The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1894-08-23
FiELE- lilAL TARIFF NEXT
THAT DISASTROUS POLICY IS
NOW THREATENED.

THAT DlsA|sTRous POLICY IS
NOW THREATENED.
Brief Rovid w of Two Years OF
Tariff Agitation, That Has
Ended With Satiefact;on To
Eobody-PubIic Favor Turns
From the Popuilse Party, as
Indicated by tho Alabama
Election.
The political Eensation Of the last week
and Of the last bear for that matter. is the
Anal agreement OF both houses OF congress
C. pass a tariff pill. Il was on the 7th day
OF August, 1881 tina. congress assembled
IN extra sessic1. according to proclama-
tiep at tbs pres ldent, to begin the work
for wkicS, pre- u,nably, the Democratic
party had been placed in power Although
It's FIRST energieE were devoted to the re
peal OF the silver purchase act, yet the
calling OF the extra session enabled the
organization ofIthe house to be perfected,
aspeaker choscIa, a code of rales sdopted,
ead the decks cleared for action before the
beginning OF tie rsgulsr session in De-
cen,ber. Ia adj lition TO that, the appoint
nent at this eN IRA session Of the commit
tee on ways anf means brought into ex
istence body officially charged with TIE
work Of preparl Ing a detailed tariT bill.
The r. rty Was Sub.laut.
Those who hid been somewhat down.
cast when Mr. Cleveland declined to order
an extra session immediately after the 4th
of March, ia Her TO begin the work of
tariff revision, we're now assured that he
had acted FOR be best. No time would be
lost, they said, 1.-THE tariff bill would be
ready for presentation TO the house as soon
as the regular Jsssion opened, and leSisla-
tion on this sui ject would be practically
completed befd Ire the beginning OF the new
year. The bus ness interests CT the coun-
try. which verb jus, beginning to recover
from the terrid c hammer blows of the
financial PANEL of LAST summer, stopped
and waited i}r the fulhllment of this
promise. TheJ have waited for more than
a.year. It has been year OF
Dc,ao.n attic Disagreement, Dlsillusionment
snj Discomforture.
The Republican party has not placed a
straw In the by of the Democrats while
pursuing their dream of tariff revised
according to II emocratic principles. The
minority in tie senate, under the rules
that still exist in that body, could have
postponed actlo indefinitely, nor could a
sufficient nuE1 Der Of votes have been OBJ
tanned to chanlye the rules in order to force
through taril bill. They did not so con-
ceive their dEty. Bowling TO the will of
the majority, I.s expressed in the election
Of 1892, howdver unfortunate and erro-
neous may Have been the impression
under which the majority was given, they
determin ed to throw upon the Democracy
the entire responsibility for it's official
acts, to ask ndthirg but full publicity and
ample debate, and thus TO permit the OPP
position to ruIsh headiong to its own de-
strucrion. The tale of what happened
doss not need how to be retoid. From the
very first mon ent there has been no desire
or intention Oh the part of the Democracy
to act up faitd fully TO the lard of its
platform. The bill offered by Mr.. Wilson
in the house. and carried triumphantly
through that body. was neither scientific
protection, nor tariff for revenue only, nor |
free trade 1t jvas n bill to cut down duties |
on the line df the views of those who !
possessed mo SC influence with the Demo |
cratic leaders in the house. These were,
first, coteri4 OF Democratic managers, |
and, second, the representatives from the |
South. The
House Bill Was Distinctly and Frankly !
Sectional.
The highest duty in it's schedules was
placed on rici, 3 Southern product. The |
most material reductions were made in |
those schedule rs which interest the North |
ern manufactures. And to make this diff |
ference still more searching there was
added by the Propertyless representatives |
of the South nd Southwest, the Populistic
scheme of the income tax. This bill was
sent to the sc nate and remained there for !
months. VIZ len the senate committee had |
got through with it, they had added over
six hundred amendments, entirely |
revising thd character of the bill,
In accordance with the interests most
powerful in their body. 1t was still nei-
Their protection nor free trade. 1t was
still openly sectional But the great
trusts were VI ell taken care of, and the
campaign funds which their managers
had contributed o the Democratic strong !
box weTe reGj rasd in concessions TO the
interests lepr ss9nted by TIE contributors
No more opel issue could he made than
that which d ow asserted itself between
the senate and the house. Ii Il u.e was
tiny one distihc principle that could be
discerned in tie house bill, it YVES grant
ing free raw materials. Every such pro-
vision was struck out by the senate except
free wool, WI ieh was left to plague the
farmers. The other duties were revised
throughout, 10y increasing their amount
and By changing the method of levying
them from All valorein to specific, con1rary
to the rule w1iiicn the house had first laid
down as gq ide 20 its action.
Busincs OF the Country Suffered.
While thdse preparations were being
made, and while this deadlock continued,
the business of the country suffered the
most trench dous misfortune Commerce
ind Manufacture were paralyzed, industry
was at stad dstill, and business men ey-
erywhere bedame ciamorous for any action
rather than Ehe continuance of that uncer
tainty whicb meant ruin. Regardless of
this public misfortune, the house of repre-
6entatives declared that it could not
yield, becaufe it stood for principle; and
It was suppl rted in this position BY an act
practically Unknown in the political his
tory of this country-by the publication
of letter o} teasibly private, but intended
for general Ierusal, addressed by the presi-
dent of the United States to the speaker of
the house. Ia this letter the senate bill
was ssigmadized as the product of self in
teresU, and the house was urged not to
consent TO IFS passage, which the president
declared would be an act of party perfdy
and party dishonor."
Scarcely Was the issue drawn and the
situation n hds perfectly plain, when the
house delihd rately and eagerly surrend-
cred to the demands of the senate. All
that Democ rats have been urging vpoa
the country fer years in the matter of tar
If reform W As pushed into the background,
the ownership of the party by tie sugar
trust was actually confessed, and this sem
ate bill, agdinst which Democratic con-
ventions III |many Of the states have de-
clared as e1 alphabetically as against the Nc
kinlev act. and which the president as q
Democrat cannot, without self-stultihcas
tion, permit to become a law, was accepted
as the sole fruit of year and half OF
Democratic performance, aud year and q
half of mortal agony for the business In.
etc - xtna