Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1882-03-18
The POstpOnement of the Tariff De.
bate,

bate.
In permitting the tariff commission
bill to virtually fail by being buried be-
meath an avalanche of other bills from
which it cannot be rescued until after
the well nigh endless process of remoY-
ing, one by one, the tifty-seven measures
having precedence over it shall have been
gone through with, it is evident the pro-
tectionists have committed a serious
elunder, and if their object is to keep
the tariff question as it is until after the
coming Congressional elections are de-
cided, they have been guilty of an eyre
gious blunder. They may imagine that
If the people of the country are not now
excited over revenue reform they will
still accept the old timed protectionist
arguments as gOsnel truths, and consent to
voting to maintain the protective policy.
They forget, however, that the public
mind is even now excited on this sub
iect, and that whether the eyes of the peo-
pie are more widely opened to the iniqul-
ties of protection through Congressional
discussion of the question or not, the
country is already alive to the necessity
Of revenue reform, and the subject,
though suppressed in the Federal Legis-
lature, will certainly be revived on the
stump.
1t is iniimated that perhaps the prOtec-
ticnists in Congress are specially DESTROYS
of suppressing this discussion on this
question atthis time, because they think if
it is preached suddenly during the coming
Congressional campaign they may be
able to use it with the same success they
did during the last Presidential contest,
when it undoubtedly formed such
prominent element in General Hancock's
defeat If this be their object they will
also find they are calculating without
their host. Then the subject was sprung
upon the people of the West just few
weeks before the election, and when
they had no time to investigate it calmly
aud dispassionstelY for themselves
So suddenly indeed was the hide
Gus spectre of competition with the
pauper labor of Europe" raised be
fore their eyes, that they were complete
ly dazed, and rushed pell nell to the
polls to guard themselves from the terri
bic demon. Now, however, they have
had long period in which to reflect
soberly upon the matter, and have learned
that the object of their fright was only
a spook. They now realize, to great
extent, that protection against Eu-
Iopean paupers means mainly tax
ing themselves poor so that a few
protected monopolists may grow rich.
They will not, therefore, be so easily
frightened at Republican and protective
bugaboos hereafter as they were just
prior to the Presidential election of 1880.
The battle on the subject may not be
fought strictly between the Republicans
and the Democrats, since many Repub-
licans are now tariff reformers, while
many who have always been classed as
Democrats now favor protection. Still,
in the main, the Democrats will
be ranged on the side of revenue reform,
and the Republicans will mainly be op
posed to them on the side of protection.
This must be so when the question is
made an issue before the country, be
cause light tariff and tariff for reve-
nues only are among the very prime
principles of the Democratic party
since such a tariff is for the benefit of
the masses and not for a favored few
while the tendency Of the Republican
party has always been on the side of
wealth and monopoly, and our present
high tariff is itself a Republican institu
ton. In our opinion the Democracy
can do no better than make this their
party shibboleth, for even if they are
defeated on that issue it will be defeat
received in a manly defense of time
honored principles. We believe, how
ever, that in such a contest Democracy
and reform will triumph as surely in 1884
as they did in 1876.
At any rate one fact is very apparent.
The protectionists in Congress by work
ing to smother debate upon reform OF
the tariff, whether it comes up by means
Of the commission bill or on its own
merits alone, very clearly show that they
are afraid of such a discussion. This
must have favorable effect upon the
people, for the only conclusion which
can be arrived at is that if so important
subject cannot stand ventilation, it
cannot have in it much that is good. AS
the New York Herald well SAYS:
IF the present tax system is right, let
its friends defend it, and prove to the
country that it should not be changed.
If it is wrong, as so large a part OF the
country has come to feel, then it is the
immediate and imperative duty of Con-
gress 10 amend it. But what the advo-
Gates of the present system are doing is
to smother and crush discussion even of
the evils which the taxpayers feel. Not
only will we not allow reforms, they say,
but we will use our superiority in votes
even to prevent you from discussing re-
form, or the evils which make reform
necessary. You shall not tell the coun-
try that we are wrong they add; we
will keep you silent on this subject, and
mill ond mfr
the surplus, wrung from the people, to
subsidy mongers and jobbers of all
kinds, and when it is all given out there
will be no surplus revenue for you to
talk about"
The Washington correspondent of the