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Show DEMODEATIO INCAPACITY". If the Democrats can paBS one Important, Im-portant, bill in eight mouths, how long will it tako them to pass tho important measures to which thoy aro pledged in their platform? Tho special session of congress bogan on April 1, and President Presi-dent "Wilson assigned to it only two asks: tho adoption of a tariff law and of a currency law. Although tho tariff changes had boen agitated for ahout four years and tho chief schedules, such as cotton nnd wool, sugar, lead, stool and iron, and agricultural implements wore constantly uudor discussion, tho Democrats found themselves unprepared to act promptly. Indeed, during tho last, four years preceding pre-ceding the election of President Wilson, Wil-son, congress had 'given a vast part of its Unto to tho tariff question. The Democrats pretended that thoy know. just what they wanted to do with rpfcrenco to tho leading schedules, and yet thoy were uuablo to got tho tariff law out. of the way in time to pass tho money bill at the extra session. Thoy arc still wrangling about tho curroncy bill's provisions now that tho regular session is in progress, and aro compelled com-pelled to work fourloen hours a day in order to ntako any headway at all. This is an admission of woeful incapacity. inca-pacity. There scorns to bo a lack of constructive power among tho Democratic Demo-cratic senators and representatives. To somo oxtent this i3 duo to inexperience. Every landslide necessarily sends to congress a largo numbor of men unskilled un-skilled in tho congressional systom. .But evon with the aid of tho party lcadors who have boen kept in practico for many years, tho Democratic cou-gro5s cou-gro5s is proving itself a clumsy, lumbering lum-bering machine Tho most conspicuous blunder in tho Democratic tariff bill .was committed by nono other than Bop-rcsontative Bop-rcsontative Underwood, who is a vot-eran vot-eran in the house of representatives, and who now seeks to bo mado a senator. sena-tor. Tho blunder was oo inourable that the department of justice was compelled to eliminate the entire provision in regard re-gard to admitting foreign goods imported im-ported in Amorican vessels at lowor tariff rates. Much uncertaint' still exists with referonco to the currency bill. Tho ro-sult ro-sult is a disturbod condition of business busi-ness that is retarding tho country's prosperity. And now comes Joseph W. Davics, commissioner of corporations, corpora-tions, announcing that ho must have two years in which to get scientific information in-formation about tho trusts. During that period tho busiucss men of tho country must continue to grope in tho dark. They expoctcd that the Democratic Demo-cratic administration would pass some laws to regulate the trusts. They still belicvo that such laws are to be adopted. Thoy had hoped, however, that tho legislation would bo mado effective ef-fective as quickly as possible, so that the cloud of uncertainty would bo removed re-moved and so that they could adjust themselves, for better or for worse, to tho new conditions. If tho" commissioner commis-sioner of corporations is io have his way, however, tho commercial interests of the country must wait for at ljast two years until the Democratic party can educate itself in matters about which it feigned to know practically everything. N Judging by the uproar of the Democrats Demo-crats for eighteen years and more, by their resounding declarations of principles, princi-ples, by their harangues on the stump and in congress, by their books and other writings, the public was thoroughly thor-oughly convinced that however mistaken mis-taken tbe Democrats might be iu their devices to regulate or to smash the trusts, thoy at least know what thoy wanted and would speodily crystallize their theories into law wheu once thoy were placed in power. Now we find them flouudoring about in a hopoloss fashion on the trust question, and here again is proof of the historic chargo mudo agaiust tho Democratic party that it is a party of protest and is wanting in constructive capacity a capacity which enabled the Republican party to govern with success and with very few crucial mistakes a nation whoBe power and prosperity under Republican administration admin-istration has eclipsed all records set by nations in this or anj' othor age. |