514 



MAINE. 



newed hope and incited to fresh efforts to accomplish 

 for themselves the great deliverance to which we 

 have so nearly attained. Like wise men bent on 

 the accomplishment of a great work for God and 

 humanity, we ought to avail ourselves of the highly 

 favorable circumstances of the present time to com- 

 plete it. With that view, we respectfully and ear- 

 nestly entreat the Legislature now to adopt such fur- 

 ther measures of repression as shall be deemed 

 needful for the absolute suppression of the liquor 

 traffic in this State. 



Governor Conner, on taking the chair to pre- 

 side over the Convention, said : 



We may well congratulate ourselves on the prog- 

 ress which has been made the past year in all mat- 

 ters pertaining to temperance, and on the good 

 grounds we have to hope for the further advance- 

 ment of the reform. The laws in regard to the 

 illegal sale of liquors have been vigorously enforced, 

 and their efficiency has been greatly heightened by 

 the amendments of them which were made by the 

 Legislature of last winter. While the officers of the 

 law have been active in bringing to justice the vio- 

 lators of the law, the friends of temperance, by pub- 

 lic meetings, through the reform clubs and other 

 organizations devoted to this beneficence, have been 

 busily at work, keeping alive the public interest, dis- 

 suading men from the drinking habit, and fortifying 

 the young against temptation. 



There is no reaction from the sentiment which has 

 for so many^ years pervaded the great body of the 

 people of this State. It continues to be one of strong 

 and growing antagonism to the sale and use of 

 liquors, of approval of the laws that have been en- 

 acted for the total suppression of the one, and of 

 sympathy with the efforts that are being put forth 

 to discountenance the other. There is abundant rea- 

 son on every hand to labor on hopefully and to wait 

 patiently until the whole State shall be as free from 

 the crimes and shames which alcoholic drink entails 

 as many of our communities now are. But for the 

 final success here we are dependent in great mea- 

 sure upon the cooperation of our fellow citizens in 

 other States and our fellow men in other countries. 

 If nowhere else did this cause, which is as broad as 

 humanity, awaken interest and receive support, the 

 struggle here would be well nigh a hopeless one. 



The subject of the national finances was re- 

 garded with unusual interest by a portion of 

 the people of the State. The great point re- 

 lated to the increased issue of " greenbacks " by 

 the Federal Government. The questions relat- 

 ing to labor appear to have awakened less in- 

 terest. A Greenback (so called) Convention 

 was held at Lewiston on June 5th to nominate 

 candidates for State officers. The number of 

 delegates present was 782. Mr. Solon Chase, 

 of Androscoggin, was made President. On 

 taking the chair he said : 



We are going to throw a vote next fall that will 

 strike both parties like a stroke of chain lightning. 

 The bottom is not knocked out of the party when 

 we see men like James G. Bluine rocking the rag- 

 baby. Innate the currency, and you raise the price 

 of my steers and at the same time pay the public 

 debt. ^Resumption means falling prices and shrink- 

 age of wages. I say stop hoarding. We've got so 

 now that the farmer's grass grows backward. When 

 we get to specie payment we have a system resting 

 on 3,000 years. Under that system we have fluctu- 

 ating values, and money kings can rise or fall at 

 their pleasuro. We propose to pay as we agree, and 

 not by doubling the value of the bonds by shrinking 

 values. We want to repeal the rascalities of Con- 

 gress enacted by the money power. We want a pa- 



per money that shall be the peer of coin, so the vol- 

 ume shall not change to change prices. We don't 

 want the poor or rich robbed. We want the law of 

 supply and demand to rule. 



The resolutions adopted were as follows : 

 The National Greenback party is an independent 

 party, forced into existence by the exigencies of the 

 times, and intended to restore to the country that 

 purity of administration and wisdom of legislation 

 which is in accordance with the civilization and in- 

 telligence of the nineteenth century. The National 

 Greenback party of Maine endorse the platform laid 

 down by the Toledo Convention February 22, 1878, 

 and briefly enunciate the policy of the Greenback 

 party of Maine in the following propositions : 



1. We declare our fealty to the American moneta- 

 ry system, the abolition of all bank issues, the free 

 unlimited coinage of gold and silver, and the issue 

 by the Government of full legal-tender paper money, 

 receivable for all dues and payable for all debts, pub- 

 lic and private, in accordance with existing contracts 

 and in amounts sufficient to meet the wants of trade, 

 to give employment to all labor and to enable the 

 people to do a cash business, and to relieve them 

 from the debt system which has made the industrial 

 and commercial classes the slaves and drudges of the 

 credit mongers of the world. 



2. We declare our opposition to every measure 

 looking to the resumption of specie payments the 

 monarchical system of finance which puts all the in- 

 terests of industry, trade, and commerce in the hands 

 of the few, and enforces a monopoly of wealth de- 

 structive of the highest material good of society. 



3. We proclaim our uncompromising hostility to 

 the perpetuation of the system of government loaned 

 indebtedness which is calculated to burden unborn 

 generations, and declare that the Government should 

 use all the funds now hoarded for resumption pur- 

 poses to pay and cancel outstanding bonds. 



4. The contraction policy now being pursued is 

 proving serious in its results to all the business and 

 industrial interests of the country, and ought to be 

 removed. 



5. We demand that all legislation shall be so en- 

 acted and so administered as to secure to each man, 

 as nearly as practicable, the just rewards of his own 

 labor. 



6. We denounce the red flag of Communism, im- 

 ported from Europe, which asks for an equal division 

 of property. 



7. We favor simple, plain, and economical govern- 

 ment, and as few laws as possible, and they rigidly 

 enforced; as few officials as practicable, and they 

 held to a close accountability. To this end we de- 

 mand the abolition of all useless offices. 



8. We are opposed to the nomination for office of 

 old politicians, especially those who have been for 

 a long time and are now in the employment of the 

 Government ; but we are in favor of the nomination 

 of new men, representing the industrial and busi- 

 ness class. 



9. We favor biennial sessions of the Legislature, 

 the reduction of all salaries to a reasonable amount, 

 and abolishment of imprisonment for debt. 



Mr. Snow, of Oxford, presented a resolution 

 asking for the repeal of all laws which make a 

 distinction between the sexes in regard to the 

 right of ballot. The resolution caused consid- 

 erable commotion, and was voted down almost 

 unanimously. Joseph W. Smith was nomi- 

 nated for Governor on the first ballot. He is a 

 respectable and successful man of business, 

 who has been an active politician. He was a 

 Democrat till 1855, and afterward a Republi- 

 can; and in 1872 and 1873 he was a member 

 of the State Senate. 



