The Hocking sentinel. [volume] (Logan, Ohio) 1871-1906, 1894-09-13

WAsHINeToS, D. c.. Sept. g.
Whei. ali the facts are known, it is
probable that all the people viii have
more confidence in the men who were
responsible for the tariff bill than
they have at present. The new tariff
is spoken Of as the German bill and
Brice bill, and these terms are APP
piled to it by the extremists in the
Democratic party and the Repuhli
cans. 1t comes from the persons who
are opposed to the Democratic organ
ization,-the organization which
made success possible and which gave
the Democratic control of both
branches of Congress and the admins
tration. The conservative people OF
the country will say that this is the
kind OF tariff that is wanted. 1t is
not SO high that people cannot receive
the benefits of foreign competition,
nor vet is it so low that the foreigners
can introduce immense amounts OF
goods into this country and break
down home manufactures and leave
the people at the mercy Of the foreign
producer entirely. 1t may take some
time for the country to fully under
stand this, but when it does it will not
regard the tariff bill i'll the unfavor-
able light in which some Of the friends
of so called tariff reform would be
willing to place it.
No one ever heard Mr.. Brice COM
plain of having the bill bear his name.
He never complains of anything for
that matter. He may have opinions
of men who agree to do certain things,
and when they find that it is un-
popular for the moment break away
from their agreements, but he does
not make any great complaint even
of this kind of people. He takes it as a
matter of course that there will be a
certain number of them in every or
ganization. He has found few in
the Senate. This was what made it
so hard to secure the 43 votes neces-
sary to pass the tariff bill. They
were finally found, and by the most
adroit management they were held
together. 1t was part Of the duty
of Mr.. Brice to hold them together.
The way he did it may be told some
day. All the facts are not known.
At all events bill was passed in a
Senate which had bare majority of
three, with one of those openly opRos-
ed to the bill, leaving margin Of one
to work on. That was what the
Ohio Senator found when he counted
up the votes to pass the bill. He
was one of the Democratic managers. I.
His business sagacity, and keen under
standing were employed TO secure a
bill and to hold As votes together
until it was passed. With the utmost
good nature he went about his task of
concilicating where he could and con-
ceding where he had to.
1t was easy to see, and everybody
knows who has been at all observant,
that a radical bill could not pass the
Senate. No man living could have
drawn such bill. Mr.. Brice secured
from over four thousand reputable
men in his state views AS to what the
tariff ought to be. And he has had
incorporated in the bill the middle
ground, the mallium between both ex-
tremes, SO far as it was practicable.
His own good judgment of what a
tariff bill ought to be was assisted from
his own people.
That was one reason why he became
the most interesting figure in the
whole tariff struggle. He did not
make any long speeches, but he did
a great deal of work. He did not de-
nounce the administration for the
attempts which were made to force
the Senate from its position. Mr..
Brice knew as we'll as any other man
knew, that if the Senate attempted to
recede from the position it had taken
when 43 votes were pledged for the
bill that it would have been defeated.
Mr.. Brice came in for more abuse
than any other man and was heralded
everywhere as the agent of the sugar
trust, and rs one of the men who was
holding up all tariff legislation un-
less sugar was taken care of. The
only answer Mr.. Brice ever made to
these accusations, save i'll vindicating
himself before the sugar investigating
committee, was to say that Il duty on
sugar was part of the plan ofthe ad-
ministration. This was long in adj
vance of the letter of Cleveland to
Wilson in which the President ad
vocated duty on sugar, and which
was later confirmed by letter from
Secretary Carlisle when it seemed
possible thot froo 31~rr !'H '''.r'+