St. Landry democrat. (Opelousas, La.) 1878-1894, 1888-09-22

| neglect the grave interests that are involved
| for them. The assault upon our protective
system is open and defiant. Protection is as
sailed as unconstitutional in law or as vicious
| IN principle, and those who hold such views
| sincerely, can not stop short OF an absolute
| elimination from our tariff laws of the princi
| pie of protection. The Mills bill is only step
| but 1t is toward an object that the leaders oil
| Democratic thought and legislation have clear
~ in mind. The important question Ia not sc
much the length Of the step as the direction Of
It. Judged by the Executive message Of De.
cember last; by the Mills bill; by the debates
in Congress, and by the st. Louis platform, the
Democratic party will, If supported by the
country, place the tariff laws upon a purely
revenue basis. This is practical free.
trade-free-trade in the English sense.
The legend upon the banner may
not be Free Trade"-it may be the
more obscure motto, Tariff Reform" but
neither the banner nor the inscription is
conclusive. or, indeed, very important. The
assault itself Is the important fact. Those
who teach that the import duty upon foreign
goods sold in our market is paid by the con-
sumner, and that the price of the domestic
competing article is enhanced to the amount OF
the duty OH the imported article; that every
million OF dollars collected for customs duties
represents many millions more which do not
reach the treasury, but are paid by our citizens
as the increased cost of domes tic productions
resulting from the tariff laws, may not intend
to discredit in the minds of others our system
OF levying duties on competing for
eign products, but it is clearly al
ready discredited III their own. We
can not doubt. without impu gning their
integrity that, If free to act upon their convic-
tions, they would so revise our laws as to lay
the burdens of the customs revenue upon arti-
cles that are not produced in this country, and
place upon the free list all competing foreign
products. do not stop to retute this theory
hs to the effect Of our tariff duties Those who
advance 1t are students OF maXims and not of
the markets. They may be safely allowed to
call their project Tariff Reform II the people
understand that in the end the argument COM
pels free trade in all competing products.
This end may not be reached abruptly, and its
approach may be accompanied with some ex-
pressions of sympathy for our protected indus
tries and our working people, but it will GER
tainly come, II these early steps do not arouse
the people to effective resistance
The Republican party holds that protective
tariff 10 constitutional, wholesome and neees-
sary. We do not offer fixed schedule, but a
principle. We will revise the schedule, modi-
~ rates, but always with an intelligent provi-
sion as to the effect upon domestic production
and the wages Of our working people. We be-
lieve II to be one OF the worthy objects OF tariff
legislation to preserve the American market
for American producers, and to maintain the
American scale OF wages by adequate discrim-
mating duties upon foreign competing prod
ucts The effect OF lower rates and larger inn
portations upon the public revenue is contin.
gent and doubtful; but not SO the effect upon
American production and American wages.
Less work and lower wages must be accepted
as the inevitable result of the increased offer
ing Of foreign goods in our market BY way of
sran 49,
the loss of the American market, it is suggest
ed that the diminished wages of the working
man will have an undiminished purchasing
power. and that he will be able to make up for
the loss of the homo market by an enlarged
foreign market.
Our workingmen have the settlement of the
question in their own hands. They now OBJ
tain higher wages and live more comfortably
than those of any other country They will
make choice between the substantial advan-
lagos they have In hand and the deceptive
promises and forecasts OF these theorizing re. |
formers. They viii decide for themselves and
for the country whether the protective system |
shall be continued or destroyed. The fact OF |
treasury surplus, the amount of which is va
riously stated, has directed public attention to
q consideration Of the methods by which the |
National income may best be reduced to the |
level OF wise and necessary expenditure. |
who are hostile to protective customs duties as |
IN advantageous base of attack upon our tariff |
avs. They have magnif1ed and nursed the
surplus, which they affect to deprecate, seem
ngly for the purpose OF exaggerating the evil,
u order to reconcile the people to the extreme
'cmedy they propose A proper reduction of
he revenues does not necessitate, and should i
lot suggest THE abandonment or impair
nent OF thef Protective system. The methods
'ug. bed " our convention will not need to
De exhausnM in order to effect the necessary
eductionl We are not likely to be called
'(sSfss,I t&nk, to make a present choice be-
TeehAsa& surrender OF the protective system
IL the entire repeal of the internal taxes,
such a contingency, in view of the present re-
alton OF expenditures to revenues, is remote. |
he inspection and regulation OF the manu-
acture and sale OF OleomargariEe is important, |
nd the revenue derived from it is not so great |
hat the repeal of the law need enter into any
Ian OF revenue reduction. The surplus now in
he treasury should be used in the purchase OF
onds. The law authorizes this use of it, and
it is not needed for current or deficiency APP
the people, and not the banks, IN
hitch it has been deposited, should have the
dvantage OF Its use by stopping interest upon
ne public debt. At least those who needlessly
o monetary stringency, thus produced, 10
oerce public sentiment upon other questions
Closely connected with the subject OF the
ariff is that OF the Importation Of foreign labor
rs under contracts OF service to be performed
ere. The law now in force prohibiting such
ontracts received my cordial support in the
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