The Hawaiian gazette., 1883-05-02
NV YORK LETTER
The Course Of Politics in the United States
The Tariff Bill and its effect ON Trade
The Business Situation. Tho Fancy Dress
Ball at Castle Vanderbilt.

prom our regular New York cor7cspoudcntl
NV YoRK, March ., 1855.
Rents and ruptures are beginning TO show them
selves throughout the two great political parties.
Disintegration has unquesiionably set in. 1t will
be followed by the formaiory period and onlookers
will then perceive that new purposes will have AZ
ranged the great body of voters anew. The war
has dropped twenty years to the rear. Ihe
question Of revenue has come 10 the fruut. and
drags with it that perplexing problem the tariff.
Foreign peoples, who have made a study of Amer
lean politics, have been accustomed TO regard the
Republican party as the champion Of protective
tariff, and the Democratic party as the advocate
Of free trade. There are, rather can be no free
traders per So in the United States while the gov
erument has to raise the sum OF nearly tl,0OOovO
uer dav TO pay the expenses of the nation cOOdly
share Of this must come from a tariff on imports
ns.being a preferable mode of taxation to that of
the more direct internal revenue collections The
two sides TO the question nov consuicuously before
The people. are then more appropriately termed
r,rotectfye vs. 4 revenue tariff. IL remains true
maj a majority Of the Republican party hold to
the HIGH tariff side In this they are naturally
abettod by theleading industries. The proprietors
of The latter leave no stone unturned to impress
their thousands Of employees with the statement
that a HIGH tariff q. Gee a prohibitiye rate of duty
enables the manufacturer here TO pay higher
rate OF wages. Thus far the worl.ingman has not
been able TO see through this fallacy and the Re
uublicans have held a trump card. When the
vorkiurmeu perceive that with free trade" in
labor itself the privilege of importing the pau
per labor Of European countries, TO supplaut dis
affected artizans here and that protective tariff
can uphold the rate Of compensation, they Will IN
ouestionaby cause a disturbance all around the
political horizon.
/ speak of these matters in detail. as they COM
prise the essence Of what Is now, and will in the
immediate future, constitute the hinge to many
political moves. The Democmtic party is strlk-
iurly divided on the tariff question. One section
is rampantly On the war path for a revenue tariff
In favor Of this view are such papers as the Louis
vile C0HFcr Journal, the New York OFid and the
Buffalo Courier, three able Democratic Journals
The New York Tunes, lRepublican) Is ON the same
side, and the EreHiag Fasr, independent Repub-
licanl likewise
one. Even those who voted for it at the last mo-
meni express their contempt for It. The bill nom
iually adds few articles TO the free list cuts down
a number Of rates of duty iron and steel with
out materially reducing the revenue therefrom IN
the aggregate; lOps of about S9,OOOOOO from sugar
and al best, reduces the total 10 be raised in
this way about S5i,00OOOO where a S75,O00.OO0 re-
ductiOn was promised.
Another year Will bring conventions for the
nominations Of candidates for the Presidency and
the available material on both sides is being in
dustriously groomed and trotted down the track,
by anxious trainers for public inspection The
New York SHi, generally a sensible and Plain
spoken Journal Is crying wildly for the shelving Of
any discussion the tariff at this iuncture, in
der that harmony may prevail in the Democratic
party ut AAtlNb1 NlAhhltA 70 t4NGA
a President. 1t adds that the discussion of an
abstraction, g.. e. the tariff is of political
value and may cost the party victory. This call
ing revenue question an abstraction Is almost ON
par with the peace offerings of those who, at the
outbreak Of the civil war, talked Of the abstract
right Of state to sooede and preferred that one
should go out Of the Union rather than that blood
should be shed.
Already are the Republican factions, Stalwart
and Half-breed making Overtures for peace here
in New York. This attempt however, Will not stay
the wide cracks which are stretching across the
ranks Of the parties. Il Is a season wherein the
true citizen may rejoice, for the day when party
politics means place hunting has begun TO darken.
Reports are current here that the Cuban sugar
crop from 10 to II per cent short although there
will be enough to meet the demand from the United
States. Cuban holders have been specializing q
little holding back the crop for better prices, but
thus far have not succeeded in their aims.
have Just received an advance copy Of tine gov
erument Bureau of Statistics report Of the imports
and exports for the month of january last, and
for seven months ending Herewith. Below will
be found an abstract which refers directly 10 i'm
ports admitted free Of duty, from Hawaii under
the Reciprocity Treaty with the Hawaiian Islands:
IS-I ls~3