[Illustration: Th Jefferson] AMERICAN POLITICS (NON-PARTISAN) FROM THE BEGINNING TO DATE. EMBODYING A HISTORY OF ALL THE POLITICAL PARTIES, WITH THEIR VIEWS AND RECORDS ON ALL IMPORTANT QUESTIONS. GREAT SPEECHES ON ALL GREAT ISSUES, AND TABULATED HISTORY AND CHRONOLOGICAL EVENTS. BY HON. THOMAS V. COOPER, Member Pennsylvania House of Representatives, 1870–72. Senate, 1874–84. Chairman Republican State Committee of Pennsylvania, 1881–82–83–84–85–86–87. AND HECTOR T. FENTON, ESQ., Of the Philadelphia Bar. FIFTEENTH AND REVISED EDITION. PHILADELPHIA: FIRESIDE PUBLISHING COMPANY. 1892. Entered according to Act of Congress in the year 1892, by the FIRESIDE PUBLISHING COMPANY, in the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington, D. C. ALTEMUS’ BOOK BINDERY, PHILADELPHIA. Respectfully Dedicated TO THE PROPOSITION THAT ALL AMERICAN CITIZENS SHOULD TAKE AN INTEREST IN PUBLIC AFFAIRS. PREFACE. The writer of this volume, in the pursuit of his profession as an editor, and throughout an active political life, has always felt the need of a volume from which any important fact, theory or record could be found at a moment’s glance, and without a search of many records. He has also remarked the singular fact that no history of the political parties of the country, as they have faced each other on all leading issues, has ever been published. These things prompted an undertaking of the work on his own part, and it is herewith presented in the hope that it will meet the wants not only of those connected with politics, but of all who take an interest in public affairs. In this work very material aid has been rendered by the gentleman whose name is also associated with its publication, and by many political friends, who have freely responded during the past year to the calls made upon them for records, which have been liberally employed in the writing and compilation of this work. THOS. V. COOPER. [Illustration: _A Hamilton_] TABLE OF CONTENTS BOOK I.—HISTORY OF THE POLITICAL PARTIES. PAGE. COLONIAL PARTIES—WHIG AND TORY 3