The San Francisco call., 1903-09-21
THE ISSUE OF THE TIME.

IN ESPlIE the efforts OF Tom Johnson to make
campaign in Ohio this year on strictly local
- issues the pressure of national interests at
stake has been great be avoided and already
the contest has opened with the tariff question the
primal object of controversy
1t is strange that this juncture when the British
themselves the OF abandoning the free
trade policy because OF the ruin with which it threat
ems manufacturing as we'll agricultural industries,
any considerable number of Americans should think
OF trying to adopt it an American policy. Nothing
but the known capacity Of Democratic leaders for
blundering suffices to induce the people to believe
that such effort is likely to be made There can
however, be doubt of it The extraordinary activ-
y OF the Free Trade League has long been notable,
and for some time past the reorganizers in their
struggles to get away from Organism and free silver
have been oundering steadily toward the free trade
slough. Thus it is that in Ohio Mr. Clarke the
Democratic nominee for the United States Senate
who happens to be gold Democrat in seeking
dodge the question of Organism has been forced to
make fight the tariff, and the issue thus becomes
the chief point of debate between himself and Senator
Hanna.
Clarke approached the subject with as much astute-
ness as he possesses. He did not speak outright for
free trade, but sought to gain support from the
prejudces of the ignorant by advocating repeal of
the tariff goods manufactured by trusts. Further
more in order to give at least pretense OF reason
why there should be change from a Republican to
Democratic administration he found it necessary
TO say, This country is the verge OF financial
and industrial collapse"
Senator Hanna prompt to take advantage of
the folly of his opponent He has reminded the peo-
pie of Ohio of the sound foundations of prosper
y and at the time warned them Of the folly of
alarming the timid by bowling calamity and endeav-
oring to destroy popular confidence in the contin-
uance OF good times AS the Senator put it: The
only danger that possibly come to the people Of
this country is through their act by their
power and the will to change those policies which
have made lis what we are to-day"
Or the tariff issue the Senator said Mr. Clarke
qualities his position the tariff by saying that he
would take the tariff entirely off OF every article
uactured by the trusts. What does that mean?
Every iron and steel industry in the United States
everything connected with the metal trades, with the
cotton trades and in fact nearly all of great in
dustries would come under the scope of his PROPOSE
ton. Why, is there any intelligent among the
workingmen of my State who does not know what
would be the result of that policy? Absolute free
trade through all the schedules of our tariff would
shut up per cent of the industrial institutions of the
United States until could get labor down to the
price where we could compete with Europe"
There is no getting away from that proposition
Tom Johnson seeking the Office of Governor of
Ohio may evade the ISSUE but his candidate for the
United States Senate cannot. 1t is once more a
fight of the party of blunderers and deficits against
the principle of protection to American industry.
That is what the workingmen OF Ohio are to face in
this campaign and is what those of the whole coun
try will probably have to face in the Presidential cam
paign OF next year.