The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1902-10-31

constructed provision of the law? How
recently have the friends of the tariff
had the boldness to perpetrate such a
trick and take the chances of facing
the people, when in the painful stress
OF threatened coal famine it should
be exposed?
have called your attention to the
1act that in 1887 competition, which, if
unrestricted, might modify the effect
upon our consumers of a high pro-
tective tariff, was spoken of as too
often strangled by combinations, quite
prevalent at this time, and frequently
called trusts, which have for their OBJ
ject the regulation of the supply and
prices of commodities made and sold
by members of the combination When
this was written, 1 suppose the trusts
and combinations mentioned as quite
prevalent so far as they were at all
important, might have been counted off
by the fingers of the two hands.
when the friends of the tariff last
took up the work of its reconstruction,
these trusts and combinations had In
creased by the hundreds. The conse-
quence of their operations could not
fail to be understood. 1t was as plain
then as now that a high protective
tariff defends them against forcing
competition, and that by agreed asso-
citation and confederacy in production
and price. they defend themselves
against competition at home. 1t was
perfectly apparent that under the
broad wings of high protection and
fattened by unearned accumulation,
they could complacently close their
ears to the troublesome cry for easier
living from the every day consumer.
THE present tariff conditions have
assumed a complexion which not only
rPnT1irpc nhaplr ~ n
but actual amendment is at last adj
mitted among those responsible for
these conditions. Such a concession
was made when q dozen or more rect
prOcity treaties were submitted to the
Senate, but the sincerity of the con-
cession and the honest intention to sur
render the least advantage as long as
it can be held, is emphatically dis
proved by the fact that session after
session of the Senate has passed with
out taking the least action on these
treaties.
81 need hardly refer to the prevalence
just at this time among the supporters
of high protection of declarations and
professions in favor of tariff readjust-
ment. We hear it on every side.
What does it mean? 1t means that they
see the handwriting on the wall as they
have never seen it before. Does it
HIedH lHdI Iney are sincerely Wiling
TO do something for the people, as
against old comrades who have here
tofOre paid well for the neglect of the
people?
How can we believe this when we
see still Daraded up and down before
our sight the hoary-headed, bloated
and malodorous old fraud and pretence
that the tariff should be revised by its
friends? What have these friends of
the tariff done that they should again
be trusted? They have quoted the
peoples fears and professed solicitude
for their welfare and promised to lead
them to pleasant places, and now that
shoals and rocks have been struck, they
seek by another promise to mend the
whole affairs and retain the confidence
and trust of those they have deluded.
81 have supposed that my fellow
citizens are thoughtful on this subject
and that their thoughtfulness has led
them to desire an amendment of our
tariff laws and rectificat ton of the
wrong and injustice that follow in their
train. | have attempted to give rea-
sons why this work should not be en-
trusted to those who have so fully DEM
onstrated their insincerity and unfit
ness for the task
Following the meeting there was a
non-Dartisan reception to Mr. Cleve-
land at which about 200 prominent res
idents of the city were present