Los Angeles daily herald., 1888-01-19
THURSDAY, JANUARY 10, 1883.
senator stewart ON The Tariff.

Perhaps the ablest attempt yet
made in the way of attacking Presi-
dent Cleveland's Message is that of
Senator Stewart of Nevada. Unlike
the utterances of his confreres OF the
Republican party, the remarks of the
Nevadan deserve some serious atten-
ton. They do not in all cases carry
their own refutation on their face.
The distinguished Senator packs the
pith of his attack on the Administra-
tion's views into few pithy sentences !:
The issue, as l understand it, is
whether the American people have
come to the conclusion that they will
stop doing their own work and hire it
done, and send what money we have
out OF the country with which to buy
the necessaries OF life, and leave our
people without employment. / be-
1ieve that nations, as we'll as indi-
viduals, get itch by doing their own
work, and that fact is pretty we'll il
lustrated by the history Of this
country. Every time we have had a
tariff SO that we had to do our own
work, we have grown rich. See what
has happened since 1860. We des-
troyed at least $S, 600, 900 900 OF prop
erty in the war. If remember COR
rectly, we had $16,000,0 900, 900 Of prop
erty in the United States in 1860.
In 1870 we had over $50 900, 900, 900,
or about $24, 900, 600 900 estimated on
a goldbasis. In 1880 we had something
over $43, 900, 900 600 and we were
then pretty nearly equal to Great
Britain. A fair estimate of the value
of the property of the United States
to-day, according to the ratio of in
crease since 1850, is not less than
10000, 900, 900. We are now lar in
excess Of Great Britain. In 1860 the
wealth of the United States per capita
!, was $514. 1t is now over $1,000. This
is the result of doing our own work.
There is no other visible agency to
produce it.
In eight octave pages printed as this
quotation, there is little more done by
the Senator than to ring changes on
the above strain. In the first place,
the assumption is made here,
rs in all other utterances from
the Republican party thus far,
that the Democratic programme, as
outlined by the President in his mes
sage, is Free Trade. 1t is, Of course,
an unfair assumption, as there is not
word in the message Of MIR. Cleve-
land to justify it. This Senator Stew
art knows, and, so does every other
Republican speaker or writer of intel
igence who makes use of this unfair
way of stating the issue. Mr.. Cleve-
land was explicit in his statement,
that all looked to is such a reduction
of tariff as will stop the production of
more revenue than an honest and
properly economical management
of National affairs demands. The
surplus last year was little short of
$50, 100000. 1t is unfair to assume
that any greater reduction in import
duties than this is aimed at.
Then again, Mr.. Cleveland plainly
intimated that raw materials rather
than manufactures offered the best
field in which to make the desired
changes. This line of policy is di-
rectly in the interest of those whose
cause the Nevada Senator seems SO
warmly to espouse. We have tax on
wool, jute, lumber and coal. The
removal Of these imposts will
greatly stimulate manufactures,
and building. 1t will tend to make
more work for us as Nation, and at the
same time to give us cheaper clothing,
cheaper fuel and cheaper houses.
How will the wage-winner be hurt by
such results? So, after all, Senator
Stewart is dealing like Mr.. Blaine and
Senator Sherman with the most in
name of glittering generalties.
As to the other part of the argu-
ment, no man in America knows bet
ter than Senator Stewart that it
was not the tariff of the past 80
years which has increased the
wealth of the Nation. In this Sena-
tor Stewart proves too much. MIR.
Gladstone is by all odds the ablest
living man in dealing with economic
questions. He showed q few years
ago that the increase of wealth in
Great Britain had been absolutely
more in pounds, shillings and pence
nince the year 1900 than it had been
n al the eighteen centuries preceding
hack to the date of Julius Casar's
handing on the island. He went
further in his statistics
and proved that by far the greater
part Of this growth in wealth had
1sken place since 1910. Thus from the
date Of the Free Trade programme 60
ing into effect in England, the country
Increased in absolute wealth more in
The aggrega gate than it had in all the
centuries preceding that event. Is
senator Stewart prepared to say that