campaign of recent times, the education of the people on questions of public poli- cies. A clear understanding of these policies and of the position of parties with regard to them, is clearly the condition of intelligent suffrage. We are too apt to believe that our form of govern- ment is the natural and the easy one. Such is not the teaching of history. Sir Henry Maine, the most thorough student of institutions in our day, has correctly declared that popular government has hitherto shown itself the most fragile of all governments, the least able to thrust its roots into any soil, and consequently the most dependent upon wise, thoughtful and sagacious statesmanship. The United States entered upon exist- ence under all the doubts and misgivings that arose from the short-lived and turbulent existence of demo- cratic government in the past. INTRODUCTION. V That we have dissipated those doubts and misgivings and have actually turned the tide in the direction of democratic institutions among all the enlightened peoples of the world, is surely ground for confidence and patriotic rejoicing, but not for any relaxation of vigilance or for any trifling with the rights and duties of citizenship. If this volume shall aid in the work of political educa- tion ; if it shall aid in spreading clearer ideas of the principles of the National Democratic Party, and above all, if it shall inspire the members of that party with a higher devotion to those principles and a more faithful and unswerving application of them to the public service, it will accomplish fully its mission. The task of the editor has in no sense involved any revision of the work of other contributors, and it is due to him to say that his own part of the work has been done under the pressure of duties as heavy and exact- ing as ever fall to the lot of a public servant. WM. L. WILSON. LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. Page View of Washington, Frontispiece Hon. Wm. L. Wilson, . 16 President Jefferson, 81 " Madison, 96 " Monroe, 102 " Jackson, . 114 " Van Buren, 130 " Tyler, 137 " Polk, 144 Hon. Thos. H. Benton, 154 President Pierce, 160 " Buchanan, 168 Hon. Stephen A.Douglas, 177 " Thomas A. Hendricks, 177 " Saml. J. Randall, 196 " Saml. J. Tilden, 209 General Winfield S. Hancock, 209 Hon. Wm. R. Morrison, 215 President Cleveland, 223 Hon. S. S. Cox, • • . . 229 " Allen G. Thurman, 233 11 Jeff. Chandler, 240 " John G. Carlisle, 271 " Wm. L. Trenholm, 311 " James L. Pugh, 338 " C. C Matson, 363 " W. R. Cox, * 375 " Wm. S. Holman, 412 " Wm. M. Springer, 472 " N. C. Blanchard, 487 General John C. Black, 500 Hon. Hilary A. Herbert, 514 " Perry Belmont, 573 11 Wade Hampton, 596 " Benton McMillin, 623 vii CONTENTS HISTORY OF THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY. By Hon. WILLIAM L. WILSON, LL.D., Member of Congress; Late President of the University of West Virginia. Page CHAPTER I. 17 EARLY DIVISIONS OF SENTIMENT. CHAPTER II. 33 HISTORY UNDER WASHINGTON. CHAPTER III. 67 HISTORY UNDER JOHN ADAMS. CHAPTER IV. So HISTORY UNDER JEFFERSON. CHAPTER V. 96 HISTORY UNDER MADISON. TABLE OF CONTENTS. Page CHAPTER VI. 102 HISTORY UNDER MONROE. CHAPTER VII. 109 HISTORY UNDER JOHN QUINCY ADAMS. CHAPTER VIII. 114 HISTORY UNDER JACKSON. CHAPTER IX. 130 HISTORY UNDER VAN BUREN. CHAPTER X. HISTORY UNDER HARRISON AND TYLER. i37 CHAPTER XI. 144 HISTORY UNDER POLK. CHAPTER XII. 154 HISTORY UNDER TAYLOR AND FILLMORE. CHAPTER XIII. 161 HISTORY UNDER PIERCE. CHAPTER XIV. 169 HISTORY UNDER BUCHANAN. CHAPTER XV. 176 HISTORY UNDER LINCOLN. CHAPTER XVI. l8 4 HISTORY UNDER JOHNSON. TABLE OF CONTENTS, xi Page CHAPTER XVII. 197 HISTORY UNDER GRANT. CHAPTER XVIII. 208 HISTORY UNDER HAYES. CHAPTER XIX. 214 HISTORY UNDER GARFIELD AND ARTHUR CHAPTER XX. 222 HISTORY UNDER CLEVELAND. PRINCIPLES OF THE PARTY. CHAPTER I. THE FEDERAL CONSTITUTION. ITS TRUE INTERPRETATION. By Hon. Jefferson Chandler. CHAPTER II. THE NATIONAL REVENUES. By Hon. John G. Carlisle, Speaker National House of Representatives. CHAPTER III. THE NATIONAL FINANCES. By Hon. William L. Trenholm, Comptroller of the Currency, U. S. Treasury Department. Page 241 270 TABLE OF CONTENTS. Page CHAPTER IV. 339 LABOR AND CAPITAL. By Hon. James L. Pugh, U. S. Senator. CHAPTER V. 362 PENSIONS. By Hon. Courtland C. Matson, Chairman Committee on Invalid Pensions, National House of Representatives. CHAPTER VI. 374 REFORM OF THE CIVIL SERVICE, By Hon. William R. Cox, Chairman of the Committee on the Civil Service of the National House of Representatives in the Forty-ninth Congress. CHAPTER VII. 4 , 3 THE PUBLIC LANDS. By Hon. William S. Holman, Chairman Committee on Public Lands, National House of Representatives. CHAPTER VIII. 473 THE TERRITORIES. By Hon. William M. Springer, Chairman Committee on Territories, National House of Representatives, TABLE OF CONTENTS. CHAPTER IX. INTERNAL IMPROVEMENTS. By Hon. Newton C. Blanchard, Chairman Committee on Rivers and Harbors, National House of Representatives. CHAPTER X. THE MILITARY. By General John C. Black, United States Commissioner of Pensions. Xlli Page 486 5oi CHAPTER XI. THE NAVY. By Hon. Hilary A. Herbert, Chairman Committee on Naval Affairs, National House of Representatives. CHAPTER XII. OUR FOREIGN RELATIONS. By Hon. Perry Belmont, Chairman Committee on Foreign Affairs, National House of Representatives. CHAPTER XIII. THE SOUTH. By Hon. Wade Hampton, U. S. Senator. CHAPTER XIV. AIMS OF THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY. By Hon. Benton McMillin, M. C. 515 572 597 622 WILLIAM L. WILSON. CHAPTER I. EARLY DIVISIONS OF SENTIMENT. WHEN the doors of the Federal Convention at Philadelphia were thrown open, on the seven- teenth day of September, 1787, and the Constitution framed and proposed by the delegates from the States in attendance was made public, it was found to be not an amendment of the existing articles of Confed- eration but a new and complete scheme for a Federal Government. By its concluding article it was to become operative whenever ratified by the convention of nine of the States among the States ratifying it. When it was discovered that two of the four delegates from Mas- sachusetts had refused to sign the Constitution, two also of the three delegates from New York, and four of the seven from Virginia, it was made mani- fest that the adoption of the new form of govern- ment was by no means assured, and that its fate was most uncertain in the large States of the Con- federation. As we review the history of the contests over the adoption of the Constitution in these three States, it is equally manifest that, both in New York and Virginia, whatever may be the fact as to Massachu- 2 (17) 1 8 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRARIC PARTY. setts, a very decided majority in the beginning re- ceived the new plan of government with disfavor and opposition. It was upon this great question of the ratification of the Constitution that the first division of the peo- ple of the United States into parties may be said to have occurred, although the grounds of opposition were by no means the same in all the States. Those who favored the new scheme of government assumed the name of Federalists ; those who opposed its adoption were called Anti-Federalists. It has been said with much force that the latter name is not a descriptive one, as the opponents of the Constitution were made up, as a rule, of those who were not so much opposed to a federal as to a National govern- ment, and the arguments on which they relied, in all the states, were largely drawn from the dangers to individual liberty and local government from the cen- tralizing and national character, as they contended, of the new constitution. The first State to ratify the Constitution was Dela- ware, and that by a unanimous vote, on the seventh day of December 1789. Pennsylvania followed five days after by a vote of two to one. When we read the names of the delegates from these two States to the Convention that framed the Constitution, we readily see the explanation of their prompt and decisive action. Among the delegates from Delaware were John Dick- inson and George KReed, while Pennsylvania appeared EARLY DIVISIONS OF SENTIMENT. 1 9 in the person of the venerable Benjamin Franklin, associated with whom were Thomas Mifflin, Robert Morris, George Clymer, Jared Ingersoll, James Wilson and Gouverneur Morris. Two of the remaining States — New Jersey and Georgia — ratified the Constitution unanimously, and in the Conventions of Connecticut and Maryland the op- position could muster but a small vote. The Convention in Massachusetts met January 9, 1788. The success of the new Government was staked upon the action of that commonwealth, and the friends of the Constitution soon learned that upon a direct vote her voice would be against ratification. Votes must be won over or the cause was lost, and the cry was even raised in the Boston Gazette that money was subscribed to corrupt members of the Convention who opposed the Constitution. But this seems to have been a false clamor, for the plan actually devised to secure a majority in favor of ratification was so well adapted to the emergency that it was equally effectual in turning the scales in other States. That plan recog- nized the fact that many most ardent patriots, as anxious as any of their fellow citizens to escape from the imbecility and hopeless decline of the Confedera- tion still hesitated about accepting the Constitution, without incorporating additional restraints upon the powers of the Federal Government. It accordingly pro- posed to combine with ratification the recommedation of such Amendments as seemed effective of this purpose. 20 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. Govenor John Hancock, President of the Convention, whose position had been in doubt, agreed to bring foward the proposition in the Convention. He was earnestly supported by Samuel Adams, the "helms- man of the Revolution, at its origin," who was also slow in favoring a National Government. The Amendments matured, as Bancroft tells us, in secret council, by Hancock, Adams, Theophilus Parsons and other resolute and trusty men were offered as Hancock said, " for the removing the fears and quiet- ing the apprehensions of the good people of the Commonwealth, and the more effectual guarding against an undue administration of the Federal Government." Nevertheless the final vote was a close one, and when taken on the sixth day of February showed one hundred and sixty-eight in the negative, to one-hundred and eighty-seven, in the affimative. The tide was now turned, but the fight in the Virginia Convention, which assembled in Richmond on the second day of June 1788, surpassed that in any of the States in the greatness of the combatants, both for and against the Constitution. The opponents of ratification were marshalled under that incomparable leader Patrick Henry, whose speeches in the Conven- tion, even in the imperfect reports preserved to us, have always been a puzzle to those who accepted the common idea that he was merely an unlettered child of nature, endowed with a miraculous gift of oratory ; an idea but recently dissipated in his admirable bi- EARLY DIVISIONS OF SENTIMENT. 21 ography by Professor Moses Colt Tyler, in which he is shown by proof that can not be assailed to have been a well trained lawyer and an unusually well educated man. Henry was ably seconded by George Mason and Grayson, and had less active lieutenants in James Monroe, John Tyler Sr. and Benjamin Harrison. The friends of ratification were led by Madison, who was supported by Edmund Pendleton, Govenor Randolph, John Marshall, (afterward Chief Justice) Henry Lee, ("Light-horse Harry") Bushrod Washing- ton, nephew of the General, and afterwards the well- known Justice Washington of the U. S. Supreme Court. George Wythe, a signer of the Declaration of Inde- pendence, the famous Chancellor, who numbered among his law pupils Thomas Jefferson, John Marshall and Henry Clay, associated with these on both sides were men of scarcely less ability and weight in their Com- monwealth, but were names little known to out- side history. It was truly a war of giants, and in the opposing ranks were thus found nearly all that was distinguished for ability, patriotic service or legal learning in the State. Three of her great names alone are missing. Wash- ing had been President of the Federal Convention, had heartily approved the Constitution. From his re- tirement at Mount Vernon he watched with intense interest its progress through the several State Conven- tions, freely corresponding with its supporters in all 22 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. sections and never wavering in his faith in its ultimate success. His well-known favor was a powerful influ- ence not only in Virginia, but in all the States in securing its ratification. Richard Henry Lee, the polished orator, and mover of the Declaration of In- dependence, was a zealous Anti-federalist. Thomas Jefferson had been Minister to France for the past four years, and from that distant land had followed the course of events at home as faithfully reputed to him by James Madison and other confi- dential correspondents, with the ardent interest of the patriot and the friend of liberty. At first he had received the draft of the new Con- stitution rather coldly, strongly objecting to the omis- sion of a Bill of Rights, such as was found in the first Constitution adopted by the Commonwealth of Virginia, and also to the eligibility of the President. At a later date he wrote to Madison, " I wish, with all my soul, that the the nine first Conventions may accept the new Constitution, to secure us the good it contains ; but I equally wish that the four latest whichever they may be, may refuse to accede to it, till a declaration of rights be annexed ; but no objec- tion to the new form must produce a schism in our Union." When, however, he heard of the plan adopted by Massachusetts, he declared that it was far pref- erable and expressed the hope that it would be fol- lowed, by the States which were yet to decide. His own statement of his position was, "I am not of the EARLY DIVISIONS OF SENTIMENT. 23 party of the Federalists ; but I am much further from that of the Anti-federalists." His influence was there- fore in favor of ratification. The final vote in the Convention was reached on the 25th of June, when by agreeing to recommend numerous amendments, the friends of the Constitution triumphed by a vote of eighty-nine to seventy-nine. In no State in the Union however, as already indicated, did so large an array of great names appear in the negative. New Hampshire had already made the Constitution operative by ratifying it as the ninth State on the 21st of June, but the news of her action had not reached Virginia when the vote was taken in the latter State. New York, Rhode Island, and North Carolina, yet remained outside the New Union. The North Carolina Convention assembled on the 2 1st of July, and after some days debate resolved by the decisive vote of one hundred and eighty-four to eighty-four, to ofTer a Bill of Rights and Amendments and adjourn without acting on the question of ratification. In order, however, to preserve harmonious relations with the new government already established by the ratifi- cation of ten States as they supposed, by eleven in reality, the Convention recommended to the legisla- ture, that whenever Congress passed a law for collect- ing an import in the States which had ratified, " this State enact a law for collecting a similar import on goods imported into this State and appropriate the money arrising therefrom to the use of Congress. " 24 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. Rhode Island had declined to take part in the Federal Convention, and she too withheld her ratifi- cation of the Constitution of her and North Carolina, the great historian of the Constitution says, ° Neither of the two States which had lingered behind remon- strated against the establishment of a new govern- ment before their consent, nor did they ask the United States to wait for them. The worst that can be said of them is, they were late in arriving. " The New York Convention met at Poughkeepsie in June 17, 1788; Governor Clinton was its president, and with Yates and Lansing who had been delegates to the Federal Convention led the debate in opposi- tion to ratification. The name of Alexander Hamilton is so conspicuous in this Convention as the Champion of the Constitu- tion that it is sometimes forgotten how jealously and ably he was supported by John Jay, Chancellor Liv- ington, Chief Justice Morris, Duane and others. After proposing a conditional adoption, New York, finding the Constitution already ratified by a sufficient num- ber of States, decided to unite with them, and on the 26th of July ratified the Constitution by a vote of thirty to twenty-seven, combining with this ratifi- cation a Bill of Rights and a list of Amendments proposed for the adoption of the new government. Thus by the successive ratification of eleven of the thirteen States, with the certainty that the two lag- gard ones would soon follow, the _ United States pas- EARLY DIVISIONS OF SENTIMENT. 2$ sed from the voluntary league of the Confederation, without revenue which is the vital breath of every State, and without the means of procuring revenue, except by requisition upon the States which it could not enforce, without the power to make or enforce laws, and rapidly losing all respect at home or abroad, to the Federal Union under the Constitution, with its power to lay and collect taxes through its own officials ; its careful distribution of the powers of government into the great departments, legislative, executive and judicial ; its power to make and enfore the laws authorized by the Constitution and to com- mand the obedience of its own people, and the ad- miration and respect of all the world. No recital however meagre of this great transaction, would be complete without some reference to the volume of Essay's known as "The Federalist," written chiefly by two young statesmen one of New York the other of Virginia, to explain and commend to their contem- poraries in that great struggle, the new plan of gov- ernment, but remaining, to-day, and doubtless deter- mined to remain for all time, the most instructive commentary upon the Federal Constitution. It consists of eighty-five papers in all. Five of them were written by Jay, twenty-nine by Madison, and fifty-one by Hamilton. The best summary of the work of the last two may be given in the words of Mr. Bancroft, in his History of the Constitution, "Hamilton dwelt on the 26 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. defects of the Confederation ; the praise-worthy energy of the new Federal Government ; its relations to the public's defence ; to the functions of the executive ; to the judicial department ; to the Treasury ; and to com- merce. Himself a friend to the protection of manufactures he condemned "exhorbitant duties on imported articles," because they "beget smuggling" are "always prejudicial to the fair trader;" tend to render "other classes of the Community tributary in an improper degree to the manufacturing classes," to "give them a premature monopoly of the markets;" to "force industry out of its most natural channels " and " to oppress the mer- chant." Madison commented with severe wisdom on its plan ; its confirmity to Republican principles ; its powers ; its relation to slavery and the slave trade ; its mediating office between the Union and the States ; its tripartite separation of the departments, and its mode of constructing the House of Representatives. The Constitution had thus become operative between the eleven States which had ratified it, and the duty devolved upon Congress to put it into effect. The first Wednesday in January, 1789, was appointed for the choice of electors of President in the respective States; the first Wednesday in February following, for casting the electoral votes ; and the first Wednesday in March, which in that year was the fourth day of the month, for the inauguration of the new Govern- ment. In no particular has the Constitution so com- EARLY DIVISIONS OF SENTIMENT. 2J pletely failed to meet the intentions of its framers as in its electoral machinery, and this fact deserves especial notice in any sketch of the rise and devel- opment of political parties in the United States, for nothing in our history so clearly shows the inade- quate conception then held by the most far-seeing statesmen of the play of parties in a government like ours, or of the lines along which their organi- zation would rapidly develop. The plan first agreed upon in the Convention was for a " National Execu- tive " to be chosen by Congress, to hold office for seven years and to be ineligible for a second term. As reported back from the Committee of Detail August 6, 1787, it was in the mere definite form of a "Pres- ident to be elected by ballot by the legislature," with the same provisions as to length of term and re-eligibility. As finally incorporated into the Constitution the plan provided for a Vice-President also made four years the term of both offices, contained no limitation on the re-eligibility of either, and entirely changed the manner of their election. Instead of an election by Congress, each State was to appoint, in such man- ner as its legislature might direct, a number of electors equal to the whole number of Senators and Representa- tives to which it was entitled, in Congress ; these elec- tors were to meet in their respective States and vote by ballot for two persons, only one of whom could be an inhabitant of the same State with themselves. The per- 28 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. son receiving the highest number of votes, if such num- ber were a majority of the whole number of electors appointed, was to be President ; the person receiving the next highest number of the votes, whether a majority or not, was to be Vice-President. The evident intention of those who devised this scheme was that each State would choose a number of its wisest and most trusted citizens, who would cast their votes for President and Vice-President according to their independent and individual judgments. This theory lasted through the first three elections only, sincQ which time, notwithstanding the Constitutional Amendment requiring the electors to designate the per- sons voted for, as President or Vice-President as the case may be, it has fallen into disfavor and been entirely neutralized by the action of our political parties, which nominate in advance through their caucuses or conventions, the candidate to be voted for, and elec- tors are chosen merely to register the will of those who select them. Indeed any attempt of an elector to do otherwise would' be justly regarded as a high breach of faith. There was little or no room for the appearance of party divisions in the choice of the first President and Vice-President. The universal confidence that George Washington would be the first President under the new Constitution, had, in fact done much to reconcile support to that instrument, from many who looked npon the powers lodged in the Executive as EARLY DIVISIONS OF SENTIMENT. 29 fraught with danger to the liberties of the people. The exalted patriotism and tried unselfishness of the Father of his Country, were, everywhere, relied upon to establish an example of moderation and of fidelity to the Constitution and the rights of the people which no later Executive would dare to disregard. In one State only, to be noted hereafter, did any- thing like a party division appear in the vote for Vice-President. Meanwhile, however, Senators and Representatives in Congress had to be selected, and the old antagonisms of Federalists and Anti-federalists were here apparent. Governor Clinton and Patrick Henry were earnestly striv- ing to secure enough votes in Congress to call a Second Convention to revise and change the Constitution in the manner provided therein. Other Anti-federalists were aiming only to secure enough influence to compel the adoption of the Amendments deemed essential to limit the power of the Federal Government. A very interest- ing and faithful account of the progress of the elections may be found in Madison's letters, written at the time, to Jefferson, Washington and others. The influence of Patrick Henry was absolute in the Virginia legislature, and at his bidding Madison was thrust outside and Richard Henry Lee and William Grayson, Anti-federalists, were chosen Senators. He even went so far as to arrange the districts of the State to prevent the election of Madison to the House of Representatives, but in this he failed, for notwithstanding Monroe was the opposing 30 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. candidate, Madison appealed directly to the people and was successful. In New York a factional fight between the two houses of the legislature, the one controlled by Clinton, the other by Hamilton, prevented the choice of electors and of Senators, so that the State did not participate in the first election or in the organization of the first Senate. In both Virginia and New York, a majority of the dele- gates chosen, were Federalists. South Carolina alone sent out an Anti-federalist delegation to the House and one Anti-federalist Senator. In the other States Feder- alists w?re generally chosen. Madison wrote from Alexandria, Virginia, on March I, 1789, to Edmund Randolph, of the contest in his own district between Colonel Monroe and himself — " Whether I ought to be satisfied or displeased with my success I shall hereafter be more able to judge. My present anticipations are not flattering. I see in the lists of Representatives a very scanty proportion who will share in the drudgery of business. And I foresee contentions first between Federal and Anti-federal parties, and then between Northern and Southern parties, which give additional disagreeableness to the prospect." After a long wrangle in Congress, the city of New York had been selected as the first home of the new government. A quorum of the House did not meet until the first day of April, 1789. The Senate organized on the sixth day of April, and chose John Langdon, of New Hampshire, President, to' open and count the elec- toral votes, which he immediately proceeded to do in the presence of both Houses. Every one of the sixty- EARLY DIVISIONS OF SENTIMENT. 3 1 nine votes cast by the ten States that took part in the election, was found to be for George Washington, who was accordingly declared elected the first President of the United States. John Adams received thirty-four votes, less than a majority, but the next highest number, and accordingly became Vice-President. In Virginia alone did any party division appear in the vote for Vice-President ; three of the electors being Anti-feder- alists, Patrick Henry among them, cast their votes for George Clinton. The remainder of the thirty-five votes not cast for Adams, were distributed between no less than eleven persons, generally as compliments to local favorites, the highest number for any one person being nine for John Jay, of New York. CHAPTER II. HISTORY UNDER PRESIDENT WASHINGTON, 1789-1797. ALTHOUGH Congress was organized on April 6, 1789, Washington was not inaugurated until April 30. The Speaker of the First House of Representatives was Fred- erick A. Muhlenberg, of Pennsylvania. Its membership numbered fifty-nine, and its sessions were public. The Senate had, as yet, but twenty members, and sat with closed doors. The first need of the new government was revenue, hence the first real business brought before the House was a proposition introduced by Madison, April 8, before the arrival and inauguration of the President, to raise a rev- enue by duties on imports and by a tonnage duty on all vessels. The debate on this, the first tariff bill, was continued for many days, and is full of interest and instruction. Madison, while earnestly and repeatedly avowing that " Commerce ought to be as free as the policy of nations will admit," and " labor and industry left at large to find its proper objects," was not unwilling to adjust duties so as to favor the " infant manufactories " of the country ; and the pre- amble of the act, as it finally became a law July 4, 1789, recited as one of its objects "the encouragement and protection of manufactures." But neither in this re- 3 (33) 04 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. cital, nor in the debates on the bill, nor in the rates finally agreed upon, can we . find countenance for the views and policies of those who champion the existing protective system. Revenue was uniformly declared to be the chief object of the duties laid, and where protection was made incidental to it, the rates asked or agreed upon were so moderate that they would excite the derision of our latter- day protectionists. The statesmen who framed our first tariff bill — Madison, Fisher Ames, Roger Sherman, and their associates — always spoke of the duty imposed upon an article as a tax, and as a tax to be paid by the consumer. "The merchant," said Sherman, "considers that part of his capital applied to the payment of the duties the same as if employed in trade, and gets the same profit on it as on the original cost of the commodity." Hence a leading idea was to adjust the items of the tariff so as to make it bear evenly on localities and be just in its burdens on individuals ; for " I readily agree," said Madison, " that in itself a tax would be unjust and op- pressive that did not fall on the citizens according to their degree of property and ability to pay it." Spirituous liq- uors were conceded to be proper subjects of high taxa- tion, both for the sake of revenue and in the interest of temperance. It was inevitable that sectional interests and opposing views should come into collision in the debate, but no divisions into parties were discernible in these dis- cussions. The agricultural members wanted steel free, but Clymer, of Philadelphia, said there was a furnace in that city which, WASHINGTON'S ADMINISTRATION.' -- with a little aid from the State, had produced 300 tons in two years, and so a duty of fifty cents per hundredweight was imposed on unwroughl steel, and five per cent, gen- erally on manufactures of steel. The salt duty gave rise to a lively debate, but the tax on molasses led to the warmest discussion. Massachusetts stoutly and success- fully resisted the proposal to tax it eight cents per gallon, and for three reasons : first, as increasing its cost to the consumer; secondly, as crippling her distillers of rum by a heavy tax on their raw material ; and lastly, as injuring her fisheries by checking the importation of the article, for which she exchanged her fish. " The tax," said Ames, " operated in two ways : first, as a tax on the raw material, which increased the price of stock and narrowed the sale, and second, as a tax on an article of consumption." "Without the molasses trade is continued, the fishery cannot be carried on. They are so intimately connected that the weapon which wounds the one will stab the other." "If we do not import molasses," said Gerry, "we cannot carry on our distilleries or vend our fish." "Any impediment to the importation of molasses," said Goodhue, "will prevent the exportation of fish." A general duty of five per cent., ad valorem, was levied on goods and merchandise; wool and tin-plate, however, being among the articles excepted from any tax. These special duties on a few score articles ranged from 5 to 12J^ per cent in the ad valoretns, and were equally moderate when spe- cific; as, for example, 10 cents a gallon on distilled spirits, Jamaica proof; 18 cents on Madeira wine; I cent a pound on brown sugar, 3 cents on loaf sugar, and 2]/ 2 cents on 36 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. other sugars; 1 cent a pound on nails and spikes; 2J^ cents a* gallon on molasses. The average duty under the act was equivalent to 8}4 per cent, ad valorem. A ton- nage tax was laid that discriminated in favor of Amer- ican vessels. Later in the session the amendments to the Constitu- tion proposed by the States in ratifying it were taken up. There were fifty-five in all, but in many cases they were substantially identical. As finally agreed upon and offered to the States for ratification there were twelve, of which ten were promptly adopted and constitute the first ten amendments to the Constitution and likewise its Bill of Rights. They secured among other things freedom of religion; of speech; of the press; the right of petition; freedom of the person; and what was most satisfactory to those who feared centralization in the new government, an explicit declaration that the powers, not granted to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, were reserved to the States respectively or to the people. The adoption of these amendments satisfied the anti-federalists, and little more was heard of the proposition for a second convention. Laws were passed to organize four executive depart- ments, and the first Cabinet, as finally selected, consisted of — Thomas Jefferson, of Virginia, Secretary of State; Alex- ander Hamilton, of New York, Secretary of the Treasury; Henry Knox, of Massachusetts, Secretary of War; Edmund Randolph, of Virginia, Attorney-General. In this selection regard was had to their personal fitness, to locality, and, WASHINGTON'S ADMINISTRATION. 37 perhaps, also to their divergence of opinion as to the power and scope of the federal government. North Carolina ratified the Constitution in November, 1789, but Rhode Island still sullenly refused to enter the door of the Federal Union, and remained without until May 9, 1790, when she also ratified it by a majority of two votes ; " not, however," says Schouler, " without a longer list of proposed amendments than there were towns in the State." On January 14, 1790, Hamilton sent into Congress his first report, which was devoted to the consideration of the public debt. As this report was the beginning of a series of papers from the Treasury Department from this same secretary, it may not be amiss to refer briefly to its author. Hamilton was exactly thirty-three years of age. He was born on the island of Nevis, but some obscurity hangs over his parentage, and of his early years little is known, except that he manifested supreme ambition and a vigor and maturity of mind that were phe- nomenal. He came to this country in his sixteenth year, and became a student of Kings College, now Colum- bia College, New York city, where he early espoused the cause of independence both as a writer and a speaker. Seldom, if ever, does one find in the collected writings of a statesman papers prepared by him when but seven- teen or eighteen years of age; yet we still read pam- phlets this young collegian hurled at the Tories- amid the wonder and applause of patriots, and marvel at the strength of his reasoning and the accuracy of his in- 38 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. formation. From a captain of artillery he was promoted to the staff of General Washington with the rank of lieutenant-colonel, and served four years as secretary to the commander-in-chief, returning to a command in the field with an almost ludicrous show of injured dignity, when Washington ventured to rebuke him for some lack of promptness, although still retaining the confidence and friendly interest of his general. ^. Few men threw themselves more ardently into the movement for a Constitutional Convention, and when New York finally agreed to send delegates to such a conven- tion he was chosen one of the number. In the Convention he favored a form of government thoroughly national and centralized, with the English system for its model. He advocated a President and Senate chosen by free-holders, and holding office during good behavior. He would have destroyed the independence of the States by having their governors appointed by the President, with power of veto on legislation. This is enough to show that he wished to establish an aristocratic rather than a democratic re- public, with special political privileges vested in property. His ideas did not find favor in the Convention, and he took little part in its proceedings; but, as already stated, no one was more active in working for the ratification of the Constitution. He wrote most of the papers of the . Federalist '; was indefatigable in his correspondence with the friends of the new government in the other States, leading the hard fight in New York for ratifica- tion against the influence of Governor Clinton, and of his own colleagues in the General Convention, Yates and WASHINGTON'S ADMINISTRATION. 39 Lansing. The wretched financial straits of the confeder- * ation both during and after the war occupied much of his thoughts, and his familiarity with these questions pointed him out for the difficult position of the first Secretary of the Treasury. Congress invited from him the series of reports in which he embodied the results of his matured reflections. While all marvelled at the vigor and brilliancy of his reports, it was not long before it was made clear that they were pervaded by two general ideas which gave them a unity and con- sistency that one party in the country recognized and enthusiastically approved, and another as quickly discov- ered and as heartily condemned. There is profound truth in the saying of Burke, that " the revenue of a State is the State;" and no better illustration of this truth can be found than in the history of the United States, under the Articles of Confederation and under the Federal Constitution. The confederation had no revenue and no means of commanding a revenue, and was con- sequently never a living organism ; the Constitution gave to the government which it founded the power to lay and collect taxes, duties, imposts, and excises. The measures for dealing with the debt were now to be determined, and in that determination was to arise the first collision between opposing theories of the govern- ment just formed, and of the scope and nature of its powers. Until Hamilton began to propose his financial legislation to Congress, there was nothing to call forth and give union to materials for party division whose existence was clearly known. This division was by no means a 40 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. mere continuance of the old contest for and against the Constitution. The question now was, What kind of a government had been established? and that question very forcibly arose when the new government undertook to deal with its debts, its taxes, and its revenues. Most of the anti-federalists had been thoroughly reconciled to the Constitution as soon as it was put into practice and the amendments before referred to adopted by Congress. Yet, the very reasons that caused them to oppose the Constitution in the beginning would cause them to watch the new government's assumption of powers with jealous scrutiny. Many of the Federalists had gladly assented to these amendments, as giving merely explicit declara- tions to limitation, which they believed to be already inherent in the Constitution as originally framed, and were inclined to be equally jealous of the assumption of disputed powers by the government they had been so eager to establish. Let us now turn to the Reports of the Secretary of the Treasury, beginning with that on the Public Credit. With- out rehearsing his admirable if somewhat obvious statement of the benefits that flow, both to a nation and to its citi- zens, from a sacred observance of public faith and the establishment of public credit, we may state the result of his discussions as follows : He recommended the payment in full — principal and interest — of, first, the foreign debt of the United States, amounting to $11,710,378.62; secondly, of the domestic debt, amounting, liquidated and unliqui- dated, to $42,414,085.94, payment to be made to the pres- ent holders of the same. Besides the payment of these WASHINGTON'S ADMINISTRATION,. ^ two classes of debts he recommended the assumption of the debts of the individual States incurred in the common defence, estimated to be twenty-five millions of dollars. It will thus be seen that he recommended at once to Con- gress to assume a debt of about eighty millions of dollars, a sum so great that he must necessarily propose some very feasible plans for meeting it, that would not impose a crushing burden upon the new government. It is not necessary to describe these plans further than to say that they combined a system of annuities, a system of funding the debt at higher or lower rate of interest according to the time it was to run ; and of payment of part of it in Western lands at twenty cents per acre. As it was not proposed immediately to provide for paying the interest upon the State debts, his estimates were made for a revenue of $2,239,163.09, required to meet the in- terest upon the foreign and domestic debt, and $600,000 for the running expenses of the government. This sum was to be obtained by the existing duties on imports and tonnage, with the " addition which, without any possible disadvantage to trade or agriculture, may be made on wines, liquors (including those distilled in the United States), teas and coffee." It will be observed that a prominent feature in this plan was perpetuation of the debt by funding a large part of it, at long time, and the secretary himself expressed his persuasion that "the proper funding of the present debt vj'AI render it a national blessing," disclaiming, however, his assent to the position that public debts are public benefits, unless their creation be accompanied with the 42 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. means of extinguishment. He accordingly proposed a sinking fund out of the revenues of the post-office, and a loan, and intimated his purpose to submit a plan for a National Bank in the course of the session. On the 4th of March, 1790, he communicated to the House a plan for meeting the interest on the State debts, which looked to an increase of the duties on articles im- ported in foreign bottoms, on sugar, molasses, manufact- ured tobacco, spices, salt, and other articles ; but in his later report, communicated on December 13, 1790, he developed in detail his plan for an excise system in con- nection with an increase of the duties on distilled spirits imported. On December 14, 1790, he communicated to the House his plan for a National Bank, beginning with an elaborate discussion of the advantages of a National Bank, a con- sideration of the objections that had been urged against it, following with a detailed plan for a bank, which con- templated a combination of a portion of the public debt in the formation of its capital, in order " to create a capital sufficiently large to be the basis of an extensive circulation and an adequate security for it." Passing over his Report on the establishment of a Mint, which has no connection with our present purpose, we come to his celebrated paper on Manufactures, communi- cated to the House December 5, 1791. This report, which is the most elaborate of all that he made, is often referred to as the foundation of our protective system. Let it be understood that it is confined to the subject of manufactures, and particularly to the means of promoting WASHINGTON'S ADMINISTRATION. 43 such as would tend to render the United States inde- pendent of foreign nations for military and other essential supplies. Frankly declaring that " protective duties evi- dently amount to a virtual bounty on the domestic fabrics, since by enhancing the charge on foreign articles they enable the manufacturers to undersell their foreign com- petitors," he looked no further than to a temporary and moderate aid to nascent industries, or, as Madison has already expressed it, "infant manufactories," believing that " the continuation of bounties on manufactures long estab- lished must always be of questionable policy, because a presumption would arise in every such case that these were natural and inherent impediments to success." His reason for stimulating the growth of manufactures was, "the restrictive regulations, which in foreign markets abridge the vent of our increasing surplus of agricultural products." He never questioned, but, on the contrary, expressly averred, that the consumer paid the duties ; and, so far from advocating protective duties, in the interest of good wages for labor, he reckoned on the scarcity of funds and the dearness of labor as among the existing obstacles to manufactures, which justified the imposition of duties as temporary bounties to them. He rightly argued that the protective system would help to do away with the scarcity of hands by promoting immigration from abroad, and that any dearness of labor, if due to this scarcity, would diminish with it and with the use of machinery; or, if due also to greater profits, would be no objection, as the undertaker could afford to pay the price. It will thus 44 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. be seen that this report contemplated a system of pro- tection radically different from that advocated by the Republican party of to-day, and contains admissions and declarations utterly at war with the grounds on which that party seeks to maintain its system of so-called pro- tection. These reports fully disclose the purposes which run through them. Those purposes were not more financial than political. His aim was : First, to establish the credit and provide for the debt and annual necessities of the government. Second, to bring to the support of the gov- ernment the powerful moneyed interest by giving it direct pecuniary benefits. Hamilton had no faith that the experiment of a govern- ment resting on the people could succeed. He aimed to make it rest on capital, seeking by his " financial policy," as a recent biographer, Mr. Lodge, states it, " to bind the existing class of wealthy men, being, at that day, the aristocracy bequeathed by provincial times, to the new system, and thus, if at all, assure to the property of the country the control of the government." Such, however, were not the ideas of the men who sat in the General Convention. They intended that the Con- stitution which they were forming should rest equally and justly as to benefits and burdens on all the people; that there should be no privileged classes; that the machinery of government should not be wrested from its only, rightful purpose, the common protection of all citizens, to add to the power and wealth of a limited number. Other govern- ments had sought to keep the great masses of the people WASHINGTON'S ADMINISTRATION. .5 at unremitting labor by taking from them as from bees all their earnings beyond a scanty subsistence. Our Constitution was to establish a government resting on absolute equality of citizenship. Hence it was both reason- able and fitting, that the first leader of opposition to Hamilton's plans should be the great statesman who is, not undeservedly, known as the Father of the Constitution, who was its chief architect, led the splendid fight for its ratification in the Virginia Convention, and had been fore- most in the House of Representatives in devising the means necessary to put it into operation. The biographer of Mr. Madison, in the " American Statesmen " series, whose extreme partisanship' outstrips, if possible, that of the writer of the " Life of Jefferson," in the same series, is pleased to treat this antagonism of Mr. Madison to the financial policies of Hamilton as a defection from his earlier views and position, and a descent from the states- man to the politician. This is a very unjust view, and has no warrant in the facts of history. Any other course would have been inconsistent with the previous opinions and utterances of Madison and with the whole tenor of his life. There was no difference of opinion as to the payment of the foreign debt, and the secretary's recommendation as to that was unanimously adopted. When it came, -however, to the domestic debt this con- dition was found to exist. The original holders were revolutionary soldiers, or others scarcely less meritorious, who had furnished supplies or rendered services to the United States, and had received certificates in settlement. .46 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. From their ownership the debt had largely passed into the hands of speculators, who had paid generally a mere nominal price for it. Furthermore, these speculators on the first promulgation of Hamilton's report had despatched swift couriers all over the country, including trading vessels to the South, to buy up the securities from those who were as yet uninformed as to that report. This they were enabled to do at a few cents on the dollar, whereas the securities had at once become valuable in the market. Hamilton had strongly argued in favor of full payment to the present holders of the domestic debt. No matter how small the price at which it had been acquired through the ignorance or necessities o.f the first holder, his plan looked to full payment to the transferees. Undoubtedly this waWhe law of the contract, and to a secretary whose aim was not less to secure a powerful class of creditors of the government than to pay its debts, it seemed wise and politic. Madison thought and felt otherwise. He could not brook the idea of enriching a greedy and selfish class of speculators and passing by the first holders of the debt, the soldiers who had fought for independence, the farmers whose supplies had fed and clothed the army, and other patriotic friends of the Union in its trials. He believed that the debt should be paid in full, but on the " great and fun- damental principles of justice." He believed that in "great and unusual questions of public morality," the heart should be appealed to as well as the head. He accordingly opposed Hamilton's plans and advocated a resolution to divide the payment equitably,, allotting to the purchaser the highest WASHINGTON'S ADMINISTRATION. 47 rate of public securities in the market, and paying the residue to the original holder. But his proposition was, after debate, rejected, 13 yeas and 36 nays, and Hamilton's plan adopted. All accounts agree that the effect of its adoption was to enrich suddenly a class who deserved little of their country, but who became at once zealous friends of a strong government, and earnest supporters of Hamilton's party. Mr. Benton's comment is, " The motion of Mr. Madison was lost, and with it the largest door was opened to the pillage of the original creditors, the plunder of the public treasury, and the corruption of Congress which the history of any government has ever seen." Next in order came the proposition for assumption of the debts of the States. This gave rise to a long and bitter struggle in Con- gress. None denied that the debts incurred by the States in the common cause should be a common charge. But some of the States had received advances out of the general treasury, others still owed balances on their several quotas of the requisitions. These should be de- ducted and the true state of the accounts ascertained before there was any assumption. But Hamilton's plan was to assume the gross amount of the debts of the several States without any adjustment of accounts. Here again he was looking to the consolidation of the gen- eral government as much as to meeting the demands of justice. As expressed by himself two years later, "the leading objects of the assumption of the State debts, as recommended by him, were an accession of strength to the general government, and an assurance of 48 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. order and vigor in the national finances, by doing away with the necessity of thirteen complicated and conflict- ing systems of [State] finances." Mr. Madison led the opposition to assumption chiefly for the reasons above stated, that justice to States which had paid part of their debts required that the true state of balances be- tween the Union and the several States be first as- certained. The question long hung undetermined, kindling as much feeling and asperity in Congress as any subject that has ever been before it. After having been defeated, it was made the basis of a trade by which the federal capital was located at Washington in exchange for votes by which assumption was carried. "The leading and vital principle of the assumption was by an enlargement of the national debt to extend the influence of the national government; to subsidize a powerful moneyed interest to its support; to establish, through that interest, a control over the legislative de- partment, and by degrees to impart a tone and energy to the Federal Constitution far beyond the views of its framers, or the expectations and consent of the people by whom it was accepted." * Mr. Gallatin showed years afterwards that on a just settlement the sum really due the States was nearly eleven millions of dollars less than the amount ac- tually assumed. Mr. Hamilton had thus carried through all the rec- *3 " Rives' Madison," 1x7. WASHINGTON'S ADMINISTRATION.' *g ommendations of his first report. In so doing he had bound the "money power" to the new government by ties of strongest interest. He had done more: he was now the head of a powerful political party, many of whom had been made rich by his legislation. Next in order came the bill for creating a National Bank. This raised a new question, viz. : Whether the United States had the constitutional power to establish such an institution? The Federalist party affirmed, Madi- son and his followers denied the existence of any such power. He (Madison) argued that the federal govern- ment was one of limited and specified powers,. " not being a general grant out of which particular powers are excepted, but a grant of particular powers only, leaving the general mass in other hands, those of the States." This position he supported by the text of the Constitution and by contemporary exposition; and declared that the passage of the bill would show that the adoption of the Constitution was brought about by one set of arguments and that it was to be adminis- tered under the influence of another. The supporters of the bill had recourse to the " general welfare clause " of the Constitution and the doctrine of " implied powers." Here were brought into collision the doctrines of strict construction and loose construction of the Constitution, of which we shall presently speak more fully, but before doing so we must go back to the history of the great states- man who is usually and justly considered the founder of the political party adhering to the former doctrine. Thomas Jefferson was born in Virginia, April 13, 1743, g THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. educated at William and Mary College, and practiced law successfully from 1767 to 1774. He ardently enlisted in the cause of American In- dependence, and became a leader in all the movements in Virginia looking to that result, and in June, 1775, took his seat as a deputy in the Continental Congress. His reputation was that of a vigorous writer rather than a ready debater, and his was the immortal pen that wrote the Declaration of Independence. Returning to the Virginia House of Burgesses in October, 1776, he at once set himself to the task of purging the laws of that commonwealth of all taint of caste or privilege. He carried through laws abolishing entails and primogeni- ture, and introduced the measure which subsequently be- came the statute of Religious Freedom, by which the Established Church was overthrown. After serving as governor he became again a member of Congress, and tendered to that body the deed of Virginia ceding the Northwest Territory. He prepared the famous Ordinance for the government of that Territory. In 1784 he was made minister to France, and from that distant land watched with intense interest the movement for framing the Constitution. While he declared that the government "wanted bracing," he was so impatient with those who would flee from its weaknesses to kingly gov- ernment, that he said : "Advise such to read the fable of the frogs, who so- licited Jupiter for a king. If that does not put them to rights, send them to Europe to see the trappings of mon- archy, and I will undertake that every man will go back WASHINGTON'S ADMINISTRATION. c r thoroughly cured. If all the evils which can arise among us from the republican form of our government from this day to the day of judgment could be put into a scale against what this country (France) suffers from its mo- narchical form in a week, or England in a month, the latter would preponderate." As already stated, his first concern on receiving a copy of the Constitution was for a Bill of Rights, "which the people were entitled to against every government on earth, general and particular, and that no just government should refuse, or rest on inference." Not finding such a bill, "providing clearly and without sophism for freedom of religion, freedom of the press, protection against standing armies, restriction of monopolies, the eternal and unre- mitting force of the habeas corpus laws and trial by jury, or any barrier to the perpetual re-eligibility of the Presi- dent," he expressed disappointment with the work of the Convention. With the general structure of the Consti- tution he was the better satisfied as he examined it the more maturely, and heartily subscribed to the course adopted by Massachusetts, to ratify with proposed amend- ments. Residing in France for five years, he saw the up- rising against monarchy, the destruction of the Bastile and the general turbulence of the earlier stages of the French Revolution. He was deeply interested in the revolt against the royal despotism, attended the debates of the National Assembly at Versailles, and was freely consulted by Lafayette and other French leaders. Obtaining leave of absence tern r 2 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. porarily, as he supposed, he sailed for home, reaching Monticello December 23, 1789. He accepted with some reluctance the office of Secre- tary of State to which he had already been appointed, and reached New York to enter upon its discharge March 21, 1790. Although the inheritor of wealth and of an aristocratic lineage, Jefferson was a born democrat, a thorough believer in the right and the capacity of the people to govern themselves, a radical and uncompro- mising foe to every form of monarchy, aristocracy, caste or privilege. He had set forth in the Declaration of In- dependence the great doctrine to which his whole life was dedicated, and around which all his ideas of government ever revolved. That doctrine was that governments derive their just powers from the consent of the governed ; that they are established to secure to men those inalienable rights with which they are endowed by their Creator, and that this purpose must mark the limit and authority of their con- trol and action. Believing this doctrine as strongly as man can believe anything, it is not surprising that Jefferson was quick to take alarm at the policy and recommendations of his col- leagues in the Cabinet, or that he should promptly put himself at the head of those who opposed the steady consolidation of the power of the federal government, the shaping of that government more and more after the ideas of the English system, and the rapid building up of a wealthy class, at the expense of the landed and laboring interests of the country. To this leadership all his past WASHINGTON'S ADMINISTRATION. C3 career fitted and compelled him; his high position in the administration and his great influence among the people. When he reached New York the foreign and domestic debt questions had been settled, and the House of Rep- resentatives was in the midst of its long and bitter wrangle over the assumption of the State debts. He took no part in this controversy, being busied with the organi- zation of his own department — that of State — and at first not feeling inclined to intermeddle with the plans of his associates in the Cabinet as to their own departments. Indeed he even aided Hamilton in securing the compro- mise by which assumption became a law through the agreement of its supporters to locate the federal capital on the Potomac; an act which he bitterly repented after- wards and claimed that he had been duped into it by his confidence in Hamilton, and by the latter's representations as to the peril of the Union, before he had time to be- come fully acquainted with all the circumstances surround- ing it. But it was not long after his arrival in New York that his democratic principles and instincts, none the less awake from his recent residence in France and his contact with the popular movement there, were alarmed at the general tone of conversation in that city and at the un- doubted direction of Hamilton's successive measures. The society into which his high position threw him he declared to be thoroughly tainted with monarchical ideas; the meas- ures of the Secretary of the Treasury he discovered were all tending in the same direction. He was not long in becoming fully possessed of the belief that Hamilton was at heart a monarchist and that a strong party was rally- tA THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. ing about him, constantly growing in wealth and power through his financial measures, that was bent upon wrest- ing the government from its republican foundations and placing it upon a monarchical basis. That he judged Hamilton unjustly he could not to his dying hour be convinced; and while impartial history will not go to the extent of finding Hamilton guilty of any design to turn the United States into a monarchy, it will also acquit Jefferson of any insincerity in his belief, and fully admit that he saw much in his surroundings, and in the conduct and expressions of the Hamilton party, to make him doubt their fidelity to free institutions, and that the entire financial policy of the secretary, as it became unfolded, tended to give undue strength to the federal government at the expense of the States, and undue profit and power to the moneyed class at the expense of the people. Seeing all this, it was a matter of course that a man who had done so much to organize the people of the colonies against the tyranny of England should as promptly enter upon the work of organizing a party to oppose the march of centralization, the dangerous strengthening of the government, and the momentum Hamilton's measures were fast giving to it. The majority of the people un- doubtedly were in sympathy with Jefferson. To organize the scattered materials into a great political party was, however, a task of great difficulty. Those who sustained Hamilton's policies and accepted his ideas were prompt to appropriate to themselves the name of Federalists, a name little descriptive of their principles and policies, but carrying with it the prestige that belonged to the friends WASHINGTON'S ADMINISTRATION. ^ and champions of the new Constitution. In like spirit they attempted to fasten upon their opponents the name of anti-Federalists, so as to continue to them, as far as they could, the discredit of opposition to the new gov- ernment; but this name was indignantly repudiated by those who felt themselves in an especial manner called to assume the championship of the Constitution and to pre- serve it from being warped into a kingly government. They claimed to be known as Republicans, and that designation soon became their accepted name. The close of the contest over the National Bank, whose establishment had met with Jefferson's active and unre- lenting opposition, found these parties fast crystallizing into rival armies. As the question involved in establishing the bank had been chiefly one of constitutional power, it presented the first fair battle-field for those who believed in a loose, and those who contended for a strict, con- struction of the Constitution. But we must look beyond the antagonisms of parties as to the rightful interpretation of a written constitution for the real principle of division. It lies much deeper. Jefferson has said: "Men by their constitutions are nat- urally divided into two parties: those who fear and dis- trust the people, and wish to draw all power from them into the hands of the higher classes ; those who identify themselves with the people, have confidence in them, cherish and consider them as the most honest and safe, although not the most wise depository of the public in- terests. In every country these two parties exist. In 56 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. every one where they are free to speak and write they will declare themselves." Bancroft has used similar language: "The one held to what was established, and made changes only from neces- sity, the other welcomed reform, and went out to meet it; the one anchored on men of property, the other on the mass of the people; the one loving liberty was ever anxious for order, the other firmly attached to order, which it never doubted its power to maintain, was mainly anxious for freedom." The two parties had now declared • themselves : The one anchored on property, the other on the people. The one distrusted the people, and wished to .draw power from them into the hands of the higher classes; the other con- fided in the people, and sought to keep all power in their control. Of the one Hamilton was the leader, of the other Jefferson was the leader. Behind the former were to be found the friends of strong government ; behind the latter the friends of popular government. Before the close of the first Congress Hamilton's bill for an excise on ardent spirits had also become a law. Madison did not oppose it because it was necessary to meet the additional debt incurred by assumption. He was in general, he said, principled against excises, but of all excises, that on ardent spirits he considered the least objectionable. The elections had somewhat weakened the Federalist majority in the second Congress, which met October 24, 1 79 1. Aaron Burr succeeded Hamilton's father-in-law, General Schuyler, as a Senator from New York. Two WASHINGTON'S ADMINISTRATION. *j great names in the Republican party now appeared on the roll of the House — James Monroe, of Virginia, and Na- thaniel Macon, of North Carolina. The dissensions between the two Cabinet party leaders became more clearly defined and irreconcilable as they better understood each other, and soon resulted in bitter personal hostility. The opponents of Hamilton were as yet without a party organ, while the Federalists, and especially Hamilton's measures, had an active defender in the paper known as Fenno's Gazette. Frenau, a college-mate of Madison, hold- ing the place of translating clerk in the State Department, established an opposition paper — the National Gazette — which became a sturdy and unrelenting opponent of Treasury measures. Stung by the opposition of Frenau, Hamilton so far forgot his position as to publish a series of anonymous articles in Fenno's Gazette, attacking Jeffer- son personally in language and charges that were bitter and vindictive. Washington viewed with growing annoy- ance this partisan feud in his Cabinet, and finally ad- dressed letters to both secretaries, urging " that instead of wounding suspicions and irritating charges there may be liberal allowances, mutual forbearances, and temporizing yielding on all sides." Each replied. Jefferson's letter is especially noteworthy as giving perhaps the fullest state- ment of the objections of the opposition to Hamilton's system. " His system," said Jefferson, " flowed from principles adverse to liberty and was calculated to undermine and 58 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. demolish the republic by creating an influence of his department over the members of the legislature." The great outlines of his projects, he said, had been carried through by members personally interested and eventually to be enriched by them. "If what was actually done begot uneasiness in those who wished for virtuous government, what was further proposed was not less threatening to the friends of the Constitution. From a report on the subject of manufac- tures (still to be acted upon) it was expressly assumed that the general government has a right to exercise all powers which may be for the general welfare ; that is to say, all the legitimate powers of government; since no government has a legitimate right to do what is not for the welfare of the governed. There was indeed a sham limitation of the universality of* this power to cases where money is to be employed. But about what is it that money cannot be em- ployed? Thus the object of these plans taken together is to draw all the powers of government into the hands of the general legislature, to establish means for corrupting a suffi- cient corps in that legislature to divide the honest votes and preponderate by their own the scale which suited, and to have the corps under the command of the Secretary of the Treasury for the purpose of subverting, step by step, the principles. of the Constitution, which he has so often declared to be a thing of nothing, which must be changed." Jefferson further expressed his wish to retire from office at the end of the President's term. It may be observed here, that Hamilton had accused Jefferson, in his newspaper attacks, of remaining in the Cabinet while opposing the WASHINGTON'S ADMINISTRATION. 59 Administration, thus assuming that the President was entirely in accord with himself; and Mr. Henry Cabot Lodge, in his biography of Hamilton, does not hesitate to say that Jefferson undertook to "overthrow the party of Washington and Hamilton." That Washington did not consider Jefferson's antagonism to Hamilton as reaching to himself is shown by his earnest and repeated entreaties to Jefferson to remain in office, and especially by his avowal that he thought it " im- portant to preserve the check of his opinions in the adminis- tration in order to keep things in their proper channel and prevent them from going too far." By this time parties may be said to have gotten fairly into alignment, and Jefferson, in his letter of May 13, 1792, to Washington, had designated the "Republican party" as that which sought to preserve the government in its present form. This name, thus authoritatively given to it, remained for some years its official designation; and, as already stated, while gradually consolidated through opposition to Hamilton's funding system, National Bank, national excise, protective tariff, and general effort to cripple the States by strength- ening the Federal government, to his legislation in the interest of creditor classes, and his steady efforts to form an alliance between government and property, its great founders sought to build it on the fundamental principle out of which opposition to these measures naturally grew — of strict con- struction of the Constitution and, indeed, strict construction %f the power and authority of all government. " I would rather be exposed to the inconveniences attending too much liberty than those attending too small a degree of it," was Jefferson's creed from beginning to end. 5 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. As this article contemplates nothing more than an out- line sketch of the party thus founded by Jefferson, with the constant and faithful co-operation of Madison, it will not henceforward go so much into detail as to matters of his- tory, although it is scarcely possible to present the history of the party without attempting to write that of the country also. Great sympathy was felt with the French Revolution in its earlier movements by all parties in the United States, not only because of friendly feeling toward France for her help in our struggle for independence but because that struggle seemed to be the spark that kindled the great up- rising of the people against despotism and royalty. As the Revolution became marked by more violence, and more radical democratic ideas, the Federalists withdrew their sympathy and the Republicans increased in theirs. For a long time there seemed, thus, to be almost a French party and a anti-French, or British, party, and undoubtedly this gave, alternately, strength or weakness to each, but it could not be the basis of enduring party divisions. As the close of Washington's first term drew near both Federalists and Republicans urgently pleaded with him to stand for re-election. Both parties, or, in other words, the people, had confidence in him. Each distrusted and feared the other. Washington, who had determined to retire after a single term, and had requested Madison to prepare a formal farewell address for him, from headings supplied by himself, reluctantly consented to accept a second term. No nominations of any kind were made, but, as parties were now clearly formed and party spirit ran high, it was inevi- WASHINGTON'S ADMINISTRATION. 6 r table that the Republicans should endeavor to defeat John Adams for re-election to the Vice-Presidency. Jefferson would be ineligible under the Constitution, being a citizen of the same State as Washington, and by general under- standing, wdthout convention or caucus, George Clinton received the Republican vote. Vermont and Kentucky had been admitted into the Union; hence there were fifteen States to take part in the election. Nine States — to wit, Vermont, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Delaware, South Carolina, Georgia and Kentucky — chose -their electors by their legislatures. New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Maryland and Virginia by vote of the people. North Carolina was compelled, by the shortness of the time between the meet- ting of the legislature and that of the electoral college, to adopt a temporary measure, whereby, for that election, the members of the legislature by four grand divisions of the State chose electors. Washington received the vote of all the States, 132. Adams received the votes of New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Con- necticut, New Jersey, Pennsylvania (except one), Delaware, Maryland, South Carolina (one given to Burr), in all jy. Clinton received the votes of New York, Virginia, North Carolina, Georgia, and one from Pennsylvania, 50 in all. Kentucky gave her four votes to Jefferson. Towards the close of Washington's first term the op- position to the excise on distilled spirits caused much excitement among the mountaineers of North Carolina and Western Pennsylvania, almost leading to open revolt in 5 2 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. the latter region. As Hamilton had wished to punish the members of the Legislature of Virginia through the power of the Federal courts when they censured, by resolution, the assumption of State debts, he was now desirous of punishing the Pennsylvanians for certain resolutions adopted by a convention at Pittsburg. But Washington held to more pacific measures, in which he was sustained by the residue of his cabinet. Hamilton also failed to carry through the financial meas- ures he recommended to the House, but successfully met resolutions of censure upon his administration of the Treas- ury Department, offered by Giles of Virginia and voted for by Madison and Macon. Soon after Washington's second inauguration, news came that France had declared war on Great Britain. A very strong feeling at once arose in this country in favor of allying ourselves to France; not only from gratitude for her help to us but, as some contended, from treaty obligations. Washington, however, on the unanimous advice of his cabinet, in which Jefferson still remained by his earnest entreaty, issued a proclamation of strict neutrality. But when Genet, the French minister, came, in almost triumphal procession, to Philadelphia, so strong a feeling was kindled against this proclamation, and so feverish a desire to join in alliance with the French republic, that it is said ten thousand people in the streets of that city threatened, day after day, to drag Washington out of his house and make him resign or declare for France. But the folly and insolence of Genet, who finally threat- ened to appeal from the government to the people, alien- WASHINGTON'S ADMINISTRATION. 63 ated popular • sympathy and his recall was demanded by the United States. When the Third Congress met, in December, 1793, the Republicans were in the majority, and elected Muhlenberg Speaker of the House, by a majority of ten votes. Albert Gallatin appeared as a Republican senator from Pennsylvania, but was unseated by the Federalists on the pretext that he was not yet a citizen of nine years' resi- dence in the United States, but really because the Federal- ist control of the Senate was at stake. The growth of Republican influence manifested itself there in the passage of a resolution for open sessions of the Senate in the future. Jefferson retired from the Cabinet on December 31, 1793, having offered his resignation in July and continued until the close of the year at Washington's earnest and repeated solicitations. He carried into private life as much popu- larity as a party leader could enjoy; for the publication of his official correspondence disclosed that in all our troubles with Great Britain and France, he had not been swayed by his hostility to the one or his partiality for the other, but vindicated, in respect to both, all the rights of our nation in diplomatic papers of the highest statesmanship and in language far elevated above prejudice or favor. Meanwhile a decision of the Supreme Court caused the Republicans to adopt what became, by ratification, the Eleventh Amendment to the Constitution, which declares that the judicial power of the United States shall not extend to any suit in law or equity against a State by 64 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. citizens of another State or by citizens or subjects of any foreign State. In July, 1794, the Whiskey Insurrection, led by the anti- excise men of Western Pennsylvania, broke out and for a time threatened so serious resistance to the laws that the President sent an armed expedition, under Governor Henry Lee, of Virginia, to that region, upon whose approach the insurgents submitted and the disturbances subsided with- out the punishment of those who had fomented them. Washington, in reporting this outbreak to Congress, con- demned the " Democratic Societies " organized through Genet's influence in imitation of the political societies of France, which he charged with favoring the resistance to the excise. As a result the societies dissolved, although many of them were officered by men of prominence. Hamilton retired from the Cabinet in January, 1795, and was succeeded by his subordinate, Oliver Wolcott, of Connecticut, the comptroller. He did not, however, retire from the active leadership of his party, which for the short remainder of his life he held undisputed by any rival. Jefferson likewise could not escape, at Monticello, the responsibility of being the inspirer and counsellor of the Republicans. He viewed with much disapproval the great show of military force against the Whiskey Insurrection, whose resistance to the excise law he could hardly find it in his heart to condemn; going so far as to say, in a letter to Madison, " The excise law is an infernal one." He also viewed the President's censure of the Democratic Societies as an attack on " Freedom of Speech," expressly disclaiming, however, sympathy with those whose " misbe- WASHINGTON'S ADMINISTRATION. 65 havior had been taken advantage of to slander the friends of popular rights." The next most important event in Washington's ad- ministration was the negotiation of a treaty with Eng- land by John Jay. The provisions of the treaty, when made known, were exceedingly unpopular, as they did not secure American commerce from interruptions, Amer- ican seamen from impressment, or re-open trade with the West Indies. The first explosion of popular dis- approval was very strong, and but for the intemperate attack made by extremists on Washington himself, the political effect on the Federalists, who generally sustained the treaty, would have been damaging. After a long and acrimonious debate in the House, the appropriation needed for carrying out the treaty was voted by a ma- jority of three. The Fourth Congress had been slightly Federalist in the Senate, with an unreliable Republican majority in the House. As his second term drew toward a close, much effort was made to get Washington to accept re-election, but he was inflexible, and in September, 1796, gave out his. farewell address. With his retirement the field opened for the first trial of strength between the two political parties. He had kept aloof from both and honestly endeavored to rise an impartial judge over their con- tests, the bitterness of which he always sought to mod- erate. No formal nominations were made. Thomas Jefferson was, by universal consent, accepted as the Republican 66 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. candidate, with Aaron Burr for Vice-President. John Adams, by like consent, as the Federalist candidate, with Thomas Pinckney, of South Carolina, for Vice- President. Tennessee was now a member of the Union, so that sixteen States took part in the election. Ten- nessee was added to the nine States which, at the last election, chose electors by their legislatures. North Carolina was added to the five that chose by popular vote. John Adams received 71 votes, as follows: New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Con- necticut, New York, New Jersey, Delaware, 7 from Mary- land, with one each from Virginia, Pennsylvania, and North Carolina. Jefferson received the remaining votes of the three last-named States and the full vote of South Carolina, Georgia, Kentucky, and Tennessee, with four from Maryland. It will thus appear that the three votes that were given to Adams from Virginia, Penn- sylvania and North Carolina elected him. Pinckney received 59 votes, Burr 30, Samuel Adams 15, Oliver Ellsworth 11, and seven other persons scat- tering votes, including George Washington, 2. John Adams thus became President, and Thomas Jef- ferson Vice-President of the United States for four years from March 4, 1797. CHAPTER III. HISTORY UNDER PRESIDENT JOHN ADAMS, 1797-1801. ADAMS' inaugural address was highly patriotic, catholic and conciliatory. Indeed, he seems to have entered on his administration with the idea of bringing some of the leaders of the Republican party into its service; but his Cabinet, which was continued from Washington, and composed of minor characters, soon induced him to dis- card the thought. The Senate was strongly Federalist; the House was Republican. But two events deserve special prominence in the politi- cal history of his administration, the first of which turned the tide very strongly towards the Federalists, the other caused its rapid ebb, and in the end left them hopelessly stranded forever. * The unfriendly relations with France, aggravated by the refusal of the Directory to receive Charles C. Pinck- ney, the envoy sent out toward the close of Washington's administration to replace Monroe, the spoliations upon our marine, and other hostile acts, raised quite a general feel- ing of indignation against that country. Adams sent another mission, consisting of Pinckney, John Marshall and Elbridge Gerry, with authority to ad- (67) 58 THE" NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. just differences and, if possible, restore harmonious rela- tions between the two republics. The insulting treatment of these envoys; the proposi- tion made by Talleyrand, through his confidential agents, for a public loan and a private bribe, when reported to our government and communicated by the President to Congress, aroused a sincere and just feeling of indignation throughout the country and led at once to prompt meas- ures for defensive war ; such as the establishment of a Navy Department; the ordering of a provisional army, of which Washington was commissioned lieutenant-general; the suspension of commercial intercourse with France, and orders to our men-of-war to seize any French vessels preying upon our commerce. This feeling tended to depress the Republicans, who had always been boastful of their friendship to France, and also to rally to the administration menaced by a foreign war the general support of the people. The Federalists lost all discretion in the intoxication of power and used that power for the passage of three meas- ures, two of which were directed at foreign-born residents of the United States and one at political opponents. They made naturalization more difficult and prolonged the term of residence in the United States preliminary to citizenship from five to fifteen years ; required all white aliens arriving, or residing, in the country to report for registration. Following the above came the "Act Concerning Aliens," approved June 25, 1798. This act authorized the Presi- dent to order all such aliens as he shall judge dangerous JOHN ADAMS' ADMINISTRATION. £q to the peace and safety of the United States, or shall have reasonable grounds to suspect are concerned in any treason- able or secret machinations against the government thereof, to depart out of the territory of the United States within such time as shall be expressed in such order. The penalty for disobedience to the order, or for not obtaining a license to reside in the United States, or not con- forming to the license if obtained, was imprisonment for not more than three years and perpetual disability to become a citizen of the United States. The President was authorized to grant licenses to re- main within the United States for such time, and at such place, as he might direct, and to remove any alien im- prisoned under the act. Every master of a vessel was re- quired to report the names, and other particulars, as to every alien arriving on board his vessels. The act was to be in force two years. In immediate succession, July 14, 1798, came another law, which made it a high misdemeanor, punishable by a fine of $5,000 and five years' imprisonment, for any per- sons to unlawfully combine, or conspire together, with in- tent to oppose any measure, or impede the operation of any law, of the United States, or to intimidate any officer in the performance of his duty, or to counsel, or attempt to procure, any insurrection, riot, or unlawful assembly, with the intent aforesaid. The second section of this act provided that if any person should write, print, utter or publish, or procure the same to be done, or knowingly and willingly assist in writing, printing, uttering or pub- lishing any false, scandalous and malicious writing against y Q THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. the government, either House of Congress, or the Presi- dent, with intent to defame or bring them, or either of them, into contempt or disrepute ; or to excite against them the hatred of the . people, or to stir up sedition, or excite any unlawful combinations for opposing or resisting any law or any act of the President done in pursuance of any such law, or of the power vested in him by the Constitution ; or to resist, oppose, or defeat any such law or act, or to aid, encourage, or abet any hostile designs of any foreign nation against the United States, their peo- ple or government, such person, on conviction, should be punished by a fine not exceeding $2,000 and by imprison- ment not exceeding two years. Another section allowed a defendant prosecuted for writ- ing or publishing any libel to give in evidence, in his de- fence, the truth of the matter contained in the publication charged as a libel. This act was to expire March 3, 1801, with the close of Adams' administration. These two laws made up the noted "Alien and Sedition" Acts by which, in the height of its power, the Federal party committed suicide, while it aimed to establish that power. They were the deliberate acts of the leaders of that party; indeed, as passed by the Senate, were much more severe and brutal. These laws were directed at the opposition party and were intended to deprive of trial by jury, or right of asy- lum or citizenship, aliens, whether friends or enemies, largely because our naturalized citizens voted with the Republican party, and to punish, or destroy, that Press JOHN ADAMS' ADMINISTRATION. j\ which criticised the measures of the Administration and abused Federal leaders. It seems almost incredible to us that men who had been promoters, or actors, in our great revolutionary struggles should have approved laws that were animated by the spirit of persecution and assailed the most sacred rights ; but it is certain that the entire Federalist party approved the Alien and Sedition Acts, and the severer form . in which they had been introduced, or passed, by the Senate, disclosed their willingness to go further in their assaults upon freedom. " Hamilton," says his biographer and ardent admirer, Mr. Lodge, " went as far in the direction of sustaining these laws as any one." "A year later, in 1799, he wrote to Dayton, the Spencer of the National House of Representatives, a long letter, in which he set forth very clearly the policy which he felt ought to be pursued. He wished to give strength to the government and increase centralization by every means, by an exten- sion of the national judiciary, a liberal system of internal improvements, an increased and abundant revenue, an en- largement of the army and navy, permanence in the laws for the volunteer army, extension of the powers of the general government, subdivision of the States as soon as practicable, and finally a strong sedition law, and the power to banish aliens." Adams not only approved these laws officially but was constantly threatening to enforce them. He did authorize the expulsion of the French General Collot and a German named Schweitzer; but his Secretary of State, Timothy Pickering, who was extremely ardent for enforcing these 72 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. laws, fearing that the arrest of these two aliens would alarm other game he was more anxious to bag, postponed the execution of the President's order until it was aban- , doned. Many prosecutions took place under the Sedition law and Federalist judges were found ready to enforce it to its fullest severity. The most conspicuous sufferer was Matthew Lyon, an Irish member of Congress from Vermont, whose zealous republicanism had made him particularly obnoxious to the Federalists. He was fined $1,000 and sentenced to four months' imprisonment for expressions used in a published letter and on the hustings which to-day might be heard without exciting remark on any platform in the United States. A specimen* of the more ridiculous cases brought under the law is given in "Hammond's Political History of New York," Vol. I., p. 131. "Mr. Baldwin, of New Jersey, was indicted, tried, convicted and fined, under color of the Sedition law, for the following offence. Mr. Adams, on his return from the seat of government, passed through New- ark ; some cannon were discharged in compliment to him while passing through that village ; Mr. Baldwin, who it would appear was a rather low-bred man, said he wished the wadding discharged from the cannon had been lodged in the President's backsides. For this he was fined $100." Many other cases might be cited, and even Jefferson was led to believe that his correspondence was watched in order to secure some material for starting a prosecution against him. Finding themselves overridden in Congress and without hope of relief in the Federal Courts, the leaders of the JOHN ADAMS' ADMINISTRATION. j* Republican party decided to take their stand in the State Legislatures, and accordingly Jefferson drafted a set of reso- lutions which were adopted by the Legislature of Kentucky, and Madison, in turn, another set adopted by the Legisla- ture of Virginia, known in our history as the " Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions of 1798." The Kentucky resolutions declared that the States are not united on the principle of unlimited submission to their general government, but, by the compact of the Constitution, delegated certain definite power to the general government, reserving, each State to itself, the residuary right to their own self-government, and that whensoever the general gov- ernment assumes undelegated power, its acts are unauthori- tative and void. That to this compact each State was an integral party, its co-States being the other party; that the government created by this compact was not made the ex- clusive judge of its powers, but that each party had a right to judge for itself, as well of infractions as of the mode of redress. Another section declared that the Constitution having delegated to Congress the power to punish certain speci- fied crimes, and none others, that from general princi- ples and the explicit reservations of the Tenth Amendment, the Sedition Act, the act to punish frauds committed on the Bank of the United States, and all others which assume to create, define, or punish crimes other than those enumerated in the Constitution, were void, and the power to create, define and punish such crimes apper- tained solely to the respective States, each within its own territory. 74 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. The third resolution declared the Sedition Act a viola- tion of the Constitutional prohibition against laws abridging the freedom of the press, and therefore void. Section four declared aliens friends under the jurisdic- tion and protection of the States wherein they were, and that the Alien Act, assuming power over them not delegated by the Constitution, was void. The fifth resolution declared that the removal of aliens when migrated was equivalent to the prohibition of the migration, which power was expressly denied to Congress prior to the year 1808. (Sec. 9 of Article I., Const.) The sixth resolution declared that to imprison a per- son on failure to obey the simple order of the Presi- dent to depart out of the United States was contrary to the amendment which provided that no person should be deprived of liberty without due process of law, and that the authority given the President in the alien law, to remove a person out of the United States on his own suspicion, was a violation of the amendment which guaranteed that in all criminal prosecutions the accused should enjoy the right to a public trial, by an im- partial jury, with all the safeguards thrown around such trial; that to transfer the power of judging from the courts to the President was forbidden by the clause in the Constitution which vested the judicial power of the United States in the courts. The seventh resolution declared that the construction given to the power to lay and collect taxes, duties, imposts and excises; to pay the debts and provide for JOHN ADAMS' ADMINISTRATION. 75 the common defence and general welfare, and to make all laws necessary and proper to carry into execution the power vested in the general government, went to the destruction of all the limits prescribed to its power by the Constitution. The eighth resolution enjoined the Senators and Rep- resentatives in Congress to present these resolutions to their respective Houses, and to use their best endeavors to procure a repeal of the aforesaid unconstitutional and obnoxious laws. The ninth and last resolution directed the governor of that commonwealth to communicate the resolutions to the Legislatures of the several States with the assurance that " this commonwealth considers union for specified national purposes, and particularly for those specified in their late Federal compact, to be friendly to the future happiness and prosperity of all the States ; that faithful to that compact according to the plain intent and meaning in which it was understood and acceded to by the several parties, it is sincerely anxious for its preser- vation; that it does also believe that to take from the States all the powers of self-government and transfer them to a general and consolidated government, without re- gard to the special delegations and reservations solemnly agreed to in that compact, is not for the peace, happiness or prosperity of these States : and therefore this common- wealth is determined, as it doubts not its co-States are, tamely to submit to undelegated and consequently un- limited powers in no man or body of men on earth.' It then proceeds to enumerate somewhat at large the 76 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. conclusions which would flow from the acts specified if they should stand. The Virginia resolutions were in like spirit but in more restrained language. After avowing warm attachment to the Union of the States and a firm determination to sup- port the Constitutions of the United States and of the State against every aggression, either foreign or domestic, they declare that the powers of the federal government result from the compact to which the States are parties; that in case of a deliberate, palpable and dangerous exercise of other powers, not granted by said compact, they have the right, and are in duty bound, to interpose for arresting the progress of the evil and for maintaining within their re- spective limits the authorities, rights and liberties appertain- ing to them. They express deep regret that a spirit has, in sundry instances, been manifested by the federal government to enlarge its powers by forced constructions of the Constitu- tion, and that indications have appeared of a " design to expand certain general phrases so as to destroy the mean- ing and effect of the particular enumeration, which neces- sarily explains and limits the general phrases." They further protest against the Alien and Sedition Acts as exercising power nowhere delegated to the federal gov- ernment; the latter act exercising a power which t more than any other, ought to produce universal alarm because it is " levelled against that right of freely examining public characters and measures, and of free communication among the people thereon, which has ever been justly deemed the only effectual guardian of every other right." JOHN ADAMS' ADMINISTRATION. jj These resolutions, while generally disapproved by the Legislatures of the other States, served to arrest and con- solidate public sentiment against the Alien and Sedition laws. Meanwhile, as President Adams had determined to send new envoys to France, through whose efforts the threatened war was averted and the public had more time to see and fear the dangerous attacks on liberty made in these acts, a consequent reaction against the Federalists set in, aided by the fact that the party was divided into two factions, of which Adams and Hamilton were the respective leaders. Not only the Senate, but the Cabinet of Mr. Adams was also under the controlling influence of Hamilton, and although the Sixth Congress, chosen in 1798, after the passage of the Alien and Sedition laws, was strongly Fed- eralist, the tide having not yet set in against them, the progress of the session disclosed their waning strength. The opposing candidates, as it appears, were put into the field by Congressional caucuses. With Adams the Fed- eralists associated Charles Cotesworth Pinckney, of South Carolina; with Jefferson the Republicans joined Aaron Burr, of New York. The New York Legislature elected in the spring of 1800 was Republican. As it could not meet before July, Ham- ilton proposed to Governor Jay to convene the old Legisla- ture, whose term had still some time to run, in extra ses- sion and prevail on it to pass a bill authorizing the people to choose electors by districts. On this proposal, which will always be a reflection on Hamilton's memory, Jay endorsed the words : " Proposing 7* THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. a measure for party purposes which I think it would not become me to adopt." It added to the discomfiture of the Federalists in the campaign that their own party became rent by factions and that Adams finally felt called upon to force out of his cabinet Timothy Pickering, Secretary of State, and James McHenry, his Secretary of War. Hamilton set himself to work to bring in Pinckney ahead of Adams, in which he was aided by Adams' own Secretary of the Treasury, Oliver Wolcott. Adams relied upon the moderate Federalists and denounced the ultras among his Massachusetts neighbors who were plotting against him, as an " Essex Junto," a name which has remained in history. The campaign was an exceedingly bitter one and the Federalists' abuse of Jefferson has not been surpassed by the mendacity and virulence of any succeeding campaign. No new States had been admitted in Adams' administration and there were sixteen States to take part in the election, six of which had popular elections. The result of the election gave Thomas Jefferson and Aaron Burr each 73 votes, John Adams 65, Pinckney 64, and John Jay 1. There being a tie between Jefferson and Burr, an intrigue was immediately set on foot among the Federalists to vote for Burr and prevent the election of Jefferson, to which Burr lent, if not an active co-operation, a willing acquies- cence. The election devolved upon the House, voting by; States, and the balloting began on February 11, 1801. It is to the credit of Hamilton that, as heartily as he hated Jefferson, he still more strongly distrusted Burr and threw his influence against the proposal to elect him by Federalist JOHN ADAMS' ADMINISTRATION. jg votes. The House resolved to continue in session, with- out proceeding to other business, until a President should be chosen. Eight States voted for Jefferson on the first ballot, to wit : New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Virginia, North Carolina, Georgia, Kentucky and Tennessee. Six States voted for Burr, to wit: New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Delaware and South Carolina. Vermont and Maryland, being equally divided, voted blank. Every succeeding ballot disclosed the same result until finally, on the thirty-sixth ballot, taken on the 17th of February, Mr. Jefferson received the votes of ten States and Mr. Burr of four States. The Federalist member from Vermont declining to vote, Matthew Lyon, the Irishman who had been persecuted under the Sedition law, cast the vote of that State for Jefferson. The four Federalists from Mary- land who had tied the vote of that State also refrained from voting, and Maryland voted for Jefferson. Delaware and South Carolina cast blank votes. Thus Mr. Jefferson became President, with Aaron Burr as Vice-President. CHAPTER IV. HISTORY UNDER PRESIDENT JEFFERSON, 1 801-1809. THE lesson taught by the tie vote between Jefferson and Burr at the election in 1800 led to an amend- ment to the Constitution requiring that the electors, in future elections, should " name in their ballots the person voted for as President and, in distinct ballots, the person voted for as Vice-President." This is the Twelfth Amend- ment, which was declared adopted on September 25, 1804. The election of Jefferson was a political revolution ; so understood by the people of both parties, and intended by Jefferson himself, not only to reverse the centralizing and monarchical legislation of the past, but at once to do away with the ceremonials borrowed from foreign govern- ments, which were objectionable to his ideas of republican simplicity. He accordingly aimed to make his inauguration as simple as became the assumption of the chief magis- tracy by a private citizen of a free country. According to an English traveller, quoted in Randall's "Life of Jeffer- son," who speaks as an eye-witness of the occasion, " His dress was of plain cloth, and he rode on horseback to the Capitol, without a single guard or even a servant in his train, dismounted without assistance, and hitched the bridle (80) THOMAS JEFFERSON. JEFFERSON'S ADMINISTRATION. S3 of his horse to the palisades." We may remark that the seat of government was now at Washington. The inaugural address of Jefferson will always remain the best and clearest statement of the principles of demo- cratic government. It is in style a little rhetorical, full of the spirit of conciliation; full of the faith that the great mass of the people were true in their attachment to demo- cratic government, whatever had been their party divisions in the late election. After modest reference to himself and an appeal to his " fellow-citizens to restore the social inter- course, the harmony and affection temporarily interrupted by the political campaign, without which liberty and even life are dreary things," he went on to declare that every difference of opinion is not a difference of principle. " We have called by different names brethren of the same principles. We are all Republicans; we are all Fed- eralists. If there be any among us who wish to dissolve this Union, or to change its republican form, let them stand undisturbed as monuments to the safety with which error of opinion can be tolerated where reason is left free to combat it. I know, indeed, that some honest men fear that a republican government cannot be strong; that this government is not strong enough. But would the honest patriot, in the full tide of successful experiment, abandon a government which has so far kept us free and firm, on the theoretic and visionary fear that this government, the world's best hope, may by possibility want energy to pre- serve itself? I trust not. I believe this, on the contrary, the strongest government on earth. I believe it the only one where every man, at the call of the laws, would fly 6 ' 8 4 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. to the standard of the law, and would meet invasions of the public order as his own personal concern. Sometimes it is said a man cannot be trusted with the government of himself. Can he be trusted with the government of others ? Or have we found angels in the form of kings to govern him ? Let history answer this question." After reciting our superior advantages by virtue of our free institutions, of the extent and greatness of our country, of the benign influences of religion, he asks : " With all these blessings what more is necessary to make us a happy and prosperous people? Still one thing more, fellow-citizens — a wise and frugal government, which shall restrain men from injuring one another, which shall leave them otherwise free to regulate their own pursuits of industry and improvement, and shall not take from the mouth of labor the bread it has earned. This is the sum of good government, and this is necessary to close the circle of our felicities." He proceeded to state what are deemed the essential principles of our government, and, consequently, those which ought to shape its administration. This statement, as we have said, is the best exposition ever made of the funda- mental doctrines of the party whose leader he was. Its language has passed into our political literature; its gen- eral principles, so admirably stated, are quoted to-day in all political discussions, and have become, as he himself wished and foresaw, "the creed of our political faith, the text of civil instruction, the touchstone by which to try the services of those we trust." " Equal and exact justice to all men, of whatever state JEFFERSON'S ADMINISTRATION g^ or persuasion, religious or political; peace, commerce, and honest friendship with all nations — entangling alliances with none; the support of the State governments in their rights, as the most competent administrations for our do- mestic concerns, and the surest bulwarks against anti- republican tendencies ; the preservation of the general gov- ernment in its whole constitutional vigor, as the sheet- anchor of our peace at home and safety abroad ; a jealous care of the right of election by the people — a mild and safe corrective of abuses which are lopped by the sword of revolution where peaceable remedies are unprovided ; absolute acquiescence in decisions of the majority, the vital principle of republics, from which there is no appeal but to force, the vital principle and immediate parent of des- potism; a well-disciplined militia, our best reliance in peace and for the first moments of war, till regulars may relieve them ; the supremacy of the civil over the military author- ity; economy in the public expense, that labor may be lightly burdened; the honest payment of our debts and sacred preservation of the public faith ; encouragement of agriculture, and commerce as its handmaid; the diffusion of information and the arraignment of all abuses at the bar of public reason ; freedom of religion ; freedom of the press; freedom of person under the protection of the habeas corpus, and trial by juries impartially selected — these principles form the high constellation which has gone before us, and guided our footsteps through an age of revolution and reformation." The Cabinet of Jefferson consisted of James Madison, Secretary of • State ; Henry Dearborn, of Massachusetts, 85 THE, NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. Secretary of War; Levi Lincoln, of the same State, Attorney-General; Albert Gallatin, of Pennsylvania, Sec- retary of the Treasury; Robert Smith, of Maryland, Sec- retary of the Navy; and Gideon Granger, of Connecticut, Postmaster-General. One of the first questions with which Jefferson had to deal was that of appointment to and removal from office. The incumbents were Federalists, and generally bitter Fed- eralists. The story is often told how the new Attorney- General came upon John Marshall, Adams' Secretary of State, while the latter was yet busy signing the commis- sions of the Federalist judges and others, whose nomina- tions Adams had poured in upon the Senate in the closing hours of his administration. As this was the first change of administration from one party to another, the question of the President's policy in this particular confronted him on the threshold. In a let- ter, written a few days after his inauguration, to Dr. Rush, he uses this language: "With regard to appointments, I have so much confi- dence in the justice and good sense of the Federalists, that I have no doubt they will concur in the fairness of the position, that after they have been in the exclusive posses- sion of all offices from the very first origin of party among us to the 3d of March at nine o'clock in the night, no Republican ever admitted and this doctrine newly avowed, it is now perfectly just that the Republicans should come in for the vacancies which may fall in until something like an equilibrium in office be restored. But the great stumbling-block will be removals, which, though made JEFFERSON'S ADMINISTRATION. %y on those just principles only on which my predecessor ought to have removed the same persons, will nevertheless be ascribed to removal on party principles. 1st. I will expunge the effect of Mr. A.'s indecent conduct in crowd- ing nominations after he knew they were not for himself, until nine o'clock of the night at twelve o'clock of which he was to go out of office. So far as they are during pleasure I shall not consider the persons named even as candidates for the office, nor pay the respect of notifying them that I consider what was done as a nullity. 2d. Some removals must be made for misconduct." Among the proper causes for removal he mentioned the conduct of Federal marshals and attorneys who had been engaged in packing juries and prosecuting citizens with the bitterness of party hatred. These removals, he antici- pated, would not be over twenty in number out of the thousands of offices in the United States. While not satis- fying the clamorous demands of his own party he was particularly anxious to attract permanently to its standard the rank and file of the Federalist party, whom he believed to be really Republicans at heart, and to conciliate them by his moderation. In other words he was making a successful move to destroy the opposition.' The case of the New Haven collectorship is often cited as showing the manner in which he dealt with removals. Mr. Adams had appointed Elizur Goodrich, a Federal member of Congress, to that place after Jefferson's election ; and Good- rich had resigned his seat to accept what he supposed would be a permanent position, forestalling a Republican appointment. Jefferson treated his appointment as void and 88 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. appointed Judge Bishop, of New Haven, collector. When remonstrated with by a committee of merchants of that city for this appointment, the President contrasted his toleration with that of his Federal predecessors. Lament- ing that the previous total exclusion of Republicans from office called for a prompter correction than the dying out or resignations of the incumbents, he said : " I shall correct the procedure, but, that done, return with joy to that state of things when the only question concerning a candidate shall be, is he honest, is he capa- ble, is he faithful to the Constitution?" Notwithstanding this extreme moderation of Jefferson, he was assailed, as President Cleveland has been assailed in our own day, by his political opponents as a monster of proscription. The more moderate Federalists, however, were pleased with the tone of Jefferson's inaugural, with the earlier steps of his administration, and were soon disabused of those fears with which their leaders had filled them as to the meaning of a democratic administration. The following sentence from a letter written by Jefferson to a kinsman on the subject of appointing relatives to office deserves to be recorded : "The public will never be made to believe that the appointment of a relative is made on the ground of merit alone, uninfluenced by family views; nor can they ever see with approbation offices, the disposal of which they intrust to their Presidents for public purposes, divided out as family property." One of the first acts of the President was the pardoning, or the release, of all who had been prosecuted under the JEFFERSON'S ADMINISTRATION. go Sedition law. He abolished the weekly levee at the * White House and all the mimicry of court etiquette, for which his predecessor had a weakness. The State elections in 1801 disclosed the complete over- throw of the Federal party. With the exception of three of the New England States — Massachusetts, New Hamp- shire, and Connecticut — and of Delaware, the Republicans had gained control of all the States. The new government was becoming firmly lodged in the confidence of the peo- ple. The Congress which met in December, 1801, had a small Republican majority in both branches. Nathaniel Macon, of North Carolina, was chosen Speaker of the House. Jefferson sent a written message instead of deliv- ering the opening speech. In this message Jefferson rec- ommended reduction of expenditures and reduction of taxes; decrease of the army and of the navy; a revisal of the laws on the subject of naturalization ; an examination of the judiciary system, and other less important measures. Agriculture, manufactures, commerce, and navigation he declared to be the four pillars of our prosperity, most thriving when left most free to individual enterprise. Con- gress was animated by his spirit. It reduced taxes ; it reduced the army and the navy; restored the law making five (5) instead of fourteen (14) years' residence required of aliens preliminary to naturalization; admitted, against the unanimous vote of the Federalists, reporters for the press to seats upon the floor of both Houses ; repealed, after a hard party fight, and by one majority in the Senate, the Judiciary Act, whereby the twenty-four circuit courts had been established and filled, in the main, by Adams' mid- 9 o THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. night appointment of Federal judges; curtailed the offices and retrenched salaries in all the civil departments. Thus had the first Democratic administration shown the benefi- cence of its principles, and given the people that exhibition of wise and frugal government which the President fore- shadowed; in which strength was sought and obtained, not by standing armies, large naval establishments, a great judiciary system, with its equipment of marshals, prose- cutors, and prisons; nor yet by centralizing laws and kingly ceremonies; but through reliance on the patriotism and intelligence of the people; throwing open to them every door of observation, and leaving in their hands all power and all money not needed for the maintenance of government on a scale as little energetic or expensive as the protection of the rights of all demanded. The great achievement of Mr. Jefferson's first term, aside from these inestimable reforms, was the acquisition of Louisiana. The possession of the mouth of the Mississippi river or of any control over the navigation of that stream by a foreign power had early attracted Jefferson's attention, and impressed him as something to be gotten rid of as soon as possible. The recent transfer from Spain to France of the Louisiana territory had excited strong feeling in this country, and the control of that region with the occupa- tion of New Orleans by so great, warlike, and ambitious a nation as France was especially disquieting to Jefferson. He accordingly first undertook negotiations through Liv- ingston, our minister, for the purchase of New Orleans and some territory on the east side of the river. Soon after, JEFFERSON'S ADMINISTRATION, g X however, he sent, as special envoy, James Monroe, with verbal instructions to negotiate, if possible, this purchase. Monroe reached France at a time when Napoleon was pressed for money, and, finding that he could purchase all of Louisiana, promptly executed the bargain for $15,000,000. Jefferson warmly approved, and, although the Federalists denied his constitutional authority to make the purchases, he urged on Congress the immediate ratification of the transaction, saying to his friends that " the less said about our constitutional difficulty the better." The treaty was promptly ratified and this momentous transaction consum- mated, rather as a matter of general popular approbation than of constitutional authority. Jefferson was formally nominated for a second term by what is known as the first regular caucus of mem- bers of Congress, held in February, 1804. No other candidate was thought of. Aaron Burr had forfeited the confidence of his party by his conduct in the Presiden- tial contest of 1800, and George Clinton, of New York, was therefore put on the ticket with Jefferson. The Federalists selected, by common understanding, Charles C. Pinckney and Rufus King, as their candidates for President and Vice-President. The Republican party gained all but two States, viz., Connecticut and Dela- ware, whose united vote, with two votes from Mary- land, gave Pinckney and King each 14 votes. Jefferson and Clinton received 162 votes. There were now seven- teen States, Ohio having been admitted November 29, 1802. Hamilton had been shot in a duel with Aaron g 2 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. Burr, in July, 1804, and the Federalist party, already a thing of the past, 'had thus lost its great leader. Jefferson's second term was chiefly marked by foreign complications. He had a "perfect horror at everything like connecting ourselves with the politics of Europe," and did not doubt that we should be able to pursue our peaceful course between the great belligerents un- harmed by their contests and even finding profit in them. Neither France nor England, however, was willing that this should be, and American commerce was soon the sufferer — especially from the depredations of the British. In 1806 Jefferson sent in a special message looking to retaliation on England, in response to which Congress passed an act to prohibit the importation of certain English goods after November 15. John Randolph, of Virginia, who had hitherto been an administration leader, broke off from the Republican, or Democratic party, as it even now began to be called, and entered into a combination with the Federalists. His followers were known as " Quids ; " but the Re- publicans still held complete control of both Houses and responded to Jefferson's policies and recommenda- tions promptly and faithfully. The appearance of a redundant revenue in 1806 led him to recommend a constitutional amendment authorizing its appropriation to internal improvements and education. A treaty made with England by Pinckney and Monroe was found to contain no guaranty against impressment, and the Presi- dent did not hesitate to reject it. Both England and France continued their aggressions, and Jefferson advised, JEFFERSON'S ADMINISTRATION. j 93 and Congress promptly undertook, a system of commer- cial retaliation by the Embargo Act of 1807. This act laid an embargo on all ships and vessels in the ports and places within the limits and jurisdiction of the United States bound to any foreign port or place. Vessels were allowed to go from one port to another in the United States under certain regulations, including the giving of bonds. This act was supported by John Quincy Adams, but soon became very unpopular in New England, as it bore disastrously upon her shipping in- terests. In order to allay the growing opposition in that section it was replaced, in 1809, by the Non-Inter- course Act. Several facts deserve to be noted in the political history of Jefferson's administration. Some of the Federal Judges were impeached ; among them and most notable was Justice Chase, of Maryland, a judge of the Supreme Court, for arbitrary and tyrannical conduct in trying cases under the Sedition laws. The trial became a mere party contest, and the Republicans had not the necessary two-thirds to con- vict. Aaron Burr was tried on the charge of treason, in 1807, at Richmond, before Chief-Justice Marshall. The real object of his expedition down the Mississippi is wrapped in mystery. His trial likewise assumed a par- tisan color, and, although Jefferson earnestly endeavored to secure his conviction, Burr was acquitted. Strong pressure was brought to bear on Jefferson to stand for a third term, from influential bodies of citizens 94 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. and irom State Legislatures, and there is no reason to doubt that he could have been re-elected; but he firmly declined, thus adding the weight of his great example to that of Washington's against the indefinite re-eligibility of the President, and in favor of two terms as the extreme tenure of the executive office. This is not the least in his titles to the gratitude of posterity, and it is to be hoped that the unwritten law against a third term made by the great statesman who first held Presidential office will never again be assailed, as in the recent effort of a large part of the Repub- lican party in the candidacy of General Grant. Madison, who was Secretary of State, seemed in every way the proper successor of Jefferson. Randolph, however, with a part of the Virginia Legislature supporting him, brought forward James Monroe to antagonize him. Among the Republicans generally there was an occa- sional comment on the continued Virginian ascendancy. A caucus of the Republican members of Congress was held January 23, 1808, in the face of some opposition, which was attended by ninety-four Senators and Repre- sentatives. Of the 89 votes cast Madison received 83, Monroe 3, George Clinton 3. For Vice-President, Clinton received 79 votes, John Langdon 5, Henry Dearborn 3, and John Q. Adams 1. Madison and Clinton were thus nominated and the caucus, in announcing the result, declared that the members had acted " only in their in- dividual characters as citizens, from the necessity of the case, and from a deep conviction of the importance of union to the Republicans throughout the United States JEFFERSON'S ADMINISTRATION. , 95 in the present crisis of both our external and internal affairs, and as being the most practicable mode of con- sulting and inspecting the wishes of all." The Feder- alists by tacit consent gave their votes to Pinckney and King, as in the last election. The vote in the electoral college stood, 122 for Madi- son, 6 for Clinton, 47 for Pinckney. For Vice-President, Clinton received 113, Madison 3, Monroe 3, Langdon 9, King 47. James Madison thus became President and George Clinton Vice-President of the United States; and Thomas Jefferson retired to Monticello where, for the remainder of his life, he enjoyed the respect of the American people as a wise and great statesman, and was constantly turned to by his party as its most sagacious coun- sellor. CHAPTER V. HISTORY UNDER PRESIDENT MADISON, 1809-1817. MADISON'S administration inherited the foreign troubles of his predecessor and, after many futile efforts to secure our rights by negotiation and retaliatory legislation, finally abandoned the peace policy and began preparations for war. The Republicans were in the majority in both Houses and supported the administration on all its measures, but, numbering among their members such rising young men as Clay and Calhoun, naturally inclined to a spirited and defiant policy. The Federalists, having censured and crit- icised the peace policy and long-enduring patience of the Republicans, were equally prompt, and perhaps far more sin- cere, in opposing their war policy. When, therefore, war was declared, June 18, 1 8 12, the Federal members of Con- gress published a protest against it in an address to their constituents. Of the war of 1812 it is only necessary to say that it was not declared until we had borne, for six years, wrongs and insults that would have justified resent- ment from the beginning. Both Jefferson and Madison were inclined to peaceful measures and both faithfully tried to escape the necessity for actual war by commercial legis- lation which proved ineffectual. The war itself was not (96) 1\ €T> JAMES MADISON. MADISON'S ADMINISTRATION. 97 calculated to feed our national pride until American vessels began their dazzling series of victories upon the sea and Jackson closed the contest by the great victory at New Orleans. Peace was negotiated early in 1815 and the news, which was received in February, called forth general rejoicing, although the chief objects for which the war was declared were not settled and some of them not even mentioned in the treaty. This was somewhat overlooked in the pride over the recent victory and also, perhaps, in the belief that the war itself had made it improbable that England would ever again insist upon her right of search and impress- ment. The New England States had disliked the war from the outset and had so far expressed their disapprobation of its declaration and conduct that England undertook to dis- criminate between them and the rest of the Union by exempting Massachusetts, Rhode Island and New Hamp- shire from the blockade of the Atlantic coast. Illicit trading was so common with the enemy that laws had to be passed forbidding it under more extreme pen- alties. The Legislature of Connecticut first declared the war unnecessary. The Legislature of Massachusetts in- vited the other New England States to send delegates to a convention at Hartford to confer on the subject of their public grievances. In December, 1 8 14, this call gathered delegates from all the New England States, who sat for three weeks with closed doors and finally made a report to their State Legislatures criticising the declaration and man- agement of the war, and proposing seven amendments to £g THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. the Constitution, chiefly to restrict the power of Congress to lay embargoes on ships of American citizens, or to inter- dict commercial intercourse, or to declare war. The sixth made naturalized citizens ineligible to office and the seventh forbade a re-election of a president, or the election of a president from the same State for two terms in succession. If these amendments should not be adopted they recom- mended the meeting of a second convention, "with such powers and instructions as the exigency of a crisis so mo- mentous may require." This convention, with its secret sessions and unpatriotic resolutions, ending with the above ambiguous threat, cov- ered all who took part in it with suspicion and odium for- ever afterward. As the news of peace rapidly followed, no second convention ever met. It was also charged that citizens of New London, Conn., made a practice of giving information to the enemy of the movements of American vessels by burning blue lights. The most humiliating feature of the war of 1812 was the capture of Washington and the burning of the Capitol by a small force of British soldiers. Madison was unanimously nominated for a second term by a Republican caucus held May 12, 181 2. John Lang- don, of New Hampshire, was nominated for Vice-President, receiving 64 votes to 16 for Elbridge Gerry, of Massachu- setts, and 2 scattering. Langdon declined, however, on account of age, and Gerry was nominated by a second caucus by a vote of 74 to 3 scattering. George Clinton, the Vice-President, died a few weeks before the first caucus. MADISON'S ADMINISTRATION. 99 At least fifty Republican members of Congress did not attend these caucuses, especially from New York and the New England States. Some favored a more vigorous pros- ecution of the war, others were opposed to the war, alto- gether, and, singular to say, they united on the same can- didate, De Witt Clinton, of New York, who was formally put forward by a caucus of the Republican members of the New York Legislature held May 29, 18 12. Later in the summer a convention of Federalists, in which eleven States were represented, met in New York and endorsed the nomination of Clinton, with Jared Inger- soll, of Pennsylvania, for Vice-President. They adopted a platform declaring opposition to Congressional caucuses; "to all customs and usages having for their object the maintenance of an official regency to prescribe tenets of political faith; to the monopoly of the principal offices by particular States, and especial opposition to continuing a citizen of Virginia in the executive office another term, unless she can show that she enjoys a corresponding monopoly of talents and patriotism, after she has been hon- ored with the Presidency for twenty out of twenty-four years of our constitutional existence;" to continuing public men for long periods in public trusts, and to Mr. Madison as deficient in decision, energy and efficiency for the pend- ing troubles with Great Britain. Louisiana having been admitted April 8, 1 812, eighteen States took part in the election. Madison received 128 electoral votes, Clinton 89. Gerry for Vice-President re- ceived 131, and Ingersoll S6. The National Bank, chartered in 1 79 1 for twenty years, 7 L.ofC. I00 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. expired in 1811; the effort to re-charter it being defeated by a majority of one vote in the House and the casting vote of the Vice-President in the Senate; but, five years later, April, 18 16, a bill was passed for the charter of a second National Bank modelled upon the original bank and to run twenty years. The expenses of the war with England and the previous restrictions on commerce with foreign nations had a neces- sary effect upon our revenue system. As already stated the Berlin and Milan decrees of Napoleon and the English orders in council led to the Embargo in 1807. This was modified into the Non-intercourse Act of 1809 and war with England followed in 18 12. During the war, import duties were doubled and the cutting off our imports being equiva- lent to a high, or even prohibitory tariff, certain manufac- tures whose products we had previously imported sprang up in this country and in the tariff ©f 18 16 some con- cession was naturally made to these by general consent. Especial interest was manifested in cotton and woollen fabrics, on which a duty of 25 per cent, was laid to con- tinue until 1 8 19 and then fall to 20 per cent. The general increase of duties in 18 16 to an average of about 20 per cent, was, however, a revenue measure to provide for the interest on the war debt. Some objection to the caucus system of nominating candidates was shown in 1816 when 119 out of 141 Re- publican members attended. The candidates for Presi- dential nomination were James Monroe, and William H. Crawford of Georgia. Monroe received 65, Crawford 54 votes. Daniel D. Tompkins, of New York, was nominated MADISON'S ADMINISTRATION. I0I for Vice-President. Hitherto the caucus had excited little opposition, as public opinion had designated in advance its choice, but the large vote given to Crawford now indicated that a shrewd politician could develop much more strength in a Congressional caucus than he possessed be- fore the people. The Federalist party was thoroughly dis- credited when the war closed and could make no real con- test in this election. Monroe received 183 votes, Rufus King 34. Tompkins for Vice-President had 183, Jno. E. Howard, of Maryland, 22 ; 12 scattering. CHAPTER VI HISTORY UNDER PRESIDENT MONROE, 1817-1825. JAMES MONROE had been Secretary of State under Madison. The eight years covered by his two terms have passed into history as the "Era of Good Feel- ing." The Federalist party had died out, and nearly all citizens called themselves Republicans, and as evidence of this Henry Clay was unanimously elected Speaker of the Fifteenth and Sixteenth Congresses. In 1 8 19 the United States purchased Florida from Spain for $5,000,000. In 1820 Missouri and Maine being both applicants for admission into the Union, the former as a slave, the latter as a free State, the so-called Missouri Compromise Act was passed prohibiting forever slavery in all territory north of the line of 36 30', after which Maine and Missouri were admitted as above. In 1 82 1 there were no candidates nominated, and Mon- roe received the unanimous vote of the electors with the exception of one vote given to John Quincy Adams by an elector in New Hampshire who was unwilling that any one should share with Washington the honor of a unanimous election. Tompkins was re-elected Vice-President. There arose no divisions of parties in this adminis- (102) JAMES MONROE MONROE'S ADMINISTRATION. I0 ^ tration, but there "were in the Republican party the same * materials for such division as had existed from the be- ginning, and Henry Clay, who prided himself very much on being a disciple of Thomas Jefferson, was already devel- oping his Tariff and Internal Improvement doctrines and becoming a recognized leader of the loose constructionists in the country. Towards the close of Monroe's administration the ques- tion of internal improvements by the federal government was raised. The growth of population, the increase of the business and trade of the country, and the gradual exten- sion of settlement toward the west, naturally called public attention to increase of facilities for travel and transpor- tation. De Witt Clinton had just completed the New York Canal, and, as Benton tells us, had acquired so much popu- larity "that candidates for the Presidency began to spread their sails on the ocean of internal improvements." Mr. Adams and Mr. Clay favored a thorough and enlarged system of national highways. Calhoun seems at first to have been in accord with them, and Jackson and Crawford did not oppose the system, but sought to affix to it such limita- tions as would be consistent with their stricter ideas of constitutional construction. As preliminary to a general system an appropriation was made to make surveys of national routes, from which Mr. Monroe did not withhold his approval, but when an act was passed for the "preser- vation and repair " of what was called the Cumberland Road, although it met little opposition in Congress, the Presi- dent felt called upon to interpose his veto. This veto was accompanied by an elaborate State paper in which he con I0 4 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. sidered in turn the several clauses of the Constitution under which Congress was supposed to be vested with the power of internal improvement, and comes to the conclu- sion that the power was not given by any of them, but was impliedly withheld by some. He was, however, so much impressed with the necessity of a system of internal improvements that should be national that he recom- mended the submission of an amendment to the several States by which Congress should be vested with the power, confined to great national works only. In the closing year of Mr. Monroe's administration the tariff law of 1824 was enacted, in which for the first time the protective idea was put strongly to the front. The demands on the treasury and the great distress said to be prevailing in the country were the general grounds upon which the increase of duties was asked for ; and Mr. Clay, advocating the turning of a larger proportion of our domestic industries into the channel of manufactures, declared that " successive un- threshed crops of grain were perishing in our barns for want of a mart." The debate was a long, bitter, and to some ex- tent a sectional one, and the bill was carried by the close vote of 107 to 102 in the House, and of 25 to 21 in the Senate. It was during this debate that Mr. Webster made his great free trade speech, which as an argument against the protective system has not been surpassed in later Congressional discussions. The bill was opposed generally by the agricultural States of the South and received but one vote from Massachusetts; and its passage was finally secured, as the passage of such bills is generally secured, by a log-rolling combination, in which concession was MONROE'S ADMINISTRATION. 105 made to sufficient local interests to secure the necessary number of votes for the passage of the bill. No sketch of Monroe's administration would be com- plete without a statement of what has ever since been known as " The Monroe Doctrine," which, in the apt words of President Gilman, his biographer, " was the an- nouncement without legislative sanction of a political dic- tum, which is still regarded as fundamental, and bears with it the stamp of authority in foreign courts as well as in domestic councils." It was contained in his annual message of December 2, 1823. It set forth: First, that the American continents by virtue of the independent con- dition which they have assumed and maintained are hence- forth not to be considered subjects for colonization by European powers. The second principle was, that the United States would consider any attempt on the part of foreign countries to extend their systems to any portion of this hemisphere as dangerous to our peace and safety. This doctrine, that we should keep free of the political wrangles of Europe and not permit the powers of the old world to interfere with the political affairs of the new, has ever since been maintained by our government in all its discussions and in all its dealings with foreign nations. Long before the expiration of Mr. Monroe's second term candidates to the succession became plentiful, and as there was but one political party the rivalry was more a personal than a political rivalry. There had been a grad- ually growing sentiment in the country against the selec- tion of candidates by Congressional caucus. It was a species of dictation that was sure to become unpopular with the I0 6 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. people and be resented by them. As long as the caucuses merely gave formal expression to the popular sentiment, no outcry was made against them; but now there was no decided popular current toward any one of the prominent candidates. Early in 1824 an effort was made, chiefly in the interest of William H. Crawford, of Georgia, the Secre- tary of the Treasury, to have a formal Congressional cau- cus. But of the 261 Senators and Representatives only 66 met, and it was asserted that 181 were opposed to a caucus. This minority caucus nominated Crawford for President and Albert Gallatin, of Pennsylvania, for Vice- President, adopting the usual resolution that they had acted in their individual characters as citizens, and from a deep conviction of the importance of union among the Republi- cans throughout the United States. Gallatin subsequently withdrew from the ticket. The caucus nomination was not an element of strength but of weakness to Mr. Crawford. More than a year before this, in November, 1822, the Leg- islature of Kentucky had formally recommended Mr. Clay as a suitable person to succeed Mr. Monroe. The Legis- latures of Illinois, Ohio and Louisiana joined in this recom- mendation. General Jackson was nominated or recom- mended by mass-conventions, first in Tennessee, and then in other parts of the country. John Quincy Adams, the Secretary of State, received the recommendations generally of the New England Legislatures. De Witt Clinton was put forward by several local conventions. Calhoun by the Legislature of South Carolina. Crawford by the Legisla- ture of Virginia. As it became evident that no one of these candidates would receive a majority of the electoral MONROE'S ADMINISTRATION. 107 votes, the contest was to put each one among the three highest, so that his name might go before the House of Representatives. In this election twenty-four States took part. In Vermont, New York, Delaware, South Carolina, Georgia and Louisiana the Legislatures chose the electors; in the other States there were popular elections. In Maine, Massachusetts, Maryland, Illinois and Kentucky by elec- toral districts ; in the rest by a general ticket. For Vice- President, ' after the withdrawal of Gallatin, there was a general concurrence of opinion toward Calhoun. When the electoral votes were counted, it was found that Andrew Jackson had received 99 votes, carrying all the Southern States, except Georgia and Virginia, which voted for Craw- ford, and, in addition thereto, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Indiana and Illinois. Adams received the votes of all the New England States, and nearly all the vote of New York, and had 84 votes. Crawford had 41 votes. Clay carried Ohio, Missouri, Kentucky and four of New York's votes, and had 37 votes. For Vice-President, Calhoun received 182 votes, and was declared elected. The names of Jackson, Adams and Crawford were, therefore, referred to the House, where the vote on the first ballot stood, Adams, 8/; Jackson, 71, and Crawford 54. Adams having received the votes of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Con- necticut, New York, Maryland, Louisiana, Kentucky, Mis- souri, Ohio and Illinois — thirteen States in all — was declared elected. Jackson received the votes of New Jersey, Penn- sylvania, South Carolina, Alabama, Mississippi, Tennessee and Indiana — seven States in all. Crawford received the I0 g THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. votes of Delaware, Virginia, North Carolina and Georgia — four States. Out of the bitterness of this struggle came the division of the Republican party into two branches, or two political parties, which for several succeeding Presi- dential contests opposed each other in this country. As Mr. Clay's friends had largely gone to Adams in accord- ance with Mr. Clay's expressed preference, and as Mr. Clay himself became the Secretary of State of the new administration, a cry of bargain and corruption was raised, which followed Mr. Clay to the close of his public life, and undoubtedly affected his political fortunes. The be- lief that there had been a corrupt intrigue between Clay and Adams fastened itself on the minds of a large number of people in the country, and took full possession of An- drew Jackson, who felt that he had been, in some way, de- frauded out of the Presidency, an idea which his friends took care should not die out. So the battle for the suc- cession began almost immediately. History has long since acquitted Mr. Clay of any corrupt combination in this matter, and only declares that he made a mistake, in the temper of parties of that time, in becoming a member of Adams' administration. CHAPTER VII. HISTORY UNDER PRESIDENT JOHN QUINCY ADAMS, 1825-1829. WITH the inauguration of Mr. Adams "the era of good feeling" and the apparent unification of par- ties rapidly disappeared, and almost from the beginning the struggle for the succession began. Andrew Jackson was formally nominated by the Legislature of Tennessee as early as October, 1825, and promptly accepted the nomina- tion. The Republican camp thus became divided into two opposing armies, called at first " the Adams men " and " the Jackson men." With the former were now included the followers of Clay, with the latter were consolidated the recent supporters of Crawford. Adams, both in his inaugural address and in his first message to Congress, took strong grounds in favor of a system of national in- ternal improvements, arguing in opposition to the position of Mr. Monroe, in his veto of the Cumberland Road Bill, in favor of the constitutional right of Congress to undertake such a system. This, together with other broad views avowed by the President or implied in his recom- mendations, soon developed the old line of division be- tween the followers of Jefferson and those of Hamilton, the latter going to the support of the administration, the (109) no THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. former rallying against it. Both still called themselves Republicans, but the loose constructionists gradually as- sumed the name of National Republicans, and the fol- lowers of Jefferson from Democratic Republicans were in time known as the Democratic party. The first Congres- sional election returned an anti-administration majority, and from that time to the end of his term Adams was confronted by a Congress unfriendly in both branches. This put an end to the general scheme for national in- ternal improvements. Much debate was had on a proposition suggested by the late election to change the manner of choosing the President, and, as in nearly all the other discussions of the administration, it partook of a strongly political character. The administration of Mr. Adams became more unpopular as time went on. Many charges were brought against it, which were fully believed at the time, as to its aristocratic or anti-popular tendency, and the President was not a man to build up a strong personal following or even a great political party. The tariff of 1828 was the chief event of ^Adams' ad- ministration and as the beginning and cause of great sec- tional troubles in the country deserves especial mention. It seems to have been a part of the political campaigning of the times to preface a Presidential election with a new tariff law. We have already referred to the tariff bill of 1 8 16. A general tariff bill failed in 1820 by the casting vote of the President of the Senate. In 1824 a bill was passed by narrow majorities, after a long struggle, and now, in 1828, new legislation was demanded in the direc- JOHN QUINCY ADAMS' ADMINISTRATION. Tll tion of higher rates. In the period between the first tariff and that of 1816 no less than seventeen acts had passed, generally in the same direction. By that time the rate of duty had gone up from 8*4 to about 30 per cent, on dutiable goods. In 1824 the increase had reached 37 per cent., and in that tariff a duty was, for the first time, placed on wool. As England soon after reduced her duties on wool, giving to her manufacturers cheaper raw material, our woollen manufacturers raised the first cry of distress against her competition, and those of Boston sent a petition to Congress, in 1826, asking more protection. A bill introduced in accordance with their wishes was tabled in the Senate by the casting vote of the .Vice- President. The following year a convention met at Harrisburg which widened the combination so as to include iron, steel, hemp, glass, wool and woollens, for all of which it de- manded more protection. The new tariff bill introduced in 1828 was based on the recommendations of this con- vention. It was built up around wool and woollens and it was constructed, as had been its immediate forerun- ners, on the principle of conceding protection to a suffi- cient number of local interests to secure the votes neces- sary to its passage. Many members avowed their support to rest upon this ground. It thus became not only an incongruous, but a sectional bill, and called forth the bitter opposition of the Southern members, who regarded it as outrageously op- pressive upon their constituents. Calhoun had strongly ad-, vocated the protective tariff of 18 16. He began now to 112 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. look to the Kentucky and Virginia resolution of 1798 for a defence for his State and section against the tariff of 1828. Mr. Webster, whose speech against the protective policy in 1824 undoubtedly expressed the permanent con- victions of his mind as to that system, now changed his attitude with the supposed change in the interests of his constituents under the tariff. The tariff of 1828 cannot be called a party measure, as many Jackson men voted for it, but it was, after all, a bid of the Adams administration for a re-election, although it became, in passing through Congress, a very different measure from what they intended it to be as first pre- sented. The average rate of dutiable goods was now 41 per cent., and the tariff by which this result was reached was, in its details, so clearly the work of intrigue and sel- fish scrambles that it has passed into history as the Tariff of Abominations. The progress of Democratic ideas had been marked in recent years by the abolition of restrictions and qualifica- tions of the right of suffrage and by a transfer, in nearly all of the States, of the right of choosing electors for President from the Legislatures to the people. Of the twenty- four States participating in the election of 1828 only South Carolina and Delaware chose electors by their Legislatures. In New York, Maine, Maryland and Ten- nessee the choice was by districts; in the other States — eighteen in number — by general ticket. On the popular vote Jackson received 647,276 votes, Adams 508,064 votes. In the electoral college Jackson had 118, Adams 83. For JOHN QUINCY ADAMS' ADMINISTRATION. jj-, Vice-President Calhoun received 171, Richard Rush 83, Smith, of South Carolina, 7. " The election of General Jackson," says Mr. Benton, " was a triumph of Democratic principle and an assertion of the people's right to govern themselves. That principle had been violated in the Presidential election in the House of Representatives in the session of 1824 and 1825, and the sanction or rebuke of that violation was a leading question in the whole canvass. It was also a triumph over the protective policy, the federal internal improvement policy, the latitudinous construction of the Constitution, and of the Democracy over the Federalists, then called Na- tional Republicans, and was the re- establishment of parties on principle, according to the landmarks of the early ages of the government." CHAPTER VIII. HISTORY UNDER PRESIDENT JACKSON, 1829-1837. THE administration of Andrew Jackson deserves a fuller treatment in any history of the Democratic party than comes within the scope of this rapid sketch. It was full of movement; of exciting contests, political and per- sonal; a time of collision between great parties, under the leadership of the most imperious party leaders that have ever appeared in American politics. From the great strug- gle between the administration and the bank to the Cabi- net troubles over the social position , of Peggy Eaton, it never lacks interest or lapses into dullness. Indeed, a man of such strong personality as Jackson never appears in the public arena without fastening the eyes of the people upon him. He came to the Presidency at the advanced age of sixty-two years, having previously held many offices, civil and military. He was the first Repre- sentative in Congress from the new State of Tennessee, and was one of the twelve members of the House who voted against the address to Washington at the close of his administration. After a year's service in the House he was appointed to a vacancy in the Senate, which, however, he resigned (114) ANDREW JACKSON. JACKSON'S ADMINISTRATION. ntj in a few months. Two years later he was made a Judge of the Supreme Court of Tennessee, which position he held for six years — from 1798 to 1804 — having meantime been elected a major-general of militia. After several years' quiet life as a planter, he gained such distinction as an officer in the Creek war that he was made a major- general in the United States army, and put in command of the Department of the South. The brilliant victory at New Orleans, coming at the close of a war in which there had been an almost uniform series of disasters to our land forces, at once gave him a position in the eyes and in the admiration of the people that promised political honor and influence, and some of his personal adherents seem very early to have taken upon themselves to prepare the way for his Presidential candidacy. If he had any ambition it was entirely a military am- bition, and he did not take kindly to the project, declaring that he did not consider himself the right sort of a man and that he felt old and ill. We have already referred to the election of 1824, and how gradually the idea seemed to gain possession of Jackson that in some way the peo- ple had been defrauded in his defeat, and that Adams had been elected by a corrupt intrigue with Clay. From that time forward he became the bitter enemy of Clay, and to that enmity alone we must ascribe the failure of this mag- nificent party leader to reach the goal of his ambition — the Presidency of the United States. Passing over the spirited and successful diplomacy of his early administration, by which he secured payment from France and other European nations of long-standing H6 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. claims for spoliations and recovered our. trade with the British West Indies, we will glance at the most important questions of internal policy that clearly touch the history and fortunes of the Democratic party during his admin- istrations. First, as to the question of internal improveme*- s : Jackson took the position laid down by Mr. Monroe in his Cumberland Road veto. In his first message he ex- pressed his hostility to the general policy of internal im- provements; in 1830 he vetoed the bill authorizing sub- scription by the United States to the stock of the Mays- ville and Lexington Road, in Kentucky; and in 1832 he recommended the sale of all the stocks held by the United States in canals, turnpikes, etc. While not able at once to put an end to the abuse he curtailed it, and •" used the exceptional strength of his political influence to do what no one else would have dared to do in meeting a strong and growing cause of corruption." * The sense of injustice and injury which was fast taking possession of the South because of the sectional character of the tariff legislation, was brought to a head by the "tariff of abom- inations" passed in 1828, and Southern statesmen began to look around for some defence against the further and con- tinued spoliation of their section under the pretext of protection to American industry. They had purposely, when they found they could not defeat that tariff, made it as bad as they could, and driven from its support some who were its original promoters by the vicious amend- * Sumner's " Jackson," 194. JACKSON'S ADMINISTRATION. ny ments voted on the bill as it passed through Congress. It cannot be denied that the complaints of the Southern producers of cotton, and of other agricultural products that formed the bulk of our exports, were fully justified. The burdens of government were cast upon them with undue weight; the burden of supporting the industries of other sections of the Union were, by law, placed upon them with unfair discrimination. Their statesmen, however, sought a remedy that unfortunately turned attention away from their wrongs to the danger and inherent viciousness of the remedy. Turning to the Kentucky and Virginia resolutions, they evolved from them the doctrine of Nul- lification ; or the doctrine that each State has the right to veto a federal law which it deems unconstitutional. Sev- eral of the States adopted, or endorsed, this principle, and the utterances of their public men generated the idea that a dissolution of the Union was contemplated in the event that no relief could be secured. On April r3, 1830, a banquet was given in Washington to celebrate Jefferson's birthday, at which Jackson gave as his toast: "Our Fed- eral Union ; it Must be Preserved ! " The Vice-President, Calhoun, responded with one extolling liberty as worth more than union. This incident showed Jackson's attitude toward nullifi- cation, although it was equally well known that he was a strong States' rights man. Meantime, through the per- sonal enmity of Crawford to Calhoun, and doubtless also with some help from Van Buren, a breach had been made between Jackson and Calhoun, who had confidently ex- pected to succeed Jackson at the end of his first term, n 8 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. when it was supposed he would voluntarily retire. Be- sides the personal hatred of Crawford, the personal ambi- tion of Van Buren, who was paving the way to the succession for himself, the refusal of the Vice-President's wife to extend social courtesies to Mrs. Eaton was also a factor in this estrangement The nullification movement gradually become confined to a single State, and must be treated in connection with the tariff legislation proposed or enacted in the years im- mediately following. We have already stated that the Bank of the United States had been chartered in 1816 to run for twenty years. Its charter therefore would expire in 1836 — three years after the close of Jackson's first term. In his first message he called attention to the bank and expressed himself hostile to a renewal of its charter. The grounds of his op- position did not appear very clearly but they were doubt- less an inheritance of the old Jefifersonian hostility to a National Bank, a conviction that the existing bank was mismanaged, and a belief that it was becoming a factor in politics, which by reason of its power and its numerous branches would be dangerous to the rights of the people and to Democratic government. Again in 1830, and in 1 83 1, in his annual messages, he reiterated his hostility to the chartering of this bank. In 1832 the Presidential elec- tion was to take place. Jackson had already been put in nomination by the Legislature of Pennsylvania and of some of the other States. The Anti-Masons — a party that sprang up on the alleged abduction of William Morgan, in New York, in 1826, for JACKSON'S ADMINISTRATION. , ng having written a book professing to reveal the secrets of free-masonry, and which had rapidly spread in the North — held a National Convention in Baltimore in September, 1 83 1, and nominated William Wirt, of Maryland, for Presi- dent, and Amos Ellmaker, of Pennsylvania, for Vice-Presi- dent. Wirt was a Clay man but accepted the nomination, hoping that all the anti-Jackson men would unite on him. The National Republicans also met in Baltimore in December, 1 831, and nominated Henry Clay for President and John Sergeant of Pennsylvania for Vice-President. They issued an address criticising the administration for corruption, partisanship, hostility to internal improvements, double-dealing with the tariff, and war on the bank. The Democratic party also held a Convention in Balti- more, May 21, 1832, and nominated Van Buren for Vice- President under the two-thirds vote. Clay boldly an- nounced his purpose to force the fighting on the tariff, and particularly on the bank. The bank thus became, whether willingly or not, involved in the Presidential cam- paign and allied to one political party. Despite the Presi- dent's opposition, its application for a re-charter passed the Senate June 1 1, 1832, by 28 to 20, and the House July 3, by 107 to 85. Jackson promptly vetoed the bill, and the effort to override his veto failed in the Senate by a vote of 22 to 19. Thus the question was precipitated into the Presidential election and as usual the money power was fighting against the Democratic party. The bank sub- sidized newspapers, scattered documents, and used its power and influence wherever possible, but nothing could 120 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. withstand the popularity of Jackson. On the popular vote he received 687,502 votes, Clay 530,189, Wirt 33,108.* In the electoral vote Jackson had 219, Clay 49, Wirt 7 (Vermont). For Vice-President Van Buren had 189, Sergeant 49, Wm. Wilkins of Pennsylvania 30. South Carolina refused to give her vote for any of the party candidates, and voted for John Floyd of Virginia for President, Henry Lee of Massachusetts for Vice-President, each 11 votes. When the tariff of July 14, 1832, was found to diminish the revenue taxes, but to leave the protective taxes, which bore most unjustly and grievously upon the South, practi- cally undiminished, the Nullification sentiment in South Carolina became dominant, and the Legislature of that State was convened in October, 1832, in special session. Without acting upon the question itself, it ordered a con- vention to be held on the 19th of November. That con- vention passed an ordinance declaring the Acts of 1828 and 1832 as null and void, and not binding upon South Caro- lina, her officers or citizens ; forbade any appeal to the Federal Courts from the courts of the State in any case, arising under any law passed in pursuance of this ordinance, and prescribed an oath of obedience to the ordinance for officers and jurors. Any attempt at force, it was declared, *" Stanwood's History of Presidential Elections" gives Jackson 687,502 votes, Clay, including Wirt, 530,189. The figures in Sumner's "Jackson" are, Jackson, 707,217; Clay, 328,561; Wirt, 254,720. The vote of Alabama is not included in the Jackson column by Stanwood, and possibly increases the amount as stated by Prof. Sumner. The latter's Clay and Wirt votes are clearly wrong. JACKSON'S ADMINISTRATION. / I2 l would result in the secession of South Carolina from the Union. The Ordinance of Nullification was to take effect on the 1st of February, 1833. The State Legislature at its regular session in November, 1832, passed laws requi- site to carry out the ordinance, and if necessary to re- assume the separate powers of the State and to prepare it for war. This called forth on the 10th of December, 1832, a proclamation from Jackson. This proclamation, written by Livingston, of Louisiana, recited the ordinance, the laws passed in pursuance thereof, and the steps taken by the State to resist the collection of federal revenue, de- clared after arguing the question temperately and fully that "the alternatives presented are the repeal of all the acts for raising revenue, leaving the government without the means of support, or an acquiescence in the dissolution of our Union by the secession of one of its parts." He ad- dresses the people of South Carolina as fellow-citizens of his native State; implores them to halt upon the brink of insurrection and treason on which they stand, and after reciting the blessings of union, calls for their undivided support in his determination to execute the laws, to pre- serve the Union by constitutional means, and to arrest, if possible, by moderate and firm measures, a necessity of recourse to force. There is no doubt that the moderate and dignified language, the almost pathetic appeal with which he announced his unmistakable purpose to employ the whole force of the Union to put down Nullification, greatly added to Jackson's popularity at the time, and to the honor of his memory in later generations. This proclamation of the President was met by a coun-' 122 THE. NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. ter proclamation of the Governor of South Carolina, and Mr. Calhoun resigned the Vice-Presidency and entered the Senate from that State. Congress, happily, effected a satisfactory settlement of this threatened trouble: first, by passing the enforcement act, conferring upon the President power to enforce the tariff; secondly, by adopting the compromise tariff of 1833, called Mr. Clay's compromise tariff, because introduced by him, but generally supposed to be the result of an agree- ment between Clay and Calhoun, both strong anti-Jackson men. This compromise provided that the duties in the tariff of 1832 in excess of 20 per cent, were to be de- creased by one-tenth of that excess on January I of every alternate year until January 1, 1842, when one-half of the remaining excess was to be taken off and the other half on July 1, 1842. After July 1, 1842, there was to be an uniform rate of 20 per cent. The preamble to this tariff, as first drawn by Mr. Clay, had stated that " after March 3, 1840, all duties should be equal, and solely for the purpose and with the intent of providing such revenue as may be necessary to an economical expenditure by the government, without regard to the protection or encourage- ment of any bounty of domestic industry whatever." Jackson, in his message of 1832, just after his re-elec- tion, returned to his fight against the bank. He expressed some doubt as to its solvency, recommended that the gov- ernment should sell its stock and cease to deposit in the bank. On January 1, 1833, the bank reported its assets at $80,800,000; liabilities, $37,800,000. The circulation was $17,500,000; specie, $9,000,000. Jackson . was convinced JACKSON'S ADMINISTRATION. , l2 $ that the bank would use corrupt means to secure a re- newal of its charter, and soon made up his mind to re- move the government deposits which might greatly aid in this effort. McLane, who was Secretary of the Treasury and known to be a bank man, was transferred to the State Department, and William J. Duane, of Pennsylvania, ap- pointed in his place. On September 18, 1833, Jackson read a paper in Cabinet in favor of the removal of the de- posits, and declared that he took the responsibility of de- ciding that after October I no more public money should be deposited in the bank. Duane refused to give this order, and was dismissed from the Cabinet. Roger B. Taney, subsequently the great Chief-Justice, who was then Attorney-General and fully agreed with the President, was transferred at once to the Treasury Department and issued the /lecessary orders. Public moneys were thereafter de- posited in State banks, and the amount on deposit in the Bank of the United States was drawn on by current drafts until exhausted. When the Thirty-third Congress met Mr. Clay at once introduced a resolution of censure on the President for the removal of deposits, which was passed, and the Senate de- clined to receive a protest from the President or to put it upon record. In this protest he declared that his ambition was tc ''persuade my countrymen, so far as I may, that it is not in a splendid government, supported by power- ful monopolies and aristocratical establishments, that they will find happiness or their liberties protection, but in a plain system, void of pomp, protecting all and granting favors to none, dispensing its blessings like the dews of 124 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. heaven, unseen and unfelt, save in the freshness and beauty they contribute to produce." The President's friends in the House were in the majority and passed resolutions that the bank ought not to be rechartered and the deposits ought not to be restored. Thus ended, in the complete success of the President, his memorable struggle with the bank. The power which it displayed in this contest must always be the justification for its overthrow. It had be- come a danger to Democratic institutions and a possible source of political corruption. Its continued existence and indefinite expansion would be at the expense of the peo- ple and in diminution of their political and pecuniary rights. Before it grew too great Jackson throttled it. For a time public funds were deposited in the State banks, but finally, in the next administration, the sub- treasury system was adopted, which, with a brief interval, has been continued to this time. Many other questions arose in Jackson's administration which are worthy the careful investigation of the political student. The proper method of dealing with the public lands, the distribution of surplus revenues, the Indian question, that of removal and appointment to office and othe»s. Judge Holman's article in this volume renders unnecessary an examination of the land system. The act passed June, 1836, provided that after the 1st of January, 1837, all surplus revenue exceeding $5,000,000 should be divided among the States as a loan, to be re- called only by direction of Congress. Under this law some $28,000,000 were actually distributed, when the JACKSON'S ADMINISTRATION. I2 q financial distresses of the Treasury caused the suspension of the law. It cannot be denied that Jackson's accession to the Presidency marked a change in the Civil Service, as to removals and appointments. We have already shown what Jefferson did and said under similar circumstances. There had been no temptation for intermediate Presidents, who had all been of the same party, to make removals for partisan reasons. The practice introduced by Jackson of replacing political enemies by political friends was adopted and advanced by his successors, and finally grew into the abuses which led to the Civil Service law. As to Jackson himself, it may be said that his sweep of the Adams men from office was not nearly so clean a sweep as is popularly supposed. Mr. Benton gives the fiftieth chapter of his " Thirty Years' View " to an examination of this charge, and de- clares that in the departments at Washington a majority of the incumbents remained opposed to Jackson during his administration; of the 8,000 postmasters 491 only were removed in the first year of Jackson's administra- tion, and of the many thousands of officials subject to removal the " totality of removals " in that time were 690. Professor Sumner in his " Life of Jackson " places the number still higher. Be this as it may, it was part of the plan by which Jackson organized the great party which carried him in triumph through all the fierce battles of his turbu- lent administration, and which enabled him in retiring to private life to become, like Jefferson, the acknowl- 126 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. edged head of his party for the remainder of his life, and one of its great and kindling names for all time. Before his term ended he had the happiness of seeing the black lines drawn around Mr. Clay's Resolution of Censure, by which it was . expunged from the journals of the Senate. As early as May 20, 1835, eighteen months before the election was to occur, the Democratic Convention met in Baltimore, and by a unanimous vote nominated Martin Van Buren, of New York, for President. Richard M. Johnson, of Kentucky, was nominated for Vice-President by a vote of 178 to 87 for William C. Rives, of Vir- ginia. The chief opposition to Jackson's party now began to take the name of Whig, at first, says Niles, in Con- necticut, and New York. It was meant as a charge of Toryism against the alleged personal government of Jackson. According to the "Whig Almanac" for 1838, as quoted in " Stanwood's Presidential Elections," the new party was composed : (1) " Most of those, who under the name of National Republicans had previously been known as supporters of Adams and Clay, and advocates of the American system : " (2) " Most of those, who acting in the defence of what they deemed or assumed the threatened rights of the States had been stigmatized as nullifiers, or the less virulent States' rights men, who were thrown into a position of armed neutrality towards the adminis- tration by the doctrines of the proclamation of 1832 against South Carolina : " (3) " A majority of those before JACKSON'S ADMINISTRATION. Y2 j known as Anti-Masons:" (4) "Many, who up to that time had been known as Jackson men, but who united in condemning the high-handed conduct of the executive, the immolation of Duane and the subserviency of Taney:" (5) " Numbers who had not before taken any part in politics, but who were now awakened from their apathy by the palpable usurpations of the executive and the im- minent peril of our whole fabric of constitutional liberty and national prosperity." Mr. Clay refused to become a candidate in 1836, and the opposition to the Democratic party, instead of com- bining their strength, undertook to scatter so as to throw the election into the House of Representatives. Of the twenty-six States that took part in the election — Arkansas and Michigan having been added to the Union — Van Buren carried Maine, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia, North Carolina, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Arkansas, Missouri, Illinois, and Michigan, receiving in all 762,679 votes at the polls, and 170 in the electoral college. Massachusetts cast her 14 votes for Daniel Webster. William Henry Harrison, of Ohio, also a Whig candidate, received the votes of Vermont, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, Kentucky, Ohio, and Indiana, making in all 73 votes in the electoral college. Hugh L. White, of Ten- nessee, received the votes of Georgia and Tennessee, 26 in all. South Carolina voted for Willie P. Mangum, of North Carolina, 11 votes. The combined popular vote for the Whig candidates, Harrison, Webster, and White, amounted to 735,651. I2 8 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. Richard M. Johnson received 147 of the electoral votes for Vice-President, Francis Granger, of New York, jj, John Tyler, of Virginia, 47, and William Smith, of Ala- bama, 23. As Johnson thus received one-half, and not a majority of the electoral votes, the Senate chose between him and Francis Granger, the two highest candidates. He re- ceived 33 votes to 16 for Granger. On retiring from office, Jackson followed the example of Washington, and issued a farewell address to the American people, and withdrew to his home in Tennessee — The Hermitage — where he died on June 8, 1845. It will be a fitting close of this rapid outline of his ad- ministration to quote from Benton's description of -the in- auguration of Van Buren on the 4th of March, 1837, as it referred to Jackson. "At twelve he appeared with his successor, Mr. Van Buren, on the elevated and spacious eastern portico of the capitol, as one of the citizens who came to witness the inauguration of the new President, and in no way distin- guished from them except by his place on the left hand of the President-elect. The day was beautiful — clear sky, balmy, vernal sun, tranquil atmosphere, and the assem- blage immense. On foot, in the large area in front of the steps, orderly without troops, and closely wedged together, their faces turned to the portico, presenting to the be- holders from all the eastern windows the appearance of a field paved with human faces. This vast crowd remained, riveted to their places, and profoundly silent, until the ceremony of inauguration was over. It was the stillness and silence of reverence and affection ; and there was no room for mistake as to whom this mute and impressive homage was rendered. For once the rising was eclipsed by the setting sun. Though disrobed of power and re- tiring to the shades of private life, it was evident that the great ex-President was the absorbing object of this intense JACKSON'S ADMINISTRATION. I20y regard. At the moment he began to descend the broad steps of the portico to take his seat in the open carriage which was to bear him away, the deep, repressed feeling of the dense mass broke forth, acclamations and cheers bursting from the heart and filling the air, such as power never commanded nor man in power received. It was the affection, gratitude, and admiration of the living age, salut- ing for the last time a great man. It was the acclaim of posterity breaking from the bosoms of contemporaries. It was the anticipation of futurity — unpurchasable homage to the hero-patriot, who, all his life, and in all the circum- stances of his life, in peace and in war, and glorious in each, had been the friend of his country, devoted to her, regardless of self. Uncovered, and bowing, with a look of unaffected humility and thankfulness, he acknowledged in mute signs his sensibility to this affecting overflow of popular feeling. I was looking down from a side window and felt an emotion which had never passed through me before. I had seen the inauguration of many Presidents and their going away, and their days of state, vested with power, and surrounded by the splendor of the first magis- tracy of a great republic. But they all appeared to be as pageants, empty and soulless, brief to view, unreal to the touch, and soon to vanish. But here there seemed to be a reality — a real scene — a man and the people, he laying down power, and withdrawing through the everlasting por- tals of fame; they sounding in his ears the everlasting plaudits of unborn generations. Two days after, I saw the patriot ex-President in a car which bore him off to his desired seclusion. I saw him depart with that look of quiet enjoyment which bespoke the inward satisfaction of the soul at exchanging the cares of office for the repose of home. History, poetry, oratory, marble and brass, will hand down the military exploits of Jackson : this work will com- memorate the events of his civil administration, not less glorious than his military achievements, great as they were; and Jthis brief notice of his last appearance at the Ameri- can capitol is intended to preserve some faint memory of a scene the grandeur of which was so impressive to the be- holder, and the solace of which must have been so great to the heart of the departing patriot." CHAPTER IX. HISTORY UNDER PRESIDENT VAN BUREN, 1837-1841. IN his inaugural address the new President declared his intention to " follow in the footsteps of his illustrious predecessor," and according to the doctrines of the demo- cratic school as existing in the original formation of par- ties ; close observance to the Federal Constitution as writ- ten ; no latitudinarian construction permitted ; or doubtful powers assumed; faithful adherence to all its compromises, economy in the administration of the government, peace, friendship and fair dealing with all foreign nations, en- tangling- alliances with none. The rise of an abolition party during the last years of Jackson's administration called from the President a pledge, not to permit interference with slavery in the States where it existed, or in the District of Columbia, without the con- sent of those States. The great financial panic followed soon after the incom- ing of the new administration. A general suspension of banks, depreciation of currency, and insolvency of the. Fed- eral treasury followed a period of surplus revenue. As early as the 10th of May, 1837, the New York State banks refused to pay gold and silver for their notes, and the Leg- (130) MARTIN VAN BUREN. VAN BUREN'S ADMINISTRATION. 131 islature of the State authorized suspension of specie pay- ments for one year. This being followed throughout the country, the President called a special session of Congress to meet on the 4th of September to consider the financial distresses of the country and the interests of the govern- ment. To this Congress he recommended the adoption of the Independent Treasury Plan. The financial distresses of the country were quickly pointed out by the Bank of the United States, now act- ing under a Pennsylvania charter, as resulting from its failure to receive a recharter and retain the public de- posits; but although Mr. Webster and other friends of the bank were its champions no effort to re-establish its relations with the United States promised success, and it will remain forever to the credit of Van Buren's administra- tion that it brought about the final divorce of bank and State, by the establishment of the Independent Treasury system, whereby the government became the custodian of its own money. The " hard times " through which the country was passing encouraged the Whigs to believe that they could succeed in the campaign of 1840. They met in National Convention in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, Decem- ber 4, 1839, and adopted a clumsy system of balloting through committees, from each State delegation, designed, as it was claimed, to head off Mr. Clay's nomination as an inexpedient one. General William Henry Harrison, of Ohio, was chosen as their candidate for President and John Tyler, of Virginia, an ultra States' rights man and strict constructionist, who had been acting of late years in oppo- sition to the Democratic party. The Democratic Conven- !32 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. tion met in Baltimore May 5, 1840, and renominated Van Buren unanimously ; adopted resolutions declaring it inex- pedient to nominate a candidate for Vice-President, inas- much as some of the States which had nominated Van Buren had put in nomination different persons for Vice- President, and some of said States were not represented in the Convention. The platform adopted by the Convention deserves to be reproduced in full, as.it contains a clear and definite state- ment of the position of the Democratic party on the great questions of the day, and shows how faithfully Jackson and Van Buren had led it along the lines of Jefferson's teachings, and had finally freed it from its careless ideas on the question of internal improvements by the general government. The resolution as to the assumption of State debts con- tracted for internal improvements or other purposes refers to a scheme then on foot, and largely stimulated by Eng- lish holders of the discredited bonds of the States, to secure their assumption by the federal government. The nine resolutions which make up the platform of 1 840 are as follows : 1. That the federal government is one of limited powers, derived solely from the Constitution, and the grants of power shown therein ought to be strictly construed by all the departments and agents of the government, and that it is inexpedient and dangerous to exercise doubtful con- stitutional powers. 2. That the Constitution does not confer upon the gen- eral government the power to commence or carry on a general system of internal improvement. VAN BIJREN'S ADMINISTRATION. j^ 3. That the Constitution does not confer authority upon the federal government, directly or indirectly, to a assume the debts of the several States, contracted for local internal improvements or other State purposes; nor would such assumption be just or expedient. 4. That justice and sound policy forbid the federal gov- ernment to foster one branch of industry to the detriment of another, or to cherish the interest of one portion to the injury of another portion of our common country — that every citizen and every section of the country has a right to demand and insist upon an equality of rights and privileges, and to complete and ample protection of per- sons and property from domestic violence or foreign ag^ gression. 5. That it is the duty of every branch of the govern- ment to enforce and practice the most rigid economy in conducting our public affairs, and that no more revenue ought to be raised than is required to defray the neces- sary expenses of the government. 6. That Congress has no power to charter a United States Bank ; that we believe such an institution one of deadly hostility to the best interests of the country, dan-* gerous to our republican institutions and the liberties of the people, and calculated to place the business of the country within the control of a concentrated money power, and above the laws and the will of the people. 7. That Congress has no power, under the Constitution, to interfere with or control the domestic institutions of the several States ; and that such States are the sole and proper judges of everything pertaining to their own affairs, not prohibited by the Constitution ; that all efforts, by abolitionists or others, made to induce Congress to inter- fere with questions of slavery, or take incipient steps in relation thereto, are calculated to lead to the most alarm- ing and dangerous consequences, and that all such efforts have an inevitable tendency to diminish the happiness of the people and endanger the stability and permanency of the Union, and ought not to be countenanced by any friend to our political institutions. 8. That the separation of the moneys of the govern- ment from banking institutions is indispensable for the !34 THE^ NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. safety of the funds of the government and the rights of the people. 9. That the liberal principles embodied by Jefferson in the Declaration of Independence, and sanctioned • in the Constitution, which makes ours the land of liberty and the asylum of the oppressed of every nation, have ever been cardinal principles in the Democratic faith ; and every attempt to abridge the present privilege of becoming citi- zens, and the owners of soil among us, ought to be re- sisted with the same spirit which swept the Alien and Sedition Laws from our statute-book. The campaign of 1840 is a most remarkable one; a contest between a party with definite and well-understood policies and principles, under the lead of a candidate who was a thorough representative of these policies and prin- ciples on the one side, and a party unable to formulate any platform of policies, led by a candidate whose popu- larity rested not on statesmanship but largely on his suc- cess as an Indian fighter, associated with whom was a Southern politician, whose extreme States' right views had carried him out of the party of Jackson to the party of Calhoun. But while the argument was all on one side, the noise and enthusiasm were all on the other. The " Log-Cabin " and " Hard Cider " and " Coon-Skins " were taken as symbols of the Harrison party, which represented the identification of the candidate with the plain and poor people. Yet the Bank of the United States and the State banks plunged into the campaign with all their influence, the former to secure its recharter, the latter to secure a repeal of the Independent Treasury Act. The distresses of the earlier years of the administration were used to VAN BUREN'S ADMINISTRATION. 135 frighten the people from re-electing Van Buren. The papers were filled with advertisements declaring that the subscriber would pay a certain sum for pork or flour or other products if Harrison were elected, and one-half only of that sum if Van Buren were elected. The working man was to have good wages and high living in the former event, and low wages and starva- tion in the latter. Doggerel songs, constant public pro- cessions, monster gatherings, excursions, frequent speak- ing, every means that could be devised to work the whole country into a delirium of excitement were used. The election in the States preceding the general election fore- shadowed the result, but not such a tidal wave as over- whelmed the administration and bore the Whig candidates into power. On the popular vote Harrison had 1,275,016, Van Buren 1,129,102; but Harrison had carried 19 out of 27 States, and received 234 out of 294 electoral votes. Tyler had the same. It was apparently a complete over- throw of the Democratic party. But it did not dampen its courage or lessen its faith. It felt that its principles could not be overthrown, and the tide of popular excite- ment would soon ebb away and leave its opponents, united on no common principles, again in the minority. A significant fact in the election was the appearance of an Abolition party, which cast 7,000 votes for James G. Birney, of New York, for President. It will be observed that while Van Buren increased his vote 364,000 on his previous election he was still beaten, a fact which led the Democrats to charge that frauds had been committed; but of this no proof has been given. The administration of 1^6 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. Van Buren had been a successful one. He had met and ridden safely through a fearful financial storm, but he left the country prosperous, and his administration had gen- erally been statesmanlike £nd true to Democratic prin- ciples. JOHN TYLER. CHAPTER X. HISTORY UNDER PRESIDENTS HARRISON AND TYLER, 1841-1845. HARRISON was inaugurated March 4, 1841. He died April 4, 1 841, having done little more than appoint his Cabinet, with Daniel Webster as Secretary of State, and a very able set of associates, and issued a call for a special session of Congress for May 31. The call merely said " that sundry and weighty matters, principally grow- ing out of the condition of the revenue and finances of the country, appear to call for the convocation of Con- gress." John Tyler was the first Vice-President who succeeded to the office of President by the death of the Chief Magis- trate. When the Twenty-seventh Congress met as convened in special session by President Harrison, the Whigs had a majority in both Houses, and immediately set to work to accomplish the financial legislation for which they had been fighting so long. Mr. Clay, in the Senate, assumed the leadership, and in the first week of its session offered a resolution setting forth six subjects, which should first, if not exclusively, engage the deliberations of Congress at that session. (i37) I38 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. These were: 1st. The repeal of the Sub-Treasury Act. 2d. The incorporation, of a bank adapted to the wants of the people and of the government. 3d. The provision of an adequate revenue for the government by the imposition of duties, and including authority to contract a temporary loan to cover the public debt created by the last admin- istration. 4th. The prospective distribution of the proceeds of the sale of the public lands. 5th. The passage of ap- propriation bills. 6th. Some modification of the banks of the District of Columbia for the benefit of the people of the District. The first of these measures — the repeal of the Inde- pendent Treasury Act — was carried through rapidly and by a strictly party vote and was promptly approved by Presi- dent Tyler. Next in order, they framed and carried through a bill to incorporate the Fiscal Bank of the United States. Although framed at the Treasury Department and sup- posed to be approved by the President, it was, greatly to the surprise and indignation of the Whigs, vetoed by Tyler. He objected to the bank on constitutional grounds and declared that he would commit a crime, in view of his previous opinions on that subject, should he now approve this bill, but seemed to leave the way open for a bill that would meet his constitutional objections. The Whigs generally suppressed their annoyance, and went to work to frame another bill that would secure the President's approval, but Henry Clay could not forbear expressing strong criticism and censure of the President for his action. In his speech he said that "bank or no HARRISON AND TYLER'S ADMINISTRATION. 139 bank had been the great issue of the Presidential canvass." A second bill was hastily prepared and passed, and this also the President vetoed September 9. This veto was re- ceived with unspeakable indignation by the Whigs, who began to realize that their success in the last campaign was to go for naught — the cup of power was to be dashed from their lips when they had scarcely sipped from it — and that this President of their own making had set him- self to break up their party and to become the leader, himself, of a new party much nearer to their opponents than to themselves. The reading of his veto message was received with hisses in the Senate, and his entire Cabinet, with the exception of Mr. Webster, his Secretary of State, resigned. The Whig members of Congress issued an ad- dress to the people, in which they repudiated the President and declared that all connection between them and John Tyler was at an end from that time forth. Thus in this first extra session of Congress, extending from the 31st of May to the 13th of September, the Whig party had turned fiercely upon the President, and the Democratic party had begun to support him as being in the main favorable to their policies, and already through him they saw the road opening to their return to power. There was in Congress a small party called the " Cor- poral's Guard," or "Tyler men," which supported the ad- ministration and were the personal followers of the Presi- dent. At the regular session of Congress the Whigs came into collision with the President on the tariff question also. An empty treasury called loudly for increased revenues. The Whigs passed a bill designed to continue the duties 140 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. under the tariff of 1833, coupled with a provision for dis- tributing any surplus revenue among the States. This was vetoed by the President as a violation of the solemn ad^ justment of a great and agitating question made by the compromise of 1833. A second bill, differing not greatly from the first and still containing the land revenue dis- tribution clause, was passed. This also was vetoed, and a third bill, which raised the duties above the ?o per cent, agreed upon in the compromise, but suspending land rev- enue distribution while such duties were above the com- promise limit, was approved on the 30th of August, 1842, and became a law. The Congressional election of 1843 turned the House over to the Democratic party. The question of the annexation of Texas was now be- coming a prominent one and called forth the opposition of the anti-slavery people of the North. A treaty with Texas which provided for annexation, concluded by the administration, was rejected by the Senate by a more than two-thirds vote. The Whig National Convention met in Baltimore on the first day of May, 1844. There was no division in their party now as to who should be their candidate. The party was united for Clay, and the divisions in the Democratic party gave every promise of success. Mr. Clay was nominated by acclamation, and on the fourth ballot Theodore Frelinghuysen, of New Jersey, was named for Vice-President — his opponents being John* Davis, of Massachusetts, and Millard Fillmore, of New York. The platform was very brief, and in" a single resolution summed up the principles of the party as favoring a well-regulated HARRISON AND TYLER'S ADMINISTRATION. I4I currency, a tariff for revenue necessary to defray the ex- penses of the government, and discriminating for the pro- tection of the domestic labor of the country, the distribu- tion of the proceeds from the sales of public lands, a single term for the Presidency, a reform of executive usurpations, and generally such an administration of the affairs of the government that shall impart to every branch of the public service the greatest practical efficiency con- trolled by a well-regulated and wise economy. The Democratic Convention met twenty-seven days later. From the hour it was known that Van Buren had been defeated there seemed an almost universal concentration on him as its standard bearer in 1844; but as the question of the annexation of Texas forged to the front, and it was found that he was committed against that, an oppo- sition arose which finally succeeded in defeating him and bringing about the nomination of James K. Polk, of Ten- nessee, who had been little thought of and not voted for in the earlier ballots of the convention. Of the 266 votes Mr. Van Buren began with 146, a majority, but less than the necessary two-thirds. On the seventh ballot the vote stood: Van Buren, 99; Cass, 123; Johnson, 21, and James Buchanan, 22. On the eighth ballot James K. Polk re- ceived 44 votes, and by a stampede received the nomina- tion of the convention on the ninth ballot. Silas Wright was nominated for Vice-President, but declined, and George M. Dallas, of Pennsylvania, was chosen as the candidate for Vice-President. The platform reaffirmed the resolutions of 1840, which we have already quoted, and made the fol- !42- THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. lowing somewhat satirical thrust at the Whig campaign of that year: Resolved: That the American Democracy place their trust, not in factitious symbols, not in displays and ap- peals insulting to the judgment and subversive of the intellect of the people, but in a clear reliance on the intelligence, patriotism and discriminating justice of the American people. Additional resolutions declared that the proceeds of the public land sales ought to be sacredly applied to the objects specified in the Constitution, and opposed the laws lately adopted distributing such proceeds among the States as inexpedient in policy and unconstitutional; also opposing the taking from the President his qualified veto power, and asserting our title to the whole of the Territory of Oregon, and in favor of the reoccupation of Oregon, and the re-annexation of Texas, at the earliest practical period as great American measures, which this convention recommends, and the cordial support of Demo- cratic union. The Abolitionists met under the name of the Liberty party, at Buffalo, in the previous August, and nominated James G. Birney, of New York, for President, and Thomas Morris, of Ohio, for Vice-President. They adopted a long platform, which cannot be summarized. A convention of Mr. Tyler's friends also met in Balti- more on the same day as the Democratic Convention and nominated him for re-election. He accepted the nomina- tion, but subsequently withdrew, and threw his influence to the support of Polk. HARRISON AND TYLER'S ADMINISTRATION. j^ The campaign of 1844 was an exciting one. The Democratic party fought to recover the power from which it believed itself accidentally thrust out in the pre- vious election; and the Whig party, devotedly attached to Henry Clay, gave him its most enthusiastic support. On the popular vote Polk received 1,337,243 and Clay 1,299,062 votes. This gave Polk 170 electoral votes and Clay 105. Birney received 62,300 votes. His vote added to that of Clay would have given the latter the elec- toral votes of New York and Michigan and resulted in Polk's defeat. The joint resolution to annex Texas was passed in the closing days of Tyler's administration. CHAPTER XL HISTORY UNDER PRESIDENT POLK, 1 845-1 849. THE annexation of Texas, provided for by the joint resolutions passed at the close of Tyler's adminis- tration, was made complete by the action of Congress a few days after it assembled in 1845. The first reso- lution provided that four States, in addition to the State of Texas, might hereafter, with the consent of that State, be formed out of its territory, and be entitled to admis- sion under the provisions of the Federal Constitution ; the States so formed and lying south of the Missouri compromise line, 36 30', to be admitted into the Union, with or without slavery, as the people of each State asking admission might desire ; north of said line slavery or involuntary servitude to be prohibited. The admission of Texas led to the war with Mexico, which had never acknowledged the independence of Texas, and furthermore claimed as against Texas the territory between the Nueces and Rio Grande. General Taylor was ordered in January,- 1846, to advance to the Rio Grande, and being soon attacked by a Mexican force, the President sent a message to Congress, informing them that Mexico had " at last in- .(144) JAMES K. POLK. POLK'S ADMINISTRATION. ,. j^ vaded our territory and shed the blood of our fellow- citizens on our own soil." Congress immediately passed an act reciting in its preamble that "by the act of the Republic of Mexico a state of war existed between that government and the United States," and providing for its prosecution. The Whigs generally protested against the recital of the preamble, but as generally voted for the bill, and, with some reluctance on the part of the Northern Whigs, supported the war after it was begun. Indeed, they were to take two of their Presidential can- didates from its successful generals. The war was prosecuted with great success, and by a series of victories that strongly ministered to the military pride of our people, and gave great popularity to the successful Generals, Zachary Taylor and Winfield Scott. By the middle of September, 1847, tne latter general captured the city of Mexico, after which fighting ceased. Peace was restored on the 2d of February, 1848, by the treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo, under which Mexico relin- quished all claim to Texas with the Rio Grande as its boundary, and ceded to the United States New Mexico and California at the price of fifteen millions of dollars. By the acquisition of this new territory the United States extended across the continent from ocean to ocean. The Liberty party of the North had generally been opposed to the war, regarding it as undertaken for the extension of slavery, and the slavery question presented itself when- ever Congress undertook to acquire territory or to or- ganize governments in the territory it had acquired. When in August, 1846, the President in a special mes- I 4 6 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. sage to Congress asked for an appropriation of two mil- lions of dollars in order to negotiate a peace with Mexico by the purchase ol territory, David Wilmot, a Demo- cratic member of the House from Pennsylvania, offered a proviso to the bill, which proposed to carry out the President's recommendation, making it a fundamental con- dition of the acquisition of new territory that " neither slavery nor involuntary servitude shall ever exist in any part of said territory except for crime, whereof the party shall first be duly convicted." This was the famous " Wilmot Proviso," following the language of the ordi- nance of 1787, which, as we have already stated, was penned by Jefferson. This proviso was adopted in the House, calling forth no sectional debate or bitterness ; but the immediate adjournment of Congress prevented the Senate from acting upon it. An effort to attach the pro- viso to a second bill appropriating money, made at the second session of the Twenty-ninth Congress, after pass- ing the House failed in the Senate, and the bill became a law without it. Besides the incorporation of Texas into the Union, and the acquisition of the immense territory — California and New Mexico — embracing more than half a million square miles, the disputed boundary of Oregon was settled in this administration. The Democratic platform of 1844, as we have seen, be- sides calling for the annexation of Texas, demanded the reoccupation of Oregon. The claim of the United States was for a boundary of 54 40' north latitude. England claimed that the boundary was along the line of the POLK'S ADMINISTRATION. j^~ Columbia river. For the past twenty years the. disputed territory had been held by the two nations jointly, under an arrangement which either could terminate on twelve months' notice. This notice was given by the President, and after some negotiation and a threatened collision with England, the Oregon question was settled in June, 1846, by a treaty in which we accepted the 49th parallel as the northern boundary of our territory. During Mr. Polk's administration the slavery question was rising above the horizon, as yet a cloud scarcely big- ger than a man's hand, but already affecting the composi- tion and destiny of parties. The settlement of the Oregon boundary ; the annexation of Texas ; the war with Mexico ; the immense acquisition of territory that followed it ; — these are the events that will always attract most attention in the history of this period ; but the revision of the tariff in 1846, on the recommendation of the President and upon the plans proposed by his Secretary of the Treasury, Robert J. Walker, cannot be lightly passed over by the student of our economic history. We have seen how the " tariff of abominations " passed in 1S28, followed by the distinctively protective tariff of 1832, had brought the country to the verge of a civil war. Mr. Clay had come forward with his compromise act not only to avert this result, but, as he himself declared in 1842, to save the system of protection itself. Speaking at that date he said, " if the compromise act had not been adopted, the whole system of protection would have been swept by the board by the preponderating influence of the illustrious man then 10 I4 8 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. at the head of the government (General Jackson) at the very next session after its enactment." The average on dutiable articles under the tariff of 1832 was 33 per cent. By the compromise act there was to be an average rate of 20 per cent, on and after the 1st day of July, 1842. As shown in the sketch of Tyler's administration, the necessities of the treasury permitted the 20 per cent, rate to remain for two months only, to wit, from the 1st of July to the 1st of September, 1842, when a new tariff law was passed. This was a protective tariff and remained in force for four years. In 1845 Secretary Walker sub- mitted his report to Congress in which he took strong grounds against protection and advocated a revenue tariff. Polk in his inaugural address had declared himself in favor of a tariff for revenue, with such discrimination within revenue principles as would confer protection on home interests. Within the revenue limit, he declared, there was discretion for discrimination ; beyond that limit the rightful exercise of power was not conceded. The revenue limit he defined, in his first message, to be that precise point in the schedule of duties at which it is ascertained from experience that the revenue is greatest. To raise the duties higher than that amount and diminish the amount collected is to levy them for protection merely and not for revenue. The tariff of 1842, he declared, wa»s so framed that much the greatest burden that it imposed was thrown on labor and the poorer classes, while it pro- tected capital and exempted the rich from paying their just proportion of taxation. " While it protects the capital of the wealthy manufacturer and increases his wealth, it POLK'S ADMINISTRATION. ^g does not benefit the operatives and laborers in his employ- ment, whose wages have not been increased by it." Secretary Walker's report will always deserve to be read along with Hamilton's report on manufactures. The Walker tariff, as the Act of July 30, 1846, is called, sub- stituted ad valorem for specific rates, and classed the arti- cles in eight different schedules indicated by the letters A, B, C, D, and so on. The articles in Schedule A paid 100 per cent. They included brandy, spirits distilled from grain, and a few minor articles and luxuries. Those in Schedule B paid 40 per cent. They were few in number and generally unimportant, such as spices and the like. Schedule C, the 30 per cent, schedule, contained most of the articles around which the protective struggle raged, such as wool and woollens, manufactures of glass, paper, wood, iron and metals in general and manufactures of metals. Schedule D was 25 per cent., and included cot- tons, etc. The other Schedules were at 20, 15, 10 and 5 per cent., and there was a considerable free list, which in- cluded tea and coffee. The principles which he adopted were stated as follows in his report : " 1st. That no more money should be collected than is necessary for the wants of the government economically administered. 2d. That no duty be imposed on any article above the least rate which will yield the largest revenue. 3d. That below such rates discrimination may be made descending in the scale of duties, and, for imperative reasons, articles may be placed on the list of those free from all duty. 4th. That the maximum revenue duty should be imposed on luxuries. 5th. That all minimum 150 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. ard all specific duties should be abolished and an ad va- lorem duty substituted in their place, care being taken to guard against fraudulent invoices and undervaluations and to assess the duty upon the actual market value. 6th. That the duties should be so imposed as to operate as equally as possible throughout the Union, discriminating neither for nor against any class." He declared that as a rule experience proved that a duty of 20 per cent, ad va- lorem would yield the largest revenue. This act was passed by a vote of 119 to 104 in the House, and by the casting vote of Vice-President Dallas in the Senate. The average rate of duty under it was 2 S J A per cent, and its beneficial effects began to show themselves almost immediately. In his annual message of December 4, 1848, the President declared that it had met fully public expectation, and confirmed the opinion of the wisdom of a change in our revenue system. While it increased the revenue by the repeal of highly protective and prohibitory duties, it diminished the taxes upon the people. Nothing better proves the wisdom of the tariff of 1846, known as our revenue tariff, than the fact that it was followed by a period of greater and more solid general prosperity than any other in the history of our country; and when in 1857, eleven years afterwards, a re- dundant revenue called for a still further reduction, it was made by general consent, and for the first time, since pro- tection came into our tariff in 18 16, without any conflict of parties or political wrangling. The student of American tariffs will find much to interest him in the successive POLK'S ADMINISTRATION. IU messages of President Polk and the reports of Secretary- Walker. It may here be mentioned that the sub-treasury so quickly abolished in Tyler's administration was re-estab- lished under Polk. With the approach of the nominating conventions of 1848 the slavery question again began to show itself a troublesome one «for both parties. The anti-slavery Whigs of the North were not friendly to Mr. Clay, and the breach between the Northern and Southern Whigs was rapidly widening. Nor was there unity in the Democratic party. There were two factions in the State of New York, known respectively as the " Hunkers " and the " Barn- burners," the latter being an anti- slavery faction. When the Democratic Convention met at Baltimore, on May 22, 1848, each of these two factions was present with a full delegation, and each stoutly demanded recognition as the regular party; and, after a long debate, the convention •decided to admit them both, each to cast one-half of the vote of New York. This was satisfactory to neither, and the Barn-burners withdrew from the convention, while the Hunkers refused to take part in its proceedings. Lewis Cass, of Michigan, was nominated for President on the fourth ballot, and General William O. Butler, of Kentucky, for Vice-President, on the second ballot. Mr. Cass was opposed to the Wilmot Proviso, as were also the other candidates for the nomination. The platform was that of 1844, with congratulatory reso- lutions on the result of the Mexican war. A resolution of sympathy to the National Convention of the Republic of !^ 2 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. France, then assembled, was adopted. They endorsed the administration of Polk, and rehearsed the benefits which it had conferred upon the people. The Whig Convention met at Philadelphia on the 7th of June. Zachary Taylor, of Louisiana, was nominated for President on the fourth ballot, the opposing candidates being Clay, Webster, General Scott. Millard Fillmore, of New York, was nominated for Vice-President on the second ballot. The convention adopted no platform, and, indeed, there was doubt up to its very meeting as to whether General Taylor was a Whig or a Democrat. The Barn-burners, who had withdrawn from the Demo- cratic Convention at Baltimore, met at Utica, N. Y., and nominated Van Buren for President, who accepted their nomination. Henry Dodge, a Senator from Wisconsin, was named for Vice-President, but he declined, and afterwards Charles Francis Adams, of Massachusetts, was joined with Van Buren as candidate for Vice-President. John P. Hale; of New Hampshire, who had been nominated by the Liberty or Abolition party, withdrew in favor of Van Buren. The platform of the Barn-burners, or, as they were now called, the Free Soil Democrats, referred almost en- tirely to the slavery question, and may be summed up in the words, " Free soil, free labor, free speech, and free men." Thirty States took part in this election. Taylor re- ceived 1,360,099 votes, Cass 1,220,544, and Van Buren 291,263. Of the electoral votes Taylor received 163, car- rying the States of Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, POLK'S ADMINISTRATION. x ^ Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Dela- ware, Maryland, North Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Louisi- ana, Tennessee, and Kentucky. Cass carried the remain- ing States, and received 127 electoral votes. Van Buren received a larger vote in Massachusetts and New York than Cass, the vote in the latter State being, Taylor 218,603, Cass 114,318, Van Buren 120,510. CHAPTER XII. HISTORY UNDER PRESIDENTS TAYLOR AND FILLMORE, 1849-185 3. GENERAL TAYLOR was a Louisiana planter and a large slaveholder. He had no experience as a civilian and no previous identification with either party. He was taken up by the Whigs solely because of his avail- ability. Webster, who was bitterly disappointed at his own failure to secure the nomination, pronounced that of Tay- lor as one unfit to be made, but did not refuse to sup- port him. The old questions on which parties had divided disap- peared. The National Bank was dead. The tariff contro- versies seemed settled by the act of 1846. A succession of Presidential vetoes, together with the rise of our rail- road system, had settled the question of internal improve- ments adversely. The sub-treasury kept up the divorce between bank and State. The proposition for distribution of the proceeds of the sale of public lands was not agi- tated. But for the slavery question there might almost have been another "era of good feeling." The growing alienation of the two sections was increased when Califor- nia applied for admission as a free State at the meeting of the first Congress under this administration. Mr. Clay, (154) V" ^ THOMAS H. BENTON. TAYLOR AND FILLMORE'S ADMINISTRATION. j^ who had been chiefly instrumental in securing the passage of the Missouri Compromise in 1820, who had brought forward the compromise of 1833 on tne tariff, once again, as the closing act of a great and patriotic life, undertook to adjust the slavery agitation by a permanent and just compromise. His propositions were at first included in a single bill, and then divided into separate bills. The prin- cipal points were the abolition of the slave trade, but no interference with slavery in the District of Columbia ; the payment of $10,000,000 to Texas for abandoning her claim to New Mexico; the admission of California with the con- stitution she had framed forbidding slavery; the organiza- tion of New Mexico and Utah with a prohibition of the passage of any laws in respect to African slavery, and a more effective and stringent fugitive slave law. The moderate men in both parties supported these measures, although the individual votes changed with the respective bills. Mr. Fillmore, who had become President in July, 1850, by the sudden death of General Taylor, promptly approved them as they were successively presented to him, and there was a general breathing spell and a widely ex- tended belief that the slavery agitation was ended. The Democratic party acquiesced in these compromise measures and recovered its popularity in the country, as was shown by the Congressional elections. The excellent prospect of success brought forth quite an army of candidates for the nomination. The National Convention was held in Balti- more June 1, 1852. General Cass was the leading candi- date, with James Buchanan and Stephen A. Douglas as his chief competitors. On the forty-ninth ballot Franklin 156 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. Pierce, of New Hampshire, who had not been v.oted for until the thirty-fifth ballot, and had reached only fifty-five votes on the forty-eighth, was nominated by a stampede, which gave him 282 out of 288 votes cast. Wm. R. King, of Alabama, was nominated for Vice-President on the second ballot. The platform was the same as in the previous campaigns, with the addition of resolutions en- dorsing the compromise measures and pledging the party to resist all attempts in Congress and out of it to renew the agitation of the slavery question; to faithfully abide by and uphold the principles laid down in the Kentucky and Virginia resolutions of 1792 and 1798 and in the re- port of Mr. Madison to the Virginia Legislature in 1799, which principles it " adopts as constituting one of the main foundations of its political creed and is resolved to carry them out in their obvious meaning and import." Other resolutions referred to the happy close of the war with Mexico and to the duty of the Democracy of this country, as the party of the people, to uphold and maintain the right of every State, and thereby the Union of the States, and to sustain and advance among them constitutional liberty by continuing to resist all monopolies and exclusive legislation for the benefit of the few at the expense of the many. The Whig Convention also met in Baltimore, June 16. Fillmore and Scott were the leading candidates, receiving for forty-seven ballots about 130 votes each, Mr. Webster about 30. General Scott was nominated on the fifty-third ballot. Wm. A. Graham, of North Carolina, was nomin- ated for Vice-President on the second ballot. Thus, for the TAYLOR AND FILLMORE'S ADMINISTRATION. 157 third time, the Whig party had turned from its statesmen and leaders, from the men whose names give it dignity in history and are identified with its policies, to take up a military man, whose opinions on public matters were un- known. Once only in its history, in 1844, did it venture to nominate a genuine Whig statesman on a genuine Whig platform. In every other campaign it went before the people either without a platform of principles or with- out a candidate of known views. In 1852 it adopted a lengthy series of resolutions, declaring in favor of the compromise laws of 1850 as a "settlement in principle and substance " of the dangerous and exciting questions, which they embrace. The Free Soil Democrats put forward John P. Hale, of New Hampshire, and George W. Julian, of Indiana. They declared slavery sectional and freedom national, and condemned the fugitive slave act of 1850 and the compromise measures generally. General Scott was not a strong candidate, and many leading Whigs in the South refused to support him and became henceforward identified with the Democratic party. On the popular vote Pierce received 1,601,274, Scott 1,386,580 and Hale 155,825. The smallness of the last vote shows that the country generally was satisfied with the compromise measures of 1850. Despite his large vote, Scott secured the electors in but four States, Vermont, Massachusetts, Tennessee and Ken- tucky, in all 42. Pierce had 254. After this campaign the Whig party passed rapidly to disintegration. It was in many respects a superb political organization, rich in great names and marshalled by leaders who knew how to 158 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. raise its enthusiasm to the highest pitch. It was seldom, however, able to unite on definite lines of policy, and on the issues now arising went rapidly to pieces; its Southern members became Democrats, its Northern wing dividing between that party and the new political organization which, to use a well-worn simile, sprang full armed from the country's growing agony. FRANKLIN PIERCE. CHAPTER XIII. HISTORY UNDER PRESIDENT PIERCE, 1853-1857. THE administration of Franklin Pierce began under a delusive calm. In the Thirty-third Congress, which met on the 5 th day of December, 1853, the Democrats had fourteen clear majority in the Senate, and more than two-thirds of the members of the House. The President pledged himself to carry out the compromise of 1850, con- gratulated the country that the slavery question was settled, and declared that any attempt to revive the agitation would be unpatriotic. As long, however, as there were Territories to organize there could be no lasting adjustment of this burning question between the two sections, and the bill passed at the first session of Congress to organize the Ter- ritories of Nebraska and Kansas reopened the agitation with an intensity which it had not heretofore reached. This bill provided for the admission of these two Territories, with or without slavery, as their constitutions might pre- scribe, at the time of admission, and repealed the Missouri Compromise of 1850, by declaring it "inconsistent with the principle of non-intervention by Congress with slavery in the States and Territories, as recognized by the legisla- tion of 1850, commonly called The Compromise Measures, (161) 1 62 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. it being the true intent and meaning of this act, not to legislate slavery into any State or Territory* nor to exclude it therefrom, but to leave the people thereof perfectly free to form and regulate their domestic institutions in their own way, subject only to the Constitution of the United States." Both of these Territories, erected chiefly within the limits of the original Louisiana purchase, were north of the line °f 36° 30', and according to the Missouri Compromise slavery could not be established within their limits. The declaration, therefore, in the Kansas-Nebraska bill that this compromise was inoperative and void, being inconsistent with the principle of the non-intervention with slavery in the States and Territories by Congress as recognized by the compromise measures of 1850, was very repugnant to the Free Soil Democrats and Anti-slavery Whigs of the North. The latter generally dropped the name of Whigs and called themselves Anti-Nebraska men. But we must pause here to chronicle the appearance of a new party, which spread so rapidly in both sections of the country that its leaders fondly supposed it was to have a more permanent place in American politics than the spasmodic and vigorous life which it manifested. We have seen that the old Federalist party was opposed to the speedy naturalization of foreigners, and that the alien laws extended the period preliminary to citizenship from five to fourteen years. Different organizations had arisen, from time to time, calling themselves '* Native American " parties, but had made no figure in political contests. The party which appeared in 1852 called itself American, but PIERCE'S ADMINISTRATION. l6 3 being an oath-bound and secret organization, with subordi- nate, State and national councils, and a system of initiation through successive degrees, was by its opponents given the name of Know-Nothings, because of the refusal or inability of its members to give information as to its secrets. Its rallying cry was, " Americans only shall govern America." It advocated a change in the naturalization laws making a continued residence of twenty-one years indispensable to citizenship, the election of native-born Americans for all federal and municipal offices or government employment, and -opposed to what it declared to be the "aggressive policy and corrupting tendencies of the Roman Catholic Church in our country." When the Thirty-fourth Congress, elected in the middle of Pierce's administration, met it was found that the Demo- crats were in the minority in the House, and more than two months were consumed in the effort to elect a speaker, when Mr. N. P. Banks, of Massachusetts, an. Anti-Ne- braska man, was chosen. The Anti-Nebraska men, how- ever, in the meantime had adopted the name Republican, first formally agreed upon, it is said, at a meeting of thirty members of Congress on the day after the passage of the Kansas-Nebraska bill, May 23, 1854, although it had been suggested in other quarters before. The closing of Pierce's administration was vexed by the contest between the free and slave State men for the control of Kansas ; a contest which led to a state of war in that Territory, and which was bequeathed as its most troublesome question to the next administration. Many new and unknown elements appeared as the next Presidential contest drew near. I62J. THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. The Know-Nothing Convention met in Philadelphia Feb- ruary 22, 1856, adopted a platform setting forth the prin- ciples we have already summarized, and demanding the repeal of the Missouri Compromise. This convention had delegates from all the States except Maine, Vermont, South Carolina and Georgia, but fell into an angry wrangle over a motion that no candidates who were not in favor of inter- dicting slavery in the territory north of the Missouri Com- promise line should be nominated. When this motion was laid upon the table about one-fourth of the delegates, com- ing from the New England and other Northern States, withdrew. The convention nominated Millard Fillmore for President and Andrew Donelson, of Tennessee, for Vice- President. The shattered fragments of the old Whig party met in Baltimore on the 17th of September, with representatives from twenty-six of the thirty-one States, and declared their reverence. for the Constitution and unalterable attachment to the Union, their opposition to geographical parties, and endorsed Mr. Fillmore, "without adopting or referring to the peculiar doctrines of the party which made him its can- didate." The Republican party met, in its first convention, at Philadelphia on the 17th of June, with representatives from all the Northern States and from Delaware, Maryland, and Kentucky. Its platform opposed the repeal of the Mis- souri Compromise, the extension of slavery into free terri- tory, favored the admission of Kansas as a free State, de- clared that the Constitution conferred upon Congress sovereign power over the Territories of the United States, PIERCE'S ADMINISTRATION; ' 163 and that in the exercise of that power it was both the right and duty of Congress to prohibit in the Territories those twin relics of barbarism — polygamy and slavery. Other resolutions declared in favor of governmental aid for the immediate construction of a railroad to the Pacific ocean, and in favor of an appropriation for the improve- ment of rivers and harbors of a national character. The nominees of this convention were John C. Fremont for President, and William L. Dayton for Vice-President. It should be stated here that the delegates who had withdrawn from the Know-Nothing Convention had previously nominated Fremont as their candidate for Presi- dent, and this had much effect in securing his nomination by the Republican Convention. At the Democratic Convention, which met at Cincinnati, on the 7th of June, all the States were fully represented, and two of them, New York and Missouri, had contesting, delegations. On the first ballot the vote stood, James, Buchanan 135, Franklin Pierce 122, Stephen A. Douglas 33, and Lewis Cass 5. Pierce was largely supported by the Southern Democrats and Buchanan by the Northern Democrats. The votes of the former gradually passed' over to Douglas, and on the 16th ballot he had reached 121 votes to 168 for Buchanan. Mr. Buchanan was unani- mously nominated on the 17th ballot. There were many can- didates for the Vice-Presidency, but John C. Breckinridge, of Kentucky, received the unanimous nomination of the convention on the 2d ballot. The platform adopted reaf- firmed the resolutions of 1840 and 1844, denounced the organization of a party with secret and religious tests, de- 11 J66 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. clared in favor of the strict and faithful execution of the compromise measures. of 1850, and denounced all attempts of renewing in Congress or out of it the agitation of the slavery question ; recognized and adopted the principles con- tained in the organic laws organizing the Territories of Kansas and Nebraska as the only sound and safe solution of the slavery question ; non-interference of Congress with slavery in the States or in the District of Columbia. In the Southern States, where the Republican party had no existence, the contest was between Buchanan and Fill- more. The latter, however, received the vote of the State of Maryland only. Fremont carried all the Northern States, except Indiana, Illinois, California, New Jersey and Pennsylvania, which voted for Buchanan, who also carried all the Southern States except Maryland. On the popular vote Buchanan received 1,838,169, Fremont 1,341,264, Fill- more 874,534 votes. . Of the electoral vote Buchanan re- ceived 174, Fremont 114 and Fillmore 8. The large vote given to Fremont disclosed the por- tentous fact that a party had arisen based on sectional lines, and that we had reached that' dangerous period in Ameri- can history to which Washington and other patriots had looked forward with so much apprehension. JAMES BUCHANAN. CHAPTER XIV. HISTORY UNDER PRESIDENT BUCHANAN, 1857-1861. THE administration of Mr. Buchanan fell upon evil times. The contest between the anti-slavery and pro- slavery men in Kansas broke out into a civil war in that Territory, and, together with the Dred Scott decision, made the slavery question the chief and almost the sole subject of division between parties. Dred Scott was a Missouri slave, who had been taken by his owner, an army surgeon, first into Illinois, where slavery was forbidden by the State constitution, and then into Upper Louisiana (now Minnesota), where slavery was forbidden by the Compromise of 1820, it being north of the line 36 30'. Scott was then brought back to Missouri and sold, and he entered suit in both the State and fed- eral courts for his freedom. The suit in the State court was suspended to await the result of that in the federal court. The latter court had jurisdiction, under the Constitution of the United States, only in suits between " citizens of different States," and the question raised by the pleadings was whether a negro of African descent, whose ancestors were of pure African blood, and brought into this country (169) IjQ THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. and sold as negro slaves, was a citizen of a State within the meaning of the Constitution. The court held that he was not, and consequently was not entitled to sue in the federal courts. It further went on to declare the Missouri Compromise Act, forbidding slavery in any Territory north of the parallel of 36 30', unconstitutional because the Constitution expressly recognized the right of property in slaves, and if the Constitution recognized the right of property of a master in a slave and made no distinction between that description of property and other property owned by a citizen, no tribunal acting under the authority of the United States, whether it be legislative, executive, or judicial, had a right to draw such a distinction or deny to it the provisions and guarantees which have been pro- vided for the protection of private property against the encroachments of the government. The effect of this de- cision was to declare slave property entitled to the same protection under the Constitution and laws in the Terri- tories as any other kind of property. From this decision Justices Curtis and McLean dis- sented. Against this doctrine the Republican party held that slavery had no legal status outside of the jurisdiction of the State in which it was established; that the normal condition of all the territory of the United States is that of freedom, and they denied the authority of Congress, of a Territorial Legislature, or of any individual to give legal existence to slavery in any Territoiy of the United States. The Democratic party was now divided into two w r ings. As a strict construction party it had no difficulty in unit- ing upon the proposition that was embodied in the Kan- BUCHANAN'S ADMINISTRATION. 171 sas-Nebraska Act — the non-interference of Congress with slavery in the Territories. The Dred Scott decision, however, introduced a line of cleavage. The administration, followed by the Southern Democrats and a minority at the North, accepted that de- cision, and maintained that slaves could be taken into a Territory and held there under the protection of the Con- stitution and federal laws until a State was formed and admitted into the Union with power to establish or forbid that institution. A large majority of the Northern Demo- crats, under the lead of Judge Stephen A. Douglas, of Illinois, held the doctrine of "Squatter Sovereignty;" that the people of a Territory, as soon as it was organized, could decide through their Legislature for or against slavery. The struggle over the admission of Kansas con- tinued through this administration. The administration favored the admission of Kansas with the Lecompton Constitution, which had been adopted by an apparent majority of six thousand votes and es- tablished slavery. The Senate passed a bill, March 23, 1858, for that purpose, by a vote of 33 yeas to 25 nays. The nays consisted of 19 Republicans, 2 Americans, and 4 Democrats ; to wit, Broderick, of California, Douglas, of Illinois, Pugh, of Ohio, and Stuart, of Michigan. The two Americans were John Bell, of Tennessee, and John J. Crittenden, of Kentucky. The House inserted a proviso in the Senate bill for a re-submission of the constitution to the vote of the people of Kansas. A committee of conference on the disagreement between the two Houses recommended a bill including the House amendment with 172 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. propositions for land grants to the State for school and other purposes to be voted on at the same time. The conference report was adopted by both Houses and be- came a law, but Kansas rejected the constitution, and a later convention, which met at Wyandot, adopted a State constitution prohibiting slavery, which received a majority vote at the polls, and with which constitution the State was eventually admitted. The Democratic National Convention met at Charleston, S. C, April 23, i860, with all the States represented, and contesting delegations from New York and Illinois. In both cases the delegation favorable to Mr. Douglas was admitted to the convention. The convention was in ses- sion for many days and did not reach a vote on the platform until April 30, when it adopted the platform re- ported by the minority of the Committee on Resolutions, in which it reaffirmed " the platform of principles adopted at Cincinnati in 1856, believing that Democratic principles are unchangeable in their nature when applied to the same subject-matter," and added resolutions, reciting that, inasmuch as a difference of opinion existed in the party as to the nature and extent of the powers of territorial legislation, and as to the duties and powers of Congress under the Constitution over the institution of slavery in the Territories, the Democratic party would abide by the decisions of the Supreme Court of the United States on all questions of constitutional law ; in favor of such con- stitutional government aid as would insure the construc- tion of a railroad to the Pacific ocean; in favor of the acquisition of Cuba, and in censure of all State legisla- BUCHANAN'S ADMINISTRATION. I yv tion to defeat the faithful execution of the fugitive slave law. On the adoption of this platform representatives from the Southern States, casting 45 out of the 303 votes of the convention, withdrew. Balloting for a candidate pro- ceeded for three days; Stephen A. Douglas, of Illinois, receiving about 150 votes on an average — 202 votes being necessary to a choice. The remaining votes were scattered among some seven or eight candidates — Hunter, of Virginia, and Guthrie, of Kentucky, receiving the largest number. On the 3d of May the convention adjourned to reassemble in Baltimore on the 18th of June, and recom- mend to the Democrats in the several States to fill the vacancies caused by the withdrawal of their delegates. The delegates who had withdrawn from the convention organized in a separate convention, adopted the report which the majority of the Committee on Resolutions had made, declaring that the government of a Territory organized by an act of Congress is provisional and temporary, and during its existence all citizens have an equal right to settle with their property in the Territory, and that it is the duty of the federal government to protect, when necessary, the rights of person and property in the Territories and wherever else its authority extends ; that the sovereignty of the State begins when the people of a Territory, having sufficient population, form a State constitution and it is consummated by admission into the Union. They also declared in favor of the acquisition of Cuba and the construction of a rail- road to the Pacific coast. This convention adjourned to meet at Richmond, Va., on the nth of June. The regular convention met at Baltimore on the 18th of 174 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. June. After some delays and contests over the admission of delegates to fill the vacancies, the decisions being generally in favor of delegates pledged to support Doug- j las, a second withdrawal took place, consisting of most of the members from the Southern States, as well as some from the North, including Caleb Gushing, of Massa- chusetts, who had been President of the convention. Mr. Douglas was nominated for President; receiving i8l}4 out of the 195 votes of which the convention consisted. Benjamin Fitzpatrick, of Alabama, was nominated for Vice-President but declined, and Herschel V. Johnson, of Georgia, was substituted in his place by the National Committee. On the 28th of June' those who had been refused admission to the Baltimore Convention, together with those who had withdrawn therefrom, and some who had seceded from the Charleston Convention, nominated, for President, John C. Breckinridge, of Kentucky, and for Vice-President, Joseph Lane, of Oregon. Another convention met at Baltimore on the 9th of June, composed of the remnants of the Know-Nothing party in the South, and such Whigs in the North as were not identified with the Democratic or Republican parties. It called itself the Constitutional Union party, and adopted as its platform simply " the Constitution of the United States, the union of the States, and the en- forcement of the laws." Its nominees were John Bell, of Tennessee, for President, and Edward Everett, of Massa- chusetts, for Vice-President. The Republican party met at Chicago, on the 16th of May, and declared in favor of the right of each State BUCHANAN'S ADMINISTRATION. X y$ to order and control its own domestic institutions accord- ing to its own judgment; against the dogma that the Constitution, of its own force, carried and protected slavery in the Territories ; in favor of the admission of Kansas under her free constitution; of a protective tariff; a homestead law; appropriations for river and harbor improvements, and a Pacific railroad. The leading candi- date before the convention was William H. Seward, of New York. On the third ballot Abraham Lincoln, of Illinois, was nominated for President, and Hannibal Ham- lin, of Maine, for Vice-President. The result of the election gave Abraham Lincoln 1,856,- 452 votes, Stephen A. Douglas 1,375,157 votes, Breckin- ridge 847,953 votes, Bell 590,631 votes. Of the electoral vote, Lincoln received the votes of all the Northern States except New Jersey, four of whose votes were given to him, making in all 180 votes. Douglas received 12 votes, 3 from New Jersey and the /ote of Missouri. Breckin- ridge 73, namely, Delaware, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Texas, and Arkansas. The votes of Virginia, Kentucky, and Tennessee were given to Bell, 39 in all. CHAPTER XV. HISTORY UNDER PRESIDENT LINCOLN, 1861-1865. THE election of Abraham Lincoln made the first serious break in the control of the federal government by the Democratic party since the inauguration of Mr. Jefferson; the election of Harrison by the Whigs in 1840 having proved a barren victory by reason of his early death, and the administration of Taylor and Fillmore having been almost immediately followed by the dissolution of the Whig party. The closing days of Mr. Buchanan's admin- istration were devoted to an earnest effort on the part of some of the most patriotic men of the country to avert the dissolution of the Union; among which were the compromise measures proposed by Mr. Crittenden, of Ken- tucky, virtually restoring the line of the Missouri Compro- mise as a permanent division between the free and the slave territory of the country. Although earnestly sup- ported by the President, Mr. Crittenden's propositions were defeated in the Senate. A Peace Convention also assem- bled in Washington on the invitation of the State of Vir- ginia, but its proceedings were fruitless, and with the se- cession of the Southern States and the withdrawal of their representatives from both Houses of Congress, the (176) LINCOLN'S ADMINISTRATION. 1/9 war began. It is not the purpose of this sketch to give the history of that unhappy struggle. The close of Mr. Buchanan's administration left the Re- publicans in control of both branches of Congress, and the tariff of 1846, as reduced in 1857, was superseded by the Act of March 2, 1861, known as the Morrill tariff, framed on the protective theory, with increase of rates and the substitution of specific for ad valorem duties. The Republican party was in its origin a sectional party, and such it has chosen to remain throughout its entire his- tory. It came into power upon the doctrine of restrict- ing slavery to the States in which it then existed, and excluding it from the Territories belonging to the Union. But it was largely in its composition and controlling ele- ments a loose construction party, and its accession to power being followed immediately by the secession of the Southern States and four years of civil war, in which every power of the national government was strained to restore its authority over the seceded States and compel their return to the Union, it naturally grew more accus- tomed to absolute power and military rule than to the careful observance of the Constitution, of the rights of the States, or the great safeguards of personal liberty. Military necessity was often appealed to as temporarily superseding the Constitution and the laws. The Demo- cratic party, trained for more than sixty years in the school of strict construction ; of equal rights ; of the su- premacy of the civil over the military power; of reverence for the Constitution and for those fundamental principles of liberty out of which free government springs, and by j g THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. whose observance alone free government can be main- tained and perpetuated, challenged these violations of the great rights which government was ordained to secure — the suspension of the writ of habeas corpus ; the denial of the right of trial by jury; the trial of citizens by mil- itary tribunals in time of peace or in States where civil courts were open; the interference with liberty of the press, with the right of popular assemblage and the like. Its general position on these questions was vindicated by the decision of the United States Supreme Court in the celebrated case of Lambdin Milligan, who was arrested by order of the general commanding the military district of Indiana; tried by a military commission, and sentenced to be hung. Mil- ligan petitioned the Circuit Court of the United States for the district of Indiana to be discharged, on the ground that the military commission had no jurisdiction to try him and that the right of trial by jury was guaranteed to him by the Constitution. In deciding this case the court de- clared, " That no graver question was ever considered by this court, or one that more nearly concerns the rights of the whole peeple ; for it is the birthright of every citizen, when charged with crime, to be tried and punished ac- cording to law," and used these memorable words: "The Constitution of the United States is a law for rulers and people, equally in war and in peace, and covers with the shield of its protection all classes of men, at all times and under all circumstances." The financial legislation of the Republican party establishing a new system of national banks was also generally opposed by the Democrats. The withdrawal of Southern representatives left the Democrats LINCOLN'S ADMINISTRATION. I g l in a small minority in both Houses of Congress, but they increased their representation in the House by the elections of 1863. There was a section of the Republican party which did not believe Mr. Lincoln was in favor of meas- ures sufficiently vigorous for the crisis, and a convention of Radical Republicans put forward a ticket composed of John C. Fremont, for President, and John Cochrane, of New York, for Vice-President. Its platform called for a constitutional amendment prohibiting the re-establish- ment of slavery " destroyed by the rebellion ; " the enforce- ment of the Monroe doctrine ; the maintenance of the one term policy for the President; the reconstruction of the rebellious States by the people in Congress, and not by the executive; and the confiscation of the lands of the rebels and their distribution among soldiers and settlers. These candidates, however, withdrew before the election. The call for the Republican National Convention in- cluded all who desired the unconditional maintenance of the Union, and the first resolution of its platform recited, " that, laying aside all differences of political opinion, we pledge ourselves as Union men, etc." Mr. Lincoln was renominated and Andrew Johnson, of Tennes- see, was nominated for Vice-President. This was rather an effort, according to the language of the resolution, to nomi- nate a Union ticket than a strictly Republican one. John- son was a born Democrat, trained too long in the school of his party to be converted to other doctrines of govern- ment than those it had always championed ; and while the intensity of his love for the Union and of his hatred of secession led him to approve all measures that promised to !8 2 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. preserve the one and destroy the other, the course of events soon threw him into direct and angry collision with the party which now nominated him. The Democratic National Convention met in Chicago, August 20, 1864. Horatio Seymour was its permanent President and James Guthrie, of Kentucky, chairman of the committee on resolutions. Its platform pledged its unswerving fidelity to the Union, declaring that, after four years' failure to restore the Union by war, during which, under the pretense of military necessity, of war power, the Constitution, public liberty, and private rights had been stricken down ; it demanded that immediate efforts be made to end hostilities with a view of the ultimate conven- tion of States, or other public means for restoring the Union ; it denounced the direct interference of military au- thority in recent elections ; declared the object of the party to be the preservation of the Union and of the rights of the States unimpaired, and censured the administration's usurpation of extraordinary and dangerous powers, many of which it specified. It nominated General George B. McClellan, for President, and George H. Pendleton, of Ohio, for Vice-President. Twenty-five States took part in this election. Lincoln received 2,213,665 votes; McClellan 1,802,237. New Jersey, Delaware and Kentucky gave their electoral votes to him — twenty-one in all. Two hundred and twelve were given to Lincoln. Soon after the inauguration of Mr. Lincoln the* surrender of the Southern armies and the return of peace raised the great questions of the reconstruction of the Southern LINCOLN'S ADMINISTRATION. 1 83 States. Unfortunately, before he could do more than give utterance to a few of those generous sentiments which were a part of his nature, and which indicated his earnest desire to heal, as quickly as possible, the wounds of the strife, Abraham Lincoln was laid low by the bullet of an assassin and Andrew Johnson became President of the United States. CHAPTER XVI. HISTORY UNDER PRESIDENT JOHNSON, April 15, 1865 — March 3, 1869. UPON Andrew Johnson devolved the duty of restoring the operation of the federal laws over the late Con- federate States and of bringing them again into constitu- tional relations with the Union. This was a grave and dif- ficult duty, but one which, under ordinary circumstances, would not have required more than firmness and discretion, tempered by patience and magnanimity. There were, how- ever, several conditious, partly unavoidable and partly acci- dental, that threw around the effort increasing complica- tions and finally involved it in partisan politics, to the det- riment of the whole country and the long postponement of real pacification. The murder of President Lincoln, in which happily it was soon made clear that the South was not implicated, very naturally intensified, for the time, the animosity of the North and begot a call for severe measures. This, how- ever, was a passing feeling that soon spent itself. The emancipation of the slaves was not the object of the war; it was, time and again, disavowed in the most authoritative manner ; yet it had been effected by the war, and the- ques- (184) JOHNSON'S ADMINISTRATION. jg- tion of the rights and status, civil and political, of the freed- men was the real difficulty in the situation. Andrew Johnson, moreover, as already stated, had been taken up for Vice-President in the late Republican Con- vention, not as a Republican, but as a Union man and an intense Southern loyalist. When the assassination of Mr. Lincoln made him President the Republican leaders re- garded him as the mere trustee of a power which belonged to them, and whose exercise they had a right to control and direct. This soon developed the fact that while Mr. Johnson, reared as a Southern Democrat, had never been in sympathy with, or even free from social prejudice against, those whom he termed the aristocratic leaders of that party in the South, he was quite as far from agreement or sym- pathy with the leaders of the Republican party at the North, and this latter difference was the more radical be- cause it had its root in fundamentally different ideas of the structure and powers of the federal government. Johnson took the oath of office April 15, 1865. On the 21st of April, speaking to a delegation from Indiana presented to him by Governor Morton, he clearly foreshadowed his ideas of reconstruction, although his utterances were yet full of re- sentment against the South. After declaring that " treason must be made odious, traitors must be punished and im- poverished : " " their social power must be destroyed : " " every Union man and the government should be remuner- ated out of the pockets of those who have inflicted this great suffering upon the country," and explaining that his threats were directed against the leaders, not against the " laboring men misled and drawn into the rebellion by 12 !S6 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. them ; " he finds in the Constitution " a great panacea " to " revitalize and put upon their feet again the States whose machinery had been overthrown by the rebellion. Their life-breath, he held, had been only suspended and it was now a high constitutional obligation to secure each of these States in the possession and enjoyment of a republican form of government. His policy then outlined was punishment and impoverish- ment for the individual leaders of the South, but full recog- nition of the existence and rights of the States, with their restoration to the Union as speedily as possible upon a constitutional equality with the States of the North, and the same right . of control over their domestic affairs, in- cluding the question of suffrage. This policy he at once set himself to carry out by ap- pointing provisional governors for the several Southern States with directions to organize governments in' them as soon as possible. These governments were to be in the hands of those who were then loyal citizens and, as a con- dition of their recognition by the executive, he insisted on the repudiation of all debts incurred in aid of the rebel- lion, and the ratification of the amendment to the Consti- tution of the United States abolishing slavery. "This amendment being adopted it would remain for the States whose powers have so long been in abeyance to re- sume their places in the two branches of the national legis- lature and thereby complete the restoration." Conventions were held in most of the Southern States. State governments were duly organized ; State officers elected; their Legislatures ratified the Thirteenth Amend- JOHNSON'S ADMINISTRATION. ' 1 87 ment, and Senators and Representatives in Congress were duly chosen. Such, generally, was the condition of recon- struction when Congress met December 4, 1865, more than three-fourths of each House being Republican. It was soon made apparent that the President's policy was not acceptable to the leaders of that party, and that in their plan of reconstruction they were not hampered by the strict construction theories which had so quickly solved the prob- lem for Andrew Johnson, but meant to keep the Southern States under military rule until they could devise a system of reconstruction that would look to their party supremacy in the South not less than to the supremacy of the laws and of the authority of the United States. The breach be- tween the President and the party rapidly widened, and soon threw him once again upon his original party, the Demo- crats, who, as a rule, supported him in the long list of vetoes by which he vainly attempted to thwart the recon- struction legislation of the Republican party. Before re- citing the main facts of this struggle between the President and . Congress it is due to history, and it is due to the Democratic party of the North, which opposed so nobly and magnanimously all proscriptive and degrading legisla- tion against the Southern people, to quote a few extracts from the report of General Grant, then Lieutenant-General of the Armies of the United States, made December 18, 1865, giving the result of his observations in his recent tour among the Southern States. " I am satisfied that the mass of the thinking men of the South accept the present situation of affairs in good faith. The questions which have heretofore divided the sentiments of the iSS THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. people of the two sections, slavery and States' rights, or the right of a State to secede from the Union, they regard as hav- ing been settled forever by the highest tribunal, arms, that man can resort to." After saying that all citizens at the South agreed that it was not yet practicable to withdraw the military, he adds: " There is such universal acquiescence in the authority of the General Government throughout the portion of the coun- try visited by me, that the mere presence of a military force, without regard to numbers, is sufficient to maintain order. " My observations lead me to the conclusion that the citizens of the Southern States are anxious to return to self-govern- ment within the Union as soon as possible ; that while recon- structing they want and require protection from the Govern- ment; that they are in earnest in wishing to do what is re- quired by the Government not humiliating to them as citizens, and that if such a course was pointed out they would pursue it in good faith. It is to be regretted that there cannot be a greater commingling at this time between the citizens of the two sections, and particularly of those entrusted with the law- making power." Such was the promising state of affairs in the South, as early as December, 1865, when "those entrusted with the law-making power " deliberately set themselves to the work of undoing it, of postponing for many years the reconcilia- tion of the two sections; of embroiling the^two races; of preparing the way for that era of carpet-bag government and military rule at the South which will ever condemn at the bar of history — that bar where the voice of magnanimity is always heard and always honored — the reconstruction policy of the Republican party, and the spirit of sectional- ism and of intolerant partisanship by which it was dictated. . JOHNSON'S ADMINISTRATION. ^ The President's veto of the first Freedmen's Bureau Bill, February 19, 1866, began the long and embittered contest between the Executive and Congress. The grounds of this veto were that the bill proposed to establish military- authority over those parts of the United States containing refugees and freedmen, and to invest the agents of the Bureau with the power to try and punish for offences against the rights of the freedmen. These trials were to be without jury or any fixed rules of law or evidence, and to the President seemed plainly in conflict with those pro- visions of the Constitution which guarantee the accused in all criminal prosecutions the right to public trial by an im- partial jury, and, in any capital or otherwise infamous offence, a prior indictment or presentment by a grand jury. He denied that the bill was justifiable as a war measure because the war was over, and he disapproved of the pro- posed system of indiscriminate relief and the distribution of lands (" forty acres ") to the freedmen as a hindrance to their attaining a self-sustaining condition. He urged as a grave objection to the law that the eleven States to be most affected by it were not represented in either branch of Congress at the consideration or passage of the bill, although some of them were attending Congress, by loyal representatives, soliciting the allowance of the constitutional right of representation. The bill had passed both Houses by a party vote. The vote in the Senate on passing it over the veto was 30 yeas to 19 nays; not a two-thirds vote, and among the nays were found eight Republican Senators. On the day following Mr. Stevens, of Pennsyl- vania, from the Committee on Reconstruction, reported a I9 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. resolution which passed the House 109 to 40, "that no Senator or Representative should be admitted into either branch of Congress from the eleven States declared in insurrection until Congress should declare such State en- titled to representation." The Senate concurred on March 2d by a vote of 29 to 18. Next in order was the Civil Rights Bill, which was ve- toed March 27, 1866, and passed over the President's veto in both Houses. This bill was intended to give all the rights of citizenship to the freedmen, including the right to make contracts, to enforce them in the courts, to inherit property, and of like character. It took from the State courts all cognizance of crimes and offences against the act, and charged the officers of the Federal Courts and of the Freedmen's Bureau with the duty of enforcing it. This law was in conflict with the decision in the Dred Scott case, and botji Houses of Congress at that session proposed the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution, which set aside that decision. This amendment was sub- sequently ratified and declared in force July 28, 1868. Meantime the position of the two parties on reconstruction was elaborately stated in majority and minority reports from the Joint Committee on Reconstruction ; the first presented by Senator Fessenden, of Maine, and the latter by Senator Reverdy Johnson, of Maryland. As early as December 17, 1866, a motion was made looking to the gathering of evidence to impeach the President, and Con- gress proceeded to enact successive measures to hamper and curtail the power of the Executive and to deprive the President of much of his constitutional authority. They JOHNSON'S ADMINISTRATION. 19 1 repealed the law authorizing him to extend pardon, or am- nesty by proclamation; tried to take from him the com- mand of the army; and finally reversed what had been the practice and theory since the first Congress, by the enactment of the Tenure of Office law, intended to put limits and prohibitions on the power of the President to remove from office. The President resisted these efforts of Congress to encroach upon his constitutional preroga- tives, and his removal of Edwin M. Stanton, Secretary of War, in defiance of this law, led to his impeachment by resolutions of the House, adopted February 24, 1868. There were in all eleven articles of impeachment pre- ferred by the House, most of which related to the viola- tion of the Tenure of Office law and the removal of Stan- ton; also to certain utterances of the President in public speeches, in which it was charged that he had brought the high office of President of the United States into con- tempt, ridicule and disgrace. The managers of the party in the House were, Messrs. John A. Bingham, .Geo. S. Boutwell, James F. Wilson, Benjamin F. Butler, John A. Logan, Thaddeus Stevens. The President was represented by Henry Stanbery, Benjamin R. Curtis, Thomas A. R. Nelson, William M. Evarts and W. S. Groesbeck. When a vote was finally reached it was taken upon three articles only, resulting in each case in 35 "guilty," to 19 "not guilty ; " the " not guilty " votes were made up of the Democratic members of the Senate, with Senators Fessen- den, Fowler, Grimes, Henderson, Trumbull and Van Win- kle. As the two-thirds vote necessary to convict could not be obtained, no further proceedings were had, and the 192 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. court adjourned sine die. The reconstruction policy finally adopted by the Republican party was contained in the act passed March 2, 1867, and supplemental acts at various times thereafter. It divided the ten States of the South — Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, Texas and Arkansas — into five military districts, each under the command of a Briga- dier-General, with authority to enforce the laws and to punish crimes, and for the latter purpose to organize if necessary military commissions. This military rule was to continue until the several States, through conventions called by a vote of the people without discrimination as to race or color, should adopt constitutions bestowing the elective franchise, likewise without such discrimination, and until the legislatures organized under these State governments should ratify the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitu- tion. These conditions being complied with, Congress would admit the States into the Union. As Johnson's ad- ministration drew to a close, both parties prepared for the struggle at the polls. Both parties looked to General Grant as their candidate. He was known to have been a Democrat and nothing had yet occurred to indicate that he had dissolved his connection with that party, but it soon appeared that he preferred the Republican to the Demo- cratic nomination, and, in their National Convention which met on the 20th of May, 1868, at Chicago, he was unani- mously nominated for President, and Schuyler Colfax, of Indiana, received the nomination for Vice-President on the fifth ballot. Its platform declared, among other things, that "it is due to the labor of the nation that taxation should JOHNSON'S ADMINISTRATION. I93 be reduced as rapidly as the national faith will permit." The Democratic Convention met at Tammany Hall, New York city, July 4th. The most prominent candidate was George H. Pendleton, of Ohio, who had been the nominee for Vice-President on the ticket with McClellan at the last previous election. After twenty-one ballots, with General Hancock and Mr. Hendricks as his chief competitors, a break was made for Horatio Seymour, of New York, who was the president of the convention, and, against his earnest protest, he was unanimously and enthusiastically nominated. General Francis P. Blair, Jr., of Missouri, was nominated for Vice-President. The platform declared in favor of amnesty for all past political offences and for the regulation of the elective franchise in the States by their citizens ; all obligations of the government not expressly stating on their face, or in the law which authorized their issue, that they should be paid in coin to be paid in the lawful money of the United States ; equal taxation of every species of property according to its real value, in- cluding government bonds and other public securities; a tariff for revenue upon foreign imports and such equal taxation under the internal revenue laws as will afford incidental protection to domestic manufactures and as will, without impairing the revenue, impose the least burden upon, and best promote and encourage, the great industrial interests of the country. It arraigned the Re- publican party for its reconstruction legislation and its ex- travagance, and declared the reconstruction acts of Con- gress usurpations, unconstitutional, revolutionary and void. The Republican party held control of the Southern States, 1 94 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. as far as they had been reconstructed and admitted into the Union, by negro suffrage and disfranchisement of the whites, and, although quite a fragment of the party broke away from General Grant because of the Southern policy of the Republicans, he received 3,012,833 votes and Sey- mour received 2,703,249. Of the electoral votes, Grant received 214 and Seymour 80, to wit: New York, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, Louisiana, . Kentucky and Oregon. Virginia, Mississippi and Texas did not vote and the electors of Florida were chosen by the legislature. SAMUEL J RANDALL. CHAPTER XVII. HISTORY UNDER PRESIDENT GRANT, 1 869-1 877. THE first act signed by General Grant after he became President was one declaring that all the notes and interest-bearing obligations of the United States, except when the law authorizing the issue had expressly pro- vided for the payment of the same in lawful money or other currency than gold or silver, should be paid in coin or its equivalent. In both Houses of Congress the Democrats opposed this measure as greatly increasing the burdens upon the people and unjustly adding to the wealth of the bondholders. When General Grant became President all the Southern States had been reconstructed and admitted to representation in Congress except Vir- ginia, Texas and Mississippi. In, these States there had been a delay in adopting their new constitutions because they contained disfranchising clauses. Congress authorized the President to submit to a separate vote *such portions of their constitutions as he pleased, and added the require- ment that they should ratify the Fifteenth Amendment as well as the Fourteenth. By January 30, 1871, all the States had been readmitted and reconstruction by Congress was complete. (i97) jgg THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. The limits assigned to this article will not permit us to dwell upon the history of the South under reconstruction. Suffice it to say that for the next five or six years there was a saturnalia of profligacy and corruption combined with a perfect travesty of free government in those States of the South where negro suffrage controlled and where the " carpet-bagger " who, with very rare exceptions was a political adventurer without character and bent only on plunder, directed the legislation of the States, and where the army of the United States was used by the President to prop up this worthless and corrupt pretence to State government. Bonds were issued as long as there was a market to negotiate them in, and in one single State (South Carolina) the debt increased $25,000,000 between 1868 and 1872. The Southern policy of the administra- tion gradually alienated a large and most respectable section of the party, and in 1872 an effort was made to defeat General Grant for re-election, and a section of the Republican party calling themselves Liberal Republicans met and nominated Horace Greeley, of New York, and B. Gratz Brown, of Missouri, as candidates upon a plat- form arraigning the President and the Republican party in severe terms for their partisan control of the admin- istration ; for keeping alive the passions and resentments of the war to use to their own advantage, and for making the Civil Service the instrument of partisan tyranny, per- sonal ambition and an object of selfish greed. They de- manded a system of Federal taxation which shall not nec- essarily interfere with the rights of the people, and which shall provide the means necessary to conduct the ex- GRANT'S ADMINISTRATION. T gg penses of the government, and, recognizing that there are irreconcilable differences of opinion on the subject of pro- tection and free-trade, remitted the discussion of that subject to the people in their Congressional districts. The Demo- cratic Convention in 1872 met at Baltimore, July 9, and adopted the platform and nominated the candidates of the Liberal Republican party. A small convention of Democrats who would not support Greeley nominated Charles O'Conor, of New York, and John Quincy Adams, of Massachusetts. The Republican Convention met at Philadelphia, on June 5, and renominated General Grant, with Henry Wilson, of Massachusetts, as candidate for Vice-President. All the States, for the first time in our history, chose electors by popular vote in 1872 ; Gen- eral Grant receiving 3,597,132, Greeley 2,834,125, and O'Conor 29,489. As declared by a joint session of the two Houses, General Grant received 286 electoral votes, and Horace Greeley having died before the votes were cast, the opposition vote was distributed as follows : Thomas A. Hendricks, 42; B. Gratz Brown, 18; Charles J. Jenkins, of Georgia, 2, and David Davis, of Illinois, 1. Some contest was made over the reception of the votes of several of the States, and the votes of Louisiana, where there were two sets of electors, and Arkansas were excluded, as also three votes in Georgia cast for Mr. Greeley. The second election of General Grant was apparently a greater triumph than his first election ; he had received a larger majority at the polls and a larger majority of the electoral vote. For the first and only time in its history, 200 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. the Democratic party declined to go into a Presidential contest with candidates of its own, and expressed its hope- lessness of securing a party victory by endorsing Horace Greeley — its lifelong enemy, with whom it had no bond of sympathy at present, except that of opposition to the con- tinued unfriendly legislation of the Republican party toward the South ; to its succession of force bills, and its use of the army to uphold the plundering carpet-bag governments, whose misrule and almost unbearable wrongs had naturally aroused some unlawful resistance, which was in turn greedily seized upon to justify military interference and to inflame the people of the North against the South. Although the contest at the polls in 1874 was a most disastrous one for the Democratic party, it gained many permanent accessions from the liberal Republicans, some of whom have since been honored in its ranks and influential in its counsels. The exposure of the Credit Mobilier scandal, upon an investigation made by a committee of Congress at the ses- sion after the Presidential election, whereby it was shown that shares in a corporation formed to construct the Union Pacific Railroad had been disposed of to members of both Houses, at nominal prices, in order to secure their friendly legislation for the railroad company; the growing prosti- tution of the Civil Service to partisan purposes, and the building up of a " boss system," whereby Senators and Representatives controlled the distribution of the federal patronage in their States and districts and in the depart- ments at Washington ; the growing dissatisfaction with the financial legislation of the Republican party, and the panic of 1 883 — all contributed to bring the Republican party 73 GRANT'S ADMINISTRATION. , 2 OI and the administration into discredit with the people. The elections of 1874, both State and Congressional, resulted in a great " tidal wave " of victory for the Democrats, and gave them control of the House of Representatives in the Forty-fourth Congress by a majority of 72 votes. When Congress met in December, 1875, there was a growing faith among the Democrats that they would be successful in the next Presidential campaign. Michael C. Kerr was made Speaker of the House, and the fruits of Democratic control in that branch of Congress were soon visible in the disappearance of the lobby, and in the substantial reduction of public expenditures. Both parties were preparing for the coming contest, but the discovery of an extensive " whiskey ring," organized, through collusion between dis- tillers and revenue officers, to defraud the government of revenue and to secure favorable legislation, ending in the trial of several persons, among them the President's private secretary, General O. E. Babcock, who, however, was ac- quitted ; the impeachment of the Secretary of War, General W. W. Belknap, for selling a post tradership at Fort Sill, and his escape from conviction by the Senate by his hasty resignation, and other scandals of like character, added to the growing confidence of the Democrats. The series of scandals in which the Republican party and its administration were involved may well be portrayed in the words of one of its leaders, uttered at the very time and on a momentous public occasion. These words of Senator Hoar are especially instructive because he is the same Senator who, in the recent debate on the Fisheries question in the Senate, July 10, 1888, blushed for Cleve- 202 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. land's administration as one which robs American citizen- ship of all its glory, in contrast with that of Grant, and because in his article in the volume on the " Republican Party: Its History," etc., edited by Governor Long, this same Senator constitutes the Republican party of the virtue and intelligence of the country, the Democratic party of its crime and ignorance. No Democrat has ever been compelled to draw such a picture of a Democratic admin- istration. No enemy of that party has ever found in its history the materials for such a picture. SPEECH OF SENATOR HOAR IN BELKNAP IMPEACHMENT TRIAL, MAY 6, 1876. " My own public life has been a very brief and insigni- ficant one, extending little beyond the duration of a single term of Senatorial office. But in that brief period I have seen five judges of a high court of the United States driven from office by threats of impeachment for corruption or mal- administration. I have heard the taunt, from friendliest lips, that when the United States presented herself in the East to take part with the civilized world in generous com- petition in the arts of life, the only product of her institu- tions in which she surpassed all others beyond question was her corruption. ... I have seen the Chairman of the Com- mittee on Military Affairs in the House, now a distinguished member of this court, rise in his place and demand the ex- pulsion of four of his associates for making sale of their official privilege of selecting the youths to be educated at our great military school. When the greatest railroad of the world, binding together the continent and uniting the two great seas which wash our shores, was finished, I have seen our national triumph and exultation turned to bitter- ness and shame by the unanimous reports of three com- mittees of Congress — two of the House and one here — that every step of that mighty enterprise had been taken in fraud. I have heard in highest places the shameless doc- trine avowed by men grown old in public office that the GRANT'S ADMINISTRATION. 203 true way by which power should be gained in the Repub- lic is to bribe the people with the offices created for their service, and the true end for which it should be used when gained is the promotion of selfish ambition and the grati- fication of personal revenge. / have heard that suspicion haunts tJie footsteps of the trusted compa?iions of the Presi- dent!" As the time for nominating candidates drew near, it be- came evident that some of General Grant's friends were bent upon breaking down the precedent established by the un- selfish patriotism of Washington and Jefferson by presenting his name for a third term ; and General Grant himself wrote an ambiguous letter which, to say the least of it, did not discourage the idea; but a resolution adopted by the House of Representatives, declaring any departure from the time- honored custom established by Washington and other Pres- idents by retiring after their second term unwise, unpatriotic and fraught with peril to free institutions, by the decisive vote of 234 to 18, ended the third term agitation for this campaign. Accordingly, quite a number of competitors sprang up for the Republican nomination, the chief candi- dates being Mr. Blaine, Mr. Morton, Mr. Bristow, and Mr. Conkling. As the balloting proceeded it was apparent that it was the field against Blaine ; and, on the seventh ballot, the field concentrated upon Governor Rutherford B. Hayes, of Ohio, who received 384 votes to 351 for Blaine and 21 for Bristow. The nomination of Mr. Hayes was made unanimous and William A. Wheeler, of New York, was nominated for Vice-President. In the Democratic Convention, which met at St. Louis, Governor Samuel J. Tilden, of New York, who had attracted 204 THE NATI0NAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. the attention of the whole country by his vigorous, honest, and surpassingly able reform administration in that State, received more than a majority on the first ballot and the necessary two-thirds on the second, and was nominated amid great enthusiasm. Thomas A. Hendricks, who had con- tested for the first place with Mr. Tilden, was nominated for Vice-President. The platform adopted at St. Louis was a more distinctively Democratic platform than any upon which the party had planted itself since the nomina- tion of Mr. Buchanan, and marks an epoch in the rehabil- itation of the party. It demanded reform in every depart- ment of the public service, and in none more emphatically and clearly than in the sum and mode of federal taxation ; it denounced the existing tariff, levied upon nearly 4,000 articles, as a masterpiece of injustice, inequality, and false pretense ; " it has impoverished many industries to subsi- dize a few; it has prohibited imports that might purchase the products of American labor ; it has degraded American commerce from the first to an inferior rank on the high seas ; it has kept down the sale of American manufactures at home and abroad, and depleted the returns of American agriculture, an industry followed by half of our people ; it costs the people five times more than it produces to the treasury; obstructs the processes of production and wastes the fruits of labor. . . . We demand that all custom- house legislation shall be only for revenue." The result at ;the polls gave Governor Tilden 4,300,590 votes, Governor Hayes .4,036,298 votes, and Peter Cooper, who had been nominated by the Greenback party, 81,737 votes. The Democrats had >tas carried the election at the GRANT'S ADMINISTRATION. 20$ polls and had an undoubted majority in the electoral college ; and now begins the darkest chapter in the political history of our own country, and, indeed, of popular government in the world. In three of the Southern States — Louisiana, South Carolina and Florida — the Republican party still had control of the election machinery, through State Returning Boards, and as soon as it was discovered that Governor Tilden needed one vote from these States to elect him a conspiracy was organized by the Republican leaders to use the Returning Boards of these States, composed en- tirely of their own creatures, and generally of men of the most abandoned character, to defraud the Tilden electors of their certificates and to bestow them upon the Hayes electors. The successive steps by which this great political crime was accomplished will not be here narrated. Suffice it to say that in both Louisiana and Florida, where an undoubted majority of votes was cast for the Tilden electors, they threw out upon one ' or another pretext enough to reverse the result and gave the certificates to the Hayes electors. During the time when the canvassing of votes in these States was in progress certain "visiting statesmen," as they were called, went to them, professedly to see that a fair count was made; but if any Republican statesman, with the sole exception of General Barlow, of New York, exercised his influence in favor of a fair count, and not in favor of the larceny of the votes of these States by his party, the fact has never been disclosed. In addition to the moral support of these statesmen, United States soldiers were at hand to protect the Boards while engaged in the perpetration of this flagitious crime. 206 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. As there were disputed and double returns, when Con- gress met, the second session of the Forty-fourth Congress was chiefly devoted to this election contest, and a basis of agreement was finally settled upon in an act providing for a tribunal to be composed of five members of each House, selected by itself, and five justices of the Supreme Court of the United States, four of whom were designated in the act, with authority to choose the fifth, which constituted an Electoral Commission to decide, m all disputed cases, which was the true and lawful electoral vote of a State. This commission, as finally constituted, consisted, on the part of Congress, of Senators Edmunds, Morton, and Fre- linghuysen, Republicans, and Senators Thurman * and Bayard, Democrats, from the Senate ; Messrs. Henry B. Paine, Eppa Hunton, Josiah G. Abbott, Democrats, and James A. Garfield and George F. Hoar, Republicans, from the House. The Justices of the Supreme Court designated in the act were Nathan Clifford, William Strong, Samuel F. Miller and Stephen G. Field, who chose as the fifth member Joseph P. Bradley. Politically, Clifford and Field were Democrats, and Miller, Strong and Bradley were Republicans. The commission was thus composed of eight Republicans and seven Democrats, and by this party vote, in which the Judges of the Supreme Court showed themselves as thorough partisans as the members of either House, every disputed question was decided in favor of the Republicans, and all the doubtful votes were given to * Senator Thurman's health failed during the sitting of the Commission and his place was supplied by Senator Kernah. GRANT'S ADMINISTRATION. 207 Hayes, whereby he was declared to have had 185 votes to 184 for Tilden. The Republican Senate and Democratic House not con- curring to set aside the determination of the Commission in any of the disputed cases, its judgment decided the con- test and Rutherford B. Hayes was inaugurated President of the United States on the 4th day of March, 1877, and the first great Democratic victory went for naught. Among the first acts of the new President was to reward, with lucrative offices," the creatures who had been con- cerned in the election frauds, and in the lottery of distri- bution the "visiting statesmen" were not overlooked, but were provided with foreign missions, cabinet appointments and other prominent positions. CHAPTER XVIII. HISTORY UNDER PRESIDENT HAYES, 1877-1881. WHILE Mr. Hayes thus became President through the action of partisan Returning Boards in Louisiana and Florida, confirmed by the ruling of a partisan ma- jority in the Electoral Commission, the Democratic State officers in both of these States, and eventually also in South Carolina, assumed possession of the State govern- ments on the withdrawal of the federal troops, which took place soon after his inauguration, in accordance with an order previously given by President Grant and renewed by him. With the withdrawal of troops the era of Repub- lican reconstruction and carpet-bagism closed in the South, and the race troubles, which had led to violence in some sections and added to political bitterness over the whole country, vanished, and the whites and blacks, living to- gether in peaceful relations, laid the foundations of the prosperity of the new South, which has been so gratifying a feature of our political and industrial history in the past decade. Although the Democrats had been deprived of their victory in the Presidential contest they found themselves with a majority in both Houses of the Forty-sixth Con- (20S) HAYES' ADMINISTRATION. 211 gress, and immediately organized an assault upon the laws yet remaining upon the statute-books that interfered with the freedom of elections. Aware that bills directly repeal- ing these laws would be vetoed by the President, they attempted, through " riders " on the appropriation bills, to compass their repeal. On the bill making appropriations for the support of the army they put a clause repealing the law allowing the army to be used to keep the peace at the polls ; to the legislative bill they added a provision repealing the authority to federal supervisors to count the votes at Congressional elections and to federal marshals to arrest at the polls; and to still another bill was attached a prohibition of payment to federal marshals "for services in connection with elections." All of which drew vetoes from the President, and the Appropriation Bills finally passed without them ; but, at a late session of the same Congress, a law was passed to prevent the use of the army to keep the peace at the polls, with the proviso that it should not be construed to prevent the constitutional use of the army to suppress domestic violence in a State. Hayes had shown some desire in the beginning of hi? administration to atone for any defect in his title by a conciliatory policy toward the South, and by some moder- ation of partisanship in the bestowal of offices, but as this had the effect of alienating his party from him he soon retraced his steps and regained the support of the Re- publicans by these partisan vetoes. The Greenback party attained its greatest strength during this administration — casting nearly 1,000,000 votes in the State elections of 1878. Just prior to the resumption of specie payments it 212 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. put General Jas. B. Weaver, of Iowa, in the field for President, with B. J. Chambers, of Texas, for Vice-Presi- dent, in 1880. A most determined effort of the stalwart wing of the Republican party to nominate General Grant for a third term was now made. The Republican Convention met at Chicago, June 5, 1880, and for thirty-six ballots Grant received a vote ranging from 304 to 313, generally rest- ing at 306 ; Conkling and Logan being his leading sup- porters. Blaine was the next highest candidate ; beginning with 284 votes, but never increasing that number. On the 36th ballot Jas. A. Garfield, of Ohio, who was a member of the convention, was nominated, receiving 399 votes ; Chester A. Arthur, of New York, was selected for Vice-President as a concession to the friends of Gen- eral Grant — especially to Mr. Conkling. The Democratic Convention met at Cincinnati. There was no decided current toward any candidate, as Mr. Tilden had declined a nomination. General Hancock led from the start, Mr. Bayard being second, and was nomi- nated on the third ballot amid great enthusiasm. Wm. H. English, of Indiana, was nominated for Vice-President. The platform adopted denounced the grand fraud of 1876-77 in general and in detail, and declared in favor " of Home-Rule ; honest money, consisting of gold and silver and paper convertible into coin on demand; the strict maintenance of the public faith, State and National ; and a tariff for revenue only." Everything at first seemed to promise the election of General Hancock. As the campaign proceeded his sup- HAYES' ADMINISTRATION. 213 porters became more enthusiastic; his enemies could find no flaw in his record, and his many knightly qualities strongly appealed to popular admiration, and when the Republicans were beaten in the September election in Maine the hopes of his supporters grew into confidence. Both Ohio and Indiana, however, were carried by the Republicans in the October election — the latter State, as it was charged and believed by Democrats, through the abundant expenditure of money and by systematic corrup- tion. The Grant men held somewhat aloof in the be- ginning, but rallied to the support of Garfield in the closing weeks of the campaign. The popular vote gave Hancock, 4,444,952 votes; Gar- field 4,454,416; Weaver, 308,578. Of the electoral vote, Garfield had 214; Hancock, 155. CHAPTER XIX. HISTORY UNDER PRESIDENTS GARFIELD AND ARTHUR, 1881-1885. AS already stated, the election of General Garfield was secured by the lavish expenditure of money in Indiana and other doubtful States and by the efforts of the Grant wing of the party in the closing weeks of the campaign. When the new President announced his Cabi- net, with Mr. Blaine as Secretary of State, it was clear that the peace patched up between the two wings of the party was a precarious one, and the brief remaining period of President Garfield's life was soon embittered by a con- troversy between himself and Mr. Conkling as to Federal appointments in the State of New York, which led to the resignation of Mr. Conkling from the Senate and a long and bitter contest over the election of his successor in the Legislature of that State. The bullet of Guiteau removed General Garfield and ended his adminis- tration before the breach between the two sections of the party became as complete and bitter as it promised to become, and although the administration of President Arthur tended greatly to heal party dissensions and to re- store party harmony, this factional schism was not without its influence in throwing the vote of New York against the (214) PEP : WILLIAM R. MORRISON. GARFIELD AND ARTHUR'S ADMINISTRATION. 217 Republican party in the following campaign. Little need be said of the history of parties during the administra- tion of President Arthur, as there were few subjects of legislation or of public policy upon which party lines were strictly drawn. The existence of large surplus revenues called public attention very forcibly, in the beginning of this administra- tion, to the necessity of revising federal taxes and reform- ing the tariff system, which was a legacy of the careless and random legislation inevitable during the war and in the years thereafter. The first message, therefore, of Pres- ident Arthur declared that the time had come when the people may justly demand some relief from their onerous burdens, and urged upon Congress a revision and re- duction of tariff taxation. Congress itself attempted no relief, but responded to these recommendations and to the pressure of public opinion by the act of May 5, 1882, es- tablishing a tariff commission to " take into consideration, and to thoroughly investigate, all the various questions re- lating to the agricultural, commercial, manufacturing, min- ing and industrial interests of the United States, so far as the same may be necessary to the establishment of a judi- cious tariff or a revision of the existing tariff on a scale of justice to all." If there be any one blot upon the record of President Author, whose administration it must be conceded was generally a respectable and honorable one so far as he was personally concerned, it will be found in the manner in which he selected the nine members of this this commission — giving to the protected industries of the country a large majority of the commission through men 2i8 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. selected by them, or identified with them, while the in- comparable mass of taxpayers in the country had no rep- resentation in the commission charged with the important duty of revising that system of taxation which the Presi- dent had already declared an onerous burden upon them. Had President Cleveland in selecting the members of the Inter-State Commerce Commission allowed the great rail- road corporations of the country to dictate to him the names he should send in to the Senate, he would have done ex- actly what President Arthur did in constituting the tariff commission. That commission, framed as it was, was com- pelled to report to Congress at its session in December, 1882, a scheme of tariff duties in which reduction was professed to be the distinguishing feature, averaging, as it declared, not less than 20, and possibly 25 per cent. The short session of the Forty-seventh Congress was accord- ingly taken up with the question of tariff revision, result- ing in the existing law, known as the act of March 3, 1883, which under the skillful manipulation of the lobbies sent to Washington by the protected industries, aided by their friends and representatives in both Houses of Con- gress, and finally consummated in the secret recesses of a conference committee, made but a nominal reduction, if any, in tariff taxes, and none whatever in the protective bounties. The elections in the fall of 1882 were a repe- tition of the great tidal wave victories of 1874, and in the Forty-eighth Congress, which reassembled in December, 1883, the Democratic majority in the House was nearly as large as it had been in the Forty-fourth Congress, and Mr. John G. Carlisle, of Kentucky, distinguished as an advocate GARFIELD AND ARTHUR'S ADMINISTRATION. 219 of tariff reduction, was selected by them as their candidate for Speaker. The Committee on Ways and Means, of which Colonel Wm. R. Morrison, of Illinois, was Chair- man, was accordingly organized with reference to the re- vision and reduction of the tariff. The Secretary of the Treasury, in his annual report to Congress, had declared that the bill of March 3, 1883, had not relieved the treasury of excessive revenues, so the question still presses as to what reduction is necessary to relieve the people of unnecessary taxes. But, although there was a large ma- jority of tariff reformers in the ranks of the Democratic party, they did not constitute a majority of the House and. were unable to carry through the bill reported from the Committee of Ways and Means, or to prevent the striking out of its enacting clause when its consideration for amendment was begun. President Arthur was a candidate for renomination by his party and received a strong support throughout the country, but Mr. Blaine led from the start, receiving on the first ballot 334^ votes to 278 for Arthur, with smaller votes for some half dozen other candidates, and was nomi- nated on the fourth ballot by a clear majority over all. General John A. Logan, of Illinois, received the nomina- tion for the Vice-Presidency. The convention met at Chi- cago on the 3d of June, and its platform pledged the Re- publican party to correct the irregularities of the tariff and to reduce the surplus — being otherwise a thorough protective platform. The nomination of Mr. Blaine immediately produced a bolt from the Republican party, and the Democratic Con- 220 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. vention, which met at Chicago on the 8th of July, nomi- nated on the second ballot Grover Cleveland, Governor of New York, and Thomas A. Hendricks, of Indiana, con- sented to accept the nomination for Vice-President. The platform declared in favor of taxation limited to the re- quirements of economical government and the necessary reduction of taxation without depriving the American laborer of the ability to compete successfully with foreign labor, and without the imposition of rates of duty which would invite foreign immigration in consequence of the higher rates of wages prevailing in this country. It further declared that sufficient revenue to pay all the expenses of the Government could be gotten from custom-house taxation on fewer imported articles, bearing heaviest on articles of luxury and lightest on articles of necessity. Subject to these limitations, and recognizing the fact that many industries had come to rely on legislation for suc- cessful continuance and that any change of law must be regardful of the laboring classes, the platform declared that Federal taxation should be exclusively for public purposes; it favored the setting apart of all the money derived from the internal revenue for the relief of the people from the remaining burdens of the war and for funds to defray the expense of the care and comfort of the soldiers disabled in the line of duty in the wars of the republic, and for the payment of such pensions as Congress might from time to time grant to such soldiers — any surplus to be paid into the treasury. That section of the Republican party, em- bracing no small part of its intelligence and moral worth, which refused to support Mr. Blaine received the designa- GARFIELD AND ARTHUR'S ADMINISTRATION. 2 2I tion of " Mugwumps," and as the canvass proceeded it was most unsparingly ridiculed and coarsely denounced by its late party associates. There were also defections from the ranks of the Democratic party, so that the issue was in doubt from the beginning, but finally resulted in the elec- tion of Cleveland and Hendricks, who received 4,874,986 votes at the polls to 4,851,981 votes for Blaine and Logan. In the electoral vote Cleveland received 219 to 182 for Blaine. Two other candidates were voted for — John P. St. John, of Kansas, as Prohibitionist, receiving 150,369 votes, and Benjamin F. Butler, nominee of the National party, received 175,370. The election of Cleveland was hailed by the Democrats throughout the country with un- speakable rejoicing, and his inauguration, on the 4th of March following, gathered in Washington a concourse such as no previous similar occasion had brought to that city. CHAPTER XX. HISTORY UNDER PRESIDENT CLEVELAND, MARCH 4, 1885. THE return of the Democratic party to power with the election of Grover Cleveland will always mark an epoch in the history of the country. It signalled the close of the war, the wane of sectionalism as a power in Amer- ican politics, and the coming in of a national in the place of a sectional party. For the first time since 1861 repre- sentative men from the South appeared in the cabinet and shared in the honors and responsibilities of the administra- tion. The position of the new President was one of un- usual burden and beset with difficulties which the people have not yet fully comprehended and appreciated. He was himself a stranger, not only to his position but to all his surroundings and to the leaders and prominent men of his party. That party for nearly a quarter of a century had been the party of criticism and the party of opposition, too weak at times to interpose serious obstruction to the measures and policies of the dominant party. It had been returned to power not so much for the ideas and policies it represented, as because the people were weary of sec- tionalism, alarmed at the usurpations, and resentful of the centralization and rank Federalism of the Republican (222) GROVER CLEVELAND. CLEVELAND'S ADMINISTRATION. / 225 party and its subservience to special interests, and those the interests of consolidated capital as against the people. The shameless jugglery by which, in 1883, it had pretended to reduce taxes, while really making the masses more trib- utary to the protected interests, and labor more tributary to capital, had also alienated many from its ranks. It was natural, therefore, that upon its first return to power the Democratic party, made up of all the elements of opposi- tion to the practices and policies of the past twenty years, should lack something of the homogeneousness and organic unity of a party organized upon clear and definite lines of public policy. The great majority of the party was undoubtedly true to Democratic principles, but there were co-operating with it many who were rather anti-Republicans than real Democrats. It is to the credit of the President that, while he has steadily and faithfully administered the government upon those plain, rigid, business principles that had marked his official career as Governor of New York and are of the essence of practical Democracy, he has also shown himself a party leader, not in the machine sense of the term, but as the exponent of ideas and policies, and that the Democratic party in 1888 is no longer a combina- tion of loosely-tied forces of opposition to the Republicans, but a great living organism, instinct with life, with enthu- siasm, and rallied upon great principles which it under- stands, believes in, and is eager to champion. The several articles which follow give, under their ap- propriate heads, some of the positive achievements of this administration, and a recital of them here would be need- less repetition. The reform of the Civil Service, the re- 14 226 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. building of the navy, the recovery of squandered public lands, the administration of our Pension system for the relief and benefit of real soldiers, the spirited but • dignified conduct of foreign affairs, all these are treated with other matters in detail. Perhaps no more perplexing question met the President on the threshold of his great trust than that of removals and appointments to office, and doubtless there is none in which he has been more harshly and unjustly judged, both by the spoilsmen of his own party and the theoretical Civil Service reformers of the country. His position was very different from that of Mr. Jefferson and General Jackson when they came into office succeeding adverse administrations. While both Jefferson and Jackson found the Civil Service full of the appointees of the opposite party, the abuses of the service were nothing compared to those which had grown up with successive Republican administrations. During all those administrations Democrats had not only been un- sparingly excluded from positions in the government from the highest to the lowest, but these positions had been parcelled out as rewards for active, vindictive partisanship against them. The 100,000 or more office-holders had been organized into a standing army, used in every elec- tion by the Republican party to beat back the people and help maintain the party's supremacy. In every politi- cal campaign federal office-holders had swarmed through- out the country doing party work, and making themselves especially active and offensive at the polls. An all-perva- sive, merciless and coercive system of political assessments had sought out the cross-roads postmaster and tolled his CLEVELAND'S ADMINISTRATION. 227 meagre salary to swell the campaign funds. Even In the midst of the Presidential contest of 1880, General Gar- field, who made high professions as a Civil Service re- former, had inquired of " My Dear Hubbell," how the departments were doing, that is to say, how liberally or promptly the clerks and employes were meeting their as- sessments. Great party bosses pensioned their partisans on the public service, and called them off at will to man- ipulate primaries, set up conventions and carry elections. Moreover, no party ever became more thoroughly imbued with the old Bourbon idea " I am the State " than the Republican party had become. Not only to its leaders but to its rank and file, Democrats were not merely members of an opposing political organization ; they stood upon a lower plane of citizenship ; were not entitled to assert and enjoy the same rights of citizenship as them- selves. True, the enormities of these abuses had at- tracted public attention and some efforts had been made under Grant and Hayes to suppress the most glaring of them, but except when some individual official attempted to remedy them in his own office, which was seldom, little had been accomplished until a footing was obtained for reform by the passage of the Pendleton Bill in March, 1883, introducing the merit system for admission into some departments of the public service, and the presidential campaign of 1884 had disclosed as many and as extreme exhibitions of offensive partisanship as any in the history of our country. The Commissioner of Pen- sions took charge of the Republican campaign in the great and doubtful October States of Ohio and Indiana, 228 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. first offering his resignation, to take effect after the presi- dential election, but holding on to his office throughout the campaign, with all its compulsory, suggestive or persuasive influence over the tens of thousands of pension applicants in these States. Such was the condition of the service when President Cleveland, an outspoken and earnest champion of Civil Service Reform, was inaugurated, in 1885. His own party not unnaturally, and, to its credit be it said, with no greater pressure than had marked the change from one Republican administration to another, ex- pected him to brush aside that ostracism which had systematically excluded them from office. There were some who looked only to a just equilibrium in the ser- vice, while others as fully imbued with belief in the spoils system as their opponents had shown themselves demanded a clean sweep and an immediate change in all the departments of the public service. Over against these were the extreme theoretical Civil Service reformers who looked with suspicion, and in a carping spirit, upon any removals, and would have had the President attempt to conduct his administration with the official service which the Republicans had built up, not upon the merit system, but by the most outrageous application of the spoils system. The President could not expect to satisfy either extreme, and clearly he did not desire to do so. He did not hesitate to replace Republicans whose com- missions expired with appointees of his own party; he did not hesitate to remove those whose faithlessness to official duty, or perversion of their positions to partisan purposes or active, personal participation in partisan poli- SAMUEL S. COX. CLEVELAND'S ADMINISTRATION. 23I tics, had in his judgment disqualified them for positions under a Democratic administration. But it is not fair to the President nor conductive to the advancement of true Civil Service reform, to cite merely the number of changes he has made in a Civil Service, infected from top to bottom with partisanship and long trained in the idea that service to party was paramount to service to the public, without also considering the different basis of qualification on which the President has rested his appointments, and how carefully he has endeavored to make personal fitness rather than partisan activity the ground of selection. There is more Civil Service reform in this than in declining to remove improper officials. Impartial history will record that a Democratic President coming into power at the head of a party which had been offensively excluded from all political positions under the government for twenty-four years; which in every cam- paign had been fought and harried by the Pretorian band of federal office-holders, and had been the victim of every conceivable wrong of the spoils system, by his moderation in removals, his painstaking care in appointments, and his enforcement of thorough business ideas in every department of the public service, has given to Civil Service Reform a far deeper root and a far more permanent and healthy growth than any of his predecessors, whose inaugurations only marked the transfer of the chief magistracy from one to another member of the same party. No one who con- trasts the Presidential campaigns of 1884 and 1888 can fail to note how far the hand has moved forward on the dial, and whatever the result of the election may be, he can- 232 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. not believe that it will ever move backward again. This has been the work of Grover Cleveland. One other matter will be briefly noticed here, as not coming particularly in the scope of any of the special articles of this volume, and that is the President's position on the question of tariff reform. Beginning with his first annual message the President has urged upon Congress the reduction of surplus revenues by a reduction of the burdens of taxation. The subject has grown upon the President as it has upon the country, and his message of December, 1887, omitting the general survey of federal affairs usual in such a communication, was devoted exclu- sively to this great subject. No communicatioji from the White House ever had a more magical effect upon parties in the country. The Democratic party, the hereditary champion of the people, felt the throbbings of a new life in its veins. Once more as in the days of Jefferson against Federalism, as in the days of Jackson against the bank, it was summoned by a leader to fight for equal rights against privilege and monopoly, to fight the battles of the people against the money power, and it responded loyally to the summons. With over 70 majority in the House of Repre- sentatives in the Forty-eighth Congress it had been able to give only general debate to a tariff reduction bill ; with over 40 majority in the Forty-ninth Congress it had not been able even to consider such a bill ; but with a majority of less than 15 in the Fiftieth Congress it triumphantly and by a practically solid party vote carried through the House a bill revising and reducing tariff taxes. The Republican] party was also galvanized into new life by the President's ^®fei Mm ALLEN G. THURMAN. CLEVELAND'S ADMINISTRATION. 2 $$ message. Its leaders eagerly seized the prospect of return- ing to power through alliance with the great protected in- dustries of the country, and by the aid of those subsidized interests which will earnestly throw their great resources of men and means to the aid of any party that will guar- antee them a continuance of those bounties from the public treasury and fight for the maintenance of their monopolies. There was no other candidate thought of than President Cleveland when the National Democratic Convention met at St. Louis in June, 1888, and he was renominated unan- imously and amid great enthusiasm upon a platform en- dorsing his message and approving the Mills' bill for tariff reduction as its practical interpretation. Allen G. Thurman, of Ohio, whose name for many years has been a synonym of old-fashioned Democratic faith, and a name to conjure with among the masses of the party, was chosen for Vice-President on the first ballot. The Republican Convention met at Chicago, June 19, and on the eighth ballot nominated Benjamin Harrison, of Indiana, for President, with whom it joined Levi P. Morton, of New York, for Vice-President. Its platform declared in favor of an ultra protective policy and a liberal system of appro- priations. Clinton B. Fisk, of New Jersey, and John A. Brooks, of Missouri, were nominated for President and Vice-President by a Prohibition Convention which met at Indianapolis May 30. And thus the Democratic party, having found not only leaders but a great cause, has been transformed from a party of Opposition into a party of positive policies and 236 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. aggressive courage. As such it appeals to the people, whose battle it is righting, and in an especial manner to the youth and the intelligence of the land. In its success are involved not only the issues of just and equal taxation, but the more momentous question whether the race in life shall still be kept open and unhindered to the poor and humble, or the chasm between the rich and the poor grow steadily wider and more difficult to cross, as the power of the government is thrown in favor of the former and against the latter. pa*t II. eURRENT ISSUES AND POME& (237) JEFFERSON CHANDLER. CHAPTER I. THE FEDERAL CONSTITUTION. Hon. Jefferson Chandler, LL. D. TT has been declared by one of the wisest of modern statesmen that the Constitution of the United States is the greatest work ever struck off at a given time by the brain and purpose of man. This system of American government, resting upon the sovereignty of the people, defined and limited by State, and Federal constitutions, is the first in the world's history to deny the dogma of unlimited power in government. It is the first to correctly define and locate sovereignty, and to fix its seat in the consent of the governed. It is the first to reduce pure democratic doctrines to a political philosophy, and to declare that governments are instituted to secure to mankind rights with which they are endowed by their Creator and over which State jurisdiction does not and cannot extend. It is the first to proclaim the existence of an area of per- sonal liberty and a jurisdiction superior to, and above the State, presided over by private judgment, in which free, religious and other opinions, the right of exemption from personal control and the right to pursue , happiness, are sheltered, by constitutional immunity, from govern- C24O 242 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. mental invasion. It is the first to divide, and at the same time to compound, Federal and State sovereignty in one system, and to make the whole unassailably strong, by exacting of the Federal government pro- tection of all the States, and by building each State upon the affections of the people thereof. This system is little, if any, less than a revelation. Into it are imported the ripest and wisest conclusions of our race, gathered from every field of human knowledge. To preserve this system is the highest ambition and duty of the American people. Every great political contest brings the principles of our institutions and civilizations up for review, and in- vites a comparison of the relative fidelity of the great contending parties to them. Parties may divide on the methods of administering the government, and their success or failure leave no permanent impression on the system itself. But con- tinued party success on convert, or declared disrespect of the system, or any of its parts, will, in a brief period, work the overthrow of the whole. The su- preme issue in American politics now is, and will always be, a correct understanding and the preservation of the government itself. The Constitution of the United States and its construction, have been the special political battle ground of the last twenty years. The center of the conflict has been, and now is, the Con- stitutional rights of the States. It is the object of this article to review this THE FEDERAL CONSTITUTION. 243 struggle and from its history to demonstrate two prop- ositions — first, that the creed of the Democracy is the gospel of the Constitution, that the Democratic party has attained and will retain power, because a majority of the people of the United States so believe ; and, second, that the Republican party has been re- duced to a minority because of its betrayal of the Constitution, and that it has degenerated into a rev- olutionary force. . As a basis for these conclusions it will be assumed that the fidelity to the Constitution of the United States includes and requires fidelity to the rights of the States, that the whole government, State and Fed- eral, is a unit, that State and Federal sovereignty are but different hemispheres of one system, and that neither can sustain injury without suffering to both ; that each moves in its sphere under the full con- stitutional sympathy and protection of the other. The Federal Constitution contains provisions not only interdicting the Federal Government from attacking the States, but it has provisions also which require the Federal Government to uphold and sustain the States. •In "Lane County vs. Oregon, 7 Wall., 76" the Supreme Court say, " The people of the United States constitute one nation, under one government, and this government within the scope of the powers with which it is vested is supreme. On the other hand, the people of each State compose a State, having its 244 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. own government, and endowed with all the functions essential to separate and independent existence. The states disunited might continue to exist ; without the states, in union, there could be no such political body as the United States." * * * * " To them nearly the whole charge of interior regulation is committed or left ; to them and to the people all powers not expressly delegated to the National Government are reserved. The general con- dition was well stated by Mr. Madison in the Federalist thus : ' The Federal and State Governments are in fact but different agents and trustees of the people, constituted with different powers and designated for different purposes '," " Under the constitution, though the powers of the State were much restricted, still, all powers not dele- gated to the United States, nor prohibited to the States, are reserved to the States respectfully or to the people, and we have already had occasion to remark at this term, that ' the people of each State compose a State having" its own government, and endowed with all the functions essential to separate and independent existence ', and that ' without the States in union, there could be no such political body as the United States'. Not only, therefore, can there be no loss of separate and independent autonomy to the States through their union under the Constitution, but it may be not unreasonably said, that the preservation of the States and the maintenance of their governments are as much within the design and care of the Constitution as the preservation of the Union and the maintenance of the National Government. The Constitution in all its provisions looks to an indestructable Union, composed of indestructable States." Texas vs. White, 7 Wall., 725. A wrongful substitution of Federal power for ex- clusive State authority is, to the extent of such sub- THE FEDERAL CONSTITUTION. 245 stitution, revolution ; and when such substitution is made or attempted, to achieve or retain political ascendancy, it is a crime against the government. If it be done with a lack of understanding of the Constitution, it shows such unpardonable imbecility as to make the party doing it ineligible to the confidence of the American people. The Democratic party believe with the founders of the Republic and the Supreme Court, that " a State has the same undeniable and unlimited jurisdiction over all persons and things within their territorial limits as any foreign nation, except as surrendered or restrained by the United States Con- stitution." N. Y. vs. Miln, 11 Pet., 139. Upon this plain and impregnable ground the Demo- cratic party has stood through its entire career. It has taught these doctrines to generations and has in every forum contended for them. It can without exageration be said that its political creed has at all times expressed them. These doctrines are the life of American civilization. On the contrary, the Republican party is the enemy of the States. It teaches that the assertion of State independence is in some way a menace to the Federal Government. It has while in power, in order to continue its supremacy, enacted legislation destructive of the States, and which, if judicially sustained, would have extinguished State sovereignty. Its political teachings are derisive of State independence, and inimical to locate self-government. Republican teaching reduces the States to a crouch- 246 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. ing and obsequous relation to the Federal Government. It insiduously propogates the heresy that loyalty to the States is disloyalty to the Union. All this will be confirmed by the platformes, enactments and decisions thereon hereafter presented. It will appear that the policy of the past is threatened for the future, and that the paramount issue in the campaign of 1888 is: Shall the States rest secure under constitutional limitations and continue the prosperity and composure resulting therefrom, or will a new crusade against them be inaugurated by a restoration of the Repub- lican party to power ? A Republican Congress passed, and a Republican President approved, May 31st, 1870, an act reported in 16th Statute at Large, page 140, sections 3 and 4, of which are as follows : The third section is to the effect that whenever, by, or under, the Constitution, or laws, of any State, &c, any act is, or shall be, required to be done by any citizen as a prerequisite to qualify or entitle him to vote, the offer of such citizen to perform the act required to be done " as aforesaid " shall, if it fail to be carried into execution by reason of the wrongful act or omission " aforesaid " of the person or officer charged with the duty of receiving or permitting such performance, or offer to perform, or acting thereon, be deemed and held as a performance, in law, of such act ; and the person so offering and failing as afore- said, and being otherwise qualified, shall be entitled to vote in the same manner, and to the same extent, THE FEDERAL CONSTITUTION. 247 as if he had in fact performed such act ; and any judge, inspector, or other officer of election whose duty it is to receive, count, &c, or give effect to the vote of any such citizen, upon presentation by him of his affidavit stating such offer, and the time and place thereof, and the name of the person or officer whose duty it was to act thereon, and that he was wrong- fully prevented by such person or officer from per- forming such act, shall if vote be refused wrongfully for every such offence, forfeit and pay, &c. The fourth section provides for the punishment of any such person who shall, by force, bribery threats^ intimidation, or other unlawful means hinder, delay, &c, or shall combine with others to hinder, delay or obstruct any citizen from doing any act required to be done to qualify him to vote or from voting at; any election. These sections it will be seen explicitly invade and take hold in terms, of the reserved power of the State and the individual elective franchise of the people for State officers. It is declared that whenever by or under the Constitution or laws of any State, &c, any act is or shall be required to be done by any citizen as a prerequisite to qualify or entitle him to vote, &c, &c. This enactment attempted by the use of Federal power, to qualify persons to vote who were ineligible under State laws, in State elections, and to control State officers in the conduct of State elections, and to secure a different result in State elections from 15 248 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. the result reached under State authority. It was an attempt to seize the entire election machinery of the States and to put it under Federal supervision. The Supreme Court of the United States, in holding the act unconstitutional, declares that " within its legitimate sphere Congress is supreme, and beyond the control of the Courts ; but if it steps outside of its consti- tutional limitations and attempts that which is beyond its reach, the Courts are authorized to, and when called upon in due course of judicial proceedings must, annul its encroachments upon the reserved power of the States and the people." United States vs. Reese, et al. 92 U. S., page 221. On page 219, the Court say: " The statute contemplates a most impor- tant change in the election laws. Previous to its adoption, the States as a general rule regulated in their own way all the details of elections. Had this encroachment upon the States been upheld by the Supreme Court, it would have made what theretofore were State elections, Federal elections, and the su- preme exclusive constitutional power of States in local elections would have then and there become extinct. The constitutional sovereignty of the States in their own elections would have perished, and State lines practically obliterated. These statutes were the visible beginning of a scheme to centralize the government and work a revolution thereof. They were enacted and at- tempted to be enforced in the South when sectional feeling ran high in the North, and Southern people were THE FEDERAL CONSTITUTION. 249 thought to be helpless. The scheme failed because of the devotion of the South to the rights of the States, and because of the patriotism of the Supreme Court of the United States. To further project Federal authority into the ex- clusive domain of State sovereignty, and to subvert the same, the Republican party pushed through Con- gress, and had approved April 20th, 1871, an act, part of which was afterwards included in the Revised Statutes of the United States, and is known as Sec. 5519, which reads as follows: — Section 5519 of the Revised Statutes is in the fol- lowing words: "If two or more persons in any State or Territory conspire to go in disguise on the high- way or on the premises of another for the purpose of depriving, either directly or indirectly, any person or class of persons, of the equal protection of the laws, or for the purpose of preventing or hindering the constituted authorities of any State or Territory from giving or securing to all persons within such State or Territory, the equal protection of the laws, each of said persons shall be punished by a fine of not less than $500, or more than $5,000, or by imprisonment with or without hard labor not less than siz months or more than six years, or by both such fine or imprisonment." This act reached into the domestic government of the State, and if operative, took out of State juris- diction, acts of alleged violence, committed by one 250 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. individual against another, and transferred jurisdiction thereof from the State, to the Federal courts. It went further, and set the Federal Government up as a judge of whether persons had hindered the consti- tuted authorities of a State from giving or securing to all persons the equal protection of the laws. It undertook to make the Federal courts judges of — first : whether a State had failed to give security to all persons within the State, and, second : whether it had been hindered in giving such security by the persons charged before the Federal courts. Two or more per- sons being indicted in a Federal court under this enactment for "hindering the constituted authorities of a State from giving or securing to all persons within such State or Territory the equal protection of the laws," the State, though not a party to the . proceed- ing, was put on trial for failing to give security to all persons within its limits, and after proof of such failure, which the State could neither deny or explain, the only remaining step necessary to be taken to authorize a conviction of the parties accused, was to trace such alleged failure of the State to the defend- ants on trial. The alleged neglect of the constituted authorities of the State to do their duty was made an element of the charge. This so-called law required the Federal court to decide what privileges and immu- nities citizens of a State had and held under State laws ; it required said Federal courts to decide when the duty of the constituted authorities of the State THE FEDERAL CONSTITUTION. 25 I act in administering their own laws, arose, and fur- ther, that the persons charged had conspired to hinder said authorities in the discharge of that duty. This act held the Southern States, where its inforcement was attempted, in degradation from the date of its passage until 1882, when it was by the Supreme Court of the United States declared unconstitutional. United States vs. Harris, 106, U. S., pages 629-644, wherein it is said : " Section 5519, according to the theory of the pros- ecution, and as appears by its terms, was framed to protect from invasion by private persons, the equal privileges and immunities under the laws, of all per- sons and classes of persons." The extent to which this legislation went in pros- trating and superceding State authority and in sup- planting it with Federal power, is described in the language -of the judges themselves: " Upon this question, United States vs. Reese, 92 U. S., 214, is in point. In that case this court had under consideration the constitutionality of the third and fourth sections of the act of May 31st, 1870, 114, now constituting sections 2007, 2008, 5506 of the Revised Statutes. The third section of the act made it an offence for any judge, inspector, or other officer of election, whose duty it was under the cir- cumstances therein stated, to receive and count the vote of any citizen, to wrongfully refuse to receive and count the same ; and the fourth section made it an offence for any person by force, bribery or other unlawful means to hinder or delay any citizen from voting at any election, or from doing any act required to be done to qualify him to vote." The indictment in the case charged two inspectors 252 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. of a municipal election in the State of Kentucky with refusing to receive and count at such election the vote of William Garner, a citizen of the United States, of African descent. It was contended by the defendants that it was not within the constitutional power of Congress to pass the section under which the indictment was based. The attempt was made by the counsel for the United States to sustain the law as warranted by the Fifteenth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States; but this court held it not to be appropriate legislation under that amend- ment. The ground of the decision was that the sections referred to were broad enough not only to punish those who hindered and delayed the enfranchised colored citizen from voting on account of his race, color, or previous condition of servitude, but also those who hindered or delayed the free white citizen. The Court, speaking by the Chief Justice, said: "It would certainly be dangerous if the legislature could set a net large enough to catch all possible offenders, and leave it to the courts to step inside and say who could be rightfully detained and who should be set at large. This would, to some extent, substitute the judicial for the legislative department of the govern- ment. The courts enforce the' legislative will, when ascertained, if within the constitutional grant of power. But if Congress steps outside of its constitutional limitation and attempts that which is beyond its reach, the courts are authorized to, and when called THE FEDERAL CONSTITUTION. 253 upon must, annul its encroachments upon the reserved rights of the States and the people." And the court declared that it could not limit the statute so as to bring it within the constitutional power of Congress, and concluded : " We must, there- fore, decide that Congress has not as yet provided by appropriate legislation for the punishment of the offences charged in the indictment." This decision is in point, and, applying the principle established by it, it is clear that the legislation now under consideration cannot be sustained by reference to the Thirteenth Amendment to the Constitution, There is another view which strengthens this con- clusion. If Congress has constitutional authority under the Thirteenth Amendment to punish a conspiracy between two persons to do an unlawful act, it can punish the act itself, whether done by one or more persons. A private person cannot make Constitutions or laws, nor can he with authority construe them, nor can he administer or execute them. The only way, therefore, in which one private person can deprive another of the equal protection of the laws is by the commis- sion of some offence against the laws which protect the rights of persons, as by theft, burglary, arson, libel, assault, or murder. If, therefore, we hold that Section 5519 is warranted by the Thirteenth Amendment, we should by virtue of that amendment, accord to Congress the power to 254 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. punish every crime by which the right of any person to life, property or reputation is invaded. Thus, under a provision of the Constitution which simply abolished slavery and involuntary servitude, we should, with few exceptions, invest Congress with power over the whole catalogue of crimes. A construction of the amend- ment which leads to such a result is clearly unsound. There is only one other clause in the Constitution of the United States which can, in any degree, be supposed to sustain the section under consideration ; namely, the second section of Article 4, which declares that "the citizens of each State shall be entitled to all the privileges and immunities of citizens of the several States." But this Section, like the Fourteenth Amendment, is directed against State action. Its object is to place the citizens of each State on the same footing with the citizens of other States, and inhibit discriminative legislation against them by other States. Paul vs. Virginia, 8 Wall, 168. Referring to the same provision of the Constitution, this Court said, in Slaughter House Cases, ubi supra, that it "did not create those rights which it called privileges and immunities of citizens of the States. It threw around them in that clause no security for the citizen of the State in which they were claimed or exercised. Nor did it confess the power to control the power of the State governments over the rights of its own citizens. Its sole purpose was to declare to the several States that whatever rights, as you grant THE FEDERAL CONSTITUTION. 255 or establish them to your own citizens, or as you limit or qualify, or impose restrictions on their exer- cise, the same, neither more nor less, shall be the measure of the rights of citizens of other States within your jurisdiction." It was never supposed that the Section under con- sideration conferred on Congress the power to enact a law which would punish a private citizen for an in- vasion of the rights of his fellow citizen, conferred by the State of which they were both residents on all its citizens alike. We have, therefore, been unable to find any con- stitutional authority for the enactment of Section 5519 of the Revised Statutes. The decisions of this Court above referred to leave no constitutional ground for the act to stand on. The point in reference to which the Judges of the Circuit Court were divided in opinion must, therefore, be decided against the Constitutionality of the lazv" On the 1st of March, 1875, Congress, still in the hands of the Republican party, enacted what is known as the Civil Rights Bill. This statute asserted the supreme legislative authority of Congress, without ex- * ception, over all the public and quasi-public institutions of the States. Section 1, reads: "Section i. That all persons within the jurisdiction of the United States shall be entitled to the full and usual enjoyment of the accommodations, advantages, facilities, and privileges of inns, public conveyances on land or water, theatres and other places of public 256 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. amusement ; subject only to the conditions established by law, and applicable alike to citizens of every race and color, regardless of any previous condition of servitude." If valid it operated throughout the Union and ap- plied to all the States alike. In describing its scope the Supreme Court holding it invalid, say : " An in- spection of the law shows that it makes no reference whatever to any supposed or apprehended violation of the Fourteenth Amendment on the part of the States. It is not predicated on any such view. It proceeds ex directo to declare that certain acts committed by individuals shall be deemed offences, and shall be prosecuted and punished by proceedings in the Courts of the United States. It does not profess to be cor- rective of any Constitutional wrong committed by the States ; it does not make its operation to depend upon any such wrong committed. It applies equally to cases arising in States which have the justest laws respect- ing the personal rights of the citizen, and whose authorities are ever ready to enforce such laws, as those which arise in States which may have violated the prohibition of the amendment. In other words, it steps into the domain of local jurisprudence, and lays down rules for the conduct of individuals in society towards each other and imposes sanctions for the en- forcement of those rules, without referring in any manner to any supposed action of the State or its authorities. "If this legislation is appropriate for enforcing the THE FEDERAL CONSTITUTION^ 257 prohibitions of the amendment, it is difficult to see where it is to stop. Why may not Congress with equal show of authority enact a code of laws for the enforcement and vindication of all rights of life, liberty and property ? If it is supposable that the State may deprive persons of life, liberty and property without due process of law, (and the amendment itself does suppose this), why should not Congress proceed at once to prescribe due process of law for the protec- tion of every one of these fundamental rights in every possible case, as well as to prescribe equal privileges in inns, public conveyances and theatres ? The truth is, that the implication of a power to legislate in this manner is based upon the assumption that if the States are forbidden to legislate or act in a particular way on a particular subject, and power is conferred upon Congress to enforce the prohibition, this gives Congress power to legislate generally' upon that sub- ject, and not merely power to provide modes of redress against such State legislation or action. The assump- tion is certainly unsound. It is repugnant to the Tenth Amendment of the Constitution, which declares that powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively or to the people." And further, on pages 18 and 19 and 25, of the same case — " If the principles of interpretation which we have laid down are correct, as we deem them to be, (and they are in accord with the principles laid down in 258 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. the cases before referred to, as well as in the recent case of United States vs. Harris, 106, U. S., 629), it is clear that the law in question cannot be sustained by any grant of legislative power made to Congress by the Fourteenth Amendment. That Amendment prohibits the State from denying to any person the equal protection of the laws, and declares that Con- gress shall have power to enforce, by appropriate legisla- tion, t.he provisions of the Amendment. The law in question, without any reference to adverse State legisla- tion on the subject, declares that all persons shall be entitled to equal accommodations and privileges of inns, public conveyances, and places of public amuse- ment, and imposes a penalty upon any individual who shall deny to any citizen such equal accommodations and privileges. This is not corrective legislation ; it is primary and direct; it takes immediate and absolute possession of the* subject of the right of admission of inns, public conveyances, and places of amusement. It supersedes and displaces State legislation on the same subject, or only allows it permissive force. It ignores such legislation, and assumes that the matter is one that belongs to the domain of national regulation. Whether it would have been a more effective protec- tion of the rights of citizens to have clothed Congress with plenary power over the whole subject, is not now the question. What we have to decide is, whether such plenary power has been conferred upon Congress by the Fourteenth Amendment, and in our judgment, it has not. THE FEDERAL CONSTITUTION. 259 On the whole, we are of opinion that no countenance of authority for the passage of the law in question can be found in either the Thirteenth or Fourteenth Amendment of the Constitution ; and no other ground of authority for its passage being suggested, it must necessarily be declared void, at least so far as its operation in the several States is concerned." All these conflicts were had in the South. This and similar legislation made the South politically solid against the party seeking to dismantle the Southern States. The South was compelled to elect between the overthrow of State independence, and resistance in the Courts to the legislation which, if sustained, accomplished their overthrow. Moved by a deep devo- tion to home rule, the Southern people contested, at every step, the invasion, by the Republican party of the right of local self-government ; in this they nave been vindicated by the Supreme Court of the United States. In saving the independence of their own States, they preserved that of all the States. Massa- chusetts and Maine owe their present measure of sovereignty to the intelligence and valor of the South. This policy of State extinction by abuse of Federal power, was inaugurated and attempted to be executed in the alleged interest of the colored people. Passing over the absurdity that the negro would gain by the destruction of State governments, and the centraliza- tion of all power at Washington, the immediate political and moral effect upon him of the policy, was 260 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. pernicious to the last degree. It arrayed him against the whites, divided the people of the South into hostile classes, and produced commercial and industrial torpor. The colored man saw rising before his vision great Federal promises of favoritism to himself. He was to be taken under the jurisdiction of the Federal Govern- ment, under circumstances which gave no jurisdiction to that government, over his white neighbor. He was taught by the Republican party, that the central govern- ment was his friend, and the State his enemy ; that those who opposed these unconstitutional Federal statutes were inspired alone by a desire to oppress him. The white people saw the colored population used by the Republican party, as the pretext for as- sailing their own liberty, and as a consequence acrimony between the races grew, and solid opposition to Republican assaults upon the States was built up. Baneful race irritation continued so long as this legisla- tion survived, and until the Republican party retired from power. Since then all has changed in the South. The cause of strife perished with the causes that produced it. That region is no longer the theatre of political tumult. Race passion has subsided and is supplanted by order and composure. Distrust of the State is yielding to respect for the State. The benefi- cence of uniform laws is felt everywhere alike. The colored people have learned that the promises made to them by the Republican party have been broken ; THE FEDERAL CONSTITUTION. 26 1 that their salvation depends upon the same great laws of nature and principles of government which operate to develope and advance the white race ; that they are simply citizens with the whites, and must thrive or recede under the same laws and decrees of justice that apply to others; that the primitive order of things cannot be disturbed or changed for their con- venience. They will learn that Democracy is their reliance ; that their liberty is as much bound up in the preservation of the States as is that of other classes. There is but one political creed known under Heaven, and among men, whereby freedom can be preserved ; the crowning principle of that creed is man's government of himself. Centralized power in the few is tyranny to the many. Self rule in the masses is liberty for all. This fact has its support in the laws of nature ; it is accepted by, and is a conclu- sion to which civilized man has come. It is known that human capacity is only quickened, nourished and enlarged by employment and use ; that experience is the most efficient tutor ; that to fit man for govern- ment, he must participate in government. As men cannot excel in law, in medicine, in commerce and other pursuits, without the qualifying and fertilizing supply of wisdom appropriated from experience, so intelligence to govern is produced by thinking of, and participating in, government. Physical powers unused decay ; moral strength is converted into moral weak- ness by moral lassitude. Mental vigor is lost by 262 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. sloth. The continued activity of free thought and free execution of thought is the only soil in which intelligence can be grown. Freedom to act in govern- ment stimulates thought on the subject of government and enriches capacity for government, This is the Democratic principle. This practice makes man his own keeper and governor, and strengthens his efficiency to govern. It enlists him on the side of his own preservation and that of his children, and makes his own intelligence his own protector. His own preserva- tion is pi'o ta?iio the preservation of the State. In the execution of this policy, home rule has its seat in the self interest and affection of the citizen. Government of the people for the people, has its highest exemplification in the system of State govern- ments prevailing in this country. The integrity of this system is the hope and reliance of this people. It declares and embodies most favorable conditions of progress. It rests upon changeless laws, which if obeyed bring life, liberty and intelligence to a people, but which, if disobeyed, bring political dissolution and death. A brilliant French writer once said: " Such, O man, who enquirest after wisdom, have been the causes of the revolutions of those ancient States, of which- you contemplate the ruins ! Upon whatever spot I fix my view, or to whatever period my thoughts recur, the same principles of elevation and decline, of prosperity and destruction, present them- selves to the mind. If a people were powerful, if an THE FEDERAL CONSTITUTION. 263 empire flourished, it was because the laws of conven- tion were conformable to those of nature ; because the government procured to every man respectively the free use of his faculties, the equal security of his person and property. On the contrary, if an empire has fallen to ruin or disappeared, it is because the laws .were vicious or imperfect, or a corrupt govern- ment has checked their operation. If laws and government at first rational and just have afterwards become depraved it is because the alternative of good or evil derives from the nature of the heart of man, from the succession of his inclinations, the progress of his knowledge, the combination of events and cir- cumstances, as the history of the human species proves." The right of local self or State government is the specific and distinct excellence of the American system. The Government called the United States can have no existence without the States. In the case of the County of Lane vs. the State of Oregon, 9 Wallace, 96, the Supreme Court of the United States use this language : "The States disunited might continue to exist; without the States in union there could be no such political body as the United States." It therefore follows that the enemies of the States are the enemies of the Union ; that to the extent and degree that the States are pillaged of their independence, to that extent and degree is the Union broken down. Will the intelligent people of this time support a party 16 264 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. whose pledge is to make Federal power dominate the States ? The Republican party enters the campaign of 1888 pointing exultantly to its past record of encroach- ment upon the States. Will the young men of this country passing out of the colleges and great institu- tions of learning into the ranks of parties, take up with their youthful valor the cause of the Constitution, or will they lend the dash and enthusiasm of their position to its overthrow ? Will those who toil for a livelihood, and whose lot is made more happy here by the beneficence of our institutions than it could be in any other part of the habitable globe, rally under the banner of State destruction, or will they array their majestic influence on the side of home government ? The great issue pending is the Constitution, the preservation of the States, and of civil liberty itself. The centralizing and revolutionary tendency of Re- publican policy is manifested further and anew, in the tariff plank of its platform of 1888. It declares for " Such revision of the tariff laws as will tend to check imports of such articles as are produced by our people ;" this declaration assumes the existence of Federal power to restrain and altogether inhibit, without regard to the power to raise Federal revenue, importation of merchandise by the people of all the States, which is of like character with merchandise produced in this .country, in some of the States. It asserts for the first time in the life of the government, the proposition .that ^Congress possesses jurisdiction to THE FEDERAL CONSTITUTION. 265 decree in what commerce shall consist, and to build, if it so decide, a commercial wall around the republic- The power to tax imports, however, implies the right of the people to receive imports subject to Federal duties imposed ; the power to regulate inter- national and interstate commerce, implies the right to carry on commerce subject to uniform regulations. The foregoing declaration of the Republican party steps beyond the power to tax, beyond the power to regulate commerce, and asserts authority in the Federal Government to prohibit international commerce altogether. It declares that Congress has power to favor one class of producers in this country, by shutting off foreign competion with them utterly. This power, if it exist, has no constitutional limitations; it is bounded only by the discretion of Congress. If it may be invoked to suppress competition against industries, now in progress, it may also be used to quicken and inaugurate products of all kinds, at any cost, whether now known here or not. The Federal Government, under this assumption of power, becomes the patron of commerce, with the right to select the industries that meet its favor, and blight and kill those upon which its dis- favor falls. The only power Congress possesses over imports is to tax and regulate them. Taxes are burdens or charges imposed by the law-making power upon persons or property to raise money for public purposes, or to accomplish some governmental end. The power to tax is limited to public purposes, and 266 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. in extent, to governmental needs. The power to suppress competition with domestic industries, as a substantive Federal power, has no constitutional exist- ence. The right to trade with whom one pleases is a Constitutional right that cannot be repealed by- Congress. Judge Cooley on Torts, page 278, says : " It is a part of every man's civil rights that he be left at liberty to refuse business relations with any person whomsoever, whether the refusal rests upon reason or is the result of whim, caprice, prejudice or malice." In Tiedeman's Limitations of Police Power, page 224, Section 91, it is said : " The reader will scarcely need any special elabor- ation of the grounds upon which it is held to be a violation of civil liberty for the government to do any act which is intended to and does restrain im- portations, whatever may be thought of the justice of an import tax, in the abstract, the United States Constitution expressly grants to the United States Government the power to lay such a tax upon all importations. A tariff for revenue, therefore, comes within the legitimate exercise of police power; it is one mode of taxation. But no claim can be success- fully made to an express or implied power to establish a tariff whose object is to restrain importations for the protection of competing home industries." If Con- gress can promote certain industries by legislation not relating to raising Federal revenue, but by legisla- tion forbidding competition with such industries, one THE FEDERAL CONSTITUTION. 267 of two conclusions must follow, either that the in- dustries so favored by the government are public institutions, or that Congress is prostituting its jurisdic- tion to build up private fortunes by nourishing private enterprises. There is no difference in principle between assessing and collecting monies directly to sustain a business, and compelling payments to such business indirectly, by coercive and advantageous business rela- tions with those who carry it on. This avowal of power, in the Federal government, denies to the people of Kansas the right to buy iron except in States, of the Union, where it is produced. Kansas and the great Southwest, may strive to open ports of entry on Southern waters, to reach an open sea and the commerce of the world ; she may shorten her lines of traffic to salt water, to cheapen materials to her consumers ; yet when she has done this, the Federal government, so says the Republican party, may interdict the importation of all articles manu- factured in the State of Pennsylvania, and direct Kansas to buy there, or not at all. Manufactories are not, in the sense of the law, public institutions. Their prosperity is no more to be striven for, in contemplation of law, than is the prosperity of agriculture or other business. The con- stitutional jurisdiction of the Federal Government over them is no greater, or different, than it is over other pursuits. The power to tax was primarily given to the Federal Government, not to work out the welfare 268 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. of any one class of producers or one group of States at the expense of other classes or States, but to supply revenues to keep the Federal machinery moving. One of the causes of the Revolution was the denial by the colonies of the right in England to compel them to buy of her exclusively. The colonies resisted the attempt to limit their commercial freedom, and asserted their right to trade where and with whom they pleased. This right they established by war, and it became a part of our civilization. Monarchical Govern- ments may possess authority, having no constitutional restraints upon power, to suppress commerce with foreign nations, but this Federal republic has no such power. This people have secured to themselves the utmost industrial liberty, subject only to proper public burdens and regulations. Our institutions assume that the people are above the State, and that government is a servant, and not master; that the people subject to equal burdens are free. Whether constitutional objections to the policy pro- posed will avail anything, however, remains to be seen. The Constitution has fallen to a languid estate in public esteem, as a result of twenty years of Re- publican derision of it ; when mentioned now, in or out of Congress, as furnishing restraint upon Federal power, a vulgar laugh follows. No member invokes it without first apologizing to the body to which he belongs. If public respect and official reverence for the Constitution, and its restraints upon ever aggres- THE FEDERAL CONSTITUTION. 269 sive official action, can not be restored, the Govern- ment is lost. The Constitution owes its present state of preservation, entirely, to great, conspicuous members of the Courts. Its ultimate supremacy can only be assured by a pure, learned, and fearless judiciary, imbued with the deepest veneration for our system of government. This will be achieved by continued, conscientious, Democratic rule. The last three years experience has demonstrated this. Under Democratic interpretation and administration of the Constitution, the South, the field where usurped Federal power pro- duced class acrimony, and industrial depression, has been lifted from confusion to composure, from irrita- tion to peace, from commercial stagnation to thrift, from dispair to confidence, and from the reign of arbitrary power to the reign of law. CHAPTER II. THE NATIONAL REVENUES. Hon. John G. Carlisle, Speaker of the National House of Representatives. TF the doctrine of protection be correct, then that doctrine should be carried by its friends to its logi- cal and legitimate results — absolute prohibition of foreign imports. It has been stated by the leaders of the Republican party that such is their purpose, and the purpose of their political associates, if necessary, and that they will preserve in this country all of its own trade and wealth, even if compelled to erect a Chinese wall around it. China preserved all the trade and wealth of her own people within her own limits for thousands of years, and I do not think that the advocates of diversified industries, or the friends of labor, can find much to encourage them in the social and industrial condition of that country to-day. There the doctrine of protection, pure and simple, was carried to its logical results, and it produced its inevitable effects. With the oldest civilization in the world ; with every variety of soil and climate and natural resources ; with a frugal and industrious people ; with a literature abounding in (270) JOHN G. CARLISLE. THE NATIONAL REVENUES. 273 philosophical and speculative thought, the useful arts and manufactures are still in their infancy and labor is still the abject slave of capital. We do not want another China here, nor do we want, or expect, absolute free trade. We all recognize the fact that the Government must have a revenue for its support, and that this revenue must be raised by taxation in some form or other. All taxation is an evil which it would be well to avoid, if possible, and therefore we are simply reduced to a choice between that system which would confine the trade of our own people, in a large measure at, least, to our own limits without increasing the revenues of the Government, and the more liberal system which will make trade and commerce as free as possible consistently with the raising of sufficient revenue for the support of the Government. If our manufacturing, or mining, or any other in- dustries in the country, receive a benefit by the im- position of duties upon imported goods under this system they are entitled to it, and they are welcome to it. It is impossible to impose taxes under any system that can be devised without hurting somebody or helping somebody ; and for my part — and this is the sentiment of my political associates — I would rather help them than hurt them. The actual situa- tion which now confronts us — a situation which makes it the imperative duty of the Representatives of the people to reduce the revenues at once — will be best 274 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. understood from a consideration of the following facts. It appears from the official statements that there has been, since the ist day of December, 1887, an average monthly increase of $11,335,332.15. The surplus ac- cumulation each month under the existing system of taxation is more than the total cost of the Government during the first two years of Washington's admin- istration, while the aggregate sum is considerably in excess of the whole expenditure of the Government during the first eighteen years of its existence under the Constitution, including civil and miscellaneous ex- penses, War, Navy, Indians, Pensions, and interest on the Public Debt. Every dollar of this enormous sum has been taken by law from the productive industries and commercial pursuits of the people at a time when it was sorely needed for the successful prosecution of their business, and under circumstances which afford no excuse what- ever for the exaction. There is not a monarchical government in the world, however absolute its form or however arbitrary its power, that would dare to extort such a tribute from its subjects in excess of the proper requirements of the public service : and the question which must now be determined is whether such a policy can be longer continued here in this country where the people are supposed to govern in their own right and in their own interest. Republican speakers have frequently referred to the enormous surplus now in the Treasury as a matter of THE NATIONAL REVENUES. 275 but little consequence ; and in fact there are some who appear to regard it as a blessing, rather than a misfortune, that we should have more than $130,000,000 of the people's money withdrawn from the channels of trade and securely locked up in the vaults of the Government. I can imagine no financial condition more dangerous to the integrity of legislation and the pros- perity of the country than that which results from the existence of a large surplus in the public Treasury. Even if it were possible for such a surplus as we now have to accumulate without the imposition of any tax or burden upon the people, it would still be, in my opinion, a very great misfortune, because the inevitable effect would be to encourage useless and extravagant appropriations in violation of those principles of public economy which are absolutely essential for the preserva- tion of a popular government with Constitutional limitations upon its powers. If there be any serious danger now threatening our institutions, it is the growing disposition among those who represent particular classes and special interests to disregard the checks and break down the barriers of the Constitution in a promiscuous scramble for a division of the public treasure. Fortunately there is in no part of the country any feeling of opposition to the proper exercise of public authority, either State or Federal. On the contrary, the prevailing tendency is toward the enlargement and extension of governmental power by construction, especially in matters involving the appropriation and expenditure of money. 276 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. When the Government has collected, or is collecting, more money than it needs, the people, realizing the injustice of a policy which unnecessarily deprives them of a part of their earnings, are almost sure to demand its return in some form or other. If the Government may rightfully exercise the power of taxation for other than public purposes, it is difficult to convince those who pay the money that it can not also rightfully exercise the power of appropriation for other than public purposes. It is safe to say, therefore, that so long as this policy shall be continued, not only will largesses and bounties for the promotion of purely private interests be demanded, but new fields for the exercise of legislative power and new objects for the appropriation of the public money will be discovered. But it is said that we still have outstanding a large public debt, and that no great injury can result to the country if the present rates of taxation shall be continued and the surplus revenue shall be used in the purchase of bonds. I agree that so long as we have a surplus its application to the extinguishment of the public debt is the very best use that can be made of it. But I totally dissent from the proposition that it would be wise or just to raise a surplus revenue by taxation merely for the purpose of purchasing at a premium the unmatured bonds of the Government, except so far as may be necessary to meet the re- quirements of the sinking-fund law ; and I am not satisfied that it would not be good policy, if the THE NATIONAL REVENUES. 277 revenue could be properly reduced, to suspend the operation of that law, in whole or in part, for a reasonable time. It is not possible to defend, and it would be ruinous to perpetuate, a fiscal policy which compels the people to pay to the public creditors twenty-five cents on the dollar more than the obliga- tions of the Government call for ; and yet that is just what we are doing and just what we must continue to do unless, the revenue is reduced by the passage of this or some other bill. On the 17th of last April the Secretary of the Treasury, in pursuance of authority conferred upon him by the law of March, 1 881, as interpreted by the two Houses of Congress, issued a circular inviting proposals for the sale of bonds to the Government. The first purchase was made under this invitation on the 1 8th day of April, and within one month from that date he purchased, on account of the Government, 4 per cent, bonds to the amount of $13,456,500, upon which interest had accrued at the date of purchase to the amount of $53,172.07. For these bonds he was com- pelled to pay the sum of $17,046,136.06, which was $3,536,464 more than the principal and accrued in- terest, or a premium of 26^ per cent. During the same time, and under the same authority, he purchased 4 J per cent, bonds to the amount of $12,404,450, upon which interest had accrued to the amount of $108,086.55. For these bonds he paid the sum of !$ 1 3,379,188.37, which was $866,652.37 in excess of 278 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. the principal and interest. The premium paid upon this class of bonds was nearly 7 per cent. This is the situation into which the Government has been forced by the failure of Congress in past years to make provision for a reduction of taxation. Millions of dollars, which ought to have remained in the hands of the people who earned the money by their labor and by their skill in the prosecution of business, have been taken away from them by law, to be paid out to the bondholders in excess of their legal demands against the Government. In the presence of such a situation we can not afford to quarrel about trivial details. A reduction of the revenue — not by increasing taxation, as some propose, but by diminishing taxation in such a manner as will afford the largest measure of relief to the people and their industries — should be the great and controlling object to which everything else should be subordinated. I do not mean that every interest, however small and apparently insig- nificant, should not be carefully considered in a friendly spirit, but I do mean that the general in- terests of the many should not be subordinated to the special interests of the few. Although the question now presented is purely a practical one, it necessarily involves, to some extent, a discussion of the conflicting theories of taxation which have divided the people of this country ever since the organization of the Government. There is a funda- mental and irreconcilable difference of opinion between THE NATIONAL REVENUES. 279 those who believe that the power of taxation should be used for public purposes only, and that the burdens of taxation should be equally distributed among all the people according to their ability to bear them, and those who believe that it is the right and duty of the Government to promote certain private enter- prises, and increase the profits of those engaged in them, by the imposition of higher rates than are necessary to raise revenue for the proper administra- tion of public affairs ; and so long as this difference exists, or at least so long as the policy of the Government is not permanently settled and acquiesced in, these conflicting opinions will continue to embarrass the representatives of the people in their efforts either to increase or reduce taxation. While no man in public life would venture to ad- vocate excessive taxation merely for the purpose of raising excessive revenue, many will advocate it, or at least excuse it, when the rates are so adjusted, or the objects of taxation are so selected, as to secure advantages, or supposed advantages, to some parts of the country, or to some classes of industries, over other parts and other classes ; and this is the sole cause of the difficulties we are now encountering in our efforts to relieve the people and reduce the surplus. It is the sole cause of the unfortunate delay that has already occurred in the revision of our revenue laws, and if the bill now pending shall be defeated, and disaster in any form shall come upon 280 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. the country by reason of overtaxation and an ac- cumulation of money in the Treasury, this unjust feature in our present system will be responsible for it. Whenever an attempt is made to emancipate labor from the servitude which an unequal system of taxa- tion imposes upon it ; whenever it is proposed to secure, as far as possible, to each individual citizen the full fruits of his own earnings, subject only to the actual necessities of the Government, and when- ever a measure is presented for the removal of un- necessary restrictions from domestic industries and in- ternational commerce, so as to permit freer produc- tion and freer exchanges, the alarm is sounded and all the cohorts- of monopoly are assembled to hear their heralds proclaim the immediate and irretrievable ruin of the country. We have been told, over and over again, that the reduction of the tariff on imports will destroy many valuable industries now flourishing in various parts of the country ; that it will deprive thousands of laborers of employment and greatly reduce the wages of those who continue to work. If I believed that a reduction of duties would injure a single honest industry, or reduce the wages of those who are employed in it, I would, notwithstanding the great emergency which confronts us, hesitate long before advocating such a measure. But in my opinion reasonable reductions on dutiable imports, and very considerable additions to the free list, will be beneficial to the manufacturers them- THE NATIONAL REVENUES. 28 1 selves as well as to their laborers and the consumers of their products. It may not be inappropriate in this connection to call attention to a few historical facts connected with our tariff legislation in the past and the effects of low rates of duty upon the prosperity of the people. The highest rates of duty imposed by the tariff act of 1846 upon any class of woolen goods, cotton fabrics, manufactures of leather and of hard- ware, was 30 per cent, ad valorem, and upon most kinds of cotton goods it was only 25 per cent. These were the industries in which New England was most largely engaged, and her Representatives in Congress, except those from the State of Maine, who were divided upon the question, protested against the passage of that act, upon the ground that it would paralyze and ruin these great interests. The Representatives from Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New Hampshire, and Vermont voted unanimously against the bill, with the exception of Mr. Collamer, of Ver- mont, who did* not vote at all. But it passed, never- theless, and became a law ; and now let us see what its effect was upon the most important industries of these great manufacturing States, and what the sub- sequent action of their Representatives was, after an experience of eleven years under these moderate rates of duty. We have no authentic statistics showing the progress made by manufacturing industries between 1846 and 1857 as a separate and distinct period of time, but it 17 282 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. may be fairly assumed that the full force and effect of the new rates of duty were realized at least as early as the census year 1849, and we have the census returns of 1850 and i860, the latter based upon the productions of the year 1859, to which I invite the attention of those who believe that low tariffs destroy manufactures and pauperize labor. During the period mentioned, the value of all our woolen manufactures increased more than 42 per cent., the number of hands employed increased 18^ per cent.. but the total amount of wages paid increased nearly 37 per cent., showing that the percentage of increase in the amount of wages paid was twice as great as the percentage of increase in the number of hands employed. Taking all the New England States together, the increase in the value of the product in this in- dustry was 62 per cent. The increase in Massachu- setts was 54 per cent.; in Rhode Island, 176 per cent. ; in Vermont, 61 \ per cent., and in Maine, 83 \ per cent. In the manufacture of hosiery the progress during the ten years under consideration was almost marvelous. In the Eastern States the increase in the value of the product was 481 per cent. It was 523 per cent, in Connecticut, 377 per cent, in New Hampshire, and 373 per cent, in Massachusetts. What was the effect upon the manufacture of cotton fabrics in New England and in the whole country ? The value of the production in the United States increased 77 per cent., the number of hands employed THE NATIONAL REVENUES. 283 increased 28J per cent., and the total amount of wages paid increased 39 per cent In New England the increase in the value of the product was over 81 per cent., in the number of hands employed 28 per cent., and in the amount of wages paid 36 per cent. Massachusetts increased her product yj per cent., New Hampshire 55 per cent., Rhode Island over 87 per cent., Connecticut 116 per cent., Maine 137 per cent., and Vermont 27! per cent. In the six New England States the increase in the value of the product in the manufacture of boots and shoes was 83 per cent. In Massachusetts the increase was 92 per cent., in Connecticut 10 per cent., in Maine 99 per cent., and in Rhode Island 337 per cent. The production in New England alone in i860 was greater than the aggregate production of all the States of the Union in 1850. In the manufacture of hardware New England increased the value of her product 100 per cent., and in this industry also her product in i860 was greater than the product of all the States in 1850. Instead of paralyzing the industries and pauperizing labor in New England, or any other part of the country for that matter, the tariff act of 1846 infused new life and vigor into our languishing manufactures and secured more constant employment and higher wages to our laboring people ; and the consequence was that even the strong prejudices of New England were removed by actual experience, and in 1857 every 284 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. Representative from that part of the country who voted at all voted for a bill making an almost uniform re- duction of 20 per cent, from the rates imposed by the act of 1846 and placing many additional articles on the free list. I allude to the vote upon the tariff act of 1857, as it first passed the House, a Republican House over which Nathaniel P. Banks, of Massachusetts, presided as Speaker. Five of the six Representatives from Maine voted for it, and the other one, who was absent when the vote was taken, had made a speech in favor of its passage. Nine of the ten Representatives from Massachusetts voted in the affirmative, and the other was in the chair and did not vote. Every Representa- tive from New Hampshire, Vermont, Connecticut and Rhode Island was present and voted for the bill, and among them appears the name of the venerable and distinguished Senator who still serves his State in the United States Senate — Hon. Justin S. Morrill. The bill to which I have referred was sent to the Senate, where it was amended by making a very slight increase in the reduction on certain articles, and, finally, upon agreeing to the conference report, eighteen Representatives from New England voted in the affirmative and nine in the negative. Two-thirds of the men chosen by the people of New England to represent their interests in Congress declared by this vote that a further reduction would be beneficial to their industries, and thus the tariff act of 1857, which THE NATIONAL REVENUES. 285 we have so often heard denounced by our opponents, became the law of the land by the votes of Re- publican and New England Representatives. These Representatives of the greatest manufacturing section of the country had seen their industries grow and prosper as they had never grown and prospered before ; they had seen capital realizing adequate returns upon its investment ; they had seen the num- ber of laborers employed constantly increasing and the rates of wages continually rising, and they had seen at the same time the agricultural and com- mercial interests of the people in all parts of the country flourishing to an extent which the wildest enthusiast had scarcely dreamed of before. All these things they had seen ; but there are other things with which we have grown perfectly familiar in these times of high tariff and class legislation which they did not see. They did not see great monopolies and trusts created to limit the supply and control the prices of the necessaries of life. They did not see enormous fortunes accumulated in a few years by corporations and individuals engaged in favored industries, while the great mass of the people were struggling hard to live comfortably and pay their taxes ; nor did they see, at any time during that period, as we have seen thousands of honest laborers parading the streets of our cities clamoring for work, or assembling around our mines and factories with a hired police to watch them. 286 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. This was the experience of the Representatives from the New England States during the eleven years from 1846 to 1857, under a low tariff; and is it any wonder that by a unanimous vote they demanded a still further reduction in the interest of the manu- facturers ? If space would permit I would quote some of the opinions delivered by the leading representatives of our manufacturing interests during the debate upon the tariff act of 1857, but I will content myself with a few short extracts from the speech of Henry Wilson, of Massachusetts, afterwards Vice-President of the United States, a gentleman who perhaps understood as throughly as any one the real condition and ne- cessities of his constituents. Among other things he said : " The manufacturers, Mr. Chairman, make no war upon the wool growers. They assume that the reduc- tion of the duty on wool, or repeal of the duty alto- gether, will infuse vigor into that drooping interest, stimulate home production and diminish the importa- tion of foreign woolen manufacturers, and afford a steady and increasing demand for American wool. They believe this policy will be more beneficial to the wool-growers, to the agricultural interests, than the present policy. The manufacturers of woolen fabrics, many of them of large experience and extensive knowledge, entertain these views, and they are sus- tained in these opinions by the experience of the great manufacturing nations of the Old World. "Since the reductions of duties on raw materials in England, since wool was admitted free, her woolen manufacturers have so increased, so prospered, that the THE NATIONAL REVENUES. 287 production of native wool increased more than 100 per cent. The experience of England, France, and Belgium demonstrates the wisdom of that policy which makes the raw material duty free. Let us profit by their example." When this speech was delivered wool had been admitted free of duty in England for a period of less than thirteen years, and yet the testimony of this distinguished New England Senator was that it had already doubled the product of native wool in that country. In the same speech he said further : "If our manufactures are to increase, to keep pace with the population and the growing wants of our people ; if we are to have the control of the markets of our own country ; if we to are meet with and compete with the manufacturers of England and other nations of western Europe in the markets of the world, we must have our raw materials admitted duty free or at a merely nominal rate. * * * ■* #■ •* * " We of New England believe that wool, especially the cheap wools, manilla, hemp, flax, raw silk, lead, tin, brass, hides, linseed, and many other articles used in our manufactories can be admitted duty free, or for a merely nominal duty, without injuring to any extent any considerable interest of the country." Further on he said : "In closing, Mr. Chairman, the remarks I have felt it my duty to submit to the Senate and the country, that the Commonwealth I represent on this floor — I say in part, for my colleague, Mr. Sumner, after an enforced absence of more than nine months, is here to-night to give his vote, if he can raise his voice for the interest of his State — has a deep interest in the modification of the tariff of 1846 by this Congress. Her merchants, manufacturers, mechanics and business 288 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. men in all departments of a varied industry want action now before the Thirty-fourth Congress passes away. " They are for the reduction of the revenue to the actual wants of an economical administration of the Government ; for the depletion of the Treasury, now full with millions of hoarded gold ; for a free list embracing articles of prime necessity we do not pro- duce ; for mere nominal duties on articles which make up a large portion of our domestic industry, and for such an adjustment of the duties on the productions of other nations that come in direct competition with the product of American capital, labor and skill as shall impose the least burdens on that capital, la- bor and skill." In the same debate Mr. Morrill, of Vermont, said : " On Sheffield hardware, such as cutlery, edged tools, files, and saws, some protection is needed a little longer, but for this 20 per cent, is ample ; and upon all other kinds 10 per cent., I feel quite sure, is fully sufficient." The present duty on cutlery is 50 per cent., just two and a half times the amount which Mr. Morrill said was fully sufficient more than thirty-one years ago. On files the duty now runs from 52 to 65 per cent., an average of three times the rate specified by Mr. Morrill, and on other hardware is now three times what he thought was necessary. It is customary in all debates on the tariff for the opponents of the Democratic party to depict in the darkest colors the condition of the country during the financial depression of 1857. That depression, from which the country recovered in l a few months, was an insignificant incident in our history in com- THE NATIONAL REVENUES. 289 parison with the great industrial, commercial and finan- cial storm which began here in 1873 and devastated the country for five years, closing mills and factories, extinguishing the fires in our furnaces, ruining bank- ing and mercantile houses, and throwing hundreds of thousands of laboring people out of employment. Under a low tariff our industries soon revived and the country started again, like an awakened giant on its march to wealth and power, but under a high tariff it struggled on for five weary years, and for the first time in its history was brought face to face with those difficult and dangerous social problems which still confront us, and which it will require all the wisdom and patriotism of her ablest and best cit- izens, to solve. It has been repeatedly charged that the credit of the Government was so reduced by the act of 1857 that it was compelled to sell its bonds at a discount of 12 per cent. In a volume issued from the Treasury Department in 1 88 1, while Mr. Windom was Secretary, the history of all the loans negotiated from the time of its or- ganization to the date of its publication is given ; and this account, taken from the official records, shows that from the time of the passage of the tariff act of 1846 until near the close of Mr. Buchanan's ad- ministration, when civil war was imminent, not a bond or Treasury note, or Government obligation in any form, was sold at less than par, while many of them hav- 290 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. ing but a short time to run, and bearing but five per cent, interest, were sold at a very considerable premium in gold. After the passage of the Morrill tariff bill, in •March, 1861, and after the Democratic administration had gone out and a Republican administration had come in, twenty-year bonds, bearing 6 per cent, inter- est were sold at 15 per cent, discount. But would it be fair to charge this to the high tariff of 1 861 ? Would it be fair for me to say that these bonds were sold at a discount because the rates of duty on imported goods had been increased by the act of March 2, 1861 ? The truth is that the credit of the Government was always good until the breaking out of the civil war, or . at least until it became evident that there was to be a great civil commotion in this country. But I have already devoted too much space to this part of the subject. My only excuse for it is there has been so much misunderstanding or misrepresentation con- cerning the history of what our opponents call the " free- trade " period, that it seemed necessary to make some allusion to it. During the last fiscal year the average rate of duty upon dutiable imports was about $48 upon each $100 worth of goods, and the revenue collected from that source was more than $212,000,000. During the same time the Government collected about $119,000,000 under the internal-revenue laws, nearly all of which came from the taxes on distilled spirits, fermented THE NATIONAL REVENUES. 29 1 liquors, and manufactured tobacco. In the fiscal year 1866, which was the first entire fiscal year after the close of the war, the receipts from internal-revenue taxes amounted to nearly $311,000,000, while the receipts from customs or tariff taxes, amounted to $179,000,000, and the rate upon dutiable goods was $40.19 upon each $100 worth. This brief statement shows that while the receipts from customs have largely increased, the receipts under the internal-revenue laws have been greatly dimin- ished, and that the taxes imposed by those laws are now collected from a few articles of luxury, or of taste, the use of which could be almost, if not en- tirely dispensed with without injury to the people. There are many who believe, in view of the large reductions heretofore made in the internal-revenue taxes, and in view of the fact that they are now imposed upon articles of necessity, that the whole reduction now so much needed, and so urgently de- manded by the country, should be accomplished by the revision of the tariff laws ; but the Democratic majority in Congress recognizing and respecting the differences of opinion which exist upon this question, has proposed to deal with both systems of taxation. It proposes to make a reduction of $78,000,000 based upon the receipts of the fiscal year 1887. About $54, 000,000 of this is proposed to be taken from the tariff taxes and about $24,000,000 from the internal- revenue receipts by the repeal of the tax on tabacco 292 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. and the abolition of certain special taxes upon dealers and others. The opposition to this plan has been directed mainly against that part of it which proposes to re- peal or reduce the tax upon certain classes of im- ported goods ; and gentlemen, speaking for the inter- ests which have long ago been relieved of all the burdens imposed upon their industries, earnestly pro- test that the consumers of their products shall have little or no relief. In 1866 there was collected from the incomes of those having net annual receipts exceeding $600 the sum of $72,982,159, and from manufacturers and their products, excluding distilled spirits, fermented liquors, and tobacco, the sum of $127,230,609. Every vestige of this enormous burden upon our manufacturing industries has been removed, and properly removed, but the high rates of duty imposed on imported goods, to compensate for this domestic taxation, have not been removed. It was a very great mistake, to say the least, that they were not both removed at the same time, for after having afforded relief to one side it seems almost impossible to secure relief for the other. There never was a time while these heavy internal taxes remained upon their products that the manufacturers would not have been glad to surrender a large part of the tariff duties in order to secure a removal of the charges upon their industries. In 1867 Mr. Sherman, of Ohio, who was doubtless familiar with the views of those engaged in THE NATIONAL REVENUES. 293 manufacturing industries, said in a speech in the Senate : " Every law imposing a duty on imported goods is necessarily a restraint on trade. It imposes a burden upon the purchase and sale of imported goods and tends to prevent their importation. The expression a free-trade tariff involves an absurdity. " Again he says : " Every duty on imported merchandise gives to the domestic manufacturer an advantage, equal to the duty, and to that extent every tariff is a protective tariff." Again he said on this particular point : " If you converse with intelligent men engaged in the business of manufacturing they will tell you that they are willing to compete with England, France, Germany, and all the countries of Europe at the old rates of duty. If you reduce their products to a specie basis, and put them on the same footing they were on before the war, the present rates of duty would be too high. It would not be necessary for scarce any branch of industry to be protected to the extent of your present tariff law. They do not ask protection against the pauper labor of Europe, but they ask protection against the creation of your own laws." He referred to the internal-revenue laws and the paper currency. All the internal-revenue laws of which the manufacturers then complained have been long since abolished. The business of the country is now, and has been for many years, conducted upon a specie basis, and I submit that the great body of consumers in this country, the men and women who toil in the unprotected industries, have a right now to demand that their claims for relief shall be con- 294 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. sidered in any measure that may be passed for the reduction of the revenue. In a speech delivered in the Senate in 1872 upon this same general subject, Mr. Sherman repeated sub- stantially the same views. He said : It must be remembered that the present duties, taken together, are far in excess of what they were before the war, and that they have been three times largely increased since the passage of the Morrill tariff Act in 1861. The result of such duties is to secure to mechan- ical industries higher wages than can be earned in other kindred employments. Such excessive protection not only ceases to diversify production, but forces labor into protected employments. If the present rate of duty were high enough during and since the war, when home industry was burdened with heavy internal taxes — with stamp duties, income taxes, and high rates on raw materials — then surely they are now too high when all these taxes are removed. I have listened with patience, day by day, to the statements of gentlemen who are interested in our domestic productions. I am a firm believer in the general idea of protecting their' industries, but I as- sure them, as I assure their representatives here, that if the present high rates of duty, unexampled in our country, and higher by nearly 50 per cent, than they were in 1 86 1, are maintained on metallic and textile fabrics after we have repealed the very internal taxes which gave rise to them, and after we have substantially given them their* raw materials free of duties, we shall have a feeling of dissatisfaction among other interests in the country that will overthrow the whole system, and do greater harm than can possibly be done by a moderate reduction of the present rates of duty. And I am quite sure intelligent men engaged THE NATIONAL REVENUES. 295 in the production of various forms of textile and metallic fabrics feel as I do, that it is wiser and better to do what is just and right, to make a re- duction on their products, at least to the extent of the reduction in this bill on their raw materials,, rather than to invite a controversy in which I believe they will be in the wrong." And he also said this, to which I desire to call the particular attention of those who differ from me upon the principles which ought to govern taxation in this country : "The public mind is not yet prepared to apply the key to a genuine revenue reform. A few years of fur- ther experience will convince the whole body of our people that a system of national taxes which rests the whole burden of taxation on consumption and not one one cent on property or income is intrinsically unjust. While the expenses of the National Government are largely caused by the protection of property, it is but right to require property to contribute to their payment. It will not do to say that each person consumes in pro- portion to his means. This is not true. Every one must see that the consumption of the rich does not bear the same relation to the consumption of the poor as the income of the one to the wages of the other. As wealth accumulutes this injustice in the fundamental basis of our system will be felt and forced upon the at- tention of Congress." It seems that our opponents have at last concluded that there ought to be a reduction of the revenue, and some of them have foreshadowed their policy. Its main feature — in fact about its only feature as re- gards the tariff — is the total repeal of the duty on sugar and the payment of a bounty to the producers of that article ; not to the laborer who tills the soil 296 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. and converts the cane-juice into sugar, but to the capitalist who owns the plantation and the refinery. After all their professions of love for the laborer, after all their arguments to show that labor receives the benefit of the tariff, and after all their harrowing description of the deplorable condition to which our laboring classes would be reduced if the tariff were removed, when they come to put their propositions in the the form of practical legislation the mask falls off and the natural features of the system are ex- posed. But what would be the effect of the repeal of the duty on sugar — the effect upon revenue and the peo- ple who are compelled to pay taxes in some form for the support of the Government ? The latest reports, I have at hand showing the total amount of sugar produced in this country and the total amount consumed, are for the year 1886, and from them it appears that the domestic production was 302,754,48(1 pounds, while the total consumption was 3,111,640,000 pounds. It is thus shown that considerably less than one-tenth of the domestic consumption is produced at home, and that the remainder is imported and pays duty at the custom-house. The duty collected during the last fiscal year was $57,000,000 Assuming that the whole amount of the duty is added to the price of the domestic article, it is clear that whenever $1 is taken out of the pocket of the consumer on account of this increased price more than $10 are paid into THE NATIONAL REVENUES. 297 the public Treasury for the support of the Government and the discharge of its obligations. The repeal of this duty, therefore, while it would undoubtedly reduce the revenue, would afford very little relief to the people in comparison with the relief that would be afforded by the repeal of duties upon many other articles in common use. For instance, the duty collected last year upon woolen goods, cotton goods and iron and steel was $62,000,000 ; but this was a very small proportion of the burden actually imposed upon the consumers of these articles. According to the last report of the American Iron and Steel Association there were pro- duced in this country during the year 1887, 2,354,130 gross tons of Bessemer-steel rails. The duty upon this article is $17 per ton. Applying the same rule to this article which I have applied to sugar, that is, that the whole amount of the duty is added to the price of the domestic product, it is easy to see that the increased cost of steel rails alone to the people of this country in 1887 was over $40,000,000, although the Government received only about $1,000,000 revenue from this source. The proposition to pay a bounty of two cents per pound out of the Treasury to the sugar-grower is a confession of all that has been charged against the present system of tariff taxation. It is a confession that the tariff tax is a bounty to the manufacturer or other producers of the domestic article of the same character as the imported article, and it is a confession that the amount of the duty on the foreign 18 298 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. product is added to the price of the domestic one; for if these charges be not true there is no sem- blance of justice or propriety in the proposition to pay a bounty of two cents per pound as a compensa- tion for the repeal of the duty. I am just as' much opposed to the raising of a fund by taxation for the purpose of paying a bounty to the sugar-growers of Louisiana as I would be if it were to be paid to" the cotton-growers of Georgia or the wheat-growers of Minnesota. It is a vicious and demoralizing policy, and can never become per- manent in this country. Those who desire to extend relief to the producers of sugar, and at the same time help all the other people of the country should propose to reduce or repeal the taxes upon the iron and steel implements used in the cultivation of the soil ; upon the machinery employed in the preparation of their crops for the market ; upon the materials used in the construction of their buildings, and upon the clothing which they and their families and laborers are compelled to wear. This would be a general and not a partial measure of relief, and would be credi- table to a great political party which seeks to govern the whole country. The people who are interested in the production of sugar can neither be bribed nor deceived by the offer of a bounty, for they know that their fellow-citizens engaged in other pursuits will not consent to be taxed for any great length of time for any such purpose. THE NATIONAL REVENUES. 299 It has been stubbornly contended that high rates of duty upon imported goods are beneficial to the great body of consumers because such duties, instead of increasing the prices of the domestic articles of the same kind actually reduce the prices. If this be true, all the other arguments in support of the exist- ing system are not only superfluous, but manifestly unsound. The proposition that a high tariff enables the producer to pay higher wages for his labor, and the proposition that it also reduces the prices of the articles he has to sell, which are the products of that labor, are utterly inconsistent with each other, and no ingenuity of the ^casuist can possible reconcile them. Labor is paid out of its own product, and un- less that product can be sold for a price which will enable the employer to realize a reasonable profit and pay the established rates of wages, the businsss must cease or the rates of wages must be reduced. When the price of the finished product is reduced by rea- son of the increased efficiency of labor, or by reason of the reduced cost of the raw material, the employer may continue to pay the same or even a higher rate of wages and still make his usual profits. But the tariff neither increases the efficiency of labor nor reduces the cost of the raw material. I do not deny that prices have greatly fallen during the last fifteen years, not only in this country, but all over the civilized world — in free-trade countries as well as in protectionist countries. Nor do I deny 30O THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. that during the same time the general tendency has been towards an increase in the rates of wages; and this is true also of all civilized countries, free-trade and protection alike. It is not possible for me here to enumerate, much less discuss, all the causes, that have contributed to these results. One of the most efficient causes, in the fact the most efficient cause, is- the combination of skilled labor with machinery in the production of commodities. The introduction and Use of improved machinery has wrought a complete revolution in nearly all our manufacturing industries, and in many cases has enabled one man to do the work which it required one hundred men to do before. I have before me a statement furnished by the United States Commissioner of Labor to the Chairman of the Committee on Ways and Means, showing the value of the product of a week's labor combined with ma- chinery in the same industry. In 1813 one man, working sixty hours, by hand could turn out 3 pounds of cotton yarn, worth $2.25, or 75 cents per pound ; now the same man, if he were living, could turn out in sixty hours with the use of machinery 3,000 pounds of cotton yarn of the same character, worth $450 or 15 cents per pound. The cotton-spinner now receives as wages for his week's work more than three times as much as the total value of the product of a week's work, including the value of the material in 1 81 3 ; and yet labor is far cheaper to the employer now than it was then. Although the employer now THE NATIONAL REVENUES. 30I receives only one-fifth as much per pound for his cotton yarn as he did in 181 3, he realizies from the sale of the products of a week's labor just two hundred times as much as he did then. Another statement prepared by the same official shows the relative production and value of product of a weaver using hand and power machinery, from which it appears that a weaver by hand turned out in seventy-two hours, in 181 3, 5 yards of cotton goods (shirtings), worth $17.91, while a weaver now, using machinery, turns out in sixty hours 1440 yards, worth $108. Substantially the same exhibit could be made in regard to a very large number of our manufactur- ing industries. Is it strange, in view of these facts, that the prices of manufactured goods have fallen or that the wages of the laborers who produce them have risen ? Is it not, on the contrary, remarkable that there has not been a greater fall in prices and a greater increase in wages ? Undoubtedly there would have been a greater reduction in prices and a greater increase in wages if there had been a wider market for the products and a lower cost for the material. The tremendous productive forces at work all over the world in these modern times, and the small cost of manual labor in comparison with the value of the products of these combined forces, can not be realized from any general statement upon the subject. In order to form some idea of the magnitude of these natural and mechanical forces, and the efficiency of manual 302 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. labor and skill when connected with them, let us look at the situation in. six of our own manufacturing industries. In the manufacture of cotton goods, woolen goods, iron and steel, sawed lumber, paper, and in our flouring and grist mills, there were employed, according to the latest statistics, 517,299 persons, not all men, but many of them women and children. This labor was supplemented by steam and water power equal to 2,496,299 horse-power. This is equal to the power of 14,977,794 men ; and thus we find that a little over 517,000 persons of all ages and sexes are performing, in connection with steam and water power, the work of 15,495,093 adult and healthy men. The railroad, the steam-vessel, the telegraph, the improved facilities for the conduct of financial transac- tions, and many other conveniences introduced into our modern systems of production and distribution and exchange, have all contributed their share towards the reduction of prices, and it would be interesting to inquire what their influence has been, if space would permit. Protectionists are in the habit of referring to the great decline in the price of steel rails in this country as conclusive evidence of the facts that the tariff reduces the cost of manufactured products to the con- sumer. They could not, in my opinion, have selected a more unfortunate illustration. In the first place, the price of steel rails has fallen all over the world and especially in England, where they are and always have THE NATIONAL REVENUES. 303 been admitted free of duty. The price there is now and has at all times been much lower than here. In the second place, the price was falling rapidly both here and in England before the imposition of the duty of $28 per ton* by act of Congress in 1870. During the five years next preceding the imposition of that duty the price in England had fallen steadily, year by year, and had declined from $85.65 per ton to $50.37 per ton ; and in the United States the same process had been going on, and the price had fallen from $148.50 per ton in gold in 1864, to $91.17 in 1870. Then the increased duty was imposed, and what was the result ? The price immediately began to raise, both here and in England, so that in 1873 the average price in England was $80.05 P er ton, and the average price here was $103.91 per ton in gold. Then came, in the fall of that year, the great industrial and financial de- pression which arrested the growth and development of the country, suspended the construction of works of internal improvement, paralyzed our industries, and brought down the prices of nearly everything that the people produced. Steel rails, of course, like all other manufactured products, felt the influence of this depres- sion, and the price declined and has never since been as high as it was before. But, we are told that a tariff is beneficial to the farmer because, first, it protects him against competi- tion from the agricultural products of other countries, and, secondly, because, by diversifying our industries 304 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. and increasing the number of persons engaged in other than agricultural pursuits, it furnishes him with a profit- able home market for his products. It can not be necessary for me to make an argument to show that no rate of duty, however high, upon articles which the farmer is compelled to send abroad and sell at foreign prices, can possibly benefit him here at home or else- where. This has been so often shown, and is so thoroughly understood by the farmers themselves, that it would be a waste of time to dwell upon the subject. It is barely possible that at particular points along or near our Canadian border there are times when the small duty on barley, potatoes, hay, and a few other articles prevents competition from the other side of the line ; but if our opponents are correct in their conten- tion that the tariff does not increase the prices of the domestic product, of course this is of no advantage whatever to the American farmer. In fact, according to that argument, if the tariff has any effect at all upon the interest of the farmer in the cases I have mentioned, it reduces the price of his product, and is therefore an injury to him. But I do not agree with them, and I concede that the producer of these articles at the places indicated may occasionally receive higher prices for them than he would receive if there were no duty ; but while they receive this occasional benefit — which is a very slight one even when they enjoy it — they are all the time and under all circumstances subject to the burdens THE NATIONAL REVENUES. 305 imposed by high rates of duty upon articles which they do not produce but are compelled to buy and use. When the advantages are set off against the dis- advantages, the benefits against the burdens, the balance will be very largely on the wrong side. Of course our home market has been constantly improving, and under any system of taxation will continue to improve, to a greater or less extent, with the increase of population and wealth, the extension of the use of machinery, which reduces the cost of production, and the multiplication of facilities for communication and transportation, which reduces the cost of distribution. But how long are our farmers to be compelled to pay tribute to other industries and wait for the creating of a home market that will take all their own products at fair prices ? Among our greatest agricultural pro- ducts are wheat and cotton. They constitute the main reliance of millions of our people for a profitable use of their lands, and many hundred millions of dollars are invested in the soil and buildings and machinery devoted to their production. Taking the average crop of wheat in this country for several years past, and assuming that there shall be no in- crease whatever in production, and that the domestic consumption per capita shall remain just at what it now is, there would still be no sufficient home market for this great agriculture staple until our population had reached nearly one hundred million. The official statistics of the domestic production, exportation, and 306 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. home consumption of raw cotton show that it would require three times as much machinery and three times as many operatives as we now have to convert this material into commercial fabrics here at home ; in other words, we are now compelled to export two- thirds of our product to be manufactured in foreign countries, while one-third only is manufactured at home by all the machinery and labor now employed. In 1880 there were $219,505 invested in cotton manu- factures, and there were employed in that industry 172,554 hands. To work up our present production of raw cotton would require an investment in this manu- facture of $660,000,000 and the employment of 517,662 hands. If we have been more than, one hundred years, part of the time under very high tariffs, in so develop- ing our cotton manufactures as to enable them to take one-third of our product at European prices, how many centuries will be required to enable them to consume the whole product at prices fixed by competition here at home ? When this problem has been solved to the satisfaction of the American cotton-grower, he may listen with patience to the arguments by which pro- tectionists attempt to convince him of the immense advantages of a home market that will never exist. What is to be done with these great agricultural products, and with many others which are now ex- ported, while the farmers are waiting for the home market which the advocates of restrictive legislation have been promising them for so many years ? Are THE NATIONAL REVENUES. 307 the farmers and planters of the North and South to abandon their wheat and cotton lands, or cultivate crops not suited to their soil or climate, while theor- ists are making experiments to ascertain whether or not a home market may not be created by legisla- tion ? They cannot wait, and no matter what pro- tectionists may predict or what they may promise these great industries must go on, and the American farmer must sell his products at any market he can reach and at any price he can get. While admitting that the prices of our exportable agricultural products are fixed in the foreign markets in which they are sold, it has been contended by some that the prices in the foreign market are regulated by the amount of production here. Undoubtedly the amount of production here has some influence upon the prices abroad, but the controlling elements are the world's supply and the world's demands. Our farmers do not compete among themselves alone in the provision markets of Europe. Our wheat-growers, for instance, compete with the wheat growers of Eng- land, France, Germany, Russia, Hungary, India, and all the other grain-growers of Europe and Asia, and their product meets in the open and free markets of the world the products of the poorest-paid labor on the face of the earth. The lately-emancipated serfs of Russia ; the oppressed peasantry of Hungary ; the ryot of India, who lives on millet and rice, wears no garment except a coarse 308 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. cotton shirt, and sleeps on the floor of a bamboo hut — all pour the products of their labor into the free markets of Europe to be sold in competition with the grain from our Western States and Terri- tories. Our agriculturists are not ignorant of the true situation. They know very well that as to all the articles which we are capable of exporting and are actually exporting — and this includes all the principal productions of their industry — the foreign market is just as valuable to them as the home market, for the obvious reason that the prices are fixed abroad, and they receive here only what they could receive there, after deducting the cost of transportation. What the American farmer most needs is a home market in which he can purchase his supplies as cheaply as his competitors purchase theirs ; and if he • cannot secure this, then he simply asks the poor privilege of making his purchases where he is com- pelled to make his sales, and to be permitted to bring his goods home without being compelled to pay unreasonable taxes and fines by his Government for carrying on a harmless and legitimate business. We want not only the home market, but all the markets of the world for the varied products of this great country. We want to send our agricultural pro- ducts, our cotton, and our breadstuffs and our provis- ions to the naked and hungry manufacturing peoples of Europe, and our manufactured products to the ag- ricultural people of South America, Mexico, and Asia. THE NATIONAL REVENUES. 309 We can do this when we determine to trade with other people upon fair terms, but we cannot do it so long as we protect England and other manufacturing countries in the grest markets of the world upon the pretense of protecting ourselves in our own. Let us diminish the cost of production in our agricultural and manufacturing industries, not by diminishing the wages of labor, but by reducing taxation upon the necessaries of life and upon the materials which con- stitute the basis of our finished products, and by re- moving, as far as we can, the restrictions which em- barrass our people in their efforts to exchange the fruits of their own toil which they do not need for the commodities of other countries which they do need. CHAPTER III. THE NATIONAL FINANCES. Hon. William L. Trenholm, Comptroller of the Currency. T^ROM the beginning, when its adherents called them- selves Republicans, the Democratic Party, so named by its enemies in derision, has been the Party of the people. Its constant aim has been to protect and defend the rights, to promote the welfare and happiness of the whole people ; its steadfast dependence has been upon the people united in support of interests common to all. Hence it is a cardinal principle of Democracy to oppose whatever tends to divide the people into classes, to array one fraction of the population against another fraction, or to create or multiply conflicting interests or competing occupations. A divided people is at the mercy of demagogues and schemers — only in union is there strength. The spirit of Democracy is hostile to State or Federal legislation which directly or indirectly gives to particular classes or sections, or to those who are engaged in particular industries or occupations, any preference or advantage over their fellow citizens of other classes, other sections or other employments ; it (3io) WILLIAM L. TRENHOLM. THE NATIONAL FINANCES. 313 is jealous of entangling alliances between the Govern- ment and corporations or other organizations of monop- olistic tendencies ; it is averse to the growth of mutual relations between the Treasury and the Capitalists, whether these latter are or are not united in associations or trusts. It is because the principles of Democracy are rooted in the Constitution; because it draws its vital force from the life and energy and intelligence of the masses; because its aims have always been directed to objects of broad public utility and advantage; because it has condemned sectionalism in every form and fought against cliques and cabals even in its own ranks, when they sought to turn the powers of Government, or the operations of law, to private or corporate advan- tage ; that this great party of the people has survived all the vicissitudes of time and of circumstance and has remained, throughout the entire history of the United States, the only permanent national political organization. The Federalist party had definite objects of temporary importance — when these were accomplished the organi- zation went to pieces. The Whigs arose, flourished awhile and fell asleep. The Republican Party came into power because temporary issues divided the Democracy. The war gave to the Republicans a supreme principle of co-hesion — its results brought them an unparalleled opportunity but the issues of peace produced disin- tegration and led the great body of the people back to the historic and enduring stronghold of Democratic 314 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. doctrine. The Democratic Party is the political home of the plain American citizen. There he is sure of finding shelter and security, there his person is respected, his rights are protected, his interests are promoted. In the sunshine of prosperity he may stray into alluring pastures, but in the night of perplexity, in the storms of adversity, he comes home to the old fold. The ancient creed of pure Democracy recognizes five essentials in Federal finance. ist-^Hard money. 2. — Taxation for revenue only and bearing equally upon all the people in proportion to their means. 3. — No National debt. 4th — Economy in expenditure. 5th — Limitation of appropriations to strictly Federal objects. These fundamental principals are believed by Demo- crats to flow logically and necessarily from the Con- stitution, and the wisdom of adhering to them is claimed to be demonstrated by the history of the Country. Whenever an occasion has arisen for appealing to the people upon an issue squarely involving one of these principles, the Democratic doctrine has been affirmed. The four principles of Democracy, last above men- tioned, will be treated by others, — this paper is confined to the first — Hard Money. Before and during the Revolution, the people of America endured unspeakable distress from the pro- clivity of the Colonial and afterwards, of the nascent State Governments, to issue paper money. Upon one pretext or another, but always covertly THE NATIONAL FINANCES. / 315 in the interests of some favored class or of some astute combination of schemers, every one of the Colonies had been despoiled through the stealthy- process of putting out " bills of credit," and when the Revolution broke out the occasion was promptly used for the same purpose. The Continental Congress met on the 10th of May, and on the 30th the New York delegation, declaring that the States were unable to raise, either by loans or taxation, money enough to meet the demands of the occasion, and that paper currency would have to be resorted to, proposed that such currency should be issued by the Continental Congress rather than by the States separately, because in that way it would probably obtain greater credit. This proposition was adopted with the conditions that the States should take up the issues by means of taxa-_ tion, and on the 22nd of June was authorized the issue of $3,000,000. This was the beginning of what was called continental currency, of which the total issues finally reached the sum of $241,552,280, The States made it a legal tender but they made no effort tq absorb it fry taxa- tion ; on the contrary they issued bills of credit of their own, and thus added to the forces tending to depreciation. As early as January, 1776, only six months after the issue of this currency, and hardly three months after it had gone into general circulation, the bills of credit were found to be so much discredited, that '9 3l6 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. Congress solemnly appealed to the various authorities throughout the Country, to outlaw " every person who should be found so lost to all virtue and regard for his country, as to refuse to receive said bills in pay- ment, or obstruct and discourage the currency thereof." Although this appeal was responded to by the State authorities and produced mob violence of various kinds in different parts of the country, the evil grew rapidly in magnitude, so, that by December of the same year the Government directed General Putnam, then in command of the Army in Philadelphia, to issue an order that if anyone refused to take the government notes in payment for goods, the goods should be for- feited and the person so refusing should be thrown in prison. Month by month and year by year the presses con- tinued to pour forth notes, some pledging the faith and credit of Congress, others expressing the obliga- tion of a State to pay to the bearer a definite sum in pounds, shillings and pence, or in dollars and cents, these notes were disbursed by the Federal and State anthorities, " money " such as it was had never been so plentiful, but instead of disseminating prosperity and happiness it brought a curse upon the people. Depreciation in value, decline in purchasing power, kept pace with the issue of the notes, the less the value the greater the volume of each emission, while every addition to the volume in circulation aggrava- ted the depreciation. THE NATIONAL FINANCES. ' 3 17 The Government was embarrassed, the military de- fence was seriously endangered, and the whole body of the people suffered greatly from the disorder of the currency. Every resource that official and legisla- tive ingenuity could suggest and every device prompted by popular despair was resorted to. Time and again the civil authority of the States intervened and the military power of the Government was exerted, in vain contention against the force of popular distrust. A law was passed fixing the gold value of conti- nental notes, then that very law was accused of caus- ing distrust and aggravating the depreciation. The law was repealed yet the depreciation went on, Com- mittees of safety were organized charged with author- ity to regulate prices, rent, wages and everything else that was measured by money. Among the expedients tried was the formation of associations for the purpose of driving hard money out of circulation upon the theory that if all the operations of society were confined to papef money the decline of the money in value would be prevented. Public meetings were held everywhere and popular odium was directed against everybody and everything except the real cause of the trouble. Dealers in com- modities were especially denounced, for it was wrong- fully charged that these men were speculating upon the public emergency and were making gains out of their distressed compatriots, while in reality the un- happy wretches were simply engaged in futile though frantic efforts to escape ruin. 318 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. Finally in 1780, when the continental money had fallen in value, to about $40 for one in coin, when every device and expedient to keep it up had been tried and had failed, Congress stopped the issue and made requisition upon the States for $15,000 a month in notes, or 1—40 of that sum in coin. It was found more tolerable to seize the needed supplies directly than to continue the iniquity of paper money pay- ment. The Continental currency thus demonetized by Congress was very soon afterwards formally repudiated by the States which one after another repealed the laws they had made declaring such currency to be legal tender. " Like an aged man expiring by the decays of na- ture, without a sigh, or a groan, it gently fell asleep in the hands of its last possessors." This is Ramsay's poetry, but in vigorous prose, he and other historians of the time tell that the misery and the demoraliza- tion produced by the paper money during the Revo- lution far exceeded all the other distresses of the period. Speaking of the legal tender continental currency, Pelatiah Webster says, " it has polluted the equity of our laws, turned them into engines of oppression and wrong; corrupted the justice of our public adminis- tration ; destroyed the fortunes of thousands who had the most confidence in it ; enervated the trade, hus- bandry, and manufacturers of the country : and went far to destroy the morality of our people." THE NATIONAL FINANCES. 319 "We have suffered more," says Webster, in another place, "from this cause, than from any other cause or calamity. It has killed more men, pervaded and cor- rupted the choicest interests of our country more, and done more injustice, than even the arms and the arti- fice of the enemy." " Old debts," says another, "were paid when paper money was more than seventy for one. Brothers defrauded brother, children parents, and parents children. Widows, orphans, and others were paid for money lent in specie with depreciated paper which they were compelled to receive." "That the army," said Josiah Quincy, in a letter to Washington, " has been grossly cheated ; that credi- tors have been infamously defrauded ; that the widow and fatherless have been oppressively wronged and beggared ; that the gray hairs of the aged and the innocent, for want of their just dues, have gone down with sorrow to their graves, in consequence of our disgraceful, depreciated paper currency — may now be affirmed without hazard of refutation ; and I wish it could be said with truth that the war has not there- by been protracted." In the language of Mr. Justice Story, the tender and maximum laws "entailed the most enormous evils on the country, and introduced a system of fraud, chicanery, and profligacy which destroyed all private confidence and all industry and enterprise." "The property of the inhabitants," says Dr. Ramsey, " in a considerable degree changed its owners. Many 320 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. opulent persons of ancient families were ruined by selling paternal estates for a depreciating paper cur- rency, which in a few weeks would not replace half of the real property in exchange for which it was ob- tained. Many bold adventurers made fortunes in a short time by running in debt beyond their abilities. Prudence ceased to be a virtue and rashness usurped its place." "Time and industry soon repaired the losses of property which citizens sustained during the war, but both for a long time failed in effacing the taint which was then communicated to their principles." "That the helpless part of the community were legislatively deprived of their property was among the lesser evils which resulted from the legal tender of the depreciated bills of credit. The iniquity of the laws estranged the minds of many of the citizens from the habits and love of justice. The nature of obligations was so far changed that he was reckoned the honest man, who from principle, delayed to pay his debts. The bounds which government had erected to secure the observance of honesty in the commercial intercourse of man with man were broken down. Truth, honor, and justice were swept away by the overflow- ing deluge of legal iniquity; nor have they yet assumed their ancient and accustomed seats," It is to the impression made by these experiences that we are indebted for so much of Section 10, of the last Article of the Constitution, as prohibits any THE NATIONAL FINANCES. 321 State from " emitting bills of credit, or making any- thing but gold and silver coin a tender in payment of debts." Up to 1862 the prohibitions of this section were held to apply to the Federal as well as to the State governments and upon the broad foundation of prin- ciples thus laid in the organic law and thus interpreted, the Democratic party has from its organization built its financial policy with respect to the money of the people, the circulating medium by which the operations of Society and industry are carried on. In its devotion to the principles of hard money, the party of Jefferson and Jackson opposed the National banks of 1791 and 18 16. In 1 791 Congress passed an act chartering the bank of North America, and Wash- ington consulted his cabinet of four, as to whether he should approve the act or veto it. Hamilton and Knox, Federalists, advised approval — Jefferson and Ran- dolph, Republicans, urged a veto. This was among the most prominent issues between these leaders — the crest of the "Divide" on either side of which is "fons et origo" of their respective parties. Washington approved the Act, but the charter of the bank expired in twenty years and all efforts for its renewal begun during Jefferson's administration, and continued into Madison's, failed. Both these friends of the people opposed it and the country sustained them. In 1816, under stress of the prostration in trade and industry, consequent upon the war with Great 322 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. Britain, Congress chartered the Bank of the United States, but President Jackson assailed the bank in his inaugural message, and toward the end of his first term, he vetoed the bill for its recharter, although the Supreme Court, through Chief Justice Marshall had pronounced the charter constitutional and although the Committee of Ways and Means, of the House, made a masterly report in favor of the Bank and ex-President Madison, who had opposed the first Bank, now joined with Gallatin in support of this one. Jackson's candidacy for a second term was made chiefly on the issue raised by this veto ; the same is- sue entered into the elections to Congress, and the popular verdict was pronounced with vigor in favor of Jackson and the other opponents of the Bank. Subsequently the public deposits were withdrawn and the Bank collapsed and spread ruin over the Country, yet Jackson never repented. After he had had an opportunity to review calmly his course in this mat- ter and to judge of its wisdom by studying its re- sults, he thought it proper in his farewell address, to leave permanently on record the principle which deter- mined his conduct ; It was very simple. " Distrust of paper money as fatal to the prosperity, the morality and the freedom of the people." " By the paper mon- ey system and its natural associations," says he, "mo- nopoly and exclusive privileges have struck their roots too deep into the soil." In another place he speaks of the iniquities and mischiefs of the paper system, THE NATIONAL FINANCES. ' 323 and the spirit of monopoly and other abuses which have sprung up with it. "My humble efforts," he continues, "have not been spared during my administration of the Government to restore the constitutional currency of gold and silver." After this, until 1862, the "hard money" principle of Jacksonian Democracy was held sacred throughout the land. In 1862 the voice of party was hushed, but the principles of the Democracy were never abandoned. On either side of Mason and Dixon's line, the masses of the people were arrayed almost solidly against each other. The recusants on either side, were factions, not parties. The quarrel was con- fined to one Democratic Doctrine only, State Rights, and even while that was being fought out to a final settlement, all the other principles of Democracy were cherished in common on both sides. Especially was this the case in respect to money. Paper issues were inevitable, but Mr. Chase held out against a legal tender paper currency until every other resource was exhausted, and as a last resort, he accepted the National Bank system in the hope that by engaging the Capitalists to sustain the currrency, loss and dis- tress might be averted from the people. When the legal tender act passed the House February 6, 1862, the vote was 93 to 59 — not a Democrat voted in the affirmative. On the other side of the theatre of war, the old doctrine held undisputed sway, men were taken 324 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. by conscription, supplies and horses by seizure, but desperate as were the financial straits of the Confed- erate Government, its Treasury notes were never made legal tender. Mr. John J. Knox, a strong Republican and a recog- nized authority, says in his "Unted States Notes, " " Specie payments were suspended on December 28th, 1861. The war was carried on chiefly by the use of Treas- ury notes as a circulating medium. The purchasing power of these notes rapidly declined. * * * The expenditures of the Government during the four years of the war were vastly increased beyond the amount that would have been necessary if the war could have been conducted on the gold standard instead of on the fluctuating standard of the legal tender paper dollar." Mr. Geo. S. Coe, in 1876, speaking of the issue of Greenbacks, alludes to " the excessive cost of the war, the vast increases of the National debt and the pub- lic and private evils which a profuse currency has entailed upon the country," and concludes admirably: " This forcible entry of the Government into the pri- vate affairs of the people so utterly at variance with the fundamental principles of our system, so great an abridgment of personal liberty and operating as a tax so unequal in its effects, was a rigorous measure of war, and as such, was to be vindicated only as a temporary act of dire necessity." The " Hard Money " doctine of the Democratic creed never had its fundamental principle better stated THE NATIONAL FINANCES. 325 than it is here expounded by this brilliant banker and zealous Republican. After an exclusion of a quarter of a century from Federal office, the Democrats were recalled in 1885 to the duties and responsibilities of National admin- istration. In the interval the population of the country had nearly doubled, radical changes had occurred in official methods in the distribution of political, social and industrial forces, in the character, the lines and the means of interior communication, in the employments, the habits and the ideas of large bodies of the pop- ulation, and yet to the amazement of their enemies and even to the surprise of many among themselves, the chosen representatives of the Democracy have proven, individually and collectively, equal to the oc- casion, and especially have they vindicated the ca- pacity of this great party of Constitutional principles for dealing with the National finances. It is a striking illustration on a great scale, of the truth of the homely adage — " where there is a will there is a way." Without other equipment than faith in their prin- ciples, and a resolute purpose to be true to those principles, Democrats in Congress and in the Depart- ments have drawn a broad line of demarkation be- tween Mr. Cleveland's administration and those pre- ceding it. This line which will endure ineffaceable as long as History has a page for the annals of America, is not 326 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. marked by a single sign among those predicted by our enemies in 1884. No precipitate changes in the clerical service, no crude " New , broom " efforts, no attempt at sensational exposures, but on the other hand, no dependence upon the subordinates they re- tained, no blind acceptance of official tradition, no dull plodding in paths worn by the practice of their predecessors has characterized the Democrats who were suddenly elevated to positions which, while absolutely new to them, were, in 1884, regarded almost univer- sally as requiring long training and especial aptitude. While familiarity has dulled among us the effect of this remarkable feature of the Cleveland administra- tion, history will preserve it in salient lines and pos- terity will marvel at it. The wonder of it and the credit of it cannot be weakened by explanation, but explanation is honorable to all concerned. It is this. The principles of the Democratic party have their root in the Constitution, they grew up in the popular mind with the growth of the country up to i860, they were applied to the practical conduct of the Government during a dozen administra- tions, and while the party was out of power, these prin- ciples have been cherished in life and activity, they have been preserved in the traditions and the creed of Democrats everywhere ; consequently, when the party came into power these principles fitted the public busi- ness as keys, even though long lost, fit the locks to which they originally belonged. By means of. these THE NATIONAL FINANCES. 327 principles the Democrats opened all the secrets of ad- ministration and gained access to all the mysteries of office. The President, in his first annual message, aston- ished the country by his familiarity with all the com- plexities of Government, and the Secretary of the Treasury presented the financial situation in a mas- terly manner as follows : "A review of the several groups of laws which it is the duty of the Secretary of the Treasury to ad- minister, manifests, as inquiry into the business of the country does, the grave need of reform in the state of our currency and in the present scheme of our taxation. Both are legacies of war. They are unaccountable except by the light of the events which afforded their origin and their excuse. "These reforms invite and exact the best efforts of American statesmanship. Neither party has escaped the danger of defending, as good, evils which both parties were merely getting used to. Men of both parties, public men conversant with public affairs, and men absorbed in earning their livelihood, have been liable to influence from the great force of example which all Governments carry ; and so the belief has spread that the disorder of our currency is a kind of order, that the mixture of private jobs and past pub- lic needs in our tariff is a system of protection to American labor." 328 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. Currency Reform. Currency Reform is first in the order of importance and time and fitly precedes other reforms, even tax- ation reform, because it will facilitate all other reforms, and because it cannot safely be deferred. The disorders of our currency chiefly arise from the operation of two enactments : "I. The act of February 28, 1878, which has been construed as a permanent appropriation for perpetual Treasury purchases of at least $24,000,000 worth of silver per annum, although from causes mostly foreign that metal is now of mutable and falling value, which must be manufactured into coins of unlimited legal tender and issued to the people of the United States as equivalents of our monetary unit." "2. The act of May 31, 1878, which indefinitely post- poned fulfilment of the solemn pledge (March 18, 1869) not only of " redemption " but also of " payment " of all obligations of the United States not bearing in- terest, legalized as $346,000,000 paper money of un- limited legal tender and required the post-redemption issue and re-issue of these promises to pay dollars, as equivalents of our monetary unit." But these two evils, which are each a separate menace to the public tranquillity and injurious to the public morals and the public faith, do not double the difficulties of a reform of the currency. Their con- currence may even assist Congress to provide the people of the United States with a better currency than the THE NATIONAL FINANCES. 329 best flow possessed by any nation — a currency in which every dollar note shall be the representative certificate of a coin dollar actually in the Treasury and payable on demand ; a currency in which our monetary unit coined in gold, ($550,000,000) and its equivalent coined in silver ($215,000,000) shall not be suffered to part company. "A table given on page 23 is an analysis of the history of the United States monetary unit, including every coinage act that has dealt with the unit from 1789 until now. Setting aside the exigencies and the errors of the war period when paper expelled coin, that history is a record of proud integrity, of uniform good faith. " " Congress has established justice, and maintained it in a chief article and instrument of justice, the monetary unit. The good faith dictating every change is demonstrable." "This analysis of our coinage laws and explanation of their history yield light for guidance now. Or- dained to " establish justice," the Constitution itself is buttressed by this first century of constancy in the Congress to a continuous and just equivalence in the successive coin embodiments of the monetary unit for a standard and measure of value. The precedent stands and will stand for centuries to come, the admiration, the pride, the rule of law and of duty for many generations of self-governing freemen. It is for us to pass on unimpaired this high tradition of financial 330 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. integrity. But of justice as of liberty, l eternal vigilance is the price.' " In his Annual Report on the Finances for 1886, Mr. Manning contributed to the honor of the Country, to the credit of financial science, and to the record, of the Democratic party the following magnificent exposition of the Constitutional principles and the financial maxims which governed legislation and ad- ministration down to the period "when a great danger had beclouded most men's perceptions of financial as well as constitutional law." 11 As the competency of the Federal Government to make its debts a legal tender of payment for the debts of its citizens, one to another, has in these latter days, been affirmed, despite an absolute consensus of opinion to the contrary among its founders and states- men of all parties from 1789 to 1861, it seems to me in this conflict of legal opinions a duty to recur to the unquestioned conclusions of a sound finance." Coin, Not Promises, Fit for Legal Tender. "When the Union of the States was formed in 1789. and the present Constitution ordained the last and first avowed objects of its framers were to secure liberty and to establish justice. Political philosophy as yet has framed no higher ideals. Justice was their endeavor, and the Constitution, like the laws framed by the early Congresses, in which many of its framers sat, shows a fixed purpose to avert unknown perils to justice." THE NATIONAL FINANCES. 33 1 "Among the chief instruments and means of justice is a least imperfect, least variable coin monetary unit ; the standard of all exchanges and lawful tender of paj/ments. The framers of the Constitution were fresh from a bitter experience of the calamities con- sequent upon stretching the legal tender quality from coin to promises to pay coin. So they built high a double barrier against that calamity. They limited the Federal Government to certain and delegated powers. They defined some and prohibited other certain powers to the States. And, lest, the residue of unprohibited or undelegated powers which com- pleted the round sum of sovereignty, should be im- plied into the Federal Government, they reserved them explicitly to the States respectively or to the people. Then, to the Federal Government they gave many powers, but not this power to make the Treasury notes of the United States a legal tender in the payment of private debts. Then to the States they explicitly prohibited all future exercise of a similar power — theretofore at most grievous cost exercised by them amid the struggles of foundation or the throes of revolution. Nor in any one of the fifteen amend- ments which have enlarged the Federal powers, over slavery, representation, citizenship, and voting franchise, has there been enlargement of the powers at first be- stowed upon the United States, and vested in their Congress as the power to ' coin money, regulate the value thereof and of foreign coin.' And while thus 20 332 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. were refused in the Convention and withheld in the Constitution, any warrant to amplify or excuse for abusing, the power so specified and granted, it was also ordained that thereafter * no State shall * * * emit bills of credit ; make anything but gold and silver coin a tender in payment of debts; pass * * any law impairing the obligation of contracts.' " Under the last clause of the eighth section of the Constitution, the power thus granted was by the Sec- ond Congress, in the coinage law of 1792, as neces- sarily and properly executory of that power wisely and fully exercised. It was -exercised without abuse, without pretension to some sovereign power inherited, but as a specific power delegated to the Federal Government and vested in the Congress. " It was exercised not in relation to any power to borrow money, for money, besides being one kind of wealth, is also that kind which is a standard and measure of the value of all kinds of wealth ; and to change the standard, in the act of borrowing, from coin to the promise to pay coin, would have been not borrowing merely, but also cheating or enriching the lender. If such power be indeed a sovereign power, legitimate and heritable, it is of the least precious patrimony reserved in the sovereignty of the people, for it was prohibited to the States, and never delegated to the United States. The Congress of 1792 fixed the monetary unit of the United States in coin, gave it the name Dollar, made it .the unit of the money of THE NATIONAL FINANCES. 333 account in their offices and courts, named also the multiples and fractions, and then, opening their mint free to all comers, affixed the full legal-tender quality to all gold and silver there coined. 44 Congress might under its also granted power 4 to borrow money' have received the loan of all the coined gold and silver dollars that their owners would lend, for borrowing is not taking by force of law or license, against the will of the lender. It is taking because the consent of the borrower to receive concurs with the consent of the lender to convey. In return for each and all of those coins it might have emitted its promises to pay on demand. That would have been the exercise of its granted power to borrow money. At further need, it might have agreed to pay from its constant receipt of taxes (for the longer loan of money which is its own constantly outgoing ex- penditure and the residue of still unborrowed money would provide) money in principal sums and as in- terest giving therefor its time obligations. That would have been the exercise of its power to borrow money. But the power to change the unit of value in money so borrowed or so loaned, has no relation, legitimate or logical, with such or any power to borrow money. It is not derivable from the borrowing power. It is a power illegitimate and irrelevant both to the borrow- ing and the lending power. 44 The latter is a power to use the credit which a Government has from men's faith in its honor and 334 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. its' laws. The power to raise or depress the monetary unit 1 of value is a power to destroy men's faith in the honor of a Government and its laws. The power to force into the circulation an unfit representative of, a false equivalent of, a debt of, that monetary unit of value, as its namesake and equal in exchange, is a power to destroy men's faith in the honor of a Government and its laws. Their sense 1 of betrayal, and their perception of the fact are expressed by the non-equivalence in exchange often disclosed between the undebased coin and the de- based coin, between the coin and the promise to pay. concerted into a legal tender, between the coin unde- preciated and the depreciated coin, according as in any f of these ways the monetary: unit has been the instrument or the memorial of that duplicity. But such proceedings found no precedent, such opinions as are here controverted found no believer, no defender among the lawyers, statesmen, or people in the first seventy-two years of this Republic. "Not until after 1861, when a great danger had be- clouded most men's perceptions of financial as well as constitutional law, was a legal tender money made out of the debts of the United States. " Not until the infection spread was it ever deliberately argued that any representative of the unit of value could justly be suffered to be made, or to abide, in permanent depreciation and disparity therewith. " But whether or not a non-equivalent of the coin dol- THE NATIONAL FINANCES. 335 lar may be made a lawful dollar, and whether or not post-redemption issues of such promises can be Jaw- fully made, after twenty-one years of peace have super- ceded any real or imagined exigency of war, certain it is that every argument of policy now forbids the continu- ance of that legalized injustice. Had it ever been con- ferred, the Federal Government should be stripped of so dangerous a power. No Executive and no Legisla- ture is fit to be trusted with- the control it involves over the earnings and the savings of the people. No earthly sovereign or servant is capable of a just exer- cise of such authority to impair and pervert the obli- gation of contracts. "To apply the present and the unadvoidably accru- ing proceeds of our surplus taxation during the next five years in payment of the only portion of the public debt beyond the vanishing three per cents, which is now due or will be payable except, at. a high premium, before the four and a half per cents of 1891 mature, besides being a large measure of currency reform, will also diminish and finally dissipate the objectionable and invidious influence of the Treas- ury upon the money market and upon the business of the country. Skillful administration of the Depart- ment in respect to its incomes and outgoes may re- duce to a minimum that influence which cannot but be considered while its receipts average a million dol- lars a day. But it is in no way for the public ad- vantage, it is a distinct interference with private 336 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. property, and it is an improper trust to be imposed upon any officer of the Government, when the most prudent, faithful and intelligent exercise of his judg- ment, and the wisest use of the power he is com- pelled to accept, cannot fail to promote the pecuniary advantage or involve the pecuniary disadvantage of this or that group of his fellow-citizens. It is no defence of the coudition of things that has grown up since the war, and which has gradually converted the Treasury into such an overshadowing fiscal power, in- voked at every commercial crisis, to say that we are becoming accustomed to it. " These illegitimate and unwarranted encroachments off governmental influence should be restricted and abridged, with constant and inflexible purpose to re- store the simplicity, compel the frugality, and limit the authority of Federal as of all our governmental institutions. Of these the true function is to guard our individual liberties, not to confine them, not to supersede them, not to direct them. Even monarch- ies are slowly discarding other functions. Democracies have no use for their cast off trappings. It is liberty which has enlightened the world, not the necessary evil of legislatures, laws, courts, armies, and police, which with our taxes we pay to guard that liberty from aggression." JAMES L. PUGH. CHAPTER IV. LABOR AND CAPITAL. Hon. James L. Pugh, U. S. Senator. ''PHE words labor and capital have the most compre- hensive meaning and far-reaching application. We all understand that labor is the power to produce. In itself it is a natural, inherent, self-existing power. It produces all necessaries of life, like food, clothing, shelter, and also produces all wealth. Food, clothing and shelter are the necessaries, and wealth supplies the incidental wants, or the luxuries of life. Labor is Capital in the sense that it produces Capital. Nearly all property that constitutes wealth is the product or incident of labor. When labor and capital co-exist, as a compound power in the same ownership, there can be no antagonism, but when capital, or wealth, separates from labor and exists in independent ownership its natural tendency is to become more or less aggressive, domineering and tyran- nical. Generally, and legitimately, labor and capital are mutual supports of each other, and they cannot become unfriendly without mutual injury. When they work together in harmonious co-operation, they move the industrial and productive machinery of the world. When labor and capital separate and make war on each other (339) 340 LABOR AND CAPITAL. all mechanism and organism become deranged and cause incalculable and irreparable mischief. How is it that labor and capital are made unfriendly, and do so much harm to each other, and the whole country ? It is impossible for this unfriendly and antago- nistic relation to exist without some wrongdoing by one or the other. Whenever a dispute arises that, results in strife, separation, and enmity, some wrong has been com- mitted by somebody. It is of the last importance that working people and employers should deal justly and fairly with each other. Mutual confidence is indispensa- ble to secure hearty co-operation. Mean selfishness and greed, or undue advantage taken of unfavorable, natural or other conditions of supply and demand, produce dis- trust, and ill feeling, and cause retaliation, resentment, and separation. No examination of the relations of labor and capital can be productive of more beneficial results than that which discovers the faults, the shortcomings, the failures, and the wrongs of each in its relations to the other, which furnish just cause of offence, and produce well-grounded distrust, complaint, and resentment. " Large social forces are working an alarming change in American society." While " vast natural laws are driving the world of industry and trade " we cannot surrender to these great agencies the sole power of producing results. These natural laws " take up as factors in their operation the reason, sentiment, conscience and will of man. We encumber, retard, and frequently defeat the workings of natural laws by our ignorance, anger, folly, and selfish- LABOR AND CAPITAL. 34 1 ness ; while we can greatly promote their healthful operation by our wisdom, conscience, friendships, and wrongs and imperfections of the human beings who are the constituent elements of society and govern- ment." First. Let us inquire into the faults of labor. "A large proportion of our wage workers are inefficient, require watching to prevent botching their work. Such laborers waste material, injure property, and block business." "Many of our wage workers are thriftless. Men and women neglect habits of economy, are careless in spending, and save nothing," The Rev. R. Heber Newton D. D., from whom I have quoted, is a minister of great ability and learn- ing, who has devoted much time and study to the relations of labor and capital, in Europe and America, and who was examined by the Senate Committee on Education and Labor in 1883, and, among other things, testified in substance — "that the fault of thrift - lessness of the average working man runs through his life in many ways. That the old fashioned thrift by which our fathers and mothers climbed the lower rounds of the ladder, and which all experience shows to be the secret of success in the first and hardest pull of life, seems quite gone out of fashion, and how, without it, men are to honestly drive ahead in life, no one knows." The learned Divine thinks that labor, is at fault in its lack of power to combine, and its defective methods of combination. That a mob of 342 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. men 'trample upon each other ; and in an army they brace each other to the charge of victory. He finds a grievous fault in the abuse of our trades unions in their concentration of attention upon the organization of strikes. Strikes have had their part to play in the development of our industrial system. We note their failures and forget their successes. Their chief service has been in teaching combination and in show- ing labor the need of a better weapon than the strike. The cost of strikes is expressible only in the aggregate of the savings of labor consumed in idleness ; the loss of the productivity of the country ; the dis- turbance of the whole mechanism of exchange, and the injury done our delicate social organism by this unnatural strain. Labor ought to have learned that a stunning blow between the eyes is not the best method of inducing a kindly feeling and a just judg- ment on the part of capital. The strike is a boom- erang whose hardest blows are often dealt backward on the striker. In our free contract system strikes are entirely justifiable when they are really necessary. Working-men have the right to combine in affixing the price at which they are willing to work. The supply of labor and the demand for its products, in the absence of higher considerations, will settle the question whether or not they can get the price asked. The trying features of this method of reaching a result are necessarily incidental to our industrial sys- tem. Trades unions represent the one effective form LABOR AND CAPITAL. 343 of combination. They were called into being to de- fend labor against legislation by the Republican party in the interest of capital. They have committed plenty of follies, and are still capable of stupid tyran- nies that only succeed in handicapping labor, in alienating capital, and in checking productivity, thereby diminishing the sum total of divisible wealth. Such actions are inevitable in the early stages of combination by uneducated men, feeling a new sense of power, and striking blindly out in angry retaliation for real or fancied injuries. Trades unions are grad- ually outgrowing their crude methods. The attempts lately made by great corporations to break them up is a piece of despotism, which deserves to be rebuked by the people. Labor must combine just as capital has combined in forming powerful corporations. Labor's only means of defending its interests is through combination. Strikes are the abuse and not the legiti- mate use of combination in trades unions. Trades unions should turn their attention to the modern improvements upon this bludgeon to be found in arbitration. Arbitration is a much cheaper and a more effective instrument of adjusting differences between capital and labor, and a far more likely means of securing an increase of wages. It places both sides to the controversy in an amicable mood and is an appeal to the reason and conscience, not wholly dead in the most soulless corporation. It has become a substitute for strikes in England. 344 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. Mr. Frederick Harrison, in his address. to the trades unions Congress in England said — " There are no men in the country more opposed to the policy of strikes- more convinced of the suffering they cause — than the officers and managers of the great permanent societies. "The measure of value in a strong union lies not so much in the conduct of successful strikes, as it does in the number of disputes its moral strength prevents. Their influence and that of their congress has been steadily exerted to substitute arbitration for strikes. " Their influence in favor of arbitration is shown in the steady progress of that principle in the diminution of strikes." Another high authority upon the labor problem is Mr. William Mather, Representative to the United States and Canada in behalf of the English Royal Commission on Technical Education. He resides in Manchester, England, and is proprietor of large ma- chine shops and has been an employer of labor all his life. After spending about three years in this country and just before he left to make his report to his Government the Committee on Education and Labor met and examined him in Boston in October, 1883. He is a gentleman of remarkable ability and teaming and large experience and his testimany is full of the most valuable instruction. On the sub- ject of trades unions and arbitration in England he stated : "I am happy to say that trades unions with us LABOR AND CAPITAL. ' <-' 345 have become part and parcel of our life. We have accepted them now as one of the proper societies for the working classes to form, and conducted as they are, by able, and ; I think, in the main, conscientious and respectable men, we have joined with them rather than separated from them. Employers of labor generally have lost that violent antagonism, which, you -know, existed at one time ; the trades unions have moderated many of their demands, and whatever demands they now make are made in moderate language and more polite ways. The capitalists and laboring population have both learned by experience, and, I think I may say, have come to see that none of the interests of capital or labor can be served when there is an antagonism between them. On the other hand I think the labor classes see that capital has certain difficulties and trials and experiences of which laborers know nothing, and by frequently comparing ideas, as we do under the arbitration courts that are sometimes estab- lished between employers and working men, a great deal of information is passed from one side to the other. The consequence is that, as a rule, violence and passion have departed from strikes and all questions are settled With good feeling. "In all trades aside from the textile industries we have for many years been, for t the most part, entirely free from strikes. We have bridged over many diffi- culties by this simple ' remedy of arbitration." Labor cannot make a graver mistake and one more destructive of all the moral power of trades unions and all the forms of combination than to authorize, encourage or countenance in the slightest degree any resort to force or violence or the use of compulsory methods or practices to accomplish any object or purpose that may be right, just, and lawful in itself, or that interferes with the utmost freedom of thought and 346 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. lawful action by all working-men. The remedy of force or violence or prescriptive methods to prevent free contract labor, strikes down everything in society and government upon which workingmen are most dependent for protection in their pursuits, and the prosperity result- ing from remunerative wages. I have mentioned some of the salient faults of labor that are manifest to all dispassionate observers. The first step to a better state of things says Doctor Newton is the correction of these faults. " Whatever other factors enter into the problem, this is the factor which it concerns labor to look after, if it would reach the equation of the good time coming." No reconstruc- tion of society can avail for incompetent, indifferent, thriftless men, who cannot work together. Self help must precede all other help. Dreamers may picture Utopias, where all our present laws are suspended, and demagogues may cover up the disagreeable facts of labor's own share of responsibility for its pitiful con- dition, but sensible workingmen will remember that, as Renan told his countrymen, after the Franco-Prussian war, "the first duty is to face the facts of the situa- tion." " There are no royal roads to an honest mastery of fortune, though there seem to be plenty of by-ways to dishonest success. Nature is a hard school mistress. She allows no makeshifts for the discipline of hard work, and of self-denial, for the culture of all the strengthful qualities. Her American school for workers is not, as yet, overcrowded. The rightful order of LABOR AND CAPITAL. 347 society is not, as yet, submersed on our shores. There are the rewards of merit for all who will work and wait. No man of average intelligence needs to suffer in our counfry, if he has clear grit in him. * The stone that is fit for the wall ' as the Spanish proverb runs 'will not be left in the road.'" But, continues Doctor Newton, u when all this is said about the faults of labor merely half the case has been presented. There is a shallow optimism, which from the heights of prosperity, throws all the blame of laborers sufferings on labor's own broad shoulders ; steels the heart of society against it be- cause of these patent faults, and closes the hand against its help, while it sings the gospel of the Gadgrinds — 'As it was and ever shall be, Amen.' Labor itself," continues this learned divine, " is not wholly responsi- ble for its own faults. These faults spring largely out of defective social conditions in which the working man is placed. The inefficiency of labor is by no means the sole fault of the individual laborer. Heredity has bankrupted him before he started on his career. One who sees much of the lower grades of labor ceases to wonder why the children turn out worthless." " The tenements of New York are enough alone to take the life out of labor. City factories often are not much better. The quality of the food sold in the poorer sections of our cities are defectively nutritious, even where they are not positively harmful. This could be largely rectified by the State and city authorities. 34$ THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. Government guards carefully the rights both of labor and capital by an immense amount of legislation and administration. Health is the laborer's source of wealth, but it is by no means so carefully looked after as are the resources of the other two factors of produc- tion. We have in none of the States of. our Union any such legislation as that of the thorough system of factory laws in England. Whatever may be said as to the interference on the part of legislation with the rights of capital the sufficient answer is that the whole advance of society has been a constant interference by legislation with the merely natural action of the law of supply and demand, and only thus can be secured amelioration in the condition of the problem of labor and capital. The State's first concern is to see her citizens healthful, vigorous, wealth-producing factors, and to this end bad sanitary conditions, which undermine the ' health capital ' of labor, imperatively demand correction." Doctor Newton urges with much clearness and great force the need for an education that will develope whatever potencies may be latent. Inefficiency will rarely correct itself. Superior ability must train it into better power. He makes the pertinent inquiry, " Where is there any provision for such an education ? Ignorant parents can hardly be expected to teach their children better skill than they have themselves. The old system of apprenticeship has almost completely died out. No other system of industrial training has come into LABOR AND CAPITAL. 349 general use to take the place of home training and of apprenticeship. We have but few attempts to combine general and intellectual education with practical training and handicrafts. Our common schools have, until lately, signally passed by the whole field of practical education. The schools which are supposed to be intended for the mass of the people, and which are supplied at the public cost, have made next to no provision for the practical training of boys and girls to become self-supporting men and women, wealth producing citizens, while the whole curriculum of the school system tends to a disproportionate intellectuality, and to an alienation from all manual labor. That efforts to encourage industrial education would pay the State is best seen in the example of England. The International Exhibition of 185 1 revealed to England its complete inferiority to several Continental countries in art studies, and the cause of that inferiority in the absence of skilled workmen. The government at once began to study the problem, and out of this study arose the Kensington Museum with its art? schools, and similar institutions throughout the country, which have already made quick and gratifying returns in the improvement of the national art industries, and in the vast enrichment of the trade growing therefrom." I again call attention to the invaluable testimony of Mr, Mather. He said : " I came to the United States to ascertain, on behalf of the Royal Commis- sion on Technical Education, what are the opportuni- 21 350 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. ties offered to the people of this country to acquire industrial training and technical knowledge of the va- rious occupations and industries that are followed here ; and generally, What opportunities are afforded for science teaching, the teaching of the elements of the sciences that underlie all the industries of your country, as they do of all countries ? I may say that the appointment of this Royal Commission to inquire into the Technical Education of all the countries in the world, arose out of the fact that in England we have not many opportunities nor institutions which afford to our working population, or even to our middle classes, the means of acquiring a knowledge of the sciences be- fore they enter the usual occupations of industrial life. " We have felt for the last ten years very acutely the competition which has sprung up in all parts of the world with English industries, and it has been supposed by some public men, and by large numbers of the community generally, that our manufactures of the simplest kind would for the future have to yield to a higher class of production, if we are to hold our place in the world, as purveyors of clothing and the various articles which we have hitherto shipped from England. The countries of Europe have, of course, ceased to take from us gray cloth and the simplest form of machinery and have in a hundred ways ceased to need our services in matters for which, twenty years ago they were abso- lutely dependent upon us. " In consequence f oi thi^ v we .find it necessary to im- LABOR AND CAPITAL. 35 1 prove the taste in all articles we manufacture, and to bring to bear a higher knowledge of the scientific laws that underlie all the industries, and to educate our people into still greater skill — a skill derived from a higher intelligence. On the continent of Europe indus- trial and technical schools have been in existence — in Germany, France, and Switzerland particularly — for a considerable number of years, and the benefits ac- cruing from these have at last invited our attention. We have an idea in England that America excels, in all the mechanic arts, any other country in the world. Her wonderful genius in the direction of original de- sign — invention — and the excellence of her manufac- tures in regard to everything mechanical, have attracted our attention for a number of years, and we are curious to know how it is that the people of America have arrived at such excellence and proficiency. " The industries of England have flourished chiefly, hitherto, upon the great demand which all the world has made upon us for our products, and on the fa- cility with which, owing to the abundance of mate- rial we have manufactured all our machinery and tex- tile goods. " During the last ten years that demand has very much decreased and we have now to pass on to a different kind of manufacture. Our people cannot re- spond to the higher demand. We have not had the art schools or science schools to enable them to understand the laws as principles upon which this 352 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. higher industry is based. In order to meet this we hope to establish certain institutions — call them technical schools — in which, not trades shall be taught, but the science that underlies every industry shall be imparted to the children at the same time that they are somewhat trained in industrial skill to manipulate, to pass through, and understand the operations which are necessary for the various kinds of manufactures that we desire to improve." Mr. Mather further stated that in his travels through the United States in pursuit of his inquiries he had visited about twenty cities and over one hundred institutions of various kinds, particularly schools and colleges, and he thought he had a fair notion of what we are doing in the direction of education. His opinion is that it would have an immense effect upon the condition of the working classes if we would alter the methods of teaching in our primary schools, and very much also in our higher schools. He thinks the whole tendency of our teaching is the imparting of only temporary information to the children. After having given reading, writing and arithmetic, we then pile upon them a line of studies which do not enter their lives or pursuits and we utterly ignore in all our public schools that element of industrial training which seems so necessary for every people, particularly like the Americans, so mechanical and industrial in their occu- pations. He states that he finds that only about 10 per LABOR AND CAPITAL. 353 cent, of our school population ever pass into the high schools; that practically at fifteen years of age, the contents of our primary schools pass away into the various industrial occupations. He thinks we spend a great deal of time on the refinements of grammar and of literature, education of very little consequence to them when they pass into their life employments, and during that time they have no opportunity of acquiring knowledge of the natural laws or elements of science, chemistry, natural philosophy, or the var- ious sciences that underlie all the industries that abound in the country, and into one or another of which these children are passing. "That is all a dark and unknown land to them, and it is a misfortune to the working classses of this .country that their edu- cation runs so much to the side of literature and not to the industrial and scientific." To illustrate how readily children can acquire such information, Mr. Mather states that if you examine a boy of twelve, or fourteen years of age in any of the new schools in England, you will find that he will, at that age, know as much about the elements of science, natural philosophy, simple mathematics, mechanical drawing, chemistry, electricity, magnetism, and all these general elements, as many of our boys and girls do in the high schools when they are sixteen and seventeen years of age. Without teaching them a trade or any particular handicraft, all the tendency of the teaching is to make them either commercially a success, or in- 354 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. dustrially a success, in the way of having some scientific knowledge, which they can utilize as they pass into their various occupations. With these general acquire- ments that qualify them for different pursuits they can find employment elsewhere when any trade, or industry becomes over stocked with workingmen. Mr. Mather says that the industrial education is quite as beneficial to the intellect as the pursuit of the studies in the literary department. It has proved already that the proper method of training the intellect is to join industrial work with the teachings of the school. We find the boys are more capable of understanding the oral teaching and what they read. Their minds are made more receptive and reflective by the fact that they have depended more upon themselves, and put into operation the knowledge that they have before acquired in the schools. Mr. Mather stated that he had travelled a good deal in France, Germany, Switzer- land, Russia, and all over the continent of Europe and observed what was going on there. That the op- portunities in France, Switzerland and Germany for technical training have of late years become quite extensive. That our country possesses already a con- siderable number of very remarkable technical schools which certainly are not surpassed by any in Efirope. They are schools, however, that are not available for the working classes, as are those of France, Germany and Switzerland, and what little has been done in England. But for the training of skillful managers, LABOR AND CAPITAL. 355 foremen, and even proprietors of large industries about a dozen of the schools and colleges of this country are not surpassed by anything in Europe. The American mind is essentially rfiore practical than the German and the French and in these schools we see the effect of the difference. They keep their eyes fixed upon one thing — that these young men are to become masters or captains of industry, and therefore the teaching has a strong practical bias. The State universi- ties in this country — those coming under the govern- ment grant — would of course become excellent sources for technical and industrial training, which might be utilized largely without costing much money, either to the State or to the community. All we want is a shuffling of' the cards to alter the curriculum of the various institutions. Mr. Mather thinks there is more spent in this country than in any country in the world for colleges, universities, and our public school system. He does not think our working classes have anything at all to complain of in regard to education, excepting that it does not have a strong enough and close enough relation to the industries which the working classes pursue. In this respect they have a right to claim a revision of the course of instructions in our public schools. Mr. Mather has observed, that in America, as in England, that boys and girls rather seek polite em- ployments — to be clerks, or to be in stores, or some work that does not involve ordinary manuel labor. They find manual labor uninteresting, as they are sure 356 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. to find it when they have no knowledge whatever of the meaning of all this labor, or of the scientific truths underlying it all ; their reflective powers are not interested ; hence the manual labor becomes a drudgery, and they leave those industries if they have opportunity. We do not want our public school system to give the children of the working people the idea that labor is low, vulgar or degrading. Mr. Mather testifies to the happy effects of a reduction of working hours in England from ten to nine hours per day. He believes that all American working people have greater activity, greater nervous energy than the English, and can do more work, and do more work from the intense desire to accomplish more. They work harder while at work, and he says that nine hours of labor* here, with the intensity of intelligence and energy which our people display would count for more than ten hours of the work of his people Eight hours production by the American laborer would be equivalent to nine hours production of the English laborer. The mistake of the working classes here is that they cling to the industries in which so much skill is required. More of them should be in the fields, which have been so manifestly provided by nature. Another difficulty he mentions as growing out of our development, is, that we have artificially developed our industries — that we are going at a rate that is not natural, we are forcing all round ; that on the question of manufacture here in New England the system LABOR AND CAPITAL. 357 adopted of protecting textile industries, has, of course, enabled manufactures to get very large profits in a very short time, and attracted employers to invest and has at last developed a competition here greater than in England, with all the world to compete with ; that in England they are right down on the ground, and thrown on the fact that they must produce a more artistic article to make themselves felt in the fu- ture in the markets of the world. The witness stated another fact that in this country waste of raw materials is the normal condition. We waste our forests, our metals, our food, our drink. There is so much waste it is not noticed. Mr. Mather closes his testimony by saying "that society in America, in all the great centers of industry, has a duty laid upon it that it is not performing in the full sense of its responsibilities. That in the great corporations the shares are held by wealthy persons representing prob- ably the culture of our cities and occuping public posi- tions and public opinion should be directed toward the amelioration of the condition of the working classes. There must be an acknowledgment of the fact that em- ployers of large classes of working people are bound to regard those people on the social as well as the industrial side." Upon the all-important subject of change in our educational system as indispensable in the work of amelioration in the condition of all our working people, the Washington Post had an editorial recently so full of 358 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. good sense, that I ask to reproduce it in support of my line of thought. The following is the editorial : " It is unmistakeable that the public schools of this country are at present in a state of lively ferment and even of transition. Causes are at work calculated to terminate in a revolution in methods of teaching and even in the character of the thing taught. The most potent of these causes is a growing conscious- ness that schools do not, as at present constituted, produce the results to be expected from them — that books are quite too dominant, that the pupil emerges from the current scheme of ' education ' scarcely better than when he entered to win his bread and cope with the hard realities of active life. The new education which has been begun and is sweeping over the land, has in view, if not primarily, at least constantly, the training of the child's hand as thoroughly as his brain, the development of skill, and the necessity of making a probably bread-winner of every pupil. In the coming education mechanical tools will be in- troduced to the school-room, or to contiguous rooms set apart for the purpose, and the child will be taught their use and character, and, so far as practicable, his own tastes and tendencies will be studied by the teacher, and his bent ascertained so that he may not go forth into an inhospitable world both blind and shackled. " The very first necessity in the true training of a child is that he or she may be taught to be self- supporting ; in the current scheme of miscalled educa- tion it is the very last thing thought of. The child who is going out hungry and naked into life is taught — not how to feed and clothe himself by minister- ing to the wants of the world — but he is taught grammar, and algebra, and history, that to him have little more than a sentimental value. Nature has fixed hard conditions to existence, she says to every penni- less child * You shall not live in comfort unless you learn to do some difficult thing which the world wants LABOR AND CAPITAL. 359 done and is willing to pay for.' And, in answer to this inexorable law, we send our children to school to learn how to solve mathematical problems and how to parse ungrammatical sentences in Paradise Lost. What a mockery it is. "Let us turn our faces toward the future and give the children of the next generation a chance. It will be a blessing to all. It will solve the problem of the 'tramp' by evolution; it will make all the conditions of life easier ; it will exalt our civilization, and even benefit laboring men by increasing the total sum of industry and diminishing the number of sluggards whom they must now support." It is manifest that the laboring population of this country is discontented. They know that they are the producers of our great wealth. Their labor is their capital and their only means of support. They must have employment or starve. Idleness insures the loss of shelter and inability to obtain food and clothing for themselves and their families. This absolute dependence upon employment for existence, puts the laborer to great disadvantage in his contest with those who want his labor, in setting the price or wages to be paid and in the free exercise of his suffrage and other rights of citizenship. As a rule the necessity of the laborer for employment is much greater and more imperious than the necessity of those who want labor. When the struggle between capital and labor becomes a question of endurance it soon ends in the submission of labor, and the necessity that makes the submission compulsory breeds discontent, and sometimes the sense of wrong makes the helpless man desperate 360 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. and drives him to mob violence for revenge. It is useless to attempt to conceal the fact, that the labor- ers or working people of this country look upon cap- ital accumulated in large corporations and individual ownership by the operations of class legislation, with a great deal of suspicion and distrust. The laborer feels that these vast corporations, and the large num- ber of individuals with their unknown millions of wealth in whose service he has been employed, have not made with him anything like a fair division of this immense joint product of labor and capital. The laborer feels that there is something wrong in his having so little to show for his work and his em- ployer having so much to show for his money. The general conviction of the laboring people is that the state of things that works out such unequal results and conditions is radically wrong somehow and some- where, and they want a remedy — a change. When you ask them what remedy they have to propose, as I have often done, they are utterly unable to give any valuable information. They can present moving pictures of their condition of dependence and privation and of the methods and practices of their employers, which they condemn, but when it comes to the ques- tion what do you propose — what power has the gov- ernment to relieve you, they are all at sea without rudder or compass. It is a fearful problem. With all its complications and perils it confronts our govern- ment and country. It must be met and solved as I LABOR AND CAPITAL. 36 1 have confidence it will be wisely and properly on Democratic principles without paternalism in our gov- ernment, and without revolutionary methods destructive of personal rights and Republican government. CHAPTER V. PENSIONS. Hon. Courtland C. Matson, Chairman of the Committee on Invalid Pensions, National House of Representatives. ''THE subject of Pensions is one of increasing importance to all the people, and has been made so by reason of the rapid increase in the amount appropriated. Politi- cal issues have never been made relating to this subject. Both parties have seemed to be anxious to meet the demands of those who have asked for pensions and have been willing to go just as far in that direction as it was in the power of the Government to pay. The pensioners themselves, however, are more interested than any one else in wise and conservative legislation and all must be ready to concede that if demands were made that cannot be met a reaction in the very favorable public sentiment heretofore existing is liable at any time to occur. It has been asserted that our Govern- ment pays now, annually, more for pensions than all the other civilized governments. Whether true or not it ought to be remembered that this expense upon our people does away with the necessity of maintain- ing a large and standing army, for our reliance in time of danger must be upon our volunteer force. On the other hand it ought to be remembered that the rights (362) COURTLAND C. MATSOX. PENSIONS. 365 of the tax-payer cannot be recklessly disregarded to the extent that this payment of pensions would become burdensome and offensive to the majority of the people. It is frequently asserted that fraud permeates the whole business of pension claims and some have what they regard a well-founded belief to this effect. A careful investigation of the subject would satisfy the unprejudiced mind that this condition of things does not exist. That there are frauds, and have been frauds, in this matter of pensions, no one will deny, but they do not prevail to that extent that many believe. It has been well for all concerned that no political issue has been founded upon the subject of pensions, and it will be well for the pensioners par- ticularly that such shall continue to be the case. Nearly $80,000,000 a year are now being paid on this account. Vast numbers of claims are pending asking that pensions be increased, and so it is likely to happen next year, and for some years to come, that the amount will continue, as it has for the past few years, to increase, until probably at least $100,000,000 per year will be paid to the people for pensions. This sum is likely to be paid without reference to any additional legislation and is more than is paid by the Government on any other account, not excepting even the interest upon the public debt. Legislation has been suggested which has at first seemed to be extravagant, but it has been upon inves- tigation easily justified, not only by the justice of the 7,66 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. demand, but by the anomalous condition of the public treasury. A people who are willing that the bond- holder who furnished his money only to carry on the war should be paid long afterwards upon a basis which greatly enhanced the value of his security, and at an expense upon the people not contemplated by the framers of the law under which these bonds were issued, will not complain if full justice is done to the soldiers and all their demands growing out of the wars. The policy of the Democratic Party has been one of liberality and justice to the soldiers. As the adminis- tration of Pension Affairs during the incumbency of General Black, as commissioner, clearly shows, more has been paid than ever before in a like period and the list has been increased in numbers and in value each year under Democratic rule. The annual value of a pension has been largely increased during this period. The present laws relating to pensions are mainly of Republican origin and were enacted during the time when the Republicans had undisputed control of the Government. If there is any just ground of complaint of the laws, the Republicans are responsible for them. At no period during the war, or since, ha* the Demo- cratic Party had the power in both branches of Con- gress, and the Presidency, so as to be enabled to enact a law, while the Republicans had undisputed control for ten years after the war and again during the period from the 4th day of March, 1881 to the 4th day of March 1883. PENSIONS. 367 A source of great injustice to claimants for pen- sions maintained during all the years of the Republican Administrations, was that rule which required that a condition of soundness, prior to enlistment should be proved in order to entitle a soldier to a pension. This has recently been remedied so that the law requires, in the adjudication of these claims, that the soldier should be considered sound at the time of en- listment. Many cases remain upon the files of the Pension Office which were rejected for this reason and among them the claims of soldiers who had served three or four years. One of the prolific causes of the increase in the number of pensions allowed has been the abrogation of this unjust rule so long adhered to by the Republican party. The bitterness shown to^ wards the President on account of his vetoes of private pension bills cannot be justified. It may be that an honest difference of opinion can exist as to the. merits of some of these bills, but the abuse and hostile criticisms of the Chief Executive so freely indulged in, are without reason and are intended for political effect only. The allegation that the tone of his veto messages is unkind and unfriendly to the soldiers can be successfully denied. He gives his reasons for his objections to a bill when he returns it to the House in which it originated, because he is required, by the Constitution, so to do ; and these reasons are in tone very much like the adverse reports on pension claims made by the Committees of both Houses of Congress. 22 368 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. A comparison between these adverse reports made to the Senate and to the House — many of them made by Republicans — with the vetoes of private pension bills by the President, will show at once the same tone uf expression and kind of language, adverse to the claimants necessarily, which politicians denounce in Mr. Cleveland's messages. Indeed, it can well be said that in giving reasons for an adverse decision it would be quite impossible to state the facts in a way that would be agreeable to the claimants. This objection to the President will be pressed upon the ex-soldiers in the coming campaign for the purpose of appealing to their prejudices and not to their reason and it is hoped by this appeal to induce Democratic ex-soldiers to vote for the Republican candidates. It is a false issue and will count for but little with those who have political principles. The fair-minded and in- telligent survivors of our late Civil War who stood on the* side of the Union must well understand this specious and deceitful appeal, and they will not allow their votes to be controlled by such considerations. Great questions of public policy, involving the interests of all the people, are more likely to control those who have given the best evidence of their patriotism by rendering valuable military service to their country, and when it is ascertained by them that during the three years and five months of President Cleveland's Administration nearly as many private pension bills have become laws as were enacted during the entire PENSIONS. 369 period of Republican Administration, they will see that this charge of unfriendliness to the Soldier falls harm- less at the feet of our Chief Executive. A conspicuous fact in relation to this matter is that this President is the first one in many years who has scrutinized private legislation, and he has not only fearlessly exercised the duty imposed upon him by the Constitu- tion, but, in all his administration, he has shown a fidelity to duty and has industriously discharged that great trust in a manner unprecedented in the history of the Government. The complaints against the Presi- dent in this regard are made in general terms and when made they ought to be met with a demand that the author of the charge should specify the ground upon which he makes it ; require him to point out what veto it is that he complains of. When this is done, I think it can be safely asserted that no reasona- ble complaint can be upheld. It should be added here in justice to all concerned in this kind of legisla- tion, that Congress is so overwhelmed with bills of this class that it is quite impossible to give them due consideration, and it should also be said in this con- nection that for the want of attention upon the part of the authors of these special bills, it is not always the case that the best ones are brought to a legisla- tive conclusion. Another striking fact in this connection is that of the number of private bills vetoed in this, the 50th, Congress, not one has been reported back to either 370 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. House from the Committee to which it was referred. The vetoes have been acquiesced in by all. Many of these vetoes were based upon technical grounds, such as a defect in the bill , that the claim was pending in the Pension Bureau and undetermined there ; that the claim had been allowed in the Pension Bureau ; a mistake in the name ; that bills had been passed for the benefit of the same person and for the same purpose ; that the party had a perfect remedy in the Pension Office which had never been tried ; that the bill would reduce the pension which the proposed beneficiary was receiving under the general law ; and to save arrearages which the beneficiary was entitled to under the .general law. One of the first acts of President Cleveland, after he assumed his great trust, was the appointment of the present able, liberal, patriotic and earnest Com- missioner of Pensions — Gen. John C. Black — and he has had full control of that office since the 17th day of March, 1885. I purpose to submit here a state- ment showing the work of the Pension Office during the last three years of Republican Administration and the succeeding three years of the administration, of that office under President Cleveland. I do this for the purpose of comparison and because I believe that it furnishes the very best proof of the friendliness of this Administration towards the ex-Union soldier ; and I also submit a statement bhowing the net increase of the pension roll, and of the funds disbursed on account of pensions for the same period* PENSIONS. 371 Last three years of Republican administration. Claims admitted, fiscal year 1883 : Original 38,162 Increase 22,746 Miscellaneous.. ...• 796 Total 61,704 Claims admitted, fiscal year 1884: Original 34, 192 Increase 22,517 Miscellaneous... 1,221 Total 57.930 Claims admitted, fiscal year 1885 : Original ." 35.7°7 Increase 33-985 Miscellaneous 1,835 Total 71-587 Grand total, claims admitted for three years 191,221 First three years of Democratic Administration. Claims admitted, fiscal year 1886 : Original 40,857 Increase 113,271 Miscellaneous 2,229 Total 156,357 Claims admitted, fiscal year 1887 : Original 55.194 Increase 32,107 Miscellaneous. 2,707 Total 90,008 Claims admitted, fiscal year 1888 : Original 60,173 Increase 35795 Miscellaneous I 7. II 9 Total 113,087, Grand total claims admitted for three years 359-45 2 Excess of cetificates issued during first three fiscal years of Democratic administration of the Pension Bureau over the number issued during the last three years of Repub- lican administration 168,231 372 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. Net increase to Pension-roll. Fiscal year 1883 17,961 Fiscal year 1884 19,098 Fiscal year 1885 22,369 Total 59,428 Fiscal year 1886 20,658 Fiscal year 1887 40,224 Fiscal year 1888 (approximate) 44.993 Total ...105,875 Excess of net increase during first three years of Democratic ad- ministration over that of the last three years of Republican administration 46,447 Funds disbursed on account of Pensions. Fiscal year 1883 $60,431,972 85 Fiscal year 1884 57.273,536.73 Fiscal year 1885, 65,693,706.72 Total 183,399,216.31 Fiscal year 1886 $64,584,270.45 Fiscal year 1887 74,815,486.85 Fiscal year 1888 (approximate) 78,000,000.00 Total ....217,399,757.30 Excess of disbursements during first three years of Democratic administration over the amount disbursed during last three years of Republican administration, $34,000,540.99 This record of what has been accomplished in the way of substantial benefits under Democratic rule will be much more satisfactory than the record of fulsome promises recklessly disregarded by the Republicans. It is taken from the official files, and has been supplied to me by the Hon. Commissioner of Pensions. It needs no comment. It speaks for itself and is enough to set at rest the fears that political alarmists may try to awaken for partisan purposes and for use in the present hotly-contested campaign. Where is the evidence of the unfriendliness so freely charged? It is easy enough to make the charge, but where is the pensions. 373 proof of it ? Figures taken from the official reports of the Commissioner of Pensions, and found upon the books of the Auditing officers of the Pension Office, show that the cost per case for adjudication, has been- much less under this Administration than under previous Administrations, and a striking fact in this line is an exhibit showing that the cost of the ex- amination of a case in the Special Examiner's division is now one-fourth what it was under the Republicans ; and this, too, notwithstanding the fact that the claims last examined are the most difficult to adjudicate be- cause of the greater lapse of time. Nor has there been any charge that the officers of this force of Special Examiners have been used for partisan purposes under this Administration while it was shown, by a Congressional investigation near the close of the 48th Congress, that, in the campaign of 1884, this corps of officers was used largely for political work, and the worst outrages upon the rights of claimants were perpetrated by those sworn officers of the law, in order to further the ends of the Republican party, by whose favor they were placed in office. I have thus briefly and hastily outlined the position of the Democratic party in its relation to pensions. It may be relied upon to continue a wise, conservative, liberal policy in this respect, and the soldiers of the Republic can well afford to rely upon its record, rather than upon the extravagant promises made by its political opponents. CHAPTER VI. REFORM OF THE CIVIL SERVICE. Hon. William R. Cox, Late Chairman of the Committee on Civil Service % National House of Representatives. u TTONEST reform in the Civil Service has been in- augurated and maintained by President Cleveland, and he has brought the public service to the highest standard of efficiency, not only by rule and precept, but by the example of his own untiring and unselfish administration of public affairs." — Dem. Nat. Platform, 1888. An eminent author says : " Examine History, for it is Philosophy teaching by Experience." It is proposed to apply this test in a' brief presentation of the treatment of Civil Service Reform by the Republican and Democratic parties and thus demonstrate which has been true to its professions in its dealings with the public. At the close of the late war the Re- publican party was panoplied with all the power and machinery of the general government. The public expenditures had been greatly augumented ; the mul- tiplication of offices needlessly increased ; and the wild hunt after office had introduced demoralization and corruption into all departments of the government. Soon the common sense of the American people, whose discriminating mind and unimpassioned judgment, (374) WILLIAM R. COX. THE NATIONAL DEMOCRARIC PARTY. 377 which have ever proved their shield in time of danger, demanded changes in the administration of their gov- ernmental affairs. They at first naturally sought to secure these necessary reforms through the agency of the party then in power. So universal was the demand for reform that the mere politician and place-man were unable to resist it. Therefore, every National Re- publican Convention and every President elected by this party gave prompt assurance of a ready com- pliance with this popular demand. In 1871, a law was enacted by Congress which provided for the ap- pointment of a Civil Service Commission, which was clothed with ample power to make all needful rules and regulations for carrying the law into effect. But this act, like Dead Sea fruit, proved a delusion and a snare, for two Congresses refused to make any ap- propriation for its execution, while, in the meantime, the public service became more and more corrupt. The tendencies of the Republican party were never more forcibly illustrated than by a distinguished mem- ber of their own party whose arraignment was made, we must suppose, after careful consideration of their damaging character and prompted alone by a high sense of duty. They should never be forgotten by an outraged but too confiding public. On the trial of Belknap, Senator Hoar, of Massachusetts., employs the following language in a speech he then delivered : " My own public life has been a very brief and insig- nificant one, extending little beyond the duration of a 378 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. single term of senatorial office ; but in that brief period, I have seen five judges of a high court of the United States driven from office by threats of impeachment for corruption or maladministration. I have heard the taunt, from friendliest lips that when the United States presented herself in the East to take part with the civilized world in generous competition in the arts of life, the only product of her institu- tions in which she surpassed all others beyond question was her corruption. I have seen in the State of the Union, foremost in power and wealth, four judges of her courts impeached for corruption, and the political administration of her chief city become a disgrace and a by- word throughout the world. I have seen the Chairman of the Committee on Military Affairs in the House, now a distinguished member of this court, rise in his place and demand the expulsion of four of his associates for making sale of their official privilege of selecting the youths to be educated at our great military school. When the greatest railroad of the world, binding together the continent and uniting the two great seas which wash ouf shores, was finished, I have seen our national triumph and exultation turned to bitterness and shame by the unanimous reports of three Committees of Congress — two of the House and one here — that every step of that mighty enterprise had been taken in fraud. I have heard in the highest places the shameless doctrine avowed by men grown old in public office that the true way by which REFORM OF THE CIVIL SERVICE. 379 power should be gained in the Republic is to bribe the people with the offices created for their service, and the true end for which it should be used, when gained, is the promotion of selfish ambition and the gratification of personal revenge. I have heard that suspicion haunts the footsteps of trusted companions of the President." A Democratic member in the 48th Congress, after quoting the foregoing remarks of the Senator from Massachusetts, made use of the following language : "And he lived to see more. He lived to see a Vice- President of the United States driven in disgrace and humiliation from his exalted position in the other end of the Capitol. He lived to see a President exalted to high station by such questionable means that not all the honors heaped upon him could command the respect of even his own party, and who even while living is mentioned only to mark an epoch in our history which we- would gladly forget. He lived to see the senators of the Empire State indignantly resign their seats in the Senate in consequence of the dis- tribution of office. He lived to see what was worse than all this, the President of the United States assassinated in consequence of the wrangle over spoils of office while a wail of horror and sympathy swept over the whole civilized world." Republican Party Assessments. Notwithstanding the fact that the reckless spoils system of the Republican party called for such a 380 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY, merited exposure as was administered by one of their distinguished Senators from Massachusetts, from whose speech I have quoted, and notwithstanding this system had culminated in the assassination of their President and other evils to which I have adverted, the party continued in its demoralizing practices and ridiculed the idea of reform. The Republican Congressional Committee, from the prominence and ability of its members, may be presumed to have voiced the popular sentiment of the party. It was composed of the follow- ing members, whose names are given. that no injustice may be done : Jay A. Hubbell, Chairman ; D. B. Henderson, Secretary ; Executive Committee, Hon. W. B. Allison, Hon. Eugene Hale, . Hon. Nelson W. Aldrich, Hon. Frank Hiscock, Hon. George M. Robeson, Hon. William McKinley, Jr., Hon. George R. Davis, Hon. Horatio G. Fisher, Hon. Horace F. Page, Hon. W. H. Calkins, Hon. Thomas Ryan, Hon. William D. Washburn, Hon. L. C. Houck, Hon. R. T. . Van Horn, Hon. Orlando Hubbs. jfay HubbelVs First Letter. Headquarters of the Republican Congressional Committee, 520 Thirteenth street, N. W. Washington D. C> May 15, 1882. Sir: This committee is organized for the protection of the interests of the Republican party in each of the Congressional districts of the Union. In order that it may* prepare print and circulate suitable documents illustrating the issues' which distinguished the Re- publican party from any other and may meet all proper REFORM OF THE CIVIL SERVICE. 38 1 expenses incident to the campaign, the committee feels authorized to apply to all citizens whose principles or interests are involved in the struggle. Under the cir- cumstances in which the country finds itself placed, the committee believes that you will esteem it both a privilege and a pleasure to make to its funds a con- tribution, which it is hoped may not be less than $ . The committee is authorized to state that such voluntary contribution from persons employed in the service of the United States will not be objected to in any official quarter. The labors of the committee will effect the result of the Presidential election in 1884 as well as the Con- gressional struggle ; and it may therefore reasonably hope to have the sympathy and assistance of all who look with dread upon the possibility of the restoration of the Democratic party to the control of the Government. Please make prompt and favorable response to this letter by bank-check or draft or postal money order, payable to the order of Jay A. HuBBELL, acting treasurer, P. O. lock box 589, Washington, D. C. By order of the committee. D. B. Henderson, Secretary. The effect, if not the intent, of this letter was to blackmail the employees of the government. It was without discrimination as to sex, age, or political con- victions. Even 'the Democratic employees of the United States Senate were served with these notices as if it were presumed every employee of the government was legitimate prey to the party in power. It is well known that in the first session of the 47th Congress in Washington, lobbyists and jobbers thronged the avenues of the Capitol, and 1 special legislation, the creature of favoritism, held high carnival while the Republican leaders were holding up with dread " the 382 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. possibility of the restoration of the Democratic party to the control of the government." Not satisfied with the first appeal, we were favored with a second epistle from the Stalwart leader, whose first did not appear to have accomplished all that his sanguine hopes desired. Jay HubbelVs Second Letter. Washington, D. C, August 15, 1882. SIR — Your failure to respond to the circular of May 15, 1882, sent to you by this committee, is noted with surprise. It is hoped that the only reason for such failure is that the matter escaped your attention owing to press of other cares. Great political battles cannot be won in this way. This committee cannot hope to succeed in the pend- ing struggle if those most directly benefited by success are unwilling or neglect to aid in a substantial manner. We are on the skirmish line of 1884, with a conflict before us, this fall, of great moment to the Republic, and you must know that a repulse now is full of danger to the next Presidential campaign. Unless you think that our grand old party ought not to succeed, help it now in its struggle to build up a new South, in which there shall be, as in the North, a free ballot and a fair count, and to maintain such hold in the North as shall insure good govern- ment to the country. It is hoped that by return mail you will send a voluntary contribution equal to two per cent, of your annual compensation, as a substantial proof of your earnest desire for the success of the Rebublican party this fall, transmitting by draft or postal money order, payable to the order of JAY A. HUBBELL, Acting Treasurer, post orifice lock box 589, Washington, D. C. Nor were the Committee satisfied with letters alone, but employed collectors who visited the departments and importuned the employees of the government who REFORM OF THE CIVIL SERVICE. 383 had not paid the assessment. In violation of the rules prohibiting all others having business with these clerks seeing them during business hours, the agents of the committee, who received a percentage on their collections, were allowed ingress and egress at all hours under the penalty against the officials refusing such privileges of being considered indifferent to their party's success, and treated accordingly. Another Circular, I will not pursue this Committee in its ramifications through the several States, but content myself with citing the fact that Virginia office-holders were turned over to the tender mercies of the re-adjusted Mahone, and with quoting the following frank and candid cir- cular issued by one of the agents of the Committee in the strong Republican State of Pennsylvania. It read as follows : Philadelphia, October, 25, 1880. " DEAR Sir : Our books show that you have paid no heed to either of the requests of the committee for funds. The time for action is short. I need not say to you that an important canvass like the one now being made in a State like Pennsylvania requires a great outlay of money, and we look to you as one of the Federal beneficiaries to help bear the burden. Two per cent, of your salary is . Please remit promptly. "At the close of the campaign we shall place a list of those who have not paid in the hands of the head of the department you are in. Truly yours, John Cessna, Chairman. In this age of progress, we live so much in the 384 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. present that we are not disposed to profit as much as we should by the bitter experiences of the past. An Irishman was found beating an offensive animal which had been killed, and upon it being inquired did he not know that the animal was dead and why he was beating it, replied, "In faith I do, but I wish to prevent its resurrection." So we should be admon- ished by the past not to forget the past would we escape the evils which have gone before. The Hon. Geo. Wm. Curtis, one of our ablest and purest public men and president of the Civil Service Reform Association, vainly attempted to stay this raid of the Committee upon the employees of the govern- ment, and for his efforts, was complimented ' by the following assault made in the pretentious " REPUBLI- CAN Campaign Text Book for 1882," numbering 240 pages. In glaring capitals we find the following head- ings on pages 99, 100, and 101 : No. 1. The Civil Service Reform Circular — Mr. Curtis declares Republican Congressional Committee's Circular requesting Contributions illegal — Significantly Calls at- tention to the provisions and penalties of the Law of 1876 — Warns Employes to prudently refrain from Complying with the Committee's request — The Civil Service Reformers attempt to Bulldoze or Intimidate Government Employes by Implied Threats of Perse- cution. Chairman Hubbell's reply — He joins issue with Mr. Curtis aud the Civil-Service Reform Circular to Government employees as to the character of the Committee's Circular — He denies that it violates the law of 1876 — He charges that Mr. Curtis misstates and perverts the law in an attempt to alarm, that REFORM OF THE CIVIL SERVICE. 385 *. is, to Intimidate or Bulldoze, Government Employees — Proposes to refer the interpretation of the Law to U. S. Attorney-General — If the law has been violated, then he, Chairman Hubbell, is equally guilty with the Contributing - Culprit— He challenges, therefore, as the more manly and honorable course, to bring the issue to a decision by a prosecution of himself. Mr. Curtis rejoins — He practically confesses the Bulldozing Purpose of the Civil-Service Reform Association Circular, and Lamentably attempts to ex- tenuate or defend it — Characteristically utters, upon pretended information, a willful libel that Clerks, errand boys, and girls are " virtually threatened " by the Committee's Circular with loss of place — Prates with hypocritical indignation about the abuses flowing from his own false statements of the Law and facts — Eulogizes the Democratic authors of the Law of 1876, the authors of the corrupt and tyranical prac- tice of arbitrary and compulsory partisan assessments,, and charges all their sins against Innocent Republi- cans, but fails to accept Chairman Hubbell's challenge to bring the matter to a decision before the U. S» Attorney-General or the Courts — Proves himself the Joseph Surface of Civil-Service Reform. Counsel of Civil-Service Reform Association, in a Letter to Chairman Hubbell, Support Mr. Curtis- — They Refuse upon a Pettifogging Plea to Refer the Interpretation of the Law to United States Attorney- General — Thus Decline to accept Chairman Hubbell's Challenge of Prosecution against Himself, but with a Meanness Characteristic of the so-called Reformer make an Offer, which no Honorable Man could act upon, that Chairman Hubbell Unite with them in the Pros- ecution of some Government Employee who had Con- tributed to the Republican Campaign Fund. The full text of this correspondence is most instruc- tive reading, and is only omitted through fear of making this article too voluminious. 386 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. The Boodle Theory Is well illustrated by the following able and instructive article on political assessments, taken from the North American Review for September, 1882. "The enforcement of this nefarious theory by the * Robber Barons' of politics was never so universal, so shameless, so barbarous, or so indiscreet as at this moment. The Federal pay-rolls call for more than fifty million dollars a year. On that sum the avowal is a levy of only two per cent., but the actual demand upon employees and small officials is far greater. If the committee expect to extort only a fourth of the one million dollars and more they demand, it but shows the effrontery of their pretense of a willingness to pay, and that they have no compunctions in excusing the landlord class and wringing the whole corruption fund from the most timid and humble of the tenant class. Very likely they expect little more from members of Congress and great officials than the pittance they got in 1878. It is not sharks and whales they have the courage to fish for, but herrings and dace. Boys are bullied for a dollar ! " Could the curtain of secrecy be lifted, we should see a vast drag-net of extortion thrown out by the committees from Washington over the whole land from Maine to California, with every humble official and laborer — from those under the sea at Hell Gate to the weather observers on Pike's Peak — entangled in its meshes ; and, busy among them, for their prey, a series of tax extortioners ranging down from Hubbell the great Quaestor to little Hubbells by the hundred, each paid a commission on his collections in true Turkish fashion (to which the large amounts extorted beyond regular plunder rate are added.). These minions, book ia hand, are haunting the official corridors and track- ing the public laborers. They mouse around the bureaus for names and salaries which all high-toned officials contemptuously withhold. Neither sex, age, nor REFORM OF THE CIVIL SERVICE. , 387 condition is spared by these spoils system harpies. They waylay the clerks going to their meals. They hunt the Springfield arsenal and the Mississippi break- water laborers to their humble homes. They obtrude their impertinent faces upon the teachers of Indians and negroes at Hampden School and Carlisle Barracks. They dog navy-yard workmen to their narrow lodgings. The weary scrub-women are persecuted to their garrets ; the poor office-boys are bullied at their evening schools ; the money needed for rent is taken from the aged father and the only son ; men enfeebled on the battle- fields are harried in the very shadow of the Capitol ; life-boat crews, listening on stormy shores for the cry of the shipwrecked, and even chaplains and nurses at the bedside of the dying, are not exempted from this merciless, mercenary, indecent conscription, which re- produces the infamy of oriental tax-farming. "We know of the head of a family who hesitates between defying Hubbell and taking a meaner tene- ment ; of a boy at evening school blackmailed of three dollars while wearing a suit given in charity, and of a son pillaged of seventeen dollars when furniture of the mother he supports was in pawn ; and many have consulted us as to the safety of keeping their earnings, which they need. In every case there is fear of re- moval or other retaliation. Pages could be filled with such cases from the reports of citizens. A newspaper before us gives that of a laborer, with a family, earn- ing seven hundred and fifty dollars a year, pursued by a harpy for fifteen dollars ; and also that of a boy of thirteen, earning one dollar a day, with another harpy after him for three dollars and sixty cents. To women and girls no mercy is shown." A Democratic Protest. In 1876, Senator George H. Pendleton introduced in the Senate a bill which eventually became the present Civil Service Law, which, after an able and protracted debate, was passed with only five dissent- 388 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. ing votes. The Bill having been sent over to the House of Representatives, was passed under a suspen- sion of the rules — the only opposition to it being that it was not sufficiently stringent in its provisions. The Section in relation to political assessments is as follows : Sec. 6. All executive officers or employees of the United States, not appointed by the President, with the advice and consent of the Senate, are prohibited from requesting, giving to, or receiving from any officer or employee of the Government any money or property or other thing of value for political purposes ; and any such officer or employee who shall offend against the provisions of this section shall be at once discharged from the service of the United States ; and he shall also be deemed guilty of a misdeamor, and on conviction thereof shall be fined in a sum not exceeding $500. (Supplement to the Revised Statutes of the United States, sec. 6, page 245.) During the consideration of the measure in the Senate , numerous amendments, having for their object the widening of the scope of its restrictive features, were offered by Democratic Senators, but they were invariably defeated by the Republican majority. The Republican Congressional Committee of 1882 seemed to grow furious over the passage of this law, and, notwithstanding it received the unanimous support of the Republicans in the Senate and House, denoun- ced it as, "The Conspiracy of 1876 of the Confeder- ate Brigadiers and Copperhead Democracy to wrest the Control of the National Government from the hands of the Republican Majority," and in regard to this REFORM OF THE CIVIL SERVICE. 389 law prefixed the following heading to a long arraign- ment of the Democratic party : The Law Respecting Political Assessments part of the fradulent machinery of the Democratic Conspiracy of 1876 — It prohibits under prescribed penalties cer- tain Government employees from giving any money or valuable thing to any other Government employee of a stated rank for partisan purposes — Passed, not to pun- ish Arbitrary political Assessments, for none were ap- prehended, but to prohibit Voluntary Contributions to and an effective organizations of the Republicans — Ar- bitrary aud Compulsory political assessments had their origin with the Democracy — Were enforced by the Democracy with a corrupt and tyranical hand up to the latest hour of its long Misrule — When Law of 1876 was passed the Democratic National and other Committees were assessing Democratic Senators and Members, the authors of the Law, for partisan pur- poses — At New York, wherever the Democrats had control of either State or Municipal Government, they were assessing a pro rata of Salaries ten times greater than 2 per cent. — The Law simply the fraudulent Agent of a corrupt Conspiracy. This committee acknowledges its full authorization by the Republican majority to act for it, as well as its responsibility for the acts of its executive officers, as the following quotation demonstrates : At the beginning of the present campaign, the Con- gressional Republican Committee, the organ of the Republican party of the nation, located at Washing- ton, D, C, instructed its executive officers, its Chair- nan, (Judge Jay A. Hubbell,) and its Secretary, (Col. D. B. Henderson,) to address a copy of the usual contribution circular to every employee of the Execu- tive Government. It is true, it seeks to escape the odium attaching 390 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. to the nefarious means employed to extort money from the dependent employees of the government for political and personal aggrandizement. It cannot, how- ever, escape the Pandora's box of evils turned loose upon the country, when they denounce, in the same breath, the Civil-Service Law as a conspiracy on the part of those who sought its enforcement, whatever may have been the motive that prompted the action of the Democrats. Before the next election the re- form element had shown its power as a controlling factor in the politics of the country. The Republican party had made a narrow escape in the election of 1880, and, concluding that "discretion is the better part of valor," in their campaign Text-Book for 1884, touched the subject very gingerly and declared, on page 149, The cry of Democracy for " honest " Civil-Service comes simply from their itch for place and power and the opportunity for plunder. It is not an old trick of the pilferer to start the people after some honest man with the cry of " stop thief," in order to advantage him- self ; and to direct public attention from their own terri- ble record of plundering and give them one more chance at the Treasury, the Democratic leaders would say and do anything. Put Democracy in power, and hoiv long zvould there be the present surplus in the Treas- ury ? How long before there woidd be deficiencies in- stead of a surplus ? That " itching " palm with which the Democracy is accused seems to have controlled this party in their recent convention at Chicago. Their resolution in regard to this reform is as follows ; REFORM OF THE CIVIL SERVICE. 39! Chicago {Republican) Platform 1888. "The men who abandoned the Republican party in 1884 and continued to adhere to the Democratic party have deserted not only the cause of honest govern- ment, of sound finance, of freedom or purity of the ballot, but especially have deserted the cause of reform in the civil service. We will not fail to keep our pledges because they have broken theirs or because their candidate has broken his. We, therefore, repeat our declaration of 1884, to-wit : 'The reform of the civil service auspiciously begun under the Rebublican administration should be completed by the further ex- tension of the reform system already established by law to all the grades of the service to which it is applicable. The spirit and purpose of the reform should be observed in all executive appointments, and all laws at variance with the object of existing reform legisla- tion should be repealed, to the end that the dangers to free institutions which lurk in the power of official patronage may be wisely and effectively avoided.'" This resolution of the platform adopted at the Re- publican National Convention, at Chicago, in June, 1888, consists of two distinct parts, to-wit: a sneer and a promise. The sneer consists in charging their own fall upon the Independent voter, and the promise is the same held out in 1884, when the Independent voter, having in vain sought to carry out this reform through their agency, wisely abandoned the party of broken promises, and false pretenses, and sought relief through Democratic agency. If we are guided by the light of experience, surely the Republican party is no more to be relied upon now than it was in 1884, U P to which time it had proved itself a party of plunder instead of reform. 392 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. Boodle, 1888. Before leaving this subject, permit me to call atten- tion to a recent instance of the old leaven again rising up in the midst of this "grand old party," whose mission has long since been fulfilled, and which now endeavors to secure ascendency through measures no longer at issue. The Republican League is probably the strongest auxiliary of their party; its disposition and expressions are a fit exemplar of the dominant spirit of the party. No longer having control of official patronage, through which to coerce reluctant stipendiaries, it manifests its robber spirit in its en- deavors to coerce its political associates. Not relying on the strength of its principles, it appeals to the persuasive power of the "Almighty dollar." The follow- ing dainty and instructive document appeared in the St. Louis Republican of recent date, and I append the editorial comment as appropriate to the theme under discussion. [Confidential — dictated.] Headquarters of the Republican League of the United States. New York, May, 24, 1888. MY Dear Sir : The Republican League of the Uni- ted States desire to bring you face to face with the startling fact that the coming Presidential election is not to be fought on the old party lines which have heretofore divided Democrats and Republicans, but upon the direct issue of free trade versus protection. It may not be of your personal knowledge, but it is a fact nevertheless that the manufacturers of the United States who are most benefited by our tariff REFORM OF THE CIVIL SERVICE. 393 laws have been the least willing to contribute to the success of the party which gave them protection and which is about to engage in a life and death struggle with free trade. A Republican United States Senator from a State which never had a Democratic representative in either House of Congress or a Democratic State officer, in speaking of the well-known disposition of the manu- facturing interest to lock up its money, fold its hands, and look on while somebody else rights for its success, says : "The campaign which we are about to enter will concern more than anybody else the manufacturers of this country. They have heretofore been laggard in their contributions to the Republican cause. Indeed, if I could punish them without punishing the cause of protection itself I would consign them to the hot- est place I could think of, on account of their era- venal parsimony. If this class of people do not care to contribute to the success of the Republican party they are welcome to try their chances under a Dem- ocratic administration. I can stand it as long as they can. I was solicited to contribute to a protective tariff league and I replied that, if the manufacturers of the United States in their associated capacity were an eleemosynary institution, I would vote to give them a pension, but that I did not propose myself to con- tribute money to advance the interests of men who were getting practically the sole benefit, or at least the most directly important benefits, of the tariff laws. I am in favor of protection ; not precisely the kind we are having, but I might be willing to keep that rather than not to have any, but I am sure I can get along without any of it fully as well as the man- ufacturers can, and if they think the Republican party is going to maintain a high protective corps for their benefit, and the men who do the work in that party are going to keep up the expenses of a campaign out of their own pockets, leaving them to reap the 394 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. fruits of the tariff policy without any deduction for political expenses, they are greatly mistaken. I under- stand that, in a general way, the manufacturers of New England have been more liberal in their contri- butions than those of Pennsylvania. "In fact, I have it from the best possible source that the manufacturers of Pennsylvania, who are more highly protected than anybody else, and who make large fortunes every year when times are prosperous, practically give nothing towards the maintenance of the ascendency of the Republican party. Of course I shall not violate what I consider to be a proper prin- ciple of action; but, .if I had my way about it, I would put the manufacturers of Pennsylvania under the fire and fry all the fat out of them. If the Mills tariff bill comes to the Senate there will be some votes cast there which will open the eyes of some of these people who have, while gathering their millions, treated the Republican party as their humble servant." These are strong words, and bitter, but they are true ; and it now remains with you and your associates to determine whether they are reiterated after the campaign is over and protection has, through your apathy, been struck its death-blow. If you give us the means to win the victory we will do it. Are you willing ? Yours truly, James P. Foster, President. This circular, sent everywhere to manufacturers " in confidence," was made public by one of them by way of protest against the blackmailing spirit of the Re- publican party. While many manufacturers will be manly enough to refuse to submit to blackmail, others will be held under the fire until the fat fries out in sufficient quantities to grease the Republican machine, ■x- # *■ * * * ■* In this desperate strait, the party hopes to win by buying votes with money contributed by the rings, REFORM OF THE CIVIL SERVICE. 395 pools, and trusts represented by the Thurstons, Depews, and Haymonds, who dictated the nominations at Chicago. " Boodle " can do much. There are votes for sale and boodle can buy them, but there are not enough boodle-givers or boodle-takers in the United States to elect a President/' This circular, it will be seen, was issued the current year, yes, after the Republican party had been beaten at the polls, through its venal and corrupt use of the public patronage, and while a Democratic President was using his best energies to secure the purity of the ballot box. Theoretical Reformers. I do not deny but that there were theoretical re- formers among these members of the Republican Con- gressional Executive Committee, some of whom occa- sionally suffered their honest indignation to find expression at the oppression of subordinate government employees, and the debauchery of suffrage through instrumentalities employed by prominent officials of their party. What I do isssert is that, in the cam- paign literature of 1882, which was to be used to control the Congressional elections, there was not one of its members who openly protested against the action of his colleagues in their assaults upon this reform. St. Paul is not charged with having thrown a stone at Stephen, but it is recorded to his discredit that he was present and consenting unto his death. This Committee was unwilling that General Garfield even should be allowed to escape as a Civil Service 396 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. Reformer. Possibly, perhaps, he was one of that number who, while a theoretical reformer, was not unwilling to secure money from even the most questionable sources for campaign purposes. At least the Com- mittee appears to be willing to subject him to this imputation by publishing his letter requesting aid from Brady, the celebrated Star Route manipulator. Doubt- less "Hubbellism," a word coined by reason of the nefarious practices of this Committee, had dominated the whole body. I here insert from the Republican Hand-book of 1880 the following choice clipping: General Garfield favored Contributions for Partisan Pur- poses — His Letter to Chairman Hubbell during last Presidential Election asking hozv are the Departments generally doing. General James A. Garfield is often quoted by the so- called Civil-Service Reformers as opposed to or re- probating political contributions for partisan purposes. The quotation is a characteristic fraud of the bogus re- former. To arbitrary or compulsory assessments General Garfield was no doubt opposed, as are Jay A. Hub- bell and D. B. Henderson — as indeed are all Repub- licans. But the General was too sensible a man, too experienced, practical, and just, to oppose or reprobate voluntary contributions, or requests from responsible organs of the party for contributions, in support of the cause he himself so ably sustained. Were there any doubt in the matter the following letter from General Garfield during the late Presidential election, when he was himself a candidate, would authoritatively settle it : Mentor, Ohio, August 23, 1880. My Dear Hubbell: Yours of the 19th instant is received. Please say to Brady I hope he will give us all the assistance possi- REFORM OF THE CIVIL SERVICE. , 397 ble. I think he can help effectively. Please tell me how the departments are generally doing. . As ever yours, J. A. Garfield. Hon. Jay A. Hubbell, Chairman Republican Con- gressional Committee, Washington, D. C. While I might make many other interesting quota- tions illustrative of the political methods of this party of " moral ideas," when rejoicing in their supposed plenitude of power, it might be ungenerous to the fallen, and I, therefore, turn to a brighter and more gratifying page in the history of our country. In the campaign of 1884, Civil Service Reform had become a prominent issue. Mr. Cleveland in his letter of ac- ceptance elaborated and emphasized his cordial and sincere approval of this measure. By the aid of the independent vote he had been triumphantly elected as Govenor of his State. His high integrity, fearless vindication of the right, and great acceptability as Governor of the Empire State, justified the anticipa- tions of his friends of his election to the Presidency, in the event of his nomination. Mr. Blaine, his oppo- nent, gave this reform a general and qualified endorse- ment, and it being feared that he was more of a politician than a statesman, THE INDEPENDENT VOTE was given to Mr. Cleveland and it secured his elec- tion. Prior to this time, the Republican party, in every national convention and in canvasses before the people, had posed as the professed friend and earnest advocate of Civil Service Reform. All of its Presi- 398 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. dents, from Gen. Grant down, had specially recom- mended appropriations for the support of a Civil Ser- vice Commission. Still, the party neglected and turned a deaf ear to these appeals, and never, until defeated in the Presidential election of 1884, did it manifest any disposition to take the subject up and deal prac- tically with it. When it was known that the Demo- crats were about to assume the disposition of the na- tional civil appointments, then their zeal was quickened, their patriotism aroused, an appropriation was made, and a Commission appointed in March, 1883. All this but tended to embarrass the incoming administration. It not unnaturally reminded the Democrats of the ap- pointments made by Mr. Adams of the " mid-night judges," when Mr. Jefferson was about to succeed him in the Presidential office. Republican Methods. Many Republicans whose terms would have expired soon after the inauguration of Mr. Cleveland hastened to tender their resignation to secure appointments or the appointment of friends in their stead. Such polit- ical chicanery in dealing with great national matters, in which the people alone are primarily interested naturally aroused deep indignation and provoked bitter comment on the part of those who had been excluded from office for over a quarter of a century : thus to be cheated of the fruits of victory in the very hour of triumph. The Slogan of Democracy for many years had been "Turn the rascals out," and now this im- REFORM OF THE CIVIL SERVICE. 399 portant reform, which had been championed through Congress by one of their distinguished leaders, was to be perverted by the defeated party in order to keep the " rascals " in. Upon entering upon his duties Mr. Cleveland was thus additionally embarassed in the en- forcement of an unpopular law by reason of the stab it had received in the House by its professed friends. Pledges Redeemed. From the course of the President, we are justified in declaring that he entered upon his duties with a full knowledge of their embarassments and responsi- bilities, resolved to honestly and conscientiously carry out, in letter and in spirit, every principle announced in his letter of acceptance, and in the platform of his party. His correspondence with Mr. Curtis, between his election and inauguration, indicated no abatement of his interest in this reform, but, on the contrary, manifested a confidence in his ability to accomplish results which the future disclosed were far more difficult than he, at the time, probably anticipated. From that time onward, in the face of calumny from the opposing party, unjust complaints from the Inde- pendents, and hostility in the ranks of his own party, he- has steadily and fearlessly endeavored to advance this reform. No one brought in close personal contact with him could fail to discover this unselfish desire to fulfil his early promises. On the contrary, he has sought every opportunity to aid and sustain the Com- mission in the discharge of their arduous duties, has 400 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. diligently studied, dnd uniformly recommended, such modifications of the rules as might relieve their in- congruites, remove their inequalities and extend their influence. A Dependent Laiv. There is, probably, no other law upon the Statute book so dependent upon the President for its efficiency as this Civil Service Act itself. With him rests such full discretion that by neglect he may distroy its use- fullness, or by its honest and diligent enforcement, render its effect most wholesome and beneficial. When intro- duced in the Senate, and when under discussion, many of its defects and short-comings were pointed out. Some were remedied, others it was impossible to correct and yet carry the law through. Some of the most sincere and earnest friends of the law pointed out these defects, but as the measure was tentative, it was deemed prudent at the time to pass them over. The Bill was the result of innumerable consultations, and its friends were content to devise a system, without attempting too much, that should be fairly satisfactory to the country. Their great object was to attempt only that which was practical, and which, if successful, would demonstrate the advisability of still greater reforms. Hence it was that so large a discretion was left in the hands of the President, whom the fathers of our Federal system had, at the outset, clothed with extraordinary powers. Ours is a great nation — the office-holders under the Government are, probably, not less than a hundred and REFORM OF THE CIVIL SERVICE. 4OI fifteen thousand. In the nature of things, it was im- possible that the President of the United States, or the heads of the Departments, in an administration just coming into power, or, for the matter of that, one which had for a term been in power, should know the qualifications and merits, or demerits, of the numerous applicants for local offices in the respective States. The practice, possibly more honored in its breach than its observance, had long obtained, that Senators and Representatives should solicit, for their friends and re- tainers, offices of an administration which they had helped to place in power. With the growth of our country and the multiplication of its offices, a reform was needed. A system must be adopted or results must continue which, under former administrations, had brought into shame and dishonor our free institutions. On entering upon the discharge of his duties, Mr. Cleveland surrounded himself with an able and distin- guished Cabinet, three of whom, supported the Pendle- ton bill in the Senate, and all gave him their full co-operation, thus enabling him to administer the gov- ernment for the good of the people, and to inaugurate such reforms as have distinguished him as a model executive of a free people. This has not been accom- plished without the most unremitting labor, unyielding integrity, and resolute purpose. After being exiled from office for over twenty-five years ; after seeing a victory which they felt was fairly won, wrested from them through methods unknown to the Constitution, the 24 402 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. joy of the Democratic people reached the bounds of en- thusiasm. It was, therefore, natural that they should an- ticipate that their adversaries would be immediately re- moved from all offices, and such demands were made for appointment as only a President like Mr. Cleveland could withstand. Not even the magnificient soldier, Gen. Grant, was able to resist the importunities of friends, the appointment of whom brought dishonor upon his administration. Had President Cleveland yielded prompt- ly, the thoughtful can plainly see the worst predictions of his enemies would probably have been realized. Those disposed to cavil at the President for the re- movals and appointments he has made during his ad- ministration are invited to consider a single extract from a Democratic journal, which is as foilows : Upon theory it has always been easy to show the corrupting influence of the spoils system, and yet the Republican party, which now protests so loudly against it, held the offices against all comers for a quarter of a century, and never realized for a moment that Democrats had any right to any political appointment. They simply trod in the footsteps of most of those who had gone before, and their quickened conscience, about which we heard so much in other matters, was as dead as a door-nail when applied to Federal patronage. This was the ancient faith and practice when President Cleveland took his seat. He had distinctly announced his appreciation of the reform sought in the National Civil Service. He found the new and untried law upon the statute-books, but he also found both his own opinions and the provisions of that law at variance with the settled practice of parties, the demands of party leaders, and the expectations of those who by party service deemed themselves en- REFORM OF THE CIVIL SERVICE. 403 titled to the accustomed rewards. Almost unaided, and in the face of opposition in his own ranks such as few could withstand, this strong man has made his single-handed fight for Civil Service reform. The wonder is that he has been able to make any pro- gress at all, and not that he has disappointed the hopes and expectations of those who were impractic- able enough to suppose that the methods of a cen- tury could be blotted out in a single administration. The Democratic platform means what it says, because nothing is surer than that President Cleveland will carry it out to the letter. — Baltimore Sun (Dem.) I now insert an article from an Independent source, which is preceded by two strictures from Republican papers : Bos i 'on Herald (Ind.) The Boston Herald is satisfied that " if President Cleveland should be re-elected, greater progress will be made in the direction of Civil Service reform, in the last than in the first four years of his adminis- tration." The Herald confesses that he has made many bad blunders and broken his pledges. Hence, therefore, accordingly, he will make no more blunders and break no more promises. This is first-rate Mug- wump logic. — Springfield Union. The Boston Herald confesses that Mr. Cleveland has wandered further and further from his early professions as to Civil Service reform, but professes to believe that he would do better if re-elected ; it is queer logic by which that result is reached. — Lawrence American. Our esteemed contemporaries appear to find it diffi- cult to understand the process of reasoning by which we have arrived at the conclusion that, although Pres- ident Cleveland has not made good the professions of Civil Service reform pronounced by him at the time of his accession to office, there is ground for thinking 404 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. that he will accomplish more in his second than in his first term of service. We regret this inaptitude on the part of our neighbors, all the more because we are aware it is due to prejudice rather than mental incapacity. The world has offered abundant illustra- tions from which the argument we made might be enforced. Time after time, in business, in politics, and in social life, men in ignorance of the difficulties to be encountered have made, either publicly or to themselves, promises which they have not been able to keep ; not because of a want of good intentions, but because they have altogether underestimated the force of the opposition they have to encounter. To call such persons hypocrites and false pretenders would, in the great majority of cases, do them a grievous wrong, for frequently, where no public asser- tion of intentions has been made, the individual him- self is, perhaps, the only one who is chagrined at his failure. But, assuming the possession of courage and honest intentions, the man who suffered these hard experiences is much more likely to ultimately succeed upon the second than upon the first effort. He is then aware of the difficulties that are in his way, of the limitations under which he must work, and can adapt means to ends with a skill which his past over- confidence did not permit him to display. The ground taken by our esteemed contemporaries would condemn to hopeless despair nine-tenths of the ambitious young men of every generation, and we are glad that pes- simism has not, with us, been developed to this high state of perfection. Justice to Mr. Cleveland. A careful scrutiny of the conduct of the President in his efforts to fulfill his promises should lead the dispassionate, impartial seekers after truth to wonder — not why he should be criticised, but how one man has accomplished so much. In, the language of Mr. Jef- REFORM OF THE CIVIL SERVICE. 405 ferson " error can be safely tolerated when trnth is left free to combat it." The Democratic party makes no excuses and renders no apologies in this matter for the President, but declares in its platform that ** Honest reform in its civil service has been inaugu- rated and maintained by President Cleveland, and he has brought the public service to the highest stand- ard of efficiency, not only by rule and precept, but by the example of his own untiring and unselfish ad- ministration of public affairs." To show what has been accomplished since the enactment of this law and the appointment of the Commission in 1883 under the efficient guidance of Hon. Dorman B. Eaton, and subsequently under the Commission reorganized by President Cleveland, I cannot do better than incorpo- rate the following extract from the report of the Civil Service Commission for the current year : Needless Employes. Before the enactment of the Civil Service Act the condition of the executive civil service in the depart^ ments at Washington and in the customs and postal services was deplorable. In the Department of the Treasury 3,400 persons were at one time employed, less than 1, 600 of them under authority of law. Of these 3,400 employes, 1,700 were put on or off the rolls at the pleasure of the Secretary, who paid them out of funds that had not by law been appropriated for the payment of such employes. At that time, of a force of 958 persons employed in the buraau of en- graving and printing, 539, with annual salaries amount- ing to $390,000, were, upon an investigation of that bureau, found to be superflous. For years the force in some branches of that bureau had been twice and 406 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. even three times as great as the work required. In one division there was a sort of platform, built under- neath the iron roof, about 7 feet above the floor, to ac- comodate superflous employes. In another division 20 messengers, were employed to do the work of one. The committee that made this investigation reported that " patronage," what is now known as the "spoils system," was responsible for this condition, and de- clared that this system had cost the people millions of dollars in that branch of the service alone. So ^reat was the importunity for place under the old system of appointments that when $1,600 and $1,800 places became vacant the salaries thereof would be allowed to lapse, to accumulate, so that these accumulations might be divided among the applicants for place on whose behalf patronage-mongers were incessant in im- portunity. In place of one $1,800 clerk, three would be employed at $600 each ; would be employed, ac- cording to the peculiarily expressive language of the patronage-purveyors, "on the lapse." "In one case," said a person of reliability and of accurate information, testifying before the Senate Committee on Civil Ser- vice Reform and Retrenchment, "thirty-five persons were put on the ' lapse fund ' of the Treasurer's office for eight days at the end of a fiscal year to sop up some money which was in danger of being saved and returned to the treasury." Unnecessary employes abounded in every department, in every customs office, and in almost every post-office. Dismissals were made for no other purpose than to supply with places the proteges of importunate solicitors for spoils. In its first report the Commission said : " It was the expectation of such spoils which gave each condidate for collector the party strength which secured his confirmation. Thus, during a period of five years in succession, collectors, all belonging to one party, for the purpose of patronage, made removals, at a single office, of members of their own party more frequently than at the rate of one every day. In 1,565 secular days 1,678 such removals were made." REFORM OF THE CIVIL SERVICE. / 407 A conditfon of affairs as deplorable existed in the postal service. Factional Leadership. "On all sides, in every branch df the civil service, subordinate places were used in the interest of the leaders of the factions of a party, who, by assess- ments, which were disguised in the form of solicita- tions for money, suggestions that money ought to be contributed, and other methods of this kind, extorted from public employes funds which were used for political purposes, legitimate and otherwise. Even members of Congress of national reputation signed circular letters addressed to subordinate civil servants of the govern- ment, requesting contributions to be paid to them as members of a political committee ; doing this in utter disregard of the spirit of a provision of the Revised Statutes declaring it to be unlawful, an offence punish- able by fine and dismissal from office, for any officer in the public service to solicit, or receive, money from any other officer in such service ! The public conscience had been perverted by the doctrine that to the victors belong the spoils ; and the people were not shocked when they beheld public offices bestowed, as a reward for partisan services, upon persons at once unworthy and incompetent." Abuses Corrected. Under the Civil Service Act many of of these abuses have been corrected. This is shown by the fact that although there have been, since the enactment of the law, a change of political parties in the administra- tion of the government, there has not been, either in the departments or at the port of New York, as many dismissals in any given time as occurred before the passage of the act. And there has not been since the change of parties any dismissals in any branch of the classified service avowedly for partisan reasons. In this connection the notable fact may be stated that a collector at the port of New York, appointed after 408 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. March 4th, 1885, was compelled to resign his office when it became evident that removals excessive in number were being made by him apparently with ref- erence to partisan considerations, and the customs business of that port was not being conducted on business principles. And in this connection, attention may also be called to the fact that a postmaster at Baltimore, appointed after March 4, 1885, resigned his office, and was condemned, because he had vio- lated the Civil Service rules by making appointments to and removals from the classified service of his office for partisan reasons. Since the passage of the act no appointments have been, or could have been, made "on the lapse." The place- purveyor's occupation is gone in so far as it relates to those parts of the service that are operated upon by this law. He can no longer demand a place for the party henchman who has no adequate qualifications for the public service, and, as a general rule, no person can now be appointed until after his qualifications have been tested, not by theoretic, hair-splitting tests unnecessary to the ascertainment of his fitness for the employment sought, but by examinations practical in their character. The demoralizing methods of the patronage system of appoint- ments have been replaced, within the classified service, by the better methods of the law, under which the demands of common justice are complied with, that, in so far as practicable, all citizens duly qualified shall be allowed equal opportunity, on grounds of personal fitness, for securing appointment and employment in the sub- ordinate civil service. And even outside the classified service the effects of the law are apparent. The wisdom of making dismis- sals from unclassified subordinate places for partisan reasons is now challenged by the better sentiment of the country. The political assessor no longer does his work in an open manner. He is not now a familiar presence in the departments, the custom-houses, and the post-offices. He has become a skulker in his work, REFORM OF THE CIVIL SERVICE. 409 and pursues his vocation as if it was dishonorable. Senators and Representatives no longer organize them- selves into assessing committees, for the purpose of making requests for money for political purposes, re- quests to which potency was formely given by the implied threat that non-compliance would result in dismissal, and which were therefore, in effect, impera- tive demands for money upon the employes of the government, who were thus compelled by fear of loss of employment to "stand and deliver." This report has properly dwelt, in the main, upon the pecuniary losses to the service, under the spoils system. Even cabinet officers did not hesitate to use government employes to manipulate local — even National Conventions. In Congressional nominations and elections the appointees of members often left Washington to control local elections, to the neglect of their public duties and the disparagement of the service. No one can fail to see that in thus prostituting the official service of the government a serious blow was being struck at our free institutions. Hence this revolt from Republican methods, which resulted in the nomination of Greeley, and the succession of the Independents in 1884, which secured the election of Mr. Cleveland, and will doubtless produce a like result in 1888. In conclusion, it should always be remembered that it has been the aim and purpose of the present adminis- tration to run this government on business principles and not merely as a political machine. The appoint- ments under the classified service have a uniform entrance and are no longer the small change of office- 41 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. brokering politicians. Ideas and not spoils ; services and not favoritism ; merit and not subserviency, are the rules which now control this service. The reform has come to stay, and while it may be for a time neglected, it will, like truth, on its merits, rise again. A Democratic President has manifested its practical advantages, and an intelligent public sentiment will uphold its enforcement. WILLIAM S. HOLMAN. CHAPTER VII. THE PUBLIC LANDS. Hon. William S. Holman Chairman of the Committee on Public Lands, National House of Representatives. ^ r PHE title to our national possessions comes, first, by discovery by the Cabots ; second, by discoveries and colonization under grants and charters from Eng- land, Holland, France, Sweden, and Spain, and treaties and conventions thereafter ; third, by Revolution in 1776, and confirmation through and by the definitive treaty of peace at Paris, with Great Britain, Septem- ber 3, 1783, whereby the Crown of Great Britain recognized the Independence of the United States ; fourth, by purchase from France of the province of Louisana, April 30, 1803 ; fifth, by purchase from Spain of the East and West Floridas, February 22, 1819; sixth, by annexation of the Republic of Texas, Decem- ber 29, 1845 '■> seventh, by treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, February 2, 1848 ; eighth, by purchase from the Repub- lic of Mexico (the Gadsden purchase) of the Mesilla Valley, December 30, 1853 ; ninth, by purchase from the Empire of Russia of Alaska; March 30, 1867." (413) 4H THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. The Original Area of the United States and their Possessions. "By the definitive treaty of peace with Great Britain, of September 3, 1783, concluding the Revolutionary War, our national territory was defined as extending westward from the Atlantic to the Mississippi River, and from a line through the lakes on the north to the thirty-first parallel and the south boundary of Georgia on the south, embracing about 531,200,000 acres." Of this 218,721,280 acres, were included in the thirteen States which formed the American Union. Cessions by States to the National Government. The State of Kentucky was formed out of territory belonging to Virginia, south of the Ohio River. Ver- mont was organized out of the territory known as the New Hampshire grant. Maine was formed out of territory which belonged to the State of Massachusetts, and Tennessee out of territory held by North Carolina. These four States embrace 53,050,880 acres, and are not to be regarded as having been a part of the public domain. The Public Domain. The vast region of country extending from the thirteen original States, and the States named, organized out of territory belonging to particular States, west- ward to the Mississippi River, was claimed under various grants from the British Crown by the States of Vir- ginia, New York, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, South Carolina, North Carolina and Georgia, of which claims THE PUBLIC LANDS. 415 that of Virginia embraced substantially the entire region of country west of Pennsylvania and New York, lying north of the Ohio River. It became manifest as soon as the Federal Union was formed, that it was of the highest importance that the unoccupied lands, extending westward to the Mis- sissippi, should be held and controlled by the Federal Government. The statesmen of that day saw very clearly that in disposing of the public lands, and in organizing future political societies, if the Union was to be maintained and enlarged, the unoccupied and then unexplored regions of country claimed by the States must be placed under the control of Congress, and, under the high sentiments of patriotism which animated that period, the various States claiming portions of that unoccupied country surrendered the same to the Federal Government to be held for the common benefit of the Union. This action resulted in the organization of what was known as the territory northwest of the Ohio River, extending from New York and Pennsylvania to the Mississippi River, out of which were formed, in progress of time, the States of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin, leaving a small portion thereof east of the Mississippi River, which now con- stitutes a part of the State of Minnesota, while the territory south of the Ohio River was organized in due time into the States of Alabama and Mississippi, as far south as the thirty-first parallel. This patriotic action of the original States placed 41 6 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. forever the public domain as the common possession of all the States, under the absolute control of the Federal Government. The public domain, therefore, embraced in the beginning 259,131,787 acres, and was the beginning of the vast territorial possessions which, during the last eighty-five years, have been under the control of the Federal Union. But it became apparent at an early moment that with the western boundary of its government resting upon the Mississippi River, with a vast and fertile region of country extending west from that great river to the Pacific Ocean capable of supporting a great nation, the peace and safety of the United States would, in progress of time, be in constant peril, and it is manifest from the history of that period that as soon as our Government was fully established, the importance of securing, not only the country west of the Mississippi, but that portion of country known as East and West Florida, lying east of the Mississippi, was foremost in the minds of all the statesmen of that day. The moment the independence of the United States was assured, Mr. Jefferson began to consider the great question of territorial expansion which involved the destiny of the new republic. The Louisiana Purchase. The first enlargement of the public domain was made by acquisition of the French Province of Louisiana. After that province had been held for many years by Spain, it had been surrendered by Spain to France ; THE PUBLIC LANDS. 417 » Spain still retaining the two Floridas. In the very beginning, obtacles were thrown in the way by France, at New Orleans, of our employment of the Mississippi as an outlet to the Gulf. Mr. Jefferson became anxious and vigilant. Mr. Monroe had been despatched to France to negotiate with that power for commercial advantages at New Orleans, and while not authorized to negotiate for the purchase of Louisiana, his mission was to seize on any favorable opportunity that might arise to fortify the position of the United States. When Mr. Monroe reached France, Bonapart was engaged in vast military preparations and was in pressing need of money, and a proposition was made to sell Louisiana to the United States. It is well known that the First Consul fully appreciated the value of this great pos- session of France and was anxious that if France could not hold it it should not fall under the control of any great European power ; especially of England or Spain. He is said to have remarked during the negotiation, "that as he was compelled to sell the province of Louisiana or hold it at a great sacrifice of men and money, and probably be compelled to see it captured by the great Naval rival of France, he preferred to transfer it to the United States," adding, " that what- ever nation held the Valley of the Mississippi and the Gulf of Mexico, would eventually be the most powerful on earth ; that consequently, he was determined that it should not be held by a European enemy of France." After extended negotiations, a treaty was reached, on 41 8 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. the 30th of April, 1803, by which the province of Louisiana, extending from the Gulf of Mexico to the Columbia River and the Pacific Ocean, was ceded to the United States, the price paid being $15,000,000, with an agreement upon the part of the United States to assume and pay the claims of certain American citizens against France. The United States was not in a condition to pay the money and bonds were issued for the amount. The following is an accurate statement of the entire sums paid by the United States in the purchase of Louisiana : Principal Sum $ 1 5,000,000 Interest to Redemption 8,529,353 $23,529,353 Claims of Citizens of United States against France paid by the United States $ 3,738,268.98 In all $27,267,621.98 This is the greatest purchase of lands ever made by any nation, not only on account of the vast extent and fertility of its territory, but on account of its important relations to the Mississippi River and its great tributaries and the Gulf of Mexico and the com- merce of the world. The acquisition of this territory gave to the United States the control of the North American Continent, and opened up to their commerce the markets of all nations. The area of this Louisiana purchase is 756,961,280 acres. It is five times greater than the area of France. Out of this Louisiana purchase, we have formed the THE PUBLIC LANDS. 419 States of Louisiana, Arkansas, and Missouri ; all of Kansas but the southwest corner ; all of Minnesota west of the Mississippi River ; all of Nebraska ; all of Colorado east of the Rocky Mountains and north • of the Arkansas River ; all of Oregon and the Terri- tories of Dakota, Montana, Idaho, Washington and Wyoming, except the zone and the middle, south and southwest part ; also the Indian Territory. It must be added, however, that the discovery of the mouth of the Columbia River by Captain Gray, of the Ship Columbia, an American citizen, in 1 791, must be con- sidered in connection with the western boundary of the Louisiana purchase — for although the claims of France extended to the Pacific Ocean, the discovery of the mouth of the Columbia River by an American citizen, who named the great Western River after his, vessel, was important in fixing the northwest boundary between the United States and the possessions of Great: Britain. It will be observed that before this purchase was actually made, Mr. Jefferson, in anticipation of the ultimate acquisition of Louisiana, recommended to Congress an appropriation for the exploration of this region of country which resulted in the famous ex- ploration made by Lewis and Clark. But this enter- prise, although the preparations had been made before,, did not really begin until after the purchase was completed. The course of Mr. Jefferson in recom- mending and securing this purchase was criticized by 25 4-0 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. the Federalists at the time, and has been since, on the gronnd of the' absence of Constitutional power. But whatever may have been the views of Mr. Jef- ferson as a strict constructionist of the power as conferred on Congress by the Constitution, it is mani- fest that he regarded this measure of such vital moment, and so essential to the ultimate prosperity, peace and safety of the United States, as to justify him in consummating the act of purchase without too severe an examination of the question of Constitutional power. Mr. Jefferson in a great emergency recognized the soundness of the maxim, " The safety of the people is the supreme law." So in the very infancy of our Government, under a broad and comprehensive statesmanship, this magnificent empire, which in the progress of events was destined to make the United States the foremost of the nations, was secured by peaceful negotiation and honest purchase; the. first instance in the history of the world of the acquisition of great territorial possessions by a nation, by the peaceful methods of. statesmanship. It will be remem- bered, however, that the purchase of Louisiana was subject to certain grants which had been made both by France and Spain — land monopolies after the European order — but the extent of those grants was trifling in comparison to the magnitude of the country. The next purchase made by the United States was that from Spain, on the 22nd of February, 18 19, of THE PUBLIC LANDS. 42 I East and West Florida, under Mr. Monroe's adminis- tration, at a cost of $5,000,000, in bonds similar to those issued in the Louisiana purchase. The interest on these bonds when redeemed was $1,489,768, making the final cost of the purchase of the two Floridas $6,489,/68. This purchase added to the public do- main 37,931,520 acres, subject, as in the case of Louisiana, to certain private grants, which had been made by the Spanish Government. There was never any anxiety by our Fathers in regard to the Floridas. They were not of sufficient extent to excite apprehen- sion, and it was reasonably certain, from their isolated position with relation to any other possession of Spain, that sooner or later they would become, by Revolu- tion or purchase, a part of the United States. The third acquisition of territory by the .United States was that made during the administration of President Polk, from Mexico, by treaty concluded on the 22d day of February, 1848, known as the treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo. This purchase embraces 334,- 443,520 acres. In that treaty the United States was represented by Nicolas P. Trist, and the amount of money paid for this territory was $15,000,000, This purchase was only second in important to the purchase of Louisiana. It embraces the entire States of Cali- fornia and Nevada and all of Colorado west of the Rocky Mountains; all of the Territory of Arizona, except the part added by the " Gadsden purchase;" all of the Territory of Utah, and all of Wyoming. 422 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. This purchase gave us a grand frontage on the Pacific Ocean. It is true that this purchase was an incident to war, but it was made after free negotiation, and an honest price was paid, in view of the then condition of the possession purchased, for the imperial value of that region of country was unknown until it was de- veloped by the enterprise of the people of the United States. In its adaption to the settlement, and efforts of the one dividual citizen, notwithstanding its vast mineral wealth and resources, this region of country is of less value than the Territory previously held by the United States, but it is a region of country of unexampled fertility ; great at the present and of boundless probabilities in its ultimate development. But its ag- riculture, in a large degree requiring the aid of irri- gation, renders it less available for individual enter- prise than the great body of our prior possessions. From a National and Commercial standpoint it is impossible to estimate over the value of this acquisition. The fourth territorial acquisition was a purchase made from Texas. This purchase was made during the administration of President Fillmore, on the 9th of September, 1850. It embraces 61,892,480 acres. This purchase cost the United States, including $3, 500,000 of interest accrued on bonds issued, $16,000,- 000. It embraces the south-west corner of Kansas ; 1 the south-eastern corner of Colorado ; the eastern THE PUBLIC LANDS. 423 portion of the Territory of New Mexico, and the "Public Land Strip" west of the Indian Territory. This purchase was the necessary result of the Demo- cratic policy which admitted Texas into the Union. With a view to a more satisfactory boundary be- tween the United States and Mexico, the United States, under the administration of President Pierce, purchased from Mexico an additional body of land on the 30th of December 1853. This treaty was negotiated by James Gadsden, on the part of the United States, and is so called the " Gadsden pur- chase." It contains 29,142,400 acres, known as the Mesilla Valley, and now constitutes a part of the Territories of New Mexico and Arizona. The United States paid Mexico for this land $10,000,000, so that the entire purchase of lands made by the United States from Mexico, by both treaties, was at a cost of $25,000,000. During the administration of President Johnson, the United States purchased from Russia, Alaska, for the sum of $7,200,000 containing, includ- ing its islands, 369,529,600 acres. This body of land had been repeatedly offered by Russia to the United States. A suggestion of its sale to the United States was made by Russia during the Crimean War, but was declined by President Pierce. It was again offered to the United States during the administration of Mr. Buchanan, and the price of $5,000,000 was suggested, but was not accepted by Russia. The purchase was not finally consummated until the 30th of March, 1867. 424 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. It is the only outlying possession held by the United States. The British possessions separate it from the other part of the United States. It is principally valuable, up to the present time, for the fur seal fisheries of its islands and other fisheries upon its coast, and is said to be a region of country abounding in valuable timber. The purchase, however, was made more with a view to the ultimate territorial control of the North American Continent by the United States than to secure homes for the American people. The land laws have not yet been extended over this region of country, and perhaps it ought not to be included as strictly a portion of the public domain. It must be admitted that certain political considerations, important at the time, influenced the United States more in making this purchase than any value attached- to the territory purchased. But including Alaska, the public domain of the United States and sources of territorial acquisition are fairly presented by the* following table : Concessions by the Original States of lands ACRES. east of the Mississippi River 259,171,787 Louisiana purchase, April 30, 1803 756,961,280 East and West Florida, February, 22, 1819.. 37,931,520 Guadalupe Hidalgo, February 2, 1848 .334,443,520 State of Texas, November 25, 1850 61,892,480 Gadsden Purchase, December 30, 1853 29,142,400 Alaska Purchase, March 30, 1867 369,529,600 1,816,129,464 At a total cost of $88,157,389.98. But this sum of $88,157,389.98 includes the sum of THE PUBLIC LANDS. 425 $6,200,000 paid by the United States, in 1802, to Georgia for a cession of land made by that State to the United States. It is an interesting" fact, in observing the drift of opinion of the great political parties of the country, and the foresight of statesmen, to notice that the grand proportions which the public domain has finally assumed, and which secured to the people of the United States the fairest portion of the globe with command of both of the great oceans, has been brought about almost entirely under the' auspices of one of the great political parties into which the American people have been divided. The policy of the Democratic party was steadfast from the beginning in the de- termination to secure the territorial possessions which, in progress of time would make the United States the greatest of the nations, and render the formation of a Government on the North American Continent great enough to be its rival impossible. And it was fortunate for the conntry that the Democratic party, during succes- sive generations, and until the year 1861, in the main organized the institutions, and directed the measures which resulted in the division of vast portions of this domain into independent freeholds, and secured the organization of civil government. The following table shows the relations of the Great Parties into which the country has been divided to the acquisition of the public domain after the original conces- sions of the States under the auspices of Mr. Jefferson. 426 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. By the Democratic Party. ACRES. Louisiana 556,961,280 Florida 37.93 1.520 Purchase from Mexico by two treaties 363,635,920 In all 1,1 58,528,720 By the Whig Party. From Texas 61,892,480 By the Republican Party. Alaska 369,529,600 1,589,900,800 Under the policy of the Democratic party fourteen States have been added to the Union in the territory it acquired and eight territories organized, leaving still only the Indian Territory of 41,000,000 acres, the " Public Land Strip " west of the Indian Territory and Alaska, without organized civil government. The boundaries of all the great States of the Union now, or which will be hereafter, formed, are substantially established, except the Indian Terri- tory and Public Land Strip west of it. It is not only fortunate for the people of the United States that Democratic policies have in a large degree controlled the public domain, but it is a matter for very high congratulation to all men that the greater part of the public domain was without inhabitants except Indian tribes when the Revolutionary war terminated and republican government was established, so that Democratic ideas could control the methods of its settlement in freehold estates. Had this magnificent THE PUBLIC LANDS. 42/ region of country, to any large extent, been settled under the auspices of the policy of Europe of one hundred years ago, instead of the small and prosperous freehold estates in which the country has been divided among its people, it would undoubtedly have been granted to favorites of power in great estates accord- ing to the then policy of every European nation. The policy of landed estates; landlords and tenants; palaces and huts would have prevailed in America as in Europe. A nation of frce-Jiolders was the outgrowth of the ideas which organized the Democratic party, and gave form to our public land system and for the first three quarters of a century controlled the public domain. Three steps of progress have been made in the regulation of our land system. At first the United States were compelled to look at the public lands as the main resource for the payment of the debts of the Revolutionary War. The public domain was the main dependence for the payment of those debts. Our fathers abhorred heavy taxation in any form. With these facts borne in mind, it is especially interest- ing to observe that there was no yielding to the European policy of great landed estates. Two large sales only were made, both within the limits of the present State of Ohio. One, to John Cleves Symmes, was located between the Great and the Little Miami Rivers and embraces the present city of Cincinnati, and contained 248,540 acres, and one to the Ohio 428 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. Company, containing 822,900 acres. The patent to the first named tract of land was granted to John Cleves Symmes, signed by President Washington and countersigned by Edmund Randolph, Secretary of State, on the 30th of September, 1794. The price paid for the tract granted to the Ohio Company was two-thirds of a dollar an acre. The price paid for the Symmes tract was $165,963,42. The purchase of the Ohio Company embraces the present city of Marietta, in the State of Ohio. The sale to the Ohio Company was confirmed by -Congress on the 27th day of July, 1787. The most extraordinary departure of the founders of this Government from the European policy of great landed estates is seen in the fact that with apparently boundless possessions in lands stretching westward to the Mississippi River — a very remote boundary in those day — only the two large tracts of land above- named were sold in a body by the United States. Surely our fathers appreciated the value of our public domain. A system was adopted as far back as the year 1785, of surveying the public lands by rectangular lines, into townships, 6 miles square, containing 36 sections of 640 acres each. The first principal meridian in the public domain was drawn north from the intersection of the Great Miami with the Ohio River, which line now consti- tutes the dividing line between the States of Ohio THE PUBLIC LANDS. 429 and InSiana, and was the first principal meridian established under the lanti system of the United States. This first principal meridian controlled the surveys in the State of Ohio and a portion of Indi- ana. During the ninety-five years since the organization of the system, six numerical principal meridians have been established and eighteen independent principal meridians. These with their base lines constitute the great geodetic points in our land system of surveys extending westward from the Original States to the Pacific Ocean. From May 20th, 1785, down to 1812, the land system was under the control of a Board of Treasury (three Commissioners) in the Treasury Department. On the 25th of April, 18 12, the office of Commissioner of the* General Land Office was established, at the head of a Bureau in the Treasury Department. On the 3rd of March, 1849, the Interior Depart- ment was created and the General Land Office became at once one of the Bureaus of that Department, and has so remained ever since. Through this great and important Bureau, all the land transactions of the Government have been conducted from the beginning, and its records are now the most important and valuable of any Bureau of the Government. The Ordinance of 1787 had a very important relation to the land system. The far-seeing powers of Mr. Jefferson are here apparent. It completely overturned the system of tenures under which lands had been 430 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. held under the Crown Grants and the feudal system of Europe. It produced an extraordinary revolution in titles to lands. It almost entirely obliterated the whole system of tenures brought by our fathers from England to this Continent. The rights of primogeni- ture, and other muniments of land tenures of the feudal age, except the tenure by courtesy and dower, were swept away and the purchase of the. public lands was at once invested with a title in fee simple ; the highest and most absolute muniment of title by which lands can be held, and every patent which has been issued since the land system was organized, has been signed by the President of the United States, or by some person authorized to affix his signature to the evidence of title. Grants of Land made by Congress. The fact has been mentioned that but two great tracts of public lands were sold during the early period of our Government, or indeed from thence to the present time. The tract of land containing 2,187 acres in Erie County, Pa., sold to that State by Congress can scarcely be regarded as ever having been a part of the public domain. Nor was Congress any more lavish in disposing of the public lands by grants or donations. Indeed, when the fact is con- sidered that occasions have occurred, especially in the earlier periods of our history, when plausible reasons could be urged why grants of lands should be made in behalf of particular persons or for special objects, THE PUBLIC LANDS. 43 1 or to encourage settlements, it is a matter of wonder that so few considerable grants can be found upon our statute books. Donations of lands were made to refugees from Nova Scotia who adhered to the fortunes of the United States in the Revolution, and a few small grants were made for special purposes, a grant to the French who settled at Gallipolis, Ohio, in 1 787, under the misapprehension as to the rights of the Ohio Company. In 1803 Congress granted to Major General La Fayette, 11,520 acres — the warrants to be located in the present State of Ohio, afterwards authorized to be located in Orleans Territory (Louisiana). On the 28th of December, 1824, Congress also granted to General La Fayette, in addition to $200,000 in money, a township of land in the State of Florida. A small grant was made to Lewis and Clarke, the great explorers, and their subordinates in 1807. But while the greater part of the territory of the United States has been acquired by peaceful means, and war has been less the employment of the American people than of any other nation, and their greatness has been achieved through the pursuit of peaceful industry, yet the Republic was the child of the great Revolution, and the public lands seemed to furnish the proper means for recognizing the service of the citizens and soldiers in the national defence. This idea was in harmony with the theory of the Government, for what could be a better recognition of the services of the soldier in the defence of the Republic than to 432 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. invest him with a fee-simple of a portion of its lands ? This was the policy of the Roman ' republic where every citizen was invested with a portion of land, so that the policy of granting bounties for military service prevailed from the beginning of our Government down to and including the Mexican war. In this respect the United States has displayed liberality even as to their public lands. In some instances extensive reservations for the benefit of the soldiers of the Revolutionary war were made of lands to be parceled out among the soldiers. Among these reservations was that known as the " United States Military District " in Ohio, " Clarke's Grant " in the State of Indiana, and other similar reservations in Illinois and elsewhere. But the general policy of the Government has always been to issue military land warrants to be located on the public domain. A resolution of the Continental Congress on the 1 6th of September, 1776, promised to give the following bounties in lands to the soldiers in its army : For a Colonel, 500 acres; for a Lieutenant-Colonel, 450 acres ; for a Major, 400 acres ; for a Captain, 300 acres ; for a Lieutenant, 200 acres; for an Ensign, 150 acres; to each non-commissioned officer and soldier, 100 acres. On the 1 2th of August, 1780, the Continental Con- gress resolved that the resolution of September 16, 1776, be extended so as to give a Major-General 1,100 acres and a Brigadier-General 850 acres. This was the origin, in the United States, of bounties in lands for military service. THE PUBLIC LANDS. 433 The war of 1812, resulted in further legislation in relation to bounty land warrants. On the 6th of February, 18 12, Congress promised a bounty in lands, for five year's services, of 160 acres to each non-com- missioned officer or soldier, to go to his heirs and representatives if he was killed in action, or died in the service. The war with Mexico in 1846 resulted in further legislation on the subject of bounty land warrants. The act of February 11, 1847, provided that non- commissioned officers, musicians and privates who served in the war with Mexico, in the volunteer army of the United States, for twelve months, or who should be discharged for wounds or sickness prior to the end of that time, or in case of his death while in the service, that his heirs should receive a warrant for 160 acres of land. Those who served for a term less than twelve months should' receive a warrant for 40 acres of land. The privileges of bounty lands were extended, by the act of September 28, 1850, granting an eighty acre warrant for service in the Indian Wars after 1790, the war of 181 2, and to commissioned officers in the war with Mexico, and the act of March 22, 1852, for the first time made land warrants assignable. Further grants were made by the act of March 3, 1855. This last named act is the most comprehensive measure ever enacted by Congress in relation to bounty warrants. It granted to all officers and soldiers who had served in any war in which our country has been 434 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. engaged, from the Revolution to the 3rd of March, 1855, I ^° acres each, or so much, with what had been previously allowed, as would make up that quantity. It required only a service of fourteen days, or an engagement in a single battle, and in case of death the warrant to go, to the widow or minor children. The theory of European governments in regard to the distinction in favor of commissioned officers was seen in the first bounty land act, and that of August 12, 1788. But it soon disappeared, and in all subsequent legislation in regard to bounty warrants, officers and soldiers were placed on the same footing. But the most striking change in this legislation is seen in the liberal tendency of Congress on these measures. The first act upon the subject, that of September 16, 1776, promised a bounty warrant only to officers and soldiers who served to the close of the war and to the representatives of those slain by the enemy, and the bounty act of 18 12, promising bounty lands for a service of five years, while the act of the 3rd of March, 1855, gave a quarter section of land to every soldier who had served for the period of fourteen days, or engaged in a single battle, and in case of his death to the widow and minor children. This act, so extremely liberal in its provisions, termi- nated grants for military services in our country as will be seen hereafter. Some of the earlier legislation provided for " scrip", payable in money in lieu of the bounty land warrant, THE PUBLIC LANDS. 435 which would reduce the amount of lands actually taken under the bounty land system. Under this series of legislative measures, from 1776 down to 1855, lands were granted and land warrants were issued as follows : ACRES. For the Revolutionary War 2,165,000 For the War of 1812 4,930,192 Under the legislation extending from 1847 to 1855 61,028,430 In all 68,123,622 With the bounty land legislation touching the Mexican War, as will be seen, the policy of granting lands to the soldiers of the Republic ceased. Indian Reservations. It should, however, be remarked that, before any part of the public domain was disposed of it was especially provided by Congress, at an early period, that no lands should be disposed of until the Indian title had been extinguished, and between the 4th of July, 1776, and June 30th, 1880, under treaty stipula- tion with the Indians, and in consideration of the surrender of their lands to the Government, the United States paid in annuities, and other charges, in support of tribes, $187,328,903, to which should be added the sales of public lands held under treaty for the benefit of the Indian Tribes and lands held in trust for them by the United States. The largest of Indian reservations, is that of the 26 436 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. Indian Territory, which contains 41,400,91 5 acres, with a population of about 110,000 — a large portion of which is held in fee simple by the five civilized In- dian Tribes under patent from the United States, the original purpose having been to concentrate the In- dians in this Territory, and ultimately form a state of the original owners of this great public domain — the remnants of the once powerful tribes. It was a humane and noble purpose of high honor to the statesmen of former days. Including the Indian Territory these reservations in the aggregate amount to 154,436,362 acres, with an estimated Indian population of 255,938. This was the estimate in 1883, and is probably substantially correct at the present time, as while some of the tribes have diminished in numbers, a few notably the Navigoes, have increased. During the present session of Congress, however, various bands of Indians in Montana north of the Missouri River have sold to the Government 17,000 OOO acres of their land. Grants in aid of Education. The subject of education was of special interest to the early statesmen of the Republic as it has been through all our history. The early enactments of Congress attest the importance attached to the educa- tion of the whole people. The granting of lands for educational purposes in every township expresses clearly the purpose of our Fathers to interest every commun- THE PUBLIC LANDS. 437 ity, from the beginning, in the education of its chil- dren. Land grants for education are one of the early features of our government. This policy was inaugurated by the Act of Con- gress of May 20, 1785, (providing for the disposal of of the public lands). This act provided that there shall be reserved the lot No. 16, of every township for the maintenance of public schools within said township. This law is the noblest monument ever erected to statesmenship in the current history of the world. Thus, from the beginning, one section of each Township of the public domain was dedicated to the purpose of education. Mr. Jefferson, Mr. Monroe, and all the statesmen of that day seem to have cordially concurred in this policy^ It was continued without modification in the organization of the successive States beginning with Ohio, until the formation of the Territory of Oregon when, on motion of Hon. Stephen A. Douglas, on August 14th, 1848, the thirty-sixth section of many Townships was also devoted to common-school educa- tion, and every State since admitted to the Union has received two sections in every township and in every Territory organized since August 14, 1848, the 1 6th and 36th sections have been set apart for edu- cational purposes. That policy has been accepted by the country without a word of dissent- — with univer- sal approval. 43^ THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. The grand total of grants and reservations made to the States and Territories organized on the public do- main amounts to 67,893,919, as will appear from the following table: Grants for Common School Education. States and Territories. Total Area. Dates of Grants. Section 16. Acres. Ohio....: 704,408 March 3, 1803 Indiana 650,317 April 19, 1816 Illinois 985,066 .April 18, 1818 Missouri 1,199.139 March 6, 1820 Alabama 902,774 March 2, 1819 Mississippi 837,584 March 3, 1803 May 19, 1852 March 3, 1857 Louisiana 786,044 April 21, 1806 February 15, 1843 Michigan 1,067,397 June 23, 1836 Arkansas 886,460 do Florida , 908503 March 3, 1846 Iowa 905,144 do Wisconsin 958,649 August 6, 1846 Section 16 & 36. California 6,719,324 March 3, 1853 Minnesota 2,969,990 February 26, 1857 Oregon 3,329 706 February 14, 1856 Kansas 2,802,306 January, 1861 Nevada 3,985,428 March 21, 1864 Nebraska 2,702,044 April 19, 1854 Colorado S^^-SSS March 3, 1875 Washington Territory 2,488,675 March 2, 1853 New Mexico Territory 4.3°9>3 6 S September 9, 1850 July 22, 1854 Utah Territory 3.003,613 September 9, 1850 Dakota Territory 5,366,451 March 2, 1861 Montana..*, 5,112,035 February 28, 1861 Arizona . Territory 4,050,347 May 26, 1864 Idaho Territory 3,068,231 March 3, 1863 Wyoming ■ Territory 3,480,281 July 25, 1868 Total;..... ..67,893,919 THE PUBLIC LANDS. 439 The grants to States were absolute ; those to the Territories are suspended until their admission into the. Union. In addition to this, Congress, under the Act of July 2, 1862, granted to all the States of the Union for the support of agricultural and mechanical colleges, 30,000 acres of land for each Senator and Member of the House of Representatives in Congress. If there was no land in the State, land scrip was to be issued. Under . this law the States in the aggregate received 9,600,000 acres of the public land, as will appear from the following table : ACRES. Wisconsin ..240,000 Iowa 240,000 Oregon 90,000 Kansas 90,000 ., Minnesota 120,000 Michigan 1 20,000 California 150,000 Nevada (also Tinder act of July 4, 1866) 90,000 Missouri 330,000 Nebraska, (under act of July 23, 1866) 90,000 Colorado 90,000 Total 1,770,000 States to which scrip was issued and amount. ACRES. Rhode Island 1 20,000 Illinois 480,000 Kentucky 330,000 Vermont I 50,000 New York 990,000 Pennsylvania 780,000 440 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. New Jersey... 210,000 New Hampshire 150,000 Connecticut 1 80,000 Massachusetts . 360,000 Maine 210,000 Maryland 210,000 Virginia 300,000 Tennessee 300,000 Delaware , . 90,000 Ohio 630,000 West Virginia 1 50,000 Indiana 390,000 North Carolina 270,000 Louisiana 210,000 Alabama 240,000 Arkansas 1 50,000 South Carolina ,. 180,000 Texas 1 80,000 Georgia 270,000 Mississippi 21 0,000 Florida 90,000 Total 7,830,000 Total in place and scrip 9,600,000 The grants made to townships have produced won- derful results in every State organized out of the public domain far beyond the value of the land granted. To this policy so earnestly supported by Mr. Jefferson and enlarged by Mr. Douglass, we are mainly indebted for our magnificent system of Common Schools and their immediate control by the people. The spirit and tendency of republican government is admirably illustrated in these grants in aid of educa- tion, the Common Schools — the Universities of the people — under the immediate control of the people — THE PUBLIC LANDS. 44I were liberally endowed, while Colleges and Universities which, in the nature of things, could only open up op- portunities for higher education to a comparatively small number of the youth of the Republic, were sparingly provided for. It was the system of education that reached, in its beneficence, every child of the Republic, that interested our fathers, and inspired them in setting apart land in every township of the public domain for common school education. Grants of Land for Wagon Roads, Canals, and Im- provement of Rivers. During the period commencing on the 12th day of December, 181 1, and terminating on the 12th day of July, 1862, Congress made grants of lands to certain States and Territories for the construction of Wagon Roads, Canals and improvement of Rivers, as. follows : ACRES. For Wagon Roads 2,034,087 For Canals 4,600,824 For the Improvements of Rivers J >975»593 8,610,504 The grants of public land made by Congress for the important objects named, military service, education and internal-improvements, while liberal, was strictly confined to objects of universal interest. The record is one of high honor to the earlier statesmen of the Republic, for with a territory almost unlimited in extent, which apparently centuries only could people ; with countless schemes of enterprise seeking the appro- 44 2 HE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. priation of the public lands for the benefit of individuals and organized bcdies, each promising (as such projects always do) grand public benefits no matter how mercenary the purpose, yet, for more than three quarters of a century, the men who controlled the destines of the nation stubbornly held the public lands. No tendency was permitted to the European system of landlords and tenants. " The public domain, a gift of Providence to mankind, shall be the free homes of freemen," was their policy even if the purpose was not expressed. Under the policy of those statesmen, our landless citizens for many generations yet to come would have found free homes on the public domain. Artificial methods ; the creation of great private estates by law out of the common property of the people could alone defeat that policy. During the period between the 20th day of Septem- ber, 1850, and the 3rd day of March 1857, commenc- ing with the administration of Presidant Fillmore and running through the administrations of Pierce and Polk, grants of public lands were made by Congress to certain States to aid in the construction of railroads. It was a questionable policy. It was only relieved from the charge of granting public lands for profit and speculation by the fact that, as in former grants to States for internal improvements, (wagon roads, canals and improvements to rivers,) it placed the lands un- der the safe-guard of the States, to which the grants were made, and enabled the States to not only con- THE PUBLIC LANDS. 443 trol and dispose of the lands for the benefit of the States but to control the agencies, or corporations, through which the land was applied to the pur- pose intended. If a corporation constructed the rail- roads and received the land grant, the corporation was created by the State and subject to its laws for all purposes of benefit to the States or taxation. As, for instance, in the case of the State of Illinois to which a grant was made on the 20th day of Sep- tember, 1850, during the administration of President Fillmore, of 2,595,053, — the largest grant of land ever made by Congress prior to the 4th day of .March, 1 86 1, — the State reserved a perpetual bonus of seven per* cent, of the gross earnings of the railroad per annum ; a measure of great benefit in relieving the people from a large burden of taxation. The entire grants made during that period, and made to States only, are set forth in the following table: Grants of Land to States to Aid in the Construction of Railroads. Under Whig administration: acres. Grants to Illinois, Mississippi, Alabama, Missouri, and Arkansas to aid in th~ construction of railroads 6,951,683 Under Democratic administration: Grants to Arkansas, Iowa, Florida, Alabama, Michigan, Wiscon- sin, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Minnesota 2 35 T 9- /> 37 Grand total under Whig and Democratic administration .30470,920 (See General Land Office Report, 1875.) No grant of land was ever made by Congress to a corooration prior to July I, 1862. The Change of Policy Touching the Public Lands. There are three distinct periods in the history of 444 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. the public domain. In the beginning, although the public domain only extended to the Mississippi river, with 3,000,000 people on the sea-board, it seemed almost without limit, and while the policy was in- augurated, as almost the first fruits of the Revolution and the establishment of Republican Government, of small freeholds as against the feudal system of great landed estates, yet the public lands were the main dependence for paying the debts of the Revolutionary war. At first the sale of the land was held to be of special necessity for means to pay the public debt and aid for. the support of the government, and economic policies in government do not readily change. Under this system lands were sold in very considerable tracts, although no great sales occurred except those already mentioned, but the policy of sub-dividing the land in quarter sections, eighty acre lots and forty acre lots, was the result of years of experience, and yet it must be stated in general terms that down to the year 1 84 1, the public lands were considered mainly with reference to their cash value. For some time after the sale of public lands began, lands were sold on credit for one, two and three years, at $2 an aere. The idea of making the lands availa- ble for money for the treasury pervaded the entire land system. The importance of the public lands for the exclusive purpose of securing homes for the people, was to be developed at a later day. When the possibility of THE PUBLIC LANDS. 445 the ultimate exhaustion of the public domain came in view, statesmen began to appreciate the importance of the actual settler. So that the Pre-emption law of September 4, 1841, which gave the settler priority of right against persons seeking the lands for purposes of speculation, was amongst the first steps in our legislation, having distinctly in view the importance of securing homes to actual settlers on the public domain. Acts of Congress tending to this final Pre-emption law were enacted on the 22d of June, 1838, and on the 1st of June, 1840 While the former measure was pending in the Senate, Mr. Merrick, of Maryland, moved the following Amendment. "That the benefits of Pre-emption be confined to Citizens of the United States excluding unnaturalized foreigners, or those who had declared their intentions to become Citizens." This Amend- ment was defeated by a vote of 15 to 28; Mr. Clay and Mr. Crittenden and others for it; Mr. Benton and Mr. Calhoun and others against it. The political character of the vote is indicated by the votes of the Senators named. But the Pre-emption law only gave priority of right to purchase over the speculator. It required an actual settlement on the land, but only a brief occupation, until a patent could be secured. While the wealth of the country was not sufficient to justify large investments in public lands, and the great body of the public domain was unsettled, the Pre-emption law 446 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. was a prudent measure, but as the public domain was year after year steadily reduced, and lands in the main could only be secured by actual settlement, it will be seen that this once benificent measure be- come available to secure large estates of lands to capitalists of Europe, as well as of America. But the fertile lands of the Valleys of the Ohio and Mississippi were fast filling up with settlers. The period between the 4th day of September, 1 841, when the Pre-emption law was enacted, and 1857, when Andrew Johnson, of Tennessee, introduced in the Senate the Homestead bill, was one of marvelous activity in the settlement of the public domain. Lands east of the public domain — in Ohio and farther east — had incresed to such value as to press emigration westward and north-westward into Indiana, Michigan, Illinois and Wisconsin and beyond the Mississippi. A restless army of American citizens was moving westward to secure homes on the public domain. This great western movement of our people brought a strong measure to bear on Congress for legislation that should secure the public lands in limited free- holds to actual settlers only. In 1857 Andrew Johnson, of Tennessee, introduced in the Senate a Homestead bill. This measure, with slight modefications, became a law on the 20th day of May, 1862, by the approval of President Lincoln. Its purpose was to secure to every head of a family, and every citizen of the United States over twenty- THE PUBLIC LANDS. 447 one years of age, and to every person of foreign birth who had declared his intention to become a citizen, a homestead of one hundred and sixty acres of land in the public domain. After the introduction of this measure in the Senate by Andrew Johnson, it encountered the veto of President Buchanan. Partly, at least, on the ground that by a singular oversight persons of foreign birth might obtain a homestead without being heads of families while native born citizens could only obtain homesteads when heads of families. That was one of the grounds of the veto, but Mr. Buchanan did not favor the measure. The Homestead bill finally passed the House by a vote of 107 to 16 and the Senate by a vote of 33 to 7. Of the members of the House of Representative now members of the House, all voted for it, Mr. Cox, Mr. Kelly and myself. The same, I think, is true as to the Senate. The Homestead measure is unquestionably the most humane and thorough American law that was ever enacted by Congress. It contained however one section, now known as Section 2301 of the Revised Statutes of the United States, known as the " Commutation Clause," which enables a settler after six months to obtain a patent by the payment of one dollar and twenty-five cents an acre. This section has opened up facilities by which capitalists have been able to enter, through their employes, large estates in the public lands. In this respect, with this section 2301 in force, the Home- 448 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. stead law and this Pre-emption law stand on the same footing and equally furnish opportunities for fraudalent entries of the public lands. But the Homestead law did not secure the result anticipated ; that is the dedication of the public domain for homes and freeholds of the American people. When the Homestead bill was pending in the House, in view of the traditional policy of our government, the war for the Union being then in progress, I sub- mitted to the House, on the 12th day of December, 1 86 1, almost at the beginning of the late war, the following amendment to the Homestead bill : And be it further enacted, That the provision of an act entitled '• An act in addition to certain acts granting bounty land to certain officers and soldiers who have been engaged in the military service of the United States," ap- proved March 3, 1855, shall extend to and be construed to embrace the offi- cers, soldiers, and seamen who have been engaged in the military or naval service of the United States since the 12th of April, 1861, or who shall be engaged in such service during the present war : Provided, however, That no officer, soldier, or seaman shall be entitled to the benefit of said act un- less he shall have been engaged in the service aforesaid for a period of not less than sixty days, or been honorably discharged on account of wounds received or sickness incurred while in the line of his duty in such service : Provided furiher, That the widows and children of officers, soldiers, and seamen who shall die from wounds received or sickness incurred while in the service of the United States, as aforesaid, shall be entitled to the benefits of said act. And this act, except this section, shall not go into operation for the period of one year after the close of the war in which we are engaged. It will be seen, at once, that the object of this provision was to place the soldiers of the Union army on the same footing as to bounties in the public lands as the soldiers of all former wars. This measure was strenously opposed on the ground THE PUBLIC LANDS. 449 that the measure would open facilities for monopolizing the public lands, and that argument was deemed sufficient, and my proposition was defeated. A subse- quent effort made to secure bounty lands to the soldiers of the Union army, by a bill which passed the House on the 1 2th day of December, 1872, and failed in the Senate, indicated a determined policy, from the be- ginning, that the soldiers of the Union army should not receive bounty lands, in conformity with the old traditions of the Republic. But in view of the argument against bounty land grants to Union soldiers which defeated the proposition I have named, it is certainly a remarkable fact that while the Homestead law passed on the 20th day of May, 1862, the policy of land grants to railroad cor- porations began on the 1st day of July, 1862, in a grant of 28,000,400 acres of land to the corporations of the Union Pacific Railroad system, and this policy of land grants to corporations, and to States for cor- porations, continued until the grants reached the enormous proportions of one hundred and eighty-one million four hundred and nineteen thousand, five hundred and sixty-nine acres of land — a territory more than eight times the area of the State of Indiana. The following table, furnished by the General Land Office, shows in detail these extraordinary grants of the public lands, the more extraordinary in view of the traditional policy of our Government of dedicating our public lands to limited freeholds for our people. 45o THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. Grants of Land made by Congress after March 4, 1861, to States for Corporations and to Corporations. Date Estimated NAMES OF COMPANIES. State, of granting- area of en- act. tire grant* Grants to States subsequent to March 4, 1861. Leavenworth, Lawrence and Galveston. Atch'iscn, Topeka and Santa Fe Union Pacific, Southern Branch St. Joseph and Denver City... Portage, Winnebago & Lake Sup'r, Wis'n Cen'l La Cross and Milwaukee St. Croix and Lake Superior Main Line Bayfield Branch Lake Superior and Mississippi Sioux City and St. Paul McGregor Western Grand Rapids and Indiana Southern Minnesota and Minnesota Valley Bay de Noquet and Marquette Marquette & Ontonagon [Mar. Haughton&Ont. Peninsula [Chicago and Northwestern Minnesota and Pacific do do .'.. Minneapolis & Cedar Valley [Minnesota Cent'l Winona and St. Peter's Southern Minnesota Hastings, Minnesota & Red River of the North Kansas do do do Wisconsin Mar 3, 1863.. do do July 23, 1866, May 5. 1864.. do Minnesota Iowa do Michigan.. Minnesota Michigan . do do. Minnesota do do do do do do do May 5, 1864.. May 12, 1864. do June 7. 1864. May 12, 1864 Mar. K, 1865. do July 5, 1862.. Mar. 3, 1865- do do do do July 4, 1866.. do Acres. 800,oro 3,000 00i l,53«i.. 00 1,70 ) 000 LfcO ).000 624,843 291,799 144,399 9 00J 524 8(0 1,536.000 852. W0 401000 Total. Grants to corporations subsequent to Mar. 4, 1S61 Union Pacific Leavenworth, Pawnee and Western : Denver Pacific Kansas Pacific July 1,1862.. July 2, 1864- July 1, 1862. do Central Pacific and Western Hannibal & St. Jo. [Union Pacfflc Cent'l Branch Sioux City and Pacific Burlington and Missouri River Northern Pacific California and < >regon [Central Pacific Oregon Central [Oregon and California Atlantic and Pacific Southern Pacific .* Oregon Central [Oregon & Calif ornia] forfeited Southern Pacific, Branch Line New Orleans, Baton Rough and Vicksburg Texas Pacific Stockton and Copperopolis July 2, 18d4. do do July 2, 1864.. do July 23, 1866. July 25, 1866 July 27, 1866. do May 4, lb r <0.. Mar 3,1871- do do Mar. 2, 1867 221,006 240.C03 5S0 000 499.4 5 257 31.1 .564,0 735.000 555 0)0 17,775,624 12,000 1 0,400 6,0JU.lO0 9,00J,0O0 781.944 (0 000 2.441 ' 00 47,000 00 ) :<.5uc ooo 3.500 0000 42.000 9.5 000 1,£00 00 3 5: 000 3^00 000 18.000 3;0 Total. 181.419 r 39 * The figures of this column are approximately correct, being based on the estimate of the annual report of the Commissioner of the General Land Office of 1875. In view of the policy of all the political parties which in former years had controlled the affairs of the Republic — Federal, Whig, Democratic, in holding THE PUBLIC LANDS. 45 1 the public lands, this procedure of the Republican party, which justly claims the credit of the Homestead law, for it was approved by President Lincoln on the 20th day of May, 1862, is the most remarkable. It is impossible to conceive a policy better calculated to monopolize our public land, — the most valuable possession ever committed by Providence to the care and possession of any nation — than that which was adopted. It was not only the 181,419,568 acres granted to corporations which was to be placed in a large degree under the cause of monopoly, and forever beyond the reach of laboring men, but this system of land grants opened up opportunities for capitalists of Europe and America, in advance of honest settlement, to appropriate the public lands, before the real settlers, with limited means, could start westward with his wife and children. To illustrate this I submit the following table of foreign capitalists alone, who have seized upon these public lands in large estates, depriv- ing multitudes of laboring men of the opportunity of securing homes. See how under this system land grants, foreign noblemen and capitalists become the owners of land which belongs, by nature and justice, to laboring men. I am aware that this is a very imperfect list of the foreign capitalists and noblemen, who are now holding large landed estates in our country as an outgrowth of our imperial grants to railroad corpo- 27 452 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. rations. It will be seen that every one of these landed estates is within the limits of the public land of our States and Territories. The List is as follows : ACRES. The Holland Land Company, New Mexico 4,500,000 Sir Edward Reid and syndicate, in Florida 2,000 000 Engli&b syndicate, in Mississippi 1,800,000 Marquis of Tweedale , 1,750,000 Phillips, Marshal & Co., London 1,300,000 German syndicate 1, 100,000 Anglo-American syndicate, Mr. Rogers, president, London 750,000 Byron H. Evans, of London, in Mississippi 700,000 Duke of Sutherland 425,000 British Land Company, in Kansas 320,000 William Whalley, M. P., Peterboro, England 310,000 Missouri Land Company, Edinburgh, Scotland 300,000 Robert Tennant, of London 230,000 Dundee Land Company, Scotland 247,000 Lord Dunmore 120,000 Benjamin Newgas, Liverpool 100,000 Lord Houghton, in Florida 60,000 Lord Dunraven, in Colorado 60,000 English Land Company, in Florida 50,000 English Land Company, in Arkansas 50,000 Albert Peel, M. P., Leicestershire, England 10,000 Sir J. L. Kay, Yorkshire, England 5,000 Alexander Grant, of London, in Kansas 35, 000 English syndicate (represented by Clore Bros.,) Wisconsin 110,000 A Scottish syndicate, in Florida 500,000 A. Boy sen, Danish consul, in Milwaukee 50,000 Missouri Land Company, of Edinburgh, Scotland 165,000 Sir William Heckley, of England, in California 125,000 17,172,000 This list has been published before, but I have eliminated from it all estates in the United States held by foreign capitalists and noblemen except those acquired in the public land States and Territories, or under our railroad land grant system, in the public domain. But what a commentary on this system is this list of 17,172,000 acres of land, a territory nearly as large THE PUBLIC LANDS. 453 as the State of Indiana, given over to the most exasperating form of monopoly and forever beyond the reach of laboring men ! When the old time frugality touching the disposal of the public lands is considered, this prodigal disposition of them to whoever would come and take them, lobbyist, capitalists, noblemen, or corporation, is certainly most extraordinary. There is no example of such prodigal grants of lands except in the feudal age, when a marauding and conquering Chief divid- ed conquered provinces into baronial estates, and yet these were small in comparison to those given by Congress to its favorites. This legislation was carried on until imperial possessions were granted to the favorites of Congress — lands which in the aggregate would form at least nine average States of the Union. The power of the lobby during that period, during the greater part of which all patriots were watching with eager solicitude the movements of our armies, was without any precedent. The extraordinary hold it had obtained on Congress would be well illustrated by a single vote which occurred in the midst of this carnival of land grants. On the 1 8th of January, 1869, I sub- mitted the following resolution to the House of Representatives. Resolved, That grants of the public lands to corporations ought to be dis- continued, and the whole of such lands ought to be held as a sacred trust to secure homesteads to actual settlers, and for no other purpose what- 454 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. Mr. H. D. Washburn moved that it be laid on the table. The question being put, it was decided in the affirmative — ayes no, nays 55. Among those voting in the affirmative were William B. Allison, Oakes Ames, John Coburn, Shelby M. Cullom, James A. Garfield,, W. D. Kelley, Charles O'Neill, Luke P. Poland, Green B. Raum, and William Windom. Of the gentlemen still in the House, Mr. Kelley and Mr. O'NEILL, of Pennsylvania, and Mr. BUTLER, of Tennesse, voted to lay on the table ; Mr. RANDALL, Mr. Baker, of Illinois, and myself against it. Congress continued to pass bills making these grants until the Democratic party, which had been growing in strength in the House, was able to resist these measures, and as an evidence of public condemnation of this system of subsidies, that party obtained con- trol of the House by the election of members of Congress in 1874. That election was fatal to the railroad law-grant system. There was an extraordinary tendency in the party then in power to build up private interests by subsidies from the public treasury and through grants of that most valuable of all public wealth — public lands. Among the earliest measures of the 44th Congress, elected in 1874, was a declaration of the Democratic House condemning the whole, system of subsidies, whether in money, bonds, or grants of land. The whole policy broke down the moment the Democratic Party came into power in the House of THE PUBLIC LANDS. 455 Representatives but it was manifest that most of the land granted to railroad corporations, notwithstanding each of them was required to complete their railroad within a definite period, regarded the grants as a naked gratuity and intended to hold the lands until by the labor of emigrants and settlers they should be greatly increased in value, when, instead of an " aid" to construct a railroad, it would construct the railroad and make it a generous gift from the Government. Indeed, from the beginning, the successful lobbyist who obtained these grants treated them as a generous gift from Congress. They seemed confident, as time has shown, that whether they complied with the law making the grants or not, they would be fully pro- tected. The result was that no roads, as a general rule, were constructed within the period prescribed by law when the whole road was required to be con- structed. The House of Representatives, in the 47th Congress, when all of these grants finally expired, the last to expire being that to the Texas Pacific on the 4th day of July, 1882, unfortunately for the country was under the control of the Republican Party. Bills were introduced at once to declare the forfeiture of all of these grants when the railroads were not completed. They, naturally, would have been referred to the Committee on Public Lands, but strange enough they were, in the main, referred to the Committee on Judiciary as if there had been any doubt as to the right of Congress to require the forfeiture of the 45^ HE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. grants, at least to the extent that the railroads were not completed within the time prescribed by law. For all these grants continued the provision, at least in substance, that if the roads were not completed within a definite time, generally ten years — the lands should revert to the United States and the power to dispose of them should terminate within the period of time named, or terms equally explicit as to the conditions. The Democrats were determined at once to enforce these forfeitures, and the Northern Pacific grant, one of the greatest and most valuable ever made by Congress, involving some 42,500,000 acres of land, or a territory twice as large as the State of Indiana, which had expired on the 4th day of July, 1879, was one where the right of forfeiture was clear and unquestionable, for the greater part of the road remained unconstructed years after the time for the final completion of the road had expired. There was an express provision in the act making that grant, which became a law on the second day of July, 1864, that the lands should be forfeited if the road was not constructed by the time named by the law, July 4, 1876. Congress twice extended the period and yet on the 4th of July, 1879, the road was but fairly begun. When the bill was introduced by me on the 16th day of January, 1882, declaring the forfeiture of this grant, and all others, at least 1,700 miles oi the road were not completed or even commenced. An independent railroad from Portland, Oregon, had al- THE PUBLIC LANDS. 457 ready been started eastward and reached a distance of some 225 miles without a dollar of subsidy from the Government. On the eastern end many railroads were being constructed in every direction. Common justice to the people demanded that that grant, as well as all the other grants held by defaulting land- grant corporations, should be forfeited, at least to the extent of the land not earned within the period prescribed by law for the completion of the respective railroads. On the 6th of February, 1882, Mr. Cobb, of Indiana, introduced a similar bill ; both were referred to the Committee on Public Lands. Many bills declaring the forfeiture of particular grants were referred to the Judiciary Committee. On the latter committee Mr. Proctor Knott, Judge Payson, and other members de- manded a hearing on these bills. Yet from the first day to the last of that House of Representatives, over which Speaker Keifer presided as Speaker, notwith- standing persistent effort, the more urgent as many thousand miles of these land-grant railroads were then subject to forfeiture without the least shadow of defense, not one single vote could be obtained on any bill declaring a forfeiture. The members of the House demanding these forfeitures were absolutely ignored by the Speaker and the controlling majority. It seems just to assert that this House in the Forty-seventh Congress was organized with express reference to the defeat of all attempts to declare the forfeiture of these lands. 458 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. As soon as the Forty-eighth Congress was fully organized, with Mr. Carlisle, Speaker, the policy of this House as to these grants was instantly reversed. The following resolutions, which I had the honor to submit to the House on the 2ist day of January, 1884, were promptly adopted. I think they fully express the principles of the Democratic party in relation to the public lands : Resolved, That, in the judgment of this House, all the public lands hereto- fore granted to States and corporations to aid in the construction of rail- roads, so far as the same are now subject to forfeiture by reason of the non- fulfillment of the conditions on which the grants were made, ought to be declared forfeited to the United States and restored to the public domain. Resolved, That it is of the highest public interest that the laws touching the public lands should be so framed and administered as to ultimately secure freehold therein to the greatest number of citizens ; and to that end all laws facilitating speculation in the public lands or authorizing or permitting the entry or purchase thereof in large bodies ought to be repealed and all of the public lands adapted to agriculture (subject to bounty grants and those in aid of education, ought to be reserved for the benefit of actual and bona fide settlers, and disposed of under the provisions of the Homestead laws only. Resolved, That the Committee on the Public Lands is hereby instructed to report to the House bills to carry into effect the views- expressed in the foregoing resolutions; that said committee shall be authorized to report such bills at any time, subject only to revenue and appropriation bills, and the same shall in like order be entitled to consideration. « As^ to the Equity of Forfeiting these Grants. It has been claimed that time was not of the es- sence of the grants, and that the railroad corporations might hold the land until, by the industry and ener- gy of the whole people, the country should be set- tled up and the lands increased in value. If this view be correct, then the infamy of these grants is the more apparent ; instead of being grants to " aid " THE PUBLIC LANDS. 459 ia the construction of railroads and open up the country, these grants should be designated as gifts of Congress to wealthy gentlemen to be enhanced in value by the labor of the American people. If time was not of the essence of these grants, why did the Northern Pacific and the others ask for an extension which Congress graciously granted ? Let us look at this matter further. Take the case of the Northern Pacific Railroad for example. According to the last report of the Commissioner of Railroads, this company had received up to December 31, 1 836, patents for 13,845,972 acres, and had sold 5,977,060.99 acres, for which there was received in cash $21,324,039.07; still due, $3,7S^>^3^^3^ making in all for these 5,977,060.99 acres granted to that corporation the sum of $25,082,000. The words of the Commissioner are as follows : The total number of acres of land received by this company from the Government by patent and certification, December 31, 1886, was 13,845,- 082.50, of which 5,977,0609,9 acres have been sold. From these, sales the company has received $21,324,039 07, and there are outstanding on time sales $3,758,836.63. Assuming that the residue of the 13,845,072 acres patented to that corporation shows the same return, something more than $3.50 an acre, what will be realized from the lands for which that company has already obtained patents from the General Land Office ? The enormous sum of $48,457,742, a sum within $27,000,000 of the cost of the entire road from Lake Superior to Portland, .Oregon, with the branch across the Cascade range of mountains to Puget Sound, 460 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. an imperial possession. The whole cost of the entire system is estimated by the Commissioner of Railroads at $75,000,000. The Commissioner tells us in his re- port that the corporation has reserved its coal and timber lands. Of course these public -spirited gentle- men who have obtained this grant of 42,500,000 acres of the people's land will withhold the valuable coal and timber land to enlarge the imperial wealth a benevolent Congress has given them out of the patrimony of the people. Yet it is claimed that it would be inequitable to declare the remainder of this imperial grant forfeitd back to the people ! I think the injustice was in making the grants. The natural results of such a fostering of wealth by law made its appearance in due time. Instead of these grants ever operating for the benefit of the settler, the result was exactly the reverse. Before the homesteader was ready to move, before the landless citizen could gather his family around him and start on the journey for a home on your public domain, the prospectors, land-jobbers, and ' capitalists from Europe as well as America had invaded all that country within the reach of the railroad and ap- propriated in large estates the very cream of the fertile lands'. Take Dakota. You could travel there years ago for weary miles and miles and see on every hand the virgin soil untouched. Yet every acre of that land had been entered years before, and that too by a well organized system of frauds humiliating to THE PUBLIC LANDS. 46 1 our people and dishonoring to our Government. Besides, was it not natural, when we undertook to imitate the policy of European nations, of great sub- sidies enlarging the wealth of the favored few, that just such events should transpire as those which caused the people of this country a few years ago to blush in beholding the fruits of these imperial grants inuring to the benefit of the capitalists and nobility of Europe ? And how natural it was, when the celebration of the alleged completion of this railroad occurred, that the favored class of Europe should be the guests of that corporation. We can not make such grants without reaping a harvest of misfortune, without producing the same disastrous results which have reduced Europe to a land of palaces and huts. The fruits of subsidy in all nations are the same — the wealth and luxury of the favored class, the poverty and wretchedness of the people. The circumstances under which these grants were made ought to be considered in determining whether these corporations should be held to a strict per- formance of their contracts. The fact is that while the American people were watching, with patriotic solicitude, the movements of our armies, while those the most interested of all men in the public domain were rush- ing into the ranks of our armies to steady and up- hold the tottering pillars of the Union, at that very time ex-governors of States, ex-members of Congress, men of high social and political standing were lobby- 462 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. ing for these grants and securing, by the favor of Con- gress, vast portions of our national wealth — public lands — of especial and inestimable value to the men — the laboring men of the country — who were then im- periling their lives in the national defense. In that unpatriotic and mercenary spirit these grants were ob- tained by which the people were robbed of their rights and imperial fortunes were secured. Congress was engaged in the work of parceling out among mercenary capitalists' our public domain when the clash of arms could almost be heard in Congress. Are great grants of land obtained under such cir- cumstances to be carefully guarded by Congress and the courts of justice ? Will Congress refuse to declare their forfeiture when a just ground for forfeiture is presented ? No revolution was ever more complete than that witnessed in the organization of the House in the Forty-eight Congress. The foregoing resolutions of the 2 1st of January, 1884, became, from then to the present hour, the rule of the House of Representatives. Under this policy the following land-grants have been forfeited and the land restored to the people. ^Congressional Action on Land-grant Forfeiture Bills. Name of Railroad. Congress. Acres. Oregon Central Forty-eighth. do 810,880 Texas Pacific 18,500,000 300,000 23,871,360 Iron Mountain of Missouri do Atlantic and Pacific Forty-ninth.. THE PUBLIC LANDS. 463 Tuscaloosa and Mobile •\ Mobile and New Orleans Klyton and Beard's Bluff ► *7,ooo,ooo New Orleans and State Line... Iron Mountain of Arkansas } Total 50,482,240 *Estimated. But no action of Congress would be of much avail in securing the public lands to actual settlers without the efficient co-operation of that greatest of all the Bureaus of the Government, the General Land Office. Hon. N. McFarland, Commissioner of the General Land Office under the last Republican Administration, is an upright and honorable gentleman, and was an honest public officer, but the unblushing system of frauds which had their origin in the railroad land grant system, growing every year the more aggressive in view of the rapid appropriation of the public domain into private estates, was beyond his control. It re- quired a man of the inflexible will and rugged honesty of Hon. William A. J. Sparks, of Illinois, cordially supported by the Chief Executive of the nation, to break down an organized power ; a syndicate of public land piracy which, struggling to appropriate .into great private estates the public lands, aspired to control Departments and Bureaus and even the Courts of Justice. It is not alone the power of the railroad land grant system with which the Bureau of public lands must contend, but also the powerful, and unscrupulous, 464 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. Syndicates — European as well as American — which seek to monopolize the public lands into large estates, rendered possible by the present state of the land laws, and the powerful combinations to create and sustain pretended Spanish and Mexican grants in the land we acquired from the Mexican Republic. A careful inquiry will reveal the fact that the present Administration has absolutely reversed the land policy of the Republican administrations. Instead of a policy that favored the grants to railroad corporations, the Spanish and Mexican grants, and the enormous claims under entries made for speculation, every effort is now made, consistent with justice, to restore the public lands to the bona fide settler. General Sparks and his able successor, Col. S. M. Stockslager, pursu- ing the same line of policy, under the earnest approval of the President, have restored, by Executive order, 52,437,373 acres to the public domain, as will be seen by the following table : Land actually restored to the public domain. Acreage. Lands in granted railroad limits restored Railroad indemnity lands restored Private land claims; withdrawn lands restored Entries under pre-emption, homestead, timber-culture, desert, mineral, and timber land laws canceled in regular course of examination and proceedings in General Land Office for abandonment, illegality, and other causes Invalid State selections restored to United States Total actually restored to the public domain and opened to entry and settlement , 2,108,417 21,323,600 576,000 27,460,608 968,747 52,437.373 I am glad to state that no President of the United THE PUBLIC LANDS. 465 States has taken so lively an interest, as shown by the public records, in securing the public lands to actual settlers as the present Chief Executive. According to a statement before me, recently prepar- ed by the Commissioner of the General Land Office, the following table presents the present estimate of the area of the entire public domain from the begin- ning, east and west of the Mississippi, including Alaska and the Indian Territory, and the number of acres that have been disposed of up to June 30, 1888. Acres. Entire Public Domain 1,816,129,464 Lands disposed of 603,580,047 Remaining 1,212,549,417 This statement would be exceedingly deceptive and misleading if the suggestion was not made that this great area of 1,212,549,417 acres embraces all the rivers, mountains, lakes, lagoons, arid lands and other wastes, of the entire public domain. It is estimated, by the General Land Office, that there are still re- maining of the arable lands of the public domain 75,000,000 acres, and there are still vast regions of the public domain that with irrigation will become the most fertile lands on the globe. Last year, however, according to the Report of the Commissioner of Public Lands, the sales, entries, and selection of the public lands under the various acts of Congress amounted to 25,111,400. And the Commis- sioner of the General Land Office states that cash entries 466 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. of the public lands under the Pre-emption law enorm- ously exceed those of any former year. This state- ment is in harmony with the fact that the entries of the public lands in the five public land States of the south — Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Mississippi and Louisiana — were so enormously increased during the last year that those States called upon Congress to suspend all laws permitting entries of the public lands except the Homestead law, and a joint Resolution was promptly passed for that purpose, as follows : Resolved by the Senate and Honee of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That the public lands of the United States in the States of Mississippi, Arkansas and Alabama now subject to private sale as offered lands, shall be disposed of under and according to the provisions of the Homestead laws only until the pending legislation affecting such lands shall be disposed of, or the present session of Congress shall adjourn : Provided, That any isolated or disconnected tracts or parcels of the public domain less than one hundred and sixty acres may be ordered sold at private or public sale for not less than one dollar and twenty-five cents per acre by the Commissioner of the General Land Office, when, in his judg- ment, it would be proper to do so. Approved, May 14, 1888. In regard to that vast region of our country known as " Desert Land" there are many reasons for believing that those lands, under wise legislation, will become fertile fields and furnish homes for millions of our people. In the report I submitted to the House of Representatives on the 28th day of last -February, from the Committee on Public Lands, on the public land bill, in regard to such lands I made the follow- ing statement DESERT LANDS. There are, however, as is well known, extensive regions of country, especial- ly in Arizona, New Mexico, and California, which without irrigation are now assumed to be valueless. It is to those regions of country the desert- land feature of this bill especially applies. THE PUBLIC LANDS. 467 The committee has sought to apply the homestead policy as far as possible to these arid lands. Each entry is confined to one half section. No one can enter this class of land unless he is a bona fide resident of the State or Territory in which the land is situated. The patent, if issued must be to the entryman, his widow, heirs, or devisees. He must actually reclaim and put in actual and successful cultivation one-eighth of the half section of land, viz, 40 acres, within the three years. He must make oath that his entry is for his own benefit ; not for any other person, corporation, or syndicate. He pays 25 cents per acre at the time of entry, solely as a pledge of good faith in making the entry. The committe submit that, in dealing with this portion of the public domain, which will be of very great value with irrigation, and for the present so valueless without it, they have approached as nearly as is possible to the spirit and purpose of the Homestead law But it is not to be denied that in the progress of opening up this region of country, which promises so much with proper development, combinations may be formed, notwith- standing the safeguards which are embodied in this bill, to monopolize these lands through great capital investments, and it is the opinion of your com- mittee that it would be better that these lands should remain forever a desert than be monopolized into great private landed estates. The vigilance of Congress will be required to prevent a dangerous monopoly of these so- called desert lands. The value of the wealth created by such monopoly is vastly more than over balanced by the evil it inflicts. It will be readily seen that, as to this region of country, greater danger is to be apprehended from the opportunities offered to great capital interests for monopoly of lands, (the greatest curse that can be inflicted on a» people) than in any other portion of the United States. During the present session of Congress two bills have passed the House which cover the whole subject of the public lands, both of which were reported from the House Committee on Public Lands. 1. A bill to secure to actual settlers the public lands of the United States adapted to Agriculture ; to pro- tect the forests on the public domain, and for other purposes. 28 468 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. This bill which passed the House on the 27th day of June, 1888, if passed by the Senate will cover the third and last period in the history of the great public domain of the United States. This bill, for the first time in our legislation, classifies our public lands. It recognizes five classes only, abolishing all other modes of disposing of the public lands. 1st. Agricultural. 2d. Mineral. 3rd. Timber. 4th. Desert, and 5th. Reserved. Under this bill all public lands of the United States adapted to Agriculture are subject to disposal under the Homestead law only. This bill, if it becomes a law, completes the Homestead law of May 20, 1862. If that Homestead law had embraced the provisions of this bill, many generations would still elapse before the laboring men of this country would dispair of obtaining a home and freehold on the public domain. Generations to come would have indulged the cheering hope of independent homes ! This bill also protects the remaining coal fields and streams of water on the public domain from the curse of monopoly and protects the forests of the public domain from destruction. I must add that this bill wholly rejects the idea of the Government deriving a pecuniary profit from its lands adapted to Agriculture. The central idea and leading and main purpose of the bill is to devote the remaining public lands to the single purpose of secur- ing independent homes for our people. THE PUBLIC LANDS. 469 The other bill, which passed the House on the 6th day of July, 1888, declares the forfeiture to the United States, and restoration to the public domain, of all lands heretofore granted by Congress to railroad cor- porations not earned within the time prescribed by the law making the grant. The justice of this measure no man can deny. The effect of this bill is to forfeit the following grants and restore the land to the public domain to be disposed of under the Homestead law, namely : Name of Railroad. Gulf and Ship Island '. Coosa and Tennessee -» Coosa and Chattanooga Mobile and Girard Selma, Rome and Dalton* Atlantic, Gulf and West India Transit Pensacola and Georgia Vicksburg, Shreveport and Texas Jackson, Lansing and Saginaw Marquette, Houghton and Ontonagon Ononagon and Brule River LaCrosse and Milwaukee Chicago, St. Paul, Minneapolis and Omaha Wisconsin Central .• St. Vincent extension St. Paul and Pacific (now St. Paul, Minneapolis and Manitoba) Western Railroad Southern Minnesota Railway Extension... Hastings and Dakota Northern Pacific California and Oregon Oregon and California Southern Pacific Total. Estimated number of acres which will be forfeited by the House Bill. 652,800 140,160 144,000 651,264 258,624 676,000 679,680 364,800 176,256 294,400 288,000 195.724 1,446,400 464,480 1,113,600 243.712 832,115 819,840 36,907.741 1,740,800 2,086,4^0 4,147,200 54,323 996 *Lands certified to State for this road prior to May 23, 1872, amounting to 440,700.16 acres, were confirmed to State by act of that date (17 Stat. L., 159), for sole use and benefit of the Selma, Rome and Dalton Railroad Com- pany. The lands so confirmed may not be subject to forfeiture. 470 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. If these two measures shall receive the approval of the Senate much will have been done to retrieve the fatal error of giving over to corporations and monopoly a vast portion of the most valuable wealth any nation ever possessed — the wealth that gives independ- ent homes to the people ! In another generation the history of the public domain of the United States will be written. The historian in reviewing the successive generations which will have controlled this public domain through more than a century — the grandest possession, the noblest trust ever committed by Providence to any people — will exult in the long periods when unselfish patriot- ism and far-seeing statesmanship hoarded the public lands, and held them in reserve for freeholds of the American people — freeholds, the strongest bulwarks for free institutions that human wisdom can suggest — and will deplore the period when vast millions of acres of this public wealth were given over to sordid avarice in great landed estates. WILLIAM M. SPRINGER. CHAPTER VIII. THE TERRITORIES. Hon. William M. Springer, Chairman of the Committee on Territories^ National House of Rep re sen ta lives . 'T'HERE are eight organized territories in the United States, comprising 859,000 square miles in area. The population of these territories is estimated, by the Sec- retary of the Interior in his annual report to Con- gress for the year ending June 30th, 1887, as fol- lows: — Arizona 90,009, Dakota 568,400, Idaho 97,250, Montana, 130,000, New Mexico 160,000, Utah 196,500, Washington 142,391, Wyoming 85,000, making the total 1,469,041 inhabitants. In addition to the organized territories there is the Indian Territory, comprising 69,000 square miles in area, which is now settled chiefly by Indians and half-breeds, the eastern portion being occupied by what are known as the five civilized tribes, and the western portion by various semi-civilized tribes. That portion outside of the five civilized tribes will, in the near future, be organized into a territory to be known as Oklahoma. We have also, that vast, and in the main, unin- (473) 474 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. habitable region known as Alaska, comprising 531,000 square miles, and containing a population of 6,800 whites, 5,800 civilized Indians, and 26,800 not civil- ized. The resources of Alaska are as yet undeveloped, ex- cept so far as has been done by the Alaska Fur and Seal Company, and some mining enterprises recently established. There is no doubt, however, of the great value and importance of the resources of Alaska, which, it is to be hoped, will be- developed in the near future The population at this time being mostly uncivilized, the development of the Territory's resources has not been great, but, as the states and the other territories become more densely populated we may anticipate a large increase in population in Alaska. For the purposes of this article we will consider only the organized territories, and the policy to be pursued in reference to them in the future. An impression has prevailed generally to the effect that a certain amount of population was required to entitle a territory to admission into the Union. This is an error. There is no limitation on the power of Congress to admit new states into the Union. The language of the Constitution — Section 3, Article 4 — is : "New States may be admitted by the Congress into this Union ; but no new state shall be formed or erected within the jurisdiction of any other state ; nor any state be formed by the junction of two or more states or parts of states, without the consent of the legislatures of the states concerned, as well THE TERRITORIES. 475 as of the Congress." This provision is the sole au- thority and limitation of power to be found in the Constitution on the subject. Under this authority twenty-five new states have been admitted into the Union ; Vermont being the first, having been ad- mitted in 1791, and Colorado the last, which was admitted in 1876. The population of the several states has varied with varied circumstances. The smallest population of any state at the time of ad- mission was that of Illinois, which was admitted in 1818, and which had but 34,620 inhabitants: the largest was that of Wisconsin, winch was admitted in 1848 with a population of I So, 000. The states of Maine and West Virginia were carved out of existing states and had much larger populations, while Texas, at the time of admission, had but 134,000 inhabitants. The population of Nevada, which was admitted in 1864 was but 40,000 and the estimates are that it does not exceed that number at this time. It would be an interesting narrative to trace, in the history of our country, the various steps which have led up to the acquisition of territory and admission of the several states into the Union. Many of the most important events in our history have grown out of the acquisition of territory and the admission of new states. These historical events are already fresh in the minds of the people, and need not be recapitulated at this time. I shall endeavor, however, to call at- tention to the immense area, resources and future possi- 476 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. bilities of our territories, and present some reasons for their early admission into the Union upon an equality with the original states. The area of the territory belonging- to the United States, outside of the States, embraces about one mil- lion five hundred thousand square miles. Of this area there are in Alaska, as before stated, 571,390 square miles ; in the Indian Territory, including the five civilized tribes, 64,690 square miles ; and in the eight organized territories there are 859,000 square miles. Of these territories Dakota has the largest area, hav- ing 149,100 square miles. Montana is next, having 146,080 square miles. New Mexico has 122,580, and Arizona 113,000 square miles. The organized territories, including the Indian Territory, embrace about 900,000 square miles — an area nearly one-third as great as that comprised in the states already in the Union. It has been a very common belief that the greater portion of the land in the territories is either arid or mountainous, leaving but a small area susceptible of cultivation. It is also assumed that the arid regions are comparatively worthless, except for grazing purposes. This is a great mistake. In recent years improved systems of irrigation, and the mere cultivation of the soil in many places, have demonstrated the fact that the greater portions of the so-called arid regions are susceptible of a high state of cultivation, and that when brought into cultivation the lands produce more abundantly, and the crops are more reliable than in / THE TERRITORIES. 477 other parts of the country where rain-fall is relied upon. Recent investigations, and the rapid develop- ment of resources in the arid regions, have demon- strated the fact that the area of irreclaimable arid lands is quite moderate in extent. But a few years ago a large portion of Kansas, Nebraska, Texas, and Dakota were supposed to be arid wastes, but farming settlements have been moving steadily westward, and hundreds of thousands of acres heretofore supposed to be arid and unproductive have been reclaimed, and are producing the principal cereals without irrigation. At the same time large enterprises have sprung up in the territories whose object is to construct irrigat- ing ditches, by means of which extensive areas of hitherto arids lands have been brought into a high state of cultivation. Western Kansas and Nebraska are fast filling up with a farming population, and all of eastern Colorado is being rapidly brought into cultivation without the aid of irrigation. According to the present ratio of increase in the reclamation of arid lands it will not be many years until the whole region between the Missouri River and the base of the Rocky Mountains will be brought into a high state of cultivation, and will produce everything that supports animal existence as abundantly as does the Mississippi Valley itself. Further west, in the valleys of the mountains, and upon the plains of New Mexico, Arizona, Utah, California, and in other arid regions, irrigation is rapidly reclaiming the waste places. In 478 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. Southern California the reclaimed arid lands are the most valuable for agriculture and horticulture of any upon the continent. In the northern territories of Dakota, Montana, Washington, Idaho and Wyoming, there are immense agricultural and horticultural possi- bilities. The agricultural resources of Dakota are being rapidly developed, and give promise in the near future of being equal to those of the great States south and east of that territory. We are in the habit of speaking of the agricultural resources of the Mississippi Valley as greater in extent than those of any other region in the world, but I am of the opinion that within twenty-five years from this time the region between lines running north and south from the British Pos- sessions through Kansas City and Denver will embrace an area as rich in agricultural resources as is the Mississippi Valley itself, or all that region lying be- tween Kansas City and Cincinnati, and the Lakes and the Gulf. This region west of Kansas City will also support an immense population. In the near future we may reasonably expect large cities and populous states where today there is but a meagre population. In view, therefore, of the future possibilities of our territories, every encouragement should be given by Congress to the development of their resources. Be- fore many years we must provide for the admission into the Union of eight or nine new States, which will add sixteen or eighteen Senators to the Senate of the United States, and many more Members to THE TERRITORIES. 4/9 the House of Representatives. The political power which these new communities will exert will be very great. A broad and liberal policy should be pursued by Congress in reference to these territories in order that an intelligent and patriotic population may be invited to settle there and lay the foundations of great and prosperous commonwealths therein. Four of these territories, viz : Dakota, Montana, Washington, and New Mexico, already have a population which has hitherto been deemed sufficient to entitle a ter- ritory to statehood, as well as that settled condition of society, and respect for the laws and obligations of public contracts, which entitles them to admission. Utah has also the requisite population, but owing to the peculiar condition of her society, growing out of the institution of polygamy, her admission as a State will be retarded for a time. The Legislature of Dakota in March, 1887, passed an act submitting to the vote of the people of the whole territory the question of division. The election took place at the regular November election of 1887. In that election there were cast, upon the proposition of division, 37,784 votes for division, and 32,913 votes against division, making a majority in the whole ter- ritory of 4,781 votes in favor of division. This small majority was a great disappointment to those favoring the division of the territory. The vote was small in comparison with the whole voting population. There were undoubtedly 67,000 voters in the whole territory 480 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. who did not participate in that election at all. The proposition submitted was for the division of the ter- ritory into two parts, the southern part to constitute the State of South Dakota and the northern part the Territory of North Dakota. If the computation is made in the respective divisions it will be seen that South Dakota gave a majority of 15,259 for division, while the counties to compose the proposed territory of North Dakota gave a majority of 10,385 against division. In North Dakota, every county, with two ex- ceptions, gave a majority against division. Of the eighty-three counties in the Territory only thirty-seven gave majorities in favor of division and forty-six gave majorities against division. By an examination .of the map of the Territory it will appear that not' one- fourth of the area of the whole territory voted in favor of division. If the wishes of the people are to be considered in determining the question of division, the people of North Dakota are entitled to the same consideration as are those of South Dakota. When it is proposed to divide a State or Territory into two Territories or States, the people of each section or proposed 'new division have a right to be consulted. A large majority of the people of North Dakota, it seems, are opposed to being set off by themselves into a separate government. They are entitled to have their wishes respected, for they desire to preserve the existing union of Dakota, while the people of South Dakota seek to dissolve the union and set up a new and separate government for themselves. THE TERRITORIES. 48 I * The population of Dakota does not entitle her at this time to be admitted into the Union as two States. There are but eight States in the Union having less population than is claimed for the whole of Dakota. Thirty States in the Union have a great- er population, and the States of New York and Pennsylvania have nearly ten millions of people, and but four Senators in the United States Senate. Illinois and Ohio have over six millions of inhabitants and have but four Senators. The average population of all the States, according to the census of 1880, is 1,342,000. According to the census of Dakota in 1885 that territory had but 415,000 inhabitants, or about one-third of the average population of the States of the Union. It would be manifestly unjust to all the people of the United States, to carve two States out of the present territory of Dakota, which has but one- third of the average population of the existing states. It is claimed, however, that Dakota is rapidly increas- ing in population ; the same may be said of all the States and territories. The friends of the division of Dakota point to her large area as a reason for division. But area should not be the basis for the admission of the new States into the Union. Nevada has 110,700 square miles, and only 40000 population. Texas has 265,000 square miles, and California has 158,000 square miles. Dakota will be next in area, having 149,000, and Montana has nearly that amount, viz : 146,000. If it is con- 482 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. tended that Dakota should be divided on account of her area, Montana should also be divided for the same reason; and New Mexico with 122,000, and Arizona with 113,000 square miles should be erected into three States instead of two. The movement for the division of Dakota is bottomed solely upon parti- san considerations. Two States would require two sets of officials, twice the expense for State administration, and would give the Republican office holders greater opportunity to subsist at public expense. But above all, the movement has for its object the addition of two Republian Senators to the United States Senate, and a corresponding increase of votes in the Electoral College. The patriotism which supports this move- ment is that patriotism which looks solely to party ascendency. The best interests of ' the people of the Territory require that Dakota should be maintained in her integrity. She is destined to take her place very soon as one of the greatest and most prosperous States in the Union. Those who may reside in the State hereafter will regard as their greatest benefactors those who have prevented her dismemberment. Both parties in Congress seem to be agreed as to the propriety of the immediate admission of Montana and Washington Territories into the Union as States. Montana was organized by an act of Congress May 26th, 1864. It comprises an area of 146,000 square miles. The estimated population in November, 1887, was 130,000, and at this time it is undoubtedly over THE TERRITORIES. 483 150,000. The mines of the Territory produced, for the year 1887, $25,000,000 worth of precious metals. The population and the resources of Montana give promise, in the future, of a great State. Washington Territory was organized in 1853. She has an area of 69,000 square miles. The population in November last was estimated at 142,000. The population in November, 1888, is estimated at 160,000. The resources of the Territory are great and growing, especially the commerce and other commercial interests. New Mexico was organized in 1850 and comprises an area of 122,000 square miles. The population in November last was estimated at 160,000. The census of 1890 will probably show a population of not less than 200,000 ; the same may also be said of the Ter- ritories of Montana and Washington. Much of the land in New Mexico is arid but it is being rapidly reclaimed and produces, with the aid of irrigation, very abundantly. In all these territories stock raising is an important industry. The Committee on Territories of the House of Re- presentatives has reported a bill to enable the people of Dakota, Montana, Washington, and New Mexico to form Constitutions and State Governments, and to be admitted into the Union on equal footing with the original States. This bill is opposed by the Republicans in the House for two reasons : First, the proposed admission of Dakota as a whole State : Second, the proposed admission of New Mexico. The minority 484 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. of the Committee on Territories opposed the pro- posed admission of New Mexico on the ground that her population was of a character which rendered her admission into the Union undesirable. The real objection to the proposed admission of New Mexico is based upon the fear that that territory will become a * Democratic State. It is now represented by Mr. Joseph, a Democratic delegate, who received about 4,000 plurality at the last' election, (1886). Twelve or fourteen years ago, however, when the Territory was represented by Stephen B. Elkins, a Republican, nearly every Republican in Congress voted for a bill to pro- vide for its admission into the Union. The bill, how- ever, failed to become a law by only a few votes at the last session of the Forty-third Congress, on a motion to suspend the rules, which required a two- thirds majority. With two or three exceptions every Republican in the Senate and in the House of Repre- sentatives in that Congress voted to admit New Mexico as a State into the Union. The Territory was then supposed to be reliably Republican and its people and population were such as to warrant immediate admis- sion, in the estimation of the Republican party at that time ; but now that a majority of its people are Democrats the Republicans have changed their minds and are opposed to the admission of the Territory into the Union. The territories of Wyoming, Idaho, Utah and Arizona will soon be in a condition for admission. If Oklahoma Territory should be organized it will be THE TERRITORIES. 485 but a few years until the population there will be sufficient to entitle it to Statehood. Thus we have nine prospective States to be brought into the Union. Their influence and power will be very important ; their effect upon the politics of the future can scarcely be estimated ; the development of their resources will add immensely to our national wealth, and their lands will furnish homes for millions of people yet unborn. 29 CHAPTER IX. INTERNAL IMPROVEMENTS. Hon. Newton C. Blanchard, Chairman of the Committee on River? and Harbors ; National House pf Representatives. T^HE treatment of this subject in this paper will A be confined to River and Harbor Improvement. The value of the great natural highways of our country to the people who now inhabit the United States, and to the generations who will follow in the occupancy of its territory and the control of its des- tinies, cannot be over-estimated. It is, therefore, the manifest duty of Congress to care for and adequately improve them. The Democratic Party recognizes this and in its National Platform of 1884 adopted the following: "The Federal Government should care for and improve the Mississippi River and other great waterways of the Republic so as to secure for the interior States easy and cheap transportation to tide-water." This declaration was re-affirmed by the National Democratic Convention which met at St. Louis in the present year. No question is now more fully settled than the right and duty of the Government, within proper limitations of economy and public necessity, to facilitate (486) NEWTON C. BLANCHARD. INTERNAL IMPROVEMENTS. 489 commerce by all appropriate public works. We have 23,000 miles of dangerous coast line on the ocean, exclusive of the great Lakes. The rivers of America are the largest in the world. After the Amazon and La Plata, comes the Mississippi, with a discharge per second of 250,000 cubic feet, at low water, to over 1,000,000 cubic feet, at high water. This mighty river is equal in bulk to all the rivers of Europe combined, exclusive of the Volga. It is larger than the Yang-tse-Kiang and the Ganges, the greatest rivers of Asia, combined. It has 44 navigable trib- utaries and the aggregate navigable length of these rivers is 16,090 miles — more than four times the length of the ocean line from New York to Liverpool, and more than four times the distance by rail across the Continent, from New York to San Francisco. This mileage may and will be increased by the completion of certain improvements now under way. The principal of these rivers are : The Mississippi, from its mouth to the Falls of St. Anthony, 2,161 miles. The Missouri, The Ohio, The Red River, Arkansas " White Tennessee " Cumberland, Yellowstone, Ouachita, Wabash, Osage, Minnesota, Boeuf, Sun Flower, Fort Benton. Montana, 3,092 Pittsburg, 1,021 Slate Shoals, 986 Wichita, Kansas, 884 War Eagle, 779 Knoxville, Tenn., (about) 759 Waitsborough, Kentucky, 609 Belle Butte, Montana, 474 Camden, Arkansas, 384 La Fayette, Indiana, 365 Papinville, 303 Patterson's, Rapids, 295 Wallace's Landing. 280 Clarksdale, 271 490 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. Illinois River, from its mouth to the La Salle, 270 miles. Yazoo " " " " " Greenwood, Mississippi, 228 M Bayou Bartholomew. " " " Baxter Station, Arkansas, 213 " Black River, (Tributary of White)" *' " Doniphan, Mo., (about) 212 u Green, " " ' " Greensburg, Kentucky, 200 " St. Francis, " " 1 " Wittsburgh, Missouri, 180 11 Tallahatchie, " Hills Place 175 •« Wisconsin River, " " ' " Portage City, 160 " Cache River, " " • " Gray's Ferry, Arkansas, 160 11 Bayou Macon, " " ' ' " Floyd, Louisiana, 130 " Allegheny, " " ' " Franklin, Pennsylvania, 123 " Deer Creek " " ' ' " Stoneville, Mississippi, 116 " Monongahela River, " ' ' " Morgantown, W. Va., no 11 Kentucky " " ' ' " Cogar's Landing, Kentucky, 105 " With 1 6 other rivers each with a navigable length of less than 100 miles. Besides the rivers above given as forming the Mississippi system, other rivers of importance in our country are the following : — Columbia, Savannah, Hudson, James, Potomac, Alabama, Tombigbee, Red River of the North, Sac- ramento, Kennebec, Penobscot, Delaware, Coosa, Flint, Chattahoochie and Cape Fear. In addition, there are many other smaller streams which form important links in our great system of inland navigation. Many of these streams — navigable from. 40 to 70 miles — penetrate sections of country where there are no railroads and where their waterway affords to the people of such section the only means of access to and from the markets of the country, save the ordinary country roads. These rivers are all navigable water-ways of the United States. They come within the definition of INTERNAL IMPROVEMENTS. 49 1 such as laid down by the Supreme Court of the United States in the case of the Daniel Ball, 10 Wallace, 557, as follows : "Those rivers must be regarded as public, navigable rivers in law which are navigable in fact. And they are navigable in fact when they are used, or are sus- ceptible of being used, in their ordinary condition, as highways for commerce, over which trade and travel are, or may be, conducted in the customary modes of trade and travel on water. And they constitute naviga- ble waters of the United States, within the meaning of the acts of Congress, in contradistinction from the navigable waters of the States, when they form, in their ordinary condition, by themselves, or by uniting with other waters, a continued highway over which commerce is, or may be, carried on with other States, or foreign countries, in the customary modes in which such commerce is conducted by water." It is thus apparent that nature has done much for America as regards facilities for transportation. Great oceans on either side and a great gulf on the south offer their pathways to her people ; on the north her inland seas, containing one-third of all the fresh water of the world, stand unrivalled among the lakes of all countries ; and her numerous rivers lie ready to hand, "awaiting only the application of steam to vessels to render them magnificent highways." The water-ways of our country were formed and presented by nature at no cost to the people, but they are just as valuable as if artificially constructed. They belong to the nation, and should, like its custom- houses, post-offices, military roads, and other property, be kept in repair. The board of management for this 49 2 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. purpose is the Congress, and it should, " in guarding the people's transportation property, exercise the same skill, observe the same laws of economy, the same care and circumspection, as railway directors who are chosen to manage the railway lines owned by private interests." In a recent review of the Mississippi river and its tributaries, prepared for the Bureau of Statistics by Mr. Alexander D. Anderson, very interesting statistics are employed to show that the people of the United States possess, in the Mississippi river and its forty- four navigable tributaries, highways of commerce and cheap transportation to the seaboard, of the commercial value of $2,000,000,000. That is to say, lines of rail- road of equal length and tonnage with said river and its tributaries, if constructed at the usual expense of such improvements, would cost the people of the United States- this enormous and almost incomprehensible sum. The appropriations heretofore made by Congress for the rivers and harbors of the country have not been sufficient for their proper improvement. The first appropriation made for this purpose was in 1802, and for the Delaware River, which received the sum of $30,000. Since then Congress has, with few exceptions, voted similar appropriations every year, but not in sufficient amounts. It is to be noted, however, that river and harbor bills have annually increased in amount. They have been keeping pace, but not equal pace, with the INTERNAL IMPROVEMENTS. 493 wealth, commerce and population of the country. The following statement shows the annual appropriations, beginning with the year 1871, down to the present time. For year ending June 30th, 1871, $ 3,445,900 1872, 4,407,500 1873, 5.588,000 1874, 6,102,900 Passing to year 1879, 8,323,700 1880, 9^577495 1881, 8,976,500 1882, 11,451,300 1883, 18,738,875 . 1884,— Bill failed. 1885, 14,948,300 1886,— Bill failed. 1887, 14,473,900 1888,— Bill failed. The bill for the fiscal year ending June 30th, 1889, aggregates over $22,000,000. Exclusive of the latter, the annual increase of the river and harbor appropri- ation has been a little over one and a quarter millions per annum since 1873. But during that time our population has increased from 38,000,000 to 60,- 000,000, and during the same time there has been a wonderful increase in the mileage of the railway system of the country, upon whose exactions river and- harbor improvement is intended to be a check. In 1830 there were 23 miles of railroad; in 1850, 9,000 miles; and at the present time over 130,000 miles, aggregating nearly, or quite, a capitalization of $8,000,000,000, deducting one-half of which for depreciation &c, leaves $4,000,000,000 as the present 494 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. market value of the railroad system of the country — a system which carries 400,000,000 passengers and 500,000,000 tons of freight per annum. The total amount appropriated for rivers and harbors from the beginning of the government, March 4, 1789, to June 30, 1887, is $159,019,908. What a small sum that is when compared with the amount of the present cash valuation of the railroads built since 1830; $4,000,000,000 ! While this Government has expended the compara- tively small sum of $159,000,000, all told, on its rivers and harbors, it has donated in lands, and money, many times that amount in aid of the construction of railroads. It is a remarkable fact that the total amount expended, from the beginning of the Govern- ment to the present time, for river and harbor improvement, does not equal what is paid out in one year at the present time for repairs and rolling stock on the railroads of the country. Other nationalities, with rivers and harbors in no wise comparable to ours, have appropriated millions for their improvement where we appropriate thousands. England, with only 1,300 miles of coast line, has expended as much as $15,000,000 in one year on her harbors. We have never expended the half of it in any one year on the innumerable harbors which indent our coast line of 23,000 miles. The proposition to expend as much as $30,000,000 or $40,000,000 in a series of years in the improvement INTERNAL IMPROVEMENTS. 495 of the Mississippi River finds strenuous opposition in influential quarters. Yet England has expended $30,- 000,000 on the Clyde, which is but a rivulet compared with the Mississippi, and $82,000,000, all told, upon the Mersey, which is but a spring branch compared with the mighty "Father of Waters." Upon some of her harbors, England has expended large sums — over $5,000,000 at Portland, over $6,500,000 at Holyhead, and over $7,000,000 at Plymouth. We have no harbor upon which we have yet expended the smallest of these sums. Canada has expended over $45,000,000 on the Welland Canal and its branches — a sum equal to one-fourth of all the river and harbor appropriations of this Government from the earliest time. In the direction of cheaper transportation, England has ex- pended in the East Indies, up to this time, over $130,000,000, and this is in addition to $700,000,000 she has expended in subsidizing certain railways. France has expended, all told, over $400,000,000 on her water-ways and their aggregate navigable length is only 7,000 miles — hardly equal to the navigable length of the water-ways in the single State of Louisiana. On the harbor of Sherbourg, France has expended $100,000,000 — or twice as much as this Government has expended on all our great harbors on the Atlantic and Pacific, as well as the lake coast. Appropriations for our rivers and lake harbors have always been conspicuous objects of criticism, yet the improvement of the navigation of our water-ways is of 496 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. far greater importance than is imagined by most people, or conceded by others. In some quarters it is a popular belief that rail- roads have destroyed the usefulness of the rivers by killing their commerce. The theory of destruction to transportation benefits in consequenee of the falling off in some branches of river business is clearly fallacious. If there were not a pound of freight carried upon the rivers, the benefits derived from their presence would be incalculable, standing as they do a menace by nature to all artificial competition, and free to all who wish to use them for transportation purposes, upon equal terms, with minimum opportunities for pooling or discrimination — the great evils to-day in every other means of communication and transportation. It is true that railroads now carry the largest por- tion of the freight which was formerly transported by river or lake, but they are compelled by river and lake competition to carry such freight during the season of navigation at very low rates. The saving to commerce arising from our water-ways and their im- provement comes from the resulting low rates of freight, and its money value must be calculated not only from freight moved by water, but also upon freight moved by rail in competition with the water routes. Competent parties have estimated that our water-ways cheapen the cost of transportation to the people fully one-third. The railways competing with the water-ways are obliged during the season of navigation to reduce / INTERNAL IMPROVEMENTS. 497 their freight charges in order to obtain business ; but from the time navigation closes, whether from ice on the northern lakes, or the low water season elsewhere, to its re-opening, the rates are from two to six times more than during the months boats are running. The effect of water transportation is both direct and indirect. It furnishes the shipper with cheap rates, and, also, by its competitive influence, forces the rail- ways to lessen charges. Thus, it must be apparent to all that upon our inland water-ways depends most largely the realization of cheap transportation. Cheap transportation affects both internal and foreign commerce and the welfare of both the producer and the consumer. The competi- tion among commercial cities is so great that a trifling over-charge in rates of transportation may cost the loss of an important market to the producer and the trade of an important section to the particular market. Measures like the inter-stat^-commerce law have much to commend them to the sound judgment of the country ; yet many well-informed people believe that a liberal and judicious river and harbor bill will do more to regulate commerce, in the sense of cheapening the transportation of the products of the producing classes to market, and their return supplies home, than many enactments of statutes designed, through com- plicated machinery and the courts, to regulate traffic. The value of our foreign commerce, imports and exports, for the fiscal year ended June 30th, 1886, 498 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. benefited directly by them improvement of our harbors and indirectly by the improvement of our internal water-ways, was $1,314,960,966; and the total value of our internal commerce for the same period, bene- fited directly by such improvement, was estimated at about $30,000,000,000, or more than double the value of the foreign commerce of the whole world. CHAPTER X. THE MILITARY. General John C. Black, United Stales Commissioner of Pensions. HT HE framers of the Federal Constitution had presented to them a difficult task in determining the precise relations which should exist between the , State and its military arm. The fathers, as we reverently and affectionately designate them, had passed through the war of the Revolution when for years almost the sole expression of federal existence was in the armies of the Continental line. They had seen the govermei\t of every State fugitive before the triumphant armies of the King ; and had followed the seat of federal author- ity in its peripatetic round in search of a continued existence. Every patriot community had been invaded and laid waste ; there remained scarce a city or town that had not been occupied by a royal garrison; fire and sword had visited almost every county of the young confed- eration ; the functions of Congress were exhausted by the passage of brave resolutions, the pledge of reve- nues that did not exist, and the mortgage of a credit founded only in the patriotic hope of the rebellious (5oi) 502 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. colonies. The army in the field, through all privations, kept the American Union safe for the future. At the end of their long service the troops, without sufficient clothing and without pay, were restored to the ranks of civil life, and under these circumstances they became a threat to the institutions which they had so heroically preserved. Kept from the extreme act of violence and treason, however, by the firmness of Washington and his great compatriots, as well as by the nobler emotions of their own hearts, they returned at last to the states from which they had been drawn. During the progress of the war of the Revolution, great difficulty had, at various times, arisen from the lack of power in the Federal Government to call directly upon the Militia of the Nation, that was to be, for their services. They had to make all the calls through embryotic states, and the continental union found itself at the mercy of detached colonies, kept together by a political compact, always dissoluble at pleasure among sovereigns, and in such straits that the change of administration in any of the important colonies, as New York or Pennsylvania, might have resulted in the withdrawal of such colony from the compact, and a refusal of its contingent of troops to serve, and the disablement thereby of the continental armies and that of the government that was to be. Had Washington been less great, less wise, less patriotic ; or on the other hand had any colony believed its political interests THE MILITARY. 503 would have been better subserved 'by the reinstatement of its relations with Great Britain, inevitable ruin would have befallen the experiment. Therefore, the framers of the Constitution addressed themselves to present a system of government which would on the one hand free the Union from the peril of an unwilling state, and on the other hand from the power of an ambitious chief. They set themselves to the formation of a military system which, while drawn from the states, should when once organized be independent of them ; and which after it had become federal and committed to the commandership of a single man should still be within the control of the co-ordinate branches of government — the judicial, executive and legislative branches. They succeeded in this great enterprise ; they created a mili- tary system which never has nurtured an unholy ambi- tion or bred an usurper, and at the same time has been as strong as the strength of every freeman in the land. To secure the power of self-preservation — a right inherent in governments and men — the Federal Consti- tution placed the whole machinery for the creation of armies in the Congress. Whatever may be argued as to the effect of the " Common defense and general welfare" clause, there can be no doubt that in the creation, maintenance, government and regulation of the military forces the Constitution makes the Congress supreme. And it further extends that power to all arms-bearing citizens and makes them subject to the 504 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. Federal Legislature, recognizing, without express dec- laration, that the duty of bearing arms at the call of the properly constituted authorities is laid by the civil compact itself, which antedates constitutions and is larger than any formula of laws, upon all able- bodied men within the territory of the Union. The constitutionalists gave the Congress all the power of the whole people and all the states in this particular. Language cannot be broader or more perspicuous. "The Congress" (Art. 2-Sec. 15.) "Shall have the power to provide for the calling forth the Militia to execute the laws of the Union" ; " To raise and sup- port armies" (Sec. 12); "To provide for organizing armies and disciplining the Militia and for organizing such part of them as may be employed in the service of the United States" (Sec. 16.); "To exercise exclusive authority over all places purchased for the erection of forts, magazines and arsenals" (Sec. 17.); " To exercise the exclusive and needful power of declaring war" (Sec. 11.) and" To make all laws necessary and proper for carrying into execution the foregoing powers" (Sec. 18.)- This power seems so complete that all other constitutional declarations thereon must, of necessity, be by way of limitation or. definition and so it will be found to be. These statesmen, fresh from the perils of 1776-83, grasped the whole power and claimed it for the nearest representatives of the people — the Congress. It was not to be an appenage of executive authority ; THE MILITARY. 505 it was not to be an adjunct of a judiciary unused, by its genius and traditions, to the sword ; too many examples of the folly and weakness of such unions were fresh in the minds of the Historians of the Convention. It was to be under the control of the Legislature. The whole military power of the people was thus placed in the hands of the Congress and but two reservations are to be found in the original Constitution ; they are rather regulations, however, than restrictions. The first, and by far the most important, is that contained in Section 12. It is a fine illustration of the proper jealousy of freemen of their own chosen and nearest instrumentalities and declares that no appropriations of money for the Army shall be for a longer period than two years. Else- where it was declared that no monies should be paid, for any purpose, from the Treasury other than in. pursuance of lawful appropriations ; so that thus the control of the people over their own military force is assured ; the military chest and alt that depends, thereon — rations, pay, quarters and arms — are subject to abandonment in the biennial elections ; the power to annihilate the armies rests in the popular vote, so that above and beyond the Congress the vast reserve force of a nation of freemen is the final controller of their soldiers. No way is open past that final barrier- but the path of Revolution. The army must serve,, it cannot oppress, the Democracy. The severest: martinet may fret and scold about demagogy and 3° 506 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC TARTY. declare that no voice should be heard in camps but that of discipline ; imperious chiefs, should, such arise, may affect to ignore any but "superior" authority and look to, and through, the War office for all their orders ; but the greatest, and the meanest soldier, alike, comprehend that the People are the Commander-in- Chief of every squadron and that the crowded camp and distant outpost alike depend upon the favorable judgment of the electors of the land. The other reservation is more apparently in form than in substance and reserves to the states the appointment of Officers and the authority of training the Militia according to the discipline prescribed by Congress. But while the oath of the soldier is to the United States and its Government ; while the Regular Army continues to furnish, as it heretofore has done, the seniors of the service and the superiors as well in the technique of arms ; while the pay and support are wholly furnish- ed by the United States in times of war ; while it continues the fountain of rewards and its service is that of glory, the nomination of the officers of the field and line is of minor importance. In the direful event of attempted usurpation, it is true that the States could call upon their soldiery to disband and, by withdrawing the appointments of officers, would leave the army a lawless mass ; yet this, too, is the contingency of revolution and we are considering now only the lawful control and relations of the Military, not unlawful and possible patricidal acts — dangers so THE MILITARY. S°7 remote as not to threaten the Republic while it shall be worthy of preservation. Under these broad grants, and subject to these con- ditions, the Military force was organized. The question was, " In whose control should be its operations ?" The very genius of war is that it shall be concentrated power delivered with undivided will at and upon the enemy, and their own discussions probably convinced the men of the Constitution that a single responsible officer must wield their force. A Military Committee, the wisest in the world — call it Committee, Counsel or Directory — cannot direct military power. Division of opinions, inseparable from counsels, weakens action, breeds jealousies, coldness, rivalries, contests — even the Triumvirate divided the world into battle sections, assigning his third to each and making each imperial therein, before they overthrew the republic and parted its garments among their thievish legions. For military success there must be unity, and so the power, as above created and restricted, was confided, for use, to the Executive. Considering the vastness of the power which, from the time of the adoption of the Constitution, has been exercised by the President in military affairs, it is surprising to recall how few and simple are the direct grants of authority to him. Article 2d contains them all, and they are as follows : "The executive power shall be vested in a President of the United States of America." (Sec, I.) 508 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. "The President shall be Commander-in-Chief of the Army and Navy of the United States, and of the Military of the several States when called into the actual service of the United States." (Sec. 2.) "He shall take care that the laws be faithfully exe- cuted and shall commission all officers of the United States." (Sec. 3.) This is all of his Constitutional power. Custom, drawn largely from Monarchial Sovereignties, and followed in earlier times from the necessities of the situation and the full faith of a generous people in their chosen servants — custom, I say, has given more scope to these declarations than they themselves possess. But should occasion demand, it would speedily appear that the road of the Executive is but a very straight and narrow pathway in dealing with the Military. He may reprieve or pardon a soldier condemned in due course of law; he cannot condemn. He cannot augment by one man the forces of the United States ! He cannot add a regiment or a ship ; not a dollar of pay, perquisite or emolument. He can nominate for promotion and, within limits, designate for command. He cannot reward illustrious bravery, nor great heroism, nor patriotic endurance. He may tender thanks ; he may suggest reward; he may call the attention of the law-makers to the worthy, and with splendid and mellifluous proclamations voice the popular gratitude and formulate its acclaim, but not more. For convenience he is allowed to perform many things pertaining in strictness to the Congress and THE MILITARY. .509 subject to the assertion of its right by that great body. His is a case of permitted power, if such an expression may be used. The Congress has delegated to him much of the power reserved to it by the Constitution in matters of routine, and by law has laid on him many of the details of service, but the de- termination of the Congress to re-assume its full authority would find no efficient check. It is true that the title of Commander-in-Chief seems ample, and so it is. But it is limited by all parts of the instrument wherein it is employed, and in this sense the President is, himself, subject to the control of Congress in all save the routine of the duties of his military office, if not indeed in them. The power of the government of the army includes the control of all parts of the army, the commander included. It would be hard for a lawyer to say that the General of the armies was within the control of the National Legislature, but that the Commander-in-Chief was not, while the same section of the Constitution gives the control and none limit or change it. The truth is, it seems to me, that the Constitution never was designed by the people, in their enactment of it, to surrender the Congressional control of the Army and Navy of the United States and the Militia in service. If the occasion should arise when a false President should assume independence of the Congress in dealing with the army in those great essential matters for which the people care and in which they have an in- 510 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. terest, there would be difficulty, perhaps, in formulating the Congressional will ; but that difficulty would speedily find adjustment. The grasp of Congress upon the sword would be found as firm as that they hold upon the purse. Every existing regulation could be changed by a constitutional majority of both houses. Every function of the Com- mander-in-Chief could be changed except that the nominal headship would remain as prescribed in the letter of the fundamental law. The veto itself would become a temporary obstruction in the face of a patriotic and determined vote. This, then, was the solution at which the Fathers arrived and which the people enacted. The military power was lodged in the Congress and they were to require its exercise by their laws, and in their chosen methods by the President. Thus the entire power of the great Republic was retained by the electors of that Republic and the hand that, for the sake of unity and great results, had the sword placed within its grasp was bound by law in unyielding fashion to execute duly the law. In this conclusion I have taken into account those things which were inhibited to the States and those reserved to them. Concerning one of these reserva- tions, the right to commission officers and instruct the Militia, I have above written. Another is to refuse to grant places for forts, magazines and arsenals to the General Government. When once THE MILITARY. 5 1 1 granted, however, State control is gone, the nation becomes supreme over the ceded territory and State interest cannot, save by National consent, be reas- serted. As the Government has now all requisite reservations in the present States, and as it holds all desired places in the Territories, when they become States and as the general interest of the States and Union is one, save in the case of a rebellion and in the event of the suspension of all civil law, this res- ervation is also one rather of form than of sub- stance. It was of greater seeming importance when the Constitution was submitted; for the minds of men were uncertain in their judgment of the new condi- tions, and the new order, and those who foresaw peril in a great central power were prepared to insist that it should not acquire foothold near their hearths, save by their permission. Yet another inhibition was deemed necessary to clearly eliminate State control of the militia arm, and to emphasize the ascendency of the new government, and it is found in the last section of the first article (Clauses I and 3 of Sec. 10). "No State shall enter into any treaty alliance, or confederation and no State shall, without the consent of Congress, keep troops or ships of war in time of peace, enter into any agreement or compact with another State, or with a foreign power, or engage in war unless actually invaded, or in such imminent danger as will not admit of delay." In face of these positive inhibitions, the reserved right of officering and training the Militia, according 512 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. to the Discipline prescribed by Congress, surely meant that the States might prepare the thunderbolts, but that Congress alone should hurl them. They intensify the expressions of Federal power over the Army. They leave but one Military power in lawful existence within the confines of the Republic, and, even in the event of a sudden invasion, leave the control of the Militia with the Congress, if that body shall choose to call the State levies into the National service of the United States and thus assume the defence of the invaded State. Nor is this position changed by the second and third articles of the amendments, which declare the right of the people to bear arms and which protect the people from the indiscriminate billetings of troops. The Constitutional system of Military Law is simple, as becomes a great charter of Liberty, and its terms can be comprehended of all men. It is all-embracing as the law of National existence requires. It has been widely departed from in troublous times but it is supreme today. And in its security the citizen, un- touched by the point of the sword and willingly bearing his share of military burdens, sees our little army do its ordered work, conscious that, at the call of the law — his law — its ranks, swelled to unnumbered myriads, can uphold that law, and never threaten his Liberty. HILARY A. HERBERT. CHAPTER XI. THE NAVY. Hon Hilary A Herbert, Chairman of the Committee on Naval Affairs, National House of Representatives. I. — The Navy of the Revolution. ''PHE first blood of the Revolution was shed on the 19th of April, 1775. News travelled slowly at that day, but by the 1 ith of May, the sound of the cannon fired on Lexington Green had reached Machias, Maine. Im- mediately four gallant soldiers seized upon a sloop, called for volunteers to attack an armed English Schooner, the Margaretta, lying hard by, and in a few minutes thirty-five adventurous men had volunteered. They elected one of their number, Mr. O'Brien, to command and, badly armed as they were, they cap- tured the schooner, though it was better armed and better manned, after a bloody struggle. Twenty men on the two sides were killed and wounded. This was the first naval engagement of the Revolution — an impromptu battle, born of the spirit of liberty and the result was an omen of the glorious future that awaited American seamen. Congress soon began to commission privateers, (5i5) 516 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. to build ships and organize a marine and, before the close of 1775, had authorized 17 cruisers, commissioned officers to command them and appointed "Esec Hopkins Esquire. Commander-in-chief. ,, Thus the Continental Navy was born more than six months before the Declaration of Independence. In October, 1776, the new Government had, building and built, 26 vessels, though many of them never got to sea. Several of the colonies had besides vessels of their own and such was the activity of American cruisers that in 1776 their captures amounted it is said, to 324 sail. Many disasters, of course, befell the Americans themselves. It could not be otherwise for they were fighting the greatest naval power in the world, but so successful were they that the supplies and munitions that fell into their hands proved invaluable to the colonies in their struggle for independence. 1777 was an eventful year. The Randolph, 32 guns, after a cruise full of brave and successful ven- tures was blown up with the gallant Capt. Biddle, and all on board, in an engagement with the British Ship Yarmouth. The brig Cabot, the Hancock, 32 guns, and many merchant and other American vessels, were captured or de- stroyed. The colonies, feeble as they were, could ill afford such losses, but the gallant little marine came out of every struggle with untarnished honor, and their huge antagonist, whose shipping covered the seas, suf- THE NAVY. 517 fered still more severely than the colonies. Not only did the English lose, as it is estimated, during this year, 467 sail of merchantmen, but their vessels of war, though there were seventy of them on the American coast, were in several instances defeated by their enterprising foes. It was in this year, 1777, that Congress adopted our national colors. The year 1778 opened with cheering prospects for the cause of Independence. Burgoyne had sur- rendered during the previous year. France, it was seen, was soon to ally herself with America; Congress was addressing itself more earnestly to the work of strengthening the Navy and patriots everywhere took heart. Capt. Rathburne with a sloop of 12 guns and less than thirty men made a sudden descent upon the British at New Providence, seized the forts and stores and captured six vessels, one of them a priva- teer with 16 guns and fifty men. Captain John Barry by a brilliant dash with four row boats captured, in the Delaware River, a British Schooner of ten guns and four transports. Capt. John Paul Jones in the Ranger, after a brave struggle, captured the Drake, his superior in tonnage, men and metal. Capt. Waters, in the ship Thorn, 16, fought, at the same time, the Governor Tryon, 16, and the Sir William Erskine, 14. The Tryon surrendered to the American and the Erskine saved itself by flight. The colonies had their losses too, though we have no space here to record all the victories or reverses 5 I 8 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. of the American sailor during that memorable year. It is sufficient to say that the gallant little • navy wrote another bright page in that glorious record upon which this generation looks back, through the vista of a hundred years, with so much of affectionate admiration. IJJ9 Till the Close of The Revolution. The reputation achieved £>y our navy, if such it could be called, during the first four eventful years of the Revolution was fully maintained till the close of the struggle. Without any attempt to follow the current of history, for we have no time to go into particulars, let the fight between the Eon Homme Richard and the British Ship Serapis stand for an illustration of the spirit of the American mariner in the days of the Revolution. Each vessel mounted 42 guns, but the Englishman was a regular man-of-war while the Richard was an old Indiaman converted into a war vessel. The English vessel had 42 heavy guns while the American was armed partly with nine and twelve pounders. Indeed, after the first broadside, the Richard had nothing else to fight with, for the sailors refused to serve the remaining 18 pounders when two of them had bursted. The heavy broadsides of the Serapis were terribly destructive. The gunners on the Richard were mowed down like hay. The living leaped promptly forward but could not always supply the place of the dead. There was a mometary lull in the combat on the side of the Richard and Captain THE NAVY. 519 Pierson, of the Serapis, not being able to see trie American flag, for the battle was by moonlight, called out, "Have you struck your colors?" "No" answered the gallant Paul Jones, "I have not yet begun to fight." Commodore Jones now saw his only chance was yard arm to yard arm. Fortune and a skilful maneuvre favored him, so he closed with his enemy and lashed her head-gear to his mizzenmast. The Englishman was unable to disengage himself and now the battle was to be fought out almost hand to hand. For two hours more the terrible combat waged. The heavy guns of the Serapis swept through the Richard till men could not live on its lower deck. They shot the ship till their missies passed through without touching a splinter. The Richard was on fire, and water, at the same time, was pouri'ng into her hold. But the Americans from the upper deck and rigging of their vessel rained shot and shell and hand-grenades upon their enemy until they controlled both upper decks as the English did the lower. A sailor from the end of the main-yard of the Richard now threw a grenade down through the main hatchway of the Serapis and caused such an explosion of ammunition as almost to decide the battle. Fifty or sixty English- men were killed and wounded but they gallantly fought on. For half an hour longer the dreadful strug- gle went on and all this time the Americans were fighting not only their human foes but in addition thereto the fire and water. The Serapis too was 520 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. often on fire. At last, when the English were exhausted and could fight no longer, Captain Pierson with his own hands pulled down his flag. The Sera- pis was captured, but the Richard had fought its last fight. It was not till ten o'clock next day that the fire in her sides could be extinguished. For nearly twenty-four hours longer her crew worked at the pumps. When there was no hope of saving her she was abandoned and the waters on which she had floated so bravely closed over the Bon Homme Richard for- ever. The victors had taken refuge in the captured vessel. These two ships, though each had consorts, fought out this battle single-handed, the Richard being more injured by her ally's fire than was the Serapis. The losses were about 150 each — say half of those engaged on either side. History records no more memorable combat between single ships unless it be that between the Monitor and the Marrimac, of Vir ginia, and there Americans were on both sides. The Peace of 1783. Independence found the government of the United States without money or the means of procuring it, for it had no power to levy taxes. Of course what was left of the little navy that had won so much glory went to pieces. The Dey of Algiers was, at that time, preying on the commerce of the world like a common buccaneer. It goes without saying that he did not pass by the merchantmen of a country that was too feeble to protect them. Instead of investing THE NAVY. 521 in a navy our ancestors for a time, we regret to say, sought to buy their peace by tribute. Even after the adoption of our present Constitution, Americans who had been captured by the Algerines were, for years, allowed to remain in captivity and slavery ; but by March, 1794, the Congress had become sufficiently aroused to authorize, as it did on the 27th of that month, the construction of six frigates. Under this law President Washington caused to be laid down those ships whose names have passed into history — the Constitution, 44 guns, the President, 44, the United States 44, the Chesapeake 38, the Constellation 38, and the Congress 38. This was the beginning of our Navy. Work on all these vessels was immediately begun but, as to three of them, was suspended when, by a treaty in November, 1795, the United States again bargained for her peace with Algiers, this time by contributions amounting to one million dollars. It is passing strange that our ancestors who had not feared to confront even Great Britain should consent to pay a yearly tribute to so weak a power as Algiers. Perhaps they did not consider it humiliating to bargain with the Dey because he was a barbarian and could not be expected to act like a Christian. It was on this principle that Dogberry instructed the watch who were to " Comprehend all vagrant men. If any, after being bid in the prince's name to stand should refuse to do so, why then, let him go and thank God you are rid of a knave." 522 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. The Quasi War zvith France. It was now 1798 and France and England were at war. Both sides desired, and France expected and demanded, the aid of America. Our government de- termined to remain neutral but both belligerents gradually encroached upon our commerce until at length the French made prizes of our merchantmen whenever it pleased them. So on the 27th of April, 1798, $950,000 was appropriated to increase the navy, and on the 30th of the same month the Navy De- partment was created. In June, Benjamin Stoddard became the first Secretary. July 10th, 1798, the new Marine Corps was created consisting of 881 officers and enlisted men headed by a major. On July 16th a law was passed authorizing the completion of the three frigates, work on which had been suspended, so that the American Navy, as now authorized by law, consisted of twelve frigates, twelve ships of between 20 and 24 guns inclusive and six smaller sloops; making a total of thirty cruisers besides revenue cutters and galleys. In the next year, 1799, the government had in actual service twenty-eight ships of war. Govern- ment had now use for all these vessels for the sea was swarming with French privateers, aided by men- of-war. On the 9th of February, 1799, the Constella- tion, Commodore Truxton, fell in with and captured, after a spirited resistance, the French frigate Insur- gente. The French lost seventy killed and wounded, the Americans three. On the 1st of February, 1800, THE NAVY. 523 the same officer, with his good ship Constellation, en- countered La Vengeance, which was his superior in guns and men. A bloody battle ensued and the Frenchman, badly crippled, escaped with a loss of 160 killed and wounded. The Constellation had lost only thirty-nine but could not follow for her mainmast was shot away. Congress voted a gold medal to Commo- dore Truxton and commended, by resolution, his gallant lieutenant, Mr. Harvey. Besides some unarmed mer- chant vessels, more than fifty French privateers were captured and brought into port during the years 1798, 1799 and 1800 and many deeds of gallantry were done. Peace was made with France February 3d, 1801. War with Tripoli — 180 i-j. On the 14th of May, 1801, the Bashaw of Tripoli declared war against the United States because, as he alleged, the tribute he had received from us for keep- ing the peace was not as much as we were paying Algiers and Tunis on similar account. This learned Sovereign, like other great equity judges, laid stress on the maxim, "equality is equity." The war. began in earnest in August and lasted for four years. Among its principle incidents were the loss, on a reef, of the United States frigate Philadelphia ; its capture by the enemy ; its re-capture and des- truction in a gallant night attack by Lieutenant De- catur — afterwards the celebrated Commodore ; and the awful loss of the United States ketch, Intrepid, a vessel that commanded by Captain Somers and Lieu- 31 524 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. tenant Wadsworth and heavily freighted with powder and shell, sailed away in the darkness of the night towards the enemy's fleet and forts and, before she had been turned adrift, exploded with all on board. The progress of the war was marked by many deeds of gallantry ; but the blockades, the bombardments and the combats by land and sea were all ended by the peace of June 3rd, 1805. Preble, Morris, Rodgers, Decatur and others had won brilliant reputations, and our little navy was left with an esprit du corps that was gratifying to every lover of his country. From 180 1 to 18 12, From the very close of the war with Tripoli, our relations with England were in a troubled condition. June 2 1st,- 1807, the Captain of the British ship, Leopard, (50) made an unexpected demand to search the United States frigate Chesapeake, (38) for de- serters and being refused he poured his broadsides for twelve minutes into the American vessel, killing and wounding twenty-one. The American Commander, Com- modore Barron, not having anticipated such a con- tingency and not having his ship in condition for battle, surrendered and submitted to the search. Angry correspondence between the British and American governments followed, but no open rupture. In De- cember following, Congress increased the number of Gunboats to 257 and also laid an embargo on all our ports. In January, 1809, President Madison was directed to equip the United States, the Essex, the President THE NAVY. 525 and the John Adams, and to increase the number of midshipmen to 450 and of seamen and boys to 5,025, so that, when the laws were carried into execution, the total number in the naval service, including marines, was 7,000. On the 16th of May, 181 1, about 8 o'clock at night, occurred the affair of the American frigate President (44 guns) and the English ship Little Belt (18 guns), in which the latter had thirty-one killed and wounded. It was a regular battle for twenty minutes apparently growing out of the failure of the Little Belt to respond when hailed. If it was the result of a misunderstand- ing it was such a mistake as could only have occurred where feelings of intense hostility already existed. The war of 18 12 was rapidly coming on. War of 18 1 2. Congress made an open declaration of hostilities June 12, 181 2. Our Navy consisted of the President 44; the Constitution, 44; the United States, 44 Congress, 38; Constellation, 38; Chesapeake, 38 New York, 38 — a sheer hulk ; Essex, 32 ; Adams, 28 John Adams, 28 ; Boston, 28 ; General Greene, 28 Wasp, 18; Hornet, 18; Argus, 16; Siren, 16; Naut- ilus, 12; Vixen, 12; Enterprise, 14; Viper, 10; ketch Spitfire, 3; bomb-brig Vengeance, 3; Vesuvius, n; and brig Oneida, on Lake Ontario. Great Britian, at that time, was absolute mistress of the seas. The Battle of Trafalgar, in 1805, had left her without any rival among European Nations. Her naval strength 526 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. since that date had steadily increased. She now had 1060 ships of war. Between seven and eight hundred of these were effective cruisers. If America was to win any battles in the coming war, to all appear- ances, they must be fought on land. Cooper, in his History of the Navy, says, that, at one time President Madison's Cabinet had decided that our ships of war, in order to prevent them from falling into the enemy's hands, must be withdrawn from the seas and laid up in ordinary ; and that the President was only dissuaded from this course by Captains Stewart and Bainbridge of the Navy. In a glass case in the Library of the State Depart- ment at Washington is a beautiful silver urn with this inscription upon it, " The Citizens of Philadelphia, at a meeting convened on the fifth of September, 18 12, voted this urn to be presented in their name to Captain Isaac Hull, Commander of the United States Frigate Constitution as a testimonial of their sense of his distinguished gallantry and conduct in bringing to action and subduing the British Frigate Gurriere, on the 19th day of August, 18 1 2, and of the eminent service he has rendered to his country by achieving, in the first naval conflict of the war, a most signal and decisive victory over a foe that had, till then, challenged unrivaled superiority on the ocean, and thus establishing the claims of our Navy to the affec- tion and confidence of the Nation." This tells almost the whole story of the war. It THE NAVY. 527 bespeaks the grateful surprise with which our country- men heard of the first victory we won on sea over that great nation whose actual power on the ocean was so overwhelming and whose prestige was indisputable. Except the great victory at New Orleans, which occured after the Treaty of Peace had been signed, though before it was known to the troops, there is not much of the part of the war of 18 12 that was waged on land that the American citizen cares greatly to hear of, but the victories we won at sea were very remarkable indeed. In the fight between the Constitution and the Guerriere the Americans lost 14 killed and wounded and the Englishman 79. On the 1 2th of October, 18 12, the United States, 44, Commodore Decatur with a loss of 12 killed, and wounded, captured the Macedonian, 38, inflicting a loss of 104 killed and wounded. The United States vessel Wasp, 18, defeated the Frolic, 18, with a loss to the victor of only ten and a loss to the Frolic of seventy or eighty. December 29th, 18 12, the Constitution, 44, captured the Java, 38. The Java lost 124 killed and wounded, the Constitution 36. February 24th, 1813, the United States Hornet, 18, Captain Lawrence., captured and sank the Peacock, 18. The Hornet lost 3, and the Peacock 38, killed and wounded. On the 10th of September, 18 13, on Lake Erie, occured the great battle between the two little impro- vised fleets, which were equal in men and metal, the 528 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. Americans under Captain Perry and the English under Captain Barclay. Losses were just equal, 135 each, and the courage of the combatants seemed fairly bal- anced but the seamanship and victory were with the American and Perry was left master of the Lake. On the nth of September, 18 14, at the battle of Plattsburg, Captain McDonough, with 14 vessels, 86 guns and 850 men, after a terrible combat, beat the English Captain Downie, with 16 vessels, 96 guns and 1,000 men ; and thus the Americans were left in complete possession of Lake Champlain. In some of the conflicts that occurred during the war of 18 f2 we were overmatched, occasionally we were beaten when conditions were equal, but when the chances were even victory was oftenest with the Americans and there was no single combat upon the water, unless perchance in case of the surrender of the Argus to the Pelican, out of which our flag did not come with untarnished honor. Roosevelt, in his able and apparently accurate his- tory of the Naval War of 18 12, after offsetting the losses of Revenue-cutters against British Royal Packets, tenders, barges etc., sums up the losses of the two sides in the war of 18 12, as follows: AMERICAN LOSS. BRITISH LOSS. CAUSED. TONNAGE. GUNS. TONNAGE. GUNS. By Ocean Cruiser.. 5,984 278 8,451 351 On the Lakes 727 37 4>i59 212 By the army 3,007 116 500 22 By Privateers ^ . . . 402 20 Total 9,718 431 13, 512 605 THE NAVY. 529 When we consider the large amount of our loss inflicted by the British Army the disparity in the losses suffered from naval operations becomes very great and such a result, considering the disparity of force, is certainly very remarkable. Roosevelt further says, " Of the twelve single ship actions, two (those of the Argus and the Chesapeake) undoubtedly redounded most to the credit of the British, in two (that of the Wasp with the Reindeer and that of the Enterprise and the Boxer) the honors were nearly even, and in the other eight the super- iority of the Americans was very manifest. (Note 1. — Not counting the last action of the Constitution, or the President's action on the capture of the Essex, on account of the difficulty of fairly e-stimating the amount of credit due each side.) In three actions (those with the Penguin, Frolic and Shannon) the combatants were about equal in strength, the Americans having slightly the advantage ; in all the others but two, the victors combined superiority of force with superiority of skill. In these remarkable combats, where we were fighting men of our own blood with prestige, at the beginning of the war at least, all against us, much of our suc- cess was due to the superior make and armament of our ships. They had wisely been devised to be each a little better than other ships of its class. This is a lesson which, as will be seen, is not lost on the present administration. (1888). 530 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. Hull, Decatur, McDonough, Perry, Bainbridge, Law- rence, Porter and other gallant officers, and the com- mon sailors as well, achieved for themselves and the American Navy, in that memorable war, a reputation which our people will always remember with pride and affection. The war of 1812 practically settled the question of the right of search. Though it was not mentioned in the treaty of peace, Great Britain has never since attempted to exercise it. The Last of the Troubles with the Barbary Powers. "You told us," said the Dey of Algiers to the resident British Consul, June 28th, 18 15, alluding to the boast with which England began the war of 18 12, "that the Americans would be swept from the seas in six months by your navy and now they make war upon us with some of our own vessels taken from you." There the Americans were, ruling at anchor in the Bay of Algiers, and in their fleet were the Guerriere and the Macedonian, captured from the British. The Guerriere was the Flagship of the fleet and the Com- modore commanding was that same Stephen F. De- catur who, as a Lieutenant-Commandant, had so greatly distinguished himself by the capture and destruction of the Philadelphia in the harbor of Tripoli in 1804. The Dey, thinking he could do so with impunity, like the Dey of Morocco and the Bashaw of Tripoli, had taken advantage of the war of 1812 to prey again on American commerce. He was now greatly astonished THE NAVY. 531 to find an American fleet had survived that war and was at his doors demanding reparation. Its Commander had already slain his favorite Admiral in battle, cap- tured that Admiral's Flagship, the Mashouda, and now insisted that he, the redoubtable Dey, should repair in person on board the Guerriere to negotiate a treaty. The conditions were very humiliating but the Dey felt bound to comply and he released the captives he had taken and signed a treaty by which he stipulated to accord to America the rights which one civilized nation demands of another. Decatur next compelled the Dey of Tunis to sign a similar treaty and pay $40,000 indemnity ; and then the Bashaw of Tripoli to pay $25,000 for his mis- conduct as well as bind himself for the future by a solemn treaty. All this was accomplished within seventy days after Decatur had sailed from New York and before a similar squadron, under Commodore Bainbridge, had reached the Mediterranean. America was reaping the first fruits of the prestige the Navy had won in the war of 18 12. It was not many years after the war 18 12 when the heart of the country was saddened by the death of two of its favorite heroes. Commodore Perry died, at the early age of 34, of Yellow Fever in the waters of South America, August 23, 18 19 ; and Commodore Decatur fell in a duel, at the hands of Commodore Barron, at Bladensburg, near Washington, March 22d, 532 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. 1820. It illustrates how common the practice of duelling formerly was in our navy, when we find that in Cooper's list of Naval officers retained when the navy was re-organized in 1 801, only nine are set down as having lost their lives in battle during the war with Tripoli and Great Britain, while as many as five were killed in duels. Our Ships built and Naval Policy formulated by Democrats. The close of the war of 18 12 left the Democratic, or Republican party as it was then called, in full power in the Government and so it continued for many years. This party had now so little opposition that Monroe's eight years administration, which began March 4, 1 817, is known as the era of good feeling. When the war of 18 12 had fairly closed and Demo- cratic statesmen had opportunity for deliberation, they soon formulated and passed an act, April 20th, 18 16, appropriating $1,000,000 per annum for eight years to the increase of the navy. This was approved by President Madison. Five years afterwards, March 3d, 182 1, the expenditure of the three millions of this sum not yet paid out was ex- tended over a period of six years, at the rate of $500,000 per annum. This appropriation, in 1 8 16, of $1,000,000 pel annum for wooden ships and cast iron guns, while our popu- lation was about 8,500,000, seems to be a very great sum when we remember how economical our fathers THE NAVY. 533 were. But they were great statesmen. Recognizing the necessity of a navy they economized elsewhere. They built up the navy, paid off the war debt, and at the same time retrenched expenditures until, in 1823, the whole expense of the government amounted to only $15,314,171.00. Under the acts of 18 16 and 1821 were built the five 74's — Columbus, Ohio, North Carolina and Vermont ; the four 44's — Potomac, Savannah, Raritan, Santee ; the Fulton, 9 ; the Pennsylvania, 120 ; and the six 44^ — Brandywine, Sabine, Columbia, Cumberland, St. Law- rence and Congress. Various acts for the increase of the navy were passed in 1822, 1825, 1826, 183 1, 1834, 1836, 1837, 1839, 1840, but the next great increase was made by the act of March 3rd, 1841 appropriating $2,000,000 for purchasing or building steam vessels. This also was signed by a Democratic .President, Martin Van Buren. Under this act, supplemented, however, by $2,000,000 more appropriated by act of August 4th, 1842, signed this time by Tyler, were built the seven 12-gun sloops, Saratoga, Portsmouth, Plymouth, St. Mary's, Jamestown, Albany and German- town ; the five 10-gun brigs, Bainbridge, Somers, Truxton, Perry, and Lawrence; the Michigan and Massachusetts. The next important act was passed March 3d, 1847. It was approved by that typical Democrat, James K. Polk, who, in his message, De- cember 2, 1846, had formulated the then Democratic theory of the navy, thus : 534 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. "It has never been our policy to maintain large standing armies in time of peace. They are contrary to the genius of our free institutions, would impose heavy burdens on the people, and be dangerous to public liberty. Our reliance for protection and defense on the land must be mainly on our citizen-soldiers, who will be ever ready, as they have ever been ready in times past, to rush with alacrity at the call of their country to her defense. This description of force, however, can not defend our coasts, harbors, and inland seas, nor protect our commerce on the ocean or the lakes. These must be protected by our navy. Considering an increased naval force, and especially of steam vessels, corresponding with our growth and importance as a nation, and proportioned to the increased and increasing naval power of other nations, of vast importance as regards our safety and the great and growing interests to be protected by it, I recommend the subject to the favorable consideration of Congress.' Under this act of 1847 were built the four first- class steamships, Susquehanna, Powhatan, Saranac and San Jacinto. The Brooklyn, Lancaster, Hartford, Pen- sacola and Richmond were built under the act of March 3rd, 1857, signed by Pierce, who had, on the 6th of April, 1854, also signed the act under which were constructed the celebrated six frigates, the Mer- rimac, Minnesota, Wabash, Roanoke, Colorado, and Niagara. These vessels were unsurpassed in the world and were, until iron ships came in, the pride of our navy. Thus it will be seen that, in the period preceding our civil war, it was the Democratic party that had built most of our ships. It was the same party that had used them to carry out its vigorous foreign policy. A Democratic Congress declared the war of 18 12 and the war with Mexico; and in the latter war the navy not only aided in the bombardment of Vera Cruz, and in the other opera- THE NAVY. 535 tions on the eastern shores of the enemy's country, but, under Commodores Sloat, Stockton and Shubrick, aided by Lieutenant-Colonel Fremont and General Kearney, made a complete conquest of all that portion of Mexican territory which now comprises the State of California and held it till ceded to the United States by the Treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo. The forces under Fremont and Kearney, though efficient, were few in numbers and the credit of the conquest is chiefly due to the navy. A Democratic President, Franklin Pierce, adopted and defended the act of Lieutenant Commander Ingraham, who, in the port of Smyrna, in 1853, cleared for action the Americen ship, St. Louis, and, in the presence of an Austrian marine force twice his own, compelled the Austrian Commander to surrender Martin Koszta. Koszta had been a subject of Austria, a political offender, and had escaped to America, where he had renounced his former allegiance and taken the oath of allegiance to the United States. In Smyrna, a Turkish port, he had been kidnapped and carried on board an Austrian vessel that lay in the Harbor. A long correspondence between the authorities of Austria and the United States followed. Austria finally acquiesced, and thus the doctrine was firmly established, that one who has taken the first step to become a citizen of the United States is entitled to the protec- tion of the flag. 536 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. The Civil War. Our civil war was, in many respects, the most re- markable conflict in the history of the world. When it began, the progress we had made in the arts of peace had been so wonderful and our increase in wealth so rapid, that other people were disposed to look upon us simply as a nation of " dollar hunters." We were somewhat inclined to regard ourselves in that same light, and so the results which followed astounded, not only the rest of the world, but the American people as well. The armies put in the field outnumbered any since the days of Xerxes, and history now regards their numbers as fabulous ; the carnage in battle was greater than in any war of which we have trustworthy accounts ; and the courage and persistence displayed on both the Union and Confederate sides has never been surpassed. The great numbers of those engaged on land and the magnitude of the battles they fought, have here- tofore so riveted attention, that the American public is not even now fully aware of the splendor and im- portance of the naval operations during the memorable period from 1861 to 1865. It is true that the Confederates were almost entirely without naval resources, but the task set for the Union was nevertheless a great one. The Mississippi river was to be opened so as to cut the Confederacy in two. Its mouth was closed by forts deemed by the best engineers of that day as amply sufficient to THE NAVY. 537 protect it. Batteries at Vicksburg, Port Hudson, Island No. 10 and other places closed it above ; a coast, 5,000 miles in extent, was to be blockaded so as to starve the Confederacy by shutting" it off from the outside world — its principal posts were defended by forts leisurely erected after most careful calculation in time of peace ; and it was a well recognized prin- ciple of international law that " Blockade, to be bind- ing must be effective — that is to say maintained by a force really sufficient to prevent access to the coast by the enemy." Not only the Confederacy, but all Europe was deeply interested in this question. Inside the lines of the proposed blockade was to be found in abundance the cotton, for want of which operatives in England and France were at starvation point. The Confederacy hoped, that driven by the necessities of the situation, these two nations at least would be com- pelled to recognize its independence and possibly even to render material assistance. The French and English governments did, in fact, both seem to earnestly desire the permanent disruption of the American Union. These great powers were jealously to insist on the strictest application of the law the navy was called on to enforce. Great as this task was, it was accomplished ; not all at once, for the government was not prepared for such a Herculean enterprise, but when the conditions are all considered and the courage and ingenuity of the Con- federates are taken into account, the eventual achiev- 538 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. ment of this mighty undertaking reflects unbounded credit on the brave officers and men of the navy. There were never in the Naval Service at any one time more than 51,500 men and 7,000 officers and this was at the close of the war. The number of officers and men in the armies of the United States during the war amounted altogether to 2,700,000, and the report of the Provost-Marshal- General shows that, when hostilities ceased, there were 1,000,516 soldiers actually under arms. When we con- sider the results achieved, the value to the Union of what the navy accomplished was out of all proportion to this difference between the numbers engaged in the two branches of the service. Leaving out of the com- putation entirely, every thing else the navy did, the damage to the Confederacy resulting from the Blockade and the loss of the Mississippi was simply incalculable. Not only was the task set before the Navy a great one, but there were many 'difficulties in the way of its accomplishment. The war upon the water could not be properly conducted without effective administration at the Navy Department. Admiral Porter says with great force in his " Naval History of the Civil War:" "When the war broke out it was very apparent that the organization of the Navy Department was very defective and that the system of Bureaux, which worked fairly well in time of peace, did not work at all in time of war. It was like a balky team ; it THE NAVY. 539 required a professional hand to guide the several Bureaux, which seemed to be trying to run their Departments, each without regard to the other, with no unanimity of opinion." Fortunately for the cause of the Union, Mr. Gusta- vus V. Fox, who had extended experience both as a naval officer and as a business man, was made assist- ant Secretary of the Navy. He was admirably, calcu- lated to deal with these rival claimants to power in the Bureaux, for he was a man of iron will and great executive capacity. There were in active service in May, 1861, 973 officers and the complement of men was 7,600. The officers who had taken sides with the South and had resigned or been dismissed, were 322. In 1 86 1 there was no law, providing for the retire- ment of officers at a given age. Consequently most of the officers of high rank were superannuated. But when the war had begun in earnest, way was soon made for the promotion of younger officers and the vast increase in the Navy resulted in giving important commands to many young officers, who had been trained at the Naval Academy. This school was founded in 1846, fourteen years before the commence- ment of the war. The aptness and efficiency, and "esprit du corps" of the young men who had received their training there, are believed to have amply vindi- cated the wisdom of those who founded the Naval Academy ; the credit of which is chiefly due to Hon. Geo. Bancroft, then Secretary of the Navy. 32 540 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. The materiel of the Navy at the beginning- of the war consisted of ninety vessels. Of these, sixteen sailing vessels and twenty-six steamers were in com- mission. Besides these there were eighteen sailing vessels and nine steamers not in commission, but serviceable and put into commission as soon afterwards as possible. There were also twenty-one ships classi- fied as unserviceable. Immediately upon the beginning of hostilities, the Government began to buy, build and have built, vessels adapted as well as might be to the exigencies of the occasion, and by the close of the war there had been brought into the service 790 vessels. On the other hand Professor Soley in his admir- able book, " The Blockade and the Cruisers," says: " Great as was the task before the United States Government, in preparing for a Naval War, it was as nothing to that of the enemy. The latter had at its disposal, a small number of trained officers imbued with the same ideas, and brought up in the same school, as their opponents, Some of these like Bu- chanan, Semmes, Brown, Maffit, and Brooke, were men of extraordinary professional qualities : but except in its officers, the Confederate Government had nothing in the shape of a Navy. It had not a single ship of war. It had no abundant fleet of merchant ves- sels in its ports from which to draw reserves. It had no seamen, for its people were not given to seafaring pursuits. Its only shipyards were Norfolk, and Pensacola. THE NAVY. 541 Norfolk with its immense supplies of ordnance and equipments was indeed invaluable ; but though the three hundred new Dahlgren guns captured in the yard were a permanent acquisition, the yard itself was lost when the war was one fourth over. The South was without any large force of skilled mechanics, and such as it had were early summoned to the army. There were only three rolling mills in the country, two of which were in Tennessee ; and the third, at- Atlanta, was unfitted for navy work. There were hardly any machine shops that were prepared to sup- ply the best kind of workmanship ; and in the begin- ing the only foundry capable of casting heavy guns was the Tredegar Iron Works, which under the direct- ion of Commander Brooke, was employed to its full capacity; worst of all there were no raw materials, except the timber that was standing in the forests. The cost of iron was enormous, and towards the end of the war it was hardly to be had at any price. Under these circumstances, no general plan of naval policy on a large scale could be carried out ; and the conflict on the Southern side, became a spec- ies of partisan, desultory welfare." The true American has always been iond of the sea. He seems to have inherited from his ancestors, who braved the dangers of the ocean to find homes on an unknown continent, the spirit of the sailor, and almost every page of his history, illustrates it. Free institutions, the benefit of which he has always enjoyed, 542 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. and the vast opportunities for development afforded in this roomy Western Continent, seem also to have made him unusually self-reliant and to have wonder- fully stimulated his inventive faculties. Hence it is, that the developments that were to result from four years conflict between Americans, were so remarkable, that it may be said that out of the struggle, the art, had' grown to be the science, of naval warfare. Steam had begun to supersede sail-power ; it was demonstrated that men-of-war propelled only by sail- power, were no longer to be used. The use of rifled guns was only fairly beginning : it was proven that the days of smooth bore guns, both great and small, were gone. Experiments had been made with iron as a material for the hull, and as a protection to the sides, of vessels ; it was demonstrated that the future war vessels were to be made of iron or steel ; and torpedoes were used so successfully, especially by the Confederates, that all the world has since re- garded them as a necessary part of a properly equipped navy. The limits of a paper like this forbid any effort even to enumerate,, much less to describe, the exploits of the United States Navy during the memorable four years war. The purpose is simply to give some idea of the nature and importance of its services. Iron clad and unclad gun-boats and transports were not only on the Mississippi and the Tennessee and Qhi"% but went everywhere a gun-boat could go. The THE NAVY. 543 blockade stretched like a cordon around the coasts of the Confederacy, rendering ingress or egress, exceedingly difficult. Eleven hundred and forty nine prizes were brought in and 365 vessels were burnt or otherwise destroyed, making a total of 1504. Of all the thirteen Confederate cruisers that had been sq adroitly managed and . had done so much damage to American commerce, one only was left to haul down its flag and quit the high seas, when the Confederacy had expired. The rest had been captured or sunk. The Confederacy on their side, showed the same genius for naval warfare as their brethren. The ex- ploits of the Merrimac, the Albemarle, the Manassas, and the Tennessee, the rapid development of great gun manufacturing and of torpedoes, were quite as remarkable as the cruises of the Alabama. Professor Soley, after glancing briefly at the achiev- ments of the Confederates, says, " Viewed in the light of difficulties to be met by the Confederate Navy, they were little less than phenomenal." Having pointed out the results achieved, we may glance, briefly at two or three of the most dramatic incidents of the war, which will serve as an illustra- tion of the spirit with which it was carried on. On Saturday, March 8th, 1862, the Congress, 50, and the Cumberland, 24, were lying in Hampton Roads, off Newport News and a little after one o'clock was seen coming the Merrimac. This was one of the 544 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. famous six screw frigates, once the pride of the American Navy. She had been scuttled and sunk by the Federals at Norfolk but raised and armored by the Coufederates. She now ran into and sank the Con- gress, with her armed prow acting as a ram. The gallant crew of the sinking vessel continued the fight till she went down under the water. The Commander of the Cumberland, seeing the fate of the Congress, ran her ashore. The Merrimac anchored one hundred and fifty yards aft and destroyed her at pleasure. Other United States vessels were hard by. The Min- nesota, aground, was engaged at long range, but the Marrimac was of such deep draft, that she could not get close to her. The Roanoke and others declined the useless combat. The Merrimac went back to Nor- folk her prow having been dislocated in her conflict with the Congress and the news went North carrying with it the greatest consternation. The Confederates had built a ship more terrible than any that had ever, up to that time, gone into battle. The shots from the great guns of the Congress and Cumberland had glanced from her sides like pebbles. Preparations even were made to sink ships in the channel at Sandy Hook to save New York from the dread- ful monster, for who could tell that anything could stop her? But inventive genius was on the Union side too. Even while the Merrimac was engaged in its work of destruction the little Monitor was coming around the Capes, and on the next morning was ready for the THE NAVY. 545 combat. There had been a race between the Federals and Confederates as to which should be first completed and the Confederates had been one day ahead. Now the two vessels, each the product of American genius and skill, were to meet. They differed in construction, but both were iron- clad, and presently in the waters of Hampdon Roads was fought a battle, the noise of which resounded even across the Atlantic and revolutionized at once the navies of the world. The combat lasted four hours and then the vessels separated, the Merrimac return- ing to Morfolk and the Monitor towards Fortress Monroe. Both sides claimed victory. The Merrimac as evidence of her claim instances that she returned next day to the Roads and was ready to renew the combat. But the fruits of victory were with the Monitor. The Merrimac had gone out to complete her work of destruction and was stopped. Her career was ended. Shortly afterwards, when the Confederates abandoned Norfolk, she was destroyed. The gallantry of officers and men on both sides fully sustained the dramatic effect of this remarkable combat. Lieutenant Worden, commanding the Monitor, while looking through a slit, of the pilot house wall was powder burnt and stun- ned by the bursting of a shell and he has never fully recovered from the effects. He and his crew were thanked by Congress and the country has ever since held them in grateful remembrance. In 1886 546 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. t this gallant officer had become a rear-admiral and he was then, at his own request, retired with the full pay of his grade. The Democrats do not, generally favor promotion or increase of pay on the retired list. They believe the privileges of the law providing for retirement have been much abused, but, so universal was their admir- ation of Lieutenant Worden's gallantry, that no voice was raised againt this second and last honor conferred upon him by Congress. > David G. Farragut was born for a sea-king and he came early to look upon his heritage. At nine years old he was appointed midshipman and at eleven he was in active service, taking part in some of the stirring" adventures of the war of 1 8 12. His gallant fight with, and passage, and capture of Forts Jackson and St. Philip on the Mississippi, in April, 1862, deserve to rank among the great naval battles of the world. His riding to victory over the torpedoes in Mobile Bay was also a memorable exploit, and connected with it was an instance of chivalric generosity worthy of the pages of romance. The Tecumseh, an iron-clad, was sunk by a Confederate torpedo. In the conning tower at the time were Captain A. T. Craven and the pilot. The vessel settled so rapidly after the explosion of the torpedo that only one of them could be saved. They both started for the door which was the only mode of escape. As Captain Craven saw that they were THE NAVY. 547 about to reach it at the same time, he stopped and said, "After you, .pilot." The pilot was saved, the gallant Captain went down with the Tecumseh. The Hartford, the Flagship of Admiral Farragut stands out in the History of our Civil War like the Constitution in the war of 1812. The latter we still have, she is now receiving ship at Portsmouth, pre- served and handed down with patriotic care to the present generation. The Hartford is at present mueh decayed, but during the present session of Congress, Mr. Whitthorne, a Southern Democrat, reported a bill, unanimously recommended by the House Committee on Naval affairs, making a special appropriation to repair and preserve her as a memorial of the past. At this writing, September 7th, the bill has not passed the Senate. Space will permit the record of only one more in- cident of the war — a deed as brave as man ever per- # formed. The Albemarle, a Confederate iron-clad ram, after her brave battle, in April, with the United States flotilla at the mouth of the Roanoke river, lay quietly at the Plymouth wharf for five months protecting the town against an attack by water. Lieutenant dishing, of the United States Navy conceived a plan to destroy her. One dark October night, with a crew of only fifteen officers and men, his little boat, armed with and trusting mainly to a spar torpedo had quietly passed the Confederate picket boat and approached so near to the Albemarle that Cushing saw there was a 54 8 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. defensive outwork of logs floating some thirty feet off from her. Just at this moment he was discovered by the guard on the iron-clad. The alarm rattle was sounded and the crew flew to their guns. Cushing saw he was too close and his boat had too little momentum to enable him to ride over the logs, so he hurriedly backed, and then amid a storm of shot and shell ran the bow of his boat far over the logs, close to the Albemarle, lowered his spar, placed the torpedo coolly under the Albemarle and exploded it. Cushing's companions were all killed, captured or drowned — he alone escaped. He swam the river, hid himself in a swamp, and twenty-four hours after- wards told his tale to the wondering officers of the federal fleet. Since i S66. At the close of the Civil War our Navy was so pow- erful that, in the opinion of Admiral Porter, we were able to meet at sea either France or England. But in May, 1876, this same distinguished officer said: "Our Navy taken as a whole is worth nothing, and the sooner the country understands that fact the better." This wonderful decline did not result from any want of money. The ex- penditures on the Navy for the twelve months ending June 30, 1866, were $43,285,662. It is fair to say, how- ever, that at least one year was necessary to bring the establishment down to a peace footing; but the cost of the Navy for the ten years beginning July I, 1866, and ending July 1, 1876, may be fairly regarded as expendi- tures in time of peace, and they amounted to $234,191,- 1 19.10. During all this time the Republican party was THE NAVY. 549 solely responsible for the government, because it was in possession of both branches of Congress and, indeed, of every department. Now during this decade, ■ 1866-76, the Navies of Europe, profiting by the lessons taught by our experience, had wonderfully developed both in ships and their armament. How it was that our Navy had in the mean- time not only failed to improve but absolutely retrograded, will be seen by referring to the appendix to this article. In 1874 a Democratic House of Representatives was chosen. The Congress then elected convened on the first Monday of December, 1875, and the first appropriation bill passed by that body was for the fiscal year beginning July I, 1876, and ending June 30, 1877. The difference between the expenditures for the Navy during that fiscal year and the year preceding was $4,904,274.46. The Democratic party has been in power and conse- quently partly responsible for the appropriations for every year except two from July 1, 1876, down to the present. A comparison of the expenditures of the Navy for the decade from July 1, 1 876, to July 1, 1886, with the previous decade shows a difference in favor of the later decade, dur- ing which the Democratic party had influence, of £80,880,- 286.95. There was some difference between the amounts paid during these two decades to the personnel of the Navy, resulting from the fact that the number of men and officers was somewhat reduced by the act of August, 1882. Making due allowance for this, the difference be- tween the expenditures in the two decades was $72,238,- 267.77. This sum, saved in ten years, is enough to build and equip a modern navy. 55o THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. In 1884 a Democratic administration was elected and came into power March 4, 1885. Soon after President Cleveland was inaugurated, the Secretary of the Navy turned his attention to the reorganization of the Navy De- partment, which, as we have seen, the Admiral of the Navy so severely criticised in his " Naval History of the Civil War." The same distinguished officer, in his report for 1886 made to Secretary Whitney, said: "I think the opinion is general throughout the service that until the department is reorganized we can have no system, maintain no proper discipline, and build no effective ships. .... The reorganization must take place sooner or later, and whoever achieves so great a victory will deserve the thanks of the country." Secretary Chandler, the last incumbent of the office preceding Secretary Whitney, had, in nis re- port for 1884, also recommended a reorganization. A bill was prepared and introduced at the first session of the Forty-ninth Congress, which, it is believed, met not only the views expressed by Admiral Porter, but also those advocated by Secretary Chandler in his report. The House' Committee on Naval Affairs, after giving it a thorough consideration, reported it favorably. Two of the Repub- lican members of the committee, Messrs. Thomas, of Il- linois, and Buck, of Connecticut, gentlemen of extensive information and high character, joined in the favorable re- port and supported the bill. It is always difficult to re- form laws that are of long standing ; especially is this so when it becomes necessary to abolish offices filled, as they were in this case, by eminent and deserving men. If the Democratic majority had been able to achieve " so great a THE NAVY. 551 victory" as to pass their bill they would, in the language of Admiral Porter, certainly have deserved " the thanks of the country ; " but the Republicans in the House resorted to parliamentary tactics which enabled them to defeat its passage. So the reform was not effected, and the eight rival bureaus of the Navy Department still exist. When Secretary Whitney was sworn into office our old wooden navy was rapidly passing away. In addition to the Powhatan, Tennessee, Shenandoah, Wachusett, and Lackawanna, which since then have been put permanently out of commission, the table on the following page shows the serviceable wooden vessels of which our navy then consisted. This table shows that, unless the Hartford be spe- cially repaired, regardless of expense, there will remain, six years hence, only four of these vessels; and that, in nine years, the last of the navy that once carried our flag so proudly around the world will have passed away forever. In addition to these wooden vessels Secretary Whitney found on hand a- number of old single-turretted monitors, then lying up in ordinary, and not since considered worth repairing; also five double-turretted monitors — the Puri- tan, Amphithrite, Miantonomah, Terror, and Monadnock. These latter vessels had been begun and partially constructed from 1873 to 1875, without any authority of law. Vast sums of money had been expended upon them, and some of them were far on the way to comple- tion, but none of them were yet armored save the Mian- tonomah, and that only partially. It became a very serious question what the department should do with these 552 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. ships : they were antiquated in style, not first-class in workmanship, and, if finished as designed, would be slow. Table Showing Wooden Ships of Old Navy; when Built, Probable Length of Service, etc. [From Bureau of Construction and Repair.] Name of Vessel. Trenton Lancaster . . . Brooklyn . . . Pensacola ... Hartford Richmond... . Omaha Vandalia . . . Juniata Ossipee Quinnebaug . Swatara Galena Marion Mohican. . . . Iroquois Kearsarge. . . Adams Alliance Essex Enterprise. . . Nipsic Tallapoosa . . Yantic Despatch . . . Thetis 1873-77 1858 1858 1858-62 1858 1858 1867-69 1872-76 1862 1861 1871-77 1872 1871-78 I87I-75 1872-83 1858 1861 1874-76 1873-7611,375 i874-76!i,375 3.9°° 3*250 3,000 3,000 2,900 2,700 2,400 2,100 1,900 1,900 1,900 1,900 1,900 1,900 1,900 1,575 i*55° 1,375 'Ex— -^ a -1 . r O O 4> $1 1873-76 1873-79 1874 1864 I874 (J) 1,375 i,375 1,270 900 560 451,592.37 670,081.00 417,921.00 773-573-02 502,650.00 556,259.00 892,178.84 899,33744 364,820.00 407,064.20 720,113.69 605,648.65 841,730.12 742,31941 409,895.12 307,155.00 286,918.00 500,879 98 6i3,533-45 539,384.31 553,266.86 516,038.61 306,669.15 232,757.15 106,222.84 o + • II $372.20 266.14 I39-30 25785 138.84 20972 37I.07 428.25 I92.0I 214.24 I39.OO 318.76 443- 01 390.69 215-73 195.01 184.84 364.27 446.20 392.26 402.37 374-57 241.49 258.61 295.06 £■£• o p o "3 "3 < $615,477.29 770,857.94 1,732,517.78 2,048,222.28 1,597,600.21 i,554,48o.8i 678,595-56 421,292.01 1,184,697.45 1,510,991.10 113,228.29 514,687.13 158,316.60 303,886.27 71,601.50 1,114,967.31 1,082,672.68 329,031.37 279,446.05 301,453.98 307,218.81 I79,394.56 303,44977 623,426 40 239,850.64 o -2 g ftp. * o $157.81 231.03 577-55 682.74 550.68 575-73 282.76 200.61 623.52 794-73 59-59 270 83-32 159.94 37-68 707 697.85 240.02 203.24 219.24 223.44 13047 238.97 692.69 428.30 Y'rs. 6 3 6 6 *9 5 6 9 3 5 ( y 4 4 9 6 6 5 5 5 5 4 5 2 1 9 * If repaired. f Six months. J Purchased from England. Secretary Whitney, on full consideration, decided that, if clad with modern armor, they would make good coast de- fence vessels. He would never have approved the building THE NAVY. 553 now of such vessels, but he came to the conclusion that it was better to complete than to sell them for old iron. So, at his suggestion, Congress authorized them to be armored. This administration also found three cruisers — the Atlanta, 3,189 tons displacement, the Boston, 3,189, and the Chicago, 4,500, and the Dolphin, a dis- patch-boat of 1,485 tons displacement, all well on the way towards completion, and they are all now practically finished. The Chicago has made, on her speed trial, 14 knots per hour, the Boston 14 knots, the Atlanta 16.33, an d the Dolphin 15.5. Speed is a very impor- tant requisite of a man-of-war. The old Constitution, so celebrated in the war of 18 1 2, made, as her log-book shows, in 1809, 13^ knots in an hour. One of her most celebrated feats was an escape she made during the war of 1812 when hotly chased by five British vessels. If a cruiser is intended to act as a commerce destroyer, as the Argus did in 18 13, when the instructions of our Navy Department to her were to " destroy all you cap- ture, unless in some extraordinary cases that clearly warrant an exception," or as the Alabama and Florida did during our civil war, then speed is absolutely neces- sary. A modern vessel that is not fast enough to run away from an armored cruiser or to catch a merchant vessel would be of little value except as a part of a great fleet. No prudent naval commander would now send out upon the high seas unaccompanied a slow unarmored cruiser. So this administration when it began to rebuild our navy determined to have all its vessels the very fleet- est of their class, as far as this could be done without 554 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. the sacrifice of other necessary requisites. To have speed great power is requisite; to have endurance a large supply of coal is necessary ; and to accommodate crew and arma- ment both space and tonnage are essential. A vessel in which either of these essentials is unduly sacrificed is, to that extent, unfitted for a cruiser. So it is that a small vessel cannot have great speed unless armament and en- durance is sacrificed. Secretary Whitney, giving great importance to speed, and endeavoring, as far as possible, to secure it without the sacrifice of other necessary qual- ities, has offered to the builders of the ships he has laid down a premium for an increase of, and exacted a penalty for failure to reach the speed or horse-power indicated in the several contracts he has made. He has already laid down five unarmored cruisers which are expected to be very fast. The Newark, 4,083 tons dis- placement, is to have 18 knots speed; the Charleston, 3,730, 18 knots; the Baltimore, 4,413, 19 knots; the Phila- delphia, 4,324, 19 knots; the San Francisco, 4,083, 19 knots. The bill which has just passed Congress provides for seven new vessels : one, an armored cruiser, 7,500, which is expected to reach 19 knots; three unarmored cruisers of 2,000 tons each are expected to make 18 knots; two, of 3,000 tons each, are to be guaranteed to make 19 knots, and one of 5,300 tons to be guaranteed to make 20 knots. Thus, when these vessels last authorized shall have been put under contract, this administration will have begun twelve fast cruisers, the slowest of which is to make 18 knots and over. It is believed that all, or nearly THE NAVY. 555 all, these fast cruisers will attain greater speed than is above indicated. Besides these, Secretary Whitney has contracted for the construction of four gun-boats, the Concord, Bennington, and Yorktown, of 1,700 tons, each expected to make at least 16 knots, and the Petrel, 1,830, to make 13 knots. He has begun also at Norfolk an armored battle-ship, the Texas, 6,300 tons, expected to make 17 knots, and at Brooklyn Navy Yard an armored cruiser, 6,648, to make 17 knots an hour. Plans are also being perfected for an armored coast-defence vessel of the monitor type. Besides these the Vesuvius, 725 tons displacement and to carry three pneumatic guns throwing dynamite shells, is soon to be completed. This vessel is guaranteed to make 20 knots an hour. A small torpedo boat, the Stiletto, has been bought, and another torpedo boat, 100 tons displacement, is building. The contractor guarantees 22 knots an hour. So that, counting the five double-turretted monitors, this administration will have provided for nine armored ves- sels, four gun-boats, eleven fast unarmored cruisers, one dynamite cruiser, and two torpedo boats, besides finishing the Roach cruisers. We shall therefore have, when these vessels are completed, a fleet of twenty-nine modern ves- sels, exclusive of torpedo boats. It has never been thought necessary by the statesmen of the past that America should maintain a navy equal in size to the fleets of European nations. We have no rival on this continent and are fortunately free from entangling alliances abroad; but it has always been deemed wise that we should have a navy respectable in size, that our ships 33 556 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. should be equal to any in the world, and that we should have the ability to increase that navy to any extent that might be required. By a law passed in 1887 all the material for the ships now being built or contemplated is to be American, and the armament is likewise to be man- ufactured in this country. Large sized modern guns are difficult to make and are expensive. When this administration came in there were no works in this country prepared to forge heavy modern armor or steel guns larger than eight inches. At the last session of the Forty-ninth Congress, the House Committee on Naval Affairs reported, and the Congress passed, a bill containing large appropriations for the purchase of gun steel, armor and armor-plates. This was necessary in order to justify contractors in putting up the necessary plant. Secretary Whitney has now contracted with the Bethlehem Iron Company of Pennsylvania for a supply of gun-steel and armor at reasonable prices and to be of the very best possible quality. Modern ships are supplied not only with heavy but with small rapid-firing guns which comprise their "secondary batteries." Hotchkiss, an American, invented a gun which, in the opinion of experts, is equal to any rapid-firing gun in the world, and he has a factory near Paris, < France, from which he supplies many of the large fleets of the world with part of their armament. Secretary Whitney has in- duced him to establish a factory also in Connecticut. In his contract he agrees to supply guns to our Navy at smaller rates than he has heretofore been asking at his factory in Paris. So this administration can fairly claim THE NAVY. 557 that, during the three years that it has been in power, the American Navy has been placed on a footing which makes it absolutely independent of the world. Three of our navy yards — Brooklyn, Norfolk and San Francisco — have been provided for, the money appropriated, to put them in first-class condition to build or repair modern vessels. It is contemplated to provide, either, at Pensacola or elsewhere on the Gulf, as soon as a site can be determined upon, another first-class yard. Six, eight and ten-inch guns are now being assembled in the Wash- ington Navy Yard, and money has been provided for the erection of such a plant as will enable the government to build there the guns of fifteen and sixteen inches calibre. The ordinary current expenses of the Navy, leaving out public works, new plant for navy yards and sums to increase the Navy, have been brought to a point lower than ever before since our civil war began. The appro- priation law just passed carries for such current expenses only $12,678,225.45. Appropriations, by this Congress are particularly low for repairs — it is not considered true policy to expend much money in keeping longer afloat our old wooden vessels. The appropriations altogether for the incoming year, including public works, naval academy, maintenance, and increase of the Navy, amount to $19,- 943,225.45. In round numbers the expenses are to be less than $20,000,000. Twenty years ago, in 1868, the expendi- tures on the navy were $25,775,502.72. That was when the Navy was rapidly deteriorating. Our population was then say 38,000,000 — a tax of about 69 cents per capita upon the people of the United States. Thirty years ago, 553 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. in I S5 8, the expenditures on the Navy were $14,053,264.64, or about 46 cents per capita of the then population. In 1848, naval expenses were $9,408,476.02, or about 42 cents per capita of the population at that time, and in 1838 the expenditures were $6,131,583.53, amounting to about 38 cents per capita. Estimating this bill at $20,000,000 and our population at 60,000,000, the cost of building up a navy and of maintaining it is 33 cents per capita. We cannot fully comprehend the meaning of this comparison of 33 cents per capita for 1888 and 48 cents 30 years ago unless we bear in mind' that the modern ship and gun are both of steel and therefore far more costly than the old ship, that was made of wood, and the gun, that was composed of cast-iron. With our Navy upon the foot- ing it now is there seems to be no reason why we should, at any time hereafter, expend upon it more than $20,000,000 per annum. This will increase it rapidly enough. If so, we shall be building up the .Navy for about $3,500,000 per annum less than was expended during the decade from 1866 to 1876, when the Navy was so rapidly rotting. The average annual expenditure then was, as we have seen, $23,419,111.91. The appropriations of money for the Navy for four years, including that for the year ending June 30, 1889, have been as follows, including all expenses for new navy, etc. For 1886 #16,338,453-23 " 1887 17,414,154.62 " 1888 25,867,827.79 " 1889 19,943,225.45 Total #79,563,661.19 Average annual #19*890,915.29 THE NAVY. SUPPLEMENT. 559 (Extract from a speech delivered by the author in the National House of Repre- sentatives in September, 1888.) How much money have we spent, since the new era of iron-ship building began, on our Navy and what have we to show for it? I will not speak now of the expenditures during the spring of 1865 and the year and more that followed till July I, 1866. The fleets of the Union had wonderfully expanded during the war. There were, when hostilities ceased, over 50,000 officers and sailors in the naval service. But the time from April, 1865, to July, 1866, was or ought to have been enough to bring the Navy down to a peace footing. By the act of July 25, 1866, the number of officers and men and boys in the Navy was limited to 10,260. This limit was never changed till August 2, 1882. Even then it was not very greatly lowered. It was made 9,549, where it has since remained. I cite these laws to show that the vast difference between the expenditures of the two decades I am about to compare did not result, except to a very limited extent, from any difference in the amounts paid out to officers and sailors. To make this still more certain I present here a table showing the amounts paid to the persoiinel of the Navy each year during both decades. The average difference each year was $864,202 more for the first than for the second of these two decades. Amounts paid to personnel of the Navy. FIRST DECADE. July 1, 1866, to July 1, 1867 #9>° 2 3>39i-32 July 1, 1867, to July 1, 1868 8,962,635.74 560 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. July I, 1868, to July 1, 1869 1 $8,525,952.84 July 1, 1869, to July 1, 1870 7,854,330-53 July 1, 1870, to July 1, 1871 7>o93>73 2 -°7 July 1, 1871, to July 1, 1873,.... 7,213,13375 July 1, 1872, to July 1, 1873 7,o93,9 2 9-°° July 1, 1873, to Ny 1, 1874 7,549,855-94 July I, 1874, to July 1, 1875 7,248,996.83 July 1, 1875, to J ul y I, 1876 7,077,943.00 Total $77,643,901 .02 SECOND DECADE. July I, 1876, to July 1, 1877 $7,021,758.45 July 1, 1877, to July 1, 1878 7,215,082.36 July 1, 1878, to July 1, 1879 6,868,275.00 July 1, 1879, to July 1, 1880 6,351,892.21 July 1, 1880, to July 1, 1881 6,903,581.35 July 1, 1881, to July 1, 1882 , 6,771,135.24 July 1, 1882, to July 1, 1883 6,902,777.87 July 1, 1883, to July 1, 1884 6,765,523.67 July I, 1884, to July I, 1885 7,249,589.41 July 1, 1885, to July 1, 1886 6,952,264.28 Total $69,001,879.84 Difference in two decades $8,642,021 .18 Average annual difference $864,202.11 Now, bearing in mind this sum, which is to be deducted when we come to consider the net results of our com- parison, let us look at the DECADE FROM JULY I, 1 866, TO JULY I, 1 876. This was an era during which there was, so far as ex- penditures were concerned, but one party in the Union, or rather only one party that had power to make itself felt in the councils of the government. A Democratic House THE NAVY. 5 6l was elected in the fall of 1874, but it did not convene till December, 1875, and the first fiscal year for which it ap- propriated money began July 1, 1876, and ended June 30, 1877. Now, the yearly expenditures upon the Navy during this decade — from July I, 1866, to July 1, 1876 — when Re- publicans had full control of all expenditures, averaged, as shown by the table I have here, in round numbers, $23,- 419,000. Here it is : Statement of expenditures for the United States Navy from the fiscal year 1867 to the year 1 876, inclusive. July I, 1866, to June 30, 1867 $31,034,011.04 July 1, 1867. to June 30, 1868 25,775,502.72 July 1, 1868, to June 30, 1869 20,000,757.97 July I, 1869, to June 30, 1870 21,780,2219.87 July I, 1870, to June 30, 1871 19,431,027.21 July I, 1871, to June 30, 1872 21,249,809.99 July I, 1872, to June 30, 1873 23,526,256.79 July I, 1873, to June 30, 1874 30,932,587.42 July I, 1874, to June 30, 1S75 21,497,626.27 July I, 1875, t0 J une 3°> 1876 18,963,309.82 Total $234,191,119.10 Yearly average, $23,419,111.91. Admiral Porter, in his " Naval History of the Civil War," says, on page 828 : When the war ended the United States had attained a posi- tion, as a naval power, never before reached by the Republic, and could claim to be able to meet either France or England upon the ocean. In May, 1876, the same distinguished officer was exam- 562 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. ined before the Whitthorne committee, and he says (see page 7 of Report No. 704, first session, Forty-fourth Con- gress) : Our Navy, taken as a whole, is worth nothing, and the sooner the country understands that fact, the better. Commodore Nicholson, Commander Meade, and other officers testify to the same effect. Now, how was it pos- sible that, notwithstanding an expenditure in the mean time upon it of $234,000,000, our Navy could have been brought down in ten years from the proud position which Admiral Porter says it occupied when the war closed, to the pitiable plight in which he said it was when he tes- tified before the Whitthorne committee? To emphasize and make still more startling this question, Mr. Speaker, let me call your attention to another decade, the DECADE FROM JULY I, 1 876, TO JULY I, 1 886. This second decade of our naval history, after the close of our civil war, began with the advent of a Democratic House of Representatives at the session of 1875-76. The expenditures of the Navy for the fiscal year beginning July I, 1876, the first year for which a Democratic House appropriated, were $4,904,274.46, in round numbers $5,000,- OOO less than for the previous year. The House has been Democratic in every Congress, save one, since 1875, and the decade of expenditures which began with the advent of Democratic rule here shows a saving of largely over $80,000,000. Here are the figures, and they speak for themselves. The saving in ten years has been enough to build a great navy: 5^3 THE NAVY. Expenditures of the Navy from the year 1877 to the year 1886, inclusive. l8 77 #14,059,035.36 l8 7 8 1 7,365,361 .27 1879 15,125,126.84 1880 13,536,984.74 1881 15,686,671.66 1882 15,032,646.26 l88 3 15,283,437.17 1884 17,292,601.44 1885 16,021,079.67 i 88 6 13,907,887.74 Total $153,310,832.15 Yearly average $15,331,083.21 Total first decade, 1867 to 1876, inclusive $234,191^119.10 Total second decade, 1877 to 1886, inclusive 153,310,832.15 Difference $80,880,286.95 THE DIFFERENCE AND THE REASONS FOR IT. If we deduct from this sum of £80,880,286.95 the sum of £8,642,019.18, which is the difference between the amounts paid in the two decades to the personnel of the Navy, we have still left the vast sum of £72,238,267.77 as the difference between the two periods, or an average of £7,223,000 saved every year after the Democrats began to have power in the government; and if the administration of this government continues to be for ten years from the date when Grover Cleveland came in such as it has been so far we shall build a good navy for a far less sum devoted each year to its increase than a Democratic House 564 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. is fairly entitled to claim it actually saved to the country during the ten years ending with June, 1886. I do not propose to go back into the facts developed by the investigations by a Democratic House of Repre- sentatives twelve years ago. To substantiate my proposi- tion as to actual saving on the one hand and wasteful ex- travagance on the other, I .have cited the record made since that investigation, the contrast between the decades preceding and following that investigation, the figures show- ing the expenditures in the one and in the other, and I now need only to call attention, as samples of waste and extravagance, to a few of the legacies handed down from that first decade even to this day. These speak a lan- guage which cannot be misunderstood. One of the legacies to which this administration suc- ceeded is a lot of timber. We have on hand now, in our different navy-yards, live-oak timber that cost the people of this country $1,807,502.25. This is the table furnished at my request by the Bureau of Construction and Repair, showing the amounts of timber on hand in different navy- yards : LIVE-OAK. New York, 113,961 cubic feet, at $2 $227,922.00 Mare Island, 58,956 cubic feet, at $2 117,912.00 Portsmouth, 169,944 cubic feet, at $2 339,908.00 Boston, 425,045^ cubic feet, at $2 724,145.99 League»Island, 6,601 j4 cubic feet, at $2 4,227.05 Washington, 44,030^ cubic feet, at $2 78,430.62 Norfolk, 233,287 cubic feet, at. #2 '. 314,956.59 Total .• $1,807,502.25 THE NAVY. 565 Here is a table that shows when that timber was pur- chased : 1866-67 $168.00 1867-68 29.50 1868-69 1,534-75 1870-71 99,942.23 1871-72. . 264,982.58 1872-73 561,494.99 1873-74 464,624.75 1874-75 478,302.04 1875-76 514,943.84 1876-77 '. 322,677.64 Total $2,708,700.32 It was practically all bought at a time — from 1870 to 1877 — when all the world was passing rapidly away from wooden ships ; at a time when no expert, no man of even common intelligence, could for a moment have believed it was a prudent purchase ; and to-day it is absolutely worthless. It is impossible to sell it for any purpose. The manner in which money was wasted in the Bureau of Construction and Repair is further illustrated by the Sec- retary in his report for 1887. I read: THE TENNESSEE. Among the vessels dropped from the Nav^ Register and sold during the past year is the Tennessee. The account of the sale is stated elsewhere. The histoiy of this vessel is quite interesting and most illustrative. «She had a short life, but, as a consumer of money, a brilliant one. Her hull was built and she was equipped in the New York navy yard. Her machinery was designed and built under contract by the eminent engineer, Mr. John Ericsson, costing £700,000. Her total original cost C& THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. 500 was $1,856,075.81. Upon her trial trip, in January, 1867, she ran about 1,000 miles. She attained a speed of 16 knots, and made a run of 15 knots per hour for four hours. She encountered a perilous storm, described as a hurricane, which continued over twenty-four hours. The ship suffered con- siderably. The report of her commander says : " The engines moved off finely and worked perfectly during all the storm Her machinery is as perfect as it needs to be. It has undergone the severest test and not once found wanting. She is the fastest ship I have ever seen." The chief-engineer says : " If the strength and workmanship of the machinery cannot be depended upon then no reliance is to be placed upon the performance of any steam machinery with which I am ac- quainted." Two years afterwards she underwent what w r as called "repairs," and the sum of $576,799.61 was spent upon her; all but $73,000 of this was put on her hull and equipment. It was the full price of a new wooden hull of her size at that time. This was from 1869 to 187 1. She then made a cruise of three months, and went into the hands of Mr. John Roach to enable him to take out the machinery and boilers of John Ericsson and substitute others of superior character. It was among other things expected to give the ship a 14^-knot speed for twenty-four hours. When she had her trial of this new machinery in 1875 her maximum speed was ioj^ knots, and she had had put upon her an expense of $801,713.60 in addition to the value of her machinery and boilers taken in trade by Mr. Roach at $65,000. This machinery had cost $700,000; had not been in actual service six months ; had never been surveyed and condemned by a board of government officers, nor its value fixed by any government board, but it was sold to Mr. Roach as old iron. That is to say, between 1869 and 1875 the Tennessee had had three months' service, and had cost in repairs and im- provements $1,443,513.21. This was largely in excess of a fair price for a new ship of her characteristics. Twelve years afterwards (on April 4, 1887) she is con- demned by the Statutory Board as unseaworthy and not worth repairing, and ordered sold, having had put upon her between THE NAVY. 567 1875 and 1887 the additional sum of $577,716.17. She brought $34,525 at the auction sale. She had cost the gov- ernment $3,800,000 in round numbers, and had done about ten years of active service outside of repair shops and navy yards. Another specimen; look at a table I have here, and which I shall allude to further hereafter. It gives, among other things, the names of our present wooden vessels, the dates when they were built, and the cost per ton of dis- placement. The Alliance, a wooden vessel, was built from 1 873-1 876. She cost $446.20 per ton. The Enter- prise, a wooden vessel, was built from 1 873-1 876. She cost $402.37 per ton. The Yantic, a wooden vessel, was built in 1864. She is the only war-built vessel re- maining. She was built when, if ever, extravagance was excusable ; built at a time when currency was at a much greater discount than it was from 1873 to 1876; and yet her cost was only $258.61 per ton; not much more than half the cost of the Alliance and the Enterprise. The waste, the profligacy, was everywhere, in all the bureaus; and out of the debris left over in our navy yards and storehouses from that first decade, the figures for which I have cited, it has been possible to effect econo- mies even during the present administration. To illus- trate : The first bill appropriating money for the navy after this administration came in was passed during the first session of the Forty-ninth Congress. For the ordinary current expenditures of the navy for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1887, the appropriations $6% ' THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. in that bill were less by $493,136.42 than for the previous year. The amounts appropriated, however, were sufficient, for the deficiencies under the bill were less, as the results show, than $8,000, and more than that sum was turned back into the Treasury. In addition to the reductions in appropriations for that year the House Committee on Naval Affairs recommended and the Congress turned back into the Treasury moneys theretofore standing to the credit of the Bureau of Provisions and Clothing, and operating, because not needed, as a continuing temptation to extrava- gance, the sum of $250,000 from the clothing fund and $75,000 from the small-stores fund. How these results were accomplished will be partly shown by reading some extracts from what I said on this floor in explanation of the bill when it was before the House in May, 1886. Speaking of the extravagance of the Bureau of Provisions and Clothing, and alluding to frauds in connection with that bureau, which had been committed many years back, but the effects of which reached down to the present, I said: As far back as 1843 the present system was established by which the government furnishes to sailors their clothing, charging them cost price for it, and the fund which was appropriated originally for that purpose is turned over and over again and not paid back to the government. It is a con- tinuous appropriation. For a long time ten per cent, was added to the cost in order to cover waste and other expenses. Some ten or twelve years ago it was deemed this was unfair to the sailor, and the ten per cent, was omitted, and since that time only the cost price has been charged to the sailor. There is on hand now in money belonging to this bureau for clothing $562,000; of clothing goods in store, $437,000; on ship- board, $241,000, making in all $1,242,000 in money and in THE NAVY. 569 clothing. We ask ourselves the question, what is the use for all this ? It turns out that the average amount of expenditures for clothing the navy for a year is $276,000. So that here is a supply on hand of money and clothing for four years and a half. The last appropriation that was made was in 1 875. All the time since that date this — all that has not been wasted — has been on hand in that bureau. Now, what has been the consequence ? The answer is, waste and extravagance. There has been a loss on sales of condemned clothing in the last ten years of $272,000. And there has been a loss by the reduction in the price of clothing on hand which had to be reduced in order to adjust it to the prices ruling in a falling market, of $438,000. In other words, this Government has lost in this bureau from these two causes in ten years $710,000, and this does not account for the losses on clothing now on shipboard. And the losses do not stop here. We found, on investigation, that we had 6,069 pea-jackets on hand which originally cost about $15 apiece, the present price being $11.50. We have 6,217 monkey-jackets on hand valued now at $9.50 apiece. We called for a list of the different articles on hand and the sales of each during the last fiscal year, and found that the number of pea-jackets taken by the sailors in 1885 amounted to ninety-six. If these pea-jackets could last so long and not rot and the sales should continue at the rate of ninety-six per annum, the Chief of the Bureau of Clothing might go to sleep and sleep as long as Rip Van Winkle, yes, as long as old Epimenedes, his prototype, that is, fifty-seven years, and wake up and find, after his nap was finished, that he still had a year's supply of pea-jackets on hand. But the truth is that these pea-jackets have become so worthless that the sailors refuse to take them. When the Secretary orders, as he will, a sale to clear out the worthless goods on hand the Government will pocket another loss of more than $100,000. We have on hand five and one-half years' supply of monkey-jackets, four and one-half years' supply of blue cloth trousers, three and one-half years' supply of satinet, twelve years' supply of canvas duck, four and one- half years' supply of caps, twenty years' supply of mattress covers, twenty years' supply of boots. 570 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. Again I read, further on: We next come to the Bureau of Equipment and Recruiting. The business of this bureau, as its name implies, is to provide sails, anchors, chains, ropes, and everything that goes to equip a ship. When we look into this bureau we find some things which are very astonishing, but they are things for which the present distinguished chief of the bureau is in no sense re- sponsible. For instance, we find that there is on hand now in the Bureau of Equipment and Recruiting " canvas enough to fit out the whole British navy ; canvas enough to give two suits of sails and a foretopsail to the whole British navy." That is the expression of Commodore Schley. Altogether, accord- ing to the calculation which I have made upon his figures, we have enough to serve our present navy for thirteen years. . . . Then we find extravagance in other things. For instance, there are these spectacle-irons, used in rigging sails. We have on hand of these spectacle-irons or clews 75,099 pounds. It is estimated that these are worth $18,744. Upon the esti- mate of a thousand to a ton and sixty to two suits of sails we have enough on hand to last us for over fifty years. These were bought a long time ago, in 1871 and 1872. Mr. Speaker, it is well known that old and condemned property, property that has ceased to be valuable to the Government, brings very little at public sale. Now Secre- tary Whitney, in order to get rid of what was utterly val- ueless to the Government, has had a thorough overhauling of the navy-yards made, an inventory taken, and sales have followed. During the year ending June 30 last these sales realized $313,204.16. Here is the table. List of Condemned Property Sold by the Navy Department during the Year 1887-88. Old vessels #105,665.88 Condemned marine clothing 115.88 Condemned public property «■ . 3°8-37 Condemned miscellaneous articles 453- 1 1 THE NAVY. 57! Bureau of Yards and Docks $i>734-39 Bureau of Provisions and Clothing . . 20,558.94 Bureau of Construction and Repair 57.796-51 Bureau of Steam Engineering 33,492.83 Bureau of Medicine and Surgery 3 2 -33 Bureau of Navigation 1*584.53 Bureau of Equipment and Recruiting 32,365.95 Bureau of Ordnance 59»°95-44 Total $313,204.16 Now, sir, I have said enough on this point. There can be but one verdict from the public. First, that must be that the administration of naval affairs from 1866 to 1876 was absolutely indefensible. Secondly, that a Democratic House has, since 1875-76, saved to the country enough money to build a great navy. 34 CHAPTER XII. OUR FOREIGN RELATIONS. Hon. Perry Belmont, Chairman of the Committee on Foreign Affairs, National House of Representatives. THERE has always been, and should be, less partisan- ship in the treatment of our foreign relations than in the discussion of any other branch of the public service. Still, in looking back over the achievements of American diplomacy it will be found that the record of the Demo- cratic party is one with which the country has reason to be satisfied. The underlying principle of our diplomatic policy was proclaimed by Thomas Jefferson in his inaugural address in i the well-known declaration: " Peace, commerce and honest friendship with all nations, entangling alliances with none." This terse and epigrammatic statement was a condensa- tion of the policy laid down by Washington in his farewell address in which he said : "The great rule of conduct for us in regard to foreign nations is, in extending our commercial relations, to have with them as little political connection as possible. So far as we have already formed engagements, let them be ful- (572) ^• :::: '"'"•' '.""'■' TERRY BELMONT OUR FOREIGN RELATIONS. 575 filled with perfect good faith. Here let us stop. Europe has a set of primary interests which to us have none or a very remote relation. Hence she must be engaged in fre- quent controversies, the causes of which are essentially foreign to our concerns. Hence, therefore, it must be un- wise in us to implicate ourselves by artificial ties, in the ordinary vicissitudes of her politics, or the ordinary combi- nations and collisions of her friendship or enmities." These rules have largely governed our relations with foreign nations, and they have scarcely been departed from, except during a brief period — not under Democratic ad- ministration — when a contrary course was for a time pur- sued, with unfortunate results to the national interests. Un- der Democratic government the country has returned to the traditional American policy. In his seventh annual message, sent to 'Congress in 1823, President Monroe said : " In the wars of the European powers, in matters relat- ing to themselves, we have never taken any part nor does it comport with our policy so to do. It is only when our rights are invaded or seriously menaced that we resent in- juries or make preparation for our defence. With the movements in this hemisphere we are of necessity more im- mediately connected, and by causes which must be obvious to all enlightened and impartial observers. The political system of the allied powers is essentially different in this respect from that of America. This difference proceeds from that which exists in their respective governments. And to the defence of our own, which has been achieved by the loss of so much blood and treasure, and matured by the wisdom of their most enlightened citizens, and under which we have enjoyed unexampled felicity, this whole nation is devoted. We owe it, therefore, to candor, and to the amicable relations existing between the United States and those powers, to declare that we should consider any attempt on their part to extend their system to any portion $-6 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. of this hemisphere as dangerous to our peace and safety. With the existing colonies or dependencies of any European power we have not interfered, and shall not interfere. But with the governments who have declared their independ- ence and maintained it, and whose independence we have, on great consideration, and on just principles, acknowl- edged, we could not view any interposition for the purpose of oppressing them, or controlling in any other manner, their destiny by any European power, in any other light than as the manifestation of an unfriendly disposition toward the United States." These sentiments, popularly known as " the Monroe Doc- trine," have been several times affirmed by the govern- ment of the United States. The policy marked out by Washington and Jefferson, of non-interference in the internal affairs of other powers and of avoidance of political connection with foreign govern- ments, was not intended to apply only during the period when the United States was weak among civilized nations of the earth. In our strength, and on account of our strength, this policy is to-day, and always will be, a wise one, and Europeans often envy us our situation which makes it possible for us to observe such a principle. A strict adherence to this policy involves an active, popular interest in our foreign relations. In order to carry out the great principles of Washington, Jefferson and Monroe and keep ourselves clear of complications, the acts of our State department and of our diplomatic representatives abroad become of the greatest national and political consequence. This would seem almost a superfluous statement but for the fact that during our civil war, and the reconstruction period which followed, we have been so much occupied with our OUR FOREIGN RELATIONS. 577 own affairs that our relations with other nations have taken only a secondary place in public attention. Now such questions are resuming their proper importance in national affairs. One of the first diplomatic efforts of this government was to protect its commerce in the Mediterranean from the piratical tribute levied by the Barbary Powers. The Med- iterranean ports, before the War of Independence, supplied a market for nearly one-fifth of our exports. Jefferson, in his biography, says : ve the South, as of old, proud of her ample contributions to the honor, the glory and the prosperity of the country and with a patriotic desire to contribute in the future her full share of everything which will tend to make our whole country prosperous at home and respected abroad. Our friends at the North speak of the " New South " because of the recent wonderful development of the resources of that section, and of the rapid strides made by it in the THE SOUTH. 599 march of material prosperity. I do not undervalue the advantages, to a people, of wealth, and I wish that our fair Southland could enjoy these to the fullest extent. But these advantages, valuable as they are, would be dearly bought by the sacrifice of the high qualities which have marked the character of the people of the South and which have enabled them to occupy so prominent and honorable a position in the past history of our country. It would ill become them now for the mere greed of gold to forsake the paths trod by their fathers, with so much honor to themselves and so much renown to the country. One of the great Roman satirists places in the mouth of a money-loving father — perhaps a prototype of some of our millionaires — the following words, which have formed the creed of many in some sections of our country: "Get money — honestly if you can — but get money by any means possible." God forbid that this debasing creed should ever become the main article ,of faith in the South, for it will be an evil day for her r ; and for the North as well, when her sons subordinate patriotism, honor, independence, in- tegrity and principle to bow down before the shrine of Mammon as the only god worthy of worship. " 111 fares the land to hastening ills a prey, Where wealth accumulates, and men decay;" and if the accumulation of wealth has this effect, the men of the present generation in the South will be wise if they, even when confronted by poverty, shall follow steadily those principles and those methods which made their fore- fathers of the Old South great and virtuous. Let the Old 600 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. South then retain her ancient place, and her old faith; let her grow wiser and stronger as all her true sons pray- that she may become; and let her exercise her influence in the future, as she exercised it in the past, to preserve the Constitution inviolate and to promote the best inter- ests of our whole country. These are the highest aspira- tions of her people, and if they remain true to the tradi- tions and teachings of the past they will keep the South now, as she has always been, the most conservative por- tion of the country. While our friends at the North, amazed at the progress made by the South, speak of the " New South " in terms of admiration, our enemies de- nounce the " Solid South," as if the fact that we give our undivided allegiance to the Democratic party was a grave crime. When the Southern States, by illegal and uncon- stitutional methods, were made practically solid for the Republican party, no remonstrance came from those who now declare that the Solid South is a menace to our insti- tutions. We hear no denunciation from Republicans be- cause Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont and Rhode Island are solidly Republican, nor would we hear any should all the Northern States become solid for the " grand old party." Have not the Southern people the same right to choose their party affiliations as have the Northern ? " They pay their money and they take their choice," and that choice puts them in the great Demo- cratic column where, with but few exceptions, they have always stood. Every wrong, every injury, every injustice and every humiliation to which the South has been sub- jected has come from the Republican party, and how any THE SOUTH. 60! Southern man who has one spark of pride, of honor, or of decency can affiliate with that party passes comprehension. It is creditable to the South that none have done so who have jiot been bought or bribed ; for it is almost uni- versally true that whenever you see a Southern man who calls himself a Republican you will find an office-holder, or an office-seeker; one who is willing to sell his birth- right for a mess of pottage ! The old adage says, " Scratch a Russian and you will find a Tartar," and we might well paraphrase this dictum by saying, " Scratch a Southern Re- publican and you will find a renegade." These men are the "mercenaries" enlisted by the Republican party; the Dugald Dalgettys of political warfare, willing to sell them- selves to any party which will pay highest for their ser- vices; devoid of shame, as of honor; stragglers and de- serters from the great Democratic army, despised alike by those whom they seek to betray and by those to whom they have sold themselves. It is a source of just pride to the South that she numbers among her sons but few who have turned traitors to their own people, and all her true sons regard each of these renegades as ** His country's curse, his children's shame; Outcasts of virtue, peace and fame." It can hardly be considered strange that the South should be solidly Democratic, when we compare the records of the two great national parties with reference to their treatment of that section. The war left the South bleeding at every pore ; the flower of her youth buried in her bosom ; her fields devastated ; her cities destroyed ; her 602 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. property spoiled and ruin holding savage sway where once all had been peace, prosperity and happiness. She had been assured, time and again, that the war was not waged for pillage or conquest, but simply to preserve the JJnion, and that result effected she would resume her place in that Union with all her rights and privileges unimpaired. It was declared by the highest authorities that the seced- ing States were never out of the Union, and that they had but to lay down their arms to be again recognized as taking, of right, their ancient place among their sisters of the great Republic. But what was the result ? The South, exhausted by four years of terrific war, laid down the arms which had never been dishonored, and which have added a proud chapter to the courage and manhood of American citizenship, and her people, without mental res- ervation of any sort, accepted the terms offered by the victorious North. The paroles given to the surviving sol- diers of the Confederacy promised them protection in all their rights as citizens as long as they obeyed the laws of their respective States, and yet most of them were dis- franchised by the Republican party, and their States, which had been declared to be during the war integral parts of the Union, were treated as conquered provinces, placed under the control of military satraps. I need not recall the atrocities and the horrors of reconstruction as admin- istered by Republican domination, for the whole country now turns with abhorrence from that era of Republican rule. When the South asked for bread the Republicans gave her a stone and a serpent. Every act of the then domi- THE SOUTH. 603 nant party seemed to be inspired by the sole motive of humiliating the people of the South. The virtue, the intelligence, the experience, and the capital of the South were ruthlessly placed under the barbarous rule of vice, of ignorance, of folly and of poverty, and these ruling powers of the " New South " were upheld by federal soldiery camped in the capitals of sovereign States. These were the methods employed by the Republican party to conciliate the South and to bring about that " more per- fect union " contemplated by our fathers. That their plan failed need hardly be said, and while human nature is constituted as it is at present the Southern people will scarcely cherish any very warm feelings of esteem or gratitude towards that party. Fortunajtely for the South, and for the whole country, there was another great party existing in the Union ; one, the members of which were brave and loyal in their support of the maintenance of the Union and of the integrity of the Constitution ; who fought in honest advocacy of their convictions and who, when the war ended, strove to preserve to the States of the South the rights guaranteed by the Constitution This great party, which had directed and controlled the destiny of the Republic during the most honorable and glorious period of its existence ; which while striving to preserve the Union held that the Constitution should be maintained, and which recognized the rights of States as well as those pertaining to the general government, came to the rescue of the broken and impoverished South when the war ceased. When the sword was sheathed the Democrats of the North held out to us the olive-branch of 604 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. peace; they extended the hand of friendship and they wel- comed us when returning to the Union as brethren. It is true that this party was in a minority, but they clung stead- ily to the faith of their fathers, not awed by the vast powers wielded by their opponents, nor seduced by the tempting allurements held out to them to share those powers if they would forsake their principles. When the war closed, the attitude of the Republican party towards the South was one of vindictive hostility ; the regularly organized governments of the Southern States were subverted; the States were put out of the Union and treated as conquered provinces ; their best citizens were disfranchised, and martial law supplanted the Constitution of the United States. In striking contrast to the methods adopted by the Republican party to govern the South — savoring more of Russian than American ideas — were the means advo- cated by the Democrats of the North for the restoration of the Union by the rehabilitation of the Southern States. They had given as freely of their blood and their treas- ure to support the cause of the Union during the war as the Republicans had done, and they demanded as strenu- ously as did the latter that the results accomplished by that war should be irrevocably maintained. But when the Southern people laid down their arms and resumed allegiance to the general government, the Northern Demo- crats wished to treat them, not as enemies, but as friends. They thought that a policy founded on kindness and con- ciliation would more quickly obliterate the animosities en- gendered by the war, and would more surely bring about peace, harmony and good-will between the late contending THE SOUTH. 605 sections, than one based on an unconstitutional and des- potic government of the Southern States as subjugated provinces by military autocrats. The Republican party held a sword as a menace over the bleeding South ; the Democrats tendered a brotherly greeting. Is it at Jl sur- prising that the people of the South turned instinctively, and unanimously, toward the party which offered peace and gave promise of future prosperity to their stricken land? They would have been more or less than human had they done otherwise. At all events they made their choice deliberately and for twenty years, although always in the minority, they have clung bravely and loyally to the Democratic party, for not only does every feeling of gratitude prompt them to give their allegiance to that party but every instinct of self-preservation teaches them to do so. The treatment these people received from the Re- publican party at the close of the war is too fresh in their memory for them to aid in restoring that party to power, and great as were the evils and the wrongs in- flicted by the Republicans on the South during their evil and vengeful domination, the calamities then suffered would seem trivial in comparison with those which the South would have to endure should the Republican party regain control of the government. It does not require the power of a seer or a prophet to make this prediction, for the signs that it would come to pass meet us on every side. The speeches of the Re- publicans in Congress ; the utterances of their partisan press ; all point to this result. And should this sectional party come again into power we should again have a re- 606 TIIE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. currence, in the South, of a reign of ignorance, vice and corruption, such as disgraced Republican institutions during the carpet-bag rule over that section of the country. Nor would this be the worst fate that would befall the Southern States should the Republican party again obtain control of the government in all its branches ; for, should this calamity occur, the South will be put under such restrictions that every prospect of prosperity, every hope of honest government would be destroyed. The Southern people realize this danger which is impend- ing over them and they will exert all their efforts to avert it by keeping the Democratic party in power. And while success in this direction is a matter of vital con- sequence to them, it is scarcely less important to the material interests of the North, for the dawning prosperity of the South is adding to the wealth of the North, while financial ruin to the former would entail immeasurable distress to the latter. But this view of the great question is a narrow one, for it deals only with the idea that the pecuniary interests of the North are involved in the pros- perity, or the ruin, of the South. There is a much higher and nobler aspect to this question; one in which the whole country is deeply interested. Every patriotic man must feel that it is his duty to do all in his power to promote harmony between the late opposing sections of the country; to establish on a firm basis enduring peace, and to heal by reconciliation the cruel wounds in- flicted by the war. Interest and patriotism thus go hand in hand to bring about, to the whole country, abundant prosperity and abiding peace. THE SOUTH. 607 The business men of the North who are reaping so rich a harvest from the increased, and increasing, prosperity of the South will scarcely consent to remand that portion of the country to the condition from which it has emerged after years of privation and suffering, and which, should it be recalled, would entail ruin to the people of the South and incalculable damage to their own section. Every busi- ness man at the North knows that the people of the South are now among his best customers, for the South spends millions annually at the North. If we can have peace under Democratic rule the magnificent contribution poured by the South every year into the lap of the North will constantly increase ; but should the South be ruined by Republican rule, the North will be a great sufferer — almost as great as would be the South. Capital is pro- verbially sensitive and, with this fact in view, no sensible man can for a moment doubt the result of the Presidential election, for all the business interests* of the country demand the continuance of Democratic rule. That rule, under the brave, wise and patriotic direction of the present head of the executive department has not only brought unexampled prosperity to the whole country, but has given us peace. The people are too practical, too sensible, to take the reins of government from the hands of the able and pa- triotic citizen who now fills the executive chair to place them in the hands of one whose only claim is that he is the grandson of his grandfather! This is a fortunate cir- cumstance for him, but it is a very unfortunate one for old Tippecanoe ! We need a strong, able and vigorous man as President of the United States, and not a political nonentity, 36 608 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. even should the latter bear an honored and honorable name for the people know that "Pigmies are pigmies still, though perched on Alps." The chairman of the committee appointed to notify Gen- eral Harrison of his nomination seems to have had a just estimate of the character and calibre of the nominee of his party, for, in his speech informing him of the sur- prising result of the convention, he used the following language, if the public press reported him accurately: "It is true, distinguished gentlemen well known to the people, who were experienced in public affairs, illustrious in charac- ter and worthy of the people's confidence and support, were before the convention as candidates, and yet you were chosen." The speaker evidently had an intimate knowledge of his subject, and the country shares the wonder he ex- pressed, when, after calling attention to the fact that emi- nent gentlemen were before the convention, he exclaimed in unfeigned astonishment : " Yet you were chosen ! " After the election the wonder how and why he was " chosen " will be more intense and more unanswerable than at pres- ent, and future historians will tax their ingenuity to the utmost in the vain effort to solve this enigma. Perhaps the solution may be found in the advice given by the distinguished President of the Senate to the con- vention as to the sort of man who should be nominated. At all events the convention seemed to have acted on the theory he suggested, that some man without any record should be nominated, and thus we have Harrison as the Republican nominee for President. As some one has sagely THE SOUTH. 609 remarked, "if we can't beat him we can beat nobody." But while the nominee represents no great principle, and is only like the driftwood thrown up by some ocean wreck, he does represent to the South all that is antagonistic and hostile to the best interests of that portion of the country. During his service in the Senate he never did one gener- ous act, or uttered one generous sentiment, to his fellow- citizens of the South, nor has he done so in any of those innumerable platitudes with which he has been welcoming delegations, and fatiguing the public, since his nomination. His whole career has shown him to be a narrow, bigoted partisan, without the ability to comprehend the great, liv- ing issues of the day; whose ruling passion is an intense bitterness towards the South, and no greater calamity could befall the country than the election of such a man. But I have alluded to him only as an accident thrust into prominence in this great contest, and to show how fatal it would be to the interests not only of the South, but of the whole country, should he be elected President. It seems incredible that he could be elected, but when we remember how he was nominated we can but wonder if the days of miracles are over, and every sensible man should do all in his power to prevent another, and a greater miracle — his election. Under Democratic rule the South has made wonderful strides towards prosperity, and if this benignant rule can be continued, that section of the country will soon show its great power and its mag- nificent resources. The country does not realize the vast extent of their latent resources, nor has it given proper credit to the contribution made by the South towards sus- 6 I0 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY." taining the national credit just after the war. Indeed, it may be said that national bankruptcy was averted in those dark days mainly by the contribution made by the South to the treasury of the United States. But, grand as was this tribute to the general prosperity of the country, it is insignificant when compared to that she is now yielding, and to what she will do in the near future, if we can enjoy peace under home rule, with an honest administra- tion by the general government. To show what great hopes may be entertained of the future prosperity of the South it is only necessary to glance at the results she has accomplished within the past few years under the most disadvantageous conditions. The limits prescribed for this article will not permit me to go into details on this point, nor indeed is it necessary for me to do so, for in the Times-Democrat, of New Orleans, of a recent date, there appeared an able, exhaustive, and significant presentation of the wonderful progress of the South, during the past year, in all the elements which contribute to the power, the prosperity, the wealth, and the happiness of a people, and I give extracts from this paper as containing fuller information, presented in a far stronger manner, than anything I could' offer. The article is headed properly, " The Great South," and as figures never lie, they tell here the true story of the work done by the South, and they show what magnificent success has crowned it: § We present to-day a picture of the South as it now stands, showing the advance that has taken place in the last twelve months. It has been a year of steady progress. There may THE SOUTH. 6n have been less disposition toward speculation, and fewer so- called " booms." There is a marked falling off in the number of land companies formed and in land speculation generally ; there are fewer heavily capitalized companies, but the actual improvement is more than in any previous year. Thus, the increase in the assessments of the Southern States during the past twelve months is greater than for any similar period since 1883, and is far more rapid than the population, showing that the South is not only getting wealthier as a section, but that its per capita wealth is increasing, being $171.1 1 to each person to-day, as compared with $148.42 in 1880. It should be incidentally noted that the improvement is really greater than these figures indicate, as the amount of Southern indebtedness, particularly farm mortgages, has been materially reduced. The doubter who may regard what the papers have had to say about the South as due to a disposition to " boom " things must be convinced by the official figures of the assessments. No one can imagine for a second that these exaggerate the value of property. On the contrary, there is a strong disposi- tion to undervalue it. When, therefore, the assessments show that the wealth of the South is increasing at a rate nearly twice as great as the population, it is evidence of prosperity which none can deny or dispute. The following is the assess- ment of the several Southern States during the census year and for 1887-88. The assessments now being made will show a still larger increase : 1887-88. 1879-80. Alabama $214,925,869 $117,486,181 Arkansas 148,868,206 86,409,364 Florida 84,860,534 29,471,618 Georgia 341,504,921 235,650,530 Kentucky 483,491,690 3 I 8,037,875 Louisiana 221,500,000 158, 587,495 Mississippi. 129,887,254 106,594,708 North Carolina 210,035,453 156,100,202 South Carolina 141,495,056 132,037,986 Tennessee .. 239,750,000 211,768,538 Texas 650,412,401 304,493,163 Virginia 374,c>43>338 3°8,455>i35 Total $3,240,774,722 $2,164,792,795 % In the census report on valuations, the Census Bureau in 1880 estimated that the true value of property of all kinds in 612 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. the South was much greater than the assessments ; 57 per cent, greater in Texas and Virginia, 43 per cent, in Georgia, the total being $5,725,000,000, as against an assessment of $2,164,792,795. On this basis the true valuation of the South to-day is $8,570,829,140, showing an increase during the past eight years of $2,845,829,140, with an improvement in the assessment of $1,075,981,927, or 54.75 per cent. The wealth to each inhabitant is : Assessed wealth per capita, 1880 $148.42 Assessed wealth per capita, 1888 171.11 Actual wealth per capita, 1888 452.43 This improvement has kept on steadily from year to year, as the following figures will show: 879 $2,164,792,795 880 2,388,642,420 881 2,473,620,423 882 2,565,903,787 883 2,782, 1 15,803 884 2,887,834,861 885 2,996,514,535 886 3,028,536,879 887 3,064,800,443 888 3,240,774,722 It will be noted that last year's improvement was consider- ably above the average. The rate of taxation has steadily declined during this period. The average in the South in 1870 and 1871 was nj^ mills; in 1880, 5 3-5 mills; in 1888,4 3 _ 5 mills, with a move- ment to-day in several of the States, notably Alabama, in favor of still greater reduction. THE RAILROADS. This increase has been in nearly every line. The first in- vestments taken hold of by Northern capitalists were the rail- roads. As early as 1880 they began putting money in them, and the result has been the doubling of railroad mileage in the South in the last few years. The building keeps up, for, dur- ing the first half of the present year, the Southern States led in the number of miles of road constructed, and claimed more THE SOUTH. 6l3 than 50 per cent, of the total mileage. The following is the condition of the South to-day in regard to railroads : Mileage Mileage July 1, 1888. July 1, 1880. Alabama 3,035 1,780 Arkansas 2,448 822 Florida 2,204 529 Georgia 3,800 2,433 Kentucky 2,414 1,560 Louisiana 1,518 522 Mississippi* 2,196 1,119 North Carolina 2,450 1 ,440 South Carolina 2,016 1,393 Tennessee 2,395 1,816 Texas 8,333 2,697 Virginia * 2,870 1,697 Total .. 35,679 17,808 This railroad building has greatly developed all the other sources of wealth, expedited mining, manufactures, agriculture, etc., by giving all portions of the South easy communication with market. Nor should it be forgotten that this section con- tains what the East does not possess and what the West is greatly deficient in : a large extent of navigable rivers on which an active commerce is kept up. This greatly increases the mileage of transportation in the South as follows: Miles of railroads 35,679 Miles of navigable streams 18,928 Total mileage open to commerce 541607 MANUFACTORIES. The South, which previous to the late war, and, indeed, for years afterward, had devoted itself almost exclusively to agri- culture, began about 1880 to develop industrially. The manu- facture of cotton goods had been carried on here and there with success ; the manufacture of the various cotton-seed products had also become an important industry ; but with these exceptions, the South had little to do with manufactures. The first experiments in this new line were a success, and it was soon found that this section was not only favorably situ- ated for manufactures, but possessed superior advantages as 614 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. compared with New England and the East generally, which had hitherto monopolized manufactures, and particularly, of those raw materials which the South produces. These advantages have been so well enumerated before that they need be only briefly mentioned here : The South possesses in a greater degree than any other sec- tion of the country, all the raw materials entering chiefly into manufactures, and particularly coal, iron and other minerals, lumber, hides, wool and cotton. Its labor is intelligent, cheaper on account of the smaller cost of living, reliable and free from the hostile feeling to cap- ital to be met with elsewhere. It has cheap and abundant water-power (2,150,000 horse- power), well situated so as to be operated, within reach of the railroads and of markets, and fully one-third of which is avail- able for manufacturing purposes. It has an equable climate, which leaves the water-power always unfrozen, allows factories to keep open the year through and enables cotton mills to work without the machinery needed in New England to keep the yarn damp. The juxtaposition of coal and iron ore renders the manufac- ture of pig iron easier and cheaper, while the large streams which run through the pine forests perform the same service for timber, enabling the lumbermen to get their logs to the mill and their sawed lumber to market at a minimum cost. The home market is an excellent and improving one, taking all the mills can turn out for years to come, while to the South, Latin-America promises, from its propinquity, to be a large consumer of Southern manufactured goods. . With the advantages thus briefly stated, it is not to be won- dered at that new factories should be springing up in the South. Their number increases year after year, the following being the record of the first six months of each year since 1886, as given by the Manufacturers' Record. , First six months of v 1888. 1887. 1886. Iron furnace companies, 6 20 7 Machine shops, foundries, 72 53 40 Agricultural implement factories, 6 it 7 Flour mills, 72 68 48 Cotton mills, 45 44 8 Furniture factories, 33 33 18 THE SOUTH. , First six months of 1888. 1887. 1886. Gas works, 18 24 15 Water works, 53 46 15 Carriage and wagon factories, 36 26 11 Electric light companies, 80 33 17 Mining and quarrying enterprises, 260 . 323 70 Lumber mills, 450 36i 248 Ice factories, 33 55 30 Canning factories, 170 49 8 Stove foundries, 4 2 3 Brick works. 95 116 36 Miscellaneous iron works, 13 47 8 Cotton compresses, 20 26 7 Cotton-seed-oil mills, 15 13 2 Miscellaneous enterprises, 542 5o5 214 615 Total 2,023 1,855 8l2 The amount of capital invested in these various enter- prises was $81,508,000, divided as follows among the several States : First six months of 1888. Alabama $14,940,000 Arkansas 4,976,000 Florida ' 2,030,000 Georgia 5,792,000 Kentucky 13,144,000 Louisiana 1,776,000 Maryland 3,129,000 Mississippi 837,000 North Carolina 3,999,000 South Carolina 3,153,000 Tennessee 6,025,000 Texas II ,749,000 Virginia 5,965,000 West Virginia 3>993,ooo Total $81,508,000 IRON. In manufactures nothing is more important than iron, and the South is becoming a great iron-producing country — not only supplying its own demand, but shipping pig to the North as well. The record for the past year shows : 616 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. Blast furnaces Production in the last in operation, twelve mos., 1887-88. 1880. Virginia, 14 186,437 I7»9° 6 North Carolina, 1 1,100 Georgia, 2 40,691 25,099 Alabama, 23 3 2 °>537 61,636 Texas, 1 5,422 1,400 Kentucky, 6 38,259 58,108 Tennessee, 14 253,474 47.873 Total, 61 845,920 212,022 Total U. S., 290 7.154,499 Production last year 746,059 Increase over 1 886-87 99,861 Increase over 1880 633,898 COTTON GOODS. In the manufacture of cotton goods, the same relative increase is shown, the mills during the past eight years having grown from 170 to 294, the spindles from 713,989 to 1,518,145, the looms from 15,222 to 34,006, and the value of the product from $21,000,000 to $43,000,000. LUMBER. Finally, the lumbering operations have been greatly extended. The South stands to-day, not only the best timbered section of the country, but the best of the world, having 239,837,611 acres, or 50.3 per cent, of its total area under timber. One single item is 250,000,000,000 feet of merchantable pine, worth some $10 per 1000, or nearly as much as the entire assessment of the South, and enough to supply the lumber demands of the whole country for years to come. There are now 11,242 establishments in the South sawing or planing lumber, employing 89,040 hands, and turning out products of a value of $91,980,960, as against 6,481 establishments, 42,873 hands, and $48,319,963 of products in 1880. VALUE OF PRODUCTS. It would take too much space to mention the other lines of manufactures. It is sufficient to say that, with few exceptions, all have grown and improved in the last few years. Especially noticeable is the improvement in the class of goods turned out. The original products of the Southern factories were generally THE SOUTH. 6l 7 of a rough or cheap character ; now they turn out finer goods of all kinds, manufacture pig iron into stoves, machinery, etc., and cotton into the finer grades of cloth. The following totals give an idea of the progress made dur- ing the past eight years in manufactures : State. Establish- ments. Capital. Hands. Value of Products 1887-88. Alabama Arkansas Florida 4,506 2,100 1,302 6,920 7,578 3,018 2,480 6,33° 3,271 8, «o 5,030 8,220 59,i85 2,070 1,202 426 3,593 5.328 1.553 i,479 3,802 2,078 4,326 2,996 5,7io $47,620,000 12,850,000 10.205,000 38,900 14,200 11. 220 $50,620,000 15,386,000 11,875,000 | 72,412,000 105,363,000 52,630,000 15,787,000 37,870,000 3i,975, J03 70,470,000 37,432,000 83,268,000 Georgia 52,870,000 C7.?6o Kentucky 89,666,000 23,520,000 10,301,000 30,002,000 22,204,000 62,300,000 22,755,000 42,304,000 $426,597,000 $9,668,008 2,953,130 3,210,680 20,672,410 45,813,039 11,462,468 4,727,600 13,045,639 11,205,890 20,092,815 9,245,561 26,968,992 $179,366,230 59,600 35,320 1 1 ,990 36,300 34,417 51,820 22,435 66,591 Louisiana Mississippi North Carolina South Carolina Tennessee Texas Virginia Total 440,253 9,100 4,557 5,604 24,876 37,391 1 2, 1 64 5,827 18,110 15,828 22,445 12,159 46,184 $585,088,103 £13,565,504 6,756,159 5,546,480 36,440,948 75,483,377 24,205,183 7,518,302 20,095,037 16,738,000 37,074,886 20,719,928 51,780,990 1879-80. Alabama Arkansas Florida Georgia Kentucky Louisiana Mississippi North Carolina South Carolina Tennessee Texas Virginia Total 34,563 215,245 $315,924,794 AGRICULTURE. This industrial development was not at the expense of agriculture, for the South has planted and grown larger crops than ever before, and although the prices of farm products have generally ranged low, the total values have improved. 6i8 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. The yield for the past year has been, as compared with that of the census year : 1888. 1879. Cotton $310,000,000 $227,893,000 Corn 250,813,530 187,958,752 Wheat 42,297,810 65,575,378 Oats 34,955,15° 20,193,011 Potatoes, hay, etc 95,000,000 69,478,313 The value of these crops, however, do not fully indicate the improvement that has taken place, as prices have generally fallen during these eight years. The yield will show better the industry and activity of the Southern farmers. 1887-88. 1879-80 Cotton, bales 6,800,000 5,755,359 Corn, bushels 492,415,000 333,121,290 Wheat, bushels . 52,384,000 54,476,740 Oats, bushels 81,566,000 43,478,600 Total grain 626,305,000 431,074,630 FARM PRODUCTS. The total value of farm products during the past season was #793,098,293. 1887-88. 1879-80 Alabama $67,823,000 $56,272,994 Arkansas . . 64,230,000 43,796,261 Florida 13,109,000 7>439>39 2 Georgia 76,327,000 67,028,929 Kentucky 75,336,000 63,850,155 Louisiana 63,224,000 42,883,522 Mississippi 68,126,000 63,701,844 N. Carolina 57,320,000 5 1 ,729,61 1 S. Carolina 46,968,293 41,969,749 Tennessee *. 70,540,000 62,076,341 Texas 136,975,000 65,204,329 Virginia 53,120,000 45,726,221 Total ^793, 98,293 $611,679,048 The record in regard to live stock is as follows : -Value- 1888. 1879. Horses $191,659,208 $127,502,759 Mules 113,908,770 65,059,675 Milch-cows 68,187,682 47,630,990 THE SOUTH. 619 ( Value v 1888. 1879. Oxen and other cattle 130,741,481 87,019,999 Sheep 15,278,829 19,262,888 Hogs 53,919,580 44,935,943 Total £573>695,550 $39MI2,254 Increase $182,283,296 EDUCATION. While interested in manufactures and farming, the South has not overlooked or forgotten its public schools, and is able to present a very encouraging progress in this direction. It cannot and does not claim that it has yet been able to do all that it would like. The illiteracy that slavery, war and mis- rule left behind still prevails and defies the resources of the South to overcome, but that it is doing its duty, that it is mov- ing onward in education, is shown in the following figures of the amount expended by the several States for their public schools : 1887-88. 1880. 1870. Alabama, #5 1 5,985 #375,465 #374,670 Arkansas, 916,600 238,056 Florida, 449,299 114,895 59»*46 Georgia, 788,500 471,029 Kentucky, 1,095,020 803,409 303,607 Louisiana, 514,270 480,320 Mississippi, 972,807 830,704 North Carolina, 653,037 352,882 171,497 South Carolina, 541,000 324,629 Tennessee, 1,475,000 724,862 Texas, 2,285,695 753,346 Virginia, 1,535,289 946,109 592,856 Total, #11,742,702 #6,415,796 The following comparison gives some idea of the educational progress that has already been made : 1887-88. 1879-80. Number of schools 62,038 45,031 Number of teachers 60,520 43,6n Children enrolled 3,242,806 2,154,376 Children in attendance 2,402,117 1,832,620 Cost of schools #11,742,702 #6,415,706 Enrolment of children 1870-71 1,016,163 Enrolment of children 1879-80 2,154,376 Enrolment of children 1887-88 3,242,806 620 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. THE PROGRESS OF THE SOUTH. These figures speak for themselves. We know of no better way of presenting the development — industrial, agricultural, educational and otherwise — of the South than by a simple comparison of 1888 with 1880, which will show it in a manner that all can understand : Population Gross wealth "Wealth per capita Railroad mileage Manufactures — No. of establishments Capital Number of hands Value of products Cotton mills Spindles Looms Value of products of cotton mills. Minerals — Pig iron produced, tons Phosphate mined, tons Value of minerals produced... . Agriculture — Grain, bushels Cotton, bales Farm animals Live stock, value Fruit, value Total value of farm products. . . Education — ( Schools Children in attendance Expenditures for public schools. 1888. 18,942,858 #3,240,774,722 #171.11 35,679 59,185 426,597,000 440,253 585,088,103 294 1,518,145 34,006 #43,000,000 845,920 432,757 25,482,600 626,305,000 6,800,000 44,830,972 #573,695,55<> #19,421,380 #793,098,293 62,038 2,402,117 #11,742,702 1880. Per cent, of incr'se. $2, 14,639,714 [64,792,795 #148.42 I7,8o8 34,563 179,366,230 215,245 315,924,794 179 713,989 15,222 #21,000,000 212,722 190,162 3,347,445 431,074,630 5,755,359 28,754,243 #391,312,254 9,103,113 #611,697,048 45,o3i 1,832,620 #6,415,706 29.4 49.8 15.6 100.0 71.4 1435 II2.8 85.4 76.0 II2.8 123.4 104.8 397.8 288.2 760.6 45.3 18.4 55.8 46.4 1 134 29.7 37.8 36.7 83.2 Nothing that I could say would add strength to the mar- vellous exhibit made by these figures of the unequalled resources of the South. Most of these are latent and unde- veloped, but the Southern people, if undisturbed, will, by their pluck and energy, develop all these resources and thus add untold millions to the wealth of the country. It is for our THE SOUTH. 621 fellow-citizens of the North to say whether this career of prosperity is to continue or whether it is to be blasted. Demo- cratic rule will insure to the South peace, prosperity and wealth, with all these blessings reacting on the North ; a return to Republican domination will bring absolute ruin to the fairest portion of the country and will thus bring disaster to the whole country. CHAPTER XIV AIMS OF THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY. Hon. Benton McMillin, M. C. THE Democratic party is founded upon the idea that the people are capable of governing themselves. It be- lieves, in the language of the Constitution, that The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States, respectively, or to the people. Wherever that party has doubted its constitutional right to act it has wisely declined action. Hence all legislation of doubtful constitutional authority, looking to an abridg- ment of the right of the citizen, or to a destruction of the rights of the States, has been resisted by the Democratic party. How sadly we have encroached in some respects upon these principles ! Take our election laws as an ex- ample. During the years of Democratic rule the people were left to control their own elections. No federal inter- ference either prevented or perverted the exercise of the elective franchise. But in an evil hour a different principle was adopted. The people had become accustomed to the use of forceful measures in war times, and taking advantage of this fact, the Republican party, then in power, not only (622) BENTON McMILLIN. AIMS OF THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY. 623 used troops at the polls, but passed laws authorizing the appointment of deputy marshals and supervisors by United States judges to go to the ballot box and stand around that sacred palladium of our liberties ready to arrest, and actually arresting and carrying away, the citizen about to exercise the highest political right ever conferred upon man. The Democratic party resisted this in toto. They agreed with Jefferson, that if a man could not govern himself, it was dangerous to entrust him with the government of others. They believed in the virtue of the citizen and the integrity of the State, and that the two would not only enact but execute* sufficient laws to insure honest elections. The extra session of the Forty-sixth Congress was brought about by the refusal of Democracy to yield the right of the federal government to use force at the polls. The long debate that resulted and the fierce contest over it at last brought to the statute books a provision by which the use of troops at polling places was prevented, and public attention was called to the danger of using any kind of force. What has been the result of these force statutes? They have demonstrated that it is impossi- ble to have freedom in one part of the country and force and slavery in the other. In the city of Cincinnati more than half a thousand deputy marshals were appointed by judges of the United States courts to hound down voters, and in their discretion take them from the polls. This might be done without warrant ; without indictment ; without information ; without any of those steps which have always been regarded by the Democratic party as essential to the 37 624 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. maintenance of freedom. The aim of the Democratic party is to restore the government back to the people ; to deprive the citizen of only so much of his natural liberty as to pre- vent him from injuring others. A difficulty which confronted the Democratic party soon after the organization of the government and the accession of that party to power was the right still claimed and exer- cised by the British government, then mistress of the seas, by reason of her great navy, to board our vessels on the broad ocean and search for and seize the seamen there en- gaged by our people. There was never a bolder resistance than that made by the Democratic party to this assumption of right on the part of the British empire. Our navy was not equal to theirs ; we did not equal them in numbers nor in prestige on the water. But, believing that " thrice armed is he who hath his quarrel just," a Democratic administra- tion challenged this authority, resisted its enforcement, and plunged into the war of 1812 to break the shackles of the sea. President Madison sent General Jackson to New Orleans to resist the British and maintain our rights at the point of the bayonet. It is the purpose of this chapter to call attention to only so much history as is necessary to illus- trate what has been the action of the Democratic party, thereby ascertaining what are its aims. It is, therefore, sufficient merely to recount that blood flowed freely; en- gagement after engagement took place on the waters; the Capitol of the great Republic fell ; its public buildings were burned, and 'there was everything to discourage the American people; ib,ut with ., a v /determination to do or die, AIMS OF THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY. 625 Democracy hurled the forces of the nation against our antagonist; the battle of New Orleans with all its glory was won ; peace was restored, and the freedom of American ships from search, and American seamen from seizure, has been the blessed heritage, through all administrations, both Democratic and otherwise in this country, from that day, and we may hope will be down to the end of time. Early in its administration of the government the Demo- cratic party had to meet another grave difficulty. After the overthrow of the first Napoleon, France, Russia, Aus- tria and Prussia combined in what is known in history as " a holy alliance " for the purpose of maintaining the then status of monarchical affairs. Farther on it became evident to Mr. Monroe, the President of the United States, that this " holy alliance " contemplated ultimately the exercise of dominion and control over a portion of the South Ameri- can colonies, which had formerly belonged to Spain and were struggling, in a greater or less degree, to establish and maintain independence. The Democratic party realized that our own republican institutions were threatened if the right of the kingdoms and monarchies of the earth to come to this continent and dictate rulers and dominion went unquestioned. Therefore for the purpose of making known the position of the United States touching this foreign interference and to prevent the establishment of governments inimical to our free republic, Mr. Monroe promulgated the immortal message containing what has since been known as the " Monroe Doctrine." It is found in. the following paragraphs of the message : fi 2 6 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. We owe it to candor and to the amicable relations existing: between the United States and the allied powers to declare that we should consider any attempt on their part to extend their system to any portion of this hemisphere as dangerous to our peace and safety. With the existing colonies or de- pendencies of any European power we have not interfered and shall not interfere ; but with the governments which have declared their independence and maintained it, and whose independence we have on great considerations and just principles acknowledged, we could not view an interpo- sition for oppressing them or controlling in any other manner their destiny by any European power in any other light than as a manifestation of an unfriendly disposition towards the United States. Again : The American continents should no longer be subjects for any new European colonial settlements. This principle has never been varied from by any admin- istration of the government except one, and never by a Democratic administration. When the auxiliary army of French and Belgians invaded Mexico for the purpose of aiding Maximilian of Austria to establish a throne for him- self in Mexico, Mr. Motley, our representative to Vienna, in October, 1863, expressed great alarm to his home gov- ernment at the Maximilian venture. He desired instruc- tions authorizing him to demand an explanation of the Austrian government, and called the attention of Mr. Sew- ard, the Secretary of State, to the Monroe doctrine pro- mulgated in 1823, under circumstances even less threaten- ing than those which hung over our nearest neighbors. But so far from taking the view of our rights and duty which had characterized all his predecessors, Mr. Seward AIMS OF THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY. 627 gave instructions to our minister not to interfere. The following passage in his letter on the subject may be noted as the one instance in which one occupying the high station of Secretary of State in an American government has declined to uphold the doctrine promulgated by Mr. Monroe; but it is to be hoped that this will never be fol- lowed as a precedent. France has invaded Mexico, and war exists between the two countries. The United States hold in regard to those two States and their conflict the same principles that they hold in relation to all other nations and their mutual wars. They have neither a right or any disposition to intervene by force in the internal affairs of Mexico, whether to establish or maintain a republican or even a domestic government there, or to overthrow an imperial or foreign one, if Mexico shall choose to establish or accept it. What Mr. Monroe so strongly expressed has been main- tained by all Democratic administrations, and it is the just boast of our people that not one jot or tittle of the faith he then proclaimed has been surrendered by those of his party to whom government has been entrusted. The Democratic party found the United States " a pent-up Utica." We had no Florida, Louisiana, or Texas ; no Arkansas, Missouri, or Minnesota ; no Colorado, Kansas or Nebraska; no California, Nevada, or Oregon; no Arizona, New Mexico, or Indian Territory. In fact, that magnificent country west of the Mississippi river, which is now organized into flourishing Territories or great States, and is the home of many millions of prosperous people, was owned by foreign powers or dominated by kings and potentates. This was our condition when Mr. Jefferson became President in 1 80 1. 6 2 8 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. Spain had threatened to deny us the right to navigate the Mississippi, and then sold her Louisiana possessions to France. Could a condition more hampered than ours be conceived, when the Spanish king or government owned Florida; France, led on by the mighty Napoleon, owned the mouth of the Mississippi river and its western banks, and Mexico in possession of the balance of the West, with the gold and silver mines and fertile prairies which have since furnished our people their currency and our poor their homes? But thanks be to Jefferson, the man who wrote the Declaration of Independence and laid the foundation of the Democratic party was equal to the great emergency. He believed the best interests of the country demanded that this should be a great inter-ocean republic, and that the Pacific ocean, and not the Mississippi river, should be our western boundary. He went to work to extend our territory. Taking advantage of the straightened relations between England and France, he opened negotiations for the purchase of the mouth of the Mississippi, urging upon that government that in case of war with England the latter would seize these possessions and either hold them or cause France to spend vast sums in their defense. Who were the parties to this negotiation? Seldom in the history of the world have such intellectual forces met. On the one side was the great Napoleon and his renowned diplo- mat, Talleyrand ; on the other, Mr. Jefferson, the greatest political philosopher of the worfd, and Mr. Monroe, after- ward President. The latter was also assisted by Mr. Liv- ingston. The victory was ours, and we obtained the terri- AIMS OF THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY. 629 tory. When Napoleon signed the transfer he said : " I know that nation which owns the valley of the Mississippi will be the greatest on earth. I prefer letting it go to the United States rather than to any other power because that government will at least be neutral toward France." By this we obtained 1,182,752 square miles. Our next acquisition of territory was the purchase of Florida from Spain, by which we added 59,900 square miles. Then came the annexation of Texas, which in- creased the national domain 376,100 square miles. By the Mexican war and the treaty with Mexico we obtained 522,500 square miles. Next we pui chased of Mexico by subsequent treaty 45,500 square miles, making, with the fraction I have omitted for brevity, 2,186,946 square miles, or 1,399,645,000 acres. When the Democratic party had held the reins of gov- ernment less than sixty years, it could make the proud boast that it had enlarged the United States government to about three times its original size ; had added territory ten times as large as France. Why, the territory thus acquired under Democratic rule was more than twenty- seven acres for each hour since Adam was placed in the Garden of Eden. Regiments of lives and millions of treas- ure had been expended in it. But our flag floated from ocean to ocean, and France and Spain no longer had a foothold on our continent. Not only did the Democratic party wisely acquire, but it faithfully kept this land for " homes for the homeless." They hoped to place it forever beyond the grasp of monopolists and keep it always within the reach of bona 630 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. fide settlers. And while the Democratic sentinels remained on the watch-tower the effort was successful. But at last divisions came among Democrats, and in i860 they lost control of the government and the custody of these lands. What became of them then? The party then in power, disregarding the best interests of the masses, gave away in ten (10) years 195,000,000 acres of these lands to rail- road corporations. This is so vast an amount that we can only comprehend it by comparison. It is many times more than all Palestine, the home of God's chosen people. It is more than all England, Ireland, Switzerland and the Netherlands combined. Empires of land wasted, and for what? To build up corporations which threaten to dominate the government which created them. "Nor is this all. Under the act of Congress granting the land, if the roads were not built in a specified time, the lands were to be forfeited. Part of the roads were not so built. It will be said, "Surely, no man could ob- ject to reclaiming the land." But behold the difference when Democracy again got control. The last House of Representatives was Demo- cratic, and we passed through that body bills declaring more than 70,000,000 acres forfeited. The Democratic party is non-sectional. Its aim has ever been to prevent sectional discord, and it has at all times declined to foment sectional strifes. It numbers among its followers, equally favored, people of every State and every locality. Its organizers tried to lay its founda- tions broad and deep and to make its principles so equit- able that they would be a blessing to the American AIMS OF THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY. 63 1 citizen, whether he lived on the Atlantic or the Pacific, on the lakes or the Gulf. It has never attained or main- tained power by appealing to sectional hate or by foment- ing sectional strifes. One of the greatest men it has ever numbered among its followers, General Jackson, before retiring from the Presidential office, in # his farewell address, warned his countrymen against sectional strife. The following extract from this patriotic address very forcibly defines the posi- tion of the Democratic party on this subject both then and now : We behold systematic efforts publicly made to sow the seeds of discord between different parts of the United States and to place party divisions directly upon geographical dis- tinctions; to excite the South against the North and the North against the South and to force into the controversy the most delicate and exciting topics upon which it is impossible that a large portion of the Union can ever speak without strong emotions. Appeals, too, are constantly made to sec- tional interests, in order to influence the election of the chief magistrate, as if it were desired that he should favor a particu- lar quarter of the country instead of fulfilling the duties of his station with impartial justice to all, and the possible dissolu- tion of the Union has at length become an ordinary and familiar subject of discussion. Has the warning voice of Washington been forgotten, or have designs already been formed to sever the Union ? Let it not be supposed that I impute to all those who have taken an active part in these un- wise and unprofitable discussions a want of patriotism or of public virtue. The honorable feelings of State pride and local attachments find a place in the bosoms of the most enlightened and pure. But while such men are conscious of their own in- tegrity and honesty of purpose, they ought never to forget that the citizens of other States are their political brethren, and that, however mistaken they may be in their views, the great body of them are equally honest and upright themselves. 632 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. Mutual suspicion and reproaches may in time create mutual hostility, and artful and designing men will always be found who are ready to foment these fatal divisions and to inflame the natural jealousies of different sections of the country. The history of the world is full of such examples, and especially the history of republics. The Democratic party stands to-day battling for the same faith that was promulgated by the hero of New Or- leans half a century ago. Time has but emphasized the wisdom of his admonitions; subsequent events have dem- onstrated the correctness of his prophecy! Much stress is now being laid upon the condition of our workingmen. Every argument that can be adduced is being brought forward to convince them that their wages have been elevated and maintained alone by reason of ex- cessive rates of taxation. Of all the agencies which have operated for the elevation and maintenance of high wages for the laborers of this country the most potent has been* the acquisition of this immense public domain by the Dem- ocratic party above mentioned, thereby placing it in the reach of any laborer whose wages were not adequate to the support of himself and his family to acquire a home under our liberal homestead laws by merely reclaiming it from the forest. This has tended to prevent the over- crowding of population, and all the misery that that brings. Believing this to be true, it has been the constant effort of the Democratic party, since it regained control of either branch of the government, to reclaim the lands so recklessly squandered during Republican administra- tions. Through the action of the present Democratic ad- ministration and the Democratic House of Representatives AIMS OF THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY. 633 we have already reclaimed more than 80,000,000 acres, and still have under process of reclamation in the Land Office and pending in Congress propositions for the re- clamation of 64,000,000 acres more. And it is to be said to the everlasting credit of the party that originally ac- quired these lands that not one section has been permitted to be squandered by any Congress in which it controlled either branch, from the acquisition of its control of the House in 1875 till now. It has been the constant aim of the Democratic party to give to the people a wise and frugal government which should " not take from the mouth of labor the bread it had earned." It has striven to make its tax laws just, so as to collect no more taxes than were necessary for the eco- nomical administration of the government. All revenues are raised by taxation. This, of course, includes both in- ternal revenue and custom duties. A high rate imposes high taxes; a low rate low taxes. Every exertion should be made to prevent the government from taking in any form or under any pretext from the people more money than is necessary to run the government economically and to pay its debts and pension obligations. Any other theory practised will result in the extraction of money from commerce that is necessary to its greatest prosperity. The hoarding of vast sums in the United States Treasury breeds a multitude of evils too great to be enumerated. The withdrawal of the money from trade contracts prices, diminishes the wages of labor and the demand for the products of labor. It produces extravagant legislation and schemes of public plundering that would not be dreamed 634 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. of if the revenues were confined to the legitimate needs of government. It corrupts legislation in almost every con- ceivable way. The Democratic party has raised its reve- nues principally at the custom-house, and will continue to do so. In the imposition of import duties necessary to carry on the government it has ever exercised, and will continue to exercise, a wise discretion, and will so adjust 'them as to result in the greatest good to the greatest number of our people. Ah ! more, there is no Democrat who will not rejoice at any benefits flowing to our people from the exercise of wise discretion in levying of the taxes necessary; but whenever government goes beyond what it requires, and puts its hands into the pockets of labor and takes out more money than it needs, it has started on the road to robbery, and can but land at the goal of ruin. It has sometimes been said that there is no great differ- ence between Republicanism and Democracy, but judging the parties by their announcements and practises, we must conclude there are great differences. The Republican party has espoused the political faith of Hamilton and the Federalists and extended it, whilst the Democracy adheres to the principles of Jefferson. Mr. Hamilton said : All communities divide themselves into the few and the many — the rich and the well-born and the masses of the people. The people are turbulent and changeable ; they seldom judge or determine right. Give, therefore, the first class, the rich and well-born, a distinct, permanent share in the I government. They will check the unsteadiness of the second — the masses of the people — and will maintain good govern- ment. Nothing but a permanent body, can check the im- prudence of democracy. AIMS OF THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY. 635 Contrast with this the views of Mr. Jefferson, as ex- pressed in the following paragraph : Sometimes it has been said that man cannot be trusted with the government of himself. Can he then be entrusted with the government of others ? The sum of good govern- ment is a wise and frugal government, which shall restrain men from injuring one another, which shall leave men other- wise free to regulate their own pursuits of industry and im- provement, and shall not take from the mouth of labor the bread it has earned. Again Mr. Jefferson in his first inaugural address lays down the following as the essential principles of good govern- ment: Equal and exact justice to all men, of whatever state or persuasion, religious or political ; peace, commerce, and honest friendship with all nations, entangling alliances with none; the support of the State governments in all their rights as the most competent administration for our domestic concerns and the surest bulwark against anti-republican tendencies; the preser- vation of the general government in all its constitutional vigor as the sheet-anchor of peace at home and safety abroad ; a jealous care of the right of election by the people; a mild and safe corrective of abuses which are lopped by the sword of revolution where peaceable remedies are unprovided ; absolute acquiescence in the decision of the majority, the vital principle of the republics, from which there is no appeal but to force, the vital principle and immediate parent of despotism ; a well- disciplined militia; economy in the public expenses, that labor may be lightly burdened ; the honest payment of pur debt, and sacred preservation of the public faith; encouragement of agriculture, and of commerce, its handmaid; the diffusion of information, and the arrangement of all abuses at the bar of public reason ; freedom of religion ; freedom of the press ; freedom of the person under the protection of habeas corpus, and trial by juries impartially selected. 6 3 6 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. These are the principles of Democracy. They have con- stituted its political creed ever since it was a party. They are the text for our political instruction. They should be the touchstone by which to try those who seek votes. The principles of Jefferson, who was the draughtsman of the Declaration of Independence, have thus been briefly commented upon. Its principles under various administra- tions and under all exigencies have been recounted. What a glorious chapter of American history these declarations and these principles make ! Take that which is democratic and which was promulgated or performed by the Demo- cratic party from our annals, and how sadly they would be deficient. And it has been shown not only that it was a Democrat who promulgated the great fundamental prin- ciples of 1 80 1, but a Democratic administration that car- ried on the war of 181 2; a Democratic administration that promulgated the Monroe doctrine, which is the faith of every American citizen to-day; a Democratic administration that extended our borders by the annexation of Texas and the acquisition of territory from Mexico. The party has been the conservator of individual liberty and the de- fender of the rights of the States, and has maintained the integrity and constitutional vigor of the Union. What hal- lowed memories cluster around these actions of the leaders of Democratic thought! What blessings are to flow from their pure administration ; their clear conception of the theory of our government; their stern integrity, and the maintenance of that equipoise between individual rights, re- served rights of the States and the constitutional rights of the general government, by which alone we can keep that AIMS OF THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY. 637 simplicity and purity which was conceived by our fathers and through which alone we can send down to posterity the beneficent institutions for which they struggled. We are sometimes asked what has the Democratic party done? When we look back and see the difficulties it en- countered and the obstacles it had to overcome, instead of complaining that it has not done more, we wonder that it has been able to do so much. For twenty-seven years it has not had at any time the President and both branches of Congress. Whenever it has attempted reform for the last twenty years it has had to combat the Republican party in control of some branch of the government. After the war closed it found its enemy, the Republican party, intrenched with power, holding every branch of the government. It had the House and the Senate by more than three-fourths majority. It had an army of one hun- dred thousand officers ready to do its bidding at a nod. It found the citizen disfranchised, driven from the polls. It placed the ballot in his hands and bade him go forth as a free man and exercise the rights his fathers gave him. Over the veto of President Hayes it recoined the silver dollar and started it back to the pockets of the people. It stopped the reckless giving away of public lands. As stated above, not an acre has been wasted since the Democrats got either house of Congress after the war. It found proscriptive jurors, test oaths on the statute books. Before your free-born citizen could sit on a jury in the federal courts, in some of the States, if the law was strictly administered, he must take these oaths. It re- pealed the law imposing them, and made good citizen- 638 THE NATIONAL DEMOCRATIC PARTY. ship and fidelity to the Constitution the test of fitness. It has secured the people impartial- juries. It found Con- gress annually raiding the treasury, and perennially empty- ing its vaults, by the most extravagant appropriations ever planned by a prodigal or voted for by a faithless public servant. And it inaugurated retrenchment. It found mil- lions squandered on a rotting and worthless navy, and under the administration of our wise and fearless Presi- dent, Cleveland, by judicious expenditure, is again placing on the water vessels of which the people may be justly proud. The Democratic party claimed that the government ought not to force its paper upon the citizens, while it refused to receive it for government dues, and this reform has been inaugurated, giving a uniform currency for all. And, finally, what is more than all for the integrity and the perpetuity of our system, it hovered around these dis- mantled and dismembered States of our magnolia land in the dark hour of their desolation. It held that while the Union was indestructible, it was composed of indestructible States. One by one it gathered them up and set them back on terms of equality in the national firmament, where they cluster and shine, growing brighter and brighter as the years roll on. Many other things might be said, but Democracy needs no eulogy save a truthful statement of what it has done. The Democracy ruled the country for nearly seventy years. When did it ever turn out the officers of a State elected by the people and put in those who were not? When did it disperse by military force the Legislature of a AIMS OF THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY. 639 State lawfully assembled? When did it disfranchise free- born citizens ? When did it send troops to the polls or claim the propriety of doing so ? W T hen did it send deputy United States Marshals to the polls, having no higher authority than the policeman's club and no higher ambi- tion than to do henchmen's service, to arrest and harass our free-born American citizens ? When did it flood your federal courts with jurisdiction filched from the State courts ? When did it demonetize silver or issue Treasury warrants which it refused to take in payment of govern- ment dues ? When did it give sixty-four millions of dol- lars in bonds to railroad corporations ? When did it tax the salaries of a hundred thousand officers for campaign purposes, threatening expulsion from office if the payment was refused ? When did it ever pass through its Con- gress laws that were violations of the Constitution ? Never ! Never ! ! Never ! ! ! To preserve the principles so admirably expressed by Jefferson, and maintain the liberty of the citizen, the rights of the States and the constitutional vigor and in- tegrity of the Union have been and will continue to be the "Aims of the Democratic Party." tf^i im^m^fwl mi m Hgfc '«ftS« vis? (Plaffi Wsm