The Iola register., 1888-11-02
BLAINE ON THE MILLS sILL.

L
Mr.. Blaine on the Free Raw Material Fea-
ture of the House Tariff 6BM-Democratie
MonOpolists.
Blaine addressed large audience here
last night. In referring to the Mills bill
he said:
| One of the mos. frequently repeated srgu-
| ments of the Democrats in favor OF what they
/ term tariff reform Is the necessity fo< the ad-
| mission OF all raw material free OF duty They
| leave IL to be inferred that the Mills bill a.
| tains this end, and their failure to explain all
of the provisions Of that bill amounts to a sup
| preston of the truth Let me ask some Dem
| ocratic speaker or some Democratic journal to
tell the public how far and for what reasons
raw materials are admitted free by tine Mills
| bill. and in the meantime I will contribute a
| few facts to the discussion.
| Let US take the raw materials in detail
| Coal Is raw material of immeasurable value
| The original design was to admit coal free OF
| duty. but the Democratic Ways and Means
| Committee we're plainly told that il they took
| that step they would endanger the supremacy
| OF their party in old Virginia, in West Virginia
and in Maryland an6 therefore their project Of
| making coal free was abandoned. Iron is one
| OF the raw materials about which we heard
much at the beginning of Congress. 1t was
proclaimed on all hands BY Democrats that
| iron ore must be free, for iron ore lay at the
basis Of all forms of iron and steel fabrics, and
| its prices must be lowered But 1t was
found that Mr.. Barnum, Of Connecticut, chair
man of the Democratic National Committee. was
the owner Of the largest mines of iron ore
| In the Lake Superior region. and that the chair
man OF the executive committee, Mr.. Brice,
with his political associates, owned and con-
| trolled road which received large sums from
| the transportation Of this ore. 1t was further
known that Mr.. Smith Weed. one OF the most
| prominent Democrats, was also largely inter-
| ested in iron ore and in the manufacture of
| IRON. Upon the statement of those facts the
| Democratic Ways and Means Committee at
| once abandoned the idea of putting ore on the
| free list-abandoned it not because they thought
| the step unjust. but because they found it
| would injure the business interests of promi-
| nent Democrats Now Cor another article
| Lime, which is one OF the essentials in
| all building operations, was upon the
| free list in the first publication of the
Mills bill The largest supply OF lime comes
| from the county OF Knox in The State Of Maine
Knox happens to be the only county in the
| State that ordinarily gives a Democratic ma
| iority The Democrats of Knox memorialized
| the Ways ard Means Committee remonstrat-
| ing against their proposed action and giving
he committee to understand that il they
wanted to wipe out a majority in the last
Democratic county in Maine they should put
lime on the free list The old duty was re-
stored on lime, but the Democrats OF Knox
were naturally so justly enraged at the
manner in which the Ways and
Means Committee had trifled with SO large
| and-to them-vital an interest that they
turned around in the September election and
guve good sized majority to the Republican
ticket by way of rebuking an attempt to re-
form the tariff on the lire of partisan
division. They will vote still more heavily
against Mr.. Cleveland in November. Wood
pulp is treated as a raw material and put on the
free list in the Mills bill as originally framed,
but IL was soon discovered that Mr.. Don NJ.
Dickinson, Postmaster-General, and 1. NJ.
Weston, chairman of the Democratic
q valuable patent for an improvement
Of the manufacture of wood pulp and
that the patent would be rendered
worthless il wood pulp was put on the free list;
and so back went the former duty. The value
Of Mr.. Dickinsons patent was preserved to
him by his Democratic friends of the House of
Representatives. Mark you-the duty was not
restored because in the belief of the Demo
cratic Committee OF Ways and Means sound
policy required it. but it was restored because
they did not wish to 60 harm to leading Demo
Gratis who were expected to deliver the elec-
toral vote Of Michigan to President Cleveland
Here is another case Marble OF all kinds in
block, rough or squared, was on the free
list in the Mills bill as reported to the
House but was afterward removed from
il, probably because il gave ofense to some
conspicuous members or the ''unconquerabe
Democracy OF Vermont. / do nbt actually
know the real reason in this case, but doubt
less Mr.. Bradley B. Smalley, the keeper of
Democratic conscience in Vermont, can state
it. But in one more instance OF proposed aboi-
tion of duty on raw material being promptly
considered and the duty being restored by the
Ways and Means Committee. Glue was treated
as q raw material in the first draft Of the Mills
bill because it is prepared as an essential for
many handlcrafts. Glue was therefore report
ed on the free list, but it was soon found
that Democrat syndicate in the West made
pretty much all the glue for that section, and
that the Democratic heirs of the late venerable
Peter Cooper. OF New York, made nearly all
the glue for the rest OF the country. 1t was not
in the hearts of the Democratic Ways and
Means Committee to strike down an interest
that could afford large Democratic contrbu- |
tions in the West and that had so prominent
and influential Democrat interested in its
manufacture as Mr.. Edward Cooper. late mayor |
of New York City, and consequently glue went |
OF the free list and back to its old duty.
Another case IN point although not connected
with the free list, presents the same extraordi |
nary course on the part Of the Ways and Means |
Committee. Every one OF you who have paid |
attention to the tariff discussion knows that the
one subject with the free traders increasingly |
harped was that OF the monopoly OF wood |
screws held by some manufacturers in Con- |
necticut. They had denounced il through all |
the moods and lenses Of denunciation. 1t |
was TO be expected, therefore, that the |
duty on wood screws would be seri- |
ously reduced il indeed the Democratic Ways !
and Means Committee in their wrath did not |
put the article on the free list. But this inter- |
est was found to be so important in Connecti- |
cut and to be in such large part in Democratic |
hands that the Democrats Of the Ways and |
Means Committee were advised that il they
hoped TO carry Connecticut for Mr.. Cleve-
land wood screws must be let alone. So |
this great odious monopoly" as they had
for many years described and denounced |
it. was left undisiurbed by the tariff reformers
and with all the naked and time-honored
abuses under Republican rule which they had
imputed TO it, Another case comes very near |
TO you in Buffalo. Cement Roman, Portland
and all Others. was put On the free list in the
original draft OF the Mills bill. II was taken |
of and restored to the old duty at the in
stance and by the influence of your fellow
citizen, Hon. Daniel Lockwood. United
tates district attorney. He appeared as
either a stakeholder in the cement
or attorney for stockhoders-I |
know not which--nut he succeeded in removing !
with the conclusions which the
Democratic Ways and Means Committee
reached in these cases. but am proving from |
,he changes made in their own bill. in its differ
ent stages, that they shifted around, turned
md dickered on the various provisions in il |
ust as the personal and pecuniary interests of
eading Democrats outside Of Congress de- |
handed, and that in several important
departments OF manufacture, they shaped
heir action and reached their conclu-
a,se ,,a1 ed is0.s c, 70 any s9na
pockets OF distinguished Democrats, the pros
'ects OF political influence OF the results Of
orthcomtng elections.
81 like Dore's picture wcit en-
ss3gh, but / must confess | do not