The times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1882-1897, 1894-01-12
Sad Phrophecy Fulfilled.

able words: 81 love my country and my
countrymen. l am an American and re
joice every day of my life that am. l en-
joy the general prosperity of my country
and know that the workingmen of this
land are the best paid, the best fed and the
best clothed of any aborers on the face Of
the earth. Many of them have homes Of
their own. They are surrounded by all the
comforts and many of the Iuxuries of life.
shudder, however, at the thought that the
changed. When the general prosperity OF
the country will be destroyed. When the
| great body of workIngmen in this land who
are now SO prosperous, will hear their
wives and children cry for bread, that the
day must come when the great factories and
manufactures of this land will shut down,
and where there is now life and activity,
there will be the silence of the tomb. And
the reason why this must be is this: The
great southern wing of the democrat party
is determined to establish the doctrine of
free trade in this land. They will be assist
ed by their northern allies. The fight is
now on. There IL great body of visionary
but educated men who are employed day
by day In writing free trade essays and ar
guments In favor of that doctrine which
find their way into every newspaper in the
land. The great body of our people have
never experienced, themselves, the suffering
which always results when the protective
principles are laid aside. Poisoned and
excited by the wild statements of these
writers and the demagogic appeals Of dem
Ocrat speakers, the result will be that In the
very near future these forces which are now
working will be strong enough to defeat at
the polls the party advocating the doctrine
Of protection. 1t must inevitably follow
that uncertainty and doubt will ensue. The
business men of the country fearing the
destruction of the principle of protection
will decline to engage In business, conse-
quently mills will shut down Acknowledgment
will be thrown out of employment. The
people will then see as they have never seen
bef0re-that they cannot be prosperous and
have work while this principle is threatened.
In the midst of their suffering they will
learn that the only way they can be pros
porous and happy Is to vote for the party
that has built up the industries by which
they have gained livelihood, because they
will then see clearly that when the manu-
factory is shut down there is no demand
for the only thing which they have to sell,
and that is their labor"
How like divine prophecy these words
sound in the light of these days of suffer-
ing 1t is only one more illustration of the
truth-that James G. Blaine knew more of
the past, and thereby was able to know
more of what the future had In store than
any other American statesman. 1t is as
certain as the fact that twice two makes
four, that no men, or set of men. will en-
gage in business without knowing In adj
vance what the principles are on which that
business is to be conducted. Because of
this great fact, because of the fear and un-
certainty which was produced in this land
when it became certain that the democratic
party, pledged to destroy the protective
principle, had obtained full control of this
country, general paralysis ensued. From
the day that it became certain that the pro-
tective principle was to be assaulted, bust
ness began to decline. That is the reason,
and the sole reason for the panic which we
had, and the suffering which we now have.
Grover Cleveland and his followers In Con- |
gress are solely responsible for the general |
suffering of the people, but, thank God,
there Is hope for the future. But few
brief months must elapse and In November
next the people of our country will have
the opportunity to repeat the dose that they
gave last November; and then with house
Of repr esentatives again controlled by men
who represent the northern civilization,
who k now that in order to have prosperity
the protective principle must be sustained,
the whole country. north, south, east and
west, will again enter upon an era OF pros
perity never before equaled, and the suffer-
ing and the distress which has come to this
land through the misrule of the democrat
party, will come the teaching of the great
lesson, that the principle of protection is
essential to the welfare of tie nation as the
principle of self-defense, the first law of
nature.--Grand Rapids Herald.