The Chanute times. [volume] (Chanute, Kan.) 1897-1913, 1904-04-29
Plan Of Campaion.

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the Tariff will form the principal
issue in the campaign of 1904.
The issue will, however, be pre-
sented in a somewhat altered form.
Not again, we think, will the
country be asked this year to de-
eide between Protection and Free
Trade. Evidence abounds that the
Democratic party is gong to repeat
the blunders of the past platforms
by denouncing Protection as rob-
berry and crime, a scheme of or
gained plumber whereby the few
are enriched at the expense of many.
In the past eight years something
has been learned by the party of
which It has been said that it never
learns and never forgets. 1t has
been discovered, among other
things, that the sentiment of large
majority of the voting masses is
favorable to the general proposition
that it is a wise thing to conserve
and maintain an internal trade
amounting to thirteen billion dollars
annually, and that 1t is an unwise
thing to give to foreigners prlvile-
ges and opportunities in this vast
market that will curtail domestic
production, employment and wages.
Realizing the folly of attempting
to overturn fiscal system whose
fruits have so strongly commended
themselves to popular approval,
the Democrats will not, presumably,
antagonize Protection to the extent
of calling for repeal of all Tariff
duties levied for Protective pur-
poses. They will not undertake to
storm the citadel and carry it by
open assault. To do that would be
to rush to certain defeat and dis
aster. In their plan of campaign
for 1904 they will resort to strategy
and indirect methods of attack.
They will adopt the underground
approach, and by the tactics of the
sappers and miners will endeavor to
weaken the wall in spots. not to des-
troy it all at one blow. To pro-
claim the abuses of Protection will
be one of their biggest mines, one
of their highest explosives. They
will point to the trusts and demand
that these aggregations of industrial
production be forthwith deprived of
all the benefits of Protection. This
they are sure to do in spite of the
fact that the same torpedo that
blows up that torpedo the
trusts will inhict far greater dam
age and destruction upon that very
important part of our industrial pro-
duction which is wholly outside of
trust control. But they will have
smashed domestic industy and turn
ed over the market to foreigners.
Another underground passage to
the base of Projections wall will be
chosen by the Democrats in the
shape of general scheme of reci-
procity in competitive products.
This strateglcal mode of assault has
gained great favor with the Demo
cratic tacticians. BY its employ
ment they expect to gain some re-
Inducements through assertions
from Republican ranks. In this
they will probably be disappointed,
but they are quite certain to try it.
If, as now seems certain, the
Democratic plan of campaign for
1904 is to embrace Tariff reduction
as a means of dealing with the
trusts, and Tariff reduction through
reciprocity arrangements as means
of insuring an increased inflow of
foreign competitive products, it
should follow, and we think it will
follow as a matter of course, that
the Republican plan will be to meet
the issue squarely by refusing to
smash the Protective Tariff because
of the trusts and by refusing to
countenance Free Trade on the in
stallment plan by providing. for re-
ciprocity in competitive products.
Republicans know that the best
way to keep Protection is to fight
for it. They know, too, that all the
advantages of position are theirs,
and that in the facts of the past
seven years of prosperity the best
weapons and the most effective am
munition are in their possession.
Retaining these advantages and
making good use of them, they can