bounties and pensions provided by the laws for these brave defenders of the nation are obligations never to be forgotten; the widows and orphans of the gallant dead are the wards of the people-a sacred legacy bequeathed to the nation's protecting care.

11. Foreign immigration, which in the past has added so much to the wealth, development, and resources, and increase of power to this Republic, the asylum of the oppressed of all nations, should be fostered and encouraged by a liberal and just policy.

12. This convention declares itself in sympathy with all oppressed people who are struggling for their rights.

all money drawn from the people by taxa tion, except so much as is requisite for the necessities of the government, economically administered, being honestly applied to such payment; and where the obligations of the government do not expressly state upon their face, or the law under which they were issued does not provide that they shall be paid in coin, they ought, in right and in justice, to be paid in the lawful money of the United States.

4. Equal taxation of every species of property according to its real value, including government bonds and other public securities.

5. One currency for the government and the people, the laborer and the officeholder, the pensioner and the soldier, the producer and the bondholder.

13. That we highly commend the spirit of magnanimity and forbearance with which men who have served in the Rebel- 6. Economy in the administration of the lion, but who now frankly and honestly government; the reduction of the standing co-operate with us in restoring the peace army and navy; the abolition of the Freedof the country and reconstructing the men's Bureau and all political instrumensouthern state governments upon the basis talities designed to secure negro supremaof impartial justice and equal rights, are re-cy; simplification of the system and disceived back into the communion of the loyal people; and we favor the removal of the disqualifications and restrictions imposed upon the late rebels, in the same measure as the spirit of disloyalty shall die out, and as may be consistent with the safety of the loyal people.

14. That we recognize the great principles laid down in the immortal Declaration of Independence, as the true foundation of democratic government; and we hail with gladness every effort toward making these principles a living reality on every inch of American soil.

1868.-Democratic Platform.
New York, July 4.

The Democratic party, in national convention assembled, reposing its trust in the intelligence, patriotism, and discriminating justice of the people, standing upon the constitution as the foundation and limitation of the powers of the government and the guarantee of the liberties of the citizen, and recognizing the questions of slavery and secession as having been settled, for all time to come, by the war or voluntary action of the southern states in constitutional conventions assembled, and never to be revived or reagitated, do, with the return of peace, demand

1. Immediate restoration of all the states to their rights in the Union under the constitution, and of civil government to the American people.

2. Amnesty for all past political offenses, and the regulation of the elective franchise in the states by their citizens.

3. Payment of all the public debt of the United States as rapidly as practicable

continuance of inquisitorial modes of assessing and collecting internal revenue; that the burden of taxation may be equalized and lessened, and the credit of the government and the currency made good; the repeal of all enactments for enrolling the state militia into national forces in time of peace; and 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.

7. Reform of abuses in the administration; the expulsion of corrupt men from office; the abrogation of useless offices; the restoration of rightful authority to, and the independence of, the executive and judicial departments of the government; the subordination of the military to the civil power, to the end that the usurpa tions of Congress and the despotism of the sword may cease.

8. Equal rights and protection for naturalized and native-born citizens, at home and abroad; the assertion of American nationality which shall command the respect of foreign powers, and furnish an example and encouragement to people struggling for national integrity, constitutional liberty and individual rights; and the maintenance of the rights of naturalized citizens against the absolute doctrine of immutable allegiance and the claims of foreign powers to punish them for alleged crimes committed beyond their jurisdic

tion.

In demanding these measures and reforms, we arraign the Radical party for its

That our soldiers and sailors, who carried the flag of our country to victory against the most gallant and determined foe, must ever be gratefully remembered, and all the guarantees given in their favor must be faithfully carried into execution.

tributed as widely as possible among the That the public lands should be dispeople, and should be disposed of either under the pre-emption of homestead lands or sold in reasonable quantities, and to none but actual occupants, at the minimum price established by the government. When grants of public lands may be alimportant public improvements, the prolowed, necessary for the encouragement of ceeds of the sale of such lands, and not the lands themselves, should be so applied.

disregard of right and the unparalleled attempt by Congress, on any pretext whatoppression and tyranny which have ever, to deprive any state of this right, or marked its career. After the most solemn interfere with its exercise, is a flagrant and unanimous pledge of both Houses of usurpation of power which can find no Congress to prosecute the war exclusively warrant in the constitution, and, if sancfor the maintenance of the government tioned by the people, will subvert our and the preservation of the Union under form of government, and can only end in a the constitution, it has repeatedly violated single, centralized, and consolidated, govthe most sacred pledge under which alone ernment, in which the separate existence was rallied that noble volunteer army of the states will be entirely absorbed, and which carried our flag to victory. Instead an unqualified despotism be established in of restoring the Union, it has, so far as in place of a federal union of co-equal states. its power, dissolved it, and subjected ten And that we regard the construction acts states, in time of profound peace, to mili- (so called) of Congress as usurpations, and tary despotism and negro supremacy. It unconstitutional, revolutionary, and void. has nullified there the right of trial by jury; it has abolished the habeas corpus, that most sacred writ of liberty; it has overthrown the freedom of speech and press; it has substituted arbitrary seizures and arrests, and military trials and secret star-chamber inquisitions, for the constitutional tribunals; it has disregarded, in time of peace, the right of the people to be free from searches and seizures; it has entered the post and telegraph offices, and even the private rooms of individuals, and seized their private papers and letters, without any specific charge or notice of affidavit, as required by the organic law. It has converted the American capitol into a bastile; it has established a system of spies and official espionage to which no constitutional monarchy of Europe would now dare to resort. It has abolished the That the President of the United States, right of appeal, on important constitutional Andrew Johnson, in exercising the power questions, to the supreme judicial tribu- of his high office in resisting the aggresnals, and threatens to curtail or destroy sions of Congress upon the constitutional its original jurisdiction, which is irrevoca- rights of the states and the people, is enbly vested by the constitution; while the titled to the gratitude of the whole Amerilearned Chief Justice has been subjected can people; and, on behalf of the Demoto the most atrocious calumnies, merely cratic party, we tender him our thanks for because he would not prostitute his high his patriotic efforts in that regard. office to the support of the false and parti- Upon this platform, the Democratic san charges preferred against the Presi-party appeal to every patriot, including all dent. Its corruption and extravagance the conservative element and all who dehave exceeded anything known in history; sire to support the constitution and restore and, by its frauds and monopolies, it has nearly doubled the burden of the debt created by the war. It has stripped the President of his constitutional power of appointment, even of his own cabinet. Under its repeated assaults, the pillars of the government are rocking on their base; and should it succeed in November next, and inaugurate its President, we will meet, as a subjected and conquered people, amid the ruins of liberty and the scattered fragments of the constitution.

And we do declare and resolve that ever since the people of the United States threw off all subjection to the British crown, the privilege and trust of suffrage have belonged to the several states, and have been granted, regulated, and controlled exclusively by the political power of each state respectively; and that any

the Union, forgetting all past differences of opinion, to unite with us in the present great struggle for the liberties of the people; and that to all such, to whatever party they may have heretofore belonged, we extend the right hand of fellowship, and hail all such, co-operating with us, as friends and brethren.

thizes cordially with the workingmen of Resolved, That this convention sympathe United States in their efforts to protect the rights and interests of the laboring

classes of the country.

Resolved, That the thanks of the convention are tendered to Chief Justice Salmon P. Chase, for the justice, dignity, and impartiality with which he presided over the court of impeachment on the trial of President Andrew Johnson.

1872.-Labor Reform Platform.

Columbus, February 21.

6. That the presence in our country of Chinese laborers, imported by capitalists in large numbers for servile use is an evil entailing want and its attendant train of misery and crime on all classes of the American people, and should be prohibited by legislation.

We hold that all political power is inherent in the people, and free government founded on their authority and established for their benefit; that all citizens are equal in political rights, entitled to the largest religious and political liberty compatible 7. That we ask for the enactment of a with the good order of society, as also the law by which all mechanics and day-lause and enjoyment of the fruits of their borers employed by or on behalf of the labor and talents; and no man or set of government, whether directly or indirectly, men is entitled to exclusive separable en-through persons, firms, or corporations, dowments and privileges or immunities contracting with the state, shall conform from the government, but in consideration to the reduced standard of eight hours a of public services; and any laws destruc- day, recently adopted by Congress for native of these fundamental principles are tional employes; and also for an amendwithout moral binding force, and should ment to the acts of incorporation for cities be repealed. And believing that all the and towns, by which all laborers and meevils resulting from unjust legislation now chanics employed at their expense shall affecting the industrial classes can be re-conform to the same number of hours. moved by the adoption of the principles contained in the following declaration : therefore,

8. That the enlightened spirit of the age demands the abolition of the system of contract labor in our prisons and other reformatory institutions.

Resolved, That it is the duty of the government to establish a just standard of 9. That the protection of life, liberty, distribution of capital and labor, by provid- and property are the three cardinal prining a purely national circulating medium, ciples of government, and the first two based on the faith and resources of the na-are more sacred than the latter; therefore, tion, issued directly to the people without | money needed for prosecuting wars should, the intervention of any system of banking as it is required, be assessed and collected corporations, which money shall be legal from the wealthy of the country, and not tender in the payment of all debts, public entailed as a burden on posterity. and private, and interchangeable, at the option of the holder, for government bonds bearing a rate of interest not to exceed 3.65 per cent., subject to future legislation by Congress.

2. That the national debt should be paid in good faith, according to the original contract, at the earliest option of the government, without mortgaging the property of the people or the future exigencies of labor to enrich a few capitalists at home and abroad.

3. That justice demands that the burdens of government should be so adjusted as to bear equally on all classes, and that the exemption from taxation of government bonds bearing extravagant rates of interest, is a violation of all just principles of revenue laws.

4. That the public lands of the United States belong to the people, and should not be sold to individuals nor granted to corporations, but should be held as a sacred trust for the benefit of the people, and should be granted to landless settlers only, in amounts not exceeding one hundred and sixty acres of land.

10. That it is the duty of the government to exercise its power over railroads and telegraph corporations, that they shall not in any case be privileged to exact such rates of freight, transportation, or charges, by whatever name, as may bear unduly or unequally upon the producer or consumer.

11. That there should be such a reform in the civil service of the national government as will remove it beyond all partisan influence, and place it in the charge and under the direction of intelligent and competent business men.

12. That as both history and experience teach us that power ever seeks to perpetuate itself by every and all means, and that its prolonged possession in the hands of one person is always dangerous to the interests of a free people, and believing that the spirit of our organic laws and the stability and safety of our free institutions are best obeyed on the one hand, and secured on the other, by a regular constitutional change in the chief of the country at each election; therefore, we are in favor of limiting the occupancy of the presidential chair to one term.

5. That Congress should modify the 13. That we are in favor of granting tariff so as to admit free such articles of general amnesty and restoring the Union common use as we can neither produce nor at once on the basis of equality of rights grow, and lay duties for revenue mainly and privileges to all, the impartial adminis upon articles of luxury and upon such ar-tration of justice being the only true bond ticles of manufacture as will, we having of union to bind the states together and rethe raw materials, assist in further develop-store the government of the people. 14. That we demand the subjection of

ing the resources of the country.

[BOOK II.

Liquors; and we inthis movement. ty, and sobriety tions for holding

public office for es of opinion are

disregard of right and the unparalleled attempt by Congress, o oppression and tyranny which have ever, to deprive any marked its career. After the most solemn interfere with its and unanimous pledge of both Houses of usurpation of powe Congress to prosecute the war exclusively warrant in the con for the maintenance of the government tioned by the per and the preservation of the Union under form of governme the constitution, it has repeatedly violated single, centralize the most sacred pledge under which alone ernment, in whi was rallied that noble volunteer army of the states will lente salaries of pub which carried our flag to victory. Instead an unqualified take the places of fees and of restoring the Union, it has, so far as in place of a fedett all means should be its power, dissolved it, and subjected ten And that we corruption and encourage states, in time of profound peace, to mili- (so called) of tary despotism and negro supremacy. It unconstituti President and Vice-President has nullified there the right of trial by That on ected directly by the people. jury; it has abolished the habeas corpus, ried there in favor of a sound national that most sacred writ of liberty; it has against adequate to the demands of busoverthrown the freedom of speech and foe, must convertible into gold and silver press; it has substituted arbitrary seizures and all ill of the holder, and the adoption and arrests, and military trials and secret must be measure compatible with justice star-chamber inquisitions, for the constitutional tribunals; it has disregarded, in time of peace, the right of the people to be tribu free from searches and seizures; it has peop entered the post and telegraph offices, and und even the private rooms of individuals, and or seized their private papers and letters, without any specific charge or notice of affidavit, as required by the organic law. It has converted the American capitol into a bastile; it has established a system of spies and official espionage to which no constitutional monarchy of Europe would now dare to resort. It has abolished

The safety to appreciate our present to the gold standard.

the rates of ocean and inland postand railroad telegraph lines and transportation, should be made as has possible by law. That we are opposed to all discrimination Sr of capital against labor, as well as

mopoly and class legislation.

That the removal of the burdens imposed the traffic in intoxicating drinks will acipate labor, and will practically prote labor reform.

That suffrage should be granted to all

That the fostering and extension of common schools is a primary duty of the gov

That a liberal policy should be pursued promote foreign immigration.

We, the Liberal Republicans of the United States, in national convention assembled at Cincinnati, proclaim the following principles as essential to just government.

1. We recognize the equality of all men before the law, and hold that it is the duty of government, in its dealings with the people, to mete out equal and exact justice to all, of whatever nativity, race, color, or persuasion, religious or political.

2. We pledge ourselves to maintain the union of these states, emancipation, and all enfranchisement, and to oppose any rethe opening of the questions settled by the way thirteenth, fourteenth, and fifteenth amendoments of the constitution.

3. We demand the immediate and absolute removal of all disabilities imposed on ount of the Rebellion, which was finally dued seven years ago, believing that