The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1891-08-26

protect his home, for he has none, but for the
home of the man who revels in luxury, and can
hire a substitute. All the poor man has is his
life. He is compelled to risk it, for what His
home? He has none. His life? No sane man
ever voluntarily puts his life in jeopardy to save
it. Then it is to save the homes and lifes of his
fellow-man, and to that he gives up all he has.
The millionaire gives even less than that. Cow
ard like, he stays at home, and pays three hun
dred or a thousand dollars for substitute, and
when il comes tc the support of this government,
it is proposed to tax him no more than any or
binary poor man, except so far as he may see fit
to indulge in luxuries. Shame on the philoso-
ply of this enlightened age!
Another point in the great production was,
that protection made everything cheaper; and
he illustrated his point partly by prediction
that in less than year poor mans tin pail
would be SO cheap that he can buy one for al
most nothing. This is strong for being original
We are taught by experience that overproduc-
ton cheapens everything that is overproduced.
The farmer knows that as well as anybody.
Protection can cheaper nothing, except by caus-
ing overproduction and that is what it does.
When enough tinware has been produced for
our supply, what is over and above that is sur
plus, and must go begging, because by Chinese
wall, we cannot exchange with other countries.
We have then overproduction in tinware. In
order to dispose of it, the price is lowered and
we have it as cheap as foreign goods without a
tariff added.
But in the meantime our infant industries
have grown to such enormous size and power,
that they can now dictate, and we will or will
not have goods upon the markets-the benign
results of trusts and combinations. Factories
will be closed and men turned out of employ
ment, and soon prices are raised again, and
wages lowered. All under the blessed institu-
ton of protection! While the prices of articles
remain low, it is only because the infants have
been sucked so long that they canuot contain
all the nourishment, and thus spew it up into
the very bosom that has fostered them.
But the great HoRTICULTURIST did not hon
estly apply his prediction. The original wa
based upon the utility of aluminium of which
much has been written lately in many leading
newspapers. Ii is a substance produced from
clay, and is lighter and said to be more durable
than tin. And it is predicted that it will ere lon
take the place of tin, and thus cheaper that ar
ticle. If this is correct, then it will only verif
again the proposition that discoveries and inven
tons have done more towards cheapening article
of utility than anything that legislation could dc
The development of our own natural resource:
which is constantly going on, tariff or no tariff
makes everything cheaper according to the de
gree of progress; and the ingenuity of tn
Yankee for inventing machines. places our na
ton at the head of any other on the globe in a
productions for mans convenience and happ
ness, and makes US truly great people, deserv
ing the very glowing encomium delivered by til
able gentleman upon our country, but by hiI
inferentially attributed to protection. God an
His blessings received no credit, but Reput
lican party has done it all.
Much more might be said, but forbear.
may be of interest, however, to mention rigf
here, that the Senator was dumbfounded whe
asked, after he brushed down his feathers, VIII
American manufacturers will sell their produc
cheaper in Canada or South America than
our own protected America, he simply said, a
don't know ~