The Saint Paul globe., 1897-07-02
UP A STUMP.


We are not surprised to find the ad-
mission, in a Washington letter of the
Milwaukee Sentiners correspondent,
that ''the question that is giving the
Republican senators the most trouble
at this time is that in relation to the
proposition for placing an antitrust
amendment in the tariff bill" Despite
the vehement assurance Of the New
est and best development of our
modern civilization, there is a preva-
lent opinion that they are quite the
contrary. Back of this is the very
logical conviction that, as they are
formed to suppress internal competi-
tion, they are merely patterning
after the Republican policy of SUPPRESS
ing external competition, and are,
therefore, the natural and inevitable
products of that policy This being
the condition outside, with the interior
aware Of the relations of the trusts to
the party's campaign fund, there
that will have the appearance of pla-
eating hostile public opinion while being
innocuous to the financers of the cam
paign. The effort of 1890 having prov
ed so dismal a failure, something fur
ther and other must be done, but how
to reconcile the irreconcilable is a
question which we can realize must be
giving the senators lots of trouble.
We have seen our own Knute, fresh
from the rural regions of the state, un-
sophisticated, uninformed as to the in
tricacies of the relations between his
party managers and the trusts, dis
corning with clear eye the vital point
in the problem, and offering his
amendment to authorize the president
was the game Of trust. And we have
seen him, after due initiation into the
mysteries, withdraw his amendment,
although when offering it he had as
sured the senators that it was a copy
of the provision incorporated into the
new Canadian tariff, and asked why
it would not work as we'll here. We
have seen, too,. the Pettigrew amend
ment of similar terms voted down by
the solid Republican vote, aided by
their latest convert, Morgan. And now
we have the matter referred to Sena-
tors Davis, Spooner and Thurston to
provide solution. Plainly they are
bothered, and no wonder
Some explanation or apology is due
to an expectant public for the rejec-
tion of the proffered amendments and
to prepare it for the probable abandon
ment Of the effort, and the sagacious
correspondent essays the task The
insuperable objection to them all, he
says. is that each one of them pro-
posed to use tariff duties as the rem
edy. If it should be provided that
trusted articles might be free-listed,
'it was discovered that the result
would be not only to deprive the fed
eral treasury of revenue, but it might
endanger the entire protective system
by combinations of persons opposed to
the system, made in order to effect the
abolition of customs duties" The
humor Of this is rich and rare. A
tariff shuts out imports; there is no
revenue from them; a trust monopo-
Lies the product then the article is
free-listed and the treasury will be de-
prived of revenue it is not getting.
Then again the danger to the whole
protective system that might result
from the action of iconoclastic free
traders who would form combinations,
invest capital, and "trust" some prod
uct, which would go onto the free
list forthwith, and down would topple
the whole fabric No nursery goblin
ever was SO appalling as is this har-
rowing creation of Republican imagi-
nations.
But in thus thrusting their heads
into the sand these Republicans seem
to be unconscious of what they leave
exposed. They do not seem to realize
their confirmation of the contention
that tariffs favor trusts. If putting
articles controlled by them in the free
list, while efficacious, is inadmissible
because of the double danger to the
revenue and to the system of protec-
ton, it follows, as an unavoidable con-
clusion, that the trusts find in the
rates and the system their opportunity
for formation and existence. This free
traders have asserted and protection
lists denied, but now Republican sena-
tors are driven into a corner where
they are obliged to admit it, We can
understand that the correspondent is
well informed and accurate in saying
that "it is still doubtful, even among
the learned lawyers who are preparing
the amendment, whether it can be
so drawn as to be effective" At last
the Republicans are fairly "up
stump"