Evening journal., 1888-09-24
An ENTERTAINING srEEcH.

Senator Vance made a very entertain
ing address on Saturday evening lie is
good fellow, tells good anecdote and
is clever stump speaker, provided there
are no women present. We should re.
gard him as capital campaigner for
North Carolina or any other provincial
district In Wilmington he cannot hold
a candle TO the earnest and honest
methods Of such party leaders
as Senator Gray, Hon Charles B. Lore,
Anthony Higgins, Esq, Hon. Nathaniel
b Smithers and others that might be
named. Senator Vance can entertain an
indiscriminate crowd, but we doubt that
he can convince the thinking members Of
the crowd. Nothing illustrates his
methods so well as his eulogistic refer
.ences to Mr.. Cleveland He despises the
President and has said so repeatedly in
private and he has said it in public as
nearly as he dared to say it.
Senator Vances tariff arguments are
clever, but they are as shallow and dis
honest as they are clever For instance
he says the states and pencils your chill
dren use at school pay 35 per centnm,
when every man present who used slate
pencils before tie present tariff was laid
knows that he paid one cent piece for
these pencils in 1850. To-day lie gets
four pencils for a cent He tried to give
the impression that the tariff increased
the cost, but the cold fact is that it has
reduced the cost by increasing the supply
right here at home. He said that woolen
goods were taxed go per centum. But
every man present on Saturday evening
knew that he could 60 Messrs J. 7. Mul.
lin & Son, or to Mr.. Meyer Meyers,
to Mr. John H. Moore, to Mr.. Harry
Hart, to Messrs. Justis & Davidson, or to
any other reputable clothier in the city
and buy a handsome and serviceable
woolen suit for fifteen dollars; and yet
Senator Vance tried to make his hearers
believe that if the tariff were removed
such clothes could be bought at 80 per
centum less that is for six dollars.
Horse shoe nails are taxed 81 per cen
tum said this backwoods statesman.
but there is not blacksmith in tho city
who believes that horse shoe nails could
be bought for one-ffth Of what
they cost now, or even one-third or one
half, or two-thirds. He said that cotton
goods were taxed 40 per centum, giving
out the inference that cotton goods would
cost only one-half as much as they do
now. If the tax We're taken OIL. Cotton
goods are selling from to 10 cents a
yard at present. Could they be made
and sold anywhere in this world for from
l to 6 cents2 Is there a merchant Of a
woman, or even a man in this city who
believes itY
After Senator Vance had done his
best to persuade his hearers that the
tariff duties were on unqualified evil, a
burden paid by them, he turned about
short and assured his audience that he
did not propose to remove these burdens.
Nothing was further from his mind. He
merely desired to take off per centum
from the present rates. Seven per centum
from horse shoe nails for example, would
be about one-twelfth off the present cost
Of the duty on nails Nearly the entire cost
of these nails is labor. They cost about 1s
cents pound, of which not two cents goes
for material Now, what is one.twelfth Of
two centsY 1t is doubtful that Senator
Vance could have figured out this small
result on Saturday as he stood before his
hearers. If you take of one-twelfth from
the rest Of the cost of the nails, then you
take it off labor, that is. you reduce the
wages Of the men who make these nails
by one-twelfth. Does Senator Vance mean
to do that ?
Senator Vance did very well in his ef-
fort, but ADLER men than he, and there are
plenty Of them, cannot make rational
argument in favor Of free trade before an
American audience