The Sully County watchman. (Clifton, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1894, 1888-09-15


The address delivered by Gen. But.
Ter in Fremont Temple. Boston, in re-
sponse to an invitation addressed to him
by business men and others some of
whom have been Democrats and some
Republicans, but all of whom concurred
in the desire to hear Gen. Buffers views
on the two important questions of the
tariff and the fisheries was pointed and
vigorous and one which will trouble the
free traders. aud the apologists for the
administration. The great throng
which crowded the temple 10 its utmost
capacity attests the extent of the In
fluence which was awakened by the an
nouncement of his purpose to discuss
these grave questions.
General Butler strongly favored a
protective system. He finds that the
fathers of the Republic made the en-
couragement of manufactures as much n
prime necessity us the support of the
government and the discharge of public
debts, and that the establishment of do
mestic manufacturing industries by levy
ing duties on imports has always been
leading idea of American policy he
took issue therefore with President
Cleveland's denunciation of the existing
tariff laws as vicious. inequltable, and
illogical" and discarding absolute free
trade and tariff for protection without
regard OF revenue as alike out of the
question, he declared vigorously for
tariff for revenue, carefully adjusted to
secure protection TO American industries,
as against tariff for revenue only. He
took the city of Lowell rs an illustration
of the benefits of protection and drew
upon his own observation of the changes
which have taken place in that city 10 IL
lustrate the progress which the protective
policy here made possible. He entered
with some technical details into the
wool question, and contrasted very eff
fectively the Democratic treatment of
the wooden interests with that of the
cotton interests, making good point
when he showed that the bagging and
ties which the Mills bill puts on the free
list in order to relieve the cotton planter
are actually paid for by the manufactur-
err who buys the bales ut their full
weight i'm cotton. The result of this sys-
tenn is that the bagging which costs the
planter three cents a pound, is sold TO
the buyer as cotton ut 10 to % cents q
pound. General Butler also drew at
tention to the fact that the policy EN-
bodied in the Mills bill il urged by the
very men vino would have liked to
force the same policy on the country be-
fore the war, in order 10 weaken the
North in the carrying forward that
great struggle: and further, that it is a
policy which England, for excellent but
selfish reasons, wants us to adopt.
The second part of General Buffers
| speech. which dealt with the fisheries,
| was briefer and more pungent than the
tariff portion. There were flashes in il
| of his old railery, as he recitei the lead
| ing facts in the history of the question
and dwelt upon the weakness and vacil-
lation of the administration. He made
| light of Senator Morgan's gloomy prog.
nostications of war, and characterized
with the plainness which il deserves the
| fisheries treaty rejected by the Senate.
| He pointed out the ways in which we
have been repeatedly over-reached by
| England in the negotiations over the
| fisheries, and wittily sugge sted that the
best treaty if not bought by British gold
was melted by British dinners. He sug
| gests that if the President were in earn
| est in his last message he should enforce
retaliation by the power lie has haC
since March of last year, and expressed
surprise that the outragcs which hav,
been going on since 1885 have not been
| checked.