Morris tribune. [volume] (Morris, Minn.) 1880-2000, 1883-12-08
THE PRESENT ISSUE.
CarlisleIs Election Brings the Tariff to
the Front.
Some Traditions of the Question---Ob-
jectiOns to the Present System
stated THE Tax ON salt
and Lumber.

CINCINNATI, Dec 6-The EnQuier's New
York correspondent sends the following:
The speakership being decided in favor of Mr.
Carlisle, the tariff question comes out to the
front The south and the north west which
accomplished this victory have far different
reasons for hostility to the tariff system. In
the south this opposition may be called for
eign policy, that being the only method of war
left against the dominant and busy north
Besides, free trade has traditional value III
the south, coming from notification times.
It belongs to that class OF questions III the
south called states rights, intimating that
the government at large must not do any
thing Free trade in this country was first
taught by Judge Cooper, an Englishman from
Pennsylvania, in his lectures before the South
Carolina college. These lectures constitute,
perhaps, the rarest book on the subject at the
present time,
Calhoun, toward the end Of his life, as at
the beginning was rather renegade to free
trade By nature he was not q states rights
man at all, bat national man, and only
took that position to put himself i'll a fornlid,
able line Of promotion At Washington city.
He wanted to be president, and if not presi-
dent, the chief antagonist OF the president
His early writings were strongly protective.
When he got into the Snarl with President
jackson, who was Of the same blood and
state as himself he allowed the Wings to ex-
tricate him from the notification ruSe by
joining with them to pass tariff Yet these
points are imperfectiy known through the
south, and the young people there consider
that to some extent free trade and secession
are twin traditions.
The newspaper press i'll the south, which is
more directly connected with business than
the politicians are, has become anti-free trade
to large extent. Newspapers which derive
their support from the business of the city or
country in which they are printed quickly
apprehend the tendency OF q policy, but IN
tie south the congressional districts are very
large and chiefly agricultural, and the poll
ticians do not notice changes the city news
papers take heed of.
There are but two Republican newspapers
in the north OF free trade tendency, The
Evening Pest, which derives its advertising
patronage entirely from the importing class.
and The Times, which is against the tariff,
because the tariff assists to support The
Tribune Scattered through the press, how
ever, are many free traders. That doctrine
has a generous flavor and attracts young
radicals and idealists, particularly those
who have travelled in Europe and do
not like custom houses and to see their
comforts taxed. Some portions OF the tariff
are absurd, and if our people came as
closely in contact W it'll it as those who re-
turn from Europe, a tremendous vote would
be polled against it. l should like to have
some of my books rebound in Europe, where
the binding is much cheaper and much bet
ter than here, yet raise the question in my
own mind as to whether sending out my
books to be bound, and bringing them back
will come under the definition OF importing
my tools, so let the books go to pieces. Never
theless a system is not to be measured by
these little afronts.
have always observed that when Demo
Gratis come out of manufacturing districts
they had to support the protective laws.
The trouble with the tariff system is its
want of simplicity, its connecting the pro-
lection of agricultural products with manu-
features, and finally the predatory relation OF
some manufactures to others. The election
of Mr.. Carlisle will, ! think, tend to simplify
the tariff at least. His election unquestion-
ably brings matters of revenue right to the
front, and if the Republican party in congress
merely oppose, without investigation, every
tariff improvement, they may succeed in
electing another president, but they will not
retard the agitation of this subject in con-
gress.
The state of New York might even be lost
by the Democrats on the tariff question and
they sweep the country in the northwest.
The salt and lumber tariff are the chief mat
tiers in dispute in the northwest. Lumber
gives the settler the cheapest kinds of farm
improvements; salt is fed to his stock and
pickles his beef and hogs for market. Maine,
and perhaps Michigan, get lumber protected
because they possess good deal of it, But
Canada is full of lumber, much of which can
be manufactured in Michigan, and Canada
lumber is in request all over the country.
Iapprehend that during the present con-
gress the lumber tariff will go and think the
salt tariff also. The salt question is a peculiar
one Salt we can get from the West Indies,
where it is evaporated, or from Great Britain,
where it is found in immense quantities, and
often comes over for ballast. To satisfy the
fishers of New England they get rebate on
their foreign salt. But in the west and in
terror generally the price of salt has been
regulated from Syracuse, N. Y, perhaps the
Oldest salt works in the country. At times
these men pay the West Virginia and even
the Michigan salt people tribute to suspend
or decrease production so that uniformity
of price may be maintained.