Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1902-08-07
Mr. BABCOCK RECANTS.


Seldom can public man have more
unblushingly advertised his own in
consistency and insincerity than has
Congressman Babcock, in tho state
ment which, as chairman of the Re-
publican Congressional Committee,
he gave to the press in Washington
yesterday. He not only swallowed his
own words, and spit upon his own
acts, but went out of his way to do it,
and gloried in trampling upon his own
record. ''There is only one thing
worse than the can't of politics, " said
Lord John Russell on certain oc-
| casion,s and that is the recant." Mr..
| Babcock has recanted, and has added
to that humiliation by appearing to be
| unconscious of his own shame. 1t is
not every prominent man who can
| thus cheerfully give the world the
option of believing him either knave or
fool.
| The melancholy details of Mr.. Bah
/ cocks moral suicide can be briefly
given. He comes out this morning,
| like master of jeers and houts, with
| ridicule of the Democratic contention
| that tariff protection should be re-
moved from manufactured goods which
are sold cheaper abroad than at home.
What if they are? asks Congressman
Babcock airily. 1t is only ga rule of
the trade he says, that surplus pro-
ducts must go cheaper to the foreigner.
| The Democrats can make nothing of
that issue. "We are not afraid to ask
the country to continue the Republi-
can party in power in order that those
policies 1.-THE present tariff) may be
continued in effect" But if he was
not afraid of that, did he not dread
that his own previous attitude and
language would be thrown in his
teeth? Who was it that was making
all the row last winter about removing
needless and abused protective duties?
Congressman Babcock. Who made
himself SO offensive on this subject to
the party leaders that Speaker Hender-
son was urged to keep him off the
committee on ways and means? Mr.,
Babcock. Who introduced bill to
take off the tariff from iron and steel
products. spoke for it, voted for it, di-
yided the ways and means committee
on it, boosted of it, swore he would
never abandon it, vowed that the
party would be defeated if it rejected
the measure? Why, this same Joseph
w. Babcock.
Almost exactly year ago he was ex-
pounding his unalterable convictions
to the editor Of the Southwestern Wis
consin, which published his letter.
81 maintain declared the then
valiant Babcock, 'that it is a part OF
the policy of protection to protect the
consumer. He explained precisely
what he meant: "We can today pro
duce and underseIl the world. Shall
, we continue tariff on articles that
are, in fact, articles of export2 Ii
Congress maintains a tariff on such
articles, the whole theory of protection
falls to ths ground, and it simply
! inures to the benefit OF those who may
, secure the control of any such com
, modify, since by its aid they can liz
exorbitant prices in the domestic
market. y Then, with swell OF in
i dignant virtue in his voice, Mr.. Bah
/ cook asked, 'tHow can such policy
be defended?" Well, he has answered
: his own question. Get yourself elected
i show how beautifully boiler you are
t fashioned in order to swaller with
ease your own principles, and you can
defend with moral vehemence this OF
: any other policy which you have pre-
3 | viously denounced as Infamous.
r D'Azeglio explained the process in the
case of the Carbonaro who was asked
to break his oath: "Eccellenza, / can.
5 not; it is impossible. YOU
s understand, have taken an oath
Y give me at least another ducat."
/ Mr.. Babcock's sad case is worth
] dwelling upon because he illustrates, il
/ his not very important personality the
too common recklessness of American
n politicians in pitching their character
, out Of the window. They seem Il
think that stability and unshaker
9 honesty are of absolutely no value il
b politics. To acquire a reputation TO
t sobriety and courage and independence
: seems to be often their aim for a tim,
Q as it was apparently Mr.. Babcock's
i, but when the crucial day comes the,
: throw it away as he has with in
credible indifference and the mos
d coolly insolenJ assumption that th,
r public will not perceive anything amis
d or will not care if it does. But thi
a is really an insult to the people which
Q they have never been slow to resent
It They will not fail to do so we believ
!. whenever the occasion fairly offers
d Unless the whole American nation il
II to become mere weather-oo lik
: the frivolous Babcock it will remain
in its old choice of solidity and con
n sistency and clear honesty in the mel
}, whom it delights to honor.
70 The affair runs beyond the mer
d person of the unfortunate Babcock il
n another particular. 1t shows the bot
If tomless hypocrisy of the pretenoe Q
IS the Republican party that it will al
e in good time and if only let alone re
e form the tariff itself. All its talk il
s that vein has been uniformly and his
s torically hollow. Not one of its part
it platforms has in this matter been abb
i. to sustain the weight of single cam
! paign. Always as we see again toda
l. the STRINGS of Democratic oppositio
70 or mutterings within the ranks of tn
q Republican party itself only lead th
" protectionist Old Man of the Sea t
le grip the Republican neck with NOR
10 strangling clutch. We shall never Sc
1t tariff abuses made an end of until a
n impulse comes from those who SUITE
le from tariff corruption not from thos
1t who profit by it in both pocket an
to politics. Congressman Babcock's in
!, decent retreat from his own positio
shows that there will have to be a
exterior force Wis tergo applied bt
fore Americans may hope to have th
ct monstrosities of their tariff shcr
O. away.