The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1894-08-03
Senatorial Courtesy.

1t is quite beyond our limited power
to fully portray the great educational
benefit that is likely to result from
the timely injection of little Presi.
dental honesty into the generally
deceptive body politic-even the
comparatively austere and so-called
respectable Senate of the United
States. For the first, perhaps, many
will observe that the lower House is
representative Of the masses and the
Senate, or upper House, is representa-
tive and watchful of the interests of
the classes. Whether the founders
recognized the necessity for this ar
rangcmen: will be fully weighed, no
doubt, before popular sentiment will
succeed in abolishing the Senate, or
rather in making its members elective
by the people. But for the Presidents
letter to Chairman Wilson, the de-
ceptlve senatorial fixup of the tariff
bill would soon have reached him for
signature or veto. He could have
taken his choice and then assumed
the responsibility in either event. To
have signed the bill as anticipated by
the money-power and agencies of the
protected industries (who had no
doubt spent much time and money
in arranging it through our Senators)
would have been little or no improve.
ment upon the Mckinley tariff and
to have vetoed it entirely on this ac-
count would have been all the more
desirable to the class thus specially
favored. Whether the President did
it Willingly or unwittingly, certain it
is that the deceptive tricksters were
trapped and exposed to the whole
country by the straightforward and
honest phraseology Of the Presidents
letter, and hence their great discom-
fort and vain glorious onslaughter upon
him. This attempted deception of
the people who elect Presidents and
Congressman is now made too clear
for misconstruction upon their part.
There are no doubt Senators now in
Office (who have been there far too
long)who may in consequence of these
recent thrilling developments find some
little trouble about reelection, even
though their State legislatives, just be-
cause representatives likely to reach
the State Legislatures will be tried on
this issue before they can get there.
1t is necessary to look along the line
little to properly account for the
high evaporation and injured feelings
OF Senator German and the Senatorial
conference committee who said yes to
all his questions which tended to throw
the deception upon the shoulders of
the President. Straightforward hon.
esty is hard to beat, while deception
must always be on the alert and in the
dark because of constant fear and
danger of exposure. If anybody has
been exposed in anything deceptive in
this particular episode it will be very
hard for the Senatorial conference
committee either Jointly or several
ly to prove that the would-be deceiver
OF the masses has been President
Cleveland. To charge it all to his
third term aspirations may do as a
stab of the wiley politician, but it will
have little weight with the sober iudg.
ment of the sovereign power, since
they are not in the habit of granting
third terms to any President. The
cat is out and Cleveland opened the
bag, that's true, and they can't learn
too early that ''honesty is the best
policy"