The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1891-09-23
R. Q. Mills.

r. Q. Mills.
The Chicago Herald in reviewing
very able address by Hon. Roger O.
Mills, at Iowa City, few days ago,
happily says:
Addressing an audience at Iowa City
Roger Q. Mills said that the real value
of the manufacturers Of the country
was about IS, SOC, 900, 900 q year, butsthe
market value is 81, 500, ,OOO, 900. Ofthis
market price $4,000, 0OO, 900 is tariff.
That is Mr.. Mills estimate of the an
nual cost of protection to the country,
and as he has lately been making
special investigation of the subject his
estimate may be accepted with no liEsia
confidence.
1t is not to be supposed, however, thai
Mr.. Mills intended to say tnt kht
manufacturers Of the county Gfe senS
Eriched to this enormous extent evky1
year by the operation of the tafiM
They are, no doubt, greatly enriched
Iby exacting s., 2,00o, 900, 900 year more
for their product than they are worth.
but they do not by any means gain all
that consumers lose. Much the greater
part of the total is dead loss to the
country because it goes to pay for un.
economical production and waste. This
is worse than If the manufacturers
were enriched to the full extent of the
80, 900, 600, 900, for total loss is worne
than maldistribution-
To the question: Why not protect
agriculture to the same extent? Mr..
Herald has done, that no industry which
regularly produces surplus for export
can be protected by the tariff, because
prices are determined in foreign mar.
kets where worldwide competition pre-.
walls The wheat of the American
farmer has to meet the wheat of Russia,
Egypt India, South America and Aus,
tralasia upon equal terms in the Liver.
pool market. No American tariff can
help the American farmer there in the
least. Therefore no American tarih
can help him in the least at home, since
the price at home is governed by the
price there.
Mr.. Mills was able to support this
position before the Iowa audience on
the authority of Senator Allison, who
had so much to do with the construc.
ton of the Mckinley tariff. but who
was willing to admit number of years
ago that the tariff could not protect
the western farmer for the reason tuas
stated. Mr.. Allison made that adnia-
sion in 1872, when there was an attempt
to reform the war tariff. His excuse a1
that time for continuing the tarid
policy was that the farmer was losing
the European market and 1t was ne0ae
sary to protect home manufaeturerai Ii
order to create home market for the
farmer to take the place Of the foreign
market which he wss losing.
Mr.. Mills may or may not have point.
ed out to his lowe audience the fact
that Mr.. AIlison's home market has MOI
been created He made his promise Of
home market at time when the e&e
ports of wheat for six years had 9veE1
aged only about So 900 600 bushels =
year. That was more than IL had avegS
aged before, so that It was not qstea
true that the Amertceu farmer was los.
ing his foreign market Well hfspok
icy was steadily pursued, waeh o1ly .
trif1ing relaxation from 1874 to 1878, and
yet we find that for the six years ends
ing with 1883 the exports Of wheat Av.
eTeged almost exactly $50, QO0. 900 bush-
els year, OF more than four times the
average for the six years before Mr..
Allison promised the farmers Of the
West home market If they would sub
nit to the payment of tribute TO tho
protected manufacturing interests .
few years longer. Mr.. Mills might
have asked his Iowa audience land rers
haps he did ask how long IL would
take at this rate to create home mar
ket for farm products BY the tariH
method as proposed by their SENATOR
Mr.. Allison.
With such facts as these before them
the farmers of Iowa must see that the
pretense of protecting their interests i1
fhe Mckinley act is an utterly false
pretense, and they can hardly fail to
suspect that it was made for no other
purpose than to deceive them-so make
them think they were protected when
| they were not, and hold them In the
ranks of the republican party, and keep
them voting for system under which
not only they but three-fourthe of the
people of the country are mercilessly
| deeced, while not more than one man
in ten derives any benefit whatever
from the fleeing.
The farmers Of Iowa ought to be able
TO see by this time that the tariff for
protection is a system Of mise pre-.
lenses, as Samuel ]. Tiiden seid It was
IN 1870 They ought 30 be able TO see
chat whoever else may be benefited
they are always the victims of the sys-
tenn. The extent to which they IN
Iowa are victimized they may roughly
estimate from the statement Of Mr..
| Mills that the tariff costs the country
81. 900, 900, 900 a year. Assuming thar
the agricultural state OF Iowa is bled
only in proportion to population, its
contribution to the annual plunder Il
not far from S84, 600. 600. or about $50 on
the average for every man, woman and
child In the state. And yet until re-
Gently the farmers of Iowa have gone
right on voting the republican ticket
and laying their mistortunes, or their
bad fortunes and their debts. 70 every
cause rather than the right one. They
seem to have begun to see some things
In their true light