Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1886-09-30
TO Observation-Disclosures
WOULD BE TO VOTE AGAINST
PROTECTION.

The "Tarif For Revenue OnIy'-Attitude
of the Ohio Democracy a Menace to Our
Laborers, WooI-Growers and Manufae-
turers.
The present attitude of the Democrats of
Ohio on the tariff question is a menace to
every interest in the state-agricultural,
commercial and manufacturing-a well as
dangerous threat to the workingmsn- The
party in its platform boldly declares for a
tariff for revenue only, and declares a pro-
tective tariff robbery. 1t practically in
dorses the Morrison tariff bill, in which
wool is put on the free list, and the tariff on
to next to nothing.
The woolgrowers of the state met with
rebuff from the Democratic convention,
which not only refused to declare in favor Of
restoration of the reasonable wool tariff of
1867, but would not even promise the contin-
uance of the meager tariff on wool which has
been in effect since 1888 Instead of this, the
platform means, if it means anything,
that the Democrats Of Ohio favor placing
wool on the free list and giving our wool
growers no protection against foreign COM
petition. The tariff plank in the Democratic
platform is directly in the line of British in
terests, is un-American and follows the teach
ings of the Golden club of England, which
is unremitting in its efforts to ruin the busi-
ness interests of this country, that those of
England may be built up.
What our last experience with the tariff for
revenue only endorsed by the Democrats was
Hon. W. D. Kelley after speaking of the re-
vival of industries and replenishing of Ma
tional revenues under the protective tariff of
1912, tells as follows:
"The prosperity thus produced was, how
ever, to be short-lived, for in 1916 congress
substituted for the protective tariff of 1919
the tariff for revenue only prepared by Rob
ert J. Walker then secretary of the treasury.
The country had never prospered under such
a tariff. Was it to do so nowl Let expert
ence answer this question. The law went
into effect in 1S47; and, though we mined
81 100, 900, 900 of gold from the newly discov-
cred gold fields of California during the fol-
lowing decade, 1857 found the nation bank
rupt, its workingmen and machinery without
employment, its banks broken or in a state
of suspension, and the government again
without credit or adequate current revenue.
This condition of things continued until, by
the protective tariff of 1861 and its war sup
plements, we made the duties on imports so
high that combined British capitalists dare
not, after paying such duties into our treas
ury undersel our manufacturers. The ex-
pertinent would involve more capital than
even they felt it safe to venture against such
odds. Thus protected our industries again
revived, and, with varying degrees of pros
perity, have continued to expand :
"Free trade England is the Ishmaelite Of
nations. Against her aggressive spirit Man
chesteris science based on assumptions offers
no protection. To promote her own trade
she subverts the weak, circumvents the ig-
norant and creduLous, and betrays her equals
In witness of these assertions appeal to the
story of here dealings with Turkey, India,
Egypt, Japan, and Ireland; with Portugal,
whose wool husbandry and wool and worsted
industry were destroyed by the treaty of
Methuen; with China, upon whom she forces
the opium trade; and to her treatment of
her American colonists, and the people of
the United States, whenever, accepting the
faith she processes but by which she was not
governed, they have adopted tariff for rev.
enue only
Ohio cannot indorse British free trade. The
voters will vote for the interests of this
country by casting their ballots for the Re
publican ticket and protection to American
interests and American labor.