Gloucester County Democrat., 1903-05-07

pointers to the late lanlented I'hiness
T. Barnum, ci devant lord mayor of
Bridgeport, and beaten him at his
own game. By carefully intimating
many things and as carefully doing
nothing as to the tariff Bah manages
to keep his name in the newspapers all
the time. He can do any living man in
keeping in the public eye on SO small
an amount of capital. The PhiladeI-
phia Record remarks:
Secretary Root may promise that the
tariff shall not be touched till after his
chief shall be reelected, but the tariff re-
form sentiment is not SO easily put down.
Representative Babcock of Wisconsin,
chairman of the Republican congressional
committee, says, Il regard the Fifty
eighth congress as pledged to a revision
of the tariff In his opinion the work
should have been done at the last session,
and he notices that at the last congress
sional election the Republican party lost
practically every city district in the coun-
try, probably because the cost of living
had advanced. Heavy steel and iron cast
ings can be produced here cheaper than
abroad, and yet there is duty of IS a
ton on them. Window glass is about four
times as high as it was few years ago.
Mr.. Babcock is sagacious enough to see
and he represents northwestern sentiment
that if protectionism will not bend it
will be broken.
Definitions.
Lame duck is new political term,
perhaps at present rather slangy. but
age will sanctify it so that it will prob
ably be included in the next unabridged
or international dictionary. A lame
duck is a statesman who "fell outside
the breastworks," to borrow President
Benjamin Harrison's celebrated con-
tribution to political phraseology. 1t
will be remembered that Benjamin con-
veyed to Warner Miller his regrets in
that picturesque language when War
ners sufferings by reason of the wal
loping administered to him by the Sage
Of Wolfert's Roost were still in the
acute stage.
Not Our Quarrel.
The carving of China has begun. Do
our jingoes propose that Uncle Sam
shall have finger in that pie or not?
AtuOolu Atlo DCS I'LL lAlC WI n NY OICAiJ
laying claim to Manchuria, which she
has really possessed for some time.
Japan wants the United States to inter
fere with Russia's little game of grab.
Only think of that! Japan has been
cavorting around for several years
with chip on her shoulder daring ma
tions in general, Russia in particular,
to knock it off. Now comes Russia and
coolly appropriates Manchuria, and Ja-
pan, instead of mobilizing her army
and declaring war on the Muscoyite,
begs US to pull her chestnuts out of the
fire for her. The dismemberment of
China may be in prospect and it may
not be. Napoleon said: "China is a
sleeping lion. Let her sleep. Do not
wake her." This is advice which good
many people would do well to heed. But
even if she is to be dismembered what
have we to do with it? What will we
gain by intermeddling in affairs which
do not concern us? Have we entirely
departed from the doctrine of the fa-
thers that the less we have to do with
old world politics and broils the better
we will be off? We do not have to
own a people to trade with them. and
to trade with them is all the use we
have or ever will have for the Chinese.
BungIing Indian Matters.
Really it seems utterly impossible
for our government to have anything
to do with the Indians without acting
ridicuIously. Its permitting them to
have improved firearms-eyen furnish
ing them improved firearms-when
they were still fighting civilization with
powder and lead was not only ridicu-
lous, it was criminal. The plan of feed
ing and clothing thousands of them for
years is the height of tomfoolery 1t
simply cultivated their incorrigible
laziness. Indian schools mean an un-
justifiable waste of the peoples money
And so it goes. Last year some Isthet-
ic idiot connected with the interior de-
partment took it into his noddle that all
the Indians ought to have their hair
close cropped, and a great row was the
result. Lo protested with all his might.
which is good deal, but the govern
ment sheared him, with about as
much profit as another idiot, who be-
came a proverb. derived from shearing
a wolf. What matters it whether an
Indians hair is cut with clippers close
10 the skin or grows till it drags the
ground? Now comes a fantastic phi
lanthropist in Uncle Sans employ who
roccoecae cunnrcanSitivp oars and Iarop
ones, and proposes that all the Indians
be given new names-names such as
we have! What folly next?
Alas, Poor Delaware!
Hon. "Gas" Addicks is not only to own
two senators of the United States, but
also to have strong grip on the gov
ernor of Delaware, judging by the fol-
lowing rich, rare and racy editorial
from the Philadelphia Ledger, indie
pendent:
Governor HUM of Delaware in permit
ting the act repeating the voters assistant
law to fail without his signature has
given an exhibition of subseryiency to the
Addicks machine which is simply shock
ing. The voters assistant law is a bald
and wholly indefensible device for fur
thering the effectiveness of vote buying
There never has been any sort of defense
Of the law, because none is possible. 1t
was passed in the closing days of the ses-
sion of 1901 for the purpose of enabling
the Union RepublicansAAo make con-
quest of the state by purchasing voters,
and it permits political workers to go