The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1884-10-02
The Cry for II Change.

The free trade Democracy never tires o.
harping about our depressed industries,
and points its attenuated fingers across the
ocean to England and cites her prosperity
under the heneicent {?} influence OF free
trale, but Withholding the fact that the in
dustrial depression in that country wa:
never so great than ut the present time
nor trade so generally paralyzcd.
To put the tariff question in i bushes:
form let us take a practical example. Sup
pose a firm engaged in any line OF bust
ness pursuing u safe policy has been sic.
c%essful. Owing to the inevitable results
Of oy%erproluction u depression occurs
Two o the partners desire to continue the
conservative policy they have pursued,
even il they do not make money rs fast as
they did. But the third partner becoming
restless wants totryncw methods, and pre-.
walls on his associates to give his views q
trial. The end is bankruptcy.
So it is with the Republican party. II
inaugurated Il safe policy and the govern.
mcnt has been administered under that
policy for nearly twenty-five years, and
has prospercd. Now comes the Democratic
party furnishing for Offices and wants the
people to try a new policy that would
surely bankrupt the industries Of the
country and bring distress and suffering
to the laboring classes. This is thecbapce
they arc crying for, which the people will
not heed.
They wrcstle Will. the farmer and try to
work on his crcdu1ity, telling him that the
protected industries are robbing him. Mr..
Eaton, Of Connecticut, during the dcbate
on the Morrison bill in the last session of
Congress, toldEilc following in illustrating
one Of his points against the bill:
There was a certain professor in my
county, n theorist Of the first water, n man
who does not know any more about the
practical tariff than I know about the lie
brew that he is well acquainted with.
This professor came up into Il large manu-
featuring village in my county 10 make a
acknowledgement, such 4 one rs my friend
from Ohio (Mr. llurd) delights in. There
was q farmer standing by Il post in the
lecture room, and the professor thought
he might be n good subject to operate up.
on, so he said to him, SHY friend, O arc
n farmer" Eyes" "you live here?"
"Yes." "Do YOU know these manufacture
ers in this village arc robbing YOU ?"
why, no, l do not KNOW it. flow can
they rob me? came here ten wears AGO
with $780, bought n farm, running in
debt S?!,500ior my farm and stock, went
to work raising truck for this village. I
paid my debt and have got money in the
savings bank and do not owe any man n
dollar. How have they ruined me ?'
The professor said, swell, it appears o
have been n hard working man and have
lived It through. But you pay six cents a
yard duty-for the very cloth your shirt is
made Of" "Wcll, professor" replied tho
farmer, "you may think SO, but you can
not prove it by your algebra or your
logarlthms; you cannot prove it unless by
Esop's fables, for | did not give but five
cents n yard for the CLOTH" TGrcat laugh
teri
Just so. The theory Of free trade rs an
algebraic problem may be. worked out
very prcttily, but make a practical appli.
cation Of it and it don't stand. We have
i'll the workings OF the protective tariff OBJ
tanned results that arc arguments in its ia.
yor--prosperity, peace and plenty, and
the people who have enjoyed its benefits