The Grenada sentinel. [volume] (Grenada, Miss.) 1868-1955, 1907-06-08
FEW T NEEDED.
To Jar the Fabric of the Protected
Trusts and MonopoIists.

Secretary Root, who is undoubtedly
the ablest member of President
Roosevelt's cabinet, said in n of his
speeches: when you step in to
change a custom you cannot change
it by peacemeal; you have to jar
something" That fact is doubtless
the reason that the proposition of Mr..
Root to change present tariff law
to include maximum and minimum
rates of duty has been received by
the standpatters with such ominous
silence. Special interests that are
protected by the tariff want no change
and all the %monopolists ask is rest
and peace. Even just talking Of
changing the tariff disturbs them, for
it is, extremely unpleasant to have the
light of publicity turned upon their
transactions.
If Secretary Root had proposed to
leave the present tariff duties as the
minimum tax and then add 25 per
cent. to those duties as the maximum
tax, he would have found more favor
with the s~tandpatters. Blu to reduce
the present duties by 25 per cent. as
the minimum tai jars upon the nerves
of those who are protected by the
tariff, who can only view the matter
from their own selfish standpoint.
But this very stubbornness of the pro-
tected trusts and monopolists, not to
accede to any change, will undoubted-
ly lead to their downfall.
The more obnoxious a law becomes,
the more radical the demand of it's
opponents for changing it, and as the
present tariff protection to the trusts
becomes more and more apparent to
those who are daily %plundered, the
sooner the whole protective system
will be abolished. You cannot change
it by peacemeal and have the struc-
ture hang together, for even to re-
one of the tariff schedules, such
as protects the steel trust, would so
jar the whole fabric of the protective
system as to lead to it's downfall.
There are % congressional dis,
tricts where the steel trust has the
balance of power, there are II more
NIlCIC Luc COdl IIuoL COlllOlS, dHu
these and the Standard Oil and other
trusts have enough influence to sway
more than half the Republican mem
berS of both houses of congress.
These monopOlists with their vast
ramifications and the power of their
money are joined in the political
game with the Republican machine
and together manage to hold a major
ity of the voters. This mountain of
monopoly and money, and the scared
consciences of a percentage of the
voters, would seem hard to emove
from the path of the Democratic tariff
reformers, but faith in a righteous
cause will emo mountains.
1t only required an average change
of three per cent. of the voters in 27
districts-three votes in 100-to have
given the Democrats the control Of
the house of representatives. How
many voters were kept in line for
the Republican ticket through the in
~fuence of the tariff protected trusts,
or through the controlling power of
their money is pr~oblematical, but that
enough to change the result were
swayed by those mysterious agencies
y certain.
Thus instead of having to change
the minds of a vast number of voters
to jar the Republican protection
fabric, it will be seer that but a slight
shift is necessary to overcome the
machine and it's trust
and monopolist allies.