Jasper County Democrat, Volume 5, Number 34, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 29 November 1902 — POLITICS OF THE DAY [ARTICLE]

POLITICS OF THE DAY

Republicans Must Legislate. The Republicans are now sailing With w fair wind, and on the crest of a wave of seeming prosperity. How long will it hast There are ominous signs of a itimincial storm. That barometer of hmsiness. the stock market, Is on a descending settle, and incipient signs of ■a panic are observable to those who •look beneath the surface. ' One cause of the financial trouble filial is surely coming is the high Trices lof many articles. High prices reduce Iconsnniption, and tills must soon be followed TfVTL redu cf lon Th production. The ifainily with a limited income cannot Upend more than Is earned, if the necessities and luxuries of life are mainiti.ined at high level, as they have in the (past year or two; those with small ‘fixed incomes will have to continue to 'curtail their expenses to make both ends Imeet. The laborer, the mechanic and ithe clerk find the coal bill, the meat 'bill and the rent have advanced beyond jtheir means to meet, unless some of the Justifies are dispensed with, or poorer lor cheaper clothes are made to do. Prosperity, therefore, to these people of limited Incomes Is a delusion and a

snare. High-priced prosperity always JUiakes large profits for the manufaeturietH and generally for the merchant, but [the consumer suffers unless Incomes advance in tlie same ratio with the infcreased cost of living. It is admitted that the cost of living Jias increased about 40 per cent, and (wages mi the average have only been Advanced from 10 to 15 per cent. Is it any wonder that workingmen are 'demanding more wages, and that numerous strikes have been in progress?

Prosperity thut Is only participated in by a part of the people, and leaves tlie great majority with less than enough to Hve on comfortably, does not deserve the name. The trusts and corporations and the favored minority are, through monopoly nud the prteetlon granted by the Republican piling up riches iindrcamed of until these hist few {years. These enormous profits of the (monopolists all come from the work of |the farmer, the miner, ami the work irmin who transforms the taw material Jnto the necessities ami luxuries that lour civilization demands. These producers arc. therefore, entitled to a fair <ll- - of the proceeds; that is, enough [to live comfortably, and something to (spare for modest luxury, or to save, as (pleasure or thrift may dictate. Letting well enough alone and stand Ung pat may be good logic for tin* trusts Ji nd monopolists, but even Senator 'Hanns ami the great majority of tlie ether Republican members of Congress will find hard times on their hands if Ithey continue to bleed tin* people by filling up riches for the trusts and comnines. If tlie lowa Idea prevails in tlie aelcetlou of u Speaker, and tlie shelter of the protective tariff Is removed from ithe trusts, tlie Republicans may acquire ‘another lense of power hr 19<>4. If. (however, the procrastinating tactics of a tariff commission is adopted as the policy of the Republican party, and no revision of tlie tariff Is accomplished ■before the national election, a politicnl ggvolutlon will result. With all the departments of the government In the hands of the Republicans the people look to them for relief. Tariff Commission Subterfuge. The protectionists themselves do not «eem to la- able to agree on the per isoniiel of tin* tariff commission they arc so anxious to see Congress authorize. One school think a non parilsjui .eoinmys-ion would lie most mailable and another school will only approve of a bl-j*artlsan commission. It Is difficult to mm* how any commission enn be so4ectcit that would report a satiofac lory bill or aiiiMidment to the present Hiiigley law, unless they agree politically with the majority of Congress t that has to finally approve the changes. ,ls a commission was composed of one<mlf protectionists and the other half tariff reformers, they could never . gree on the changes that should In* made. In (fact, the protectionists desire no Change unless ft will Increase the pres-

ent rates. History shows that the Republicans have always reformed the tariff upwards. A non-partisan commission is hardly possible, if those appointed are skilled in the Intricacies of the tariff, for any one who has investigated its complications must Lave a decided bent either towards protection. or tariff for revenue, or free trade. If such a commission consisted of five men. two protectionists anti two tariff reformers and the fifth member was selected as a non-partisan—that is neither a protection nor a tariff reToVuTerT wl i a two uh I resu 11 ?The nonpartisan member must agree on a report which either the one side or the other consider desirable or no majority report would be forthcoming, or if he could not agree with either side, a deadlock would- result. Is not tt deadlock what the Republicans desire? Can you find a Republican who does not declare that the principle of protection must be preserved in any modification of tlie present tariff law? Those Republican Congressmen who have been elected ill the Western States by constituencies which strongly favored

abolishing the protection to trust productions have declared while promising relief from the exactions of the Trusts they still adhere to protection as the most fundamental doctrine of their party. Is not the commission plan proposed, to prevent action until rhe excitement subsides, or to trust that other issues will in the meantime arise and the thoughts of the voters in the tariff reform constituencies can be concentrated u|H>n them to the exclusion of tariff reform? The fight for supremacy in the next Congress will be settled by the election of a Speaker and the only candidate so far mentioned, who has shown any sign of tariff reform sentiment, is Chairman Babcock. and his reputation for it rests on the bills he introduced to amend the steel and iron schedule. As Mr. Babcock did not demand that these bills should be considered by the ways and means committee, bls repu tation as a tariff reformer rests on a very slim foundation, and it was the common talk of political circles in Washington that he only introduced the bills to be on ‘record In the right direction, without atty Idea of taking any decided stand in behalf of such reform and In fact did not favor it

His election by the ultra protection majority of his party to the Important position of chairman of the congressional committee to manage the cam paign and the fact that all the documents issued by the committee made a bold stand for extreme protection, makes it clear that tariff reform will fare badly in his hands. All the ot'iei candidates mentioned for Speaker arc strong protectionists. It is Imosslble. therefore, to overcome the facts that point to the tariff commission as a means to gain time and postpone conlderation of tariff reforms until after the presidential election. A< to Preitidcntial Canuidutes. Tlie Republican newspapers arc quite busy bringing forward candidates for the Democratic nomination for President. and finding fault with those that are considered active candidates. This Is a good Indication that the Democratic candidate will have a good chance for election, or the Republicans would not bother their heads about who ho will be. Whoever the candidate Is will be acceptable to nt least t\vo-thhds of thu party, as It requires that majority In the National Democratic Convention to nominate. To nominate the Republican candidate only requires a majority. Will Mr. Roosevelt be acceptable to the majority of his party, or if a majority favor him, as now seems likely, will tho minority accept him and vote for him? A Wide IHfTercnce. She (to returned warrior, enthusiastically)—And I suppose you almost lived on horseback out pierc? He—Well, yes, towards the end.of Ladysmith we did. It makes rather decent aoup.—lxvndon Punch.