748 



UNITED STATES. 



telegraph offices, and even the private rooms of indi- 

 viduals, and seized their private papers and letters, 

 without any specific charge or notice of affidavit, as 

 required by the organic Taw: it has converted the 

 American capital into a bastile ; it has established a 

 system of spies and official espionage to which no 

 constitutional monarchies of Europe would dare to 

 resort ; it has abolished the right of appeal, on im- 

 portant constitutional questions, to the supreme judi- 

 cial tribunal, and threatens to curtail or destroy its 

 original jurisdiction which is irrevocably vested by 

 the Constitution, while the learned Chief Justice has 

 been subjected to the most atrocious calumnies merely 

 because he would not prostitute his high office to the 

 support of the false and partisan charges preferred 

 against the President. Its corruption and extrava- 

 gance have exceeded any thing known in history, 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 re- 

 peated assaults, the pillars of the Government are 

 rocking on their base, and, should it succeed in No- 

 vember next and inaugurate its President, we will 

 meet as a subject 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 attempt by Congress, on any pretext whatever, 

 to deprive any State of this right, or interfere with 

 its exercise, is a flagrant usurpation of power which 

 can find no warrant in the Constitution, and, if sanc- 

 tioned by the people, will subvert our form of Gov- 

 ernment, and can only end in a single, centralized, and 

 consolidated Government, in which the separate ex- 

 istence of the States will be entirely absorbed and an 

 unqualified despotism be established, in place of 

 federal union of coequal States, and that we regard 

 the reconstruction acts, so called, of Congress as 

 such a usurpation and unconstitutional, revolutionary, 

 and void. That our soldiers and sailors who carried 

 the flag of our country to victory against a most gal- 

 lant and determined foe must ever be gratefully re- 

 membered, and all the guarantees given in their favor 

 must be faithfully carried into execution. 



That the public lands should be distributed as 

 widely as possible among the people, and should be 

 disposed of either under the preemption or home- 

 stead law, or sold in reasonable quantities, and to 

 none but actual occupants, at the minimum price es- 

 tablished by the Government. When grants of the 

 public lands may be deemed necessary for the encour- 

 agement of important public improvements, the pro- 

 ceeds of the sale of such lands, and not the lands 

 themselves, should be so applied. 



That the President of the United States, Andrew 

 Johnson, in exercising the powers of his high office 

 in resisting the aggressions of Congress upon the con- 

 stitutional rights of the States and the people, is en- 

 titled to the gratitude of the whole American people, 

 and in behalf of the Democratic party we tender him 

 our thanks for his patriotic efforts in that regard. 



Upon this platform the Democratic party appeals to 

 every patriot, including all the conservative element 

 and all who desire to support the Constitution, and 

 restore the Union, forgetting all past difference of 

 opinion, to unite with us in the present great struggle 

 for the liberties of the people ; and to all such, to 

 whatever party they may have heretofore belonged, 

 we extend the right hand of fellowship, and hail all 

 such cooperating with us as friends and brethren. 



The following persons were then put in 

 nomination for the presidency, before the con- 

 vention: James E. English, of Connecticut; 



George H. Pendleton, of Ohio ; Winfield Scott 

 Hancock, of Pennsylvania; Joel Parker, of 

 New Jersey; Sanford E. Church, of New 

 York ; Asa Packer, of Pennsylvania ; Andrew 

 Johnson, of Tennessee ; James R. Doolittle, of 

 Wisconsin ; Frank P. Blair, of Missouri ; Thom- 

 as A. Hendricks, of Indiana ; Reverdy Johnson, 

 of Maryland ; and votes were given for General 

 Ewing, of Ohio, and John Q. Adams, of Massa- 

 chusetts. Subsequently, other names were 

 proposed, and votes cast, as will be seen by 

 reference to the ballotings. During the fourth 

 ballot, the name of Mr. Seymour, the chairman, 

 was proposed, when he said: "I trust I may 

 be permitted now to make a single remark. 

 Very much to my surprise, my name has been 

 mentioned. I must not be nominated by this 

 convention, as I could not accept its nomination 

 if tendered, which I do not expect. My own 

 inclinations prompted me to decline at the 

 outset ; my honor compels me to do so now. 

 I am grateful for any expression of kindness. 

 It must be distinctly understood, it is impossi- 

 ble, consistently with my position, to allow my 

 name to be mentioned in this convention 

 against my protest. The clerk will proceed 

 with the call." 



On the fifth day of the session the twenty- 

 first ballot was taken, and thus far the ballots 

 were as follows : 



