Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1889-10-25
THE TARIFF REFORM AGITATION.

The agitation for tariff reform goes
ON unabated; and every day the sub
iect is claiming more and more the
attention of the American people. 1t
is safe TO say that at the present time
the subject is more generally and
more intelligently discussed than dur
ing the political campaign of last
year. The chief reason for the advance
of the movement is that tariff reform
crs know that their cause is right, and
are able to give good and sufficient
reasons for the faith that is in them
The low taNer does not have to rely
on the home market club or any other
club to make out case for him, and
then say "them's my sentiments"
From conditions to be plainly seen
upon all hands he can present an ar
gumcnt which to the unprejudiced ear
of reason is unanswerable. One of
the most encouraging signs of the
times is that meetings to agitate for
the repeal of our obnoxious tariff laws
are frequently held and invariably well
attended.
The Chicago Herald says:
A meeting of TIE tariff reform club
at the North Side Turner Hall, Chicago,
ON Friday evening of last week was
attended by large number of people
Secretary McFadOn explained to the
meeting which was the first held on
the North Side the objects of the
club, stating that outside of Cook
county, twenty clubs had been or
ganized in other counties of the state,
and that the intention was to have
clubs in every ward of the city. The
object of these local clubs should not
be SO much to gather in people beliey-
ing in tariff reform rs those who diff
fered with the reformers. They should
never tire of proclaiming two great
truths first. that tariff reform would
raise wages, and secondly that these
wages would have greater purchasing
power than they would have under
present conditions. And this question
of wages was important. There We're
not less than 2O,0O0,000 wOrkingmen
in this country, and of this number
the wages of 100000 did not eX-
coed $3.50 per year per capita. Hence
the paramount result of agitating the
question of tariff reform would be to
benefit the laboring classes.
David Jones, the first speaker called
upon, directed his remarks to the
claim Of the protectioniStS' organs that
tariff reform would reduce wages.
This, he declared, was an absolute
untruth, So far as the amount of labor
accomplished was concerned. \ field
lahorer like one i'll the East Indies,
who cut grass with 4 iack-knife,
stuffed the grass into a jute bag, and
carried that - the barn yard, might
possibly not receive more than 3 cents
dav, but il was nevertheless a fact
that such laborer was not worth q
cents, nor even | cent to an Amer
lean farmer. The assertion of the
republicans that, with high tariff.
home competition would reduce prices
was combatted by the speaker with
the statement that under high tariff
the trusts and monopolies had come
TO stay. Tariff and trusts were, in
fact, inseperable, because the trust
simply enabled the manufactures to
get what the government said he
should have, namely, protection. So
long as the people tolerated the tariff
SO long it served them right to have
the iniquities of trusts inflicted upon
them. At this ponit an old gentleman
interrupted the speaker with the ques-
ton:
do you believe in any tariff at all?''
"Yes, sir" was the quick reply. 81
believe in tariff for revenue only.
Anything beyond that is a curse to
the people and blessing to the
barons."
This sentiment was quite enthu-
siastically applauded. Mr.. Jones pro-