Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1902-08-21
cumM,Ns DEFENDS PLATFORM.


Governor Cumnins upon the same sub
ject the people of Iowa will he inclined
to believe that the governor is in TIL,
right, While the secretary may perhap:
see his views prevail. Governor Cum
Minis has no patience With people who
warn against tariff changes or tlrit'
discussion because the capitalists ma!
object. To his mind the tariff is a pub
lie question which the people SHOULD
solve and congress should express tn,
will of the people in solving it.
For clearness of expression and eN-
ceeding plainness of his explanation
Governor Cummins has made a notabl,
effort in his tariff interview. Having
laid down three We'll defined statements
contained in the Iowa platform. that
that possibly changed conditions of in
dI!stries require changed conditions in
tariff schedules. and that reciprocal
treaties should be negotiated, he comes
to the fourth proposition as follows;
"Fourth-That if we find a monopoly
established by combination of manu-
facturers or producers in any COM
modify, so that every man who buys
that article must buy of a single COM
pany and pay the price that the ayarice
and selfishness of the trust or COM
bination may fix, then the tariff shall
not be permitted to aid the trust or
combination in maintaining the mon
opoly.'
To the average mind there can be no
debate upon this question. Even Sec
rotary Shaw was forced to admit its
soundness. but some newspapers and
leaders are wont to see in it an admis
sion of the democratic claim that the
tariff creates trusts, is the mother of
trusts To this the governor etfectu
ally replies: trusts will exist Without
regard to the tariff, and the only rela
ton of the two things is this--that in
some articles it is easier to establish Il
monopoly in our own market if the tar
iff excludes foreign competitions
Which is about all there is to such q
contention.
At the beginning of the protection
propaganda years ago the first protec-
ton party, the wing party of 1874, con-
tanned plank in its platform declaring
for tariff for revenue to defray the
necessary expenses of the government,
and discriminating With special refer
ence to the protection of the domestic
labor of the country" This was the or
iginal doctrine of protection, and no
better expression has since been found.
Republicans OF today, however, are
confronted with new conditions. The
revenues have been raised and donies
tic labor favored. but powerful and
greedy capitalists have combined and
organized With desire TO control tie
output and prices of certain industries
in the domestic market. A tariff that
once fostered their Industry will GER
tainly continue to aid their plans Of
monopoly by excluding foreign compc
tition, and the question arises as Cum
Minis put it at Minneapolis have not the
consumers better right to competition
even at the expense of tariff schedule
than the producer has I'D protection.
The secretary who advises against
such protection of the American people
from the greed of monopolized indus
tries is too timid for public use AS
shown by the venerable journalist Of
Iowa who dictates the Wisdom OF edi-
torial columns in the Sioux City Jour
nal. the caution to the public to keep
mum for fear of Il capitalistic scare is
practical admission that the tariff is TO
be left to the capitalists and not
changed without their consent.
The Shaw and Cummins tariff argu-
lnents will be read with great interest
will go far to define future political is
sues, If not congressional action. Shaw
is said 10 speak for the administration,
but his extreme caution may not have
had full endorsement. Cummins most
certainly spoke for Iowa republicans
ISM with the Iowa platform and that
great convention behind him, and il
may be presumed that the president is
not much further from the people than
is the governor They are two OF u kind
in TOO MANY WAYS