Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1888-09-13
Butler on Protection.

The address delivered by Gen But
Ter in Fremont Temple, Boston, in re-
spouse 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 and the apOlogists for the
administration. HE great throng
which crowded the temple to its utmost
capacity att ests the extent of the IN
f1uence 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
prime necessity as the support Of the
government and the discharge Of public
debts, and that the establishment Of do
nestle 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, inequitable, and
trade and tariff for protection without
regard of revenue as alike out of the
question, he declared vigorously for a
tariff for revenue, carefully adjusted to
secure protection to American industries,
as against a 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 to 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 a good point
when he showed that the bagglng 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 at their full
weight in cotton. The result of this sys-
tenn is that the bagging which costs the
planter three cents pound, is sold to
the buyer as cotton at 10 to 25 cents
pound General Butler also drew at
tention to the fact that the policy en-
bodied in the Mills bill is urged by the
very men who would have liked to
1OlSS tllS SdIllS pOllCy vi tuS guilty Dc-
fore the war, in order to weaken the
North in the carrying forward that
great struggle; and further, that it is
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 it
of his old raillery, as he recited 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 plaipness which it deserves the
fisheries treaty rejected by the Senate.
He pointed out the ways in which we
have been repeatedly oyer-reached by
England in the negotiations over the
fisheries, and wittily sugge sted that the
best treaty if nor 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 he has had
since March of last year, and expressed
surprise that the outrages which have
been going on since 1885 have not been
checked.