The Cambria freeman. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1867-1938, 1888-10-05
Historian Blaine.

Mr.. Blaine made a historical sbeech
in New York on Saturday night. His
theme was the tariff. He began with
The administration OF Washington.
and following, down the line to Cleve-
land. ascribed all the industrial vicissl-
tudes that have conspicuously affected
the prosperity of the country, whether
for good or evil, to the rate OF Custom
House taxation. The exhaustion that
followed the debt-payiDg years after
the war of 1872, the speculative land
panic of 1887. the bank panic of 1857,
were audaciously imputed to tariff re-
ductions. Good times, on the contrary.
the distinguished gentleman insisted.
uniformly followed as a result of high
tariff taxation. From his glib summa-
ry OF tariff Legislation, which he called
"a historical view," he declared it in
contestably established that the country
never prospered when the tariffs were
low and always prospered when they
were high.
Every man who troubles himself TO
think, or observe what is going on about
him, knows perfectly we'll that while
the tax rate is an important matter,
there are other elements affecting the
continuous growth of the country which
are much more Influential in pushing it
forward or pulling it back. Good or
bad crops, immigration, war financial
mismansgement. speculative disaster,
and the complications growing out OF
the political or warlike contentious of
other nations, have profoundly infu-
enced our industrial and commercial
progress. No person knows this better
than Mr.. Blaine. Even his superb in
Isffaranna n mh Glands
theoriZing did not allow him 20 pass
over without an attempted explanation
the remarkable prosperity that followed
the adoption of the revenue tariff OF
1886. From 1916 to 1860 there were
fourteen years of unexample1 national
progress. Neither before that time nor
since has the nation advanced with
equal pace. Mr.. Blaine undertakes to
account for this low tariff progress by
ascribiDg it to. an extraordinary series
of incidents or accidents, such as the
war with Mexico, the European revolu-
tion of 1S4S. and the discovery of gold
in California in lS49. There would be
no difficulty in accounting for high
tariff progress in the same way, by look
ing outside of the tax rate for the mas
terful conditions of business movement.
But, taxing Mr.. Blaine at his word, as
luc UlCdyuDt WAT Will MEXICO was a
means OF growth in a low tariff era,
what shall be said of the influence of the
stupeudous war following upon the tar-
if of 1861, from which Mr.. Blaine dates
nearly twentyeight years of extraordin-
ary industrial activity? Il the outturn
OF the California mines from 1S49 to
1860 added to prosperity in those years.
was the prosperity diminished by the in
creased outpu. OF gold and silver In the
high tariff years that followed ?
Mr.. Blaine is as unfortunate in bis
explanations as he is crafty in his sup
pressions of recent history. While
falsely attributiDg the bank panic OF
1857 to the effect of low tariff he ne
elected to state that the Republican
majority in Congress voted TO further
reduce the tariff in that year. He also
forgot to mention the panic of 1873,
which, coming midway In his era of
high tariff revival, shook the business
of the country like an earthquake from
one end OF 1t TO the other.
Mr.. Blaine should not attempt his
torical statement until be can cure him
self of his habit of pettifogging his case.
His defense of the tariff is hardly more
calculated TO advance his position as a
competent leader in the battle for
protection than was his defense of the
tariff oegotten Trusts.-Phila Record.