The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1894-06-19
FIGHT ON M'KINLEY.
The Reed Men Carrying on the
War Briskly
In OEio, With A. L. Conger
in the Lead.
TARIFF A DEAD ISSUE
Says Col. COnger in a Statement
to the Press.
TheMcKinleyIde Led the Party
to Defeat,
It Would Be Political Suicide
in 1896.

AKRON, Ohio, June 19.-After repeated
refusals to be interviewed ON his atti-
tude of opposition to the candidacy of
Gov. Mckinley for the presidency and
his reasons therefor, Col A L. Conger
prepared the following typewriter
statement for the press. Though the
colonel did not say so, the statement IS
understood to be the first authentic an
nOuncement of the plan of campaign
which is to be inaugurated against the
Ohio man by Tom Reed, of Maine, as
Conger is believed to be speaking with
the consent of his friends.
81 do not quite understand what all
this political hubbub is about" said Col.
COnger, ''but the people who are kick
ing it up are killing off their candidate
and making votes for Tom Reed every
day Garfield said in the Republican
national convention in 1880, and it has
been the law of the party ever since, that
every Republican should have the right
to cr3ticise the action of our party leaders,
and went so far as to say that he should
not be ostracised or read out of his party
if for good reasons he could not vote for
his party candidate.
81 have been educated for a high pro-
tectionist, but have been engaged in bus
mess in some of the leading lines of
manufacture of this country for Il number
of years, and during that time have
learned some things by experience which
have changed my views upon the tariff
question. Governor Mckinley is the
leader of our party in Ohio. The cor
respondents sending out the news from
our recent state convention said that
every plank in the platform was first
submitted to the governor for his ap-
provaL They seek to commit the party
TO the indOrsement of the Mckinley bill
for 1896 They also put another plank
in the platform straddling the silver
fair Ixy md
justly hold the governor responsible for
these two propositions as the platform
upon which he would stand in 1895.
Protection "A Dead Issue.
$50 far as the Mckinley bill is con-
cerned, we lost the campaign in 1892
upon that issue. The Republican party
is for protection. The country has pros
pered under it, but as we have grown
older we have needed less prOtec
tion. We meant in national
platform in 1880, or at least it was
the Interpretation put upon it by
the party, that we had now reached a
point in our history when we could af-
ford to make reductions in the tariff.
This was SO stated by our speakers on the
stump and by the Republican press, but
when we put forth the Mckinley bill we
violated the pledges of the party, in
creased duties, then went forth to battle
| upon the proposition. and were beaten.
N NOw it would simply be political suicide
to start out upon that proposition in 1896.
'We Will take, for instance. the sub
ject of binder twine. There are $780,,
900, 900 of capital invested in the manu-
facture of agricultural implements and
farm machinery in this country, giving
employment. directly Indirectly, to
more than 300,0U0 of American Iaboring
men. Whatever is good for the Ameri-
can farmer and will advance his inter
ests is good for the interests of the man.
ufacturers of agricultural machinery and
their employees. Their prosperity must
go hand in hand. Many of the leading
manufacturers of agricultural imple-
ments were opposed to duty on binder
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