St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1890-07-19
WAR TAX TABLETS.

The Courier-JournaI has little faith
in Mr.. Blaine's reciprocity scheme.
Here is what, in a double-leaded edito-
rial, that paper says about the premier's
pet idea:
1t seems impossible for Mr.. Blaine
to understand the operation of interna-
tiOnal commerce. He says: 1.-The ag-
gregate balance of trade with all Latin
America is against u.s." This simply
than it buys of us. We do this because
we get what we want cheaper there
than elsewhere, whereas Latin America
can buy what she wants cheaper in Eu-
rope than in the United States.
''Then Mr.. Blaine proceeds to Illus,
trate, and says: Since we repealed the
duty on coffee in 1872 we have imported
the products of Brazil to the extent Of
1921. SO6, 900, and have sold her only
$156, 135, 900 of our own products"
That is tremendous Indictment of
the tariff. Now, see what the oracular
gentleman from Maine has to say about
it. 1.-The difference, 1864, 671 900, we have,
paid in gold or its equivalent, and
Brazil has expended the vast sum in
the markets of Europe"
Nothing could be more misleading
than this analysis. Let us try to under
stand the transaction.
We bought of Brazil because she sold
at low prices. te
Brazil did not want to exchange coffee
and hides for corn or wheat or cotton,
because Brazil Is an agricultural country
itself.
What Brazil wanted. and what we
could not sell her, were manufactured
articles-w wooden goods, cotton goods,
hardware, etc.
So Brazil went to Europe and bought
what she wanted, and paid for them
with drafts on America.
These drafts the English took and
sent them to America to pay for the
wheat and cotton which England
| wanted. sos
TO say we paid for them in gold is
| ridiculous.
To say we pay for them in COLDS
| equivalent is to utter very simple
thing in very solemn way; of course
| we did.
Only it is to be noticed that while our
| protected laborers in the factories can
| not sell their products to Brazil in COM
petition with the spauper labor" of
England, our unprotected farmers sell
| and must sell their products in the COM
| petitive markets of Europe.
| Does Latin America really want any
| greatsquantity of our agricultural prod
| ucts?
Certainly not. Latin America is al
most exclusively an agricultural cOun-
| try. 81
| Latin America wants dry goods, furni-
| ture, boots and shoes, hardware and
articles made in the mills and factories.
| Every Sulreport shows this. Every
| issue by the treasury department Of a
volume entitled Commercial Rela-
tions" shows this. Every lesson in
| geography teaches it. Mr.. Blaine knows
it. Mr.. Frye knows it. Mr.. Sherman
| knows it. Mr.. Plumb knows it.
! All this cry about reciprocity is pure
hypocrisy.
It is last desperate attempt ito save
the party" by deluding the people.
| Here, farmers of America, is the
handwriting on the wall. a sentence
| taken from one of Mr.. Blaine'S own let
tiers:
| "Our foreign market for breadStuffS
| grows narrower"
Down with the war tariff.
In a letter which David A. Wells has
| written to the New York Nation the
point is clearly brought out that the
| taxes collected by the national govern
ment, although obtained through 1ndi-
| rect means, represent SO much work
| given by all the people. He points out
| that the $500, 100000 of revenue which
our national government receives is the
equivalent of twenty days work per
formed by our people. OF course, says
the Boston Herald, few of us realize
this. We pay our taxes into the United
| States treasury on the thousand and one
articles that we buy for the use and
| sustenance of ourselves and our fam
lilies. Thus the tax is an indirect one
and it is ON this account that large APP
| preparations of money are made for UNI
warrantable purposes, and yet do not
| provoke the vehement protests that
! they would if the means by which taxes
are paid were clearly understood by our
| people.
The present pension laws, for exam
| pie, will involve payment, when fully
| applied, equivalent to the productive
work of our people for twelve days each
year. That is to say. each of us will
| have to put in every year two weeks of
| work, when we night take vacation
without loss to ourselves, and this for
the purpose of paying pensions to the
soldiers of the late war. To state the
| same case in other words, each year we
| shall be compelled to pay the equivalent
| of what we earn by two weeks Of work
for the purpose of supporting this great
! army of pensioners. 1t is quite proba-
bic that many of these pensions are just
returns for services performed and for
disabilities received; but what we main
tain is that the people should be made
aware, by system Of direct taxation,
OF what they pay out, no matter how
| good the service may be.