San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1889-09-30

silver Is free and lead dutiable, the
question was to ascertain the values of
the lead and silver in the component
ore. If an assay should show these
component metals in said ores valued
thus: leads 40 per cent. and silver 81
per cent, it would be free; but if the
assay should show the lead value to
81 per cent. and the silver 40 per cent.
ii would be dutiable. In fact if it be
so per cent. lead and so per cent. sill
uer, it would have to pay duty,
as lead ore. This ruling of Sher-
man has never been questioned,
as it is based on law and in harmony
with the practice in all other cases of
mixed merchandise. The law pro-
vides, however, that the value of any
thing to be imported is the value in
the country where 1t is produced. To
this must be added all expenses in
Cured In its tranfer to the port where
it is to be imported. Here, alas, began
all the present woe. On this trail the
democratic hunters blew their horns,
and the howl began. We do not say
that these democratic hunters were
not honest and sincere in going a-gun-
ming for Window, as Jealous as Paul
against Stephen, but we do say that
it was not Just the thing for the DEM
ocratic collectors to permit their own
editorial corps to open up on this false
scent. They should have whistled
the pack back and ordered them to
their kennels The facts are that
these lead-silver ores had been COM
ing in free under the Sherman rul-
ing, during the administrations of
Hayes, Garfield and Arthur, and into
the Cleveland administration, when
the democratic officials in Texas al
ways ready for q row with our sister
republic, began, as the gamblers
would say, to raise her on this ore
question. Now to get at the inward
ness Of this question please observe
that Secretary Window bases his let
ter of instructions of July 18th on
"the joint report of special agents w.
H. Williams and w. p. Hudgins.n
Democrats, who held Office under
democratic secretary, who directed
their Investigations. Moreover, on In
quiry we have learned that it was
Hudgins chiefly, Texas democrat,
and doubtless we'll known to Senators
Coke and Reagan, and to the Hon.
William Henry Grain, as well as to
the whole editorial crew of the demo-
cratic press of Texas, and especially
on the border, who concOcted the
scheme of fixing the value of lead in
the ore on the Rio Grande "at
the price of pig lead in New
York less one cent per
h." for expense for freights and
so forth. And this suggestion was
endorsed by the democratic secretary
of the treasury on the suggestion of
democratic collectors that "lead in
the ore III Mexico was valueless, and
that all such ores were mined only for
the silver that was III them" This
was the situation when the November
election, like a norther, chilled the
zeal of the democratic treasury de-
partment; but not that of the demo-
cratic Special Agent Hudgins, who
secured from Mr.. Window what had
been prepared under Fairchild. Mr..
Window could have no reason to
question the information derived from
democratic special agents and col
lectors, as all their suggestions and
recommendations were dead against
the free-trade platform OF the Mills
Bill. There in the treasury depart
ment was evidence given by ardent,
honest free traders that "these lead
ores have no value in the country in
which they are produced. The dem
ocratic secretary had advised in this
alternative, "that the price of the lead
be fixed at the price of lead in New
York, less one cent per h."
What could Mr.. Window do against
such free-trade advisers? Well he
had the good sense to close his con-
Ixyinn witt h VI,
clause: "In the absence of more &C.
curate data, or otherwise" the New
York price will be resorted to. Up to
date of the issuance of this letter of
instructions he had no advice from
agents of his own appointment and
from his own party. We leave it to
any reasonable man to say, what else
could he have done? Could he sup
pose for moment, that his democrat
ic predecessor was working in the in
terest of the Colorado lead syndicate,
while denouncing wicked trusts"
and bowling the nation deaf
at the denominations of the
protective SYSTEM" Could he dis
credit Information on file in his
office by democratic officials that
"lead ore had no value in MexicO?"
Could he suspect free trade party OF
lending itself to q scheme of building
up great lead monopoly in "repub-
lican state, and in the interest of re-
publican corporations ?" Hardly we
think. Mr.. Grain calls a defence of
Mr.. Window "a vicious attack upon
democratic customs officials for obey
ing the orders of their republican
Chief" This is modest, in the face of
the history of the case Mr. Grain