The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1888-09-01

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|''public ofice-a public trust" You
conclude that Irish Americans are
''tired" of this persistent Republican
campaign discussion of the policy and
measures proposed by the Cleveland
Democracy, but they are not supposed
to be ''tired'' of this self same Dem
ocracy and its methods Now, to be
candid, Mr.. Editor, whether is it better
i for Irish Americans to differ. in party
politics and calmly discuss the great
national questions of the day or get up
in Democratic conventions and call one
another frauds and ballot box suffers?
The chairman of a delegation in the
late Democratic convention, al Irish
man, threatened his party with the loss
of IL, 600 votes in his county, unless it
acceeded to his machine methods. /
suppose he had those votes in his pocket
and Irish Americans must never tire Of
that sort Of. campaign instruction. y
as it IS Democratic you know and
''eternal''
Now, Mr.. Editor, my only object in
writing to you was to stimulate what l
considered a necessary and proper dis
cnssion at this time. You decline to
answer several of the questions pro.
pounded in my last, and others you as
se1t' are founded on misstatemenr of
facts. Your readers are the judges and
submit the case to them. The seventh
query involving the Irish nationalist
policy "buy no English goods you ad-
nit demands considerable attention,
but you evade it by reference to Davitt's
movement to encourage woollen manu-
features by creating an American
market for them, claiming that over
protective customs tax is against DAY
tits efforts. Pray tell us has Davitt
eyer asked US to remove this custom,
duty or tax? No, he only asks us as
Irish Americans to give the preference
to Irish-made woollens over other I'm
ports. He would be no better off under
free trade, as English woollens would
come into our markets as free as his and
he would still only have what he has
now, Irish-American preference, with
this difference that under free trade we
would become less able to buy Irish
woollens than we are now. Your alle-
cation that the Sprotective SYSTEM
killed Irish manufactures is curious
conclusion from Irish history and I
must admit j have not curiosity enough
to study how you arrived at it. Suffice
to know that the hated act Of the Union
{1s0l) expressly provides for gradual
abolition of the Irish protective sys-
tenn" and to that then were Irish man
ufactures killed, and On the death of
both, Goldsmith wrote his famous poem
s'The Deserted Village" Who will write
a poem for Minneapolis when the
eternal Democracy succeeds in kill
ing the American protective system?
You and may differ on it, Mr.. E ltor,
but most men will conclude that the
policy of the hour is of vast Importance
if Democracy is really eternal. I think
the question of free trade or protection
will decide this campaign. Free traders
disciaim against the protective system
as unnecessary taxation" and Pres
ident Cleveland calls it ubiquitous"
Notwithstanding that under it America
has prospered as no nation of the world
has. ENGLAND is free trade country
and yet she levies over one hundred
million year on customs duty. Tea
and coffee pass over twenty five millions
a year in free trade England, and the
necessaries of life are and have been for
years free in protected America! How
is that2 American workalen can buy
cheap tea and coffee, but it is an ex.
pensive luxury for an English workman.
Labor is the prime cost in all manu-
factories and owing to the great dis
parity between wages in this and the
old country one would suppose that the
profits of the English manufacturer are
very great, but it should be borne in
mind that he pays1n England a govern
AAVAAV VehA VA 49, POA OCAts VA LILO 1Af00ks 1
ment and the American: only pays q tax
of S per cent. England is free trade
country, but herroyal government nust
be supported, hence this logic internal
tax, but does the capitalist pay it? Yes
directly, but indirectly the workman
pays it, for it is deducted from his
wages, and the profits Of the manufac-
turer remains. Now, would it not be
nice for this country to adopt the Eng
lish system of free trade, abolish our
customs revenue on competing imports
and levy tax on tea and coffee and
home labor?
Your favorite candidate for governor,
Mr.. Wilson, the other day in his &C.
,eptance speech dropped from the po-
,ition Of a National statesman, to that
If local politician looking for Office,
when he said Minnesota was an agri-
state and her farmers should no
onger pay taxes by being forced to buy
goods of the eastern manufacturer and
This is tho Sauna cry tho