Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1896-11-16

"A his signature or his veto. Nor * thers
Il any certainty that proper tariff legis'
lation can be secured in the next Sen
ate, although the prospect is brighter
in that respect, owing to the recent
ayowals of several of the silver sena-
tors that they would not attempt te
|.encumber a tariff measure with sill
yer rider. However, what with the
varied elements that go to make W
the next Senate and the disposition
some of them have shown in the past
the mere political interests Of fac
| ton it must be admitted that the pros
pect of the passage of an ideal Repub-
lican tariff measure is not such as we
believe the majority of the people in
this country would like to see. We do
believe, however, that the need of
more revenue is so imperative that
sufficient votes for some remedial
measure can be had at the hands of
the next Senate if not in the present
body.
There are certain facts that are gen.
orally recognized and will be kept in
mind. One of these is that there has
been a deficiency every year the
present tariff law has been in opera
ton and the deficiency for the current
fiscal year up to date is 5000, 900. The
government must secure enough rev.
enues to pay its bills or borrow. An
other is, that those who obstruct the
passage Of q proper tariff measure
will be responsible for any bond issues
thereby made necessary. The inabil-
ity of the Democratic administration
to enact their free trade platform
theories and the recent formidable
competition threatened by the pecu-
liar and peculiarly situated labor of
Japan and China ought to demon
strate to the Democrats themselves
the utter impracticability Of the the
ory advanced by them in 1892 and en-
dorsed in their platform Of 1896. Again.
it ought to be equally apparent that
tective tariff for their existence. The
scandal attaching to the sugar trust
tariff under the Democratic admins
tration was not because of the fact
that the tariff was protective in the
sense in which protection is advocated
from a Republican standpoint but be-
cause it was arranged and manipula-
ted solely in the interests of the trust
in opposition to the interests of the
people Moreover tariff may ben
eft trust and at the same time at
ford greater benefit to other interests
SO large as to outweigh those of the
trust in the consideration.
While under prosperous times the
present tariff would undoubtedly pro-
duce more revenues it ought to be clear
to all that it is inadequate from rev.
enue standpoint and is just as much of
an insult to the avowed Democratic
idea of tariff as it is to the Republi
can idea. 1t is neither one nor the
other and has richly earned all the op-
probrium cast upon it not only by Re-
publicans but by Mr.. Cleveland him
self. Another consideration which must
not be lost sight of is that the country
has called the Republican party to the
administration of the nations affairs
Those principles have been strictly adj
hered to throughout the campaign.
Neither can the Republican party be
judged for it's management unless
given opportunity to put it's principles
into practise nor will the silverites be
enabled to prove that it is not a change
in the tariff but change in the cur
rency that is needed, unless this is
done Under these conditions is it less
the duty of sound money Democrats to
assist the Republicans in enacting an
adequate tariff law along Republican
lines, than it was their duty to assist
in suppressing the theory that free sill
yer is the remedy needed? 1t would
seem not, and if the Dingley bill shall
be enacted this winter and come to
President Cleveland for approval we
fail to see now under the circumstances
he can consistently refuse to allow it to
become law. That bill, while recog-
nized as an emergency measure-and
that emergency still exists-does i'm
prove upon the present law, does re-
store duties in a measure that were
ruthlessly cut off. and can be made, we
believe, to provide sufficient revenue to
obviate issues of more bonds. Further
more when a general revision of the
tariff may be had the changes that
would have to be made upon the Ding
ley bill would not be SO radical as to
seriously disturb business. Then why
not improve the Dingley bill if possible,
attempt to pass it in the spirit in which
the attempt was made at the last ses-