The Portland daily press., 1888-09-12
'lGENERAL HARRISowS LETTER.
His Formal Acceptance Of the Repub-
Ilcan Nomination.
a Firm stand for Protection TO Amer
lean worklngmen,


a Firm Stand for Protection TO Amer
lean worklngmen,
And For the Furtherance of the
country's Best Interests.
INDIANAPOLIS, Sept. 1.-THE following
is Gen. Harrison's letter accepting the Re-
publican Presidential nomination:
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. Sept. IL.
Hon. M M. Estee and Others, Committee:
Gentlemen when your committee visited
me on the Fourth Of July last and presented
the official announcement Of my nomination
for the Presidency Of the United States by
the Republican convention, / promised, as
soon as practicable, to communicate to you
more formal acceptance Of the nomination
Since that time the work Of receiving and ad-
dressing almostdaily large delegations oil my
fellow citizens. has not only occupied all my
time but has in some measure rendered II
unnecessary for me to use this letter as
medium Of communicating to the public my
views upon the questions involved in the
campaign. appreciate very highly the con-
fidence and respect manifested by the con-
vention and accept the nomination with
feeling Of gratitude, and full sense Of the
responsibility which accompanies L.
declarations Of the Chicago convention upon
the questions that now attract the interest OF
our people are so clear and emphatic. There
is further cause Of congratulatfon In the fact
that the convention utteranees Of the Demo-
IL ~ harQtOf0rQ III in 6aprQQ
certain or contradictory, can now be judged
and interpreted by executive acts and
measures, and by definite propositions in
legislation. This Is especially true OF
what is p0pularly known as the tariff ques-
tion. The issue canrot now be obscured.
IL is not a contest between schedules, but
between wide apart principles. The foreign
competitors of our market have, with quick
instinct, seen how one issue OF TINS contest
may bring them advantage, and our own
people are not SO dull as TO miss or neglect
the grave interests that are involved Tor
them. The assault upon our protective sys-
tenn Is open and defiant. Protection Is as
sailed as unconstitutional In law, ana as
vicious in principle, and those Who hold such
views sincerely, cannot stop short OF an ao-
solute elimination from our tariff laws OF the
principle Of protection. The Mills plll Is
only step, but 1t Is toward an oDJecg tnat
the leaders OF Democratic tnongnt anu iegis.
lation have clearly In mind. The Important
question Is not so much the length Oh tne
step, as the direction OF II.
Judged by the Executive message OF De-
cember last, by the Mills bill, by the debates
in Congress and by the st. Louis platform,
the Democratic party will, If supported by
the country, place the tariff laws upon
purely revenue basis. This Is practical free
trade, free trade in the English sense. The
legend upon the banner may not be Free
trade; ft may be the more obscure motto
Tariff reform" But neither the banner nor
the inscription is conclusive, or, indeed, very
important The assault itself is the import
ant fact. Those who teach that the import
duty upon foreign goods sold In our Market Is
paid by the consumer. and that the price OF
the domestic Competing article Is enhanced
to the amount Of the duty on imported ar
ticles, and that every million OF dollars coll
lected for customs duties represent many
millions more which do not reach the Treas
ury, but are paid by our citizens as the in
creased cost Of domestic productions result
ing from the tariff laws, may not intend TO
dscredit In the minds OF others our system
of levying duties on competing foreign pro
ducts. but:it Is clearly already discEsdited I, In
pugning their integrity, that, II free TO act
upon their convictions, they would so revise
our laws as to lay the burden OF the customs
revenues upon articles that are not produced
In this country, and to place upon tne iree
I do not stop to refute this theory as TO the
effect of our tariff duties. Those who ad-
vance it are students Of maxims and not OF
the markets. They may be safely allowed 10
call their project tariff reform IL the peo-
pie understand that, in the end, the argu-
ment compels free trade In all competing
products. This end may not be reached aO-
ruptly, and its approach may be accompa-
MED with some expressions OF sympathy LOT
our protected Industries and our worklBg
people, but 1t will certainly come, II these
early steps do not arouse the people to an
effective resistance. The Republican party
holds that protective tariff Is constitutional,
wholesome and necessary.
ciple. We will revise the schedule, and modify
rates, but always with an intelligent provis-
ion as to the effect upon domestic production
and the wages Of our working people. we
believe It to be one Of the worthy OBJECTS Oh
tariff legislation to preserve the American
market for American producers and 70 main
tain the American scale OF wages Dy ade-
quate and discriminating duties upon foreign
competing products. The effect Of lower
rates and larger importations upon the pub
lie revenue Is contingent and doubtful, but
not so the effect upon American production
and American wages. Less work and lower
wages must be accepted as the inevitable re-
suit of the increased offering OF foreign
goods in our market. By way Of rseompe,nss eS ms
Tor this reduction In his wages and the ioss
OF the American market, IL Is suggested mat
the diminished wages of the w0rklnginan
will have an undiminished purchasing pow
er and that he win be able, to max
up msrRit ier tae s0ossa oss q forsup s marRS
Our workjngmen have the settlement of tne
question In their own hands. They now oo-
,fain higher wages and live more eomt1t n Ia
than those OF any other country. hne}
arx. make choice between the substantial aa-
v IAges they have In hand and the decep-
tive promises and forecasts OF these tne2Iz-
ing reformers. They will decide for theni-
selves and for the country whether tne pro
tective system shall. be continued &or ue-
Str0yed.
The fact Of treasury surplus. the amount
OF which Is variously stated, has dlrectsu
public attention to a consideration OF tne
methods by which the national income may
may best be reduced to the level OF wise anu
neces sary expenditure. This condition
has been seized upon by those who are nos
tie to protective custom duties as an anVan-
tageous base of attack upon our tarin laws
They have magnifed and nursed the sur
plus which they affect TO deprecate, seeming
ly for the purpose Of exaggerating the evli
in order to reconcile the people to the ex-
treme remedy they propose. A proper re-
duction CT the revenue does not necessitate,
and should not suggest, the abandonment OF
impairment Of the protective system
The methods suggested by our convention
will not need 10 be exhausted in order 70 OF.
feet :, necessary reduction. We are not
likely .-m1Ofdled upon. think, to make s e,a a
present ch0ic- tween the surrender OF our
RAOtCCtlNC ol otCul anu buC CheAAC ACfcN. -
internal taxes. Such contingency, in view
Of the present relation OF expenditures to
revenue, Is remote. The inspection and reg
ulation Of the manufacture and sale OF oleo-
margarine Is important and the revenue de-
rived from it is not so great that the repeal OF
the law need enter into any plan OF revenue
reduction. The surplus now In the
Treasury should be used In the
purchase of bonds. The law authorizes the
use OF 1t and II 1t Is not needed for current or
deficiency appropriations, the people, and
not the banks in which it has been deposited,
should have the advantage Of its use by
stopping interest upon the public debt. At
least those who needlessly hoard 1t should
not be allowed to use the fear Of a monetary
stringency thus produced, to eoerce public
sentiment upon other questions.
Closely connected with the subject OF the
teriff Is that Of the Importation Of foreign
laborers, under contracts Of service to be
performed here. The law, now in force, pro.
hibiting such contracts, received my cordial
support in the Senate, and such amend
ments as may be found necessary to effect
lively deliver our workingmen and women
from this most inequitable form Of eompeti-
tion will have my sincere advocacy. Legis-
lation prohibiting the Importation Of labor
ers under contract TO serve here, will, how
ever, afford very inadequate relief to our
working people II the system of protective
duties be broken down. IL the products OF
American shops must compete In the Ameri-
can market-without favoring duties-with
the products OF cheap foreign labor the eff