Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1882-01-04
THE REAsSENBLING OF CONGREss

attach to the proceedings during the
| winter.
We will not attempt at this time, to
forecast the subjects Of legislation likely
7 to receive most attention during the ses-
sion, hut the REGISTERS representative
/ at the Capital will Keep its readers fully
informed of the character and scope OF
these measures as they arise. Wemay,
| however, mention rs among the most
| prominent subjects of legislation, the
! bill to rCappOrtiOn representation in Con-
/ greSS under the new census; the three
per cent. refundmg bill; the Interstate
! commerce bill; the several bills prOvid-
! ing forthe Presidential succession; the
acknowledging bills; the bill for
/ admitting Dakota Is State; and the
bill appointing Tariff Commission.
The last named bill will, probably,
be the first to receive attention
| i'm the Senate on the assembling of Con-
! greSS. 1t is subject that has doomed
/ up Us one of the leading questions Ofthe
! day, and is one of the knOttiest of all
| public questions. The man who eX-
! amiuCS but one phase of the tariff queS-
I ton may be very clear and positive in
his convictions, but when compelled to
meet the varying views and interests OF
/ different classes and localities he will
( ind himself i'm deep water.
The three interests most difficult to
harmonic i'm regulating the tariff may
/ be classified under the manufacturing
/ interest, the agricultural interest, and
I the interests Of employees OF workers for
wages.
! The tariff question is essentially and
/ always a contest between the few and
! the many. Our manufactures must
I have protection or they cannot prosper,
I but the number of persons engaged in
/ such industries and the amount of capt.
/ tai employed is very limited compared
with the number of persons and the
amount of capital employed in other
| pursuits, and il becomes a nice question
/ to determine, admitting that manufac-
4 turing Interests should have some pro-
I lection, how much those not directly
/ concerned shall be taxed to afford pro-
/ teetiOn-that is, how much five times
, larger capital and as much greater num-
| Der of persons shall be taxed for the
} benefit of the smaller capital and pOpu-
| latiOn.
The farming interest, for example, is
more important TO the country both in
the amount of money invested and the
number OF persons employed than the
manufacturing interest. There are
many States in which comparatively
little capital and few persons are EN-
ployed in manufactures, while nearly
all the wealth of some of the States,
particularly in the West, consists in
farms, and large proportion of their
people make their living by farming;
even of the few persons who are engaged
in mechanical pursuits, not one in a
hundred i'm those States, works in pro-
tected industry. Nearly all the protect
ed industries are To be found in the East,
and hence the two sections are arrayed
against each other on this question; the
farmers, mechanics, merchants and
labOrers of these Western States crying
out against paying an increased price
for iron, lumber, clothing, saltand build
ing materials for the benefit of manu-
featuring capital in the East and other
places, in which Western farmers have
no special interest.
Again, the question of wages cuts an
equally important figure in all these
! tariff measures. The manufacturers
/ claiming on the one hand that there in
/ terests and the welfare of their en-
! plOyes are Identical; that unprotected
/ manufactures means low wages for en-
I plOyes because it would bring small
| profits for the product of their labor. In
! this locality we are not unfamiliar with
| the arguments advanced in this connec-
ton, and we know something of tho
effect of these arguments upon the Ia
bOrers employed in our mills. But on
the other hand, it is held by the Oppo-
I uents of protection, and statistics
of greater or less accuracy are fur
nished to show that the wages of Eng
fish operatives under a free trade syS-
tenn are fully equal to that received by
the American labOrer. The purchasing
power of wages IS greater under free
trade than under 4 protective system,
, because under the latter the en-
ploye must help pay the tax
which protects the manufacturer. The
time exacted of the English labOrer is
also less than under the high pressure
system in this country; and when the
whole question is presented, it is little
difficult TO determine whether the inter-
est of the employee in this country lies in
the direction of free trade or protection.
Upon general principles this tariff
question is not less complex than when
brought down in its application to par
tieular interests and localities. Wetind
the best minds and the most experienced
craftsmanship of this and other coun-
tries differing as widely in their views
as those whose special interests are most
directly involved.
as Mr.. GLADSTONE, whose opinions
upon such matters are respected alike in
Europe and in this country, said in q
recent speech upon this subject:
Mr.. Gladstone expressed the firmest and
strongest conviction that no government
that could exist in that country would ever
pledge its responsibility 70 any proposals
for restoring protective duties. Ii might
as well attempt to overthrow any institu-
ton in the country as TO overthrow the
free-trade legislation. As regards that leg
islation he thought any one might as well
attempt to overthrow trial by jury, the
right OF petition or OF public meeting, or to
tear out of the social and political system
any one of the most cherished ideas inner
tied from centuries OF history.
y Asfor America and her system of pro-
lection. he pointed out that in those coun-
tries or markets where they met on q COM
.paratiYely equal footing the exports from
Americs amounted to only tSi,Voo,
while Nose from the United Kingdom 70
ne s4i1e Quarter amounted 10 EIS, $4,000.
% America Mr.. Gladstone said, " is q
V.>unc country with enormous yigor and
enormous internal resources. She has COM
rkf<ted--I say it, / hope not with disre-
s1,ect-I say il with strong and cordial SYM
rAlhy, bat with much regret--she IS com
Knitting errors of which we set her an ex-
|1nple. But from the sftoemous resources
Of kkr home market. the t3eyeIopnent OF
which Internally IS not fnaiched kg pro<ac<
ton. she IS shie T. cop1tit those tsrrors