The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1888-08-23

the people, a great many intended to deceive
and delude them. but in all my life have never
witnessed such audacity as have noticed this
year on the part of the advocates of the high
protective tarif-neNer before; and there seems
TO be singular disregard of truth that has sud
denly afflicted them. do not like to call peo-
pie hard names. | have all my life endcavored
to keep civil tongue in my head, and mean
10 keep 1t as long as live, but do say that
some people sometimes seem to lose their senses
SO that they cannot discern the truth, and often,
unfortunately, cannot speak II. lApplause.l
CURIOUS FACT.
Attor stating what he called a curious
fact, and one of the worst things about this
tariff tax, that while the government gets
81 resulting from the tax, the domestic
manufactures gets 49, Judge Thurman
went on TO say:
The amount of goods imported into the
Cnitd States-dutiable gOods-in the year iSs1,
the last yoLT fog which we have any returns,
were in value $3.50 325, 392. The tariff duties
collected were SEA, O32, 1874 There were, there
tore, III that single year, taxes levied on the
United states by the operation of this tariff law
OF S2l20}2,i2L which went into the treasury OF
the United States.
THE LEAST og THE BURDEN.
But that have told YOU was the least part Of
the burden. The domestic manufactures of the
same kind OF commodities amounted that year
to $500, $40 lGl That is, in other words, to five
thousand three hundred and sixty nine mill
on dollars and as tho price of those goods was
raised ny the tariff in nearly equal proportions
to the price Of goods that werO imported into
the country, the amount which the people PAD
in the high prices Of what they had TO buy and
had to use, amounted to about Sl,OOOO0OOO, or
to about five times as much as the tax received
by the government for the use OF the govern
ment. In other words the whole country was
taxed about $1,000, ,O00,000 for the benefit of
comparatively small portion Of the country,
and that is SAID to be justice that is said to be
fair play that is said TO be for the benefit Of the
American people
HOW 1T WOULD WORK.
Judge Thurman then gave his hearers
some hOmely illustrations of how this same
principle might work if applied TO persons
engaged in pursuits not protected by the
tariff.
Why not tax the people directly for the benefit
Of lawyers or OF doctors, whose practice does
not enrich them az fast as they desire know
there are a few cases, but they are very few and
exceptional, and not of sufficient importance to
make it necessary for me to speak
of them to-day in the limited time
| have to speak In which the
duty or tariff tax is not paid by the consumer,
but they arc so trihing in amount and 80 insg
nificant that 1t Is not necessary that should
occupy your time with them. The principle
general fact is that this tax - Here the speaker
was interrupted by cheering and applause,
which followed his producing his bandann
hGndkerchicfl. Well, gentlemen, this is good,
honest handkerchief, and could have bought it
a good deal cheaper if it had not been for the
tariff tax. [Great laughter and prolonged
cheering.1
QUOTING JOHN QUINCY ADAMS.
Judge Thurman here quoted from a re-
port made by John Quincy Adams in 1882,
as chairman of the committee on manufact-
ures in the house Of representatives as fol-
lows:
The doctrine that the duties of import seem
to cheaper the price of articles on which they
are levied, seems TO conflict with the first IN
stiucts of common sense The duty constitutes
the heart of the price of the whole mass of
articles in the market. 1t is substantially laid
upon the article of domestic manufactures rs
well as upon that Of foreign production: Upon
one it Is bounty, upon the other burden, and
repeal of the tax must operate as
an equivalent reduction OF the price of
the article whether foreign or domestic. We
say so long as importation continues the duty
must be paid by the purchaser of the article.
The general and permanent effect must be to
increase the price Of the article to the extent
OF the additional duty, and 1t ID then paid by
the consumer. If it were not so, II the general
effect of adding the dnty was to reduce the cost
OF the article upon which it Is levied, che CON
verse OF the proposition would also be true,
and the operation for increasing the price of
the domestic article would be to repeal the
duty on the same article imported-an expert
ment which the friends Of our internal industry
will not be desirous of making. We cannot sub
scribe, therefore. to the doctrine that duties of
imports protective OF our manufacturers are
lbalu ny INC iOItISu iIlplClldiiL VI
PRESIDENT ARTHUR's RECOMMENDATION.
Judge Thurman also quoted from Presi-
dent Arthur's annual message to congress in
lSS2-3 President Arthur said:
recommend au enlargement Of the free list
that is, of goods that pay no duty-so as to
incude within II numerous articles which yield
an incopsiderable revenue; simplhcaton Of the
complex and Inconsistent schedule of duties
upon certain manufactures, particularly those
OF cotton, iron and steel, and a substantial re
duction of the ties upon those articles, and
upon sugar mOlGSses, wool and wooden goods.
DEMOCRACY TRYING TO DO IT.
Well. that is precisely what the democrats
are striving to do. That is precisely whet the
Mills bill as it is called, attempts to do; aud yet
these gentlemen who are bowling around about
tho benefits of protection and the ruin that tho
democrats are bringing to this country tell you
that this thing which President Arthur recon-
mended ouly 80 lately is nothing in the world
but free trade, They are more afraid OF free
Laughter and applause.l They are terribly
alarmed lest they should be bitten by free trade.
lReuewed laughter Well now 50 far from
This being free trade, the most striking thing
about the Mills bill is that it is the most moder-
ate reduction Of tariff duties that has ever
been attempted in this country.
HOW 1T AFFECTS LABOR
Discussing the doctrine that protective
tariff will benefit labor by raising its
wages, Judge ThJuman queried:
would like TO know how that can be
would like 10 know how taxing the lnboring
man on every ything, from the crown Of his head
to the sole Of bis feet, il going 10 enrich him
[Lalghter and applause Yet this is exactly
what this tariff tax does.
AS to wages, Judge Thurman conceded
that tie high tariff enabled the manufact-
urer of protected goods to pay higher
wages but he did not do it.
Did YOU ever know them TO do it2 he asked.
[Applause and cries Of mo- The tariff has
been raised again and again since 1861, yet In
all that time never have been able TO find
manufacturer or capt aist who, upon the rails
ing Of the tariff has increased the price paid 20
his laborerS. n there was such case, II has
escaped the attention Of everybody, even OF
those diligcGt newspaper men, who gather mp
all the news aud sometimes great deal that is
not news at all. lferiimentl
NEGRO LABOR.
But there Is one class OF laborers, my
friends that / want 20 call your attention 10
esp,cinIly There Is ono class Of laborers IT, this
country who have been, accOring TO the claims
OF the abotionis3 in the country, and OF the
republicans, their especial warIs, especially
under their guardianship and for whose interests
they feel most peculiar and earnest solicitude,
and those are the negroes Now the result OF
the war was 10 free about f,00).OJD or negroes,
and am very glad they were freed, and they
have Increased now 10 about G,o0O,OOO or 7OOO,-
00O for the negro IL a prolific animal. lGreht
Laughter and MP lause.l How do these negroes
mike their liyingg WIZ great many OF them
go 10 town and pursue any kind OF handicraft
they can, becoming domestic servants, backing
shoes, or doing anything OF that Kind.
HOW HE Is FLEEcED
But in the country the negro makes what he