Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1888-06-21
DEMOCRATIC LEGISLATION.

New York Mail and Express
Since 1888 the Democrats have had
uninterrupted control of the national
House of Representative. They have
enjoyed the services of a Speaker who is
admitted to be the very best presiding
officer of his party. Mr.. Carlisle has
made the committees of the bodies over
which he has presided for the purpose
of bringing out the utmost strength of
his party. 1t is probably the fact that,
since his Speakership, the House has
been as efficient as its personnel permit
ted. And yet nearly all important leg
islation has failed, and now all but one
subject, the tariff, has been abandoned.
1t is certain that the Democratic party
cannot better its record of the last five
years, and, judged on that record, it is
wretched failure.
When Mr.. Carlisle was first chosen
Speaker Mr.. Arthur was President. In
his annual message to the Congress of
that year he informed it that the fisher
les clause of the Washington treaty had
been terminated by notice which had
been given in accordance with an act of
Congress. But Congress did not attend
to the recommendation, and it was not
until 1887 that the retaliatOry act was
passed, the Democrats being driven to
do something by the stress of public
opinion, which was stimulated by the
eager clamor of their New England fel-
low partisans, who were afraid to lose
the fishermen's votes. In the same
message Mr.. Arthur notified Congress
that the three per cent. bonds would be
paid in 1887. The prediction was veri-
fed, so that Congress knew that the rev.
enues would begin to accumulate the
moment the redemption of the threes
stopped. Mr.. Arthur begged Congress
to take some steps to prevent the threat
ened surplus. He urged the adoption of
scheme for the reduction of unneces-
sary and unjust taxation. But Congress
was deaf The Democratic House,
which was responsible for revenue taxa
ton, refused to take action. The years
went by and the surplus continued to
pile up, until now the business interests
of the country are faced with a prob
lem which the majority in the House
was unable to cope with. There has
never, in the history of legislation in this
country, been such an exhibition of in
competency.
Mr.. Arthur advised Congress on an
other important matter. He informed
it that the banks held, as security for
circulation, $200,000,000 of the threes,
and he called the attention of Congress
to the damage that might result from
the sudden contraction of the bank cur
rency. But nothing has been done in
this direction, and even the President
has ceased to ask for the preservation of
the best paper currency that the nation
has ever possessed.
Again, he asked for money for coast
defences, saying that the works for the
defences of our large cities and harbOrs
were built before "the introduction of
heavy modern rifled guns into maritime
warfare, and if they are not put in an
efficient condition we may easily be sub
JoCG6u W HuulllldIlOl UI d uOoGlIo pOHOI
greatly inferior to ourselves" But moth
ing has been done to carry out this
recommendation, and the coast is not
only still defenceless, but there is no
prospect of amendment so long as the
Democrats remain in power.
In fact, the questions that demanded
solution five years ago are still pending,
and the Democratic majority in the
House have proved their incapacity to
contend with them. There is no pros
pect for better achievements. As we
said at the outset their Congresses have
done as much as Democrats can do.
They cannot be expected to accomplish
anything more, and the interests of the
country demand that the work of legis-
lation, important and pressing as it is,
should be taken from the weak hands
to which it has been so long entrusted.
The record of the party is as good as
the party, and therefore the party has
demonstrated that it is unfit to have con-
troll of the public business.