New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1885-06-20
TARIFE lRLCKERY.

Every Democratic politician seems to have
new theory of the tariff to which he is trying TO
hold his party. Mr.. Mcdonald, of Indiana, a
few DAYS ago offered his peculiar theory, and
insisted that it was the theory to which the
Democratic party was pledged by It's Nationai
platform. In like manner Mr.. Randall also
presented his theory of "reform," and while
taking pains not to explain his particular re
form so that anybody could identity it on
sight, insisted that lit was the precise thing to
which the party was pledged b.. its National
platform.
Now comes Governor Hoadly of Ohio,
and he insists that there must be "a revis-
zion of the tariff, not horizontal but vertical, by
(which mean," he says" the increase of the
" free list in accordance with the plank OF the
sChicago platform, and the relief OF the com
"mercial and manufacturing world OF burdens
! "whilc at the same time enhancing the market
" for labor" This the Governor insists tue
party is pledged to do, but neither MI Hoadly
nor any other adrOit lawyer can tell what par
ticular changes his phrases are meant 10 cover
1t is not true that the Chicago platform ex-
plcitly proposed an increase of the Tree list put
among many blind phrases on the subject there
may be found the assertion that"a SUFFICIENT
revenue can be- got from taxes on fewer I'M
ported articles But neither the Governor nor
anybody else can explain how the commercial
world is to be relieved OF burdens without re-
ducing also the wages of labor. The manutact-
urers are not to-day making greater profits than
barely enough to prevent stoppase OF .hclr
works. A great many of them have stopped
their works because they cannot get any profit
at all, the entire value of the product III such
cases being covered by the cost Of labor and the
cost of material. But the cost OF material Is
also the cost Of labor in some other branch OF
industry, only an insignificant part OF the
materials Of our manufactures being imported.
When the Dem )cratic party can devise taril
which shall make materials cheaper 10 the man
ufacturer, ana at the same time secure the
present or better wages for labor, 1t will accom-
plish the miraculous feat which every dishonest
demagogue is willing to promise, but which no
economist or statesman has ever yet been able
to perform.
That Chicago platform is destined TO cause
the Democratic party a vast deal of trouble. 1t
was demagogne's platform. Into it the
trainers put some phrase to fit each one OF a
thousand irreccncilable theories. Now each
demagogue in tho party snatches out of the
theory or his favorite shade Of trickery. and
declares that the party Is pledged to that precise
thing Not one of them is honest about it, be-
cause every one knows that the party is pledged
TO the whole platform, and TO all the phrases put
together, and not to any one of them separately
Those who are sensible enough to understand
what the different phrases mean know that 1t
is utterly impossible for any party to DO all the
things thus pledged and consequently the party
is really pledged to nothing. But when Con-
gress assemblies the war of factions will begin
again, and each one will insist, as the leaders
are now insisting, that its private and pet phase
of interpretation is that to which the party is
pledged. The only thing that the country
knows or has reason to care about the matter Is
that the general tendency of the majority is
toward free trade, AMI that its action II 1t
succeeds in acting at all, will be in the nature
of an assault Oh the protective system.