St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1890-10-06
THE SCAPEGOAT.

1t will strike most persons as being a
little singular that the Republican man
ayers should have selected Mr.. LIND
to open their defensive campaign, which
has been neceSSitated by the action of
the Minnesota delegation in congress on
the MCKINLEY bill. 1t is possibly be-
cause they regarded Mr.. LIND as less
of sinner than the others. for on sew
eral occasions during the progress of
the tariff bill through the house he
gave such evident signs of weakening
| that it required both the moral and
| physical aid of Tom REED and BILL
MCKINLEY to brace him up sufficiently
| to record his vote in favor of some of
| the Ubiquitous measures of that out
| rageous law.
| This was notably the case when the
TIN tax clause was before the house for
consideration. The enormity of this
Ubiquitous provision. which was framed
solely in the interest of an English syn
dictate, struck Mr.. LIND so forcibly that
he actually Jumped the bars and voted
with the Democrats. But before the
vote was announced Mai. MCKINLEY
rushed across the hall, and in tone of
authority ordered the mutinous disciple
of protection back into the party ranks.
At the same moment TOM REED bent
| forward over the speakers desk, and,
with an Ominous scowl on his face and a
| significant shake of his gavel toward the
renegade Minnesota member. quenched
the little flame of freedom that had
been burning in Mr.. LIND's breast.
| With ha oir Of n III, tod t.
LIND arose and directed the clerk to
change his vote in favor of the tin tax.
Mr.. LIMBS sudden change of base saved
the day for the English capitalists who
were trying to float the worthless stock
of the Anne riean Tin Plate company on
! the London market. But for Mr.. LIND's
sudden change of base. under the press
ure of Tom REEDS tyranny, the tin
| tax clause would have been defeated.
BY his cOwardly surrender of his indi-
vidual convictions into the hands of
REED and MCKINLEY. he put several
millions of dollars into the treasury of
an English syndicate, every dollar of
which is to be taken from the pockets
of the American people by the increase
in price of tinware. Every time one of
Mr.. LIMBS former constituents buys
tin cup Or saucepan, he will have to
contribute $50 per cent in excess of the
| real worth of the article as his proper
ton of the price the American people
will have to pay for Mr.. LIND'S folly
and cowardice.
And yet this man is the one chosen
by the Republican managers, out of the
| Of re- VIII,
sented Minnesota in the Fifty-frst con
gress, to open the defensive campaign
which they are compelled to make OH
the tariff question. Ii he is the least
sinner of the batch. what can be said in
defense of the others?. Their iniqulties
must pile upon them mountain-high,
and should bury them so deep in the
grave of popular contempt that there
con be no resurrection for them.
In the opening of his speech in this
city last Saturday night he apologized
for his trepidatien on the ground that
he was not accustomed to speaking be-
fore a city audience. But those who
were present and were familiar with
MIR. LIND's career in congress knew
| that his nervousness proceeded from the
effects of guilty conscience and the
consciousness that he mad betrayed the
most sacred trust that could be COM
mitted to representative of a virtueus
and intelligent constituency. The lame
and rambling speech which followed
was confirmatory of this statement A
st. Paul audience never had such a
crazy quilt harangue Inflicted upon
bn l,,,r Of
miserable appeal to his Scandinavian
countrymen to become renegades like
himself. He implored them to forget
the teachings of their fathers and the
traditions of their mother country, and
to embrace the vicious principle of pro-
lection. which bids fair to erect stern
er despotiSm in this country than ever
blighted the fair fields of Sweden and
Norway. The man who is ashamed of
his birthright and is false to the good
principles instilled into him in early
youth is easily capable of betraying a
public trust. A man who surrenders
his convictions into the keeping of
others is not fit to hold public office.
But the browning infamy of Mr.. LIMBS
public career was that, after he had done
all the mischief he was capable of doing
in congress. he should come home and
endeavor to persuade his Scandinavian
countrymen to be as bad as himself,
under the false pretense that the Nc
KINLEY bill is going to be a benefit to
the farmers of Minnesota.
The Republican managers have shown
the weakness of their party and the
| bonoIoccnQcc nf thQir aoI,ca hx- hr;,, -