New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1884-05-31
probability they would have gone the WRONG
way under any conceivable circumstances.
THE BIG DIVIDE"

1.-THE BIG DIVIDE"
War upon American industry haVins i"nou'
n Democratic Congress naturally turns next u
war upon the Treasury. This should excite no
surprise. The normal and constant ftinctlon oi
the Democratic party Is to empty the pubic
treasury whenever it can and as far rs 1t dares.
That NAV be said to be its mission in llfe-the
party's reason for being. Free trade Is
secondary and subordinate aim. If the party,
without sacrificing its chief end and aim-to get
ot tbe Trcasury-can contrive and pass free
trade tariff it will do so. It's principal oDstacle
is that some of its members think the passage
of such bill would prevent success IN getting
at the Treasury. But, if defeated IN tarin'
raid the party Immediately flies back 70 ri'e'
and harbor bill, rs the needle to the pole.
The bill at present under consideration seems
modest TO Mr.. Willis and others. They mieht
have made it bigger. No doubt they sympa-
thize with the maligned East India patriot, VINO
cried. aWhen I consider how much more
q might have stolen, by Heaven, sir, am aston
q isbed at my moderation" The bill takes only
thirteen millions or So That, however, is in the
chrysalis stage of House proceedings those WHO
have watched the development OF this species
know that, if it lives to burst its shell ana
emerge from the Senate the creature VIII nave
big body and broadly spreading wings. III
fact. if it takes thirteen millions to buy mp the
Housp. il ought to take five or six millions more
70 satisfy the Senate, and so the bill can hardly
be expected to become law unless it expands
70 eighteen or nineteen millions. The innocent
outside public foolishy imagines that it may
be more difficult to pass big steal than little
A, a., .,f &C.
men, Persons of experience reason the other
way. @The Big Divide" slides gracefully on
creased ways to tie sea, amid waving or hand
kcrchiefs and flags, the smiles OF beauty ana
| the popping of champagne -corks. But IL taxes
many tug and dcad-ft by hardy fishermen 10
get some coarse oyster-bOat fairly launched.
And the bigger the divide the better creased
the WAYS. With eight years of Democratic adj
ministration we might hope to see this great
public measure go through UNANIMOUSLY, en-
bracing AS its last section something ike the
following: "In consideration Of the enormous
@labor expended in maturing this act, there Is
@heIeby granted, out of any money I'D tle
@Treasury not otherwise appropriated one
@hundrcd thousand dollars to each Representa-
tive, and two hundred thousand dollars TO
"coch Senator" That would be only about
SIS. OOO, OO0 to pension of the honorable mem
bcrs who might be left at home by constituents
not satisfied with their share of the " divide
That there are internal Improvements which
richly deserve and repay public expenditure,
everybody knows. The public has no right to
complain if the appropriations for such works
are large; in fact it has a good right to com
plain whenever these appropriations are not
large enough But genuine Democratic Big
Divide embraces the minimum of expenditure
for such legitimate objects, in order that there
NAV be the maximum remaining for jobs ana
steals. Hence it is not merely the size but the
character of the measure that needs examina-
ton. Democratic Congressman, who have
Gift for dcceiving themselves with the notion
that the people arc stupid, generally assume
that voters will never examine their river and
harbor bills and to make the labor OF cxamlna-
tion greater and more hopeless they in
peniouslv put in places and creeks not to DO
found on any map. But the people studied the
Big Divide" of 1892 thoroughly enough to
leave a great many statesmen at home. If
Democratic members are satisfied that in any
case they are going to be reegatcd to the sweets
of private life, they may not worry much about
their responsibility for the river and harbOr bill
of 1884. But there are some who have hopes OF
surviving even after an avalanche has buried
their party 1t might be wise for them to insist
upon a separate discussion and vote on each
item. and to refuse to vote for the bill so long
rs it contains any appropriations that cannot be
amply justified to the public understanding.