The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1916-07-13
THE QUESTION

and following the Civil war, when sc
many grave governmental problems
were confronting the country and de-
manding solution at the hands of the
peoples representatives as there are
at the present time.
The tariff issue looms up on the
horizon bigger than ever before. When
the present European war ends, nc
matter how it ends, there will be in
augurated the greatest commercial
war the world has ever known, the
greatest struggle for trade suprem-
acy that international trade circles
have ever witnessed. The internal re-
sources of the warning nations will be
reduced to such an extent that it will
tax their utmost powers to raise
enough to pay domestic expenses by
internal revenues, and they must de-
pend on those derived from foreign
trade to pay the interest on the i'm
mense Indebtedness they have incurr-
ed in the wars. The United States
will have to confront not only the diff
cult task of holding it's own domestic
trade, but the still more difficult task
of securing it's share in the worlds
commerce.
The entire tariff system will have to
be reconstructed to meet these new
conditions and must be constructed
upon a system lifted entirely above
the low, narrow level of local provin-
cialism and placed on the broad high
plane of nationalism. The people will
be satisfied with nothing less than full
protection to American labor and
American capital, but it must be 2
tariff from which every element of
tribute is eliminated.
An American merchant marine must
be created, for nothing will be more
natural than that foreign nations will
favor their own vessels. in the carry
ing trade and the United States will
be compelled to pay part of the Eu-
ropean war debt in the way of trans
portation unless they have merchant
marine of their own in which to trans
port their wares to the markets of
the world.
The loss to the American farmer
during the last 10 months, owing to
the enormous prices charged by own
ers of foreign bottoms for ocean
transportation, is incalcuable. At the
beginning Of the European war the
average price Of ocean transportation
for bushel Of wheat was seven cents;
and just a few days ago contract
was closed in Duluth for the shipment
of a cargo for so cents a bushel, an
increase of 1900 per cent in rate:
There is no reason in the world why
wheat should not be worth $1.75 to
$1.85 a bushel in Sank Centre today,
except the exhorbitant rates charged
by foreign ship owners for transpor-
tation.
The question of safe and sane mil
itary and naval preparedness is one
that must be met and settled. The
Mexican situation has brought about
one good thing. 1t has accumulated
our utter Inability to protect oar cit
liens and their rights against a ma
ton of semi-barbarians THAI could not
stand for a day in the face Of ma
ton we'll prepared. Within moro men,
more resources and mere mvrsey than
alt the warning nations Of Europe
combined, our citizens are slaughtered,
our women outraged and our property
and about all we are able
to do so far is to exchange correspond
enee. We talk about the hotheaded-
ness of the South, hut We have won
dered what would have happened if
Stearns county bordered on Mexico,
and the same thing had happened to
Sank Centre that happened to Column
bus. There would have been "did-
dings" whether we were backed by the
government at Washington or not.
These are only few OF" the many
issues confronting the
American people of today.
Every level-headed citizen wso
keeps his feet on the ground and dses
not permit himself to feat away in
the clouds is fully aware that these
issues, and all others, must be settled
by either the Republican or Demo
cratic party, or rather representa-
tives elected by these parties.
Has the Democratic party by past
performance, present action or future
promise displayed wisdom that
shows ability to grasp or solve them ?
Is the country satisfied with the
present Democratic tariff that is 81
discriminating, local and provincial in
it's provisions that it is joke?
Has it taken any real steps toward
providing a merchant marine capable
or meeting present or future contin-
gencies?
The Mexican situation has threat
ened for years and our present unpre-
pared condition to meet the situation
is an advertisement of the party's in
competency to meet the conditions as
they now exist.
What earnest has it to offer that