Wausau pilot. [volume] (Wausau, Wis.) 1896-1940, 1901-08-06
The Democratic Opportunity.

The Democratic Opportunity.
The growing opportunity for the
Democratic party TO become the repre-
sentative of the business interests of
the country was never brighter than it
is at the present day, and every sue
ceeding development is but a heighten-
ing of it.
The discussion has not yet recovered
from the discussion of the loss of S1S,-
100000 worth of Russian trade because
of the anxiety of the administration to
protect the sugar trust against an an
nual sugar import of less than $4,000.
That $1S,OOO,OO0 worth of Russian
trade, in which millions of people We're
interested, should be deliberately
thrown away upon the demand OF a
single protected interest must have
opened the eyes of the people to the
character of our present policy.
Bad as was this step we have now
reached a second, in which, upon the
behest of the STANDARD Oil trust. the
government has raised an inhibition
against the Importation of Russian pc
troleum, and the car, in the protection
of his own people, feels called upon TO
add more restrictions to American
trade.
Hence we have the spectacle of an
administration pledged to policy OF
tariff protection upon the theory that
it will benefit the growth of American
business, deliberately sacrificing that
business for the purpose of taking care
of special individual interests. AS
against the sugar trust the entire busi-
ness of the country is thrown to the
winds. When the Standard Oil Com
pany besieges the White House there
is no thought for the enlargement OF
American commerce, but expansion is
forgotten while American buyers are
throttled at the custom house.
These are but two examples along a
line that might be continued indefinite
ly. Instead of a broad policy intended
to protect and encourage American
business, leaving the result to individ-
ual skill and enterprise, we have an adj
Unstable scheme IN which favors are
given out for favors received and in
which there is no thought for the gen
eral interest about which so much con-
Germ was expressed during the Presi-
Dental campaign. The result is that
the Republican party stands before the
people manacled and Handicapped as
the creature of a few interests, whose
names appear in the private pocket
book of the campaign manager, and
the people at large are but creatures to
be bled to enrich those who have earn
ed the right to enforce their exactions
While these scandalous disclosures
are being made, the demand goes UP
for tariff revision so that power may
be taken away from those who make
such Ubiquitous deals and injustice may
cease to be feature of our tariff laws
The strength of this cry is such that
Republican protection organs have be
come alarmed. They are now crying
out for what they call a business revis-
ion in the hands of business men. Such
a revision would be one placed in the
hands of the trust magnates and would
probably be even worse than the tariff
under which we now suffer.
This opens up to the Democratic par
ty the opportunity Of becoming the or
gan of the whole people, those who
manufacture and sell as well as those
who buy and consume. With such
scandals as have been disclosed by the
Russian incident there will be no diff
Guilty in rallying the people upon a
common sense, progressive platform
which will take care of the American
people at large instead of few favored
interests, as is the case at present. Ev-
cry campaign brings about it's GOWN
questions These necessarily pass into
allegiance before others of more emer-
gent character. The Democratic party
has always moved up to the plane OF
the present occasion. What that plane
is to be in 1904 is already evident. 1t is
to be the people against the eXtortiOn
of the protected interests, the people
against unjust taxation, the people
against a tariff law framed in the in,
terests of special fayOrites and which
disregards the true growth of the coun-
try.-Atlanta Constitution.