The Farmington times. [volume] (Farmington, Mo.) 1874-1902, 1901-08-01
FORMER PLAIN DUTY.
AfseF Thr~e Years of QsibbiisE He-
Pubiicans Make Coed Their
Beast

Republican partisan newspapers
ran swallow quite n dinner Of GROW
rhen they have To for the good Of the
party. They make few wry frees.
but always end up by advising their
readers to stand by whoever may he
the candidate or however unpala1Rble
the platform.
In commrntin. on this peculiArity,
thr Washington Post snys: Among
the most influential of the great mass
of republican papers that stood Tor
our plain duty and against the re-
publican majority in congress wHs the
Chicago Times Herald, now the Rec
ord Herald Referring to the action OF
the Porto Kico assembly by which free
trade with the United States Is now
usheFd In, that paper SAY: IT brings
the situation around 10 what Porto
Rico ought 20 have had rs matter 81
right by the cirruitous route of a 10
per cent. concession 10 cNPedtcnry.'
'The inter Ocean, republican or
gan Of approved iideliiy, treats this
subject at some length. II says that
thus, after three years SUf quibbling and
evasion. does the "ulain duty Of tn"
United States to Porto Rico promise TO
become a fact Going into the his
tory of the great feud, the Inter Ocean
speaks ~ mind with charming frank
nrss II recalls the fact that Gen.
Miles promised the Porto liicans Amer
lean rights, that the president said
that 90 grant to them free trade was
odr plain duty and that in response
all the people said 'Amrn.' Then, II
saws. the hcct sugar lobby came
90 Washington with the OXnard and
Myrick In charge, and there was a
panic. And the Inter Ocean continues
N this refreshing manner: The ways
aud means committee rallied around
the lobby and demanded a Porto liicau
tarlif AZ a warning preecdrnt" against
Philippine sugar. They declared the
Porto Nicans too poor 20 support their
local government IN the usual way.
How men too poor TO pay taxes on
their iuNurirs could pay the ONnard
tariff on their nrrrssarics they could
not explain, but they insisted on ia"
,arin.
Then the Porto l,icuu, proceeded 10
visr the De- tu the ONuard lobby and
It's cougrr .ioual helpers. with "a"
aid ~ American experts they rroT-
ganiscd their hnanccs and spent great
,ums un schools and public w"rks.
they will ,prnd this year nearly
S,.cnu"nu Md they have done and
are doing all this without touching one
lpllnr of the OVnard duties collect ed
at our custom houses That money
nearly sDuo.OG-l li's untouched IN the
Treasury ~ Washington
"'rhus have the Porto Ricans them.
selves proved the folly ~ well as tho
had faith involved in congress dis
,,owHl of "our plain duty" Thus have
they demonstrated 10 all future con-
grcsscs the futiliiy 81 course that
would ignore national dutyhud honor
At the bchcst Of few GREEDY inter
e~ts'
"ill this b. worth recording. he
rausr of its hearing on an extremely
interesting chapter 81 history. Aud IL
has other values. for the oNnard
lohhg. or i'. equivalent, 10 still in bust
rr~. The same influences that brought
shout th" abandonment of 'uur plain
duty toward Porto Rico are 10 give
Cuba kick when she asks the nitcd
Stat"~ for annexation, Meanwhile
they meant 90 do unpleasant things
in various directions. especially to-
ward the Philippine"