The Laurens advertiser. (Laurens, S.C.) 1885-1973, 1894-01-16
FREE TRADE AND TARIFF REFORM
THE STAR-EYED GODDESS OF
REFORM IN A GREAT RAGE.

clan, Fires Into the Wilson Tariff
Billie Then Accepts this Result OF
the Tariff Agitation as the Best
Thing TO DO Now.
One OF the most remarkable politi-
cal speeches which has been delivered
in this country for long while was
made by Henry Watterson, editor of
tho Louisville Courier-Journal, at the
celebration Of Jackson's birthday by
the Watterson Club in Louisville. 1t
had been given out that Mr.. Waiter
son would deal with the political situa-
tion and the expectations Of those who
went to hear him were not disappoint-
ed. His speech was received with
great surprise, and yet with tremend-
GUS enthusiasm by the vast audience.
The following extracts are given to
show the trend Of the speech which is
already exciting much attention:
I mean no disrespect to persons in
authority when declare that this
seems to mo an era OF very small things
and very small men. Yet the stream
fife goes on, bearing its awful cargo of
good and evil, hope and fear, and hold
ing to the least of the generations the
relation it held to the greatest. And,
surely, never in the history of mankind
were deeper problems set to statesmen
and philosophers than are hidden in
the dark closets of contemporary expe-
rience, arising out of the uniixed laws
that are to determine and the unde
fined boundaries that arc at once to
separate and inclose the accretions and
the rights of property and the oppor-
tunities and the liberties of people. 1t
is now, as ever. the old battle between
the many and the few, for the bless
ings of free-labor and free-thought,
which, under our system, are supposed
to be the birthrights of ALL
say suppOSed-to-be." But are
they SO? Then why these gigantic
fortunes piled up in quarter of q cen
tury devoted to the simple arts Of avar-
ice and peace and not swollen by the
spoils of war, with capttves chained to
chariot,wheels, and ransacked treas
nries and sequestered estates, and all
that made the wealth and glory of
Roman conquest and British valor?
Why this cry of want in the midst of
plenty, which arises from one end of
the land to the other? Why?
PoRTENT OF THE SITUATION.
We are told by the Republican par
lisa MS that it is because the Democrats
have come into power. We are told
by Democratic partisans that it is bo-
cause of twenty years of bad Republi-
can legislation. The real cause lies
deeper and neither of the two great
party organizations can claim exemp-
tion from its share of responsibility.
The Republicans have sinned in ex-
cess; the Democrats in omission. To
neither do the masses of the people
plight their unreserved troth.
A little more than year ago the
Democrats swept the country. A lit
tie year later the Republicans swept
the country. There must have been
some reason for so sudden q change.
There was; and If one was to seek to
explore and find it, he will find it in
certain want of confidence on the part
of the people in any one set of politi-
clans and for this want of confidence
Sthe politicians are themselves in the
L main responsible.
In November, 1892, the people voted
q change of parties upon what they
supposed plain. specific political pro-
gram, a perfectly legible bill of fare.
In November, 1893, they voted the
other way because they had cotton it
into their heads that the men they had
elected were not as much in earnest as
they had seemed to be, but were TAX
ing their ease in their offices, instead
of bestirring themselves to carry out
their promises. | allow for the resent
ments among the disaffected place
seekers. I allow for the widespread
pressure of hard times, for which the
party in power is generally held to ac-
count. l allow for some internal dis
sensions about financial matters. But
back of these forces lay the recumbent
which had fought and won the battle
of '92 was allowed to go to sleep in '93.
The watchfires were not kept burning,
even on the inner lines. There was
some dissOnance of cOunsels about head
quarters. The doors of the citadel left
.ajar and many of the outposts aban-
doned, it was easy for the enemy, who
had been driven off almost dispersed,
TO get together again and to retrieve q
part Of the disaster that had befallen
them.
The political conditions are thus ex-
actly reversed. 1t is the victorious
Democrats who are disheartened, the
vanquished Republicans who are en-
'couraged. And the question for you
the veritable, the unterrfied, the orig
inal boys in the trenches-the question
for you to consider is, whether you
are going to sit down and sulk under
1t, or wake to the danger and make
yourselves heard and felt in these seats
breathe tho breath of life out of your
nostrils.
THE TRUTH OF HISTORY.
In the National Democratic Conven-
ton Of 1892, the platform committee
appeared with q tariff plank, which,
to say the best that could be said for it,
was open to double construction. My
own opinion is that it embodied excel
lent Republican doctrine. The conven-
tion would not have it. In its place it
substituted resolution, repeating the
declarations of 1876 1880 and 1888
which demanded "a tariff for revenue
only" This resolution was SO plain in
its terms that no one could misread it.
So the covert enemies OF tariff reform
who masquerade as Democrats, the
better to serve the devil OF protection,
straightway set about to have Mr.
cleveland repudiate it in his letter OF
acceptance. He did no such thing.
either in that letter, or any other ut
terance. Then they trumped up the
plea that the resolution was a trick OF
the Anti Cleveland men in the cOnven-
tion to embarrass the Cleveland men,
and, II possible, to delay q vote, and in
that way defeat the nomination of Mr.
Cleveland that the Cleveland men
saw the device and conceiving that Mr.
Cleveland would be his own platform