Audubon County Republican. [volume] (Audubon, Audubon Co., Iowa) 1885-1894, 1888-09-13
HARRISoN's ACCEPTANCE.
He Discusses tile Leading Issues Of
the Day In His Letter.
peiines 5ls Position on Tariff Reform,
civil Service. the surplus, and
Other subjects,

General HarrlSOn,S letter OF acceptance:
Hon. NJ. NJ. ESTEE AND OTHERS, COMMIT
TEE, ETC.--Gentlemen: When your commit
tee visited me on the Fourth of July last
and presented the official notice of my nomi-
nation to the presidency of the United
States by the republican convention, prom
isCd rs soon as practicable to communicate
TO you u more formal acceptance of the
nomination. Since that time the work of re-
ceiving and addressing almost daily a large
delegation of my fellow citizens has not only
occupied all of my time but has in some
measure rendered it unnecessary for me TO
use this letter as medium of
communicating to the public my
views of the questions involved,
| appreciate very highly the confidence and
respect manifested by the convention, and
accept the nomination with feeling of graft
itudc and u full sense of the responsibilities
which accompany it. 1t Is matter of con-
graduation that the declarations of the Chi
CagO convention upon the questions that now
attract the interests of our people are so clear
and emphatic. There is further cause for
cOngratuatiOn in the fact that the COnvGp-
ton utteTanccs of the democratic party, II in
any degree uncertain or contradictory,
can now be judged and interpreted
by executive acts and messages
and by definite propositions in legislation
This is especially true of what is known as
the tariff question. The issue cannot now he
schedules but between wide apart princi-
pies. The foreign competitors for our mar.
kCts have, with quick instinct, seen how one
issue of this contest may bring them advan-
tagc, and our own people are not SO dull as
to miss or neglect the grave interests in
VOWED for them. The assault upon our
protective system is open and defiant. PrOteC-
ton is unconstitutional in law or rs vicious
in principle, and those who hold such
views sincerely cannot stop short of an ALSO
lutte elimination frOm our tariff laws on the
principle of protection. The Mills bill is only
II step, but it is toward an object that the
leaders of democratic Thought and legislation
have clearly in mind. The important qucs-
ton SIS not so much the length of the step but
the direction taken. Judged by the cxCCu-
tive message of December 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 "A purely revenue basis.
This is practical free trade, free trade in the
English SENSE The legend upon the banner
may not be free trade" 1t 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 important fact. Those who teach
that the import duty on foreign goods sold in
our market is paid ny the consumer, and
that the price of the domestic competing ar
tcC is enhanced to the amount of the duty
on the imported article; that every mil
lion Of dollars collected for the
customs duties represents many millions
more which do not reach the treasury and are
paid 10y our citizens, the increased cost Of do
m"stiC productions by the tariff laws, may
not intend 10 diSCrcdit our system of lCvying
duties on competing foreign products, but it
is clearly already di>CrCditcd in their own
minds. We cannot doubt without mpugnng
their integrity that if free to act upon their
convictions they would SO revise our laws Ms
to lay the burden of the customs revenue
upon articles that are not produced in tins
country, and to place upon the free list
all competing foreign products, do not stop
to rCfutC this theory rs to the effect of our
tariff duties. Those who advance il are
students of maXims and not the markets.
They may safely be allowed to call their
project tariff reform if the people under
stand that in the end the argument cOmpClS
free trade in all competing products. This
end may not he reached abruptly, and its APP
preach may be accompanied with some cX-
preston of sympathy for our protected in
dustricS and our working people, but it
will certainly come, If these early steps
do not arouse the people to effective
resistance. The republican party holds that
protective tariff is constitutional, whole
some and necessary. We do not offer fixed
schedule or principle. We will revise the
scale, modify the rates, but always with an
intelligent provision for the effect on dOmcs-
tic production and the wages of our working
people We believe it to be one of the worthy
objects of tariff legislation to pcrscrvc the
American market for American producers,
and TO maintain the American scale
OF wages by adequately discriminating
duties upon foreign competing
products The effect of lower rates and
larger importation upon the public revenue
is contingent and doubtful but not so the eff
Less work and lower wages must be accept
ed rs the inevitable result OF the increased
offerings of foreign goods in our market. BY
way Of rcCOmpense for this reduction of his
wages and the loss of the American market,
it is suggested that the diminished wages of
the wOrkingman will have an uudiminished
purchasing power, and that he will be able
TO make up for the loss of the
home markets by enlarged foreign market
Our wOTkingmCn have the settlement of the
question in their own hands. They now OBJ
tain higher wages and live more comfortable
than those of any other country. They will
make choice between the substantial advant-
age they have in hand and the deceptive
promises and forecasts of these theOriZing
rcfOrmcTS They will decide for themselves
and for the country whether the protective
system shall be continued or destroyed.
The fact of u treasury surplus, the amount
OF which is Yariuusy stated, has attracted
pGblC NtlcnllOn 10 u consideration OF the
methods by which the internal income may
he reduced to the level of wise and neces-
sary expenditure. This condition has been
seized upon 10y those who are hostile to pro-
tcctiye' custom duties as an advantageous
basis of attack upon our tariff laws. They
have magniiied and nurSed the surplus, which
they affect to depreCate. seemingly for the
purpose of eXaggerating the evil, in order to
reconcile the people to the extreme
remedy they propose. A proper reduction
of the revenues does not ncccssitate and
should not suggest the abandonment or i'm
pairment of the protective system. The
methods suggested by our convention need
not be exhausted to effect the necessary re-
ductiOn. We are not likely to be called upon,
think, to make Il present choice between
the surrender of the protective system and
the entire repeal of the internal taxes. Such
a contingency, in view of the present rela-
ton of expenditures to revenues, is remote.
The inspection and regulation of the manu-
facturc and sale of OleOmargerne is import
ant, and the revenue derived from il is not Sc
great that the repeal of this 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 au'
thorizcs this use of it, and if it is not needed
for current or deficiency appropriations, the
people, and not the banks in which Ii ha:
been deposited, should have tho advantage,
of its use by stopping interest upon the pub
lie debt. At least those who needlessly hoarC
II should not be allowed to use the fear of
monetary stringency thus produced to coerc'
public sentiment upon other questions.
Closely connected with the subject of th'
tariff is that of the Importation of foreign
labOreTs under contracts of service to be per
formed here. The laws now in force prohibiting
such contracts received my cordial supper
in the senate, and such amendments as MAJ
be found necessary effectively to deliver on
wOrkingmen and women from this most in
equitable form of competition will have IN.
sincere advocacy. Legislation prohibiting
the importation Of laborers under contract
to serve here will, however, afford very mad
equate relief TO our working people If tn,
system of protective duties is broken down
If the products of American shops mus
compete In the American market withou
tuyOrng duties, with the products of cheaI
foreign labor, the effect will b,
different, if at all, only IL
degree, whether the cheap labo
Is across the street or over the sea. Sucf
competition will soon reduce wages here u
the level of those abroad, and when that con
dltlon is reached we will not need any laws
torbldding importation of laborers under
contract They will have no inducement tc
come aud the employer no inducement to
send for them. In the earlier years of our