The new dominion. [volume] (Morgantown, W. Va.) 1876-1904, 1894-03-10
A Critic Criticised.

to Harper's Weekly an article OIL
THE Republican Opportunity" il
which he attempts to show that "th'
needs of the country are the oppor
tunity Of the Republican party anC
that when the country has wanted
something done, it has turned to tn
Republican party or its predecessor
to do it. The editor of the Week.,
commenting on the article says il
part as follows:
Mr.. Lodge tells us, the countr,
again turns to thoRepublican party
because it wants something done
What does it want done? Accord
ing to Mr.. Lodge, the country wants
rest Why have we not rest now,
The principal cause of trouble, &C
cording to Mr.. Lodge is connected
with the tariff. But all our tariff
legislation since 1861 has been o.
Republican origin. Nobody will pre-
tend that this Republican tariff leg
islation gave the country rest for
one change of the tariff laws chased
another almost year after year.
There wos constant mutation and
uncertainty. The tariff was made
higher and higher, until finally il
reached the Mckinley notch. Mr.
Lodge will hardly pretend that be
fore the Mckinley tariff was made,
the country turned to the Republi-
can Party to have this thing done.
But it is certain that when it was
done, the unrest became greater than
ever-so great, indeed, that in two
elections, those of 1890 and 1892,
both turning upon this as the dis
tinct issue, the country declared it
self strongly against the Mckinley
tariff, and drove the Republican Par
ty out of power If it can be said
that of late years the country ever
turned to political party to have
something DONE it was in this in
stance. The thing to be done was
tariff reform in the direction of low
duties, and the party turned to was
not the Republican but the Demo
cratic Party.
"The question now is whether the
Democratic party will show itself
capable of accomplishing what the
country has twice unequivoeally de
clared that it wants done II, in
spite Of the distracting elements in
it, the Democratic party shows itself
equal To The task-in other words, if
it enacts the tariff provisions of the
Wilson bill substantially as they are
into law-we risk little in predicting
that the business of the country will
accommodate itself to it as rapidly
as fifty years ago it accommodated
itself to the low tariff of 1914, and
that a period of rest will follow
now, as it followed then Mr.. Lodge
will in this case, we hope, see the
opportunity Of the Republican party
in a policy calculated not to disturb
that rest. He now speaks OF the
Republican party as not being bound
if returned to power, to enforce any
particular set of tariff schedules
This looks like rank heresy as to the
divine authority of the Mckinley
tariff. But once adrift as to seized
ules, he may find the Wilson tariff
a very conservative measure, which.
had it been adopted by the Republi-
cans twenty years ago, would have
been accepted by the country as in
the main abundantly protective, and
would, if followed to its logical CON
sequences, have done far more to
give the country that economic rest
which Mr.. Lodge is now so sadly in
search of than any measure in the
line of policy adopted by the Repub-
lican party possibly could do
'If the Democrats should not
prove themselves equal to their task.
the Republican party would have
most glorious opportunity-namely,
to do what the Democrats ought to
have done"