The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1894-08-13
Adjourn and Go Home.

Adjourn and Go Home.
Senator Hill's explanation of his
resolution to prod the tariff conferrees
to final action is characteristic. Every
days delay" he declares, sis injurious
to the business interests of the country,
and the bill should be disposed of at
once, one way or the other. 1t has now
been under consideration in conference
committee for over q month, and
further delay is absolutely ineXcusable.
The cOnferrees ought to know each
others minds by this time, and if they
cannot agree the fact Of such disagree
ment should be reported to the two
houses, when, if no understanding can
be reached upon a bill, congress should
promptly adjourn and give the country
q rest. We have now been in session
for nearly whole year, and have had
ample opportunity to legslate. A
senator or member who does not know
exactly what he wants to do on the
tariff question after all this time spent
in useless deliberation is unfit to repre-
sent any constituency. We have de-
liberated enough. We want action.
If no agreement can be reached let
the whole matter go over until the
next session, and let congress adjourn
to give the business interests of the
country a chance to recuperate from
the present depression. Congress must
arouse from its lethargy and should
act in accordance with public senti-
ment and not in defiance of it. Either
pass tariff bill at once or adjourn and
go home"
OF these alternatives, the latter is far
wiser. There was and is no real need
of new tariff bill. But even had
there been such a need, it would not
have been sufficient, in the nature of
things it could not have been sufficient,
to bring down upon the country all the
dangers incidental to modern Demo-
cratic congress in session. The ad-
journment of that congress, with the
tariff question indefinitely tabled,
would be followed by such a reassertion
of now repressed American industry as
had not been seen before in the eXpe-
rience of this generation. No sane
business man wants to run his store
without customers, his mills without
orders, his factories on half time aud
his railroads on starvation schedules.
No capitalist, on the other hand, wants
to tie his money up in a burglar proof
deposit vault. There is more in it for
him to have that money active and
fruitful in all the legitimate processes
of industry, giving work to others and
earning profit or interest for himself.
But industry cannot thrive with a
blighting threat hanging over it. Mills
cannot manufacture profits out of un
certainties. Factories cannot fabricate
prosperity out of don't-know-what-
may-happen.next. When even the high
leaders of the democracy cannot agree,
one with another, for two consecutive
days, upon basis of tariff amendment;
cannot say whether it is their partys
intention to ordain free raw materials,
or put coal, sugar and iron ore on the
protected list; and cannot tell, for the
life of them, whether the trusts, the
president or the people are running
things at Washington, it seems vain
indeed to keep the whole country
longer in state of fearful sus-
pense, the cost of which each day
exceeds the whole capitalization of the
warning trusts, with the aggregate
salaries Of president and congress
thrown in.
BY all means, let congress "adiourn
and go home" And may we never
look upon its like again.