New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1894-01-09
WATTERSON ON, THE TARIFF
WILSON'S BILL CONDEMNED
A COwARDLY MAKEsWFT, VIOLATING
THE DEMOCRATIC PLATFORM.
HOW THE TARIFF PLANK WAS ADoPTED-AND
HOW Mr.. wATTERsoN WOULD CARRY IT
INTO EFFECT-IS THERE DEMO
s,s. CRATIC PARTY. OR A MERE AG-
GI4OMERATION or
...,- FACTIONSc
FACTIONS


.-.,- FACTIONS:
Louisville Jan. s.-Jackson's Day was cele-
brated in this city with unusual display by the
Watterson Club. The great music hall was
packed, res soon as the doors were opened by
an enthusiastic conoourse Of all classes eager
10 hear Mr. Watterson. who wcs to deliver
the principal address. The hall was profusely
decorated. and the boxes and rarduette showed
a goodIy number OF women in attendance. 1t
had been given out that Mr.. Watterscn would
deal with the political situation without gloves
and the. expectation Of these who went to hear
him was not disappointed. lie said:
A little more than year ago the Democrats
swept the country \ little year later the RepubN-
cans swept the country. There must have been
some &eason for sudden change. There was;
and II one should seek to explore and find It, he
will lnd IL in q certain want OF confidence on the
part of the people In any one set Of politicians. and
for this want 90 confidence the politicians are them-
selves in the main responsible.
In November 1852. the people voted change OF
parties upon what they supposed plain. specific
political programme. perfectly legjbe bin OF fare
In November 1898, they voted the other way be-
cause they had gotten it into their beads that the
men they had elected were not SO much in earnest
as they had seemed to be, but were taking their
ease in their Offices instead Of bestirring themselves
TO carry out their promises. | allow for the re-
sentiments among the disaffected placc-seekers
allow for the widespread pressure of hard times for
which the party in power IS generally held to ac-
count / allow for internal discussions abou,
financial matters. But back of these forces lay
the recumbent figure of disrust. The party spirit
which had fought and won the battle OF ls'I was
allowed to go to sleep in 1898. The w&tchhres were
not kept burning even on the inner hhe3. there
was some dissonance Of counsels about headquar-
ters The doors Of the citadel left ajar ana many
IF oi,tro Ia
enemy who had been driven OFF and almost dis
persed to get together, again and TO retrieve a
part of the disaster that had befallon them
The political conditions thus exactly reversed.
Il is the victorious Democrats who are disheart-
ened, the vanquished Republicans who are encour-
aged, And the question for you-the yeritabe. the
unterrfed. the original boys in the trenches-the
question for you consider is whether you are
going to sit down and sulk under IT, or wake to the
danger and make yourselves heard and felt in
those seats Of power which exist by your will and
breathe the breath Of life out of your nostrils
THE TRUTH OF HISTORY.
In the National Democratic Convention Of 1892
the Platform Committee appeared with tariff
plank. which. to say the best that could be said for
II. was open to double construction. My own
opinion Is that ii embodied excellent Republican
doctrine The convention would not have 1t. In
its place. 1t substituted resolution. repeating the
declarations of 1876. 1885, and lSSS which demanded
"a tariff for only" This resolution WIS 50
plain in its terms that no one could misread H.
So the covert enemies of Tariff reform. who
masquerade Democrats the better TO -serve the
devil of Protection. straiyhtway set about TO have
Mr.. Cleveland repudatc it in his letter Of accept
ance. He did no such thing. either In tnat letter
or in any other u'terance. Ihsn they srumped . up
ant-Clevcara men in the convention to embarrass
T 1ns spS ,h men a dded h noma Of
Mr.. Cleveland: that the leveland men saw ne
be his platform. refused TO fall into the snare
Ss s ss arre % with
even representing the opinion Of the Convention
as the midnight swirl Of a turbulent MOB.
II history were fiction and politics game OF
oniy children would vote There was never a nloie
deliberative act done by deliberate body than The
bv she NSiorai Denocratc Convention OF ISL. 1t
was the logical elimination OF campaisn Oh e,iu,
people setting aside snbterfuge Of the politicians,
and spur but between the hours Of O'Clock
anas Ike sHd knew
not planned to obstruct the nomination OF Mr.;
that Mr.. Cleveland had any hand in the original
tariff plank which it struck out he would not have
Mr.. Whitney were assured by myself and others
that no obstruction was meditated. ana n Is vel
si:. Cleveland, j regarded il a foresone conclusion
turb anybody Or to be disturbed on that account.
In short in the most decisive, and far any
thing in American politics can be solemn in the
most solemn. at least In the most serious way the
long struggle between the forces Of light ana dark
ness in the Democratic party by staampins out
Inserting q declaration which no human being could
misunderstood msreport
Vandalism was dead-Caillsleism was rampant
And With csyelana for &c ana 1a his
OF tariff reform-we went 70 the country We met
the onset OF the Republicans fuli ~ front. They
made their nght directly on our tariff plank They
described 4 as a slip out OF the Confederate con
siituiion they denoUnSsd as CG h aa sed
4; of US that they did not say. MI the worn.
SSs SHaf n. were thrown into the had
made in the wall Of the robher castle, but they
ea Eft s9ss flag s and R
wthprotection drums beating we drovs me ron
moats and dikes into their lair and out again. re-
ters Of The situation. every department OF the Gov
ernmen, in possession.
sble men all this accomplished. after years
OF discussion, merely to condoAe ana conserve Re
those policies and 70 set up in room s OF hen Dem
who had fought and won the battle?
TIE MORAL or THE VICTORY
Either we were right or we were wrong. The
vote Of 1890 following the passage Of the Mckinley
act seemed to indicate that the people thought we
were right. But the vote of 1892, electng Demo-
cratic President and Democratic House and
Senate. was conclusive on this point. If 1t was
not SO. then somebody was most esreglousiy ue-
celyed. Who was IL?
An emlnen; member of the present Government
said just after the elections of last Novem-
Der: 1T seems impossible nowadays for the party
leaders to make sure of their voters!' He spoke
in a tone of genuine dependency. How can you
expect anything else replied. when you are
always deceving and disappointing them? The
voters. are al right. Ihsy Know VIVA. 'ney M@hss
and what they mean 1t 3 That az soon as ore q
these little great men gets into wh. he thinks
big and snug place that ne casts ABOUT TO see
how ne may keep IT, and straigh;wly he sets up
body else. Then the people. finding him too great
a man 10 be good for anything. turn about ana
real genius OF real courage. of real conviction or
real Inspiration. of real worth. do their duty first
nd count the costs afterward. AS a consequence,
the voters believe in them and follow them even a;
they followed Clay through forty years or sun ana
shower; even as they followed jackson through
thirty years of storm and battle even as they
win follow YOU II you dare to be brave and
honest as jackson and as Clay.
M friend asked what would do if were
chairman OF the Ways and Means Committee:
L