Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1902-08-14
A FEW WORDS ABOUT THE TAR.
IFF.
(St. Louis Globe Democrat. !

tSI. 1lOUc DSluoCldC.J
A good deal is being said by many
democrats and few republican papers
about the alleged policy to which the
Iowa republicans have committed the
republican party of the nation. This
passage in that platform is cited with
much emphasis: eve favor such
changes in the tariff from time to time
as become advisable through the pro-
gress of our industries and their
changing relations to the commerce of
the world" These papers-the few
republican and the many democratic
talk as if this declaration by the re-
publicans of single state committed
the republican party of the country to
general overhauling of the tariff in
the coming session of congress. They
forget that a similar declaration was
made by the same state in 1901, and
that it has received no attention from
the republican members of congress in
or out Of that state in all the months
which have passed since.
AS formulation of principle that ut
terance is all right. Every one of the
100000 republicans of the United
States favors such changes in the tar
if from time to time as become advis-
able through the progress of our indus
tries and their changing relations to
the commerce of the world" There is
no controversy among the advocates of
protection on this point, and never
was. No tariff, however carefully
drawn, is designed to last forever.
Changes brought about by invention,
discovery, fashion, development and
ules unsuitable in the lapse of time.
Revision then becomes necessary. Ev-
cry friend of protection wants revision
in such cases. But we do not want re-
vision to come too often. The tariff
revision habit, like any other fad, can,
when pushed to extremes make its adj
vocates ridiculous or mischievous. The
present tariff, the Dingley act, is only
| five years old. The tariff of 1888, pass
ed by a republican congress, had many
| faults, which the republicans saw at
the time, but it stood seven years be-
fore they altered it by substituting the
Mckinley tariff, and the alterations at
that time were melted chiefly by the
necessity, or imagined necessity, of re-
duclng the revenues SO as to cut down
the big surplus. No such necessity
confronts the country at this moment.
| Does the corporars guard of repub-
lican tariff smashers know anything
about the dynamite that is in tariff
4 tinkering? The menace of the Mills
tariff of 1883, which was an attempt to
carry out the Cleveland program out,
lined in the tariff message of 1887, beat
Cleveland and his party in 1888 and
put Harrison in office. The Mckinley
tariff of 1890 beat the republican party
in the canvass for congress in that
year-not because the changes were in
harmful, but because they came only a
short time before the election, and
therefore did not have time to revea
themselves in actual operation, an6
because the opposition press misrepre
scented the effect which they would
have. The Wilson-Gorman tariff Of
1S94-the '.perfidy and dishonor" tar
if, as Cleveland called twas one OIL
the things which overthrow the demo
Gratis in the congressional elections Of
that year. Tariff fooling disturbs
trade and angers the country. The
:, Dingley tariff may be revised by the re
publicans,s but the revision will not BIZ
|, done in the short session of the pres
ent congress. 1t will not be done by
the congress which will be elected this
year. The tariff will be revised, if ne
cessary after the election of 1904, wheI
the presidential convass is off thu
, country's hands, and when the worl
, can be put through intelligently and ex
, peditiously, without any partisan mis-
, representation or any obstructive de
, lay. An earlier revision would be dan
! gerous to the party, as we'll as unnec
) essary for the country.