Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1903-04-23
. 9 9 . . . .
Champ Cla rk S
a. 'I$ .i;:I':; G.: e.: !; & Letter


continue to say things which would
disgrace the most obscure crossroads
politician in the land. For instance,
Hon. Leslie NJ. Shaw, ex-governor of
Iowa and present secretary of the
treasury, is fond of insulting the intel
ligence of the country by claiming that
the panic of 1898 was produced by the
Wilson-Gorman tariff bill, passed in
1894. OF course nobody believes such
balderdash, not even Secretary Shaw
himself.
Recently the Washington Post, indie
pendent high tariff organist, took Mr..
Secretary of War Root through a
course of sprouts in the following Wig
orous fashion:
am not going to argue the question of
protection and free trade The second ad-
ministration of Cleveland is not so COM
pletely forgotten yet that that question
needs to be argued in this country now
Secretary Root at Boston.
1t is easy to see many strong points in
the address from which that extract is
taken, but it is impossible to discover
just what is meant by that allusion to
the second Cleveland administration in
connection with the question of protee-
tion or free trade. 1t has long been the
habit of a number of Republican organs
and politicians to attempt to impose on
their readers the impression that the
tariff of 1894, passed by a Democratic
congress and permitted to become a law
by Democratic president who maledict-
ed it, was free trade or tariff for reve-
nue. only scheme If it were possible to
put the brilliant secretary of war in
class with those narrow gauge organs
and small bore politicians, one could un-
derstand what he means by that allusion.
In the utter absence of that possibility,
however, the mystery remains. We give
it up.
If Senator Aldfich were consulted in re-
lation to that tariff, he would testify
that he presented and secured the adop-
tion of one of the longest and most i'm
portant schedules of that Democratic
measure and that 1t afforded TO the lead
ing industry of New England all the pro-
lection which New England asked for. 1t
is an indisputable fact that the bill, as a
whole was highly protective; that there
was much less of free trade in it than
there was in the Mckinley tariff which it
succeeded.
Will that walloping cure Elihu? Not
so long as he can find an audience that
does not hiss him.
The Trusts and the Law.
What will the trusts do now, poor
things? The supreme court of Missouri
dealt the meat trust solar piexus
blow, and now comes the federal court
of appeals and strikes the great rail
road merger squarely between the
| al of rry1,f
and yet the trusts have been assuming
that they were omnipotent. A few
more such blows, and some of them
will be seeking cover. These events
prove what the writer of this has con-
tended all the time, that there is law
enough already on the statute books
to put every trust in the land out of
business and what has been needed
for, 10, these many moons was pros
eeuting officer who would prosecute.
OF course the merger folks are going to
appeal to the supreme court of the
United States, performance which
most probably will simply postpone the
day of their destiny, for that high tri-
bunal of last resort almost always de-
| cides in harmony with an overwhelm-
ing public sentiment. and public senti-
ment is undoubtedly unfavorable to
| the trusts. It's a long lane that has no
turn, and the turn appears to have
come in the trust business. One politi-
| cal effect of these decisions may be
| that Colonel Roosevelt will conclude
that Governor Van SAINT of Minnesota
| is the vice presidential candidate he is
| looking for.
| Will Weaver Turn Reformer?
A dreadful rumor is being whispered
| from reluctant ear to reluctant ear in
Philadelphia to the effect that the new
mayor, Weaver, is meditating an at
| tack for cleansing purposes on the Au-
gean stables of the City of Brotherly
| Love- The rumor, more startling than
an earthquake, has caused the worst
| ring on top Of ground to lose much
sleep and has caused the goosefesh to
rise upon such Republican statesmen
as Senator Boise Penrose BY all in.
| teliigent persons Philadelphia is rated
as the most corrupt city under the sun
Such a thing as fair and honest elec
| tion is not dreamed of. Even under
Boss Tweed New York city politics
| was sweet and pure when compared
with Philadelphia city politics for the
| last fifteen or twenty years. That ring
nominated and elected Weaver fol
| mayor, as il had nominated and elected
him circuit attorney. The ring tool
| him out of the latter Office in the mid
| die Of his term and promoted him tt
his present higher office. If he shoulC
/ turn reformer now and clean out the
ring, it would be the most thoroughly
surprised and disgusted ring in al
/ Kingdom. Guess the ring never read
King Lear on ingratitude, but in case
! Weaver really turns reformer the rims
| will find that Lear did a fairly goot
| job in expressing himself on that sub
ject. Would Weaver be justified il
| turning on the ring which created hin
| and which nominated and elected hin
with the expectation that he would b.
the head of the ring? Certainly it is {
case of the means justifying the end.
PugiIism In the Senate.
| What the deuce is getting to be TIL
matter with senators of the Unite'
States? Senator comes from sene.
(old mani and implies all the virtue
attending age, but they act much lik
| a lot of untamed and fiery youths
Pugilism seems to be their forte. Firs
Benjamin r. Tillman and John L. Nc
Laurin pummeled each other in opel
senate, right under the noses of th
venerable Hoar and the solemn Proc
tor Then Senator Joseph W. Bale.
of Texas reached forth his strong AM
/ shapely right arm and violently too
Senator Albert j. Beveridge Of Indian
by the goozler This happened With
the sacred precincts of the senat
chamber, but after what General Fran
els Marion Cockrell denominates 9Th
most august legislative body on earth
had adjourned. Now comes Senate
James P. Clarke of Arkansas, who as
Eaults Congressman Stephen Brundidgt
shedding his blood more or less cop
ously. This happened at Little Rocl
/ II this sort of thing is to continu
among senators, the proper caper 70
] Holm II