The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1892-03-27
THE TARIFF Is THE ISSUE.

There is one thing that the action in the
lower House of Congress last Friday on
the silver bill will do. 1t will remove the
silver question from among the issues to be
fought out in the next presidential cam
palgn. However much strong party in
the United States may desire the free coin
age of silver, and however much they
would like to make it an issue in the ma
tional contest the country is not yet pre-
pared to give it that prominence; that is, if
we may take the action of the Representa-
tiYes as rejecting the wishes of their re-
spective constituencies, aud we think that
q pretty safe thing to do. The silver cues
ton out of the way, it will leave tariff re-
form in all the holder relief as the great
issue between the parties for the campaign
OF 1892. Democrats will hail that issue
with satisfaction, for it is one which in
wolves not only the prosperity of the coun-
try, but which goes TO the fundamental
principles of the respective parties, and is,
under changed form, the battle field of
liberty and authority. BY that we mean
this: Authority, that is, govern
ment, whether personifed under
the name of emperor, king, parlia-
ment, or ruling Rristocrscy, las
ever needed means with which to carry on
the legitimate affairs of government as
well as to embellish its splendor,
and live together with the individuals or
classes it has favored in ease and luxury.
To accomplish this, since it produces moth
ing of itself, it of necessity has to impose
taxes, in some way or other, on the people
living within its jurisdiction. In this tax
alton, government exercises its very
highest prerogative. We know of no
higher exercise of authority than that
which goes to men and takes from them that
which they have earned by hard and hon
est toll, or by skill and bold enterprise.
AS we know of no higher exercise of au d.
thority than that of taxation, so we know
of nothing which so nearly touches the
interests of the people as the exercise of
that same authority. hence it has been
upon this issue that the battle of liberty
has been fought out. Kings have de-
manded money from the people to carry
on unjust wars, to gid thrones with need
less splendor, TO keep up courts in sense
less grandeur or make wealthy unworthy
favorites. These things became unbear-
able, until the people revolted
against the exercise of this high
authority. and the sentiment that
the people ought not to be taxed without
their consent, crystallized into recognized
principle of human right; and through it
the masses have learned that they can con-
troll the government, and being able TO con-
troll it, the great truth has dawned upon
the minds OF the most intelligent nations
that government is not the master, but the
servant of the people
Where taxation is direct, where the COL
lector comes into the homes OF the people
and there leyies and collects the tax, all
that we have said about taxation being the
highest exercise of authority is plain
enough; but when that same authority il
exercised in an indirect manner some peo
pie seem not TO sense that it is the same ex-
ercise of authority. Only let the exercise
of authority be indirect-though the result
be the same-and there are people who
lose sight of the odiousness OF the transac-
ton altogether. Just keep the assessor and
collector out of the house, and let the tax
be collected by smiling, sweet-scented
clerk in our great retail establishments, or
by some pleasing, manly looking fellow
VINO sells US our plows and wagons at the
hardware houses, and they are not taxed at
all But as matter of fact. whether the tax
be collected by an officer of the government
or by the drygoods clerk or by the wagon
dealer, In It's results it Is the same; it is a
burden on the industry Of the people, ana
question in which, above all other cues
tons, they are interested
That the tariff is tax is SO self-eyident
proposition that it needs no argument to