The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1891-09-18

sUG iAUtrr ANU I0E FAfMEH.
what . rrofectionlst Professor Thinks on
That >uhicct-irAnk Adm ~sion that the
Tsria nurts the Farmer y says a. Mnst ~
.improsed'-Let Robert y. Porter Con-
| alder.
Prof y. J. James OF the university
Of Pennsylvania who enjoys the dis
tinc'ion Of being one Of the very faw
able teachers OF political economy in
this country who are advocates OF the
| protective system. has recently made
an address before the American Assoc
| citation for the Advancement OF Science
on the subject Of Taxation and the
| Farmer"
This protectionist professor has
something to say on the farming situa-
ton which does not exactly square
with Robert =. Porter's extravagant
and foolish claim that the former gets
more advantage from protection than
any other class Prof. James, on the
other hand. sees that the farmer Is
falling behind In the race for wealth
and comfort lie saws:
The remarkable phenomena occurring in
connection with the Farmers Alliance
movement shows at once how deeply tho
iron has entered into tho soul OF the AmrrI
can farmer. and how tnorou III y he has be-.
come aware that for some reason or other
ne y NOT keeping pace In his material.
intellectual and social progress with other
classes In the community.
Porter's nonsense about the farmers |
great advantages over other people is |
cffectually exploded in the following
words:
As matter OF fact the wealth Ct the |
United states Is flowing away from IT, farms
into it, factories and railroads. from the
country into the city. from the rural into the
urban Districts. The policy OF our si!road
companies has borne hard upon the indI-
vidual farmer and upon shs farmer rs a
ci'ss. IL has altered all the con litions OF
agri ulture IN many sections OF the country.
AMI IN nearly all o. tiem In su h a way rs
needlessly to burden aud embarra-s the
farmer Our system OF taxation as a whoie
rests most h savily upon the farmer There
Il little doubt thu u ,ier the metnai o.
general property tax. now prevailing In tnis
ounfry. the rural district Is reiat vey
spraking. far more heavily taxed than the
city the farmer pays more than the mer-
chant or the Railroad owner H.
The American farmer has a grievances
real ami true gricvance--onc that will not
become less by pooh pooling IT, but one I
which must be carefu ly studied BY students ;
of economics and 81 itistics to ascertain. II
possible. how far Il Is just ned and whether
4 eah " Fentuieu, anu. so, by what
means.
Coming down - the tariff question
tsclf this Pennsylvania protectionist
professor shows that he is not blinded
~ the delusions which prevail among
Yearly all other protectionists. He goes
IN:
Nor il there any doubt that the financial !.
'oi'cy ofthe country. usiHg that term in the
roade-t s'nse, rs including tho Who'll. sss- !
EN- OF monetary tran -actions, built up bv !
ne combination OF governmental act on and I
rivAte Initiative, discriminatcs directly ana :
eeniy against the farmer AMI she farming
"a :, or at least that Il discr inmate. in
avor OF other classes. which amounts t. the I
anne thing Nor can II be said that the tariff
o.icy OF the country has been managed nj ! )
'a>t directly with an eye as much {, the
lrner's interest a. TO that Of other asses.
am aware that this II much nooted ques-
on but do not believe til 4 anyone who has {
lken pains 90 study our tariffs viii claim -
nat the firmers. rs class. have had such !.
Immediate inhue in fixing given rates OF :
uty a. the manufacturer. for example lie
Notwithstanding the immediate &
right outlook for the farmer in this
ears large crops and good prices. &
rof. James concludes that 1.-THE Amer q
AN farmer is in a bad way and likely
o be in worse one" II
Among the remedies he suggests are c
be following: Il
The system ~ taxat on must be reacius,ed q,
~ the farmer relieved Of unjust burdens. 4
ne tarin must be improved: the ank .ng !,
ID general monetary policy o. the country =
Hanged In many respects Il
Pretty good for protectionist pro m
,SSOr | =,