The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1888-10-13
A Farmer on the Tariff.
High Protection is RuinOus TO the Agri
culturist-

The following letter is taken IRON the fdr'
ners' Voice, published at Chicago:
ODESSA, KANSAS, August IA, 1S88.-Edtor
Farmers Voice:-Dear Sir:-By your per-
mission / would like through your valuable
naper to answer the hundreds of personal
letters that L receive from Republicans
throughout the different States of the Union
on the tariff question, which l think l can
give in few plain facts that ought to be sat
isfactory to any inquirer.
By going back and looking up the record
of our first protective tariff, under Washing
toms administration, in 1889, we find there
was a purely protective tariff levied on less
than 100 articles, and only an eight per cent.
tariff at that.
For fifty EIGHT years, up to 1891, we ma
that this protection only reached ~ per cent.
and this 80 per cent. was only seventeen
years during this fifty-eight years OF protee-
ton. and forty-one years of this fifty eight the
tariff only averaged about Is per cent, this,
too, when our manufactures were IN their
infancy.
If we are to take the Republican party S
protection argument, our manufactures are
greater infants now than they were IN Wash
ington's day, for we find them contending for
protection of 70 per cent.
This protection alone, of itself, ought to
show all consumers where they are placed.
Ifthe retired millionaire, merchant, banker
or railroad king wants to send to London or
Paris, for q diamond ring it will cost him
about 10 per cent to pay the protection, but
if laboring man wants to send over there
for suit of clothes he pays 60 to S9per cent.
of protection on them.
Or, if want to build house on my farm,
can get the lumber for it under two-dol-
lar protective duty on the 1000 feet, but rail
road ties come free.
Oh, yes, says the protectionist, don't re-
duce the protection on that, for it will ruin
our manufacturing interests. Letu see, has
it ruined the manufacture OF qulnlne IN the
United States? When we had over 800 per
cent. of protection on this article OF medicine
the shaking sufferers of this country bought
quinine from our manufacturers in the United
States at SO. so per ounce, and in 1872 qui-
nine was put on the free list and to-day you
can buy it anywhere in the United States,
from twelve manufacturers, at 80 cents per
ounce, a saving of millions of dollars to the
poor, suffering sick, and yet those four manu-
iacturers sent lobbyists to Congress declaring
that if quinine was put on the free list 1t would
ruin that industry, hence we can see how 1t
has been ruined; instead of four we have
twelve manufactures of the article.
NV interests are directly with the agrlcul-
tural classes; the farmers Of America feed the
nation, and we live in surplus producing
country, aud this surplus is thrown into the
foreign markets of the world.
Raised under high protection, sold in COM
petition with foreign cheap labor, thereby
ruling to great extent the bulk OF what l
sell az home.
Yes, sir, tweniy-eight years ago Republic
can was willing to pay the war tariff, to save
tho conntrv Int since that time for twenty
three years, we have been paying 1t to manu-
facturers.
Under the Morrill, tariff of 1861, which was
the war tariff, one that the circumstances of
that day required Mr.. Lincoln and our Con-
gressmen knew that high tariff was an in
direct tax from the people, and when the war
closed our manufacturers saw the wealth OF
millions there was in high tariff and took
good care, through the Republican party, to
continue the war tariff at the expense OF the
toiling millions of consumers of the nation.
This has been one Of the means of Gripping
the agricultural interests of the land. We
find from the statistics of export and naviga-
ton, the agricultural produce eight dollars
out of every ten over the manufacturing inter-
ests, which is one of the boosted means of the
nation.
We find under the last ten years of low
tariff that the agricultural interests increased
over 100 per cent. in ten years, then I'M
der the first ten years OF high tariff
our agricultural interests decreased to Al pei
cent, and then the next ten years of high
tariff it decreased to not quite mills on the
dollar per annum which we think is plain
enough for any man to see where class-legis-
lation is leading us to, and we ask who has
done this? We answer, the Republican party.
+ NJ HAMAKER