Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1888-10-26

Mr. James q. Blaine has at last discoT-
cred that trusts are not by any meaUs the
harmless affairs which he declared them
TO be few weeks ago, when, fresh from
the inequalities OF Carnegie and the
splendors of Cluny Castle, he put himself
at the head Of the party whose members
speak OF him as the greatest combina-
ton Of heart and brain in the world, and
1.-THE object of our their undying affec-
ton He is now persuaded that some of
them ought TO be dealt with by the gov
eminent, and that President Cleveland
was not 50 much in error after all in de
nounciug them as conspiracies against
the people. This Is u change of mind
which shows what cau be done in the
course Of an educational campaign.
II IS interesting to note the stages
through which Mr. Blaine's mind has
passed in its progress toward truth on
this question. First off, it will be re-
membered, be scoffed at the president and
the Democracy for finding fault with
trusts and lightly dismissed them from
further notice rs private affairs. That
this would not do he learned as soon as
1t Was shown to him that the effect of the
trusts was to increase the cost of living
and diminish wages He then favored us
with the announcement that. though
trusts might be objected to. still they
were not in any degree due to the so
called protective tariff and, in proof of
this, told an astonished world that Eng
land was also afflicted by similar organi-
cations. Il was something gained to
have the great man admit that they were
not good things, even If he persisted in
ignoring the cause Of them.
For time Mr. Blaine sought to occupy
middle ground He acknowledged i'm
plicitly that trusts were evils, and that
federation Of them in other countries was
not an adequate reason for tolerating them
here, since the European addiction to arts
tocracies and standing armies has never
been deemed reason for setting up
royal family and vast military establish
ment in the United States, but contended
that the state governments and not the
Federal authority ought to correct them.
That he could not long adhere TO this po-
sition was clear enough TO every person
capable of consistent thought.
In the town of Goshen, Ind, he practi.
cally abandoned all his previous pleas and
undertook to show not as In the past that
federal government had nothing to do, or
which ought to be left TO the state gov
ernments. but were evils for which Dem
ocrats were largely responsible This,
the reader perceives, changes the whole
character Of the discussion The aues-
ton now is not whether trusts are evils,
but who is to blame for perpetuating
them. At last Mr. Blaine is in accord
with the Democracy on the main matter,
and differs only in regard to certain facts
and persons. He No longer asserts that
the crime charged against his client is no
crime, but turning round on the accusers
he says: Yes, a crime has been COM
mitted, but the guilt is with the plaintiff
and not the defendant"
1t Is now agreed that trusts ought to be
suppressed. What the people have to de-
eide Is, to which party may the work of
suppressing them be committed with most
likelihood of having justice done Shall
the commission be given to President
cleveland, who has from the beginning
consistently denounced the wrong, or to
the representative of Mr.. Blaine, who be-
gan by telling the country that trusts
were harmless, and had no word of cen
sure for them till he learned that the
people were resolved to crush them? To
this question the average man will be able
to render all the answer necessary
Brooklyn Citizen.