Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1912-10-02
WILSONISSTRONC
UP IN MINNESOTA
In That State Where Tariff Is
the Issue Democrats
Lead Easily.
BY FRANK q. LORD.

Especial Correspondence of The August
Minneapolis, Mimi, Sept 3O.-The
tariff question is the paramount issue
of the present campaign in Mime
sofa. 1t is the subject in which the
people of the state are more inter
ested than they are in any other po-
litical matter.
The man who satisfies the voters
OF Minnesota that he is right on the
tariff will receive the electoral vote of
the state. Being right on the tariff
question in the minds of the farmers
of Minnesota means being in favor
of revision downward.
In Minnesota the easiest and the
quickest way for a candidate for
Office to commit political suicide is to
champion the cause of the Payne-Al-
drich tariff bill. If one doubts this
statement let him recall the fate of
Mflnesota's two distinguished "Jims"
1 the Hon James T. McCleary and
/ the Hon. James A. Tawney. They
couldn't get the tariff wall high
enough to suit McCleary. He wanted
to stand pat on the Dingley bill and
so, after a long career in congress,
the voters retired him before he had
a chance to vote for the Payne-Al-
drich measure. Tawney held on for
a term longer. He voted for the bill
and then went home and asked his
constituents to approve his course. He
brought President Taft into his dis
trict and had him tell the people that
the Payne-Aldrich bill was the best
tariff law ever enacted" But even
that was not effective, and despite the
fact that Tawney had risen to place
and power in the house he was re-
tired TO the political scrap heap be-
cause he had opposed honest tariff re-
Gated tariff revision downward.
Not so with the foxy old veteran,
the Hon. Knute Nelson. The Hon
orable Knute, although a republican,
began voting for tariff reduction a
quarter of a century ago, when the
Mills bill was passed by the house,
and he has never overlooked an OPP
portunity to record himself on that
side of the question and to oppose the
high tariff stand of his party. So the
sturdy old senator has just won the
preliminary skirmish in his battle for
reelection. He would not have stood
a ghost of chance had he not advo-
Gated tariff rtvisioh downward
The farmers of Minnesota after
long years of experience have reached
the conclusion that so far as they are
concerned protection is the biggest
sort of humbug. They have come
to realize that everything they sell is
sold IN the free markets of the word
and that there is a tariff tax upon
everything they buy. Hence they
have become disguised with the at
titude of the republican party on the
tariff issue.
There isn't man in Minnesota who
would dare to run for Office on a
platform endorsing the Payne-Aldrich
bill; if the platform endorsed it he
would repudiate the declaration
knowing that if he did not the PEG
, pie would repudiate him.
, The fact that thousands of Mime
, sofa republicans are declining to SUD
, port President Taft and are turnins
, to Roosevelt is not because they low
Roosevelt or because they endorse
what he pretends to stand for, bu
1t is because they want to emphasiz,
their dislike of the presidents tariff
attitude. And there are thousands O.
others who do not approve either o.
+. Taft or Roosevelt, but 80 do approx,
r of Governor Wilson, ~ who do en-
dorse his position Oh ,.e tariff, anC
: they will vote for him. They know
what Taft's tariff record is, and they
. condemn it.; they know what Roose
D velt's record or rather his lack o
record is. rhey know that durin,
D the seven years he was president h,
made no effort whatever to revise the
duties.
E -Four years ago Minnesota CAV,
Taft a majority of $4,000. believing