The Asheville citizen. [volume] (Asheville, N.C.) 1885-1889, 1888-10-30
SENATOR VANCE.
A POWERFUL SPEECH MADE BY
zBUNooMBE's FAvoRITE SON
Upon the Great Political Issues of the
Campaign-A Large Crowd High
ly Delighted.

About six hundred people, among
whom were many ladies, were at
the court house yesterday morning
to hear North Cardinals junior SEN
ator and Buncombe's favorite SON
Hon. Zebulon B. Vance.
The Senator, was introduced by
chairman McLoud, of the executive
mmittee, and his appearance was
greeted with hearty and continued
applause. He acknowledged the
compliment. and spoke for nealk
an hour and q quarter, making one
of the best speeches heard here du-
ring the campaign. He reviewed
the past record of the democratic
party, and then entered into a spir-
tied. forcible and plain explanation
Of the great issues now before the
American people. Federal taxation
and the tariff were the chief items
of the distinguished speakers dis
course, and no man in all this coun-
try can handle these weighty prob.
lens more skillfully or ably than
"Our Zeb." He said the whole
United States was to-day debat-
ing society upon the subject of the
tariff. He said that the present
tariff vote was unfair and unjust,
and he would defy any re-
publican present to stand up boldly
before the audience and justify it.
Hats, blankets, flannel cloth, ali the
neces5aries of life were taxed at ex-
orbitaLt rates, while the luxuries
were all either free. or paid slight
tariff rate only. The high protec>
tive tariff is the offspring of the re-
publican party, and republican
leaders go before the county with
beautiful song about its benefts(?).
They say it does not make goods
bnt that it protects the workingman.
All this high tariff talk is simply
nonsense; you do not feel it, but
you pay it on everything you buy.
If you could realize its workings,
you would go home this evening
and go to moulding bullets. The
churches wodld be busy with church
trials of members for ''cussing,"
aud the church I belong to would
exemplary member. The high
plotectionists, he said would come
before the people with a chapter of
praise as long as the lamentations
# jeremiah, about how the tariff
helped increase the wages of the
Workingman and made goods
cheaper. When you hear a man
talking this kind of stuff, you can
set it down that for common, polit-
ical neighborheod lying. he is hard
to beat. The Senator reviewed the
tariff issue from the first Congress
down to the present day. How the
rate had been increased from 8 per
cent to AZ per cent. He presented
the tariff in all its lights, and effecS
lively showed the injustice, in
humanity and inefficiency of
high and unnecessary taxa
ton. The surplus question
also, was ably handled by
an able speaker, and its evils de-
picted in glowing, yet truthful col>
ors. Nobody, he said; had right
to single dollar a man earned, save
the government, and even the gov>
ernment had no right to more of it
than was absolutely necessary to
pay the expenses Of the government.
The supreme court, a republican
body, said unnecessary taxation was
robbery, and it does seem to me that
the truth of this is so plain that ga
wayfaring man, though a radical,
will not err" Garfield, Mccullough
and other republicans had de-
nounced the accumulation of an
unnecessary surplus, and Grover
Cleveland had done the same thing
in his message to CongIess, and
declared that it must be stopped.
Even the republican Chicago plat
form admitted its collection to be
wrong, yet when reduction is to
be made, they all. with one accord
refused to take the tariff off OF a sin
gle manufactured article. He told
how the rep ublicap Senate commit
tee had killed the Mills bill, and,
how the substitute they pretended
to have fixed up increased the sur
plus $10,000,0000 instead of reduc~
| ing it $8,00O,O00. 1t was reduction
the wrong way, and that republican
committee had consumed five
months in absolutely lying to the
people. There was now aboat $780,
100000 of the peoples money
tied up in the treasury, lying idle,
and the people of the county
clamoring for relief. The res
public4ns professed great love
for the American laborer, but when
ever tho laborer wanted an increase
of wages, and raised row about it,
the mar ufacturers (republieans)
locked up their factories and sent
abroad for foreign pauper labor.
The Senator exposed the hypocrisy
and duplicity of the republican
high protectionists, and made one
of the best speeches we have ever
heard from him. His anecdotes
were applicable and funny, and the
great crowd present thoroughly en-
loved everything he said. It was
the plainest, most satisfactory, and
eloquent review of the tariff and its
evils ever heard in Buncombe, and
t"Our Zeb, surely told the people
the whole truth. At the conclusion
of his speech, Senator Vance pre<
sented on behalf of the Asheville
democracy, a handsome drum to
Mr.. r. T. Owen, ,of this city, which
] happily accepted by that loyal