Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1888-02-24
PUBLIC SENTIMENT on THE TARIFF
QUESTION,

From The Pittsburg Commercial Gazette.
Mr.. Curtis, in the current Issue
Of Hdype,'s Weekly, reviews the
diversity OF opinlon expressed by
Democrats and Republicans North
and South respecting the sound.
ness Of the Presidents Message on
the tariff. Several leading Demo.
cratic papers Of the South are cited
as having strongly dissented from
the views expressed by the Presi-
dent. 1t is even admitted that
Editor Grady fairly represented
the sentiment o; his constituency
when he said "The Message was
unwIse in our opinion, and involves
a wrong political and business
policy. It was a business mistake
TO assume that our industries 1--WE
speak now especially for the South
do not need Protection. The Presi.
dent admits practically, as every
one admits. that American indus.
tries did need Protection at first,
and could not have established
themselves without Protection
He alludes, however, to their won.
derful growth, and derides the idea
OF their being longer called infant
industries That's precisely what
they are in the South. Northern
Industries, with their enormous
capital, their close sNndicates, their
accurate management, may have
become strong enough to compete
with the world. Those of the South
certainly have notn
The dissent OF Senator Brown, of
Georgia, Senator Vance, of North
Carolina, and other leading Demo.
Gratis is also noted by Mr.. Curtis,
bnt these, he argues, are offset by
the "curiOus fact that some of the
distiuctively able aud influential
Republican journals in various
parts of the country have su6stan.
TALLY approved the Message and
deprecated Republican opposition
to a revision Of the tariff as mis-
take.p
The conclusion reached from
these premises, in the opinion of
the writer, is that "they show that
public sentiment is not yet ripe
enough to determine the position of
parties upon the policy of tariff re-
form, and that the situation Just.
lies the expectation that the bill
which may possibly pass Congress
to provide for a reduction Of the
surplus will be compromise,
which will be supported so as to
prevent the Identification of the
Democratic majority OF the House
with a strict revenue reform policy"
1t is significantly added: "The ma
jority does not mean that its party
shall enter upon the Presidential
campaign as Free Trade party,
and there is no way in which the
party can be forced 20 take that
position. 1t seems now to be pretty
clear that the President, not pol.
icy, will be the Democratic plat.
FORM
Here is the wish plainly father
to the thought. Mr.. Cleveland and
his advisers were unquestionably
convinced that public sentiment
was ripe enough for tariff reform
on the line mapped out in his Mes
sage. Il they have been undeceiv-
ed by the manner in which his pol
icy has been received, particularly
in the South, that does not al ter
the fact. lhe truth is, public seDti.
ment is much ripper in favor Of
Protection than the sO.called reve.
nue. reformers imagined, aud Mr..
Curtis, the Free Trade leader OF
the Mugwump phalanx, resorts to
the cOwardly expedient of casting
party principles to the dogs and
making the canvass solely son the
candidate, not on apOlIcy"-a COM
plete reversal Of the maxim,
"Principles, not men," II the cOun-
try, in this year Of grace, 1888, is
not now ready to vote It's choice as
between Protection and the reve.
nue. policy embodied in Mr.. Cleve.
lands Message It meyer will be
ready.