Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1892-09-22
HARRISON's RECORD.
Men and Measures OF the Present
Administration.
The Force Bin Infamy Effects OF ths
Sherman Antitrust and silver
PoIicies-Bungling In For
eign Affairs.

The Force Bill Infamy Effects OF the
Sherman Antitrust and Silver
PoIicies-Bungling In For
eign Affairs.
Compiled from the Chicago Times1
PART III.
There was good ground for fear that
the rule of Harrison had endangered
the success of his party Though
Headsman Clarkson had counted his
victims by the thousand there were still
other thousands who had waited four
long years for another chance at the
public crib. Signs of reaction were
visible in many sections. There had
been a too evident purpose to disregard
every promise of the convention that
first nominated Mr.. Harrison, and dis
content appeared where republicanism
had seemed impregnable. Power gained
under pledge of reducing the peoples
burdens had been used to decrease
their revenues, indeed, but to levy
heavier tributes for the favorites who
were to thus recoup themselves for the
fat fried during the campaign in which
blocks of five illustrated the decadence
of the party. To offset the detection of
thousands in Massachusetts, and other
New England states Mr.. Lodge framed
and urged to its passage through the
lower house the Infamous force bill.
By this it was believed votes could be
stolen in the south to compensate for
those lost in the north. In it's exalta-
ton over the probable passage the New
York Tribune declared that it s'con-
tanned within its belly hundred tariff
bills and for this reason urged its en-
actment upon the beneiciaries of the
protective system. The republican
speaker of the house rolled under his
tongue praises of the bill to which he
had given earnest support, and for
which he had overthrown precedents
and antagonized the rulings of the
chief statesmen of his party. Men hon.
estly elected by their districts We're de-
MED their seats and usurpers seated
that the majority might be strong
enough to overcome the scruples of
few in the party who would not bow
the knee to the Baal of the party
caucus.
Speaking in Pittsburgh, Mr.. Reed de-
clared that under this bill I'VE will do
our own registering and counting" De-
Tending the measure, Senator Ingalls,
declared that purity in politics was an
iridescent dream.
To the passage of this act the presi-
dent lent every effort. He used the
vast patronage of his Office to induce
those who rebelled at the dictates of
caucus controlled by the worst ele-
ments of the party to refuse obedience
to their consciences and make an end
of republican institutions. Against the
unmistakab1e voice of the people, as
expressed in one of the most complete
political revolutions in history, the
president urged a defeated party and
a discredited congress to pass the bill
that the party might not be driven
utterly from power. The bill was de-
feated largely because new senators
from rotten borough states refused to
disobey the voice of the people. But
the stigma of the bill rests as COM
pletely on the administration of Ben
jamin Harrison as does it's Endorsement
by the Minneapolis convention bind
the party to its passage in case Of sue
cess this fall.
The Sherman Antitrust Law.
The Minneapolis convention declared:
1--WE reaffirm our opposition, declared in the
republican platform of 1888, to all combinations
of capital organized in trusts otherwise to
control arbitrarily the conditions of trade
among citizens. We heartily indorse the
action already taken upon this subject and ask
for such further legislation as may be required
to remedy any defects in existing laws and to
render their enforcement more complete and
effective
Consistent in its effort to deceive the
people with words of promise to the
ear to be broken to the hope, there had
been passed law known as the Sher-
man antitrust act. With great flour
ish of trumpets republican organs had
declared that this statute was intended
to control the vast com binations of
capital fostered and protected under
the party policy. Against the apparent
abSurdity of Senator Sherman advo-
eating or IN any manner supporting a
measure inimical to the interests of
benefciaries of republican paternalism,
the language of the statute was quoted
as evidence of the party's good faith.
But new trusts were organized on
every hand and no opposition made by
the officers appointed by Benjamin Har-
rison for their suppression. The sugar
trust absorbed all competitors and took
advantage of the entire tariff pro-
lection afforded by the bill which
gave them the benefit of free
raw materials but left them
tariff bonus of more than three times
the labor cost of refining. The manu-
facturers of barbed wire openly stated
that they had organized trust for the
purpose of controlling the price of their
product Producers of iron and steel
goods were combined in giant corpor-
alton, defying the law and making
prices to suit themselves. In every
branch of manufacture affected by the
tariff trusts and combination were the
rule. Labor was absolutely at the
mercy of protected capital, and no effort
made to conceal the intent to control
arbitrarily the condition of trade among
our citizens" After more than two
years of immunity the law officers of
the administration made pretense of
enforcing the Sherman law. Obse-
quious law officers ostentatiously pre-
pared indictments against certain
trusts. What was the result is teo
well known to require more than a
bare allusion to the ending of these
suits Whenever the Sherman law was
brought to test before United States
court it was declared unconstitutional
or the pleadings of Benjamin Harrison's
law officers declared defective, with
the result that trusts still flourish.
This is the faction already taken upon
this Snhiecf,, which xvoS cordially