Port Tobacco times, and Charles County advertiser., 1889-04-26
Another Tariff Talk.

We make no excuse for keeping this
subject to the front. 1t affects no other
class as injuriously as it affects the farm
ers. The tariff is a tax paid chiefly by
the farmers, hence the vast increase of
farm mortgages. The tariff nourishes the
trusts, which prey chiefly on the farmer,
such as the bagging trust, the salt trust,
the twine trust.
A friend, H. L. Salisbury, writing from
Vienna, Va, asks: ut is not illogical to
attribute every bad thing to the tariff"
Yes, but it is just as bad to attribute
every good thing to the tariff. A tariff
creates nothing; it is an obstruction to
trade: a barrier; another stump in the
field. All we want is to take one stump
out OF the way. If every stump in field
were blown up, it would still be necessa-
ry to pillow the field, but blowing would
be long sight easier. The advocates OF
the tariff say: leave the stumps alone
They do no harm they do good, 10y ex-
ercising the muscles of the horse and the
plowman."
Mr.. Salisbury con::saes: How is it
that so much money is going into mills in
the South if what you say is true" How
much Not nearly so much as is taken
from the South not n. arly so much as
would come if it did not cost $500. 900
for $500, 900 mill that ought to be plain
enough. One reason for building new
mills in the South, is, that capitalists be-
gin 10 see that the nearer a mill is to the
cotton field the greater the economy oil
production. So, also, with iron furnaces
but surely no man can fail to see that il
mills and furnaces cost less thai they now
cost we would bave more of them.
"Was it not the protective tariff which
gave Us jute baggiug at four cents ?" asks
Mr.. Salisbury. No. Jute Bsgging is not
protected in England, yet it is made
cheaper there than here so the tariff
could not have caused the decline. This
is one of the absurd claims of the pr"tec-
tionists. The low price of the textile ar
ticles, of jute bagging, cotton cloth, wool.
en- goods and of iron and steel are due IL
the Improvements in machinery If prices
were low in America and high in free
trade England, then We might credit the
tariff with the change, but as they are
lower in England than America some
other cause must be at work
Moreover, if the tariff forced prices
down, does not Mr.. Salisbury know the
manufacturers would demand the repeal
of the TARIFF If protection has given US
jute bagging at four cents would not the
manufacturers, instead of organizing a
trust 60 to Washington and ask for re-
peal of the duty on the bagging. These
manufacturers know that the duty in
creases the price, and so they oppose the
movement to put jute bagging on the free
list
"Should We not" asks our correspond
ent, "kill the monopoly which pu's the
price up to twelve cents aud save the
tariff which pu's it down 10 four9' Go
SLOW, my friend. 1t was not the tariff, but
|competition aud invention which reduced
the price to four cents. The trust is form
ed to restrict co4npe.i.ionN; so is the tariff
What we need is more competition. The
way to get it is to repeal the tariff on jute
bagging and on twine. This kills mono
poly, just as it killed the copper trust and
it is the only way to do it.
"How do you know that trusts may not
be found under free trade r. We do not
know it; but we do know it is much
more difficult to corner the markets of
the world than to corner the markets of
one country. A recent attempt was made
to form worldwide copper trust, and
the men ia it have been ruined by world
wide competition. That is what we want
in twine and jute bagging-worll-wide
competition.
us it not possible Mr.. Salisbury asks,
'that by preserving free competition our
manufacturers will, under a protect i've
tariff, manufacture full supply for the
home market as cheaply under the stress
Of competition as they possibly can ~
We answer no, for you canno, "preserve
free competition" under tariff. This is
the enemy, irreconcilable and eternal, of
free competition. 1t is imposed to pro-
tect the American manufacturer from the
influence of free competition"
You cannot have tariff and free COM
petition. Free competition means free
trade and nothing more. How can you
have free trade and'tariff too? You can
not serve two such masters There is no
delusion so indefensib!e as that urged by
the protectionists that the whole commu-
nifty is helped by tariff. 1t is class leg
islation of the most dangerous and dam
aging character, and the class it helps is
composed OF capitalists the clsss it
hurts most is composed of farmers
Home and Form.
Politics Make q Difference.
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