CONNECTICUT. 



239 



press borrowers of money by the charge of excessive 

 rates of interest : therefore 



Jieeolced, That in the opinion of this convention 

 the next Legislature should enact a usury law that 

 shall restrain the taking of excessive rates of inter- 

 est, and provide proper penalties for the violation 

 of such law. 



Which amendment, after some opposition 

 concerning the insertion of it in the platform, 

 was adopted by the convention, and the plat- 

 form was ratified as a whole. 



A resolution was afterward offered by the 

 same delegate and adopted by the convention, 

 declaring that a law should be enacted by the 

 State, limiting the time of work for women 

 and children employed in factories, so as not 

 to exceed ten hours a day. 



A resolution, declaring in favor of a consti- 

 tutional convention to revise the organic law 

 of the State, was proposed for adoption, but 

 strenuously opposed, and finally voted down. 



Thereupon the convention adjourned sine 

 die. 



The Democrats of the State held their con- 

 vention at Hartford on the 29th of February, 

 which was very numerously attended, not a 

 few of the delegates present belonging to the 

 Liberal Republican party who made common 

 cause with the Democrats. All the candidates 

 proposed for the several State offices were 

 nominated by this convention unanimously, 

 some of them by acclamation, as follows: for 

 Governor, Charles B. Ingersoll, ot'New Haven; 

 for Lieutenant-Governor, George E. Sill, of 

 Hartford; for Secretary of State, Mervin II. 

 Sanger, of Canterbury; for Treasurer, William 

 E. Raymond, of New Canaan ; for Controller, 

 Alfred R. Goodrich, of Vernon. The above- 

 named candidates for Lientenant-Governor and 

 Treasurer, respectively, were Liberal Republi- 

 cans. 



The following platform was then unanimous- 

 ly adopted : 



Setolced, That the Democratic and Liberal party 

 is based upon the principles of the constitution de- 

 clared at Cincinnati and Baltimore ; it ia firm in the" 

 conviction that its cause is just, and that its final 

 success cannot be long delayed. 



Jfaolted, That we arraign the President of the 

 United State* for using his pardoning power in the 

 interest of the ballot-box stuffers and repeaters ; for 

 prostituting the high trusts committed to his hands, 

 at a time of extraordinary demoralization and public 

 wrongs, to the interests of those who make sport of 

 the ballot, and debauch the elections ; for striking 

 down a faithful cabinet officer, to please a corrupt 

 ring, and persisting in retaining another, who pays 

 out to greedy cormorants vast sums of the people's 

 taxes in violation of all law ; for using the armv to 

 crush the civil power and the riehts of States. We 

 arraign the Vice-President and Vice-President-elect 

 of the United States for their complicity in one of 

 the greatest and most corrupt schemes of bribery 

 ever known to influence the votes of Congressmen 

 to take wrongfully millions of the public money, for 

 the benefit of a corporation organized for the sole 

 purpose of plunder. We arraign the leading men 

 "f the radical party, occupying high official posi- 

 tions, for the aid they have rendered to corrupt 

 rinzs; for the waste of public money upon steam- 

 ship subsidies, and for wickedly squandering the 

 public lands upon combinations as corrupt as the 



Credit Mobilier. We arraign the party that repu- 

 diates Senator Caldwell and places Senator Cameron 

 ta the head of the committee over which Charles 

 Sunnier so long presided to the satisfaction of all 

 parties. We arraign that party for its manifold cor- 

 ruptions in the elections, in the appropriations, in 

 the contracts, and in the legislative and executive 

 departments of the Government. 



J&iolceJ, That the interference of Federal office- 

 holders, from the President downward, in political 

 affairs which are exclusively under State jurisdic- 

 tion, has already led to results which should rouse 

 thoughtful attention and prompt action on the part 

 of voters. A Governor, receiving no votes from the 

 people, foisted upon a State by presidential orders ; 

 the creation of a State Legislature by Executive de- 

 cree ; and the destruction by Congress of electoral 

 votes of two States, and parts of the electoral vote 

 of another State, are among the alarming results of 

 centralization and usurpation practised oy the Ad- 

 ministration party. 



Jittolctd, That the sympathies of this convention 

 and of all who believe in national independence and 

 republican government, are due to the indomitable 

 patriots of Cuba, in the arduous struggle for freedom 

 and just government which they have so long and 

 so bravely maintained in the face of enormous odds 

 and unprecedented difficulties. Though the Ad- 

 ministration at Washington has been against them, 

 the hearts of the American people have never ceased 

 to feel for their sufferings, or to pray for their 

 success. 



Jiaolved, That we welcome Spain to the sisterhood 

 of republics, and look forward to the freedom of 

 Cuba as a necessary and early consequence. 



Beeohed, That in the death of Horace Greelev the 

 country has lost one of its able and distinguished 

 public men one who showed himself capable of 

 regarding country before party who kept himself 

 pure in a time of corruption, and who, earlier than 

 most of his fellow-countrymen, saw and condemned 

 the prevalent depravity of the Republican leaders, 

 and warned the people in these forcible words : "I 

 insist that the legislation of your countrv, national 

 and State, needs purification, and that the leading 

 men in our Government should be called to justice." 

 ' Retohed, That the repeal of the usury law, fol- 

 lowed by an unusual stringency in the money mar- 

 ket of this and other States, has resulted in evils 

 that call for remedy not the least of which is the 

 tendency to change our savings institutions from 

 depositories of the greatest safety to speculative in- 

 stitutions of a questionable character. Further action 

 on thepart of the Legislature is demanded. 



Ketottedj That since the adoption of the constitu- 

 tion of this State, over fifty years ago, new indus- 

 tries and vast public enterprises have come into ex- 

 istence. In every department a revision is necessary, 

 and is demanded by the general interests of the 

 State ; and we recommend a call for a constitutional 

 convention by the ensuing General Assembly. 



Sffohed, That the legislation of this Stute to pro- 

 tect labor and laboring children has been in the right 

 direction, but something more is needed ; and, to se- 

 cure the equal and just advantages of education to 

 the poor, as well as the wealthy, we deem the estab- 

 lishment of a Bureau of Labor Statistics in this State 

 to be important. 



Immediately after the foregoing platform had 

 been adopted, a delegate, in behalf the Labor- 

 Reformers, offered 'the following resolutions, 

 recommending their adoption as a whole : 



Retained, That we demand the reenactment of the 

 usurv laws of this State, which were repealed by the 

 last Legislature, believing their repeal to be injurious 

 to the interests of honest labor and legitimate busi- 

 ness ; its direct tendency being to increase a rate of 

 interest already oppressive and to increase the taxes 

 of the already over-taxed producing classes. 



