The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1890-06-29
A LAME ARGUMENT.

Mr.. Robert Bleakie, of Hyde Park, Mass.
took occasion to air his wisdom and give
gra.uitous advice on matters of legislation
in letter to Senator Carlisle of Kentucky.
In this letter Bleakie assumes to give
New England manufacturer reasons why
wool should be placed on the free list and
why the pending tariff bill should not pass.
What Mr.. Bleakie's politics is the dis
patches do not state. but the drift of his ar
gument and the fact that ne chose the
junior Senator from Kentucky as the most
suitable member of that body to be hon.
ored with his correspondence, justifies
shrewd guess that he is one Of those most
incorrigibly wrong-headed and hard-headed
specimens OF humanity, Massachusetts,
Democrat.
I'VE were assured two years ago" says
publican party, with its high protection
platform, would revive all the dropping
ORANGES of business and make everyone
happy. Especially was this to be so in the
wooden industry" To show that these as
surances were insincere or ill-advised he
makes certain statements which, for the
sake of argument, may be accepted as
true, though his assertion is the only au-
thority vouchsafed. He says:
I find that In 1859 the number of failures
among wool dealers was IL; liabilities s2,29S..
600; assets, 81. SSl 900: wool manufacturers. 81;
liabilities s. 149 000 assets Col 600; total fail
ure, ~; liabilities slo4420 600; assets 81 oS2 oO0
This is not very cheering of itself. When
compared with the previous year it is less 81.
Then the number of failures among wool deal
was s; liabilities. s5s6, 0o0 assets, s25S.0
wool manufacturers. A.; liabilities, s3,I0l 900;
assets, s723 900; total, So liabilities, $685., 900;
assets, 81, $4,000.
In 1889 the number of failures was Is per cent.
greater. the liabilities $50 per cent greater, and
the assets less than half as much. Ii this is the
result when increased tax ON wool is only
threatened, what will happen when such tax is
an actual fact?
In the first place Mr.. Bleakie is at fault
in saying that the success OF the party"
the mere fact Of its success at the polls, was
to produce promised results. 1t was the
carrying out of the policy of the party"
from which advantages were predicted.
Up to the present time there has been no
opportunity for carrying out that policy,
Quite as promptly a. sss 10 have been
expected, Legislation has been framed for
carrying out that policy. And pending
this attempt TO inaugurate a policy, the
workings OF which must he the only fair
test of the soundness of the party's views
and predictions. Mr.. Bleakie and his con-
freres raise mighty hubbub TO defeat the
making of this or any similar test.
Should Mr.. Bleakie's demands be accedsd
to the pending bill would be defeated and
there would be no amendment of the exist
ing tariff at the present session OF con-
gress. That the increase in number and
amount of failures in the wooden trade is
due to an apprehension that the pending
bill will pass, is and in the nature of things
must be a mere bald assumption. II, as
he alleges, there were many disastrous
failures last year. and a greatly increased
number of vastly more disastrous failures
this year. it is no bald assumption, but a
clear and incontrovertible fact that all of
this has happened under the operation
] of the existing law. Neither Mr.. Bleakie.
| Mr.. Carlisle or any other person can get
away from this proposition.
| Then il there be any relation between
! the tariff and these failures the existing
law must be defective and must need
amending. In the last election this was a
! view upon which all of the American peo-
! ple-Mr. Bleakie and all the rest-whether
they voted for Cleveland and tariff re-
| form" or for Harrison and a more perfect
! sche,ne of protection. And it is a note
worthy fact that on no phase of the tariff
| question was the popular verdict more en-
| phatic than in behalf of amendment of the
! wool schedule. Nothing else will account
| for the magnitude of Harrison's maiori-
| ties in Ohio, Indiana, Oregon and Cailfor-
| nia.
But Mr.. Bleakie and his confreres be-
seeeh congress not TO pass any bill that
will amend the existing law, and especially
| not to improve the status of wool, nor to
| change its status unless by placing it on
/ the free list. Though sent 10 a Democratic
senator, this appeal is TO a congress which
| is Republican in both branches. whose
| party he twits with non-fulfillzi=nt of pre-
election assurances, and thereby asks them
! to forego legislation, which sloae can put
| to test the soundness ofthose assurances.
/ HIS is q presumptuous plea most lameiy
argued Not until after the pending bill
shall have become a law, and opportunity
/ shall have been afforded for testing its eff
/ fects, and the increase in number and
amount OF failures shall have continued or
shall have been accelerated, will Mr..
/ Bleakie's argument be entitled 10 any con-
sideration. The Republican party will not
dodge the issue, but proposes 20 give its
prediction assurances fair test.
7 ---------------------------
The career o. Alvin Adams, founder OF the
/ express company which bears his name, affords