St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1886-07-29
A TARIFF DIsCu ssIoN.


The GLOBE prints this morning letter
Ohio, to Mr.. GEORGE G. STONE, general
manager of the Minnesota Iron company,
i'll which the writer replies to an editorial
statement of the GLOBE concerning the
qualifications of senator from Minnesota.
Mr.. ELY will be remembered as the chair
man of the waterways convention held in
this city several years ago. Being an
iron dealer, it is but natural that
he should advocate the protection
theory, which he does in forcible and we'll
chosen language and with all the plausible
ity that can be given to that side of the
tariff question. 1t is the old, old argument
of the protectionists dished up in rather
more attractive style than that in which it
is ordinarily presented.
Revenue reform and free trade are by no
means synonymous. The Democratic doc
rine is that the taxing power of the federal
government is limited by its necessities for
revenue. That it is the way it has been
expounded by every Democratic platform
from the first organization of the party
down to the last national cow ention. Tha
is the way it was taught by the fathers of
the party. and practiced by all Democratic
administrations. There ought to be no
misunderstanding of the Democratic party'S
position on the tariff question. Its record
has been made and written in letters so
plain that he who runs may read, and the
wayfaring man, though a-foot, need not err
therein.
Granting that the federal government has
the constitutional power to levy tax for
the purpose of revenue, and that its tax
ing power ceases there, the question of how
revenue is to be raised for the legitimate
purposes of government is simply matter
of legislative detail. Whether it shall be
done by direct tax upon property, or
whether through the agency of an internal
revenue system, or by an import tax On i'm
ported goods. is solely matter for con-
gress to determine. The Democratic
party has always held that the tax
ought to be levied in the manner
in which it was most convenient for the
people to pay it, II is conceded that the
system of raising revenues by custom du
ties is the most convenient and therefore
the Democratic party is In that sense
tariff party. 1t stands as wall between
the extreme views of the free trader on
one side and the protection list on the other.
The Pennsylvania idea, w hich dominates
the Republican party, is that the federal
government has the power, and it is its
duty, to impose tax upon its citl-
zens not for the purpose of revenue
merely, but to protect certain classes of in
dustries against competition. This idea is
combatted by the Democratic party for the
reasons that a cardinal principle of Democ-
racy is opposition to monopoly of any
kind. that such power is not vested in the
national legislature by the constitution,
and that every tax ought to be so contrived
as both to take out and keep out Of the
pockets of the people as little as possible
over and above what is actually required to
meet the legitimate expenses of an econ
omically administered government.
The argument that protection is benefit
to the wage earners is the grossest fallacy
that was ever attempted to be imposed upon
a people. The protectionists alone are re-
sponsible for the great influx of pauper i'm
migration and the bringing of cheap Euro
pean labor in competition with honest
American labor. The Pennsylvania IRON
mongers and the owners of the Pennsylva-
MIA coal fields are the men who sent their
agents to Europe and to Asia and gathered
The scum of the continents to be sent
Dver here by the shiploads to take the place
Of American laborers in the coal mines and
the iron manufacturing districts. And vet
they are audaciously appealing to American
workingmen to aid them by their votes in
perpetuating the system which has been
solely responsible for all the troubles which
have occurred in labor circles. The
doctrine that protection benefits agri-
culture is no less fallacious. Actual
results are more convincing arguments than
theoretical speculations. The result
Of less than quarter of a century's eX-
perience with protective policy has been
to extinguish American commerce and to
drive American vessels from the seas. 1t
has demonstrated to the sorrow of every
Farmer in the United States that it lessons
the demand for agricultural products, and
raises the price of such manufactured
articles as he is compelled to take in ex-
change for his produce.
If twas the policy of this nation to build
a Chinese wall around itself and to shut
out the trade of all other nations, then the
principle Of protection should be applied,
because nothing else could accomplish it
30 effectually. If the American people ex-
pected to confine their trade to an ex-
change of jack knives with one another
then protection would be all right. But the
Democratic party doesn't propose to allow
any such policy to prevail. 1t says to
the manufacturer, we propose to levy tax
on imported goods for the purpose of rails
ing sufficient revenues to meet the ex-
penses of the government, and in doing
this it will give to you the benefit of such
incidental protection as may be just. The
Pennsylvania idea is to protect first and
make the matter of revenue secondary
consideration. The Democratic idea is the
reverse. Therefore, we are willing to SUBJ
nit to the intelligent people of Minnesota
the question of the correctness of the
GLOBES position when it says repre-
sentative or senator in congress cannot be
loyal to the interests of Minnesota if he
Identifies himself with party that is con-
trolled by the Republican protectionists.
The tariff is comprehensive subject,
and as it is to be the most important issue
before the people of this state in the ap-
preaching election, the GLOBE will find
occasion to discuss 1t more in detail further