Weekly independent. [volume] (Elko, Nev.) 1887-1914, 1913-08-29
POLITICAL LEADER PENROSE
CHANGES HIS POSITION

the most brilliant sustained effort
in running-ire debate the Senst,
has ever sec is that now bein,
exhibited by Senator John Shar,
Williams, of Mississippi. who is act
ing as n of the managers of tn,
tariff bill. Senator Williams is thu
most erudite man now in the Sen
ate. not excluding Henry Cabct
Lodge of Massachusetts. Some OF
senator Williams recent shorI
speeches have been classics. He
seems TO have restored to the up,
per house the brilliancy of utter,
ance that was common in the stir.
ing years which led up to the civil
war. Recently Senator Boies Pen.
rose, Of Pennsylvania, charged that
the Democrats had been ~coerced
by the caucus into support of the
tariff bill. This was part of Sena-
tor Williams reply:
Mr. President, | hope we may
go ahead with the consideration of
these paragraphs, although | think
1T would be well to have the Chap
lain recalled for the moment In or
der to render thanks to Almighty
God for the conversion Of the Sen
atOr from Pennsylvania, MIR Pen
rose In an old German story in
my life ! read of a sermon which
was entitled Satan Rebuking SIM
| never expected tn see that repro
duced. ven in diminuendo, but
have seen it this morning. To
hear the Senator from Pennsyl-
vania rebuking secrecy and parti-
zanship is almost equal to the
devil rebuking sin.
1t is pretty hard for the Senator
from Pennsylvania to recognize the
fact that he is a minority, and so
far as his particular stripe of Re-
p"ublicanism is concerned that he i
~woefully infnitestimal insignificant
minority. 1t is mighty hard to be
tumbled down from a precipice of
arrogant dominion a thousand feet
high to an abyss of Oblivion a
thousand feet deep politically, and
stand il without growing in self
defense more or less progressive
himself.
But when the Senator talks about
the caucus coercing US. or the
President coercing us. that is idle
verbiage cast upon the circumam-
bient atmosphere for self amuse-
ment. When a dozen men with a
common purpose meet and deter
mine upon methods by which they
shall accomplish a common pur-
pose and eight of them advocate
a certain method Of accomplishing
the common end, and two more, an
other. and one another and one still
another, and they finally arrive at
a given result, nobody is cOerced;
everybody has merely shown cou-
mon sense, the common sense which
results in concert Of action"
TARIFF LOCAL ISSUE!
II was old General Hancock who
called the tariff a local issue and
was heartily laughed at by the
statesmen of his time. Succeeding
statesmen, however, have again and
again alleged the truth of The re-
cent occasion when Senator Knute
Nelson, Of Minnesota. attached het
tobacco clause Of the tariff bill.
| believe it is just and proper to
put a high tax on cigars. because
they are a luxury not consumed by
the ordinary workiugman quoth
Senator Knute; and as to cigar
cites, | believestboir use is deletcr-
ious and for that reason the higher
the tax the better. 1t would be well
if they could be taxed out of USE
But when it comes to plain, old
fashioned smoking tobacco and
good old fashioned plug tobacco, to
tax them is a burden upon the lab
oring man."
W%hereupon Uncle Knute sal
down, bit off n generous chew anc
presently squirted o copious brown
stream into the cuspidor that
stands by his desk for that purpose