The Livingston enterprise. [volume] (Livingston, Mont.) 1883-1914, 1890-11-01
PROTECT THE PEOPLE.
Address Of the Republican state Com
mittee.

n PROTECT THE PEOPLE.
, Address of the. Republican state Con
mittee.
u On account of the misrepresentation
s made by democratic newspapers an
stump speakers as to the great wor
: which the republican party has dor
5 and is now doing for the American pet
pie by protecting their industries an
their honest labor from the competitio
of cheap and poorly paid labor of fol
eign countries, it is proper that your al
tention should be called to some indis
putable facts so that you may not b
deceived or misled to your own injury.
TARIFF.
A tariff Ito give the meaning of th
word as now used IN America) is the ia
laid by our government upon foreign
manufactures and productions befor
they are permitted to come into ou
market and compete with the produc
of American labor. This tax furnishes
the revenue for the support of our gen
eral government
FREE TRADE.
Such tax is free trade tariff when il
does not equal the difference between
the cost Of manufacturing or producing
any article in foreign country and the
cost Of manufacturing or producing a
similar article in this country. In that
case the tariff adds to the price of the
article and the consumer has to pay the
tax.
PROTECTION.
When the tax upon an imported arti-
Gle is equal to the difference between
the cost of manufacturing or producing
it Gncluding importation freight
charges) and the cost of the manufac-
ture or production of similar article in
this country, the domestic article is pro-
tected. Such a tax upon the foreign
article is a protective tariff, and the tax
collected by our government is paid by
OJC lOIClku vi
By such tariff our manufacturing estab-
lishments are built up, the wages of
American labor are increased. and
through competition the price of manu-
featured articles is reduced. Our his
tory shows that in every instance the
laying of protective tax upon foreign
articles has resulted in an increased de-
mand for labor and a lessening Of the
price Of the same or similar articles in
this country. You understand Of
course, that the duty or tax is protect
i've only when it is laid upon the foreign
articles the like of which can be manu-
featured or produced in America.
EFFECT OF FREE TRADE
The early statesmen of our country,
as you know, all favored support of our
government by tax upon imported ar
ticles laid in such way as to build up
and protect home manufactures. The
democratic party, however, generally
the administration of our
government for half century before
the war, and the tariff with a few ex-
ceptions was laid according to free trade
principles. The result was that at the !
time of the breaking out of the rebellion
the whole property of the people of the
United States was only about S16,OOO,-
NM (N10 vo1nn Tho >f
abor was only half what it is today
rhe savings banks, which indicate either
thrift or depression among the poor,
lad very little in their vaults, while now
hey are filled with the savings of the
ooor. The government, in fact, was
without respect or credit at home or
broad.
EFFECT OF A PROTECTIVE TARIFF.
Soon after the rebellion commenced it
'ecame necessary for the government to
lse an immense amount of money. Ex-
ept where the government ran in debt
his money was raised largely by tax
pon foreign manufacturers who sought
o trade with us. The tax to furnish
he necessary revenue to pay the govern
1ent debt has since been laid upon for
ign manufacturers, with view to our
wn protection. The result is that in
wenty-fi years since the war the
ountry has acquired four times the
'ealth that accumulated in more than
ghty years before the war. Manufac-
ories, furnaces and smelters have
orung up all over the country, and
ONE market is found for more than 80
or cent of our agricultural products. :
he mechanic and laborer receive nearly r
vice as much compensation as in Great
ritain, and three or four times as much !!
J in some of the countries of Europe.
he war debt of s3,OOO,0OO,OOO and other /
ar expenses amounting to s4,OOO,OOO,OOO
ore, have under our republican pro- q
ctive system been almost paid by the
reign producers, with scarcely dollar {
tax, directly or indirectly, upon our
vn people. Thus our people are taxed !
lily to pay the expense of their own To- ,,
i self government. 4
MANUFACTURES.
1t is evident that without protection
ry little manufacturing could be done G
America. With protection, factories =
me into existence, competition be- =
mes active, and the law of supply and
mand regulates the price, so that it G
IS become historical that there is not .
protected article in America that can r, r.
It be bought for much less than simi
: articles could have been bought be- G.
re protection. At the same time these y
otected industries furnish labor and y
pport for 100000 people. A great c.
mand for labor in any one section or g
anch of business has the effect of Gre =; =;
ing demand throughout the whole
nntry. So it is evident that if our as
lnufactoriss, our furnaces, our foun- az
les and our smelters should be strick- 90 ..
\