The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1903-04-06

duties. There is distinctly humorous
side to the fact that the reduction
of duties which would benefit the Phil
ippines and Cuba as we'll as ourselves
was antagonized chiefly by those who
in theory have been fond of proclaim
ing themselves the advanced guardians
of the oppressed nationalities in the
islands affected and the ardent advo-
Gates of the reduction of duties gen
orally, but who instantly took violent
ground against the practical steps to
accomplish either purpose.
Moreover, law was enacted put
ting anthracite on the free list and
completely removing the duties on I
other kinds of coal for one year.
we are now in a condition of pros
perity unparalleled, not merely in our
own history, but in the history of any
other nation. This prosperity is deep
rooted and stands on a firm basis be
cause it is due to the fact that the
average American has in him the stuff
out of which victors are made in the
great industrial contests of the pres
ent day, just as in the great military
contests of the past; and because he is
now able to use and develop his quail
ties to the best advantage under our
well established economic system. We
are winning headship among the ma
tons of the world because our people
are able to keep their high average of
individual citizenship and to show their
mastery in the hard. complex, pushing
life of the age. There will be fluctu-
atiOns from time to time in our pros
peIity, but it will continue to grow
just so long as we keep up this high
average of individual citizenship and
permit it to work out its salvation un-
der proper economic legislation.
THE present phenomenal prosperity
has been won under tariff which was
made in accordance with certain fixed
and definite principles, the most i'm
portant of which is an avowed deter
mination to protect the interests of the
American producer, business man, wage
worker and farmer alike. The general
tariff policy, to which, without regard
to changes in detail, I believe this
country is irFeVOcabIy committed is
ognition between the cost of production
that is. the cost of labor-here and
abroad, and of the need to see to it that
our laws shall in no event afford adj
vantage in our own market to foreign
/ industries over American industries, to
foreign capital over American capital,
to foreign labor over our own labor.
This country has and this country needs
: better paid, better educated, better fed
and better clothed workingmen, of a
higher type, than are to be found in
any foreign country 1t has and ii
! prosperous type of tillers of the soil
than is possessed by any other country
/ The business men, the merchants and
manufacturers, and the managers OF
the transportation interests show the
same superiority when compared with
men of their type abroad. The events
/ of the last few years have shown how
skillfully the leaders of American in
dustry use in international business
competition the mighty industrial
weapons forged for them by the re-
our laws, and the Skill the inventive
OF our people.
1T Is of course, a mere truism to say
that we want to use everything in ouI
power to foster the welfare of our en-
tire body polite. In other words, we
need to treat the tariff as a business
proposition. from the standpoint of the
interests of the country as whole
and not with reference to the temporary
needs of any political party. il is almost
as necessary that our policy should be
stable as that it should be wise. A
nation like ours could not long stand
the ruinous policy of readjusting its
business to radical changes in the
tariff at short intervals, especially
when, as now, owing to the immense
extent and variety of our products, the
tariff schedules carry rates of duty OF
thousands of different articles. Sweep
ing and violent changes in such q
tariff, touching so vitality the interests
of all of US, embracing agriculture
labor. manufactures. and commerce
would be disastrous in any event, an6
they would be fatal to our present
that the principle of the protective