Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1888-10-25

assembly chamber at Madison,
March l, 1888. 1t is not likely that
he will 90 back on them now,
though the exigencies of a political
canvass cause stout hearts to waver,
and the consciences Of candidates to
become very elastic. Still, we do
not think that he will follow the ex-
ample of Mills, and Watterson, and
Frank Hurd, who, after the uttersnce
of the most aggressive freetrade
sentiments, are now trying to explain
that they are not free-traders. The
Presidents plea of the same purport
can be overlooked, as he doubtless
never knew what is meant by free
trade. Prof. Parkinson does, and
he clearly and he correctly defines it
in the pamphlet under consideration.
| He says:
believe those who are called free traders
are those who believe in tariff for revenue
| only, and want to say that they are just as
| essentially frep-traders. in my opinion, as
| those who would abolish all custom houses
| and resort to direct taxation. If government
| desires TO collect a tax Of one hundred millions
| III makes out litllt ulUtItuCt, ST lar rs Aiit
! trade OF the country is concerned, whether
| that tax is collected directly from the people
| or whether it is collected in the way Of rev
enue tariff. In the one case, the people have
just that much left to buy WITH and in the
| other they pay hundred millions more Tor
what they buy, and trade is affected IN one
case just about as muoh as in the other-a little
| more. Free-trade expresses the prn-
ciple that nations wealth and prosperity are
/ best promoted by securing the utmost freedom
\ for the exchange of all commodities among its
ny nnlp nd wi
| countries; or, in other words il Is the liberty
OF every man to buy where he can BUY the
cheapest, and sell where he can sell dearest,
! without unnecessary Interference on the part
of the goYernm ent.
Such is the meaning of free-trade
as the term is used by all honest
writers and speakers. No civilized
country has or aims to have free
trade in any other sense. OF free
trade then, Prof. Parkinson declares
himself Jealous advocate, and, on
the occasion referred to, he made an
elaborate argument in defense of
that system. We have not space
here to attempt full synopsis, much
less a review of his argument. He
indicated that the industries which
we can properly carry on in the
United States are mainly agriculture
and those professions and trades
which "from their nature go along
hand in hand with the tiller Of the
soil" such as doctors, clergymeu,
lawyers, teachers, carpenters, cob
blers, blacksmiths, etc. He said
that in the case of products which
can be obtained more cheaply by
importation under free-trade than
they can be produced at home, it
, was the true policy to purchase them
from abroad and abandon their pro
= duction at home. In other words,
if the cigarmaker can buy Sumatra
/ wrappers relieved of duty cheaper
than the Dane county farmer can
produce similar article, then we
{ should admit Sumatra wrappers free,
and the Dane county farmers should
abandon tobacco culture. Referring
to the freedom Of trade between the
j states Of the Union, he said: "There
, is no reason in the world why we
should change the doctrine when we
/ pass from one government to
, another government" This is a
cosmopolitan view which ignores
the fact that some of the states
, might be adyantaged by protective
2 tariff, but that they together form
, one nation, and that as a nation it
is not imDOrtant 10 IA ut what DOint