The Washington herald., 1909-04-02
POLITICS OF THE PAST.
Col. WattersOn Recalls Some Repub.
ican Tariff RefOrmers.

Col. WattersOn Recalls Some Repub.
Iican Tariff Reformers.
Henry Wsttsrsoa. II the Louisville ,'ourserJOarrAI
Assuredly we have seen queer thing,
in politics and have lived through eccen-
tric times. Ger Sherman urged NJ
Hayes 10 make Gen. Joseph z. Johnston
Secretary Of War. Hayes not only want,
ed 10 do II. but submitted the proposition
TO a council OF his friends. He did make
Judge Key. an old-line Democrat and a
Confederate soldier. Postmaster General
Cleveland put Gresham az the head OF his
Cabiret. And here comes Taft. with his
nerve and his smile, 20 put MacVeagh
the free trader, so-called. and Dickinson
who never voted a Republican ticket
and never expects TO-" IN TWO OF the fore
most places within his gift. Even Knox.
his prime minister, was but a year ago
talking Back 70 the Constitution Ike a
very drab OF a Democrat. whilst only a
little before that Mr.. Bryan was accus-
ing Mr.. Roosevelt OF stealing his clothes
and the cartoonists were picturing RoOse-
welt and Bryan as the two Dromios.
For my part. have worn my partyism
as my raiment loose enough for my own
comfort. was a good Union boy in 1861.
ike thousands OF other boys VINO later
along served the Confederaey with loyal
devotion got what the protectionists
used to call my free trade ideas mainly
FROM my good friends Allison and Blaine
and John Sherman. who. having freed
the niger" were going 10 free the
trade" David A. Wells. when I first
''cOnsOrted" with him. was a Republican.
Garfield became. along with me IN Lon
don. a member OF the free trade Golden
Club.
The Liberal movement OF 1872 was, in
its conception. a free trade movement.
Horace White. the editor OF the Chicago
Tribune, an out-and-out Republican, had
translated Bastiat for US. Joseph MediIl
who Immediately followed Horace White
as editor and owner OF the Tribune. was
"a free trader long before he died. al
though he could not see his way 10
breaking his party allegiance. and. when
the tariff was at the fore, hobbled along
as best he could upon intellectual
crutches- George Hoadley. Stanley Mat
thews. Schurz. the Brinkerhons. Lyman
TrumbUll. David Davis. the Adams con-
tingent, headed by Sam Bowles. Repub-
licans all, were free traders: that IS, rev
enue reformers OF varying degrees.
The nomination OF Greeley knocked the
calculations OF these into a cooked hat.
Some OF them fell back into line and sup
ported Grant. The Republican party got
its second wind. SO to say. as to protec-
tionlsm. The Democrats found with the
coming OF Tilden four years later an issue
that did not originate in, or carry back
10. sectional agitation; though We had a
long. hard fight against the elements led
by Randall before we made II party law.
And now Taft with Franklin MacVeagh
on his right and Jacob McGavock Dick
insOn on his left. thinks 70 take this
away from us by the make-beiieve OF a
revision. which VIII eliminate the tariff
from the public mind for a dozen years
or so. Go 10. Mr.. President. go 10: the
country does. indeed, need the rest cure:
but not from tariff agitation until the
duties are reduced 10 a revenue basis:
rather from the ravages OF your friend.
Theodore Roosevelt's. Incorporate agita-
tions and strenuous personality.