Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1884-04-10

Mr.. Morrison will call up his tariff bill
next Tuesday. Whether he will succeed
in getting the House to consider 1t is
question concerning which there is a good
deal of speculation. Those who tried to
create the impression that Mr.. Morrison
had become disheartened, and would not
attempt to get the bill before the House
until late in the session, if at all, were
not we'll informed if they were
sincere. 1t is doubtful if Mr.. Morrison
and the other tariff reform leaders in the
House have hesitated a moment about
pursuing the course which they marked
out at the beginning of the session. They
have met with Unforeseen obstacles, per-
haps, which caused delays, but they have
not weakened in their purpose. They
know that the Democratic party owes its
majority in the House to its tariff reform
policy, and they also know that the
party expects that policy to be car
ried out so far as it is in the
power Of the party to carry it out. The
argument of the Randall faction of the
party that 1t is useless to pass a bill re-
ducing the tariff because it will meet
with defeat in the Senate is hardly
worth a moments consideration. AS Mr..
Carlisle, In late interview, said, how is
it possible to know what the Senate will
do before a bill is sent to it? The
Republicans are anxious, no
doubt, to keep up the impression
that the Senate will refuse to consider a
bill reducing the tariff, because they don't
want the Senate placed in the position of
being compelled to decide whether it will
reduce the tariff or not. If no tariff bill
Is passed by the House the Republicans
can, and no doubt will, say that being in
the minority in that branch of Congress
IN which revenue bills must originate
they could do nothing toward reducing
the tariff, and that the Democrats, al
though protesting to be in IA
vor of tariff reduction, gave
them no chance to show what they would
do. If the Morrison bill should pass the
House, the Republicans would occupy a
very undesirable position. The President,
in his message, said the tariff ought to be
reduced; the Secretary Of the Treasury,
/ in his last report, said it ought to be re-
| UuCCu. ana an annual surplus u revenue
of nearly 100000 proves that it ought
to he reduced. In the face of this array Of
evidence in favor Of the bill the Senate
would have difficulty in finding reasons
for defeating it. The Republicans would
not find it easy, in the national contest, to
convince the people that the action of the
Senate was in their interest. But it is
not for the purpose of placing the Repub-
hcan party in an awkward position that
the tariff reformers are urging tariff re-
duction. They are urging it because it
is right, because it is the policy of the
Democratic party, and because the peO-
pie are entitled to it. Why should the
people pay war taxes in time of peace?
Why should they be robbed under the
forms Of law to enrich monOpOlies and in
crease the revenues many millions
beyond the needs Of the government. MI.
Morrison, Mr.. Carlisle, and those acting
with them, propose that the people shall
have relief. If they don't succeed next
Tuesday, they will keep on trying. They
Will at least succeed in convincing the
people that they are in earnest.