Courier Democrat. (Langdon, N.D.) 1891-1920, 1903-08-13
THE PARAMOUNT ISSUE
It Is the Question of Tariff on
Trust Productions.

It Is the Question of Tariff on
Trust Productions.
WHAT THE VOTERS MUST DECIDE.
Will They Continue the Republican
Plan of Protecting the Trusts or
Will They Support the Democrats
and Compel n Reduction of Trust
Priccss
1t is just about IL year before the
presidential campaign opens. and new
matters for political controversy may
arise in that time. but from present
appearances the trusts and tariff will
be tho paramount issues. The voters
OF the United States will have to dis
criminate between the two parties as
to their opposition to trusts. but on the
tariff issue there will be Il clear cut
difference, and the platforms adopted
should not require any Interpretation
to discover just where the parties
stand.
The Republican platform is certain to
denouncc trusts and combinations and
point With pride to the legal steps that
have been taken to suppress and con-
troll them. 1t will claim that all the
legislation against the trusts has been
enacted by the Republican party. and
will point to the merger suit and the
beef combine injunction as examples
of what has been done, and will prom
Use that other combines will be so
treated if found acting contrary to the
law.
The Republican platform will also
declare continued adherence to the doc
trinc of protection, and point to the
wonderful prosperity that commerce
and labor are enjoying under it, and
pledge the Republican party to revise
the schedules if at any time it should
be found necessary to do so. 'The
tariff must be revised only by the
friends of protection is the favorite
way of putting it.
trusts as combinations in restraint Of
trade and as eXtortionate in their
prices for their products and. being
protected by the tariff from competi-
ton. demand that the tariff protection
be revised on those schedules that give
the trusts their monopoly.
The question that the voters will
10 oh, ystvy
is really in earnest about suppressing
the trusts and which policy will give
the earliest relief from their oppres-
sion. Has the merger suit reduced the
freight or passenger rate OF the rail-
roads? If so. the Republicans arc en-
titled to the thanks and votes of the
people. If the rates have not been re-
duced the policy of the merger suit
has been Il failure. Every one who
has used the railroads since the mer-
ger suit was decided can answer the
question. and the reply will not up
hold the Republican contention. for
freight rates have advanced either di-
rectly or indirectly by changing the
classification. Neither have the pas
sen-cr rates decreased. so the much
heralded merger suit has been a fail
ure. for the railroads still continue
their eXtortion. and apparently the suit
was only commenced to make a show
ing of opposition to the corporations.
How is: it With the only suit the adj
ministration has maintained against
the industrial trusts-that against the
beef trust? An injunction was grant
ed against the beef barons restraining
them from joining together to manipu-
late the price of cattle and hogs and
from debating the price at which
their products shall be sold. The
combine still pays its own price for
cattle and hogs and charges what it
pleases to the butchers in all the mar
kets of the country. Meat is about the
same price it was before the beef COM
bine was enjoined. and there is no
more competition in the purchase Of
cattle or in the wholesale price Of
meat than before Attorney General
Knox began the prosecution.
How is it with the other industrial
trusts? Have they been frightened by
the fear of prosecution by the attorney
general, and have they reduced the
extortionate prices on their products?
If anything, trust prices are higher
than before these spectacular suits
We're commenced. 1t may therefore be
fairly said that the Republican pro-
gramme of controlling the trusts. COM
bines and corporations has been mis-
cradle failure.
If the voters have arrived at the con-
clusion that these sample suits against
the railroads and the industrial COM
binations have been resultless in stay
ng their exactions and the Republicans
refuse to try the Democratic plan Of
reducing or abolishing the tariff that
protects the trusts. the logic of the sit
uation is that the Republican admins
tration is a failure.
Shall the Democrats be given an op-
portunity to try their plan Of tariff re-
form? Under that programme congress
would abolish the duty on trust pro-