New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1888-09-02
DEuOCRACY'S NEW ISSUE.

The County Democracy is not discriminating
in ifs nroise Of the Administrations foreign
policy. 1t commends in its resolutions inc
Retaliation Message and at TIE same tiihe
iustifes the Fisheries Treaty as an honor
able settlementn which was rejected by he
publican Senators for reasons purely partisan
in their nature" The message and the treaty
are the opposite poles of this fisheries contro-
versy. One or the other may he stateSmanlke
and patriotic; but not both. Tho message
cmbodies in general the retaliation policy OF
Congress which the President for two years
neglected TO enforce. The precise method OF
retaliation may be different, but the idea of
meeting Canadian aggression in that way ana
not by diplomacy is the core of the message.
The message is a counter menace to CANADIAN
aggression; the treaty was surrender made IN
defiance of the advice of the Senate, which
early in 1886 had condemned the diplomatic
method of settlement. The Republican Sen
ators, by their rejection Of the disgraceiul
treaty. compelled the President to have re-
course to their own policy, which had been
wise and patriotic from the first. The County
Democracy, in appaudng the message and the
treaty in the same breath, has simply justified
two policies that are Numerically opposed to
each other. The American flag floats over one
pole the British flag over the other. Possibly
the County Democracy considers II good polltlcS
to attempt to curry favor simultaneously with
English and Irish voters
Democratic statesmen are equally incon-
siStent in their eulogies Of the Presidents
course Senator Gray, fresh from debate IN
which he and every other Democratic Senator
defended the treaty and antagonized the policy
of retaliation, does not venture to cnuclse
| Secretary Bayards diplomacy. Indeed. he de
clares that the convention was honorable in
every respect to the United States, being I'M
mindful apparently Of the fact that the former
treaty right of transshipment of cargoes on
which the President now bases his whole
scheme of retaliation, was expressly withheld
in Article XIV and secured under the modus
vivendi only by the payment Of license fee
to Canada. At the same time the senator
glories in the Retaliation Message as triumph
of Justice and the consummate flower OF patrl-
otism, being equally oblivi0us of the fact that
tbe State Denartment succeeded in whipping in
every Democratic Senator to the support Of
a treaty by which the Congressional policy oil
retaliation would have been brought to naught
The Senator may be able to reconcile his course
in blowing hot on retaliation now after blow
ing cold on it for weeks during the debate on
The treaty. but we are at loss to understand
how he will go about it,
"Premier' Mills and Mr.. Belmont are also
in ecstacies over the Presidents spirited policy
Of retaliation. They gloss over the fact that
the Administration made humliating sur
render Of American rights in negotiating the
Fisheries Treaty, instead of awaiting itself OF
the retaliatory powers with which 1t had been
armed by Congress. In their desperate at
tempt to prevent a stampede Of Irish voters TO
the Republican ranks in revolt against Tree
trade, they have as little as possible to say
about the ignominious bargain which Secre-
tary Bayard made with the man who defeated
Mr.. Gladstone's scheme Of Home Rule. They
prefer to represent the President as con-
sistent Retaliatonist from the beginning. In
1886, they assert he importuned Congress 10
arm him with adequate power to protect Amen-
can interests The House readily asSented,
passing a bill which virtually anticipated the
Administration measure that is now before 1t B.;
but the Senate interviewed and took all the
retaliation out of it They, too, find it neces-
sary TO ignore a fact that every one familiar
with the situation at Washington early in 1887
recalls This was the attempt on the part of
the Administration to block all retaliation
legislation so as to leave the field open for
resumption Of negotiations. The Senate had
passed a bill with only one dissenting vote
Mr. Bemonts committee, after frittenng away
the greater part Of the session, presented
substitute for it, and there was deadlock
between the houscs-the very thing the Admin
istraton had been intriguing to bring about
The plot would have been successful If four
teen Democrats had not united at the last mo-
ment with tie Republicans Of the House IN
enactng the Senate bill
All these dishonest Democratic pleas may be
brushed aside as partisan trckery The party |
has been terribly frightened by the revolt |
against free trade 1t wants a new issue to d.
vert attention from the English policy of the !
English candidate, and pronounces Retaliation
as a good enough Morgan until after the
eection.n 1t is making the most frantic Ell
forts 10 win hack the Irish vote. Only listen !
to premier, Millss TRADE. If it comes to |
the point that war must come and that Canada !
must fall, as she will, into the arms Of the /
Union, and if, in the providence Of God, that |
poor. carpet-bag-rid island across the water
should end the days Ct her captivity, then /
every liberty-loving man can raise his voice !
in hallelujah ~