Burlington free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1827-1865, 1844-08-02
THE DOCUMENTS

IHE DOCU MEN / >
The nomination of Mr. Polk for the Presidency
renders it fitting and proper that his views on all
the great questions of national policy should be
fully and fairly spread before the people, that
they may act undcrstondingly in reference to
tn I'm; and had hoped that his supporters
would have distinctly set forth the principles on
which they support him, and have at least refer
red us TO the evidences of his fidelity to them
This, for some strange reason, they have neg
lected, and still REUSE to do; and the world
is left as profoundly ignorant of Mr.. Folks
public speeches and acts, as though he had not
been fourtecn gears in the U. $. Congress, two
years Governor of Tennessee, and twice before
the people of Tennessee as candidate for Gov
ernor In the latter of these campaigns he adj
dressed the people TWENTY-FIVE times from
the stump; wrote out and published number
of these speeches for distributions in addition to
~xhich he challenged his competitor, Mr.. JoSEs,
to discuss the leading political topics through the
newspapers, which was accepted, and the Nash
vile papers bear record of the views set forth.
And yet, strange to say, not one of these
speeches is quoted by Mr.. Folks supporters here,
solitary sentiment he ever uttered previous
to his nomination, permitted to see the light
How is this Why is it COuid a man spend
some twenty years in active public life and not
say something worth repeating - Something
which would furnish n safer indication of his
vcal sentiments on any given subject, than
what he might say when called upon an inter
ested witness; It seems to us so don't it to
you, reader; But thus it is. The question of
PROTECTION, is one in which we all feel
deep intcrerest. The supporters of Polk say he
is in faror of protection. We ask them for the
evidence-to refer us to the speech in which he
advocated the doctrine They decline! We
nsk them TO publish any one of his speeches on
the subject They refuse Finally, we chal-
lcngc the Sentinel and Democrat to refer us TO
any act, vote, sentiment of his, previous to his
nomination, which would warrant any such in
depreciation and they tell us they care sick
of this everlasting twaddle about protection" .
Well, we will trouble them no more but to the
law and the testimony. Ne will resort to Mr..
Folks public speeches and acts, and faithfully
report as we there find him. Judge ye.
In the session of IS32-'33, MIR. Polk was a
member of the Committee of Ways and Means,
who reported BILL" (Which did not pass
greatly reducing the duties below those adopted
by the tariff act of the preceding session (tarif
of ls32). lie made long speech in favor of the
new bill, and against The protcctire system which
will be found in the Cong. Deb, p 1872. AS u
specimen Of that speech an extract win suffice
"Ita appears from this testimony that the duties
upon wooens (now fifty per cent? may not only
he reduced, but that Twenty-Five per cent riH be a
sufficient protection, provided there be a cores
ID
TERIAI, and the duty be fully and fairly col
lected and that the manufacturers of cottons,
and especially of coarse cottons, would be able
. to continue their business proftably at the re-
dueed duty Of n'e,oe ""d Aay per cent on the
rival foreign article"
al propose next TO establish by testimony
equally entitled 70 credit, the third proposition,
which is, that the manufactures of the United
States were in prosperous condition under the
costing more and for The eight years Intervening
between the years 1916 and 1894, and also that
thcact of 1916, Afforded them ample incidental pro-
lection. Gong, Debates, vol. ., page lI70.
"The WOOL GROWERS consider the duty
upon foreign wool as important to their pros per.
i,y. THIS OPINION, APPREHEND' is
FOUNDED IN ERROR. Very little wool Of
the middling quality, such as we produce, is i'm
ported. The kinds chiefly imported either
the finer qualities, costing more than a dollar
the pound, or the South American wool
costing less than eight cents per h. neither o
phieh do ace produce, or if we do, to a very
limited extent"
"MY OWN OPINION is THAT
. WOOL SHOULD BE DUTY FREE; but al
wool growers think otherwise, we have retained
a duty ofGfteen per cent. upon the imported arti
3Aes''- Congressional Debates, vol. 9,P. MA. ]
This bill was defeated; but Mr.. Clay, awar
that the next Congress (Which was then elected
would have free trade majority, introduced an
a carried through the compromise act, for whic
Mr. Polk voted /; and Mr.. p. has given us tn
reasons ,ohy he voted for it.
SHE, and the South with him, had voted for tn
act, because it was REDUCTION of the rate
of the act of 1923, though by no means so low a
he could have desired it to be 4; STILL it wa
the greatest reduction that could be obtain
ed at the time of its passage. "-Polk's speech a
jackson, Sd .1pl. 43.
I'm accordance with these views Mr.. Polk, il
1884 voted in facor of a resolution introduce
~ Mr. Hall, Of N. Carolina, to repeal The eompro
"a, under the preteAt of reducing the dute
m what was called the " necessary want
or IN government" But this failed, lis to G.
Tho chairman Of this committee was Mr. VERrL.n'
Who hiss recently abandoned the Wing party on the eronr
h he IS (o ee trade, and therefore vots for Fetk