Charlevoix county herald., 1916-04-15
THE FIRING LINE

Democratic State Committee of New
Jersey would as soon be hanged for an
old sheep as a lamb. At its recent
meeting, not content with indorsing
Wilson, the Committee went on record
in approval of the Underwood Tariff
Bill which is declared to have Sub
stantially contributed toward the pro-
motion of vastly improved times which
are observable on every hand" We
hereby offer prize of one large red
apple for each and every instance of
''vastly improved times" to which the
Underwood tariff has substantially
contributed.
Debating the Shields water power
bill in the Senate, Mr.. Nowlands of
Nevada tried-and succeeded-to
demonstrate that the Democratic ma
jority in Congress has persistently
legislated in defiance of the platform
pledges of its party. This is not in the
nature OF the news, nor was it really
Illuminating to the debate. But it is
refreshing to have an eminent Demo-
crat stand up in either branch of Con-
gress to admit it. The Nevada states
man was not content with showing that
his party had violated the pledges of its
platform of four years ago, but he
quoted from earlier Democratic plat
forms to show that violation of cam
paign pledges is a Democratic habit.
Fortunately, the country has no inten-
ton of giving the Democrats further OPP
portunity to display their tendency in
this direction.
Nebraska's Secretary of State has
turned down a complaint that Bryan is
not entitled to enter the Democratic
primaries because he is not Democrat
So far, so good. Now that it has been
officially determined that Bryan is a
Democrat, cannot some method be de-
vised to determine whether he is Will
son man?
Dr. Wiley says he prescribed sugar
for the Harvard football team and Yale
has not won a game since. Yet the
prescription of sugar which Woodrow
Wilson's administration has just had to
take will not have the same effect.
Every schoolboy knows the axiom,
"The whole is equal to the sum of its
parts" But Mr.. Underwood evidently
forgot his boyhood training when he
drew his renowned connective"
tariff bill. That measure provides for
a ten per cent duty on cattle, and lets
in free all the parts that make up cattle
The importer of live cow must pay
the ten per cent ad valorem on Bossy,
but the bones, hide, flesh, hoofs, blood,
horns, milk and hair of cows are on the
free list. The same inconsistency exists
in certain provisions regarding machin-
cry. Some machines pay duty, but all
of their parts may be brought in free.
Did Mr.. Underwood regard COW or a
steer as a piece of machinery-or what?
Having dilly-dallied and delayed con-
sideration of legislation in every pos.
sible way, the Democrats in the Senate
now plan to introduce a cloture rule tC
stifle debate, and Senator Gore is to
introduce such a rule. This is for the
purpose of relieving congestion which
has been caused by their own delays
The rule will prevent such careful con
sideration of bills as might otherwise
have been possible, and there has beer
no disposition on the part of Repub
licans to block legislation. This is {
Democratic method of going about the
country's business used chiefly on the
House side-procrastinate, then cut of
debate-but which appears to hav'
found its way into the Senate. The!
threatened cloture at the beginning o
the session, the plan was killed in thei
caucus, and again makes its appear
ance. Seasickness is the result of fol
lowing the Democratic changes of mind
Fort Scott, Kan, Republican,
save our face, we had better not asl
Villa to salute the flag.