The Newberry herald and news. (Newberry, S.C.) 1884-1903, 1891-02-26


is entirely in the interest of monopoly.
What possible interest our farmers and
laboring classes can have in such a
corrupt and corrupting scheme it is
impossible to conceive.
The only way can explain their
advocacy of it is their utter incom-
prehension of what will almost certain
ly be it's effect. They are deceived in
it, like the laborers in our factories were
as to what would be the effect of pre-
lection. These were taught to believe
that protection would enable them to
get higher wages, whereas, it has SIM
ply given bigger profits to their em-
ployers, while increasing to them the
cost of all the necessaries of life. They
find when it is too late, that instead of
being protection in any proper sense OF
the term, high tariff is simply taxa
ton of the masses in the interest OF
certain classes. So, our farmers and
laborers will find, should the silver bill
unfortunately become law, that it is
only a plan to tax the country-the
masses-in order to pay these silver
barons a bounty of 20 per cent on the
market value of their product. Add to
this the revolution it must necessarily
create in our currency and in all COM
mercial transactions, and we can form
some faint idea of the injustice, wrong
and danger of such measure. Our
farmers are asa rule conservative and
honest class of people, and if they could
be brought to see the inju tice, dis
honesty and danger Of this silver bill
they would be the very last class of
our people to advocate it. But what
shall We think of able party leaders,
who, while knowing full well its in
justice and dishonesty, and its danger
to the best interests of the country,
will still support it, because they think
it to be the winning card? Can such
men be regarded as patriots in any
true sense of the term? Are they not
rather simply time-serving, selfish
politicians, incapable Of any higher
conception of patriotism and true states
manship?
Our farmers and laboring classes
have unquestionably much ground for
complaint, and there is no wonder
they are organized to redress their
grievances.
ROBBED OF BILLIONS BY THE TARIFF.
And it is eminently right and proper
that theyshould DC 50. They have been
so 1nuchTmposed upon because Of their
want of organization. Ever since the
war the very life-blood has been taxed
out of them to the extent of hundreds
of millions annually in the interest of
a comparatively few favored monopo-
lies. This system had its origin during
the war as war measure and ought to
have been abandoned at its close. But
unfortunately the monopolies had al
ready grown too powerful, and have
been able to control legislation ever
since. The amount annually paid into
our overfowing government treasury
on account of our high tariff, wrong as
this is, has been but a small proportion
of the actual cost of the tariff to the
people. A very much larger amount
has gone into the Golfers of these favor
ed monopolies. 1t is not possible to
know with any degree Of exactness
perhaps how much the tariff costs the
people at large in this respect. But a
careful estimate made by prominent
tariff reform Republican Congressman
a few years ago was that the increased
costs of home products by reason of the
tariff" amounted in a single year-19S4
to $3.50, ,s3S,637.
Supposing this to he a fair average per
annum since the war-twenty-five
years-we would have the almost in
conceivable sum of well on to S14, ,000,-
600, as the amount paid by the people
at large during this period into the cof-
fers, not of the Government, but Of the
favored monopolies. If we add to this
the revenue of the Government from
the tariff of say S2O0,O00,00O annually,
we get somewhat approximately the
annual tax on our people by means Of
the tariff alone, that is over S750, 1000
annually. Note, too, that much less
than one-third of this goes into the
Government treasury, and the remain
der to the favored few. No wonder the
rich grow richer, and the poor poorer.
No wonder our farmers have their
lands mortgaged, and our laboring
classes find it more and more difficult
to live on their incomes. No wonder if
our elections in many places have be-
come synonyms for fraud and corrup-
ton, and that so many of our legisl:-
tors have become purchasable.
WHY WILL NOT THE FARMERS SEE?
But the wonder is that our farmers,
intelligent as they are, should not per-
ceive the prime cause of their griev-
ances, aud wage war of determination
against it, instead of being mislead by
ignorant or designing parties to wage
bitter warfare against honest money,
and against institutions, like our ma
tional banks, that have had nothing
whatever to do with producing their
grievances. If our farmers would sue
ceed in permanently improving their
condition. they must give up the idea
of revolutionizing our monetary system
and of substituting in its stead de-
based and Auctuating currency. No
nation or people has ever yet been pros
porous with such a currency, and it
may be safely said none ever will be.
If we are so in love with silver that we
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