Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1888-09-19
THE CAM MPAIGN.

The Star Actor Having Returned Tho
Republican Farce Has Decentralization
q Figure-Head, Blaine Still the Leader.
The leader of the party having arrived,
the Republican canvass now opens. For
several weeks the stage has been occupied
by amateurs, the star being comical actor
from Indianapolis, who has delivered with
the greatest impressiveness the emptiest
nothings ever uttered. The country has
watched his antics with mingled curiosity
and amusement, while awaiting the re-
turn Of the great professional. He came
on Friday, and with his first words brushed
aside the amateurs. "The political cam
paign on which we are about to enter" was
the notice which he served on all concerned
that the Indianapolis business was farce,
which was now ended.
The total effacement of the nominal candi-
date is the most striking and the most i'm
pressive feature of the situation. The name
Of Benjamin Harrison appears at the head
of the Republican ticket, but that is his
only part in the canvass. His position, in
deed, closely resembles that of the Presi-
Dental elector in ordinary campaigns.
Usually the voter who desires certain man
to be President votes ticket containing
list of Presidential electors who are practi-
cally pledged to vote in their turn for the
man whom the voter desires to see at the
head of the Administration. In like man.
ner this year the voter who wants to see
Mr.. Blaine head of the Administration will
vote the ticket of Harrison Presidential
electors, but everybody understands that
General Harrison is expected to act only as
care-taker of the White House. So far as
the personal issue is concerned, it is simply
between an administration dominated by
Grover Cleveland on the one side, and an
ID fr1ic cfv %a1 I1xx
Blaine on the other.
On the burning question of the tariff the
two parties present, says the New York
Euenfn0 Post, clear-cut issue. The Demo-
Gratis propose a well-considered measure,
which puts sundry raw materials, notably
wool, lumber and salt, upon the free list,
and reduces the duties on q number Of other
articles. They advocate these changes on
the ground that the freeing of raw ma
terials would promote manufactures, and
that the proposed reduction of duties on
| other articles would benefit the masses of
the people. The Republican platform, on
the other hand, commits the party to the
maintenance Of the existing protective sys-
tenn, even If that policy requires the total
abolition Of the internal-revenue system,
and the flooding of the country with cheap
whisky. An attempt has been made by the
|
! other doctrine, through the passage by that
branch of a tariff bill which would reduce
the duties on some articles and remove
( those on some others, but the difficulties
in the way have already proved so great
that they now threaten to be iasuperable.
The leader Of the party evidently so regards
| them, for he treats the matter as settled
by the Chicago platform The setting aside
Of platform by party between conven-
vention and election is thing which never
has occurred, and it is safe to say that 1t
will not occur this year. The Democrats
made their appeal to the country upon the
declaration Of principles adopted at st.
Louis; the Republicans theirs upon that
adopted at Chicago The voters will decide
between the two policies.
| Upon the issue thus presented the Re-
publicans appeal to greed and ignorance,
the Democrats to public spirit and intelli-
| gence. The president of the Republican
League of the United States has given the
world the testimony of "a Republican
United States Senator that "the manu-
facturers get practically the sole benefit
of the tariff laws" and the Republicans
seek the support of Democratic manufact-
urers on the ground of their selfish inter-
ests. Whenever one says, as Pierce Kane,
| Democratic knit-goods manufacturer of
Rensselaer, County, said: I" / know what
my own interests are, and will do my best
to protect them / am voting for Kane"
he Is hailed as patriot Along with this
appeal to the pocket of the manufacturer,
who gets practically the sole benefit of the
tariff laws" goes an appeal to the fears of
his employees, by what is known in political
parlance as working the free-trade rack
et." This is the attempt to frighten the
|
and free-whisky party by the threat that
the country will go to ruin and that they
| viii lose their places if moderate reduction
in the tariff is made.
The Democrats do not advocate their
cause on the ground that its success would
swell still larger the immense fortunes of a
| small number of protected manufacturers
like Andrew Carnegie, but on the ground
| that it would promote the interests of the
great mass Of the American people. They
still hold to the old-fashioned notion that
taxation is a bad thing, of which the less
the better, and that an economical admins
tratlon Of the Government is preferable to q
policy OF reckless extravagance The iout
cries with which the .'free-trade scaren i
raised they meet with quiet argument
showing the advantage to the communit,
OF free raw materials and low duties, quot
ing the unanswerable words on this side il
the past Of nearly all the great Rspublical
leaders.
Leader and policy are ideally suited t,
each other in each party. The Republican
candidate for head Of the Administration il
just the man 70 represent cause which ap
peais TO the greed Of small ring Of mer
whose only idea OF the Government is thai
Of machine to make money for its s.friends,' >
and 70 the ignorance of the worldng-men
whom among themselves they laugh
at as they plan to dupe them. The