Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1886-09-03
MR.. BLALNES SPEECH


Mr.. Blaine sounded the "key note" of the
Republican campaign in his State at Lake
Sebago, last week. At the same time and
place he also sounded the keynote of his
own fourth quadrennial campaign for the
Presidency, underlined for 1885, AS such
his speech will doubtless command wide
reading and general discussion.
Mr.. Blaine still processes to be of the
opinion the tariff is the most important
question before the country, and that the in
terests OF the laboring classes are bound up
in the maintenance Of the protective system.
He also processes to believe that this system
is in danger of destruction at the hands of
the Democratic party, although what he
finds in the recent performances Of that
organization TO justify the belief he fails to
disclose. However, he appeals with great
fervor TO the workingmen TO support the
Republican party because, he says, it is fully
committed to the policy of protection, and
the perpetuation of this policy is, he SOL
EMMY declares, the only thing that can pre-
vent their wages from falling to the ECU
ropean standard" In support Of this prop
osition he makes grotesque argument
On the 18th day of January he says the ag
gregate amount on deposit in the savings
banks Of New York, New Jersey, Pennsyl-
vania and the six New England States was
upward of $1,00Qb0O,OOO. On the same day
-the deposIIs- ID the savings banks Of the
United Kingdom aggregated but $500, 000,-
900. "rhese figures and these dollars" ex-
claims Mr.Baine, "are the most persuasive
arguments, and the conclusion they invite
is so plain that the running man may read !"
II may be said that the only conclusion
which ;hese figures and these dollars" real
ly invite is one not at all flatterng to Mr..
Blaine. His statistics may be accurate, or
they may not be, but, as Toots would say,
sit is of no consequence" because they have
no relevancy to the question. Mr.. Blaine,
of course, knows this perfectly well, and
the only cause for surprise is that with his
marvellous resources and remarkable fertility
of invention he could offer nothing more
men, who are unable TO see just where the
blessings Of protection come in
What Mr.. Blaine failed toexpan, as he and
every other protectionist orator has always
failed to explain, is why the so called Euro.
pean standard of wages" prevails in coun-
tries which possesses the same tariff system
as the United States. He also neglected to
mention the very significant fact that in the
United Kingdom wages average very much
higher under free trade than they did I'M
der protection. Neither did he make any
attempt TO account for the pauperized con-
dition Of the labor employed in many of the
most protected industries of this country
such as coal mining, numbering, &c. These
phenomena that are utterly fatal TO Mr..
Baine's theory that the tariff benefits the
working classes, and doubtless none appre.
ciate them more fully than he Hence he
always finds 1t convenient to ignore it.
1t is such shallow demagogism as this
that makes Mr.. Bane's most pretentious
speeches contemplate, and largely explains
his feeble hold upon the educated and think.
ing classes of the country. Mr. Blaine, Of
course, knows that this sort of talk is un-
mitigated nonsense, and that the political
complexion of the national government has
no more TO do with the condition of the
Southern negro than it has with the gov
eminent of the planets. His assumption
that the workingmen of the country do not
know it is proof that he puts very low
estimate upon their intelligence.