Virginia free press. (Charlestown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1832-1916, 1888-03-22
Sirginia frre grr5s.
22, 1855.
BILL YYE on IHE TAAIFE.
He Makcs a Suggestion or Ttco About
The Best W0y IF Juggling
the Surplus.

While so many oiher men who know
as little as do about it are discussing the
tariff it seems almost cowardly in me to
hang back. | have resolved, therefore,
to give utterance to 4 few terse and ring
ing sentences, not calculated to inhame
the country, of course, for | have always
tried to be temperate, especially in my
language, and sought to avoid using my
wonderful gifts as a word-painter and
rhetorical thunderboll-jerker in a way
that would excite the lower case nature OF
man to war or tend to depress the stock
market. Go to any Wall street man OF
prominence to-day and he will tell you,
unless he should happen TO be prcjudiced
because l may have pinched him in some
deal or other, that | have never tuned
my Tyre for the purpose of melting the
nation TO civil war or sought to unsettle
values or to wreck great financial enter
prises. But say that at time when
the less a man knows about the tariff the
more freely he enters into discussi OF
it think it would be wrong for me to
longer restrain myself Go where you
will in this country to-day and you will
find men talking about the tariff and the
tax on raw material who haven't had a
mouthful Of raw material or any other
kind in the house for weeks, except rs
their wives earned it and brought it home
to them. This country is full Of men
who have thought so hard for the en-
mon veal that the seat of their panta-
looms shine like the dome of the Massa-
chusetts State house.
And now there arises in the distance a
large and growing surplus, which indi-
Gates that as soon as the parties get near
/ ly balanced and sit up nights and watch
each her at Washington there is good
deal more money coming into the treas
nry than is needed to run the mighty ma
chincry of Government. Friends Of the
present methods say it Is easier to handle
deficiency, for you can return surplus
to the people. That Is true You can
lake il from the pockes of those who un-
Justly paid it and then return it to those
who have no claim upon ii,meantime pay
inr good salaries TO those who collect II
and to hose who distribute it, allowing a
good-sized percentage for what may be
DETECTED toward Canada.
Mr.. Blaine desires to reduce the sur
plus by reducing the lax on tobacco, thus
making tobacco juice as free as water
and winning the esteem Of several voter;
who would trade what patriotism they
have for an election day cigar with a spi
nal column to it any time. As a man
who has used low grade Of high test
cigars for some years, and as man who
has been in the habit Of supporting Mr.
Blaine year after year until l had almos
become a slave to the habit, desire t'
state that the style of craftsmanship
which strives to win my young and trust
inc heart with the promise of seven gooC
cigars for a quarter is not the kind tina
/ first established this republic on a payin;
basis.
Everybody recognizes the utter impos
sibility of knocking out financial strin
gency by means Of melodious resolution
or paralyzing poverty with dark re,
preamble. You cannot gather fresh train
fgs Oh board the Thistle, or paciiy oil
man Gastric with the empty promise c
cheaper chewing tobacco.
Several gentlemen have invented meth
DDS f,r the prevention of rich mel
schemes by which property may be equa
lied and divided per capita instead
per capital. The result Of this could b
easily figured out in advance. To-da
Jay Gould would be wealthy and Heur
George hungry, we will say. To-morro
Jay Gould and Henry George woul