Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1903-04-07
Governor Cummins Expects
Platform to be Acceptable.
TALKS OF IOWA POLITICS
Declares That Senator Allison is Still
the Champion of Reciprocity and
Scouts the Idea That He Has Aban.
doned the Policy.

DeS MONIES, April o.-'1 nope anu
believe that the next republican plat
form will be a broad and progressive
statement of the essential principles
of republicanism upon which every
genuine republican can stand and con-
cerning which there can be no criti-
cism,' declares Governor Cummins in
an interview appearing in local paper
concerning the platform to be adopted
by the next state republican conven-
ton
The governor also touches upon an
alleged interview with Senator Allison
in which it was stated that the senior
senator from Iowa had abandoned the
policy of reciprocity and emphatically
denied that such has been the action
of the venerable Iowa legislator In
Cummins says:
Governor cunmins' Statement
"You ask me what | think of the
published statement that Senator ALI
son has abandoned the policy Of reci-
! proeity. ThN iaaiof true am will
| ing to put it more strongly--I know it
/ is not true. have the best imagin
able authority foresaying that Senator
Allison believes in reciprocity just as
earnestly as he ever did. and that he
believes the party should declare for
it this year just as it has been declar-
| ing for it for more than ten years.
| 1T is obvious to Senator Allison. as
| indeed it is to all of us. that reciprocity
| by treaty is exceedingly difficult to ac,
complish, inasmuch as one-third of the
senate can prevent the ratification OF
a treaty, and the democrats are al
against reciprocity; but the doctrine
can be carried into effect quite as vel
| by an act Of congress, and this re
quires only o majority of both houses
You will find that Senator Allison viii
stand firmly and squarely by the opin
ions he has SO often and so ably ex
/ pressed.
You ask me what kind of plat
form the coming republican state con
vention will adopt. My answer is tha
do not know. That is matter tt
be determined by the republicans O
the state, in whose Judgment | have
the most implicit confidence.
The Platform He Hopes For.
1 while l cannot say what the plat
form will be, can tell you what
4 hope it will be. / hope and believe i
4 will be broad, progressive statemen
of the essential principles of republi
canism, upon which every genuine re
publican can stand, and concernin,
which there can be no criticism. hop,
and believe that it will neither re
II,diotn ant
bodied in our last two platforms, am
that it will be expressed in languag
chosen by some eminent leader of tn
party in Iowa who commands the al
solute confidence of every republica
in the land.
You ask il desire to reply to tn
charge that | am out of sympathy wit
some of the distinguished republican
of the state upon the tariff and reciprc
city, and as to the platform upon thes
, subjects. All that care to say is tha
am not conscious of any divergenc
OF views. Men who do their own think
, ing always differ respecting the appl
| cation of principles upon which the
: abstractly agree; but so far as the tai
iff and reciprocity are concerned an
their expression in a platform, | knoN
/. that | am in exact accord with Sens
tors Allison and Dolliver, and | thin
7 with a majority of the members of til
house.
Desire to Stop Agitation.
: 81 have discussed the question wit
, the most prominent leaders of the pa
! ty in the state, not in Office, includin
: many who have been hitherto reckon
ed as unfriendly in political way, an
: am glad to say that there is entil
concurrence in the desire to adopt
: platform that will state the republica
? position in such manner that ther
; can be no further agitation of the sui
ject. There is no difficulty whateve
in doing so, and l confidently predic
that there will be no serious contr'
versy in the next convention over tn
L platform.