The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1889-12-17

amount OF silver money, coin and GER
tifcates have been put in circulation
during the same time, no additions
have been made proportionate to the
increase sin population and trade:
There Is enough money7in the country
If 1t were loose and floating among
the people. Let it out or give US
more .os $50 -. 3, ~
Second-Trade in this country mus
be made and kept free. 1t is not free
now. 1t is largely controlled by cor
porations and ~monopolies of different
kinds andsgrades. Look~at the beef
combine, the OIL combine, the coal
combine, the sugar combine, salt com.
bipe, and see the grain gamblers, the
stock gamblers, money gamblers
gamblers in real estate, in bonds, in
mortgages, aye, indeed. it is not put
ting it too strongly to- say gamblers in
the sweat and blood of the poor. This
whole range of monopoly must be
rooted out and the. trade o. the coun
try made free. - 80 ~ "a.
sThird-Foreign trade must be made
as nearly free al is consistent with,
reasonable protection of our own in
terests against unfair foreign compe-
tition. Twenty cents a bushel On
foreign wheat and 10 cents a bushel
on foreign corn and l cent a pound on
foreig4.b beef and pork, lis no prete stIon
to American, agriculture, because we
produce more wheat and corn and
beef and pork than we use. We ex-
port 20 to Is per cent. of wheat
every year and a large proportion of
corn and meat. = Our cattle industry
is depres sed and hides are admitted
free American farmers can produce
wool enought for the home demand;
they do produce TO- to IS per cent. of
it, yet it is proposed to put wool on
the free list and leave duties on foreign
cloth about where they are, thus cut
ting off the farmer and saving the
manufacturer. We do not and cannot
now, nor car we for some years to
come, make one tenth part of the
sugar the country needs, though we
are paying 2 cents a pound more for
every pound we use than we would if
foreign sugar were admitted free of
duty. ]" is now actually costing the
people of the United States $780, 900,
900 a year more for the sugar they
use it wouldzif they would pay 5 cents
a pound for every atom of the home
product out of the public treasury and
let foreign sugar come in free. We
could pay a bounty of 2 cents a pound
on the home product and save $780,,
900, 600 a year to the people by letting
foreign sugar in free-equal to SIS
saving to, the average family. =
These things must be' corrected, the
work must be done thoroughly and
done soon. Let the liquor taxes re-
main as they are, except (if the excep
tion be practically as to alcohol used by
mechanics in the arts and by profes'
sional men in the sciences, put sugar,
salt, lumber and coal ON the free list,
pay a bounty of 2 cents a pound on
the home sugar product ten years,
make the other reductions above sug-
gested SO as to reduce the average
duty on dutiable articles to a general
average of 30 per cent, relieve farm
ers from the tax on raw tobacco, and
leave the tax On the manufactured
article if it be necessary to raise the
needed revenue .
In addition to those things let Ne
gotiations be begun looking to recipro-
cal trade in certain articles, rs wheat
-four, corn meal, dressed meat, pork,
beef, apples, canned fruits, farm ma
chinery, hollow ware, as stoves, ket-
ties, boilers, ETC., furniture and wood
enware generally in exchange for
coffee, tea, sugar, spices, barks, dye
woods, tropical timber and fruit, and
useful things generally which we do
not produce ourselves, SO that our
tariHlaws shall indeed be equallypro-
tective to all the great industries.
Farmers are compelled to compete
with cheap labor in India, Russia and
South America and with products of
cheap lands in Australia, and this
without any practical protection even
though the tariff schedules show. high
duties on tafm products, while manu-
features, in many departments are
really protected to the extent of SO all
the way up to 90 per cent. This is
unfair, unreasonable, unequal, unjust,
unsatisfactory and must be changed.
We speak plainly and earnestly.
These thoughts are conceived in a
friendly brain and the words are
written by a friendly hand. The
things we state r facts within the
knowledge of all. Time has come for
action. The people will not consent
to wait longer. The present Congress
must act, and act in good faith. The
future is full of retribution for de