The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1888-01-22
NEXT FALLS BATTLE CRY
EDITOR WATTERSON PRAISES THE
PRESIDENT.

! NEW YORK, Jan. 2l-There was a meet
! ing of the Tariff Reform Club tonight Let
ters of regret were read from President
Cleveland and Secretary Fairchild. Among
| the speakers were the President of the club,
Anson Phelps Stokes, and Henry Watterson.
Henry Watterson said on the sentiment,
1.-THE Platform and the Outlook:
The platform is the message--the Presi-
dents message. The outlook is most en-
couraging, considering how the painted
harlot of protection is whstling to
keep her courage up as she
stalks across the graveyard of false vows
and broken promises she has made mainly
to the work people, should call it assured.
| For more than a year my fear has been
that we might not be able in advance of
| our national convention to close ranks and
move in a solid column against the enemy
on distinct lines of our own deliberate
choosing, and as | believe that nothing
clears the political atmosphere like
plain speaking right out in meeting. | have
given the administration and the country
the best the shop has afforded in the way
of disagreeable persistence and sincerest
candor.
| IN THE NICK OF TIME.
1t was obvious to my mind that unless we
could agree in Congress we should not agree
in the convention. The tariff plank in the
last national Democratic platform was not
intended to be n straddle because although
| the platform committee had been adrotly
picked in the interest of protection, the
revenue reformers were still strong enough
| to hold their ground and to carry their
points. But it was made TO seem a straddle.
Hence nothing short of declaration, which
might not bear two constructions, would
satisfy the demands of reform in the next
| l. 9 L
that this could not be obtained without a
fight, and possibly a split. just in the nick
of time the President came to the rescue,
| with the wisdom of an impetuous
courage and the craft of common sense de-
| irving its strength from its integrity. This
brave and honest man. this pIZZle to pOiti-
clans and contradictions of all experiences
with single stroke of his pen, did what
might for years have baffied the eff
forts of the greatest statesmen and philoso-
pliers.
TURNED THE TIDE.
BY that act he has reversed the situation
from one of cowardy indecision to one Of
| enthusiasm and confidence. He has forced
the enemy back behind his earthworks and
| warned the stragglerS to come into camp
Upon the lines of that message ! would
rather be beaten than win upon those of a
| living substitute But we shall not be
|
| presages of victory. They remove all
Instructions from our march Of progress
and reform. They lead us out of the
bushes and into the highways. An honest
Democrat may now hold up his head, look
the world in the face and call bis soul his
own without n furtlve side glance at the
Republicans / believe in clearly def ed
political differences stubbornly and hon
estly maintained upon the open field of
party combat and loving no man
less because he does not agree
with me- touching public policies: detest
| him most WHO let's II dare not wait upon |
would and possesses neither the candor nor
the courage of his convictions. But a
| thousand purposes are ascribed by the protec-
tionists TO the party of reform which never
crosses the mind Of any responsible revenue
| reformer- These we may now dlsavow.
AN OPEN FIGHT.
The policy of evasion and repression is to
be succeeded by policy of fair and free
discussion. 1t is this the Republicans have
courted and which they affect to be nightly
pleased with. Let us in the coming battle
give them their belly full of it.
Let us 20 to the people of
the East as we have gone to the people of
the West and South with the truth. The
period of agitation has passed. Thanks to
the President we have the ear of the ma
struction is upon us, and its vocal organs
are not those of exclamation, but of prac-
tical business. When we seek to arrest the
attention of friend across the street, we
elevate the voice; when we have him face
TO face, we proceed IN lower tones to tell
him why we stopped him, and what we
want SO is it with the movement for
revenue reform. Its friends have for years
sought by agitation to direct the interest of
thinking men to the evils of the tax system,
full of inequality and false pretension.
They have succeeded, and now they are
prepared to apply definite measures and
methods of reform to the disorder. But
these are nOwise precipitate or extreme.
They contemplate no revolution. They pro
pose at one and the same time to reduce
both taxation and revenue TO effect
this on the lines laid down
so admirably by the President in his mes
sage Every day we are assured that the
President does not know his own mind; that
the message means nothing at all; that it
was thrown out merely as a ''feeler," and
that there is something back of it which
| will presently appear and surprise every
body In short all the devices of ingenious
perversion are put forth to confuse our
counsels and mislead voters, and ] wish |
could say that these devices are employed
only by professed enemies.
TRAITORS IN THE CAMP.
Unfortunately, there are those who mas
querading as Democrats, make it the bust
ness Of their lives to play into the hands Of
the enemy. They are Protectionists first,
! Democrats afterwards. In the end, when
the process of redistribution and re-adjust-
ment of the party forces now going forward
is completed they will find final and fit
| ting ab&e, where they properly belong, in
the castN of those robber barons, whose
men at arms are at this moment
out in every direction collecting, through
the tariff, tribute OF the people. Then,
! indeed, we shall know who is who, ana
what is what, and the star-eyed goddess of
reform shall carry In the crclet Of truth
which graces her fair young brow no false
jewels TO dim it's lustre. Meanwhile, my
friends, we have nothing to fear in the i'm
mediate future. That is full Of most genial,
most gratifying assurances. The party of
reform in Congress will be found TO unite
upon measure of reform in harmony with
the Presidents message
| AN ONWARD MARCH.
Wait little and you shall see how they
carry themselves upon the floor Of the
| House, under the leadership Of Messrs. Car
Isle and Mills, and my brilliant and elo-
| quent friend, the latest successor of Henry
| Clay, who, If he were now living would
| scorn TO break the promise he repeatedly
made TO the people that protection should
not outlast the maturity ofinfants now fifty
and 100 years Of age. With our host at
4 .N