The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1894-10-24
B1TRDATT OF THE SENTINEL.

BUREAU OF THE SENTINEL,
WASHINGTON, D. c., Oct. 21.
The political sensation Of the last week
has been the declaration of Car Thomas
3. Reed, the clustering politician and
bul,dozing leader Of the republican side
of the house of representatives, against
the iniquitous Mckinley bill and his as
sertion that the measure does not meet
with the approval Of the republican party
and will never be re-enacted by that
party should ii again come into power
in the country. To the republicans it
came like a thunderbolt From the be-
ginning of this campaign the leaders of
the congressional committee have been
ready to lay down and grovel before the
image of the Mckinney bill and were pre-
pared to make that their only light in
the contest now on. They were standing
behind Mckinney and Harrison in the
advocacy of the measure and had made
the canvass on an issue between the old
and the new law.
Now 1t becomes, indeed, a grave ques-
ton where the republican party is to be
found on this question. Reed. Sherman,
Cullom. Lodge and a dozen other equally
prominent leaders Of the party of pelf
and plutocracy have seen before this the
necessity of hedging on the tariff ques-
ton. They have marked the good effects
that followed in he train of the passage
of the present tariff law and were wise
enough to foresee that with every week
the new system was in operation 1t
would become more and more popular
and the general feeling would more and
more strongly condemn the "cuiminat-
ing atrocities of McESinleyism. In fact,
about the only leaders Of any prominence
who either could not see this drift OF
opinion or We're too unwise to trim their
course to suit il We're the two presiden-
tial aspirants in Ohio and Indiana.
OF course. the feeling is that they can
not be blamed. In the case of Harrison
it IS too we'll known that he has so little
left on which to base a calm for more
recognition from the American people
that he is justified in trying to make the
best of McKlneyism and the light ii re-
fleets upon him. With Mckinley the
bill is everything He knows nothing
else Of any importance. He has done lit
tie else on which one could hope for an
instant to base a claim of overpowering
wisdom and transcendant craftsmanship.
With him his abortion is the beginning
and the end. With it eliminated from
politics in the country he would return to
the ranks of the unknown and his ambi-
ton to sit in the white house with no one
forever.
But which class Of leaders represents
the republican party? That is the ques-
ton for which at present there is no an
swer. If Reed and the others of his ilk
do. then the republican party stands in
the position of indorsing the acts of the
democrats in revising the tariff and are
thoroughly in line with the future policy,
which cOntemplates no further general
revision of the tariff for several years to
come and looks for relief from the pres
ent INEQUALITIES that crept into the senate
bill through the medium of special acts
passed from time to time. If the repub-
licans contemplate no general revision,
then there Is nothing particularly for
which to fight, for they have taken a
position right within the democratic
lines. and harmony is within sight.
Of course, the republican leaders in
Washington will admit nothing of the
sort They are here for the purpose of
spending the campaign fund put up by
the trusts that were favored under the
Mckinley law, and they mean to spend
that money for the best interests of the
aggregated capital they represent. How
they viii trim their sails to overcome
this new resistance from their own ad-
herents will puzzle them until the end CT
the campaign, and they may not then
! perfect a plan that will prove satisfac-
tory even to themselves.
The other principal subject of political
talk during the past week has been the
attitude Of the republican campaign COM
mittee toward the American protective
association. All over the country the
democrats have denounced the. religious
intolerance of the un-American associa-
tion. but the republicans have been al
most controlled by it in many important
localities and hardly a convention of
that party has dared to take an advanced
stand against it and stand in line for the
right of religious freedom guaranteed TO
American citizens under the constitution.
More than this the republican congress
sional committee has been and still is
openly charged with being in league with
the abominable association, and with
sending out ant-Catho.ic literature all
over the country, some of ii being under
the frank of Chairman Babcock himself.
1t was when they had seen how bitter
ly such a course was condemned by the
iiberty-loving American people that the
committee became panic-stricken over
the thing, and alarming reports that
came in from organizations in a dozen
different parts of the country only con-
frmed the fright that had been given
them. In consequence Of this Chairman
Babcock's interview was mulgated,
and ever since that the authorities in
charge of the republican headquarters
have been strenuous in their denials of
any completely in the scheme to forward
the interests of the association.
However. the fight on this issue is not
vet ended by any means. The demo-
cratic committee processes to have abso-
lutte proof of the aid given by the repub-
lican leaders and viii bring this forcibly
TO the front so that the American people
can judge where the b1ame lies. They re-
gard the attitude Of the opposition as
very agreeable to their interests. as they
have the proof of former completely with
which TO rouse those who are against re-