ARKANSAS. 



ARMY OF THE UNITED STATES. 



selected, and other business transacted relating 

 to the State election. 



The Greenback National-Labor Convention 

 assembled on June 17th, and nominated for 

 Governor, W. P. Parks ; for Secretary of State, 

 C. E. Tobey ; for State Treasurer, W. A. Wat- 

 son ; for Auditor of State, C. E. Cunningham ; 

 for State Land Commissioner, Wilshire Riley ; 

 for Superintendent of Public Instruction, Pe- 

 ter Brugman ; for Chief Justice of Supreme 

 Court, J. Cole Davis ; for Clerk of Chancery 

 Court, W. T. llolloway. 



The Democratic Convention assembled on 

 June 4th, and nominated for Governor, T. J. 

 Churchill ; for Secretary of State, Jacob Fro- 

 lich ; for Auditor of State, John Crawford ; 

 for Treasurer of State, William E. Woodruff", 

 Jr. ; for Attorney-General, C. B. Moore ; for 

 Commissioner of Public Lands, D. W. Lear ; 

 for Supreme Judge, E. H. English ; for Super- 

 intendent of Public Instruction, J. L. Denton ; 

 for Judge of Pulaski Chancery Court, D. W. 

 Carroll ; for Clerk of Pulaski Chancery Court, 

 J. W. Calloway. 



The following platform was adopted: 



We, the Democratic party of the State of Arkansas, 

 in delegated convention assembled, reaffirming and 

 renewing the pledge of our allegiance and unwaver- 

 ing devotion to those great principles of equal rights, 

 un trammeled suffrage, and universal toleration toward 

 all men of whatsoever race, nationality, creed, or con- 

 dition, that underlie and uphold the fabric of our free 

 Government and republican institutions, and hereby 

 solemnly plighting ourselves to a continued recogni- 

 tion, observance, and enforcement of the same, do 

 further make these our declarations of party prin- 

 ciples : 



1. That the General and State governments are each 

 in their own proper and constitutionally appointed 

 sphere supreme, and entitled to equal love, obedience, 

 and devotion, and that neither can trench upon the 

 province or prerogatives of the other without grave 

 danger and detriment to the highest interests of both. 



2. That, recognizing morality and intelligence to- 

 gether as the true and lasting basis of every "free gov- 

 ernment, and an essential requisite to a proper exer- 

 cise and enjoyment of the rights and privileges of the 

 same, we are in favor of such a system of free public 

 schools as will increase to even greater extent the fa- 

 cilities of education our people now enjoy, and with 

 this view we commend to the Legislature of our State 

 such needed revision of our school laws as may be 

 most conducive to this end. 



3. That we favor and cordially invite immigration 

 from every quarter without restriction, save that it be 

 of an honest and industrious class, and we hereby 

 proclaim and publish to the world that all charges 

 and intimations that any man or classes of men have 

 been or will be in any manner proscribed, or ostra- 

 cized among us on account of political opinion, or 

 otherwise, is an unjust and unfounded libel upon our 

 people and State ; and we hereby guarantee equal pro- 

 tection and enlightened tolerance to all alike who may 

 come to cast their lot among us, and make our beauti- 

 ful and growing State their home ; and we demand 

 from the Legislature the enactment of such suitable 

 laws as will tend to encourage and increase immigra- 

 tion into our midst. 



4. We are in favor of such wholesome legislation as 

 may be necessary to encourage the investment of cap- 

 ital in and the building up of manufactories in the 

 State to the full extent that the same may be done 

 without undue discrimination in favor of one class or 

 branch of industry or enterprise before another of 

 equal importance to the welfare of the people at large. 



5. That, recognizing from well-attested acts and 

 conduct in the recent past that the time has come 

 when a large number of our colored fellow-citizens, 

 ignoring the party affiliations and prejudices of a bit- 

 ter past, are now willing to strike hands with us in 

 the living present and march shoulder to shoulder 

 with the great political party to which is intrusted the 

 reins of power to be exercised for our common weal, 

 we do hereby warmly acknowledge their kindly aid 

 and disposition already shown, and cordially invite 

 them to a yet fuller and more active cooperation with 

 us in fostering and forwarding our common interests, 

 and the welfare of our noble Commonwealth. 



We endorse the action of the Democratic State Con- 

 vention assembled in 1878 in recommending the sub- 

 mission of the question of our State's bonded indebt- 

 edness to the people by resolution providing for an 

 amendment to our State Constitution, as also the ac- 

 tion of our State Legislature of 1879 in submitting the 

 same to the people, and we do not now regard that 

 question as a political one, and remit the same to 

 tne people to be voted on by them at the approaching 

 election, irrespective of party. 



The result of the election was the success of 

 the Democratic ticket by a large majority. 



ARMY OF THE UNITED STATES. Lieu- 

 tenant-General Sheridan reports that there 

 were 4,850 officers and men in the Department 

 of Dakota; 2,840 in the Department of the 

 Platte ; 4,720 in the Department of Missouri ; 

 and 3,640 in the Department of Texas. He 

 protests anew that this force is too small for 

 the work which it has to perform, and inade- 



Suate for the suppression of disturbances in 

 le Territories and Western States, and the 

 protection of the borders. In the Division of 

 the West there is only one man for 75 square 

 miles of territory, in the Department of Texas 

 only one man for 125 miles. 



Major-General Hancock reports a force of 

 317 commissioned officers and 2,390 enlisted 

 men in the Division of the Atlantic. 



The number of soldiers drawing increased 

 pay for length of service under the act of 1854 

 is 6,129; for five years of continuous service, 

 3,762; for ten years, 1,872; for fifteen years, 

 227 ; for twenty years, 130 ; for twenty -five 

 years, 97 ; for thirty years, 41. 



The number of men and officers killed and 

 mortally wounded in actions with Indians in 

 th^ four years past was for each year as fol- 

 lows: In 1876, 16 officers and 272 men; in 

 1877, 7 officers and 121 men ; in 1878, 2 offi- 

 cers and 8 men ; in 1879, 2 officers and 32 men. 

 The total losses for the four years were 27 offi- 

 cers and 333 men. 



According to the report of Adjutant-General 

 Drum, the enlistment of soldiers has been con- 

 ducted with such care in selection, that out of 

 23,300 applicants only 5,026, or less than 22 

 per cent., were enlisted. A great improvement 

 in the class of men applying for enlistment has 

 been observed within the past few years, which 

 he ascribes to the act of June 18, 1878, to ad- 

 vance the more soldierly and intelligent of the 

 enlisted men to commissions. The total num- 

 ber of soldiers who have passed out of the ser- 

 vice during the year is, reported as 7,582 : 235 

 by death, 2,043 by desertion, 3,158 discharged 

 on expiration of service, 482 by court-martial, 



