Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1890-09-17
TRADE EXTENSION.
Secretary Blaine Writes Let
ter on Reciprocity.
A STRONG PLEA FOR THE SCHEME.

| Who Would Wait and Lose-The Policy
Genuine Protection.
| BAR HARBoR, Me-, Sept. 1.-THE follow
Ing letter is given out for publication. 1t
Is addressed to Col w. w. Clapp, editor
Boston Journal:
"MY DEAR SIR: / am in receipt of your
favor asking me If / can attend the an
nual banquet of the Boot and Shoe club of
Boston in October. You add that the
members are in hearty sympathy with
my views regarding the best method of
extending American trade, and would be
glad to have me address them. I regret
that my engagements will not permit me
to accept the invitation, but you will
please thank the club for the compliment
they pay me. l am glad to hear that the
| members of the club are interested in a
system of reciprocal trade with Latin
America They can do great good by
oounteracting certain phase of New
England opinion, entertained at home as
well as In Washington-an opinion which
l must regard as in the highest degree I'M
wise and hurtful to New England inter
ests
Some Suggestions for New England.
New England is to receive in the new
tariff the amplest protection for every
manufacturing industry within her Dor
ders, both great and small, and it will, in
my Judgment, be both inexpedient and
injurious for her representatives to disre-
gard measure which will promote western
| interests. i have lately received letter
from Mr.. j. f. limbs, of St. Louis, a lead
ing representative of the -four interests
| and president of the late convention of
millers at Minneapolis. Speaking for
the grain and -four interests of that great
section, Mr. limbs says that 'advices Of re-
cent date from Cuba state that the duties
now collected on American -four are at a
| higher rate than was first supposed to be
the case And he adds: Il respectfully
| submit that the American miller will be
| unable to retain any part of the Cuban
-four trade unless immediate relief is Sc
cured
Market for Western Flour.
"ln view of these facts is it possible that
| a protectionist congress can even think of
opening our markets to Cuba's prod
a
industry TO be absolutely excluded from
her markets by prohibitory tariff With
reciprocity the west can annually sch
many hundred thousand barrels of -four
| in the markets of Cuba and Porto Rico
together with large mass of other agri.
cultural products. Without reciprocity
she will be driven more and more from
those markets.
Cubans Want Reciprocity.
"Giving the fullest protection to all
| eastern interests as the proposed tariff
bill does, surely no man of good judg-
| ment, certainly no protectionist of wise
! forecast, wishes to expose a western in
terest to serious injury and especially
| when it is manifestly easy to protect and
promote il, because at this very
| time the boards of trade, the cham
beers of commerce, and the public opinion
| in Havana are demanding reciprocal
trade with the United. States. | select
| Cuba and Porto Rico, for example,
| because in certain quarters it has been
| said that while we might secure reciproc-
ity with some little countries in South
America, we could no nothing with the
| Spanish islands. Let us at least give the
| Spanish islands an opportunity to speak
for themselves.
One Objection Answered.
HCertain wise men ask: How can we
sell farm products In South America when
the same things are produced therer'
Cereals are undoubtedly grown in the
southernmost PORTIONS of South America,
but the wise men will remember that
cereals and sugar do not grow In the same
soil, and that the sugar countries of South
| and Central America and the West India
Islands contain 10000, 600 of people who
import the largest part of their bread
stuffs. Indeed. the largest part of the
| sugar product OF Latin America is at our
| doors, and we can greatly enlarge our ex-
changes there If congress will give us the
opportunity for reciprocal trade.
An Object Lesson Provided.
Another class observe that they want
time to study the system. To this might
reply that the best method of studying a
system is to observe its practical work
ings. While studying In the abstract and
refusing to take some object lessons, these
gentlemen propose to open our market to
Latin American products free of all
charge, without asking Latin America to
give us in turn some freedom in their
markets. The object lesson immediately
before us is the treatment of the sugar
q gift of that trader When we have
studied that lesson we shall be prepared
for the second.
Specimen of Bad Logic.
''The worst proposition of all is put
forth by those who say: Let US put sugar
on the free list now and next year we will
take up the subject of reciprocity II 1
understand their logic, it is to make
sugar free this year without condition,
and next year to ask Spain If she will not
kindly consent to grant us reciprocal
trader Holding the complete vantage
ground themselves, the proposed policy
transfers the vantage ground to Spain.
Instead of granting favor to Spain to-
day, we are to ask her for favor to-mor-
row. These who take this ground belong
to that class OF careful guardians of prop
erty who prepare very stong lock for the
stable after the horse is gone.
Reciprocity Good for All Sections.
II do not mean in anything l have said
to imply that reciprocity is only west
ern interest. As remarked in note to
Senator Frye, 1t win prove beneficial and
profitable both to the farm and the shop.
What for instance, could be more nat
ural or more just than that in giving a
free market ia the United States to hides
from the Argentine Republic, we should
ask the Argentine Republic to give US
better market than we now have for the
product of leather from the United States.
The many forms in which our business
interests will be promoted by reciprocity
cannot be known until the active com
mercial men of the United States shall
have developed those forms by investiga-
ton and experience We shall not real
ice the full benefit of the policy in a day
or year, but shall we therefore throw
away countless millions of trade, in addi-
ton to the $50, 100000 we have already
thrown away, and then ignorantly de-
clare without trial that the system won't
work."
Fact for Protectfenists-
"Finally, there is one fact that should