680 



NEW YORK. 



the State. We look to the inquiry now in progress, 

 under the direction of the Legislature, to develop the 

 facts which will guide to all needed action. 



The Democratic State Convention assembled 

 at Syracuse on September llth. J. C. Jacobs 

 was chosen President, and the following plat- 

 form was adopted : 



The Democratic party of the State of New York in 

 convention assembled, profoundly sensible of the im- 

 portant consequences depending upon the immediate 

 result of their deliberations, do declare and reassert 

 the principles of popular liberty and rights laid down 

 by Washington. Jetferson, and other founders of the 

 republic. We hold to the Constitution with all its 

 amendments, sacredly maintained and enforced, and 

 to the rights of the States under the Constitution. The 

 tendencies of the Eepublican party to centralization 

 and consolidation are contrary to the principles of our 

 institutions. The United States form a nation in the 

 sense, to the extent, and for the purposes defined in 

 the Federal Constitution, and we resist every attempt 

 to transform it into an empire. We insist on unity, 

 fraternity, and concord, and that the issues settled By 

 the war shall not be revived. We deprecate the efforts 

 of the Eepublican managers to revive sectional feuds 

 and to rekindle the passions of the past. We demand 

 honest elections, and an honest count of votes. Never 

 again, by fraud or force, shall the popular will be set 

 aside to gratify unscrupulous partisans. The Democ- 

 racy oppose aft favoritism. No single interest or class 

 of persons should be protected at the expense of others. 

 Democracy means the government of the whole people 

 for the whole people and by the whole people ; but if 

 any class is to receive special consideration, it should 

 be the working people, whom all other governments 

 oppose and crush. The rights of the people should be 

 scrupulously protected from the encroachments of capi- 

 tal and the despotic greed of corporations. The De- 

 mocracy believe now, as they have always believed, 

 in gold and silver as the constitutional money of the 

 country. We condemn the speculative methods of the 

 present Secretary of the Treasury, the questionable 

 favoritism he has shown to particular monetary in- 

 stitutions or so-called " syndicates," and the extrava- 

 gance he has permitted in his department in connec- 

 tion with his refunding schemes. We look with shame 

 and sorrow on the disgraceful repudiation of all their 

 professions of civil-service reform by the Executive 

 and his supporters. Federal offices have been freely 

 given for despicable partisan services ; leading officers 

 of the Government are making partisan speeches, 

 managing political campaigns, and requiring their sub- 

 ordinates to contribute to campaign funds, in deroga- 

 tion of every principle and promise of an honest civil 

 service, "fhe 104.000 Federal officers constitute an 

 army, moving under a single direction, to keep the 

 Eepublican party in power, and this vast patronage is 

 now used as a corruption fund against the people. Wo 

 congratulate the. people of New York on the results 

 of Democratic administration in the payment of the 

 State debt, the reduction of expenses, and the dimin- 

 ished burden of taxation. "We condemn the efforts of 

 demagogues to create jealousy and antagonism be- 

 tween the city of New York and the rest of the State, 

 when their interests are identical and the growth of 

 the one is the prosperity of the other. The Democratic 

 officers of the State of New York, by the ability and 

 fidelity with which they have discharged their duty 

 during the past three years, by their conscientious ap- 

 plication or constitutional tests to the acts of every 

 department of the State government, by their success- 

 ful resistance to private and partial legislation, and by 

 their economical conduct of the finances and reduction 

 of expenses of the State government, have entitled 

 themselves to the gratitude of their fellow citizens of 

 all parties. The people of New York farmers, manu- 

 facturers, and merchants alike demand that they shall 

 have all the advantages which accrue to them from their 

 favorable position, and that the railroads they havo 



chartered and endowed with vast and profitable privi- 

 leges shall be operated for their benefit and not for 

 their ruin. We therefore endorse as our expression of 

 the foregoing principles the following : 



1. Honesty, efficiency, and economy in every de- 

 partment of the government. 



2. All property should bear its just proportion of 

 taxation, and we pledge the Democratic party to re- 

 form the laws of assessments to that end. 



3. Lessening the burdens and increasing the advan- 

 tages of the working people. 



4. The equal protection of the rights of labor and 

 capital under just laws. 



5. The railroads prohibited by law from unjust dis- 

 crimination and from favoring localities or individuals. 



6. The tolls upon the canals to be kept at the lowest 

 rates possible, consistent with economical and efficient 

 management. 



7. The maintenance of the public schools, the pride 

 and hope of a free State. 



8. Prisons for the punishment and reformation of 

 criminals, and not for the injury of honest labor, 

 which should be protected as far as possible from such 

 competition. 



9. Municipal self-government in local affairs. 



10. That the successful efforts of our Democratic 

 Bepresentatives in Congress, in restoring a fair and 

 intelligent jury system and in protecting the freedom 

 of the oallot, ana preventing the unconstitutional in- 

 terference of the Federal Administration with the State 

 elections, are approved ; and the action jf the Execu- 

 tive in vetoing the legislation designed to prevent the 

 presence of armed soldiers and the employment of paid 

 Federal supervisors and marshals at the polls, and the 

 use of the public funds for this purpose, is denounced 

 by the Democracy of the State of New York. And as 

 the foundation of all liberty and prosperity, privileges 

 and rights under our government, we shall continue 

 to uphold a system of untrammeled suffrage, abso- 

 lutely free from Federal force or supervision. 



11. It is the duty of the State, alike in the interest 

 of taxation, temperance, and equal and exact justice to 

 the community, to make euch revision of the excise 

 laws as will better secure the rights of the citizens to 

 life, liberty, property, and public order. 



After the adoption of the platform, nomina- 

 tions for Governor were called for and made. 

 The call of the roll was then commenced, but 

 had not proceeded far when Mr. Augustus 

 Schell of New York rose and said . 



MR. CHAIRMAN : The delegation to which I have 

 the honor to belong represents a large portion of the 

 Democratic party. It is one which in past times has 

 been ever ready, ever willing to support all the regu- 

 lar nominations of the Democratic party. I myself, 

 for years, and many gentlemen who are with me, for 

 years ana years past, ever have been ready in storm 

 and in sunshine to sustain and support that great party. 

 We find ourselves now in a position which has been 

 communicated to the people of this State, which has 

 been communicated to its representatives on the floor 

 of this Convention, that under no circumstances will 

 the Democracy of the city of New York support the 

 nomination of Lucius Eobinson. (Great applause, 

 groans, and hisses.) They, however, in making this 

 announcement, desired to convey to our friends and 

 Democrats in New York, that we were ready and will- 

 ing to support any other name that they might place 

 at the head of the ticket ; but our suggestion has been 

 unheeded, and from appearances in this Convention it 

 has been determined that Lucius Eobinson shall be 

 nominated as Governor. I desire to further state, in 

 behalf of my friends from New York, and in behalf of 

 the great and noble constituency whose representatives 

 are now present, that the rest of the ticket which shall 

 be nominated by this Convention will receive its warm 

 and hearty support. I desire now to announce to this 

 Convention that the delegation from New York will 

 retire from the hall. 



