The Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1885-1886, 1885-11-16
FOR REVENUE ONLY.
PLATFORM ADOPTED THE BY REEVE
NUE. REFORM MEN.
General Arrangement Of the ProtectIv,
Idea-Appoal to Congress
and Wells Advocate the Free
Trade Principle.

heHH was elected president Tor the enSuln
year. The platform reported by the con
mittee was amended in a few particular
and adopted. 1t says there are 400 article
OF domestic consumption paying AZ pc
cent duty, which state of affairs has pre-
longed the evils Of the war and been tn
cause of industrial depression; it has de
creased the common productive capacity c
labor and capital, and thereby reduces
both the wages Of labor and profits q
capital; has provoked an antagonist
betwoen labor and capital, against which
our great natural resources and our fire.,
institutions shoull have protected us; ha
impaired our power to compete with othe
manufacturing in the markets OF tho world
AMI so ob,tructed national progress anC
development, AMI generally bean an in
cubus upon the productive energies of tn,
country; taking by forcs the earnings o
one class oil men to enrich another class, i
Is opposed to the spirit OF American libart
and of the constitutions; it has imposed
new industrial slavery.
The resolutions further declare tia
taxes in aid of private interests Or for an,
other purpose than for the requirement
OF government are I'M american un
Just, and unwise, and that ever,
protective feature must at the earliest pc,
sible date he erndicateI from our revenue
system
Congress is therefore appealed to on the
following points.
|. That under no preten.e shall any coun
tenance whatever be given to any attemp
to Increase protective duties.
= That articles which are at the found a
ton of great industries should in the inter
est of labor and of commerce be freed from
duty whether they BIO cru 10 materials, a,
lumber, salt, coal, ore, wool, etc, or partly
manufactured, As chemicals, dye stulfs, pig
iron, tin plate, wood pulp etc.
3 That on products from such article
duties should at least be correspondingly re-
duced so that the protection, real or nom
lnai, to manufacturers shall not be in
creased, and that the consumers shall have
the immediate benefit of the reduction.
Frae ships and the abolition of the r.
strictive navigation laws are deman led,
AMI revenue raformers are urged to II {
their power at congressional elections to
send free trade men to the national house.
An additional resolution was addsl de-
claring again,t any reduction of the tax on
Intoxicating liquors until the tariff was
brought to strictly revenue basis
The meeting at night was held in Central
Music hall which was we'll filled. On the
platf rm appeared Henry Ward Beecher,
vino received rouni CT applause. The FIRST
speaker was David A. Wells. who made n
forcible argument on free trade principles
that protective tariff was false principle
Obstructive of the very industries it was in.
tented to build up Among the illustra
lions h. u'ei he sail that before the high
tariii' went into effect Oai1, Iowa and Mich
san raised 3D,tUO OJ3 sheep; in 1850 only q
htt.e more than IA 900, 900 were owned. In
The ten years from 1870 to 1850 not less than
3l4 WOODEN mills disappeared in
the New Elslani State, making
% per cent. of all the machinery used in
the wooden Industry in the country. The
fish industry was another glaring illustra
ton of the dolefuT result of protection. In
order to afford "protection' to the owner,
of couple of hundred ii hing smacks near
Boston every consumer of saltei fish ha TO
pay 50 per cent. more for that commodity
than if there was no Protection
Canine, which under the high pro-
tective tariff cost s. 50 per ounce
now could be had for 20 or 81
cents Under the tariff not less than 500, :
GEO "blool money was drawn annually
from the pockets of the people to go into the
co'eri OF three firms. A most abnormal
condition of commercial and ind ustrial at
fairs had resulted from protection. We pro-
duced more per head than any other nation
on each, yot since Is - there had been con.
tinual depression in the Gemand for, ana
consequently the prices iat manufactured
articles.
Henry Ward Boecber, when he stepped to
the front, was most eathusia, tica1ly greeted,
having been introduced as the great apps
tie of freedom by the president of the meet
ing.
The exquisite though conscious conceit
of protectionistS' he Logan, that nobody
has any right to talk about protection anu
tariff, is almost sublime. According to their
theory even such men as Mr.. Wells know
nothing about it. They stand around tho
walls of their protected castle and say to
those outside: You don't know of what is
going insider"
1 am i'll favor of no tariff at ALL con-
tinued Mr. Beecher. and this assertion was
greeted with roaring applause. l AM in
favor of no tariff, and am in favor of
having the expensol of tho govern ment as.
.essed epon the individual citizen, so as to
bring government homo to every man. The
God that decreed that free air should he
the best thing for all evils that flesh
is heir to also deereed that free
thought should BIO the best thing for ali
internal affairs, and therefore am against
amy restriction. The liberty OF commerce
is the battle fought just now, and we are
the soldiers that fight 1t. We have no
doubt what tho result will be. We will fro,
commerce yet, as we have freed the slave
The idea of protection was that the govern
ment should run all the industries of the
or course, that would be impos
,ib!e. Our government was not destined to
be paternal one; protection meant pa.
ternal government, therefore it was un-
American
Over 1000, 900 labrrsrs were out of work
under the present rules If national economy,
md yet the corp rations were importin.
labor right along, simply because there wa
no tariff on men, Protection was the devils
Dwn juggle, because it protected only the
and not ths laborer He was
against protection also because it violated
he brotherhood of mon. Much rs the pro
,ectionist howlad about human brother |
Ioui, so soon it came TO English,
French or German laborers then |
hey wanted to ostracize them So |
nh- rs we give millions of dollars for mis-. |
onar'es to China, We should not forbid the
lhinlnen 10 come here and breathe our |
lir.7 He called on clergymen to take |
tanl against the organized selfiShness of |
'rotnctionists, and advised fathers and |
mothers to teach their children universal |
owe Tor humanity.