The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1888-04-12
THE NELSON SPEECH.

The HERALD acknowledges receipt of
the full text of Hon. Knute Nelson's ia
nous tariff reform speech, and fails to
find any distinctively un-republican doc
trine or political heresy in it. He has re-
duced to cogent English just what he
personally means by tariff reform,
measure to which the republican party
is pledged in general terms. He reduces
the proposition of reform to an interro-
gative form, as follows: "Shall we get
rid of our surplus by extravagant expen-
ditures or by reducing taxation; and if
by the latter method, shall we reduce
tariff taxes or internal revenue taxes?"
The present issue could not be more
tersely stated, and nine out of every ten
republicans will make the identical an
swer, in some form or other, which he
makes in his speech-the true method of
reducing the surplus is not to collect it,
and the reduction should come through
tariff rather than internal revenue taxes.
He takes the ground that there is no de-
mand by the great mass Of the people for
a reduction in the tobacco tax, and that
its revenue is collected at less expense
than any other the government receives.
If there be any sounder republican doc
trine than that embodied In the following
extract from the speech, the HERALD new
er. had the satisfac ton of perusing it:
The primary object of a protective tar
if is to enlarge and expand our field of
production in those directions in which
we are fairly open to expansion, for do
not believe protective tariff is justified
in those cases where nature has put
veto on the power of expansion, and
where revenue rather than increased pro-
duction seems to be the chief result, as in
the case of sugar. Coming to the ques-
ton of the degree of protection that
ought to be given in a case where pro-
lection is fairly warranted, it seems to
me that only so high a duty should be
laid as will fairly cover the difference in
the cost of production here and abroad,
be it in labor, raw material, or interest
on capital. Such a tariff l call a low
tariff as distinguished from a revenue
tariff. Where tariff tax exceeds in a
uCSICC lIlS C6Tm IL q
high tariff. 1t then becomes more or less
prohibitive, breeds monopolies, and
works injury both to the consumer and
the laboring man.
The republican party could not do
better than to embody the substance
and spirit of the above extract into its
national platform-for it is the policy
which will commend itself to thinking
men and is boun1 to prevail in the end
1t is protection pure and undefled, and
as far removed from the principle of free
trade or tariff for revenue only as the
east is from the west. In his discussion
of the relation of wages to the tariff he
may not be so peculiarly happy, but that
part of his speech is speculative at best,
and does not affect the real issue, but
merely draws conclusions from the issue.
All the talk about Mr.. Nelson being out
of harmony with his party arises either
from ignorance of his position or design
ing Misrepresentation. He was never a
better exponent of true Republicanism
than he is to-day, and no apology need
be rendered for the political faith to
which he has given much pointed express
sion.