The Maryville times. (Maryville, Tenn.) 1884-1944, 1892-03-02
THE PlECEMEAL PLAN.


Supporting Men Who Favor This Latest
Kind of Tariff smashIng-Under the Nc
Kinley Bill Eve rything Has Prospered-
"Let Well Enough Alone"
No man ought to vote against an ex-
listing law without first carefully con-
sidering what is to stand in its place. |
Otherwise he may jump from the fry
ing par into the fire. Especially does |
this hold true of the Mckinley tariff,
under which this people has done moth |
ing but prosper No one of common /
sense Will deny that we have prospered, |
and that, too, in nearly all departments
of industry. Not the faintest trace of
the expressions. or robberies, or eXor-
bitant prices predicted by the laws OPP
ponents can be found after sixteen
months of its operation. Anybody who
believes that the burdens of life have
been increased to him because of the
new tariff, believes it not because he
has discovered the added burdens him
self, but because he has shut his eyes
to the cheaper sugar and cheaper and
better manufactures he is buying, and
ton of trade everywhere, and has taken
some demagogic partisan's word for it
that he is wre tchedly off, notwithstand-
ing that the testimony of his own
senses tells that he is enjoying unusual
prosperity.
Frankly, now, could we not do worse
than to let well enough alone?
At the very least, he who is inclined
to vote for the repeal of the Mckinley
law should carefully consider what is
to come after it. He should keep his
eye constantly on the democratic lead
ers and weigh their every utterance
touching the tariff, SO that he may
know what to expect in case power
should be given. them to enact their will
into law. He should be the mo re alert
because evidence is not wanting that
the leaders in the crusade against pro.
lection intend to pursue course until
after the pre- sidential election, which
will leave voters u tterly in the dark as
to their intentions touching the tariff
Says Representative Whiting, OF
Michigan, a democratic member of the
ways and means committee, as reported
in the World of New York, January 20:
| can see nothing but danger in attacking the
tariff and silver questions in any way, except by
declaratory resolutions. We do not want
to make any blunders of our own and for that rea-
| son. think, we should let matters stand where
| they are We do not want stump ora
tors to take our individual measures into certain
| districts, where on account OF local interests
| they may be Objectionable, and to attack us on
them When we get the power, and believe
| we soon shall--to repeal the Mckinley BILL we
| will do it, but that power can only come from
the people.
Let each democratic voter ponder
we'll Just what this policy means to
him. 1t means that the party intends
to conceal from him so far as possible
its purpose regarding his particular in.
dustry. The western flock master must
not be brought to realize, by the intro.
duction of free wool bill, that his in
dustry in menaced by unfettered Aus
tralian competition. The New York
barley grower must not know, through
the introduction of measure propos-
ing redu ction of the thirty cent duty
on barley to ten cents a bushel, that
the old ruinous ten-million- bushel del
uge of Canadian barley is to be let in
once more. "A specific bill for free iron
ore would teach the workers in iron
mines how dangerous to them is tariff
''reform;" definite demand in congress
for free salt w ould lose many voters in
alt-producing sections to the party
making it. So, according to Mr.. Whit
ing, nothing definite, nothing specific
must be presented to the country to tell
voters exactly what the party intends
to do with this, that or the other indus
try. He would serve them instead with
vague general anti-protection denuncia-
tiois, on the strength of which they
would be as ked to elect a congress and
president opposed to protection without
ever inquiring what they proposed to
substitute for the present law
When voters had done this, then the
need of concealme mt would have passed.
Then would come the free wool, and
the free salt, and the low barley duty.
Then, when it is too late, the deluded
voter would cry out in anguish: why
did not look before l leaped?"