The Montgomery advertiser., 1909-02-11
THEY ARE IN A FIX.

THEY ARE IN "A EkA.
 The existing and increasing national deficit, which cannot be hidden. which refuses to be kept down and cannot be forced to do the vanishing act isi causing our brethren on the other side of the political fence to lie awake nights in the effort to find remedy. What makes it so hard on them is the fact that they cannot shift the responsibility The Republicans have had absolute control of the govern ment for years. They have controlled both the income and the expenditures, and if the latter should exceed the former. as is now the case. they know that the blame rests entirely with their own party. They cannot lay any of 1t on the Democratsn or charge 1t to Democratic extravaganza or reck- less use of the public funds. That is the bad part of 1t for them.
 | what is the remedy7 for 1t is plain that something must be done. The de- ficit cannot be allowed to continue to increase, for that would ruin, not only the country but the Republican party and the latter Is probably what they fear most. aJeopardizing the honor and credit of fhe United States would be bad enough but putting their party out of business would be worse in the estimation of many of them. Some thing must be done. they plainly see: but what that something shall be is the puzzle.
 One might think that the most nat ural and appropriate suggestion oc- curing to them would be the cutting down of expenses. Stop the lavish expenditure of the public funds. cease making so many big appropriations. many of which are uncalled for and in some cases improper. Tn many ways the expenses of the government can be largely reduced without im- pairing the efficiency of the service or working Injury in any way except. perhaps, to cut of some of the swiii that goes to the hogs who would de- plete the treasury if allowed their way. By an honest and properly ad- ministered system of public service the expenditures of the government can be brought below the income, If they would go at 1t in the right way
 
 and stick to 1t.
 { But the Republican bosses. we are told, have a scheme worth two of that, in their own estimation. Instead of looping off useless expenditures and thus reducing expenses they propose to increase the tarifr duties on all the necessaries of life! That is strictly a Republican theory of government When more money is needed put on more taxes. Some of the absolute monarehs of the Old World have fol- lowed that plan. and the protective tariff monarchs of this country think 1t good one. But some of their par ty are not so sure about it. The Kan sas City Journal holds that it would be much better to cut down expenses than to raise the cost of living, but some of It's arguments are just bit tangled. For example:
 In one aspect the argument in favor of taxing the necessaries of life is entirely sound. though 1t is never 1 highly popular per se. But 1t Is sound l only to the point of providing a tariff | necessary to protect the manufactur- | CTS and the workmen engaged in pro- 1 ducing the necessaries of life in this country. Beyond that point, save as matter of dire revenue necessity 1t is utterly indefensihle. The entire in- | ternal revenue system is based largely on the vices. or at least the weak nesses, of men. while the tariff system i is based on the two-fold necessity of ! faising revenue and protecting do- nestle industries and American work 1 ing men.
 ! We have heard so much of this rant about protecting the American work ing man that it has grown somewhat nauseating. The men who labor should have full protection but not at. the expense of all others. And these ad- vocates of protection seem to forget that the laboring men have to live, as we'll as others. They have to buy the necessaries of life in the open markets just as others do, and what would it benefit them to receive a little higher price for the products of their labor and more than pay 1t out for something to live on? Leaving | out all questions of justice to others, and considering only the working men themselves we fail to see how they