The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1893-07-26
No Holm From H.rrison.

u~e his influence go assist Boa bringing
about repeal of tha sherman silver
purchase act He will NOT aiwltthat amy
lav that was enactcd while ho was I'r.si-
don't is uuul-e NJ he i- convinced that
the siIyer.purcha-e act. which was pass
cI boy "a republican congress- and which be
approved. is the cause Of the present f.
naugiaI trouble, he will NOT Jet the fact
Doe known. lu his comfortable home ut
Cape MAY Point he talss about public
questions to the newspaper men who visit
him. but he takes care To- uphold the Re
publican party and defend his admimstra-
ton
Many of the leading men Of his party,
including Senator sherman, who is the
authorof the silver purchase act, believe
that the financial disasters from which
the country is now suffering are due to
the silver-purchase act, and that the
prompt and unconditional repeal of that
act is necessary to restore confidence and
business prosperity. Only day or two
ago. so DISTINGUISHED a republican leader
as Mr.. Depew said, The first and at
present the only condition which viii re
tf1iNC hN rum JIG lilA stli'iJll Va l'lL dh't
bring us the confidence of our own
people and of the world is the re
peal Of the purchasing clause of the
Sherman act BY just the number of
days that congress fails to do this will
the present distress increase. Thcrepeal
once effected, confidence will be restored
in our finances" Other republicans of
prominence express views similar to those
Of Mr. Depew, but Gen. Harrison would
have the country believe that the silver
purchase act is not the cause of our f.
uancial troubles He declares the cause
is the fear that the Mckinley tariff will
be reduced
Gen. Harrison can hardly be sincere.
The tariff has not been touched and will
not be for months. Manufacturers have
known ever since the election of 1892 that
the tariff would be reduced, and they
have been preparing for a reduction.
They are not alarmed at the prospect of
tariff reform. 1t is doubtful if
many of them have given
the matter serious consideration
A good many of them have been compelled
to suspend business, not because of the
prospect of tariff reduction, but because
of their inability to get money from the
banks TO ny on their industries. If
Gen. Harrison were to take the trouble
to get the fact. he would find this state
ment to be true.
1t can hardly be possible that he be
lieves that the shadow of tariff reform
has had the effect of causing factory
owners to close their factories. That be
ing the case, what good excuse has he for
trying to make the country believe that
the existing financial depression is not
due to the silver-purchase act, but to the
prospective reduction of the TARIFF
1t looks as if he would rather have the
silver-prchase act remain in force
than have it repealed. He prefers to
have the acts Of his administration sus-
tanned than that there should be legislation
that would undo anything that was done
while he was the nations chief execu-
tive
He has not great deal of influence,
but he has some, and it is clearly his in
tention to use it in an indirect way to
sustain the acts of his administration
why republican papers should assert that
the prospect of tariff reduction rather
than the silver-purchase act has de
stroyed confidence and depressed bust
ness, Their purpose is to prevent the re
peal of the Mckinley tariff. Gen. Harri-
son, however, occupies too dignifed po-
sition to indulge in talk that is more be
coming to a disgruntled politician than
to man who has occupied the highest of
fee in the gift Of the people
The enactment by the silver purchase
law cannot be successfully defended.
Everybody knows that the purpose of it
was to please the silver states, and infu-
ence them TO favor Gen. Harrison S re
nomination Gen. Harrison is not improv-
ing his chances for getting to the white
| house again by his course in trying to OBJ
| struct legislation that would open the way
for a return of prosperity to the country.