Gilpin observer., 1913-04-10
WASHINGTON news
By Edward Keating.

ij impossible to make a fairly sa.ro-
factory survey of the field, determine
the position of the conten6iEg forces
and predict With some accuracy the
ultimate results.
The rational capital is alive with
lobbyists You meet them every
where-weIl dressed, suave gentle
men who are never dn a hurry and
always more than willing ito have a
drl.k or smoke with you and to
shed ltght on their particular special
ty, or graft, as we Of the west
might term lit. Every interest seems
to be we'll represeGted-an but one
Up-to-date have not encountered
lobbyist who was pleading the cause
of the consumer. There are ninety
million consumers in this country.
Why shouldn't they have something
to say about the framing Of a tariff
bill? They do the voting on election
day; they do the fighting when the
flags are unfolded and the war drums
roll, and they dig up more than one
billion dollars each year to sustain a
high protective tariff system in this
country.
| They are vitality Interested i'm maxi
ing their dollars go as far as possible
lessen the purchasing power of these
dollars, lit would seem only just that
their interests should be considered
when the Ways and Means commit
tee is framing this mcst important
of bills. But the consumers are not
organized. They cannot hire lobby
hits and they carGot wine and dine
Senators and Representatives.
There is ore thing they can do.
however, they can write to their SEN
ators and representatives and remind
those gentlemen that the folks at
home expect them to do their duty.
The platform man stood on when
he was pleading for votes should be
good enough for him after he begins
to draw his pay Write your letter
tonight and make it so clear that
IT cannot he misunderstood.
There is urgent need of such ac-
tion, fer Democracy is on trial as 1T
never was before in the history of
this country. 1t must not be permit
ted to fail the people at this time.
We may net have reached Arranged
don. but we are engaged in a real
battle ard we need every bit CT in
fiueDce we can muster.
The tariff struggle centers around
the sugar and wooden schedules and
the senate is the citadel which must
be captured by the champions of tar
iff revision before they can hope for
victory. Along the line of the Penn
sylvan.a railroad leading into Wash
lingtcn are number CT large signs
reading:
WATCH SCHEDULE X"
No one seems to know who paint
ed these signs but everyone concedes
that they tell the story of the tar
Iiff fight. Schedule X is the woolen
schedule, the hfeblood of the woolen
ltrust. Taft denounced it as ''snde-
fensible' and weakly admitted his
inability to force Its revision. When
the Democrats and Progressives in
the last Congress changed 1T he in
terposed his veto to save the trusts
and, incidently, signed his OWN death
warrant Now the trusts lobbyists
are boasting that they will block an
hop icin i'm (Nnnpu.pSS
They say that through a combina-
ton with the sugar trust they own
seven senators, who call themselves
Democrats, and these, with the Re
publican senators, would constitute
a majority of the senate. They pro-
Use to repeat the performance which
disgraced and dJscredfted Cleveland's
second administration when German,
of Maryland, Smith, of New Jersey.
and four or five other so-called Dem
ocrats violated their platform pledges
and emasculated the Wilson Bill.
Cleveland refused to sign THE bill,
but permitted 1t to become law
without his signature.
Wilson is made of steiner stuff. He
is insisting on am honest redemption
Of the party's pledges. Those who
are close % him say that he favors
free sugar and free wool. He is will
ing to make any reasonable conces-
sions, however. He has suggested
a so per cent cut In tariff on sugar
with free trade In three years, and
he might be willing 90 give equally
generous treament to the woolen in
terests.
The representatives of the trusts
affect to believe that the Presidents