The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1888-09-12
GENERAL HARRISON'S LETTER.

and clear expression. His recent speeches
have made the American people pretty
familiar with the cast and caliber of his mind,
and with his remarkable faculty of thinking
on his feet His letter will lead them to re-
mark that he deals with public questions
quite as easily in different field, and ex-
presses himself on paper as clearly and sue
cinctly as he does on the platform.
Perhaps the most striking thing about the
letter is its modest but dignifed tone, and its
happy mingling of a pleasant manner with
firmness of purpose and assertion. In this
respect the style is the man. General Harri-
son can fight, but he does not carry a chip on
his shoulder. He has great deal of self
assertion, but he does not fiaunt it in peoples
faces needlessly. He is partisan from prin-
cipls and conviction, but he does not find it
necessary to adopt bullying tone toward
those who differ with him. and he can even
expose the viciousness of their policy without
being abusive and intolerant.
In this spirit of strong conviction and can
did expression, the letter touches on most of
the leading features of the Chicago platform
and issues of the campaign. The tariff ques-
ton is, very naturally, given greatest prom
inence, and is treated in a way that leaves no
doubt of General Harrisons being in full and
hearty accord with the platform and party.
He divests the issue of all verbiage. and shows
very clearly the logical antagonism of the TWO
parties-the Republicans favoring protection
to American industry, with all the term i'm
plies, and the Democrats opposing 1t. 1t is
not question of per cent, but Of systems,
or, in General Harrison's better phrase. cit is
not q contest between schedules but between
wide-apart principles" He reminds people
that the Democratic party have already taken
decided step towards free trade, and happily
remarks that "shs important question il not
SO much the length of the step as the direc-
ton of it." It is not SO much
the rate at which the party is
moving as the way it's facing. General Har-
rison does not care what the Democracy call
their assault upon protection. 'the assault it.
self is the important fact" OF those WIN in
sist that tariff duties increase the price of
both foreign and domestic articles by the
amount of such duty he suggestively says
"they are students of maxims and not Of the
markets" His brief discussion OF the tariff
question, admirable for its clearness of ex-
preston. fifty concludes by leaving the whole
subject to the people, whose interests are so
deeply involved, and especially to the work
ingmen. who twill make choice between the
substantial advantages they have in hand and
the deceptive promises and forecasts Of these
Sheorizing reformers."
The Treasury surplus is treated in the same
frank and sensible fashion. While General
Harrison would not encourage the accumula-
ton of a surplus or the continuance of I'M
necessary taxation or revenue, he would not
permit them to be made pretext for attack
ing the protective system. The existing sur
| plus and excessive revenue can be properly
treated without abandoning or impairing pro-
lection, and General Harrison very distinctly
says that the idle money in the Treasury
should be used in the purchase of bonds, thus
reducing the governments interest account.
He treats the surplus question like sensible
business man or practical statesman, and not
like an alarmist and panic-shrieker.
The foreign contract labor and Chinese i'm
migration questions are handled in way that
ought to be perfectly satisfactory to every
honest man, and We feel quite sure General
Harrison cares nothing for the opinions Of
any other class. His remarks on foreign i'm
migration in general are just and timely, and
his expressions in regard to Chinese imn,igra-
| ton are in exact accordance with the views
he has long maintained and expressed.
What he says relative to honest elections
the suppression of the colored vote in the
South and the duty Of the government toward
the soldiers and sailors of the late war, is what
might be expected from Republican so fully
and heartily at one with his party on these
questions as General Harrison. He cordially
approves the declaration of the Chicago con-
vention against trusts. with the added remark
that his own public expression on the subject
antedated that of the convention. His ap-
prevail of a practical civil-service reform and
of the existing law on the subject is as strong
as its most ardent friends could desire. Re-
ferring to the temperance question, he says:
1.-THE Republican party has always been
friendly to everything that tended to make
the home life of our people free, pure and
prosperous, and will in the future be true to
its history in this respect" No person who
knows General Harrison and the record of his
| life can doubt that this means that, wherever
he may be placed, his power, and influence,
and example will always be used in favor OF
practical temperance reform.
From beginning to end of the letter there
is no attempt to magnify the personality Of
the writer or project his individuality into
| the discussion of national issues. This is
characteristic of General Harrison. When
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