The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1889-11-06
M'DONALD ON THE TARIFF.
SOUND DOCTRINE FoRTHE BUCKEYES
A Complete Answer to All Objections
Made the Mills BiIl-How the Pres
emit System Injuries the Farmer
The Democracy and Wool.

Donald of Indiana:
FELLOW CITIZENS OF OHIo-I never address
my fellow-citizens upon political affairs without
feeling heavy weight OF responsibility resting
upon me. These political meetings are the lee
ture fields of the people. In them are shaped
and nodded that public opinion in which is
concentrated the sovereign power OF this coun-
try, and by which its destlnies are controlled
1t is no light thing for any one to undertake to
impress upon that public opinion his IN
dividual views, and he who does so owes It to
himself, as well as to those who honor him
with hearing, TO make no statement be does
not believe TO be true, and, If he fails to add to
their stock of knowledge, TO at least leave them
no worse than he found them. l hope, there.
FORE no man will leave this meeting. after
have finished what may have to say, thinking
any less of his country and Its institutions than
he did when he came here, and that he will be
at least as well qualified TO discharge the high
duties which rest upon him as an American
citizen as he was before he heard me.
am a democrat because | believe in the
principles of the party, but in the advocacy OF
them | have no denunciatIons TO hurl at the
heads of those VINO differ with me in opinion.
shall not abuse those who differ with me, and,
as TO those who agree with me, / prefer TO
strengthen their faith by arguments, rather
than to appeal to their passions and their
shall not attempt to discuss all of the polit-
zeal questions that may be regarded as involved
in your canvass, but will confine myself mainly
to the subject aptly stated IN the first resolu-
tons of the platform adopted by the last DEM
ocratic convention of this state, in which the
democracy of Ohio approved 'the declaration
of principles made by the national democracy
in St. Louis in 1888, and especially that part OF
it demanding reduction of tariff taxes and
declared Its purpose to continue the battle for
tariff reform until the cause OF the people is
triumphant"
Questions of revenue and expenditure are
always of interest to the people. Your gov
ernments state and national, derive their means
of existence from taxation. Their treasures
are filed by exactions from the people, and
nothing goes into those treasures that Is not,
in one form or another, a tax. The power TO
tax is the power to take from the citizen por-
ton of his income or property to be applied TO
the payment of governmental expenses, and
the amount each citizen should contribute
should, as nearly possible, be in proportion
10 his ability and the degree of protection
afforded him by the state. These propositions
are automatic. and from them 1t follows that no
more money should be collected into the pub
lie treasury than is necessary to meet the de-
mands of the government under rigid system
of economy, and that it ought to go there as a
sacred trust
1t is not in dispute that this Just rule has for
years past been violated by the revenue laws
of the United States, and that these laws are
still on the statute book, and the battle you
have pledged yourselves TO wage until the
cause of the people is triumphant Is against
those laws.
As is well known, our national revenues are
chiefly drawn from two different systems of tax
ation-"customs duties" and internal taxes
in the form of excuses on whisky, malt liquor and
tobacco. The power to lay these taxes is vested
in congress by the federal constitution in the
following words
Congress shall have power to lay and collect taxes
duties. imposts and excuses To pay debts and pro-
vide for the common defense and general welfare of
the United States; but all duties, imposts and ex-
hall he tha
This is not an unlimited power to tax, but is
wisely restricted TO the uses and purposes of
the federal government in the discharge of Its
public duties. II must be exercised for pub
lie purpose, general In its benefits. 1t estab-
lshed free trade between all of the states and
territories of the United States, and any at
tempt to use it for private advantage, or to
favor one class of citizens at the expense of
another, is gross perverSiOn oft
The present revenue law of the United States
has been in force since 1888 without change.
IL was framed by the republican conference
committees of the senate and house of repre-
sentatives (the tariff branchl substantially the
war tariff with some slight changes in the sched-
ules, and some important additions TO the free
list. A more important change was made in
the internal revenue; most of the internal
taxes were taken OF, except those upon or re-
lating TO the manufacture and sale OF whisky,
malt liquor and tobacco, and the
tax on tobacco was very materially re-
duce the revenue, but ii was soon demonstrated
that the falling off in tariff taxes was but tenn
poTary. and from 1877 to the present time there
has been steady increase OF the revenue from
customs duties. The federal revenue from the
fiscal year OF 1888 derived from customs,
amounted TO $219,O00,0OO in round numbers.
This was more than had been collected by
tariff taxes in any one year of the war.
But this has been exceeded in the
last fiscal year by over 100000
and frQr fhara will
be a still further increase in the present fiscal
year. The internal revenue of 1858 was Sl24-
100000 and this last year il was $50 000, 600,
being an increase OF 100000 over the former
year. The entire federal revenue for the fiscal
year OF 1880 amounted to the enormous sum of
$751;, 100000 and the expenditures of the gov
eminent during this same period to 500 0O0,-
600 This includes Sl7,O00,OO0 premiums on
bond purchases, but did not include the amount
paid IN the purchase OF bonds. From this
statement you will see that for the last fiscal
year the excess of revenue over all expen-
ditures was SSS,000,000 The receipts for the
fiscal year of 1888 were 1879 100000 and the ex-
penditures for the same period were $3.50 OOO-
coo, and the excess of receipts over ex-
penditures for that year was S110,0O00O0 the
difference being that while the increase of the
revenue for the last year was SS,OO0OO0 the in-
crease of expediture was so, 100000. This in
crease of expenditure will be found to be in the
additional amount paid in premiums in the
purchase of bonds, and in the war and navy
expenditures, and in pensions. These figures
are taken from the official statements Of the
treasury, except that have given them in
round numbers.
How Shall the Revenue BE Reduced9
think our republican friends will agree that
they show very conclusively that our federal
revenue ought to be reduced, and the only
question that is at all open for discussion is /:
How ought that reduction be made? Where
ought this reform to begin, and what should be
its scope and purpose? Under the systems of
taxation now in force il is possible to reduce
the revenue and at the same time increase the
burdens of the people, or you can reduce the
revenue and also reduce the burden of taxa
ton. If you act upon the so-called protective
principle and increase the tariff duties to such
an extent as to cut of imports, you will reduce
the revenue, but you will at the same time in
crease the price of the protected article so
that what would before have been paid into
the treasury will in part, at least be paid into
the pockets of the protected parties while. on
the other hand, If you reduce the tariff so as 70
produce a smaller revenue. the consumer gets
the Benefit of the reduction in the reduced
price Of the article imported. Let me illus
trate this by referring to our foreign CON-
merce.
For the fiscal year ending on the 50th day of
June last, our imports of foreign merchandise
amounted to s745,0O0,OOO. of this sum $780,
100000 came in duty free, and $4SS, 600, 900 paid
duty Of S21s, 100000. If you add this DUTY TO
the cost of the goods upon which il was paid,
you make their cost, when they were entered
for consumption, 500. 0O0, 900, without counting
the freight, insurance and other charges so