Evening star., 1904-03-16

small loaves of bread. OF foreign and home
manufactures. OF tables of wages and pic
lures of conditions existing in various coun-
tries. where the fiscal policy differs from
that of England. Minstrel shows have
toured the country singing songs of praise
for protection or free trade. Biograph pic
lures have entertained the audiences at
music halls, stellar comedians have adopt
ed makeup rejecting the personality Of
England's most active statesmen on either
side. Free lectures are held in every
borough, and the country has been literally
flooded with pamphlets and leaflets bearing
upon this fiscal problem. The newspapers
have devoted possibly half OF their space
to articles and leaders on this subject.
Every issue of magazine or a review con-
tatnS one or more arguments In one dfrec-
ton or the other and this, it must be re-
membered, was a condition prevailing for
several months prior to the diversion
caused by the armed demonstrations in the
far east. 1t is no wonder that the English
reader, the English business man and the
English politician heaved sigh of relief
when Japan and Russia came to blows, and
the people for the time forgot the fiscal
controversy which had been raging at such
heat as to require the strained attention of
every man who took an interest in public
affairs.
Prolonged Struggle Expected.
The excited interest resulting form Mr.
ChamberIain's dramatic announcement at
Birmingham apparently forecasted a sharp
and decisive struggle to the adoption
rejection of a change in Englands long
established fiscal policy. AS the smoke of
the first encounter drifted away. however.
and the advocates of both policies settled
down to the tug of war, it was realized
that it was not the matter of a moment to
turn this conservative nation from a long
trodden path into new fields. and more than
ever now it is believed that the struggle Is
to be prolonged and to result in com
r,rn xxyhi inh in hss pUd
drifting away from free trade practices to
protection ideals, but that change will be
made gradually, and only each success
sive experiment proves to be the part of
wisdom
Division of Sentiment
The manufacturers as body are natural
ly in favor of protection. The farmers are
more open to protection argument In Eng
land than In the United States for this
country lies near to the productive acres
of Europe, from which comes produce en-
terng into sharp competition with nearly
everything produced from British soil.
England being also a large importer of
everything grown, the English farmer can
readily see where protection would be bene-
hcial to him and his property. 1t is with
class of English people that the advocates
of protection are finding their greatest
difficulty. The fear of dearer food makes
the English workmen suspicious of every
new move on the part of his government.
The statement Of the free-traders, so
often reiterated in their arguments against
protection, to the effect that your food
will cost you more" ridiculed it has
been by the Chamberlain people. has sunk
deeply into the British mind. No matter
whether this Is true or not the statement
appeals to the wage-earner and strikes his
most vital point. To exhibit two loaves of
bread one small and one large, to label the
small loaf the protection loaf and the large
loaf the free trade loaf, may or may not
be justified by the facts in the case; but
as the working man parades the streets of
London, perhaps seeking work in vain and
counting the pennies left In his pocket for
use In the days to come. the idea that the
purchasing power of his little stock of
money is to be decreased by the action of
his own government strikes chill to his
heart and appeals to his instinct of self
preservation in such a way as to render
valueless much of the argument made -on
the other side.
1t is true that the fiscal campaign in Eng
land has. for the present at least lost its
heat and the debaters are resting on their
oars. This Iull however, Is but temporary,
for once slater. a controversy of thos kind
can never die. Like the poor 1t is always
with you, and however much 1t may be re-
GREETED by the English people. they have
entered upon a controversy among them
selves the end or results of which no man
may foreteH. j. ID. WHELfLEf.