Los Angeles herald., 1910-02-13

greed and has left public opinion IN
an apt condition to bring ABOUT the
reforms needed to clinch his policies
and make them permanent in the form
of enacted laws.
But as an inevitable aftermath OF
such agitation we find a conditlon u
hysteria on the part of certain tndlNld-
uals, and on the part of others a conol-
ton of hypocrisy manifesting ltselt III
the blind denunciation of all Wealth
and in the impeachment OF the InollNeS
of men of the highest character, ana
by demagogic appeals to the magma
tion of a people greatly aroused on the
subject of party honesty i'll the adnlln-
istration of the government.
The tendency is to resent attachment
to party or party organization, and 10
an assertion of individual opinion ana
purpose at the expense of party dlscl-
pline. The movement is toward fac-
tionalism and small groups, rather than
toward large party organization ana
the leaders of the party organization
are subjected to the SeVerest attacks
and to the questioning of their motives
without any adequate evidence to JUS
tify it.
| am far from saying the Republican
party Is perfect. No party which mas
achieved such power as it has achleVeo
for the last seventeen years could De
expected 10 l1dlIldlll GllhCl NAkhiAii 49,
rank and file or in its management men
of the purest and highest motives, and
l am the last one to advocate any halt
in the prosecution and condemnation OF
Republicans, however prominent and
powerful. whose conduct requires GRIM
inal or other prosecution and condem-
nation.
Criticised by Members
1t should be we'll understood that
what the Republican party in its pres
ent condition, with the various d1VlS-
ions subject to the cross-fire of its own
newspapers and it's own factions, any
halt or failure on the part of those in
authority to punish and condemn cor
ruption or corrupt methods will prop
erly be visited upon the party itself,
however many good men it contains.
We shall be called on to respond to
the charge in the next campaign that
the tariff, for which we are responsible,
has raised prices. If the people listen
to our arguments it will be easy to
demonstrate that high prices proceed
from an entirely different cause, and
that the present tariff, being largely
revision downward, except with respect
to silks and liquors, which are luxuries,
cannot be charged with having in
creased any prices.
But this will not prevent our Demo-
cratic friends from arguing on the
principle of "Post hoe propter hoe"
that because high prices followed the
tariff therefore they are the result of
it. And we must not be blind to the
weight of such an argument in an cleo
toral campaign.
The reason for the rise in the cost of
necessities can easily be traced to the
increase in our measure of values, the
precious metal gold, and possibly In
some cases to the combinations in re-
straint of trade.
The question of the tariff must be
argued out. The prejudices created by
the early attacks upon the bill and the
gross Misrepresentation of it's charac-
ter must be met by careful presenta-
tion of the facts as to the contents of
the bill. and also to it's actual operation
and statistics shown thereby.
/ believe we have strong case If we
can only get it into the minds of the
people.
Prepared for Defeat
Should disaster follow us and the Re-
publican majority in the house become
a minority In the next house 1t may be
possible that in the Democratic exer-
| else of its power the people of this
country will see which is the party of