The Plymouth tribune. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1901-1911, 1902-04-03

Various Phases of the Political Con.
flict Upon Which the State Is
Now Entering.
AN INDIANA EDITORS VIEWS
Text of Paper Read Before a Recent
Editorial Association Meeting at In.
dianapoIis Concerning Present Day
Politics

dianapoIis Concerning Present Day
Politics.
At the recent meeting of the Indiana
Republican Editorial Association held
at Indianapolis, Mr. Ed. T. Staley of
the Upton Advocate discussed poll
tical Issues That Now Confront U.s."
1.-THE question of territorial expan-
sion has been settled; we have ex-
banded, and no power under the cycle
of the sun can contract us. The Phil
| ippines are ours, ours by every right
recognized by the civilized nations of
the world, and wherever our flag
floats, whether on land or sea, under
the midnight sun of the northiand or
| far down under the Southern cross,
it Is there to stay and no man or set
Of men dare haul it down. What may
be the position of the Democratic par
ty relative to our newly-acquired terri
tory is difficult to forecast. 1t may,
for policy sake, declare in favor of
abandonment, but it is the history of
lhdl patty lAdI IL ACsOl
anything of value on which it lays its
hand AS to how these new posses
sionS are to be governed or the posi-
lions they are to occupy temporarily
or permanently is matter for the
American congress and the executive
to determine. l. for one. am perfectly
willing to trust the present law-mak-
ing and law-enforcing bodies to deal
honestly, fearlessly and intelligently
with all the great and important ques-
lions as they may be presented.
1.-The tariff is a tax and the con-
sumner has to pay It, was the old Dem
ocratic war cry, which was forced to
give way to the slogan Of the boy
orator of the Platte, namely The free
and unlimited coinage Of silver at
the ratio of 16 to 1. with or without
the consent of any other nation on
earth but unless the signs of the
times are greatly at fault, the country
has heard the last Of that; free silver
is dead and lays side by side with the
remains of the rag baby once so dear
to the Democratic heart. But Bryan
and Organism is still a factor to be
reckoned with, for try as they may.
the better element of the Democratic
party cannot shake him off or elimi-
nate his policies, and in my judgment
he is destined to play another engage
ment in the leading role. Anti-expan-
sion, opposition to colonial govern
ment, down with the robber tariff,
smash the trusts, together with other
wild and fantastic notions, constitute
basic principles on which the Demo
cratic party will enter the coming
campaign. AS for the tariff, we have
nothing to fear, for the reason that 1T
took the country too long to recover
from that alopathic dose of free trade
administered by the last and only
Democratic administration during the
past 40 years. The memory OF that
widespread disaster and ruin wrought
by that one Democratic prescription
still abides with the people. and they
want no more OF 1t. The fact Is the
people as . whole are satisfied with
the present tariff law and they will
not approve OF any revision OF sched-
ules or tinksring of any kind. Posi-
bly, there may be some inequalities.
some duties may be too high and some
too low, but whatever defects may
exist, they are of minor importance,
not of sufficient magnitude to warrant
an effort to correct them at the risk
of disturbing the business of the coun.
try. Business, like capital, is extreme
ly sensitive and easily alarmed.
Therefore 1t is to be hoped that the
Republican congress will not at this
time attempt any revision of the tar
if. and | am reasonably certain that
the Democratic party will not be given
an opportunity to do so.
"The trusts, or 'unholy combina-
tions.' of which we hear so much
about. but whose baneful influence we
feel so little, will no doubt cut quite
figure; our friends, the common en-
envy, will endeavor to prejudice the
minds of the people, as they always
do. by the portrayal of imaginary con-
ditions. No doubt there are good
trusts and there are bad trusts, just
as the interest of the individual or OF
given community may be affected.
but for the life of me l cannot see
how the good is to be maintained and
the bad eliminated. In fact, l can
see no legal remedy. Democratic plat
forms bristle with 'whereases and re-
solves against the Ubiquitous trusts.
but these so-called declarations of
principles present no well-defned plan
whereby the evils complained of may
be abolished or even regulated. OF
course. they tell us that our protec-
tive tariff laws breed trusts and that
blow at one Is blow at the other,
which is doubtless true. but they fall
ed to tell US that blow at the tarif