The Russellville Democrat., 1884-10-09

tuG T " Acatt sVA tAfN J .%t ~Se~rr %~-'-r from tue census reports that Arkan sas pays federal taxes every year of nearly ss,000,o0o, and he showed from the census report tbat we pay in protection subsidies to the manu facturies every year not less than $l0,Oo0, ,000.
 He had samples of imported goods and also of domestic goods of the same sort and had the tariff taxes all figured out on every piece Of goods and showed how goods now cost 30 cents yard that ought to sell here for 15 cents yard. botl. domestic and foreign. The foreign goods are not permitted in this way to come in and compete with the do mestic manufacturer.
 Maj. BreckinrIdge went on and showed how every manufactured ar ticle in every store in Russellville is covered in this way to the expense of every buyer and thus merchants are made by law to pay these double prices and then when they charge them again they are the tax gather CTS for the government and the sub sidy gatherers for the manufactur- ers,-they (thc merchants) having no more interest in the tax or pro tection than they have in high freight bill.
 He showed from the assessment books and the Census that while the East has grown richer every year, yet Arkansas has grown poorer per capita. Our people arc on an aver age $70 head worse of to-day than they were in 1860, leaving out the value of slave property which was destroyed by the war, and comput- ing tue wealth only of the white people then and now.
 Various other points were then touched on. The republican party has had tl.e Presidency and Senate ever since the war, and thus has al ways administered the government and blocked reforms They have spent $4O0,00O,000 on the Navy since peace and have not decent ship to show for It. Yet our whole expenses on the Navy from the Rev olutionary war down to 1860 was only $350.000,000.
 From 17S7 to 1860 we gave only 31 ,00O, 1000 of acres of land for inter nal improvements and all that was given to States. Since the war the republicans have granted 17S,000, 900 of acres of land, not to States, but mostly to corporations, for rail- road purposes, and to the Union Pacific railroad they have paid and are under contract to pay $lS0,000.- 900 of the peoples cash out of the Treasury, and thIs is in addition to gift of more land than is in the State of Arkansas. This cannot now be undone.
 Last session the democrats sent the republican Senate bills begin- ming as early as the 9th of January restoring to the people 45.000, ,000 acres of unclaimed land grants and the Senate kept them until July and never acted on an acre, and has done nothing now.
 The democrats sent them clean and fair Mexican Pensions Bill and the Senate loaded it down with amendments that would have cost the country two billions of dollars. Arkansas part would have been $40, 100000, and this was done to kill the Mexican pension bill.
 The democraats sent them legisla tion to restore our merchant marine which has fallen from 75 per cent. to less than Is per cent. We once had fleets of steamers crossing the Atlantic and to-day there is perhaps not a merchant steamer that crosses the Atlantic that carries the Ameri- can flag. This legislation was re- jected by the Senate in order that John Roach and few republican party pets might continue to monop- olize the building of coastwise ship ping.
 Maj. Brecklnridge showed how the Democrats had done all they could to prevent the re -chartering of the National banks, but being in minority they could not prevent it. It was only when the republicans said that the banks should be re- chartered or they would not issue