Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1893-08-17
DISTRESSED pRoTEcT,on,s1s.

McKiuley's Quack Remedy for the Finan-
cia1 Disorder.
One of the most amusing rs well as
significant features Of the existing con-
ditions which have resulted in the cali
ing of an extraordinary session of con-
gress is the attempt of the protectionists
to utilize them for the intimidation of
the tariff reformers. Republican or
gans for the last few weeks have been
frantically proclaiming that the gen.
eral depression is due to the fear of
tariff revision, and have with the Mt
most equanimity been assuring the
president that all that is necessary to
restore confidence and s'good times is
for him to declare unequivocally that
the present tariff shall not be dis
turbed.
Gov. Mckinley, who never rises Dove
the source of the customary republican
current, be its course what it may,
takes up this idea in recent speech
and repeats it with his usual unctious
soiemnity. After drawing narrowing
picture of the condition of the country,
''let me tell what would be the cure"
he adds: IAN authoritative declaration
of congress. when it meets, approved by
the president, that the threatened
changes will not take place, that they
did not mean it, or, if they meant it,
they have discovered they were wrong.
If they will do that the fears OF the
business world will be Quoted and
business will resume it's normal condi-
ton"
The protectionists are evidently in the
last ditch. All other means to stay the
tide of tariff reform having failed, they
seize upon this, which six months ago
they had never thought of, with the des-
perate hope of multiplying the result of
last November's election. Finding
business disturbances at hand-disturb-
ances which the business interests
themselves declare are due to the con-
sequences of republican legislation
the protectionists attempt to take adj
vantage of these to brighten enough
weakened democrats from the plat
form on which they were elected to
prevent the democratic party from re-
deeming its pledges, thus leaving pro-
lection undisturbed in the enjoyment
of its booty. They do not seem to real
ize how ludicrous is the decoy which
they have set afloat. The democrats
were elected on the express promise to
repeal and revise the bad republican
legislation-the chief of which being
the Mckinley act and the Sherman act
from whose operation the country is
now suffering. And yet the party re-
sponsible for that legislation-the party
repudiated by the people when they
supplanted it with the democratic
party-now demands that it shall adj
wise and dictate the policy to be tol-
lowed and that that policy shall be
the retention of the very legislation
which its victorious successors pledged
themselves to abrogate and which is
behind the very troubles that the de-
feated party, with characteristic eff
frontery, seeks to use to Illustrate the
will of the people and perpetuate the
legislation they have condemned.
This little scheme will have no other
effect than to tighten the dizziness of
an oppressive summer. Even if it were
true-and it certainly is not-that the
financial depression is due to the appre-
hension of tariff reform, instead of the
evils of republican fiscal and tariff poll
cies, the only thing for the democrats to
do would be to so ahead and reform the
tariff on the lines on which they prom
Used to reform it, and be done with it.
If we cannot reform the tariff without
the uneasiness which we are told must
precede it to the unsettlement of bust
ness, it would be better that we should
do the work now than wait later. II
we are to believe the protection oracles,
we have already had the uneasiness.
We might as well now have the reform.
One thing is certain: tariff reform is
bound to come, if not now, later; and
to postpone it would, according to the
theory of the oracles, only be to invite
another season of apprehension
Louisville CNurier-Journal.