Tazewell Republican. [volume] (Tazewell, Va.) 1892-1919, 1904-03-31
THURSDAY, MARCH 81, 1904.
TALKING ABOUT REFORM

reform of some kind. 1t has grown into a
mania with them. The disease has be-
come so fixed that they fail to see that the
reformation most needed is a radical
change in the principles and policies adyo-
Gated by their own party. They have been
struggling so intently to remove notes
from the eyes of other political parties and
persons that they have failed to notice
that the Democracy is suffering from ter
rible affliction of political strabismus, occa-
stoned by the beam in its own eye.
In one campaign Democracy breaches
currency reform. Then it talks about a
reform of our foreign policy; and period
ically it returns to the deceptive cry of
tariff reform. The trouble with the DEM
ocra;ic party Is that it exhsusts Its
strength by constantly travelling in q cir
Gle, which it has assumed to be and has
labeled reform highway. Another mis-
take it has been making is that, like the
crab, when it travels it moves with its face
10 the rear. This kind of motion they
call progress.
Ga Its journey arouhd the circle above
mentioned the Democracy has again ar
rived at the sign board Tariff Reform"
and some of the leaders and newspapers of
the party are clamoring for making tariff
reform the cardinal issue in the approach
ing presidential election. Because some Of
the prominent men in the Republican
party have expressed themselves as favor
able to tariff revision, whenever auch re-
vision shall be found wise and necessary,
the Democrats jump to the conclusion that
there is widespread dissatisfaction among
the people toward the Republican prOtec-
tive tariff policy. Our esteemed Contem-
porary, the Richmond News Leader, has
fallen into that error To convince itself
and its readers that tariff reform could be
made a winning issue for the Democracy,
our contemporary quotes from a speech
recently made by Governor Van SAINT be-
fore the State Republican convention OF
Minnesota. The Governor is quoted as
saying:
81 am a believer 10 protection, but no
tariff schedule should be so sacred that it
cannot be chaoged with changed condi-
tions. The tariff should be revised and
revised by its friends, and not by liz en-
emies."
Every intelligent Republican in the land
will, in the main, cordially subscribe to
the correctness of Governor Van SAINTS
declarations. 1t is impossible to make a
tariff schedule 60 perfect that, without re-
gard for reason and equity, it should re-
main UNCHANGED in all its provisions, no
matter what changes should come and de-
mands be made by altered business condi-
tions. Whenever changed conditions cause
tariff rates on certain or special articles or
things to be unequal and inequitable,
those conditions would and will call for re-
vision as to the special articles or things.
To that extent the Republican party has
always been and ever will be committed to
the principle of revision. But it has never
considered such a recognition of the doc
trine of revision as in any way fOrfeiting
lts adherence to the great cardinal princi'
pie of protection.
Our Richmond contemporary has made
the usual Democratic blunder of con-
founding tariff REVISION with tariff reform. |
Even under the ordinary rules of construc-
ton the two terms have very different
But when contrasted with or
measured by the so called Democratic tar
if reform, true tariff REVISION is as antip-
odal to the Democratic idea of tariff re-
form as white is to black, as virtue is to
vice. Tariff revision admits need OF
change in some feature or form, without
conceding error as to the idea or principle
upon which a tariff schedule has been
based. Tariff reform, according to the
Democratic idea, is conceding the princi.
ole upon which the schedule has been
made as negotiable and immoral.
The News Leader and all Democrats
who think and talk its. way ale disguised
NltQ mFs DRY oil, DSCauoO Vi Alo Ah01oOOhNO
hat free silver or financial reform shall be
made leading feature of the next national
Democratic platform They are opposed
o his idea because they know that the
rec silver idea has been thoroughly repu'
lated by experience. While this Is true,
be free and unlimited coinage of silver at s
fixed ratio is simply an untried expert. {
nent that has been condemned and dis {
redited by the results that have come '
rom the tried experiment Of single gold
tandard. On the other hand, Mr.. Bryan +
an Justly hold that Democratic tariff re. j
orm lie tried experiment which has been \
ondemned and dishonored, because its v
dop;ion and trial during the last term of q