Salt Lake evening Democrat. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1885-1887, 1885-11-13
THE TARIFF.

The meeting OF the Free Trade Confer
ence in Chicago yesterday revives the
interest in the tariff question. The tariff
and civil-service reform will be the chic
political questions in this country for the
next decade. The present tariff is wal
tariff and is as harmful now as it was
beneficial twenty years ago. A tariff for
revenue is just and proper, but there
should be no tariff for protection. A pro-
tective tariff is to commerce what land
grants and bountes are to railroads and
private enterprises; 1t is government
guaranteeing private undertakings. 1t is
claimed by the Protectonists that prim-
arily the laborer is benefited by u high
tariff, and that the benefit to protected
industry is only incidental. The very
reverse is the fact. A protected indus
try will look for labor in n free market,
and will have the benefit OF competition !;
and the laborer must submit to this com
petition. II times are dull and the
labor market is overstocked, the
competition will be more active,
and the laborer be compelled to
take less wage. If the industry is to
be protected against foreign competition,
then the home laborer should be pro-
tected against the foreign workman, and
such workman should be excluded from
the country. Likewise foreign capital
should be excluded, for the profits upon
that capital will go to foreigners Reduced
to logical consequence, protection is
boycotting.
few years ago the German Govern
ment prohibited the importation of Amer
ican pork into Germany, and assigned as
reason for such action the fear of tri-
china. The fact that American pork was
not allowed entrance into Germany
greatly incensed the pork-rasers and
pork merchants of this country, and thew
assigned as the ground of their com
plant the fact that American pork
was excluded from German ports
on the ground OF its being unhealthy
when it was not unhealthy. The reason
assigned for the exclusion of American
pork was in all probability false, but
this country had no right to demand of
Bismarck the true reason of such ex-
cluslon, and the German Parliament had
perfect right to exclude our pork for a
good or bad reason, or for no reason at
all. The United States put a prohibitive
tariff upon many foreign articles, and
they do not consult the wishes of the
country producing or manufacturing such
prohibited articles. We seem to see the
injustice and bad policy of protection
only when the doctrine of protection is
adopted by some other nation and en-
lorced against American products.
Nothing better illustrates the absurditv
'f our tariff system than the duty upon
works OF art. The duty on these works
thirty per cent. ad raiorem The pride
II country will scarcelygo so far as to claim
nat America has produced the greatest
lrtlsts the world has ever seen, nor will
hat pride declare that American art pnl.
cries surpass those of Paris or Dresden,
Madrid or Munich, London or Rome.
I ct, il some lover of art whose home is i'm
MS country should have an opportunity
o purchase masterpiece by Raphael,
lurillo, Titians, Luini, Rubens, or any
ther oil the great masters, he must pay
imost one-third of the price OF the pic
ure Tor the privilege OF bringing it into
rec America. This thirty per cent.
nay be tax upon despolism, and
imposed for the purpose OF showing
europe that American art is thirty per
ent better than her art. This thirty per
ent. is imposed for the benefit of Ameri.
an artists, yet the Ecolc des Beaux Arts
France gives American artists their
for nothing; such is the case ,
nth Munich. There is no place in Amer
"a where art students can get the same
Instruction either in architecture, paint
lg or sculpture rs ut either of these
iaces, and only two years ago the uues.
on was raised by the authorities of
rance whether the privileges of the
cole des Bsaux Arts should not be for
idden to Americans on account of the
lscrimination in the United States
salnst French works of ant. The same
uestion was mooted in Italy. Exclude
merican artists from the art schools of !,
urope and what would become of Amer ,
,an art?
The absurdity OF protection is perhaps
etter shown by the tax on art than the
TX on ordinary articles, but it is quite as
bsurd when the question of protecting !.
merlcan ship-builders comes up. 1t is
le carrying trade that gives prestige and :
rofit, and produces race OF sailors. and !
we are glad to see the Free Trade Con- !.
renee demand free ships. Free ships
ould give much greater impetus to !.
merican. ship-building than protection y
yer will
q.