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140 W. C. WOODWARD which had collected on its stomach." The characteristic atti- tude of Bush toward opposition in the ranks was exactly stated by him in the Statesman editorial, April 14: "Divisions are not to be avoided by winking at error and temporizing with treason and traitors. If you would have a healthy body, cast off the rotten limbs. ... A cancer can't be healed until the af- fected parts are removed. The knife must precede the plaster. Caustic before salve." Bush was no compromiser. With him it was war to the last. Such was the general situation in the Oregon Democratic party, when the Democratic Territorial convention met at Salem on April 13. The "hards" were in complete control of the convention, which fact was strongly emphasized by the plat- form adopted. 1 The famous fifth and sixth resolutions gave full and adequate expression to the demand of the ma- chine for party regularity and the exercise of party discipline. They demanded unwavering allegiance to the organization and its candidates and placed all who refused it under the ban of party excommunication. 2 The seventh resolution denounced the Standard and a special one was adopted, "that this convention recognize the Portland Times as Democratic and its editor as a worthy man." Thus easily was the enduement or deprivation of Democracy accomplished by enactment in the days of the Oregon Democratic Regime. The position taken by the assembled Democrats upon the question of slavery and their attitude toward it, is not less suggestive and significant. They denied in general terms the right of the Federal Government to interfere with such domes- tic institutions of states or territories as were recognized by the Constitution, and deprecated attempts to exercise such a right i Proceedings Statesman, April 21; Oregonian, April 25. 2Fifth Resolution: That we repudiate the doctrine that a representative or a delegate can, in pursuance of the wishes or fancied interests of the district he represents, go into or remain out of a caucus or convention of his party, and refuse to support the nominations thereof, and still maintain his standing as a Democrat. Sixth Resolution : That the re-election of any representative or delegate, thus refusing to support Democratic nominations, would not "be an endorsement or approval of his conduct, beyond which the Democracy of other districts would have no right to enquire, but that it would be both the right and the duty of sound Democrats everywhere, to discard him as a disorganize and an enemy."