752 



UNITED STATES. 



Sympathy with the Oppressed. This country has al- 

 ways been the refuge of the oppressed from every 

 land exiles for conscience' sake and in the spirit 

 of the founders of our Government we condemn the 

 oppression practiced by the Russian Government 

 upon its Lutheran and Jewish subjects, and we call 

 upon our National Government, in the interest of 

 justice and humanity, by all just and proper means, 

 to use its prompt and best efforts to bring about a 

 cessation of these cruel persecutions in the domin- 

 ions of the Czar and to secure to theoppressed equal 

 rights. 



Irish Home Rule. We tender our profound and 

 earnest sympathy to those lovers of freedom who 

 are struggling for home rule and the great cause of 

 local self-government in Ireland. 



Immigration. We heartily approve all legitimate 

 efforts to prevent the United States from being used 

 as the dumping ground for the known criminals and 

 professional paupers of Europe, and we demand the 

 rigid enforcement of the laws against Chinese immi- 

 gration or the importation of foreign workmen un- 

 der contract, to degrade American labor and lessen 

 its wages, but we condemn and denounce any and all 

 attempts to restrict the immigration of the indus- 

 trious and worthy of foreign lands. 



Soldiers' Pensions. This convention hereby renews 

 the expression of appreciation of the patriotism of 

 the soldiers and sailors of the Union in the war for 

 its preservation, and we favor just and liberal pen- 

 sions for all disabled Union soldiers, their widows 

 and dependents, but we demand that the work of 

 the Pension Office shall be done industriously, im- 

 partially, and honestly. We denounce the present 

 administration of that office as incompetent, corrupt, 

 disgraceful, and dishonest. 



Improvement of Waterways. The Federal Govern- 

 ment should care for and improve the Mississippi 

 River and other great waterways of the Republic, so 

 as to secure for the interior States easy and cheap 

 transportation to the tidewater. When any water- 

 way of the Republic is of sufficient importance to 

 demand the aid of the Government, such aid should 

 be extended on a definite plan of continuous work 

 until permanent improvement is secured. 



The Nicaragua Canal. For purposes of national 

 defense and the promotion of commerce between 

 the States, we recognize the early construction of 

 the Nicaragua Canal and its protection against for- 

 eign control as of great importance to the United 

 States. 



The World's Columbian Fair. Recognizing the 

 World's Columbian Exposition as a national under- 

 taking of vast importance, in which the General 

 Government has invited the co-operation of all the 

 powers of the world, and appreciating the accept- 

 ance by many of such powers of the invitation so 

 extended, and the broad and liberal efforts being 

 made by them to contribute to the grandeur of the 

 undertaking, we are of opinion that Congress should 

 make such necessary financial provision as shall 

 be requisite to the maintenance of the national honor 

 and public faith. 



Freedom of Education. Popular education being 

 the only safe basis of popular suffrage, we recom- 

 mend to the several States most liberal appropria- 

 tions for the public schools. Free common schools 

 are the nursery of good government, and they have 

 always received the fostering care of the Demo- 

 cratic party, which favors every means of increas- 

 ing intelligence. Freedom of education, being an 

 essential of civil and religious liberty, as well as 

 a necessity of the development of intelligence, 

 must not be interfered with under any pretext what- 

 ever. We are opposed to State interference with 

 parental rights and rights of conscience in the edu- 

 cation of children as an infringement of the funda- 

 mental Democratic doctrine that the largest indi- 

 vidual liberty consistent with the rights of others 

 insures the highest type of American citizenship 

 and the best government. 



Admission of Territories. We approve the action 

 of the present House of Representatives in passing 

 bills for admitting into the Union as States the 

 Territories of New Mexico and Arizona, and we 

 favor the early admission of all the Territories hav- 

 ing the necessary population and resources to 

 entitle them to statehood, and while they remain ter- 

 ritories we hold that the officials appointed to ad- 

 minister the government of any territory, together 

 with the District of Columbia and Alaska, should be 

 bonafide residents of the territory or district in which 

 their duties are to be performed. The Democratic 

 party believes in home rule and the control of their 

 own affairs by the people of the vicinage. 



Protection of Hallway Employes. We favor legisla- 

 tion by Congress and State legislatures to protect 

 the lives and limbs of railway employes and those 

 of other hazardous transportation companies, and 

 denounce the inactivity of the Republican party, 

 and particularly the Republican Senate, for causing 

 the defeat of measures beneficial and protective to 

 this class of wage workers. 



Labor Evils. We are in favor of the enactment 

 by the States of laws for abolishing the notorious 

 sweating system, for abolishing contract convict 

 labor, and for prohibiting the employment in fac- 

 tories of children under fifteen years of age. 



Sumptuary Laws. We are opposed to all sump- 

 tuary law as an interference with the individual 

 rights of the citizen. 



The platform, as reported from the Committee 

 on Resolutions, contained this declaration, as the 

 first paragraph of Sec. 3, with the heading 

 " Revenue Tariffs" : 



We reiterate the oft-repeated doctrines of the 

 Democratic party that the necessity of the govern- 

 ment is the only justification for taxation, and 

 whenever a tax is unnecessary it is unjustifiable ; 

 that when custom-house taxation is levied upon 

 articles of any kind produced in this country, the 

 difference between the cost of labor here and labor 

 abroad, when such a difference exists, fully meas- 

 ures any possible benefits to labor, and the enor- 

 mous additional impositions of the existing tariff fall 

 with crushing force upon our farmers and working- 

 men, and for the mere advantage of the few whom 

 it enriches, exact from labor a grossly unjust share 

 of the expenses of the Government, and we demand 

 such a revision of the tariff laws as will remove 

 their iniquitous inequalities, lighten their oppres- 

 sions, and put them on a constitutional and equi- 

 table basis. But in making reduction in taxes it is 

 not proposed to injure any domestic industries, but 

 rather to promote their healthy growth. From the 

 foundation of this Government taxes collected at 

 the custom house have been the chief source of 

 Federal revenue. Such they must continue to be. 

 Moreover, many industries have come to rely upon 

 legislation for successful continuance, so that any 

 change of law must be at every step regardful of 

 the labor and capital thus involved. The process 

 of reform must be subject in the execution of this 

 plain dictate of justice. 



On motion of Lawrence T. Neal, of Ohio, the 

 above paragraph was struck from the platform, 

 and the plank contained in the platform as given 

 above was substituted by a majority of 564 to 

 342, including 40 negative votes that were 

 counted with the majority under the unit rule. 

 Gov. Leon Abbett of New Jersey presented the 

 name of Grover Cleveland, of New York, for 

 President ; William C. DeWitt, of New York, 

 nominated David B. Hill ; and John P. Dun- 

 combe, of Iowa, brought forward the name of 

 Horace Boies. Mr. Cleveland was nominated on 

 the first ballot, receiving 617 out of 909 ballots, 

 10 more than the two-thirds' majority that was 



