The Birmingham age-herald., 1904-07-02
There is a General Wish Ina t Should be Short and
 to the Point
REVISION OF THE TARIFF
 OF GREAT IMPORTANCE
Many of the States Have Gotten Out Strong Platforms and on the "One Man Power" Are Against
 1t soidly.
BY PATTERSON srEALEY.

BY WATTERsoN sTEALEY.
 st. Louis. July 1.-(special.)-''Wh kind of a platform are we going to have?' Is question already frequently asked by many of the advance guard to the con- vention.
 While 1t is conceded that the canvass for a presidential candidate attracts the most interest at national convention the wise and thinking leaders of the party give the most serious thought to the plat form.
 There is a general wish that the plat form should be short and straightforward; a platform that should say what it means and mean what 1t says The platforms adopted by the many democratic state conventions invite comment as a dele gate from each of the states will bring to the convention to sumbit to the com mittee on resolutions the view of the democracy of his state on public ques- tions Therefore the committee will have an abundant supply of material on hand to select from. 1t is also known that MT. Bryan has his platform in his pocket and is eager and ready for the fray in committee and later on the floor of the convention. And 1t. is not unlikely that former Senator Hill has also prepared platform which perhaps has the approval of Judge Parker. Then Senator German and others will submit platform briefs.
 Prime Importance.
 The platforms that will be of prime im- portance in making up the national plat form, according to the view taken here in St. Louis among the early arrivals, but chiefly New York and Maryland; the first because 1t is Judge Parker's state; Maryland because Senator German is recognized as the most experienced party leader in congress. The New York plat form had in 1t several things which ap- pealed to the conservative democrats, all though it was severely criticised for some things which, if they were inserted in the national platform, would in the opin- ion of many, contribute directly to re- publican success. On the subject of the tariff the platform favored reasonable revision of the toriff' and singled out raw materials for a rather elaborate statement as to where duties should be reduced This caused loud objections from southern leaders, who said free raw materials was a cry set up by the campaign managers in 92 for the pur- pose of favoring the manufacturers of New England, the American owners Of Cuban ore. the sugar trust. and the American owners of Canadian coal mines and timber lands. There was at once objection to this clause in the platform which began in Texas where Senator Bailey and Senator Culberson entered their protests.
 German Had It in Mind.
 Senator German seemed to have the objections in mind when he framed the Maryland platform on the tariff. He pledged his state to revision of the tariff fin a conservative spirit of fair ness to all interests, promised duly to regard labor and capital, to promote their healty growth, and to guard against In ficting injury upon established indus tries by abrupt and radical measures. At the same time odious monopolies might expect reduction of excessive rates under which they were extorting oppressive tributes from the people.
 The West Virginia platform, which in part copied the New York platform, favor ed a reasonable reduction of the torin without making any declaration in favor of free raw material. which would have been blow to West Virginia coal.
 New Jersey declared for a revision of the tariff so conducted that commerce may not suffer from unjust discrimina- ton and manufacturers may have more favorable opportunities to compete with the markets of the world.
 North Carolina's Platform.
 The North Carolina platform is one of the best adopted. On national tojics 1t says:
 We condemn the President for his surrender to trust influences and for his failure to enforce the law against monop- olies and monopolists. Congress appro- priated $500,000 to employ special counsel to enforce the laws against trusts. In
 
 poses only one-twentieth of that sum. In the midst of crime and havoc committed by the wrongdoers, he will not stop the violation of statutes enacted for the pro- lection of the people. nor punish the criminals who plunder them, although his attention was called to the manner in which the perpetrators might be pun ished by recent decisions of the supreme court.
 eve denounce the present iniquitous unjust and trust-creative trust tariff inn nosed upon the people by the republican marty and demand it's immediate revis- ion to the end that all unjust burdens sbould be removed. and especially those ,,non the necessaries of life and those that enable the trusts to extort from the neonle unreasonable profits and sell their nrod,,cts to consumers at home at great or nrices than are charged for the same roods to the foreign consumer.
 rvve view with alarm the growing ten dancv of the government under repub- ican administration toward despotic cen- tralization at home. as wen as iespotic imnerialism abroad. We denounce the noIicv of the republican party in build ing up a strong centralized government at Washington. at the expense of the sacred rights of the soverign states; that which In its policy and conduct had re- .ised the clause of the constitution, re- serving to the state all rights not specifi- cal,v conferred upon the Federal govern mert and has assumed for the central government at Washington the vast resium of power solemnly guaranteed to the people by the constitution"
 PennsyIvanIa Wants Revision.
 Pennsylvania favored an immediate