The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1910-02-26
The Force Of Public Opinion.

1t Is difficult for practical politici. i.
ans to realize that public onin;on
can be aroused to such a degree that
IL Will insist on having something
done. Their notion Of public opinion
generally speaking. is merely some
thing to talk eloquently about on the
stump. When the practical poIiti-
clan says "the people demand" he
| merely means that the party mana
gers desire. And on ali ordinary oc-
casions his position is we'll taken.
The people usually are content-en-
tlrely too content!-to let the politi
clans manage their affairs for them
and take the best they can get with
only mild grumbling as a result.
But once in while the people do
make demand. They want some
thing done, and they propose to have
1t done. Then the politicians lose
their reckoning. They cannot gauge
the meaning Of the popular rumbling
which, as is their custom, they con-
strue as merely popular grumbling;
something that will soon pass away
and be forgotten, crowded out. as Il
were, to make room for more in
teresting matter.
This explains why the standpatters
In Congress (who are among the
most practical Of the practical politi-
clans) nave been so dense about un-
derstanding the public demand for
lower prices. They realize, of
course, that there was a general
complaint, but they assumed that it
was mrely the popular grumbling
that breaks forth every once in a
While, something of no particular
consequence, and something which.
II ignored and not dignified by off,
cial attention would soon blow over.
And so, with the interest of the
high tariff schedules ever at heart.
they thought it better to pay no at
tention to the popular demand for
fear it might bring on another tariff
struggle-which, indeed, it is very
likely to do.
But the discomfort did not "blow
over" On the contrary. it culminat-
ed In the meat boycott, which in
stead Of blowing over is likely to
blow something open before it ends.
And now, as our Washington dis
patches show, the less practical of
the politicians, who somehow have
a way of always reading the state of
the public mind a good deal better
than the more practical politicians.
nave not only realized that some
thing must be done, and done very
soon, but they are bringing their
standpat brethren to an appreciation
of the necessity. It is not a pleasant
task for a standpat Congressman to
inquire into the causes of the high
prices after having so persistently
and ably forced through a tariff law
that was designed to make prices
high. During such an investigation
he will be in imminent danger of
hnding out things he does not want
the public to know. Nor is he COM
forted by the report that the Presi-
dent has said that if an investigation
tends to show that the tariff is in
any way responsible for the extra
ordinary high cost Of living he will
be in favor Of a reconstruction of
some Of the schedules
All over the country Legislatures
or State officials are inquiring into
this question which is uppermost in
peoples minds, and as a result of
the investigation by the Agricultural
Department Secretary Wilson has
already made some declarations that
add nothing to the tranquility of the
standpatters. So there seems to be
no other course than for Congress to
investigate the subject of high prices.
however disagreeable the process may
be to the Congressional managers.
What the result of such a difficult in
vestigation will be it is impossible to
foresee, but with reasonable assur-
ance we can take comfort in one
thing and that is that such an in
vestigation will have no tendency to
make prices any higher.