Republican news item. [volume] (Laport, Pa.) 1896-19??, 1904-08-18
AN APPEAL TO FACTS
GRAVE QUESTION TO BE DECIDED
BY THE VOTERS.
The Conflict Is Between the New
civilization and the Old-FOr and
Against the UphoIding of the
American Standard of Living.

civilization and the Old-FOr and
Against the UphoIding of the
American STANDARD of Living.
Peace hath its patriotism
No less to be reyered than that of war.
\ savage is patriotic But his pa
triotism is chiefly evidenced by willing
use of spear and club against defend
ing or offending foe. He exemplities
Il current definition. My country, right
or wrong" by fighting with his tribe
in any cause Civilized man has other
foes than those who come with spear
or club, rifle or cannon, and his pa
triotism, because he is civilized and has
advanced from the crudeness of the
savage, should impel him 10 confront
these other foes as readily as he leaps
at the military kind.
Tribe against tribe and nation
against nation keep the world in a
state of perpetual war. The weapons
vary. and the warlike objects vary.
Sometimes land conquest or land de
fenSc is the object Sometimes com
mercial conquest or commercial de-
Tense is the object. But the United
States is engaged in a war peculiar, it
being IA defensive war, waged on be-
half Of its workingmen against the
workingmen of Europe. 1t is q war of
the new civilization against the old.
1t is Il war for the maintenance here of
comfortable homes supported by larger
than mere ''living wages" for the edu-
caticn of the children of the toilers. for
the independence of that great body of
our people who create those American
products that have stormed all of
carth'S countries. In short it is a war
for The upholding of that state and
style of everyday existence which Is
dcnCninated "American"
Some conditions are las they are"
and cannot readily be mended. Not
ryeA Democratic stump speakers or
GCmGGogues can mend them. The So
ci@l condition, that one man is called
"cdEitallst" and another is called
''WOrlIngman,' is of this at present
Interchangeable kind. Possibly the time
may come when bo,h of these desig-
nations, with the classes that they
represent, will be swept away. But
certainly not yet for awhile Will
money thrive without a handler nor
win machinery produce without a
guiding hand Things are as they
are in that respect. Here in Ameri-
ca. however, they could be made much
worse for the workingman, whereas
now lie is at the summit of labor's at
tainment. And they may be much
worse unless he fights for his home and
tireside against a foreign foe who is
aided by an American political party
My country-the whole world.' is a
noble sentiment, but as yet it Is but
sentiment. Happy it will be for all
mankind when, in the good coming
time. there are no national boundaries
But that day has not risen, and we
must wait a little longer, acting in
the meantime as nation should that
would keep from entrance that which
IS harmful to it. And harmful and
disastrous would ii be to this country
we're its workin%men reduced to the
condition of those of Europe. Wha I
prevents that disaster? What else but
ii protective tariff. Remove it. an!
ctl with European goods, sold at Il
price with which we could not com
pete. because the American working
man receives, and must receive larger
wages than the European. And it
matters not TO our worklngman that
he himself might buy these goods
cheaper than his own employer would
sell D him. for if the competition has
closed his factory and stopped his work
ANA income wherewith shall he buy ?
Let an appeal to fact be made. When
political campaigns threaten the sub
S:itution of free trade for a tariff. the
the aims and powers of their foreign
rivals, take fright and curtail i'll
every possible way. Surely the men
at the compass and helm are more to
men whose lives are spent in talk,
talk talk. and in Il fruitless fight for
Office
Under any tariff there will be Unequal
tiles and injustice. and this is special
ly true in the United States where
there are so many conflicting com
mercial interests. Some men will grow
Richer than they ought, and others will
gain less than their due. Corruption.
too. will here and there be manifest.
Rut, taking things as they are the