The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1883-06-07
PIE PIVOTAL WORD OF DEMO
CRATIC POLICY.

CRATIC POLICY.
Much has been said about the De
mocracy of Kentucky refusing, in the
late state convention, to come up
squarely to the tariff issue. 1t may
appear that way to those who oppose
reduced taxation, and who want to
keep the people down, but the voice
of this convention was not, as we
think, doubtful. 1t was resolved:
"That the democracy of Kentucky
in convention assembled, reaffirm our
unaltered confidence in and affection
for the principles and policy embod-
led in the organic law of the demo-
cratic party, adopted at the National
Democratic Convention held at st.
Louis in 1876, and ratified at Cincin-
natl in $780,"
Now let us see what the express
sions of these conventions were. The
convention of 1876 adopted the fol-
lowing:
We denounce the present tariff,
levied upon nearly 40CO articles, as a
masterpiece of injustice, inequality
and false pretense. 1t yields a
dwindling, not a yearly rising, rev.
enue. 1t has impoverished many in
dustries to substitute a few 1t pro-
hibits imports that might purchase
| the products of American labor. 1t
has degraded American commerce
from the first to an inferior rank on
the high seas. 1t has cut down the
sales of American manufactures at
home and abroad and depleted the
returns of American agriculture
an industry followed by half
our people. 1t costs the people
five times more than it produces
| to the treasury, obstructs the process
| eS of reduction and wastes the fruits
of labor, 1t promotes fraud, fosters
smuggling, enriches dishonest officials
and bankrupts honest merchants. We
demand that all custom-houSe taxa
ton shall be only for revenue
The convention of 1880 passed the
following:
Home rule; honest money, consist
ing OF gold, silver and paper, convert
IDLE on demand; the strict maintain
ance of the public faith, state and ma
tional, and tariff for revenue only.
1t will be seen that both declara-
lions were emphatic in limiting tariff
to revenue only. Under. the consti-
tuition of the United States congress
has the power to "levy and collect tax
es, duties and excuses, to pay the debts
and provide for the common defense
and general welfare of the United
States In matters relating to
taxation, tariff, or any other descrip-
ton of taxation, congress has power
to do only such things as the consti-
tuition grants. 1t has power to levy
certain taxes for the benefit of the
government, and only for the benefit
of the government. Congress has no
right to levy taxes for the benefit of
individuals or corporations. 1t has
no right to tax one person that an
other shall grow rich and flourish.
Congress has right under the consti-
tuition to levy tariff tax for the ben
eft of the government only, for such
purposes only as the constitution
specifies, and yet there are those, even
protesting to be democrats, who cry
out against any attempt to
prevent taxation for any other
purpose than revenue. Taxation
must be purely for the purposes of
government, and not for advancing
the wealth of individuals and corpor-
atoms, The spirit of our system of
government is opposed TO special
privileges being granted to indiyid-
uals and companies, and to the
consequent creation and maintenance
of monopolies. The people have been
learning great deal of late on this
subject, and they have already shown
their determination to oyerWhelm
with disaster the advocates of monop-
olies. AS contemporary illustrates:
The workingman finds himself at the
end of the week with $40 in his
pocket-wages for a week of toll
and his necessities are such
that he must expend the
entire sum. He must have
sugar. rice, salt, cotton goods, etc.
He finds them taxed at from so to 100
per cent; put it at the lowest, an aver
age of SO per cent; that is to say, a
dollars worth of sugar costs him
$3.50, and so on through the list. He
naturally asks himself: Is this taxa
ton for the benefit of the govern
ment? The true answer is no. How
| much of it is for the benefit of the
government? Not more than ten per
cent. What becomes of the remainder
40 per cent? 1t goes directly into
| the hands of monopolists. 1t
goes to build up the colossal
fortunes of which we read
so much. 1t goes to create a
moneyed aristocraey-an overshadow-
ing curse, the fruitful parent of
strikes, of industrial commotion and
unrest, everywhere prevailing in
this country. The powers conferred
( by the constitution upon congress
have been shamefully perverted.
The many are taxed, not to support
the government, not for the general
welfare, but to create, foster and per-
petuate monopolies, soulless, grasp
ing, mercenary, venal class, whose
ambition it is to grow rich upon
tribute money wrung from the
toll of the country under
the protection Of tariff laws
enacted by men who disregard the in
terests of the wealth producers of the
country. A tariff for revenue,
ayowedly for revenue, solely and
specially for revenue, affords Incl
dental protection, which can not be
helped, and, since it is inevitable, nc
one seeks to avoid, and no one OBJ
jects. Hence, the term "only" relates
simply to policy. The Democratic
policy is a tariff for revenue
and not a tariff for the benefit
specially of monopolists. 1t is a
tariff providing the highest prac
ticable burdens of taxation, and
the largest possible benefits to all