Daily Los Angeles herald. [microfilm reel] (Los Angeles [Calif.]) 1876-1884, 1883-07-28


A Contrast.
There, could not be greater example
OF the insane extremes TO which n party
may permit itself to 90 than Is afforded
by the action Of the late Republican
Convention Of Pennsylvania. Not con.
tent with a tariff for revenue, so applied
as TO protect American industries, be-
cause il would be laid on articles made
abroad which come into competition
with similar staples which are manufac.
tured In the United States, the Penn
sylyania Republicans pronounce in
favor of tariff 80 excessive rs would
provide an immense surplus of revenue
to be divided amongst the several States.
Here is where these sapicnt protection
ists have made great mistake. They
have shown their hand, and given
another instance Of THAT vaulting am.
btion which o'erleaps itself and falls o
the other side" There nre millions Of
Republican voters, even, who will re-
volt at programme Of such undisguised
rapacity. While II may snit the mood
Of the Pennsylvania and New England
protectionisis, it will correspond
ingly repel tho moderate protec.
tionists Of the other States Of the
Union. While we have not access to
those journals, we should Judge that, by
this time, tho New York Epening Post and
the Chicago Tribune, both staunch Re-
publican papers, but leaning to free
trade, must be in spasms of indignation.
When Henry Clay first developed the
doctrine of protection to American in
dustries he put his advocacy of it ex-
pressly on the ground that they were as
yet in their infancy and needed u great
deal of tender nursing. They have had
this Nursing for over fifty years, and
lot Of Pennsylvania Republican numb
skulls have, at this late day, the temeri-
ty to announce that protection must be
pcrpetuated purely for projections sake;
and that, to accomplish this enormity,
the whole scheme Of our government
must be changed. The Pennsylvania
Republican scheme OF distributing the
surplus revenue resulting from such on
erous Customs imposts has absolutely no
warrant in the Constitution OF
the United States. No comenta-
tor on that instrument has ever dared to
advance the doctrine that 1t is any part
Of the duty of the Federal government
to provide revenues for the respective
State governments. Ii is true that,
away back in Jacl1son's administration,
the Federal treasury found itself in pos
session of large sum of money which
was not needed to carry on the general
government, and that pro rata deposits
Of this surplus were made with the sew
eral States. As the national debt had
been paid off years previously, il became
most embarrassing question what to
do with this surplus, and that method
was adopted as derRier resort, but no
man would have been bold enough to
advocate the imposition of Federal taxes
for tho express purpose of dcfraying the
expenses of the States. There is not
even the implication Of such power in
the Constitution of the United States.
Not being enumerated in the original
grant and its amendments, it comes
under that provision which declares
that the powers not expressly delegated
to the general government are reserved
to the States respectively or to the
people. The plank of the Pennsylvania
Republican Convention which we are
discussing would have been less invidi-
Gus il it had proposed large surplus
revenue in the interest of protection to
business industries, aud which should be
used in the reduction of the National
debt alone. The Republicans of Penn
sylvania are open to the suspicion that
they desire to keep great load of debt
upon the people as well as to bind upon
the backs of those not engaged i'm man
uafaeturing CALLING burden. What
gratifying contrast do we find when we
come to the platform of the Ohio Demo-
Gratis! The latter unhesitatingly avow
their purpose of protecting American
labor, not the capitalist manufacturer,
but they intend to do it through tariff
for revenue so distributed as to do the
most good to the greatest number.
They have nothing in common with
costly and extravagant programmes in
tended to demoralize the people aud
make the rich richer while the poor
steadily become poorer. While the
Pennsylvania Eph'aim may be welded
to his idol of inordinate protection, the
people of the immense majority of the
States are by no means fools. They will
decline to act as catspaws to pull the
yhestnuts out of the fire for the already
tremendously enriched cotton and iron
masters of Pennsylvania and Massaehus-
et.s.
We have no doubt whatever but that
the Democratic party, in National Con-
vention assembled, will substantially
re,affirm the Ohio platform. 1t was
fabricated with marked and happy APP
probation of the needs of the hour and
Of the opinions of the moderate and
conservative elements of the country,
irrespective of party. 1t is us ia from
free trade as it is from the suicidal and
insultingpronunciamiento ofthe remorse-
less tariff robbers of Pennsylvania. In
every sense of the word it is a sagacious
keynote. While admitting that, as
long as we have great national debt,
we must have large revenue, which
ought TO be SO imposed as to protect
American labor, it spits upon organized
spoliation of the consumer in order to
still further swell the disproportionate
gain Of the employer class.