The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1891-09-29
sEATTLE. TUESDAY,, SEP. 90.
THE DEMOCRATIC HUMoRIsTs.

aries in Washington will be long remem-
bered, for 1t fixes the date of the develop
ment OF Senator Eshelman as a political
humorist. We have already noted his
ironical imputation Of large credit to the
Democracy for the generous assistance"
they extended to the cause Of negro eman-
cipation. The corresponding humor of this
congratulation sweeps man of keen sense
of the ridiculous off his feet when he re-
members that there are twenty-six con-
gressional districts of the states of South
Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi
and Louisiana in which the census of 1880
showed that there was a majority of
colored males of voting age, and that al
though these voters are solidly Republican,
the Democrats have regularly counted
them out and sent Democrat to congress
to represent each one of these districts.
The Birmingham, Ala, Age-Herald adds
piquancy to the remarks of our Democratic
humorist when it says: "There is no
place where the negro is not allowed the
unrestricted right of ballot, unless it be in
those regions where he constitutes a ma
jority."
The Democratic New Orleans States forth
fies the tradition of Democratic "asSst-
ance" to emancipation and sympathy for
the negro when 1t says: "The people of
Mississippi do not steal or rob ballot
boxes. as General Chalmers has charged,
but they do suppress the negro vote, and
this fact they make no effort to conceal"
Henry Watterson, of the Louisville
Co'srier-JouTnai, confirms the general i'm
preston that Senator Eshelman was wink
ing with one eye and weeping with the
other when he spoke of the Democracy as
the apant-courier of emancipation, for he
says: 81 should be entitled to no respect
or credit il pretended that there was
fair poll or count Of the black votes in
states where there Is a negro majority"
But Senator Eshelman's reputation for
political humor was further illustrated by
his telling the farmer that he did not owe
the creation and preservation of his home
market to protection, because the price of
his wheat was fixed in Liverpool. OF
course Senator Eshelman is too bright
man not to know that while the farmer
raises between 10000, 900 and GOO 900, 600
bushels of wheat he sells Europe but $780,
100000 to 1so, 0Oo,0 900 of bushels. 1t is very
clear that there is home market that is
worth far more to the farmer than the
foreign market; it is clear that the crea-
ton and maintenance of this home mar
ket for the farmers product IS due to pro-
lection, which has built up and main
tanned our manufacturing classes, who
r.
his home market. If it were not for these
industries manufacturing labor would
crowd the ranks of agriculture to the de-
probation of farms, farm labor and pro-
ducts. The division of labor and produc-
ton between agriculture and manu-
features makes home market for the
farmer, who supplies the food wants Of
manufacturing labor, while manufacture
ing labor supplies the farmer with his
clothing, his shelter and his tools. This
is what protection does for the United
States. a country that raises vast deal
more food than il can consume, and there
fore cannot afford to have either its whole
population in agriculture, or its whole
population in manufactures, as is the stu-
alton in England, whose incapacity to
raise her food supply has driven her into
manufactures and free trade. With the
condition exactly reversed in America,
where We are land rich, thinly populated
and raise more food than we consume we
cannot logically be benefited by adopting
the policy favored by England, which Is
land poor. thickly populated, cannot pos
sibly compete with the world in cheap
agriculture and failing to raise her own
food is forced TO be exclusively a manu-
featuring nation.
Senator Eshelman is too bright a man.
We repeat. not TO know all this, and there
fore we are obliged to assume that his
'home market" humor was intended ex-
clusively for home consumption; he
wanted to show the visiting Democratic
missionaries what an enormous fiy the
party toad can swallow in Washington
without winking. As political humorist
Senator Eshelman has contributed more
TO the gayety of nations than anybody of
recent history, always excepting Lord
Ssckville West and the late DR.. Burchard.
One of his finest strokes of humor was
his playful assertion that the farmer can
not possibly he benefited by the tariff on
farm products because he has surplus.
and therefore he must seek foreign mar.
ket 10 dispose of it OF course Mr.. Eshel
man is too bright and well informed a man
TO believe thai no products come in 10 the
United States in competition with Amer
lean farm products. He of course is IA
miliar with the following list Of importa-
tions of farm products imported in iSqD:
Cattle, horses and sheep .............S S.-a 9--
RresdStGf Observation-Disclosures. eass -
FRUITS l&S1l.SoI
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS. l.l4S.s&5
Hops l.o5S,Gis
2,iSS,02i
Hemp 80 --.-,- --.........-.....-.. -S4l. $50
Meat and dairy products ............. 20Ii'sI4
kice., 49,. -..----.-..-... 2042.l2o
Ilnseed, hAxseed and other seeds -. SAs16sI
Leaf tobacco. --......... i.6o1.lIs
Negetaoles OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES, 444a,ST4
Wool. 1640 SS
Total s79.SI2.l02
i5062,0s6 dozen eggs imported In ISsa
Mr. Eshelmso knows IN At IL, 49, ma -,