The Iowa plain dealer. [volume] (New Oregon, Howard County, Iowa) 1867-1895, 1869-09-17
Protection is Reputation.

Protection is Reputation
| There are now two claina nts be
fore the people tho gpvernmcn
asks revenue for its lcxpetses an,
the. payment Of the nations debt
and manufacturers demand bountie
fer particular interests.
The claims are conflicting. The
government derives its support from
Import rtations; protection thrive.
only on the exclusim Of imports g.
One is for the benefit of all: the
other for the aggrandizement of q
few at the expense Of all. And last
and first, the payment Of the boun.
ties lessons the ability and disposi.
tion Of the people for the payment
! of the debt. 80, = ..,,
! Whatever diminishes the produc-
tive power of the country lessons
its wealth and increases the burden
Of taxation,'by enhancing the pro
portion between the tax and what
is to be taxed. And this the pro
tective policy does. II withdraws
capital and la Dor from renum merat tive
paths, into. those which, by the
very plea of protection, admit their
anproductive character. The ma n
ufacturer confesses that his is a
losing business. Labor is too dear
(although, with singular inconsist-
cncy, he will boast of the protect
i've system, that it raises the re-
ward Of the workmen.) Capital is
too dear, and with these admissions
he comes before the country. What
does he ask |? That the whole peo-
| pie share ,the burden Of loss, that
he may pocket gain. Is it any
the less loss that all share it !?
Can the country afford to throw its
capital, time and labor into a bot
tomless pit? Still the iron men,
and the wool men. the salt men and
others, adduce the unproftab bleness
Of their industry-thc fact that
MONEY CANNOT BIZ MADs by it-as
the reason why the govcrnm ent
should undertake its expense and
relieve tho individual. Common
sense would suggest that neither
nation nor individual should enga ge
in such proftless work. .i-.~
Tho more money the people sink
in such a pit the less can they drop
into the treasury. Protection then
leads to reputation. Although
the revenue Of the government is
derived, from imposts, the, eayowed
objec. Of the protective policy is, to
check importations, and the more
perfect the protection the scantier
will be the revenue. This has been
we'll expressed BY the formula that
where protection begins revenue
ends A scanty revenue, howey-
er, IS BY no means suggestive of
light taxation. a tariff may be so
devised as to oppress the people and
yet yield but q small proportion Of
the receipts for administration.
Such is the character of our pres
ent tariff. On the iron which was
consumed in this country last year,
the people paid beyond the value
Of the metal in the markets of the
world tax Of 15,0OO,0 200. OF
this the government. for its expen-
ses and the liquidation of our in
debtedness, received tho paltry
sum Of 5000, 900 while to the iron
men went $14, 100000 as clear
bounty. On lumber. the tax paid
was SIS, 900, 900 +; for the govern
ment Il, 900, 900, for the lumber
men beyond the value Of taeir COM
modify. $17, ,00O,O The income
from impost on salt is almost less
than trif1e, but salt is heavily
taxed and people pay double the
former price. The treasury does
not receive it; where does the
money go +? Is this the explana-
tion, that on working capital of
$16O, 600 one salt company has in
few years paid So. 900, ,OO9 in div
idends. besides doubling their work.
ing capital and accommodating a SUR
plus of 100000? ..... s.,
It is evident. then, that where
the manufacturer gains the govern
ment loses, and in the face Of these
facts the antagonism between
revenue and protection cannot
be denied. In the present crit
ical state of our finances, whatev.
er is antagonistic to revenue is an
tagonistic to the national honor,
and must be disowned by an honest
people. How long will the people
endure with complacency the pros
pect Of paying the national debt,
when from every ten millions they
pay in taxes but one is received by
the government and the other nine
are shared by the monopolists ? s1..
|, 3 Which will you choose |? revenue
or reputation? Choose you must,
for no people can serve two tax .
masters. Either they will hate the
one and love the other, or else they
vii! hold TO the one and despise
the other. cleveland Plain Dealer.
- ee-I.i - - III! .r -v3st II.
"A PRAcrIcAL JoKB.--In Vest
ern state the Democratic party had
for years been in the habit Of hold
ing it's nominating conventions ut
the house Of Nh, II Recent
y, he happened, for the first time,
to be in Gwhen they had finished