St. Landry clarion. (Opelousas, La.) 1890-1921, 1897-07-10
jlNGo AND TARIFF TlNkERERs.
sBlindness of the Republican Leaders
in Congress.

= = : - a
in Congress.
There is no doubt that action or non
action of congress is making the state
of business and industrial affairs worse
day by day. At least the antics OF the
reckless partisan and jingo politicians
are preventing all tendencies toward a
general trade and labor revival.
Congress in both branches seems
to be utterly insensible to the fact that
the disturbance in values caused by the
menaces of tariff legislation and that,
the insecurity of Investments caused by
the feyerish war talk at Washington
are the causes of continued business
depression and of all the evils that
have been perpetrated by hard times.
There should be a change OF some kind
Ia wave of popular influence or q po-
litical shock-that would bring con-
gress to its senses.
This is the sentiment of all the men
In business and in the employments Of
industry. A representative business
journal, the Financial Chronicle, speak
ing of the senate action regarding Cuba,
says:
EVERY senator who is not given over to
silver and who has any regard for our
suffering country must feel that such pro-
ceedings are in every way detrimental
delaying business revival and destroying
every hope Of speedy recovery. 1t Is fool
ish amid such goings ON to talk about
signs of business Improvement, as some
are trying to do. There are no such signs
and can be none until our legislators in
Washington stop playing the fool ana go
to work earning their wages like the rest
of us, trying to build up instead of pull
down"
But what can be expected? A report
of a conversation with Senator Nor
gan, the Cuban leader in the senate,
says that he was asked as to the pros
poets of war with Spain il the United
States should recognize the independ-
cnce of Cuba. "War will come" he is
said to have replied in an airy way.
"How long will it last?' he was asked.
twenty-five days." he replied. How
much will it eost?" added the inter-
viewer. "Oh. about $4,000, 600, said the
Alabama jingo statesman. But" he
is said to have added. war will help the
country, and bring better times.
This is preposterous. A war with
Spain would be mostly at sea, and
would be most especially destructive
on the highways of our sea coast com
merce. Spanish cruisers, perhaps priva,
tcers, swarming out of all the ports Of
commerce, would sweep American mer.
| chant commerce from the seas off our
southern Atlantic and gulf coasts.
The coastwise commerce of the
| United States is all that we have OF
value. Our transatlantic commerce
| is mostly carried in foreign ships. Oul
navigation laws exclude foreign ship
/ ping from the commerce between oul
/ own ports But few fast armoret
/ vessels, such as Spain could buy and put
| into service in ten days, the guerilla'
of the sea, could drive our coastwis'
shipping into port and keep it there.
This is what the jingo leader calls
"helping business A few southerl
cruisers during the civil war damaged
our commerce to the extent of hundred'
of millions of dollars. A similar re
/ suit would follow war with Spain.
An attempt to land formidable
American army in Cuba would be 4
court disaster. It might be met by AZ
attempt Of Spain to land it's Cuba1
army ON our soil. At any rate it woule
be attended by immense loss of life ane
/ other horrors Of war. A senator whom
dulges in inflated persifage on such
subject is an enemy to the country
It is singular that the men at Wash
ington cannot read the most obyiou
signs of the times. The republicans il
eongress-those engaged in tariff leg
islation and those who follow the jing'
lead Of Morgan are inviting nes
Bryan crusade, and it's defeat would b
1 far more difficult task in 1900 thal
that of 1866 Chicago Chronicle.