The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1901-03-03

Speaker Thomas B. Reed.
Mr. Long was honored this week by
the speaker as a member of the special
committee to investigate the house pay
rool and ascertain the status Of house
employees sort Of ''weeding-out' COM
mittee Its members are: Moody OF
Massachusetts,; Long Of Kansas; Over
street of Indiana; Bailey of Texas; eNw-
lands of Nevada-all Of them conspecu-
Gus members of the house.
[ heard a prominent stockman of KAN
sas, whose politics is Republican. say the
other day that his principal objection to
the shipping bill is that It along pro-
tectve lines. I remarked that was the
best Endorsement the bill could have-that
if it perfected the protective system,
nothing better could be said of the pro-
posed measure. The gentleman replied
that the west was done with protection
that the day when Kansas and its near
by section of this country favored pro-
lection in any way. was in the past. and
that the inevitable ltime when the ques-
ton would again be in American poll
ties. would demonstrate the correctness OF
his prophecy.
Was the gentleman correct? There Il
probably no accurate way to determine
the matter, but If there is Republican
IN Kansas who does not thoroughly be-
lieve in the principle of protection, he
certainly does not stop to think. He
should know that it has been demonstrate
ed over and over again that what inures
to the benefit of one section of this coun-
try inures to all; that when one class is
prosperous, satisfied, all are IF it had
not been for protection there would be
strong; no Americanism in the markets
of the world; no superiority Of American
products and manufactures wherever
gods are sold among natives.
The spirit of protection is still domin-
ant It applies to the middle-west with
the same force as to the south. to New
England or to Pennsylvania And when
the shipping bin and the great question
of the restoration of our merchant marine
again confronts the coming congress and
the public. the fact that it embodies and
perfects the protective system viii be its
best argument
The shipping bill is not framed to en-
rich enyone. Its purpose is to give the
people Of the country a substantial as
surance that their exports viii go to for
eign countries. whatever may happen to
the nations of Europe and besides this
70 give the United States a means of de-
Tense in the ever-possible emergency OF
war
The passage Of the shipping bill means
the eventual retention in this country of
POO millions now paid annually by our
people 20 foreign shipbuilders It's de-
feat means an indefinite continuance OF
the foreign monopoly Of foreign CARRYING F
and a never ceasing drain upon national
resources to pay our ocean freight bill
Tt goes to the country from here thar
there is great opposition TO the shipping +
bin. OF course there is Given an in- /
7ustry whose net proceeds IS in The neieh (
oorhood of 90 millions annually-an in T
lustry represented almost entirely bv for
aigners and foreign infuences-and Civ +
en- a measure which seeks to convert all f
his to home industries; 10 encourage the +
making and sailing Of ships here ID the
nited States-and there naturally is
strenuous opposition. This opposition fur
lishes the arguments ard the moral
sufuius to senators and press who have
50 ably misrepresented and maugned the
shipping nill and those who have favor
"a it. 1t is. as in the days ~ old the
foreign element which has profted. de-
-ended by a class Of Americans. AGAINST
Americanism; and as in the past strur-
Re. the termination VIII he to Americas
mot some other country's and some oth-
IT ~srsons' advantage.