The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1888-01-14
The Pending Issue.

The tariff was the alpha and will pro-
badly be the omega of the present session
of Congress. The Presidents annual mes
sage to Congress opened the discussion on
this subject, which will not close, it is pro-
bable, until it is presented to the country
in all its phases. Mr.. Blaine and Mr.
Sherman both blundered in making haste
to assaiI the Presidents position. They
will find. in the end, that the great mass
of the people are not with them. TO read
Mr.. Sherman's late speech in the Senate'
one would have little difficulty in agreeing
with Solomon that "there is nothing new
under the sun''-at least in relation to the
tariff His deliverances smell OF the must
of ages. and take one back to the times of
Henry Clay's so-called american System.
They also call to mind the words OF the
eloquent Kentuckian to the Hon, Samuel
Smith, of Maryland, in the course OF de-
bate in the Senate chamber, in which he
said of the venerable gentleman from this
State:
Old politicians chime on wisdom past,
And totter on in blunders to the last.
This is Mr.. Shermans case to-day. He
forgets that the country has outgrown the
antiauated tariff views of over half cen
fury ago, and that new generation OF men,
with more progressive ideas, has taken the
place of Mr.. Clay and his contemporaries,
from whose teachings Mr.. Sherman has
drawn his inspiration.
We honor Mr.. Cleveland for the bold
ness with which he has advanced to the
discussion of this subject. He has sound
ed the keynote of Democratic triumph,
and his clarion voice has given no uncertain
sound. The Democracy of the whole
country will rally to his summons with the
spirit and the unity of the MacGregors to
the call of their chief, and we shall witness
sueh a canvass as we have not witnessed
before since the days of 1874, or since the
Democracy followed the gallant leadership
of Old Hickory. If they have been cow
ardly and temporising, of late years, upon
this issue. Mr.. Cleveland has given them
n lesson of a different sort, and he Will In
snire them with something of his own
courage and manly decision OF character
L..
ants in our ranks, who have no stomach
for this fight, he will bid them
ssDoff their lions hide, and hang
A calf skin on their recreant limbs.
He has drawn the sword of reason and
sound argument, and thrown away the
scabbard, and he will lead the Democratic
hosts to victory again, as sure az the sun
light dawns upon the election day Of next
November, else all signs are deceptive If
any pigeon-livered adherent OF the Demo-
cratic party is disposed to desert the want
aee-ground which the party has always
maintained upon this subject, it will get
ten recruits of good and true men for every
craven it looses. The world has always
had an exalted admiration for courage and
decision of character, and Mr.. Cleveland
will add to his party by his manly course
In ten fold ratio of increase. The cam
paizn- opened with the message The
President fred the frst gun, which doomed
over the peaks of the Alleganies and rever-
berated over she submits of the Rocky
Mountains. 1t echoed and re-echoed from
the shores of the Atlantic to the Pacific,
and from the St. Lawrence to the Gulf OF
Mexico. What now remains to be done is
for the party to organize at once and IN the
most thorough manner, in every town and
hamlet throughout the land, enroll every
man upon our roster, disseminate intorma-
ton among the masses. and meet the issue
in Congress, in the forum, IN the press, and
finally at the ballot box. This done. no
one need have any misgiyings as to the
final result The people are with the
President