Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1904-12-15
REvsIoN's POOR OUTLOOK
Republican Senators Passing Out In
terviews with a Decidedly
Trusty Flavor.

No more appropriate title than the
Did guard" could be bestowed upon the
old reliable friends of protection in the
senate. They are a stanch and sea-
soned crew, having weathered the
storms of many a public clamor for the
reduction of the duties which feed the
trusts. Already the "old guard are
gathering round their common inter
ests and preparing another s%tand-pat
defense. The first preliminary is the
passing out of interviews. The inter-
views, by a wonderful coincidence,
come simultaneously, in a bunch.
We are informed, says the st.
Louis Republic, that Senator Aid
rich, of Rhode Island, chairman of the
finance committee of the senate, does
not want an extra session." and that
"Spooner, of Wisconsin, does not think
an extra session at all necessary, n
he predicted that none would be called"
Senator Hale, who has just arrived,
it is wired from the scene of interview
ing, takes the ground that nobody in
his state desires to have the tariff re-
vised." Whew! What a whopper-or
shall we say misconception?-ot the
senator's! Up here in his state along
the Canadian border have come the
most insistent demands for revision,
so the world is informed.
Senator Foraker is passing out inter
views with the regularity Of a printing
press. in which he advises most strong
ly against touching the tariff. Mind
you, it mustn't ever be touched; indeed,
it mustn't even be approached. Sen
ator Foraker intimates, really, that the
tariff shouldn't, be mentioned GU loud,
but only with bated breath. And re-
move your hat, please. But the in
terview which adds most to the gayety
of nations comes from Senator Lodge,
whose state has just elected a demo
cratic governor on the tariff-reforn
issue. Senator Lodge therefore mus
proceed gingerly and he trims arount
to the proposition that perhaps a few
duties might be touched'-observe the
phraseology-"but not many" And he
refuses to say that there ought to be
an extra session for the special pur'
pose of touching"
Senator P%enrose, of Pennsylvania
finds the present tariff perfect" Ever
Mr.. Dryden, that most prudential sen
ator, is understood to be much opposed
to revision. And so the story runs
And it's rather a sad story when you
consider the interests" and movin;
forces which are behind these miracu
lousy simultaneous and marvelousl.
spontaneous u%tterances.
Standard Gil, iron and steel interests
the rubber trust, the International Pa
per company and others are planning, i
Is stated, to have the old senatorial
guard go to the president in a solid bod.
T and tell him that if he opens the tarlf
I question it will hurt the party; an
} urge him to let the question go owe
for another year. What would he sa
in that event?
The people cannot but build thei
: hopes upon Mr.. Roosevelt. He is in fac
their last hope for relief. With a pres
dent set sternly toward revision wher
by even the most conservative view re
vision appears right and proper, Their
will at least be some respite from til
l. robberies by the privileged monopollt
n and some protection for the peopl
d Mr.. Roosevelt politically has been
l. st%and-patter, but not by conviction
d Free now to adopt the attitude whic
e conviction and conscience define, fire
I to read clearly the signs of the time
b eloquent of public desire for lowere
tariff walls and disarmed trust robber
d Mr.. Roosevelt might influence if not i
act compel reductions for the publ!
l. benefit.
In electing the president the peopl
l. cannot be said to have Endorsed all tn
evils of his administration. They &C,
l. .ainly have not yielded their demand
J. that the obvious %inequities and erin
Is inal injustices of the Dingley schedule
re be remedied. President Roosevelt r
If iects the doctrine that revision is a Gu
If ,or the grosser trust evils, but he hi
Z apparently recognized the necessity fl
revision in some extreme instance
where it most plainly exists, and in
vague way his belief in conservative r
IS vision has been held forth to the PEI
l. pie. That a certain reliance has bee
s. placed upon it is true. The revisic
which he might bring himself to pr
II mote would probably come far short
70 a general and proper readjustment
J. duties, but if it should amount to ar
real and practical revision it would
s, a step in the right direction to provol
J. profound public gratitude. If it went
d the extent to which many people hal
n been led to believe it would go, if M
Roosevelt fulfilled the vague and SUI
gestive promise and justified popul;
faith, we should have something a
I proximating effective revision. tt
public, long plundered, is in a positit
where it will be thankful for small f
a sors in the way Of relief.
n Revision's outlook is not bright, b
,s the people seem to be optimistic whit
4 they turn toward Mr.. Roosevelt. TIL,
hope for the best from him.
LATE POLITICAL DRIFT.