Durango semi-weekly herald., 1904-09-15

l
make these protests efrective should
the need arise.
| Our opponents have now declared
themselves in favor of the Civil Ser
vice law. the repeal of which they de
manded in 1900 and in 1896 If con
sistent, they should have gone one
step further and congratulated the
country upon the way in which the
Civil Service law is now administered
and the way in which the classified
| service has been extended. =.
Finally, we come to certain mat
ters upon which our opponents do in
their platform of principles definitely
take issue with us, and where. If they
are sincere. their triumph would
mean disaster to the country. -
When we take up the great ques-
tion Of the tariff we are at once CON
fronted by the doubt as to whether
our opponents do or do not mean
what they say, They saw that 'protec-
tion is robbery and promise to car
ry themselves accordingly II they are
given power, Yet prominent persons
among them assert that they do not
| itaiN mean lnls anu lnht II lneN
come into power they will adopt our
policy as regards the tariff; while
seem anxious to prove that 1t is safe
to give them partial power. because
the power would be only partial. and
therefore they would not be able to
do mischief -
| AT the outset 1t Is worth while to
say word as to the attempt to ldenti
fy the question of tariff revision or
tariff reduction with solution of the
trust question, In speaking on
this point at Minneapolis, on April A.
1903, said:
1.-The question of tariff revision
| speaking broadly, stands wholly apart
from the question of dealing with the
trusts. No change in tariff duties can
have substantial effect in solving the
| so-called trust problem. Certain great
trusts or great corporations are Who'll
ly Unaffected by the tariff Almost all
the others that are of any importance
have as matter of fact numbers OF
smaller American competitors; and OF
course change in the tariff which
| would work injury to the large cor
poration would work not merely in
| jury but destruction to its smaller
competitors; and equally of course
| such change would mean disaster to
all the wage-workers connected with
either the large or the small corpora
| ton. From the standpoint of those in
terested in the solution of the trust
problem such change would there
1 Fr- II.
relieved of the competition of its
weaker American competitors, and
throw only into competition with for
eign competitors, and that the first
effort to meet this new competition
would be made by cutting down
wages, and would therefore be pri-
marily at the cost of labor. In the
case of some of our greatest trusts
such change might confer upon
them a positive benefit. Speaking
broadly. 1t is evident that the changes
in the taft will affect the trusts for
veal or for woe simply as they affec,
he whole country. The tariff affects
trusts only as 1t affects all other in
terests. II makes all these interests
large or small. profitable; and its ben
efits can be taken from the large only
nnder penalty of taking them from
the small also
There is little for me TO add to
this. 1t is but ten years since the last
attempt was made, by means of low
ering the tariff, to prevent some peo-
pie from prospecting too much. The at
tempt was entirely successful. The
tariff law of that year was among the
causes which in that year and for
some time afterwards effectually pre-
vented anybody from prospering too
| much and labor from prospering at
all Undoubtedly 1t would be possible
at the present time to prevent any OF
the trusts from remaining prosperous
by the simple expedient of making a
sweeping change in the tariff as to
paralyze the industries of the country
The trusts would cease to prosper
but their smaller competitors would
be ruined, and the wage-workers
would starve, while 1t would not pay
the farmer to haul his produce to mar
ket. The evils connected with the
trusts can be reached only by ration.
taken by Congress and the Execu.
tive during the past three years Ii
tariff law is passed under which
the country prospers, as the country
has prospered under the present tar
iff law. then all classes will share in
the prosperity. If tariff law is pass.
ed aimed at preventing the prosper,
ity of some of our people, It is as Ger.
tain as anything can be that this aim
will be achived only by cutting down
the prosperity of all of our people.
"Of course. If our opponents are not
sincere in their proposal to abolish
the system of protective tariff there
is no use in arguing the matter at all,
save by pointing out again that If on
one great issue they do not mean
what thew say, 1t is hardly safe to
trust them on any other issue But If
they are sincere in this matter then
their advent TO power would mean do
nestle misfortune and misery as
widespread and farreaching as that
which we saw ten years ago. When
| they speak of DrOtectipn as "rohberv