Conservative.
f
lican legislation has boon enacted for
this express purpose ? It is only because
of prohibitive tariffs , which prevent the
importation of foreign goods , that com
binations of capital are dangerous. The
evil of trusts would bo impossible under
free trade. With free trade , if a com
bination was formed to raise prices ,
foreign goods would come in. The
competition thus created would prevent
a raise in prices and destroy the danger
of the combination. The platform very
illogically suggests national control as
the remedy for the trust question. It
would prove inefficient. The trusts
exist because of the favor of the general
government. Need the trusts , then ,
feel that their interests would bo en
dangered because of additional power
reposed in congress , to which they owe
their existence ? The only way to
eradicate the evil of trusts is to destroy
that which makes their evil possible ,
viz. , to remove all protective tariffs ,
thereby making competition possible.
Combinations between nations would be
impractical. The government of the
United States has neither constitutional
nor other right to impose taxes upon the
people except to put money into the
national treasury , with which to pay the
public debt , provide for the common
defence and promote the general wel
fare. All protective tariff taxes , imposed
to put money in the pockets of favored
interests instead of the federal treasury ,
are unjust and ought to be abolished.
The platform is silent in regard to the
most important act of the administra
tion , viz. , the enactment of the Porto
Rican tariff. It establishes , so far as
congress is concerned , the constitutional
status of the new possessions. They are
not a part of the United States , but
dependencies of the federal government.
The decision , handed down by Judge
Loohren of the United States district
court , demolishes the republican
theory. According to this decision Porto
Rico , after the ratification of the treaty
of peace , became a part of the territory
of the United States and the constitution
extended to the island.
Notwithstanding
BKYAN UJ3DGING. , . , 1.11.1.
ott repeated state
ments of unswerving loyalty to 1G to 1
Bryan is evidently beginning to hedge
on that question. In his speech to the
Sunflower League of Kansas , ho
indicated that he would be willing to
run for president on most any kind of n
platform. Ho spoke at length upon nl
questions now before American people
except silver. Chairman Danforth o
the democratic state central committee
of New York has published a letter from
Wm. F. Sapp , president of the league
in which it is stated that Bryan dis
missed the silver question as follows :
"I am asked as often as once a wceli
whether I have abandoned silver. To
that I answer : No. But suppose
should abandon silver , what difference
would it make ? I am not the people.
When they abandon that question , it
will bs an issue no longer. The people
make the issue , not the man. No man
is greater than his party. "
This is a significant admission. In
stead of strengthening his standing
among intelligent , thinking people it
will lower him in their estimation. It
will confirm the general feeling that he
is not a man of strong convictions or
firm opinions. It will stamp him as
a weathervane whoso public conduct
would not be determined by sober
thought or sound judgment , but would
be controlled by popular feeling and the
impulse of the moment. It shows that
the presidency rather than the triumph
of principle is his highest ambition. If
the democratic party drops 1C to 1 , as it
now seems disposed to do , it can not
consistently name for the presidency ,
one so conspicuously identified with the
vagary as Bryan. The man is looked upon
by conservative people as more danger
ous than any platform. Bryanism is
synonymous with radicalism and popu
lism , neither of which is to be tolerated
by the American people.
The bill mtro-
THE CULLOM BILL. , . . , . ,
duced in the senate
by Senator Cullom , giving additional
power to the inter-state commerce com
mission , has been unfavorably reported
by the committee. The bill has been
strongly favored by the inter-state com
merce commissioners and vigorously
opposed by the railway commission.
The opposition on the part of the rail
roads is not without provocation. The
proposed measure would enlarge the
powers of the inter-state commerce
commission to an unreasonable degree.
It would give to the commission the un
restricted power of making rates. There
would be no appeal from their decision ,
however unjust it might be to the rail
roads. Such an arbitrary grant of
power to a few appointive commission
ers would be unsafe , because of the
danger of its almost certain abuse.
Railway companies , like individuals
are entitled to the protection of the law.
They should , as individuals , be required
to conform to legitimate and just lega :
restraints. But they should not be
forced to submit to regulations.tyraunica
and oppressive , which have their origin
not in a desire to promote the public
good but to cater to a blind and unjust
prejudice against corporate capital.
The situation in
TJIK PIIIL.IPJMNK , . T3 , . . .
INSUKH1SOTION.fc h ° " 'PP11168 '
does not improve.
All that has been accomplished after one
year's campaigning has been to break up
the organization of the insurgent forces.
Instead of destroying armed resistance
on the part of Filipinos it merely caused
a change in the method of campaigning.
i
The insurgents now carry on hostilities
in small bauds , avoid our army as much
as possible , prevent the moving of '
products from the interior of the islands jj
and thus demoralize industry. Their , '
present method of resistance is really |
the more effective and more difficult to ; i
cope with. '
Edwin Wildman , former vice consul
at Hong Kong , contributes a very <
interesting article in the current issue of
Leslie's Weekly , entitled the "Reign of
Terror in the Philippines. " He savs :
"Although General Otis would have
us believe the war in the Philippines is
over , I learn from private sources of in
formation of the highest authority that
there exists a veritable reign of terror in
most parts of the archipelago , within a
gunshot from our army posts.
"Either General Otis is blind to the
ituation or is keeping the real facts
'rom the American people. Aguinaldo's
forces have scattered into marauding
bands , and leaguing themselves with the
mountain Tulisans and Ladrones , ter
rorize the country and effectually check
he cultivation of crops and the sale of
marketable products.
"The new ports that have been opened
shipped away what little supply they
contained and the
Industry Demoralized.
tons upon tons of
hemp , sugar and rice that are stored in
the interior are beyond the reach of
buyers. The money paid for the thous
ands of bales of hemp shipped from
garrisoned ports has found its way into
the insurgent coffers and the revolution
ary juntas at Hong Kong and Singapore
are making extensive purchases of arms ,
preparatory to a renewed season of fili
bustering and hostilities as soon as the
rainy season is over.
"Our army is busy protecting its posts ,
while the insurgents carry on their
operations in the interior and paralyze
agriculture and trade.
"Scattered bands of armed insurgents
wage war against all who hesitate to
acknowledge the Aguiualdo government ,
and the inhabitants are in a state of
terror that prevents honest industry or
open alliance with American sever
eignty.
"The American troops make short
work of these robbers , but our garrisons
are so far apart and so few in numbers
that they invariably are obliged to fall
back to a seaport town , where they can
get supplies from Manila , for the insur
gents have so thoroughly ravaged the
country that it is impossible to supply
oven a small battalion with native
products.
"If wo ever hope to put an end to this
Indian warfare we must send additional
forces to the islands. Our present forces
are totally inadequate to bring the war
to a close. The islands , commercially
or otherwise , will be utterly useless until
life and property are made safe. "