Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1844-08-13
Richmond. August -. 1914.
MR.. CLAY on THE TARIFF;

Richmond, August -, 1911.
Mr.. CLAY On THE TARIFF;
VIZ his fro C"ifa.nrS.
TIN. whole system of The Protective Tariff i
factit;ous-conirarv To- the genius of 4 yours
and free yIcyc with extensive. unoccuried am
cheap lants-will = large, Federal Repn5.
lie. embracing n variety of soils, climates arr
! interests where il is scarcely possible 10 hh N
one section by any Protective System, wli:oN.
! byyikcaia. another. il is contrary also To il'
o.nius of the are itself. which i attempting tt
! throw off The S!iacklcs upon labor and capital
and consulting The enlightened principles %
Free Trade. Every couniry canned rfodnc'
! every thing for itselt-or whence las MF
| Oveiton says iha; rarielT which Prn'ide"c'
has stamped upon Natures works Exc
, ~ country must resort 10 or eS'
| change of mutual productions and lahricS-a'
Addison has 50 beautifully shown in The 9th
| No. of his Spectator. Nuch less can every man
! supply himself with every thing lie wanis. or,
else (as Mr.. 0veIton again asks why that mn
! mense capacity of productive labor from Us SUD
| division Every man indeed is 4 better Judge cl
! the mode of employing his labor prohiahly, thii
the Government can lie. For, |a.ierall, the whole
resolves itself into the great law OF demand ana
supplv-the utility of voluntary compelnlon-
the right OF buying where every article Is the
! cheapest, and Of selling where it is dearest.
Upon these simple elements rests Tic vaIuc oil
Free Trade. and the rciniation OF the arguments
| which have been urged in favor of the Protec-
tive system. Mr.. Clay, Tic great advocate OF
the iac;iiiou>. hot-bed. unconstitutional system IN
thiscount:y, has spoken mary { speech, and urged
many a >ophism in lis favor, from time 10 tine.
The g!st o.! his measures asbccn prOttc,ioa-and.
yc,. be has c%on'riycd to rlace himself in opro>:-
lion TO hiinselt-io contradict his " positions
hy his actS-io ia!,iiy his own pledgcs--to prac-
lie a di>gracetul dunliciiy-and 10 wear some
time Il Northern. sometimes Il Southern face.
Behold his S0nttcsp fdec!
II did not vote for the Tariff Of 1923, &c. II
is remarkable that nom that period ny eScriionS
in Congress have been directed 10 the reduction
and moderation Of Tariffs, &c. ] never was in
favor Of what / REGARDED as Il high Tariff. Sc
shonld have preferred that the COMPROMISE, IN
I'll lis parts. car!d have been adhered to- CiayS
h@er h ;Lriwenlr. II Gcor@"t. OI. ). lsl3.
CATER my Ieium IL Cun.ic.s in l,32. my ri-
font, we're directed to the modification and rcdnc-
ton Of The rates Of dry contained in The act al
IS2s"-ILcacr IN r. s. Rrons'N, ri GH"r-t".
On. Is. lSl3.
This comes indeed with singular grace from
a politician. who declared in his speech OF lS'',
thai. 'all that was s,tlcd in lSi6. III ISL. anl IN
1873. was, that protection should he afforded by
MN EpfiFS, without ItIult w l1' ~ - ~
revenue which they might afford" He cre1 pro-
posed At one time 10 keep up the istcr8"l 'nfcf.
and 10 postpone The payment Of the public dett,
that he might maintain his high protective TarIii.
| But is il ,rue. that he dill % ior the reduction o!
the hioh duties ot ~. when lie got back 10 Con-
| rrcss? WHY, what did this very consistent zen
tletnan say in his speech al Cincinnati, IN 1851.
| before he was reelected 10 Congress! We have
copiou> extracts from that pccch before u>-hut
We are pressed for space. ana Ne mist coaiine our
selves to these hriclcXt:act-: =,
"T!c American system ot protection S'ic'ti
BE- regarded. - it j., an entire and compfc-
hcnsiye system. made up Of various items. ana
! aiming al the prosperity Of the whole U:ii"n sy
| protecting The iuter,e. o!cac!i part.
"Thc stralagem which has lccn adopi'd by the
| foes Of the system, 10 GcSiror il. requires The cS-
crcisc of constant vigilance and %l!rlEness 10 pre-
vent the accomplishment OF the object. They
| have rcsolyc!i % divide AMI conquer: the friends oI
The system sl,ouId assume The Revolutionary
motto of our ancestors. United We stand. diridci
we fall H. Shonl! ALLOW 10 alteration IN any
/, rart al The system as il now exists. which did mol
aim At rendering more cliicariou> The system vi
| protection on which The whole j. founded.
son the occasion in South Carolina. 10 which !
have ALREADY aycited. Ill was said. that the Tariff
and Internal improvements are intimately ron
nectcd. ard that the death blow, which. il was
hoped. the one had received, will finally de-
| siroy the other ~lconcar in The opinion, mat
they are intimately. ifn0t infisSolubly uni'eG.-
Not connected together with The fraudulent intent
| which has been imputed, but by their nature, ny
the tendency Of each 10 advance the Objects oi
the other. and al both to au"rnen, the source ol
national prosperity
Docs not this speech show an extreme desire 10
moderate tine system III Is? And what was ms
>. ,lst ..i.. L.. .,,1- J i. a IN ,lp 80
nate To offer and combat for a resolution to
the death. al the risk Of quarrelIing with Mc>SrS.
Maneun and Wilkin,-rSelnptin@ igom any ic-
| duction any projected article which comes into
competition with domestic manufactures. so nj
lerlv untrue in spirit is the declaration hP nlahes
10 his corrcspondcnlsir Ccor@ia.
1t is true he brought iorwari Inc Compromise
of 49,. being forced into il, rs he confessed, by
the course OF General .~IacilSons Administrator,
and the dangers of Modification in South Caro-
lima. He was forced into the alternative. in Or
der 10 save the whole system from absolute pros
traiion. He pledged himself 10 abide by mat
Observation-Disclosures 10 a maximum cutlv
nj III per cert. lie pledged himself 10 the same
course. repeatedly. during lhe campaign OF 1910
he has avowed il, from time totime, 10 the South
ern pconle. and upon one occasion atlca,i, and n
late as %.Januarv. iSi2. 10 The Senate cflhc Unite,
States. BIZ. see how loosely set all his pledge:
upon him. and with what facility lie can violate
his faith, when h. is to present his N0ptkcfR f0cc
10 the Srecjv manufacturers. The lat revcla'
ton from The Oracle. i on the 23ih Jane last. II
his letter 10 +. J. Cope, Of Pittsburgh have
everywhere maintained, that in al usting a Tariff
for revenue, discrimination ought 10 he made iol
Proieclion-ihai thc Tariff NJ 1872 has nprGn1
mast bemcGcjaNA and NGi / an utterly opposed 4
its repeal"
Utterly opposed TO the rrreal Of the act Of ~
is this compromising Statesman. Then, VIVA
sort uf an act is this OF 42l Hear one of his owr
COLLEAGUES and allies. Call VIM. c.. Rivcs intt
Court.
Cues. What, Sir, did y%ol,ii;.s ofihc .Actof,i2
when it was unjer discussions! Please read voui
speech of August -. 1912.
a. | then said IS follows:
After objeciing 10 the bill, that i; was absolute.
" and ernph&iicaiiy 4 measure OF protection. eX
tending in some particulars 10 Wniiiiticn,' ] de-
clared, that she amcunl Of revenue would, "
my opinion, H.: diminished rather than increased
| then said, Il had another / jection 10 The bill.
was supposed that they had made some little az,
vance towards the establishment Of sound ant
stable principles Of public policy. did no
mean To throw any c3ium upon The general roll
cy which had been pursued; bu', in nv Judgment
i SID interruption had taken place to the recon
concilemeni of the public mind, which the rrin
ciples ofttle Compromise Act were calculated Il
produce. II did no. seem TO me, that This mca.
sure recognised, in any manner, the expectancy
of even keeping in view the principles of the
Compromise. II went far beyond the rate OF duty
which existed under former Tariffs. Not salts
fed with celebrating every trace of the Compro
n,;sc of 1872 II wont teyond the hioh Tariff O