TILDEN TO THE TAMMANY SOCIETY
"July, 1868.
"Gentlemen,—Regretting that I cannot personally attend the celebration of the Fourth of July by the Tammany Society, to which you have invited me, I nevertheless concur most cordially in the patriotic sentiments so eloquently expressed in the address of the sachems.
"Your venerable society may well felicitate itself upon its political retrospect. It did everything in its power to avert civil strife by a policy which was represented as too conciliatory by those who did not comprehend the danger. When the conflict of arms came it cordially maintained the nationality of our people in a confederated republic, which Jefferson and Madison and Jackson always held to be incapable of being dissolved except by a revolutionary destruction of the Constitution. And now that peace has once more happily returned, it claims that constitutional rights shall be restored throughout our whole country; that every State shall be replaced in its constitutional orbit; that we shall once more present to the world a continental system of States, bound together by a constitutional union—founded on the twin principles of local self-government and industrial liberty, and sustained by the voluntary action of a people among whom government is everywhere carried on by the consent of the governed.
"Alas! that this benign work of peace should be more difficult than the fierce struggle of war. But so it is.
"Multitudes of our fellow-citizens are so infatuated with fear of the danger of disunion, which has now passed, that they create a danger of centralism fatal to all liberty—to all constitutional government—and at last by inevitable reaction to the Union itself.
"Instead of restoring the system of our fathers, the purpose to do which alone consecrated our cause against secession as righteous, they would erect upon this fair continent eleven Polands, eleven Hungaries, eleven Irelands!
"And the same principles of despotism which they would apply to our recent enemies they freely extend to the whole Northern people.
"I say the principles of despotism. For centralism is despotism. Was centralism ever before so rampant as now? The distinguishing characteristic of the controlling element of the so-called Republican party which now sways the two Houses of Congress is a total disregard of all limitations of power established by our written Constitution; an overwhelming contempt for all fundamental law, whether State or Federal.
"No right of localities or of individuals is deemed sacred.
"The principles which underlie our whole political system are not respected; they do not seem to be even comprehended.
"The present Congress and the advanced Republican party are a rule unto themselves. Their own opinion of what it is convenient or expedient they should do, is the only limitation of power which they acknowledge; and it is their opinion that they should do pretty much everything, in all places and with respect to everybody.
"Of course, such a false system of political philosophy does now, as it has in all ages, immediately degenerate into selfish rapacity. Congress is mainly occupied in putting new manacles on the trade and industry of the country; and the more respectable representatives of the prevalent political ideas are voting money out of everybody's pockets into their own.
"In this condition of things nothing but the principles of the Democratic party, as maintained by Jefferson and Jackson, can save the country. There is no organized agency which can give effects to these principles except the Democratic party, with such alliances as it may form in the cause of liberal government.
"From the day of the accession of President Johnson I have felt renewed confidence that the American people would not only maintain our national unity, but would reconstruct our political institutions on their ancient foundations.
"The political ideas of Jefferson and Jackson in which President Johnson was educated, and which have become incarnated in his very nature—the character of the work he was providentially called to undertake in bringing back into our system the people of eleven States lately in revolt, which he could only do by addressing the intellects and sentiments of that people—were guarantees that he would recur to the original fountains of our American principles of government.
"As for us, we could not but accept what we had sought when we endeavored to elect McClellan: first, the re-establishment of national unity; secondly, the starting the restored government in its new career upon its original and true principles.
"The situation controls. Not the plans or wishes of individuals.
"In my judgment, neither President nor the Democratic party could stop what events so clearly commanded.
"Last year, at your Fourth-of-July celebration, I promised him in your name, in the name of the Democratic party, and of your acclamations, a liberal co-operation in the great work; and afterwards repeated that assurance in person.
"The time has now come when all parties who favor President Johnson's plan of pacification must act with reference to the election of the next Congress.
"President Johnson will now be under the necessity of appealing to the whole body of the people, accepting all who come to him on the issue he has made, and separating from all who go against him on that issue.
"If he should attempt the narrow and futile scheme, urged upon him by those who are neither his friends nor the friends of his cause—of carrying out his policy through the exclusive agency of the Republican party, in case he can capture it and convert it to his purposes—he will find his machine turned against him in the hour of his need. He will find himself, like the unfortunate object of Turkish jealousy, tied up in a bag, to be silently strangled. I do not doubt that he will act on the larger policy which would have governed Andrew Jackson or Henry Clay under like circumstances. He will cast himself upon the whole body of our people, leaving parties and organizations to take care of themselves. He will be triumphantly sustained.
"The Democratic party should pursue a liberal policy in all its action, and accept as brethren all who stand with it on the present issue. It is too powerful to be jealous. It has too great a motive in the restoration of its own traditional principles of government to an ascendency in the councils of the country, which they made great, prosperous, and happy, to think of anything less grand or less noble.
"With much respect, I remain, gentlemen,
"Y'rs truly,
"S. J. Tilden."