Clinch Valley news. [volume] (Jeffersonville, Va.) 18??-2019, 1909-04-16


Republican tariff thieves are re-
joicing that many Democrats are
becoming as one Of plem. That is
the real moral Significance of All the
talk about Southern Democrats hays
ing been ut last converted from Il c
error of their free trade ways. Their
showing i'm the House has, in truth,
already been bad. 1t will probably
be worse, both there and i'm the
Senate, rs opportunity offers. Ovcl
thirty Southern Democrats voted in
the House on Tuesday against the
amendment TO make lumber free.
One OF them was the chairman Of the
last Democratic NationaiCOnvention,
which said i'm its platform
1--WE demand the Immediate repeal
OF the tariff ON wood pulp, print
paper lumber, timber and logs, md
that these articles be placed upon the
free list. "
Political recreancy could not well
be more unb'ushing. Looking ut it,
first, from the point of view OF party,
we can now see plainly how vain it
would have been in the last presi-
Dental campaign for tariff reformers
to pin their hopes to the election OF
Mr.. BRYAN. Himself never really IA
soldier in the war against protection,
he had come TO have party follow
ing which had been 50 dragged and
debauched by protective and other
sOcialistic Arguments that il could
not be depended upon to attack reso-
lutely even the most fragrant iniqui-
ties Of the high tariff
or course, there have always been
some Democrats who called them
selves, openly or secretly, protec-
tionists. Sam Randall headed Il group
which, before ClevelaEd'S day, pre-
vented any revision of the tariff.
But, after the party had in four pre-
sidential campaigns hoisted the ban
ner of tariff for revenue only, had
once carried the country on that is
sue, and finally forced their OPP
ponents To take il mp, it becomes an
act of peculiar party turpItude foI a
representative TO say II am Dem
ocrat to the core, but am n protec-
ZIONIST. When you penetrate 10 that
"core," you lind strong desire for Il
share in the tariff swag; and the pro-
portion of Democrats that now con-
TESS themselves tobe actuatcd by that
desire is large enough To rob thieI
party both of its prestige and its
power.
The explanation, To he sure, lies
ut hand. Poor human nature being
what il is, the motive for going in
for part OF the tariff plumber i,
obvious. 1t has been bluntly put bN
Senator Tillman. "Nour whole sys.
tenn, he said To the Republican
Senators, "is one OF stealing; but,
so long as the stealing is going on, We
Of theSouth propose 10 have our share
Of the booty Nor would we toe
severely blame the represei titive>
temSelVos. Behind them stands The
mass OF their constituents, with itch
ing PLAINS. The fatal lesson has beer
drilled into them that every citizen
is entitled To- finger coin from thS
national treasury; that the only way
To get on in business is To- obtain F:
Federal grant in aid, and that the
way TO make fortune is TO secure
the right TO tax your fellows, so that
their property may be. under tn,
color of law. transferred to you
With ueSe ideas oolh preached ant
pIacticed for more than generation
and with the new South repToach
Ell 50 long for standing for princi
pie instead of rushing TO fill lis
pockets out of the pnbic funds, il i
not "A political miracle that we Sc,
r Democratic representatives, from tn,
South unable 10 withstand the pres
sure of Selishness and great i'm thei
districts. While We t-mc,tt this, W,
cannot deny that - i, wholly intel
ligible.