Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1888-08-03
The Democratic Policy.
San Francisco Examiner.

tioii tis&'t "oihiiAE i'iCh Soii w hoNS ~
believe that there is no stopping-place
between the iniquities of the tariff
and absolute free trade.
There is a stopping-place-an ad.
mirable onc-and the Democratic
party has occupied it. The Demo
cratic policy is not TO be found in
Republican speeches and editorials
it is to be found in the President d
message, the national platform and
the Mills bill.
What is the Mills bill 1t is a
measure designed to give labor free
raw materials. This is the substance
of it. All the rest is detail. The
policy embodied in that bill has been
favored. at least in theory, by all par
ties in this country from the time OF
the war until the present year. 1t is
the policy of all the leading protec-
ZIONIST nations of the world. 1t is
recognized by protectionist authori-
ties us the best method of fostering
diversified national industries.
The Mills bill is loug document,
containing about LOO lines. AS
Speaker Carlisle said the other night,
nine-tenths of its critics have never
read it. They simply label it Free
Trade" and trust to the fears of work
ingmen to make argument unneces.
sary.
The bill puts ON the free list lumber
salt, flax, hemp, ;ute, wool, petroleum,
sulphur, turpentine, bone-black, clay,
copper ore, antimony, quicksilver
finishing powder, grease, curled hair,
marble, flax seed, undressed building
stone, and number of crude articles
of minor importance. 1t then re-
duces the duty on manufactured arti.
cles, into which these materials enter
by an amount sufficient to balance
the advantage which the the reduc.
ton in their price gives to the manu-
facturers.
The consumers thus get the benefit
OF lower prices, the manufacturers are
not injured, but rather helped, be-
cause with the same amount Of capi-
tai they can buy more materials, and
selling on better terms. can supply a
larger market, and the workmen find
their condition improved in two di.
rections at once, because there is q
greater demand for labor, and conse.
quently higher wages will buy more.
This is the policy of the Mills bill
OF President Cleveland, Of the Repub-
lican Presidents who preceded him
and OF the Democratic party.
But" we are told" you do not in.
tend to stop there. You say that the
Mills bill is only a step in the right
direction. What can the next step be
but free trade ?" The next step will
be precisely in line with the present
one. 1t will complete the work that
the Mills bill has begun. 1t will take
tie taxes from these great raw ma.
terials which neither party has yet
ventured to touch, but which the
greatest leaders of both parties have
agreed should be relieved from all
burdens. 1t will put coal, iron ore,
pig-iron and the like on the free list.
When that is done, the power of the
Pennsylvania trusts will be broken.
The iron-workers OF San Francisco
will have their shops filled with orders.
We shall no longer see the spectacle
OF San Francisco firm sending to
England for Il steel ship that would
be built here but for the cost of ma
terials. Trade and manufactures will
grow in California side by side, and
this city will become u hive of pros
porous, highly paid workmen.
The average cost of materials in
American man4ifac lures is over three
times the cost of wages. The great
bulk OF our imports consists of mater
ials in one form or another, and most
of them are extravagantly taxed. The
amount of labor required to produce
them is Insignificant compared with
the amount required to work them
up into higher forms. When we
blunderingly try to encourage one
coal miner by giving the trust that
employs him subsidy, which it
promptly divides among its members,
We do not help him and we discourage
a hundred workmen who have to use
coal and who are taxed to pay the
subsidy.
Free materials and fair chance to
work is the Democratic policy.
Let workingmen figure up how
much more money would be left for
wages if coal, iron and lumber did not
eat up SO much Of the proceeds of
their industry, and they will think
that sort of "iree trade" is good
enough protection for them.
The New Westminster Guardian
says: "The advices received on Satur-
day stating that the sockeyes were pass.
ing San Juan in immense numbers
has proved to be true. AS soon as the
first nets were hauled from the water
last night it became evident there were
more salmon than usual and the fish.
ermen We're certain Of big catch
Boats fishing opposite the city and