The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1880-07-22
LIGHT ON THE r
L%Plttsburg Post.l

We have received q number of letters
from towns in Western Pennsylvania
and Eastern Ohio, asking for information
about Gen. Gartield's tariff record. 1t is
a point that seems to be troubling the
Republicans a great deal. We did our
best the other day to dihuse light very
generally on the subject, by offering, j.,
the Pittsburg Gszette would print a com.
pilation Of Gen. Garfeld's tariff record
as shown by his votes and speeches in
Congress, we would print an equal
amount of Republican matter prepared
by the Gazette, in the daily and weekly
Post defending or explaining the Gener.
als views. Our idea was to get both
sides before the PEG lie in the represen-
tative papers of both parties. But the
Gazette declined our d~isinterested offer,
and we have not been able to induce it
to print Gen. Galtield's tariff record, to
define it, or even to tell its readers where
they car get information about it.
Our own view of the tariff question,
often repeated, is hat it is not a political
issue, and that it will be bad for Protec.
ton the day it is made one. 1t is a
question determined by locality and sec
ton. Protectionists are strong in manu-.
featuring States and districts, while anti
Protectionists, revenue reformers and
free traders are strongest in agricultural
and planting States. The Industries of
the people determine their views, and
when we get down to bed rock self inter.
eat is the controlling force. Gen. Pear.
son, in his letter to Gen. Grant, with.
drawing from a Republican Soldiers or.
ganization, stated the case very clearly
in few words. Free trade and pro-
lection" he said, ARE alike the accident
of localities, and hence we find free trade
Republicans in the West and East, with
protective Democrats in the Middle
States"
The Convention that nominated Gar.
field declared that the tariff SHOULD so
discriminate as to favor American labor"
This is interpreted in various ways, to
meet the requirement. of Protection Re.
publicans in Pennsylvania and anti Pro.
lection, or as they are usually called,
Free Trade Republicans of the West.
The leading Republican papers of the
Northwest are the most vigorous news.
paper a~ssailants of the Protection system
in the country, One of the Chicago Tri-
bune's indictment against Gen. Hancock
is that he is a Pennsylvania Protection.
ist."
We come now tariff record, which our
esteemed friends of the Gazette reso.
lutely refuse to print. They rest their
case on the double dealing resolution of
the Chicago Convention, which is inter-
preted one way in the free trade West
and quite a different way in P~ennsylva.
MIA.
In 1854 the tariff on pig iron was raised
from IS to SO a ton; Gen Garfield was a
new member of the House, but while
voting against Judge Kelly, Thad Ste.
vens and Gen, Moorhead, and in favor of
reducing the duty on railroad iron, he
did not vote on the final passage OF the
tariff bill, which mainly r~e-enacted the
high protective rates of the famous tariff
of 1912. He lodged.
In 1870 a new tariff bill was brought
into the House, striking down the rates
on all of Pennsylvania staple manufac-
ture. Garfield supported this bill by
speech and vote. In one of his speeches
he declared:
GAS ar abstract theory of political
economy, FREE TRADE has many ad-
yoCates and much can be said in its ia
yor; nor will It be denied that the schol-
arship OF modern times is largely ON
THAT SlDEj that a large majority of
the great thinkers of the present day
are leading in the direction of what is
called FREE TRADE"
Judge ". D. Kelley, the great tariff
champion of Pennsylvania, denied this,
and cited the writings of Henry G.
Carey, whereupon Garfield said in re-
ply:
81 detract nothing from the great
ability and the acknowledged fame Of
Mr.. Carey, when 1 say that on this
subject he represents a minority among
the financial writer's of our day. l am
trying to state as fairly as / can the
present condition of the question; and
In doing so l affirm that the tendency OF
modern thought is toward FREE
TRADE"-[Garfield's speech on the
tariffof 1870, page 26S, part 7, Appendix
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