The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-06-18
A FREE-TRADBRs' FIGHT.

While the Democrats of Kentucky are
sore distressed, divided and demoralized
by the silver question, those of Maryland
are equally disturbed by the tariff issue.
1t will be remem bered the two Maryland
Senators refused to support the free trade
policy of Cleveland to the extent of voting
for the Wilson bill as it came from the
House, and were among those whom the
President denounced as traitors to the
party. One of them, Senator Gibson, will
be a candidate for reelection by the Legis-
lature to be chosen this fall, and bitter
tight is now going on in the State as TO
whether the party shall indorse his course
by re-electing him or indorse the President
by defeating him.
According to the Baltimore Sun, the
party is divided on this issue from one end
of the State to the other, and the division is
regarded not as a factional one between
the partisans of rival leaders which will
end with the primaries, but is one OF prirl-
clples which cannot be compromised. 1t
is a contest to determine whether the
Maryland Democracy will support German
and Gibson in repudiating free trade, or
whether it will sustain the free-traders in
denouncing the two Senators for refusing
to abide by and fulfill the pledges of the
Democratic platform and opposing the
efforts OF the Democratic majority i'll the
House and the policy of the Democratic
President.
The fact that this issue dominates the
politics of Maryland at time when the
rest of the country is absorbed in discuss
ing the money question, is a proof that the
tariff is not so wholly out of politics as
many Democrats would have us believe.
The free-traders have not abandoned their
efforts to get complete control of the Demo
cratic party, and drive out of it every
leader who is opposed to their fatuous pol
icy. Should they succeed in defeating
Gibson it would be declaration to the
country that moderate tariff reformers
were to have no further honors from
Democracy, and that the party intends, if
it ever obtains power again, to strike down
every American industry and open our
ports to the cheap goods of all the pauper
labor of the world.
In this respect therefore the Maryland
contest is of interest to the Nation at large.
1t is as certain as any future event can be,
that if the free-traders should not only de-
feat Gibson's friends in the primaries but
carry the State for a Senatorial candidate
pledged to support Cleveland, the tariff
issue would be the most important one be-
fore the people in 1896. We can turn our
attention to the money question in a
Presidential campaign only upon the as
sumption that our industries are to have
at least the protection which the Senate
obtained for them by amendments to the
Wilson bill. If there be any evidence that
the free-traders intend to make still fur
ther steps in the direction of unrestricted
foreign imports, then, come silver or come
gold, the people must rally to the protec-
ton of their industries, their wages and
their homes, and vote for the one party
which can be relied on under ali circum-
stances to defend American labor from
foreign competition as well as American
soil from foreign aggression.