Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1909-04-15
The Republican Promise to Revise
the Tariff.

From w. J. Bryan's tariff speech
at Des Moines, Iowa, Aug. q 1908:
THE democratic party in its plat
forms and through its representa-
tives in congress has for years point
ed out that the tariff schedules are
excessively high and ought to be re-
duced, but the republicans have until
recently, refused to admit that there
was any necessity for reduction. They
now confess, through their platform
and through their presidential can
dIoate, that the need for revision is
so great as to justify the party in
declaring "unequivocally for a revis-
ion of the tariff and the need is so
urgent that the work is to be I'M
dertaken at "a special session of con-
gress Immediately following the in
auguration of the next president
The use of the word 'unequivocally'
indicates that those who wrote the
platform recognize that they are un-
der suspicion. They want to dis
tinguish this promise from the un-
kept promises of the past by adding
as emphatic an adjective as could be
found in The dictionary. If former
republican promises had been con-
scientiously fulfilled, it might not
have been necessary to thus strength
en- the promise made this year. The
use of the words Immediately after
the inauguration is evidence that
the republican leaders are conscious
that the patience of the public has
been strained to the point of breaking
and it is almost pathetic to note the
solicitude which they now feel about
doing a thing which, but for willful
neglect, might have been done at any
time during the last 10 years.
Are we not justified in saying
that the people can not safely en-
trust the execution of this important
work to party which is so deeply
obligated to the highly protected in
terests as the republican party?' The
fat frying process has become ia
miliar to the American people. Press
ure has been brought to bear upon
the protected interests every four
years-and to a less extent in the
presidential elections-to compel con-
tributions to the campaign fund in
return for former favors and in an
tiCipation of favors yet to come. 1t
is difficult to overestimate the cor
rupting influences introduced into
the political life of the nation by
this partnership between the gov
eminent and the favored industries
The literature circulated in support
of a protective tariff has studiously
cultivated the idea that suffrage
should be employed to secure pecun-
larry returns, and the appeal made
by the republican leaders has come
to be more and more selfish one
Every man engaged in protected in
ddstry has been approached with the
proposition that it is dollars in his
pocket to maintain the system, while
those who could not possibly trace
any tangible benefits to themselves
have been beguiled with the assur-
ances that it was all matter of pub
lie spirit, and that they ought to sup
port the system out of patriotic love
of country. If attention was called
to the fact that the farmer was tax.
ed for the benefit of the manufac.
turer, the triple answer was that il
would come back to him indirectly
that it did not amout to much fol-
each farmer anyhow, and that MAJ
was small minded who would be
grudge so insignificant contribu
ton to the nations prosperity. TIL,
plan has been to keep the taxpayer