The evening light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1881-1883, 1882-11-30
AFTER THE FEAST.

Mr. A. II. McKinnon, of the firm of Gugen'
helm & McKinnon, of Peru, LaSalle county,
has communication in the PleasantOn Moni-
tor on Protection VS.. Free Trade" in which
he goes for John Hancock and Senator Coke
from which we extract tie following:
was in San Antonio on the 29th ult. and
heard the speeches of the Hons ohm Han
cock, Coke and other candidates. 1t appear
ed to me that Mr.. Hancock had got little OH
his track in his former speech, and acknowl-
edged to the soft impeachment that he was
not in favor of reducing the tariff on wool in
tured goods, for if English manufac-
lures can buy wool at low figures in
Australia, manufacture and import it into this
country and sell it free of duty will it not in
jure the manufacturing interests and producers
OF the country?
The Hon. gentleman tells the laboring
class of people that they are being taxed to
death by protection tariff. Let the laboring
man vote for free trade and establish it in this
country and he will soon see his mistake. lie
may get certain articles little cheaper, but at
the same time his wages will be reduced one
| third or one half; for laborers in this country
will be governed by the price OF labor IN Eu-
rope.
was raised in the South and brought up to
believe in democracy, but if democracy means
free trade we want no more of 1t in ours.
The democratic party has been without
live issue since the war and have al last got
into free trade and with English capital think
they will ride into power.
The Hon. gentlemen in their speeches at
San Antonio had the temerity to say that four
or five hundred thousand people are beng
robbed and plundered annually by four or
five individuals engaged in the sheep business
This is the height of righteousness. Is this
not free country? And has not any citizen
the right to engage in raising sheep! and II
there is such a bonanza in it, you farmers,
merchants and bankers sell out and embark
in it-and you laboring men vote for pro-
tective tariff, for when you vote for free trade,
you vote to have your wages reduced.
1t is not the democratic party alone that is
working for free trade, they are backed
by English capital who have the greatest man
ufacturing interests in the world. and should
free trade be established in this country, En-
gland would achieve one Of the grandest VIC
tories she has gained in many years.
The class of representatives we want in con-
greSs are those who are in favor OF protection,
thereby encouraging the industries of our
country until such time as we have surplus
of 50 million pounds of wool raised annually.
Then we will not need any protection.
Now the truth is. our district has direct
interest in preserving the protective policy OF
the republican party and yet we have elected
free trade member to congress, and the next
house of representatives is of the same stripe,
alone in republican senate and a republican
president is there any hope, but really the
wool interest of the 10th district does not de-
serve any favors from republican senate and
executive. 1t we had elected Gov. Davis in
stead of Hancock the wool interests Of Texas
might have hoped to prevent any discrimina'
ton against it; but in the election of Hancock
there is an invitation to strike wool from the
tariff entirely. 1t will be too late to cry over
split milk when revision of the tariff places
wool on the free list. From political stand
point it would be but just and proper to en-
force Mr.. Hancock's views. Mr.. Mckinnon
should have spoken earlier.