St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1888-04-25
The People Taxed Beyond ALI
Just and Reasona-
BILE Limits.
Will the Burden Be Taken OF
or Will It Be Left
Where It Is?
Will Commerce Be Freed or
Will 1t Be Kept
Hampeped?

ever advocated the present tarlH IA
vored a tariff not for revenue, but for
surplus and tariff for trusts. The
cause of the immense surplus in the
the treasury was that the people have
been taxed beyond reasonable demands.
Robbery of them under the forms or
law has been perpetrated and to-day
they stand moneyless, the tax gatherer
still staring them in the face. and de
handing relief at the hands Of congress.
The rate of taxation to-day was higher
than at any time during the late CIVIL
war, and the people, worn out with wait
ing for relief, sent here different class
of Representatives and to the white house
man of a different political party.
Commenting on the surplus, Mr.. Nc
Millin said: 1--WE are drawing money
from commerce and locking it up in the
treasury at such rate that it is only a
question of time when Stringency Will
set in. We are rObbing not only COM
merce
OF ITS LIFE BLOOD,
but the people of the means OF paying
taxes to their governments. All sorts
OF jobs are proposed to congress and all
sorts of jobbers are fiOcking here. The
y -
revenues to the government. The an
nual surplus is only about 100000, 600,
so that if all the internal revenue laws
were repealed it would leave deli
cheney in our taxes of $50, 100000. What
is this to be raised from? Shall we re-
impose tax on tea and coffee? No.
There is not man who would retaX
coffee and untaX whisky. Shall we in
crease the duties on wooden goods, rice
OF sugar? No. For the people would
not and should not tolerate any such
legislation. Then we have to select the
subjects from which we will remove
taxes, and in view of the fact that we
cannot repeal the internal revenue SyS-
TEN we have to determine whether we
will reduce the tax on whisky or the tax
on clothing, the tax on tobacco OF the
tax on sugar-in other words, reduce
the tax on that without which men can
live and prosper, or upon that which IS
essential to their comfort, and 1t mar
rows itself down to a contest between
the drunkard's belly and the poor mans
back. In that fight | do not hesitate to
say that | eSpouSe the cause OF the back
and defy the world,
THE FLESH AND THE DEVIL"
Passing to the consideration of the
bill, Mr.. McMillin said that it proposed
to make reduction of S76, 000,0 900 from
tariff and internal revenue sources, and
the plain, simple question presented is:
Twill we take this burden Off. or will
we leave it on? Will we free commerce
by leaving it unShackled. or will we
keep it hampered? Will we continue to
hoard up surplus, or leave the money
in the pockets of the people, where it
belongs? These are grave questions
which confront us, and these are the
subjects upon which we are to act. AT
time when there was not one 1.-THE the
necessity OF demand for tariff reduction
that there is now, the gentleman from
Pennsylvania (RandalD had made a
speech in congress favOring the ap-
pOintment of tariff commission, in
which he made use of strong arguments
in favor of reduction. The committee
had done the very thing that it was
stated then were necessary. Tney had
prepared bill. Every bond subject to
the call of the government since that
speech was made has been paid. Every
dollar of Indebtedness which could be
discharged without the payment OF a
high premium had been eXtinguiShed !;
vast accumulatiOns had been piled up
i'm the treasury until its vaults were
bursting with money which ought to be
i'm the channels of trade, till there was
SAC, 900, 900 where there had been only
small surplus. This house stood
ready to
MAKE GOOD TIE WORDS
which he used OH that occasion. 1t was
ready to give the relief which he said
the people were entitled to. 1t was
ready and willing to remove the tempta-
ton to corrupt government which he
said was always found i'll full treas
ury. 1t was to aid him in insuring to
the people that frugality and economy
which he said never destroyed any gov
eminent, and to prevent that saturnalia
of extravaganza and disgrace which he
said characterized the period just an
terror to 1874. He compared China,
which he said desired no intercourse
with foreign nations, and would not
have any that could be avoided, with
England, which had ridden the waves
of all oceans. and her flags flew in every
sea: and these two we're fit illustrations
of the difference between the exclusive
doctrine which his opponents would in
culcate and that broader policy which
seeks commerce wherever it can be
made profitable" Mr.. Mcmillan de-
clared that protection had been the
worst enemy to our merchant marine
and crushed our Seafaring industry, yet
gentlemen proposed to pay subsidies
out of the treasury, or, in other words,
to levy taxes upon those who live inland
to make money for those engaged in the
CARRYING trade. The claim of the pro-
tectiOnists that the high duties existing
were imposed or are kept for the
BENEFIT OF THE LABORING MAN,
he stated, was fallacy, and continuing,
hn cin
the minority report complained of the
manner in which the bill under consid-
Grafton had been prepared. They were
in no attitude to complain III any event,
because it was well-knOwn fact that
the very gentlemen who signed the
minority report in 1883 railroaded
through congress and on to the statute
book bill which was not only never
prepared by the ways and means CON-
mittee of the house, as contemplated by
the constitution, but was never read in
the house of representatives. The
tariff law which the house now sought
to amend thus became law without
the members of congress ever having
heard or read it. The present law
taxed the poor mans articles highly
and placed low rate on luXurieS. The
committees bill is so framed that the
TAX Will Idll illOSI heavily upOu luAuTlcS
and those things without which the
people can live, rather than upon the
necessaries of life. He turned his at
tention to
THE SUBJECT OF TRUSTS
and said: ''For years we have had these
halls ringing with statements that by
and by home competition would
give us the lowest possible prices. The
welkin has been made to ring with this
declaration reiterated and reiterated
until even those who first proclaimed it
have almost gotten to believe it. But
look at our unfortunate situation and
let this delusion be dispelled. While
the government has thrown up it's tariff
walls without, monopOlists have joined
hands within for the purpose of putting
up prices and plundering the people
through the devices known as trusts,
afn No hayQ tho ctQQl rail trucf u,biob