The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1892-12-06
Still Predicting Evil.

The Republican prognosticators OF evil
are changing their cries little. The an
ticipated repeal of the duty on wool is to
cause great loss to the revenue. This is
variorsly estimated. One authority %
places it at $50 100000, oblivious of quo
tation made in its own columns from an
other authority that it will be but S9,000,-
GOO. To make up this deficiency, for these
inconsistent people now assert that all the
revenue from the present tariff will be
needed for the expenses of the govern
ment soma terrible things are to be done.
One dreadful Democratic deed is to be
the revision of the pension list by which
many "old and deserving soldiers" are to
be deprived of their means of living.
CLEVELAND IS pictured as the deadly foe
of the pensioners. His vetoes of fraudu-
lent pension claims are held up in evidence
of this, his traducers emitting of course to
state the fact that he signed more genuine
pension bills by far than any of his prede-
cessors. But anything to make sensa-
ton and raise an alarm against the Demo
Gratis, seems to be real Republican de-
light.
''The startling increase of pension pay
ments" is admitted, but it is alleged to be in
consequence of the infirmities and ills Of
old age which have come upon the vet
Grams, and the death OF many who leave
dependent relatives to be provided for.
This win not account for the enormous out
lay which increases every year for pen
sions 1t is well known that many welto-
do and able bodied men are receiving
annui;ies from the public treasury who
have no valid claims upon the country
That there should be close and critical
examination Of all such claims no con-
sistent person will dispute. II is not a
partisan question at all. 1t is a matter of
justice as well as public economy. And it
is gratifying that man will occupy the
post of president who has independence
of character enough to judge for himself
what is proper for him to do, and backbone
enough to do it, no matter what may be
said of it by the professional politicians
and the peculatiVe pension agents.
One thing may be viewed as certain.
Neither President CLEVELAND nor any
other Democratic official will seek to de-
prive deserving soldier of anything that
just government and a grateful country
owes to him. There is no disposition to do
anything of that kind. All the talk about
it is Republican rant, like the prognostica-
tons of ruin over the destruction of the
TARIFF There is nothing in it but malig-
nifty.
1t is a virtual admission that the first
Republican predictions were false. Free
trade" was to PROSTATE everything, i'm
poverish every body. Now, expenses are
to be so big that pensions viii have to be
stopped river and harbor appropriations to
be cut off, other terrible things are to hap
pen. But stupid contradictions do not af-
feet the Observation-Disclosures and what they
can accomplish by it except TO frighten
uninformed people and excite senseless and
useless bad feelings against the incoming
administration, it is difficult to perceive.
t would seem that common sense would
suggest waiting until the Democrats dc
something destructive or commit some
great blunder instead of bleating about
future evils that may never occur. A lying
spirit is among the Republican prophets.