The Louisiana Democrat. [volume] (Alexandria, La.) 1845-1918, 1890-12-17
A JUGGLER OF ARGUMENTS.
The Champion OF Reciprocity Plays a
Gard Which Is Not TRUMP.

| The Champion OF Reciprocity Plays a
Card Which Is Not Trump.
Mr.. Blaine shows his usual tact in
causing the publication Of his rociproc-
ity letter of June 10, which was sup
pressed by the President. 1t abounds
in sound Democratic arguments against
| the Nc Klnley bill and in favor of a
| wider commercial freedom aud, though.
in his characteristic way, Mr.. Blaine
perverts these to bolster up the dishon-
est scheme of giving the public money
rs presents to steamship corporations,
| they serve nevertheless to complete his
acquittal from responsibility for the Nc
Kinley folly, and thus serve to strength
en- his pros poets for the Republican
Presidential nomination.
Mr.. Blaine demonstrates with re.
markable clearness that reciprocity
with Germany and France is alb
solutely essential for the prosperity
of the West in particular and of the
country in general. 1t is true that he
uses Cuba and the Argentine Republic
in making the argument. This is a
1t is that of making the hardest demon
stration, so that the rest will appear
from it in tho light of a self-evident
truth. When Mr.. Blaine shows how
high tariff kills our trade with Cuba
and Buenos Ayres, he shows in doing
so that it kills it with France and Ger
many also. And every argument he
makes in demonstrating that we
need reciprocity with the handful of
people in Cuba applies with added force
to show the vital necessity of reciprocity
with the millions in Germany and
France who but for the high tariff sys-
tenn would take our wheat, pork and
other agricultural products, paying us
high prices for them in cheap goods
such as are needed by all classes of our
people-such as can not be had, now,
however, except at the exorbitant Nc
Kinley rates.
In one Of the tables he gives, Mr..
Blaine shows in a striking way the
vital necessity of reciprocity with
France and Germany. We extract it
with his comments.
Excepting raw cotton, our four largest ex-
ports during the last fiscal year were bread
stuffs provisions, refined petroleum and lum-
ber
The following statement shows the total ex-
ports of each of said articles in 1899 and the
proportion exported to Latin America:
Exported
TO Latin
Total Exports. AnFriea.
Rrendstuffa Gt12 Srh
Provisions. .............. 14 122, 1913 2,50z3T5
Refined petroleum. 44,S30,424 2,94S, I49
Wood and lumber . 269O7, l6l 5,OS9, 1856
These figures should be closely studied. 1t
would be difficult to understand, but for the ex.
plantations given in the conference why, out OF
the S000G0000 of staples exported from this
country, only SIS 600, 900 should be consumed in
all Latin America, with its population of So
100000 people, when the United States is the
only source of supply for these articles which
ere regarded by us as the necessaries of life.
Any one who knows that, because of
England's policy of complete CONNER
cial reciprocity, that country alone
takes over half of our entire exports,
will understand Mr.. Blaine's point
Our exports of breadstuffs to England
alone being thus immensely in excess
of our breadstuff exports to all South
America, it is demonstrated that under
reciprocity Germany, which last year
took only eleven dollars worth eight
bushels) of our wheat and shut out our
pork, would take from us at the same
rate with England. The same demon
stration applies with equal clearness in
the case Of France.
In arguing for commercial reciproci-
ty with countries which would pay for
our goods in wool, hides and other ar
ticles competing with the West, Mr..
Blaine is striking the entire Republican
system of commercial restriction at it's
weakest point. For while New En-
gland does not need trade with En-
gland, Germany and France, the West
will be permanently impoverished if
that trade is much longer denied.
Mr. Blaine is doing good work against
the folly of commercial restriction
through high taxes. OF course he is
greatly hampered by his New England
residence and his Republican alliances,
but he is doing very we'll under the cir
Gu mstances-better than any other Re-
publican alive could do in his place.
Let him keep on, and with the aid he
will receive from the Democratic party
the Chinese system of high tariff seclu-
sion will be overthrown.
There will then be no need to use the
Government in casting anchors to wind
ward for pet steamship corporations,
for the ports of the world will then be
filled with unsubsidized American ves-
sells, and a Democratic President and
Secretary of State will send no Miners
abroad to authorize kidnapping par ties
to board them.-St Louis Republic.
A PACKING SCHEME.
Efforts of Republican Ps,tters to Thwart
the VIII tltc peOp,e