Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1894-06-01
MIR. GORMAN'S SPEECH.

Senator Germans speech Of the 23d ult
came TO hand too late for comment in oul
last weeks issue, and the criticisms of il
have been so full and 80 pointed that com
ment now seems almost useless. We do moi
recall political utterance, in Congress OF
out of 1t, which evoked such uniformly adj
verse criticism from the press of the party
to which the speaker professed TO belong
and found praise mainly in opposition jour
nails. II is an anomalous state Of affairs,
certainly, but the whole tariff situation is 80
anomalous that one can scarcely be sur
prised at anything that may happen.
Two things strike one as notable in Mr..
Germans speech. One is the egotism dis
played in the boldness, amounting almost
TO insult, with which he attacked the bill as
it came from the House OF Representatives
and as reported by the Finance Committee
of the Senate. Usually Mr.. German is
credited with the tact which strikes without
offending, but in the present instance he
seems to have sought to widen the breach
which conservative" stubbornness created.
Besides, It was rash statement TO make,
after all the discussion the bill had received
by men thoroughly equipped for the task,
who had subordinated personal preferences
and jeoparded their political fortunes to &C.
cure in the tariff legislation the honest ex.
preston of Democratic doctrine and TO graf.
ify the demands Of Democratic voters.
But not less insulting is the manner in
which Mr.. German attacks the Democratic
theory of the tariff, though here he attempts
10 hide under the mask of fine words and
meaningless phrases the features of the pro-
tectionist. When he declared that neither
the Wilson bill nor the bill as reported by
the Finance Committee could pass the Sen
ate, he revealed his true position. Read be-
tween the lines it means this: that as be
tween the Wilson bill, which had received
the party support in the House and had
been well received by the party throughout
the country, and the Mckinley act, he was
for the Mckinley act. Better, in his judg-
ment, all the wrong and injustice of that
law which had crippled the treasury while
it impoverished the people and impeded
trade, than bill framed in accord with
Democratic principles and to the formula.
ton of which the brightest and best men in
the party had devoted months of labor
Better, in his judgment, the failure of every
party pledge, better party defeat and the
indefinite delay Of complete reform, than
the Republican doctrine of protection, which
he and others Of his party were elected to
overthrow, should be disturbed and the
clutch of its cruel hand loosened from the
throats of the people.
Doubtless Senator German is trusting
now, as he has trusted so often before, in
the forgetfulness of the people. He i'm
AGNES that in the revival of trade which
will follow upon the enactment of any tariff
everything will be attributed to
popular favor upon the tide of prosperity
which always succeeds prolonged period
IF depression. II he thinks so he will be
mistaken. The probable result of his ma.
nipulation will be to make tariff discussion
more wide spread and thorough than ever,
and the Democratic party will wage its
battle all the more holly because of the aid
and encouragement the Republicans have
received from the Democratic camp. Sena
or German is like TO be under fire for many
A long day; and when the old battle.cry
rings out upon the air there will be no place
Tor him 10 the lines he deserted when victory
seemed NEAR at hand.