The state rights democrat. [volume] (Albany, Linn County, Oregon) 1865-1900, 1900-01-12
An Awkward Attitude.

A mers awkward attitude never fell L
the lot OF any newspaper than tnat
which nov attaches to the Oregonian.
Some dsys ago 1t was writing up Oar
nsgie in a spirit Of revenge because tnat
: gentleman secs tit to oppose the forcibie
annexatio OF the Philippines, which,
In the language OF MoKinlsv is "erimi-
nal aggression, when 1t unwittinsly ad'
mitted that "the protective tariff has
been in their hands Che Carnegie %
these forty years an instrument OF coios-
sal robbery, aud Is even vet h 70 Is
a confession that woul bring the bsush
of shame to an ordinary one bearing
false witness. Since 1883 the Oregon.an
has used it's great power in season and
out TO make the Carneg'es secure In
their hold upon the throats of the pub
lie, obtained by means OF the protective
tariff, which that paper now calls IAN
instrument of colossal robbery" And
athis instrument Of colossal robbery has
not only been in the hands Of the Car
naSies, but also in the hands OF nearly
all the trust organizations III the coun-
try. The steel and iron trusts, the
woolen mill trusts. the knit goods trusts
the lam hsr trusts and the hundreds OIL
others too numerous to mention ere ali
the outgrowth Of that "instrnment OF
colossal robbery" more particularly
called the "protective tariff. And the
0regonian contributed a mighty large
share OF the influence that placed the |
protective tariff laws upon the books OF
the country and thus placed in the
hands of these trusts this instrument OF
colossal robbery. How does the Ore
sonian like this little sketch OF itself
and its awkward attitude before the
public. 1t will not be a suticien. ans
wer to this charge of wicked iuconsist'
ency on the psrt OF that paper to abuse
the editor OF THE paper or to threw mud
as it has frequently done before, because
the public generally knows that when
this great tariff issue was raised by
Cleveland, the DEMeCRAr again and
again charged the Oregonian with sup
porting a ''robber tariff, while that pa
per supported this self-same tariff with a
zeal and ability worthy much better !
cause and declared in so doing that no |
legislation could be more beneficial to
the country at large.
The ablest editorial articles in favor OF
Tree trade that ever appeared in an Ore
,cn newspaper were.publiahed in the b
0regonian in 1888. Then all Of q sudden
,,ne silent influence unknown to the
public caused II to veer around and take
The strongest possible grounds in favor OF
Ehat it now calls ''aN instrument ofcolod-
al robbery" Such ia bTiei outline Of /
he course Of the Oregonian on the tariff
uestions is similarly serpentine. 1t 4
Fas the original anti-expansionist in
)regon, declaring when Dewey CAPTURED
Ianila that the United States ihould
ot hold the Philippine Islands. Now it
! the great mognl Of imperialism in the
Iorth West. Once it denounced demo.
rats numerically for opposing ''rob-
er tariff" IAN instrument Of COLOSSAL
1Dhery'' declaring they we're working
u British interests, and declaring that
ritish Gold was behind the Democrats.
low mo EueIlshman Is so poor and hum 4
lie that the 0regonian will not do him I
svereuce. With that paper everything l:
English you know" is righteous alto /
ather. The DEMocRAT regrets that the 4
)regonian which is 80 model paper in K
,any other respects shoul d be go sadly I:
ampered with this zig gag rsrold. Z