The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1888-10-12
Yesterday Consumed in a
Political Debate.
SPEECH OF SENATOR CULLOM.
Mr.. Platt's Long HarraDgue on
Ere Trade in it's Relations
to Labor.
SENATE.

forcement of the Chinese exclusion act,
was reported by Allison and passed.
Mitchell then proceeded to address
the Senate in advocacy of the bill here
tofore introduced by him to reduce the
letter postage to one cent. In the event
of the proposed reduction being carried
out, he thought there was no good rea
son why the unit of weight should not
be fixed at two ounces instead of one
ounce, and why fourth-class matter
of merchandise should not be put on an
equality with third. With these
changes, all the present absurd distinc-
ton between first, third and fourth
class matter would be wiped out. A
uniform 1-cent rate for every two
ounces would exist on all material, ex-
cept newspapers and periodicals sent to
subscribers. The annoyances that
so often result from the detention
would disappear. The temptation to
petty fraud by the coucealment of writ
ten matter IN matter of lower grade
would vanish, and absolute privacy
could be given to every parcel Of matter
mailed, for there would no longer be
reason why it should not all be sealed.
The bill was referred to the postotfice
committee.
The Senate then resumed the consid-
Grafton of the bill, and was addressed
by Cullom.
In the course of his remarks, Cullom
made reference to Vests letter, hereto
fore frequently referred to as the strug-
gle being q fight to the DEATH
Vestsaid he wanted to make a state
ment as to that measure. 1t was a
private letter, written on his desk dur
ing the debate and afte1waTd type |
written by his secretary. If be
had the slightest suspicion it would |
have been made public. he would |
certainly have been more particular
bige used, but to any fair minded man |
the letter was plain and unequlvocal. |
He sent to the clerks desk and had read |
the original memoir from which the let |
ter was written, including the folio wing |
sentences: eve are entering on a |
most fearful Presidential contest, the |
most important since that of 1900. |
Cleveland, by his message, for which l /
sincerely honor him, has challenged the |
protected industries of the country to a |
fight of determination. The men who |
are accommodating immense fortunes |
under the present laws are de-
termined to defeat Cleveland if |
money and industry will accomplish |
it. It is useless to disguise the fact |
that the fight is to the death, and we |
would be idiots to ignore that fact"
Vest added that any man who did not |
appreciate the difference between the |
letter written under the circumstances |
under which that letter was written |
and one written to be submitted to the |
fierce criticism of political opponents |
would have no further explanation |
from him. What he had written and |
what the letter-fairly constructed-did |
say, was that protection-the principle |
of absolute and unlimited protection
which he understood the Republican |
party was raising revenue from taxes
properly adjusted, and that on that
issue the fight was to the death.
Cullen remarked that the explana-
ton of the matter was no better.
At the close of Cullom's speech, Plat
addressed the Senate. The conspiracy
against labor, be said, pervaded not q
chapter merely, but the whole volume
of American history. 1t had often
seemed on the eve Of victory, had often
seemed to triumph, but in the hour of
its seeming victory it had been beaten
down, bafled and overthroWn. Now,
by the ballots of the laboring men, and
again by their ballots on a fiercely
contested field, that conspiracy against
labor had early obtained control of the
Democratic party through the success
of that party. 1t hoped for the accom-
plishment of its purpose and it was now
seemingly awaiting the reelection of
Grover Cleveland to carry out its ruin
hoI al |
been a sectional conspiracy and its
name was free trade. Its chief cor
spirators had always had their home in
the south. 1t had started in South
Carolina with Calhoun, its desire
had been tWo-fold; first, to extend the
southern system where labor should be
unpaid and ignorant; and, second, to
circumscribe the northern system, the
system which encouraged intelligence,
virtue, seIf-reSpecting and respected
labor. The means by which this was to
be accomplished was free-trade. What
he meant by free-trade was not the
closing of custom houses, but what all
commo- 'ial nations meant by it-a
syste:- opposed to protection. There
was not a leading Democrat IN the
United States III full communion with
his party, enjoying the confidence OF
SAAN WIZ NA4O0 W SOY |
that he was a protectionist. Whatever
of the protection sentiment and cour-
age there had been in any leading
Democrat, had been crushed under the
iron heel of the Administration. Ii, by
the means which the Democrats were
now employing the deception they were
now using, by the imposture by which
they were now attempting to secure
the laboring men of the north, Cleve-
land should be reelected, these
men would rise in their might.
put down free-trade and de-
mand protection, but it would
be sad experience for them to go
through He mentioned as one of the
saddest incidents in American history,
the party ostracism of Randall and his
defeat for the speakership because he
was protectionist and he said that a
protectionist could no more be elected