Lancaster daily intelligencer. [volume] (Lancaster, Pa.) 1864-1928, 1888-05-21
The Tbree weeks Debate.

The Threo " eekS DeOaV'
The House has got through with Its
three weeks of tariff oratory, and pur.
posee now to devote itself to passing the
nppropriation bills and other needfol
le9islaticn, before taking up the Mills
bin in detail. Meanwhile, the Republicans
lrs to have an opportunity of agreeing
q pom bill of their own, IL they can, to
pffer a. substitute for the Mills bill, and
there Is some talk of making straight
purity issue on the passage of the two
measures which would be oil right 30
Ear - party interests 60, though the pub.
lilo would certainly suffer IL any bill pro.
posed by the majority of a party should
become q law without being exposed to
the conservative criticism and amend
ment Of the minority. 1t is also certain
that . party bill which could pass
Democratic House would not pass Re-
publican Senate.
The only possibility Of tariff legislation
by this Congress lies in the formulation
Of q measure upon which party lines will
not be tightly drawn and any attempt
tc draw such lines will show that there is
no honest intent to presently reform the
tariff, but rather to create political
issue for the campaign or at least, with
the latter purpose as the chief one.
II is now nearly half q century since a
national canvass was fought with the
tariff issue as its main stress, and to the
present generation of politicians and
voters it has all the merit OF novelty as
u manifest from the interest taken in
the prolonged tariff debate in the House,
which was but an iteration Of an.
client contests, and had nothing
fresh In it whatever; yet the
gladiators were greeted with applause
and hand. shakings and tumultuous
expressions of exhilarated feeling that
showed the interest that the debate slim
ulated. Mr.. Reed and Mr.. Carlisle for
their respective parties, closed the debate,
and the reporters say that they were won
drous eloquent and effective In their ora
tory; yet when we turn to the printed
words they uttered they show no wonder.
ful flre, or freshness. Reed was witty,
Carlisle forceful and sensible. The
subject cannot be made very fresh, after
the battering of a century; and the
excitement of the Washington audiences
Of the orators seems surprising. The
stimulation was in the surrounding; in
TIE knowledge that it was a battle OF
giants, that the issue was the one Sc.
lected for the coming political battle, and
that each side-was stripping for the fray
and furnishing its bes, armor and
weapons. We will have the like exciting
scenes during the canvass. People will
become aroused over the dryest issues, of
which they have the least understanding
when 1t is the thing set down to do.
Like the excitement Of revival, when
the flame is started little tanning
spreads it and 1t then feeds upon itself.
For three weeks Democratic orators in
the House have been talking free trade,
while the measure they assumed to dis,
cuss was the highly protective Mlls bill,
that only takes off seven or eight per cent.
OF our duties and has been so tenderly
framed that it can hardly hurt fly in
the manufacturing line, although
the planters of tobacco and growers Of
wool may be hurt. And the Re-
publican orators have been talking
protection, though they admit that the
revenue is too great and must be re-
duced, though they have no measure for
the reduction upon which they can unite.
There is, indeed, the very narrowest diff
ferences between the parties in fact,
however wide the difference in theory.
The Democratic side proposes adequate
protection, and the Republicans demand
no more. The practical differences
y simply as to the amount Of
protection tina. will be aSeluate;
upon which there is natural dir ,rence
OF opinion, since the amount needed is
necessarily uncertain, varying with the
conditions of trade. 1t follows Il at the
parties intermingle when seeking to es.
tablish the tariff rate. 1t has always been
SO and doubtless always will. 1t is well
for tariff rates are not to be fixed by reso.
lntions of party conventions dealing only
with general principles. The Democratic
doctrine demand, tho least imposition
OF taxes consistent with the prosperity of
our industries, and variety of tariff sen,
timent can nestle under it.