Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1888-08-30


taxed people is to reduce the tax, that the
way to treat a people honestly, fairly and
wisely, is to take no more taxes out of their
pocket than the government actually needs
forexpenditures ['criesof good, that's right
and applause.l The ISSUE then is clearly
made up between US. 1t is between high tax
alton on the one hand and reasonable taxa
tion on the other. 1t is between taking the
money Of the people out Of their own con-
troll, out of their own pockets and burying
it in the cellars of the treasury department,
or leaving it where it belongs, in the pockets
of the people to be used as their wants, their
requirements, their intelligence and honesty
directs"
The speaker was interrupted at this point
by well-meaning gentleman on the plat
form who suggested that as the sun was
shining in his face Judge Thurman might
feel more comfortable if he stepped more
within the shade. "0h," said Mr.. Thurman,
quickly causing roar of laughter, ''the sun
never hurts Democrat and facing the
audience again he continued his speech.
snow, my friends, in the long political
life that / have led, l have heard a great
many folsr pratcuses preached to the people,
intended to deceive and delude then, but in
all my life have never witnessed as much
audacity as 1 noticed this year on the part
of the advocates of a high protective tariff
They seem to have been suddenly affected
with singular disregard of the truth. do
not intend to call people hard names. 1
have all my life kept a civil tongue iii my
head, and l mean to keep it as long as I live,
but do say that some people sometimes
seem to lose their senses or they cannot see
the truth, and often, unfortunately, can't
speak it. daughter and cheersl
"Just think of it for one moment. We
are told that high tariff makes country
richer, as il it were possible to make a coun-
try richer by oppressively taxing its people.
Amt that new way to make a man rich to
run your hand into his pocket and take out
what you find there? [Laughterl and that
without any just reason whatever for doing
So Amt that singular way to make any
body richa And that is precisely the plan
that those folks advocate when they tell us
that the country is to be made wealthy by
means Of high taxation. Again they have
the audacity to say that this tariff is not
paid by the consumers of the articles which
are taxed. Why, if the consumers of taxed
articles do not pay tho tax, would like to
know who does3 IA voice, $50 would l." and
cheersl Do these protection orators pay for
it! Do the manufacturers pay it? Who
pays it if the people who consume, the articles
that are taxed don't9 Can any man answer
that question to the satisfaction -
Here Judge Thurman was interrupted by
the presentation Of a note. He looked at it
moment and said:
II am afraid there are some high protec.
tionists in this audience, for lady sends ME
this note to read to you A lady has just
nad her pocket picked, and she thinks it is
nigh tariff. [Laughter.l Wel," said Judge
Thurman, II hope the high tariff man who
has taken that lady's money will be caught
and made to refund before he leaves Port
Huron" Laughter and applause.1
Continuing with his speech the Judge
said:
"Now, my friends, if you will reflect for @
moment you will see that it is necessarily
the case that tariff taxes are paid by the con-
sumner of the articles which are taxed, and of
all the domestic articles Of like kind which
are manufactured in the United States. 1t
is curious fact, and one of the worst things
about this tariff tax, that while the govern
ment gets 81 resulting from the tax, do
mestic manufacturers get s., as it is best
estimated, that never goes into the treasury
at all.
"How does this happen9 A man called an
importer brings goods into the United States
to be sold. He cannot sell yard or pound
until he pays this tariff tax. He pays it,
therefore, and then sells it to the merchant
OF course he must get this tax back in price
for what he sells or he would lose his money.
His business would break up at once There
fore he puts the tax on the original cost of
goods and with that price added with the
cost Of transpor tation and his reasonable
commercial profit, he sells the goods to the
merchant; the merchant sells to the retail
merchant and of course this tax which en-
tered into the price continues in the price,
and to it is added the profit of the merchant.
Then the retail merchant sells to you, and of
course he must get in this price, for other.
wise he would sell for less than he gave for
the goods, and no man would consent TO do
that. Therefore, the tax is in, when the
cloth, for instance, is sold to you, and in the
price you pay this retail merchant you also
pay the whole of this tariff tax, the impor-
ter's profits, the wholesale merchants profits
and the retail merchants profits, beside the
interest upon their money.
"It is as plain as two and two are four. If
l was a schoolmaster and boy of ten years
could not understand that after ten minutes
teaching would give him up as hopelessly
an idiot. [Laughter.l That is the fact in
respect to this branch of the subject Now,
how much do you pays The amount of
dutiable goods imported into the United
States in 1887 was in value $3.50, 0,O00, 900 in
round numbers. The duties collected on
those goods, the tax, were S2l2, ,0j0, 900 and q
fraction. Therefore, in that single year q
tax was levied Oh the people of the United
States by the operation of this tariff law of
$2l2, ,0OO, 900 and fraction, which went into
the Federal treasury. But that as I have
told you was the least of the burden, the do.
nestle manufacturers of the same kind of
commodities amounted to that year to S.
369, 900 900, and as the price of those goods
was raised by the tariff in nearly or equal
proportion to the price of the goods that
were imported, the amount which the people
paid by reason of these high prices of what
they had to buy or had to use amounted to
one billion, that is about five times as much
as the tax received by the government for
the use Of government.
SIN other words the whole community
was taxed about one billion dollars for the
benefit of comparatively small portion of
the community, and that is said to be Just
That is said to be fair play; that is said to
be for the benefit Of American people? Why
don't they carry it out further9 When they !
find in Port Huron lawyer-I speak kindly