Custer weekly chronicle. [volume] (Custer City, S.D.) 1890-1931, 1892-12-10
George Ticknor Curtis Speaks Again.

that in the last Presidential campaign,
although have long acted and voted
with the democratic party, felt obliged
to repudiate the anti-protection plank
embi aced in the democratic platform
that was adopted at Chicago last June.
Born and bred in Massachusetts,, q state
which owes all its prosperity TO protec-
tive tariffs; taught constitutional law
and political economy by Daniel Web
ster and Joseph Story; and intimately
acquainted from my youth upward with
the wise and enterprising men who
founded the great manufacturing estab-
lishments Of my native state--the Boots,
the Lswrences, the Aepletons and the
Lowells-I have been prots1js jsnist
ever since became voter, and that is
nearly go years ago.
BY sheer Misrepresentation and by
appeals 10 the low prejudicss Of the So
called "poor" against the so-called
"rich," the present democratic leaders
haye persuaded large maiorities or plur-
alities to go against the best interests of
the nation. This shows how much the
people of this country still need to be
educated politically on this great public
question. The supposed poor" must
learn to conquer their prejudices. They
must learn that there l. no other coun-
try in The world in which wealth is 80
generally diffused as it is in this; and
that, properly speaking, we have no
poor excepting the paupsrs who are
supported by private charity or at the
public expense. A man who has
capacity to labor-who has muscle.
manual skill. intelligence and expert
ence in calling-is in a just sense
capitalist. To call him "poorsman is
to degrade him to the level Of the in
mates Of workhcuse. Yet there are
thousands and thousands who do not
! realize this. and who allow the dema-
gogues of our land TO treat them as If
there were natural antagonism be-
tween them and the classes who are
called "rich" All this ought to be cor
rected. and to a great extent it can be.
know so well many Of the men who
foisted the anti-protection plank into
the Chicago platform that have no
difficulty in judging Of their motives.
They are not free traders on conviction.
They went upon the principle of "any.
thing to beat the republicans and gain
political power" thereby msnifesting a
lack of all principle. They raised the
false cry that protective tariff is both
unconstitutional and undemocratic.
They debauched the minds of great
numbers Of people with false ideas, and
bI9ggh abeut Jtbisv qhseateryp2lllb|ijseaal
whom they had persuaded te lend
themselves to their schemes
1t is historically certain that the
trainers of the constitution. the genera.
ton of men who established it, the first
congress, Washington and his Cabinet.
all held that protection of onr own
manufactures is both constitutional and
necessary These great men made a
wide distinction between taxes and
duties, in order that the congress, when
levying the latter, might protect our
own manufacturers that were then in
operation, and might encourage the
growth of others 1t is equally certain
that every democratic president that
we have ever had-Madison. jackson,
Jefferson, Van Buren,, Pierce and
Buchanan-was as much a protectionist
as any Fedsralist or Whig or Republican
who has held the office.
notice that certain republicans have
expressed the hope that the democrats
will gain a majority in the senate SO
that the experiment of free trade can
be tried. They think it will fail and
that the republican party will thus re.
gain power, which they will thereafter
hold for long course Of years. do
not like such tactics. They bear too
close a resemblance to the tactics of
your adversaries. They went for free
trade in order to gain political power.
You are advised to go for free. trade,
temporarily, in order to recover the
power that you have lost. l do not wish
the experiment of free trade to be tried
for this or any other purpose. This is
not q country In which It SHOULD be
tried, for it will inevitably result In an
incalculable loss Of national and in
dividual wealth and in great injury to
the laboring people who are employed
in all kinds Of manufactures.
Let US suppose that in the next con.
gress sub committee Of the Ways and
Means are assembled to make q ii,ew
schedule of duties for new tariff on the
dr!us:Ye :dca CT tariff Tor revenue
only" They will find 1t practically i'm
possible. They will fret determine
what amount of money must be obtain.
ed from duties in order to avoid direct
taxation. Then they will proceed to
consider the articles on which the duties
are to be laid. On the FIRST one that
comes up. the question will be the same
that arose in the 6rst congress, namely.
what duty will the article bear, how
much revenue can be derived from 1t,
and what would be the effect on our
own manufactures Of imposing no high
or duty than such that is barely neces-
sary to producs the amount of money
that we expect to derive frsn this par
ticulsr commodity Here there will be
interminable disputes and consrovsr.
saries. ending In either disagreement
or in bad and injurious legislation,
which will flood the country with for.
eign goods that can be made cheaper
than here. In short, neither capital moi
labor can afford to enter upon any ex.
pertinent on this subject. especially after
the long course of years during which
both OF them have enjoyed the benefits
OF protection. II 10 one Of the funda.
mental principles OF political economy
that when country has long followed
tha Uoliev ~ urof orfsv,<, lar 49,. A., a.,..