Press and daily Dakotaian. (Yankton, Dakota Territory [S.D.]) 1880-1889, 1888-07-24
Guilty 2ress a,1il J]alsotaiaa
THE FREQ VII SKY CRY.


"tree whisky against the republican
platform. The editorial is good reading.
1t is es follows:
The cry OF "free whisky" has been
raised in the democratic camp against
the paragraph in the republican plat.
form concerning the internal revenue.
They say the republican party has de.
ciared Tor tree whisky, and they appear
to be very much concerned a5out 1T.
ibis show of concern is very amusing.
The democratic party is about the last
party In the world TO object to free
WHISKY. lt ls the party which solidly
opposes eli temperance legislation IN all
the northern states, and is COMMITTED
against all "sumptuary' laws in its ma
tional platforms. Ii 1T nov appears for
the moment among the soDs of sobrIety
it is only for the purpose of siii citing the
faithful. It's character has undergone
no change, not the least.
The cry is simply "a campaign cry,
raised 10 the interests of the party and
the psrty's principle of free trade Let
no temperance man be deceived one
moment by il, or he will find himself
tricked by the enemies OF temperance.
1n the first place it is not true that
the republicans haYe declared for free
whisky. What the republican party de-
clares by It's platform is this:
The republican party would effect
sll needed reduction of the national
revenue by repeating the taxes upon
tobacco. which are an annoyance and
burden to agriculture, and the tax upon
spirits used In the arts and for mechani-
cal purposes, and by such revision OF
the tariff laws ss will tend to check I'M
ports of such articles as are produced
by our people, the production of which
gives employ to onr laborer, and
release from import those articles of
foreign production Except luxuries) the
like OF which cannot be produced at
home,"
This is not declaration TO, "free
whisky" but for the release OF "spirits
used in the arts and for mechanical pnr-
poses" LII such use of spirits is leglsi.
mate (apd what Temperance advocate
would hold otherwise?) the proposal to
remove the tax on them is, in no sense,
q crime against temperance. After
making the foregoing declaration OF
policy with reference to the reduction of
the surplus, which is to be accomplish.
cd. 1T will be noticed, not alone by 8
of the internal revenue
laws, but by such revision of the
tariff as will ''release" "articles of
foreign production Except luxuries) the
like of which cannot be produced at
home" this sentence is added:
LII there shall still remain larger
revenue than is requisite for the wants
or the government, we favor the entire
repeal OF internal taxes rather than the
surrender of any part OF our protective
system at the JOINT behest of the whisky
trusts and the agents OF foreign manu-
II there is any free whisky IN the
platform it is in this sentence, and if
there il free whisky in this sentence it
is only there as an inference in a con-
tlngeney. The plain open meaning of
the words is this: Ii the proposed re-
movsl OF the tax.on tobacco, and spirits
used In the arts, together with the re-
lease OF duties on certain imports should
not reduce sufficiently the surplus in che
treasury, and the alternative should be
the "surrender OF any part OF our pro.
teoslve system" or the the entire
abolition of the internal revenue sys-
tenn, the latter should be sacrificed and
the protective system retained in it's
integrity. Upon this point we entirely
agree with the platform, and 30 does
every true proteetionlst, however radical
may be his temperance principles. 1t is
vital to the interests which are secured
by protection that the protective system
should be preserved. ISIS not vital tn
she interests of temperance that the in.
terpai revenue system should be pre-.
served.
Asa matter of fact, the Woman't
Christian Temperance Union, the third
party, and many leading republicans
Mrs. j. Allen Foster asked the platform
committee TO sweep away the Internal
ievenne system) believe this policy to
be tne true temperance policy. We
have disagreed with shem for the reason
that we believe the tax to be q check on
the traffic. How great check il is we
do not know; bnt, whatever It's restrictive
power, it is manifestly not a permanent
principle of temperance reform, but only
temporary expedient. AS such We
want it to stand until it has served i'll
purpose and is superseded by something
better, or until it can no longer be re-
tanned without sacrificing q part of the
protective system. As no temperance
advocate claims that national taxation il
the only true and effective, or even thai
it is the best method of promoting the
cause, it is absurd to make all this hue
and cry about the republican party de-
claring for free whisky. The platform.
OF the republican party in more thar
thirty states. and the lsgialstion, res
trictive and prohibitive, it has secured
sre standing proof OF its policy respect
ing free whisky.
The democrats 90 q party care nc
moro for the internal revenue system il
reality than they do for temperance. Ii
fact, they are opposed to the system
and hated it most cordially during th4
war, when it was necessity. Now tha
it is not necessity they only endure il
because 1t gives them chance to attacl
protection. The maiptenanoe OF tn,
tariff is far greater offense to then
than free whisky would be. The Chi
cago Trlbune a republican paper, wa
the first to sound the cry of "fre,
whisky" and it has been widely quoted
as though it lea the charge in the in
terests of temperance. The real ex
pinhatioh is Inht tHe Itlpuue suereS Id
the views of President Oleyeland's tarif
message. 1t was 30 little interested Ii
temperance plank IN the platform tina
u said not single word in support O
che plea OF the anti-saloon republican
and did not, go far as we have been sbi
to discover, even mention the fact, as
matter OF news. that such plea wa
made before the platform committee.
We are free to say that the platform
committee made avery great mistake ii